86 stood transfixed on the sandy shore, caught in the early morning glow as cold water swept against his feet. He looked out at the colors of yellow, red, and orange that were now rising out of the distance, merging night with dawn. The magnitude of its beauty was inspirational. Everything was always so much more beautiful when experiencing it for the first time. This was his first sunrise.
86 was still, listening to the echo of the waves beating themselves against the beach. He looked down to examine himself. He was now dressed in a black muscle shirt, worn out blue jeans full of holes, old brown boots, and a red bandana to conceal his horns. They had even taken further precautions to hide whatever might "single him out" by giving him colored contacts and dyeing his hair a raven black, which was tied back into a short ponytail. They had stressed the use of stealth for this mission so much he was surprised his ears hadn't bleed.
You shouldn't have ignored me back there...Tomo, the voice said.
"Don't call me that," he spat back. Tomo was the name they had finally decided to give him. He guessed they figured it would be much less conspicuous then a number. But he was not about to take on a name given to him by humans.
Why? It think it suits you very well, the voice said patronizingly. He had to admit, he felt a strange symbolic aura in the name. Like the name would reveal a much deeper meaning to it before the end.
"I still don't like it."
This voice was his only bond. He knew it wasn't real, but that held little, if not no significance. To him, it was his only friend. On the loneliest nights in that dark room, he would talk to it, and it would talk back. Offering words of solace and sympathy. But as he got older, those words turned into an urge for blood. He often wondered whether the voice was his diclonius instincts, or a creation from his own insanity.
You should have killed them all once you were free. Tomo decide to ignore the last comment.
"Lucy is close by," Tomo said, hoping to change the subject. Tomo had wondered how he was going obtain her. He was left with a great deal of independence by Kakuzawa. As long as he captured Lucy and brought her back, he didn't care how he did it. And with a quick warning to not draw any unwanted attention, was set off on his holy pilgrimage.
How he would do this was a problem he still had yet to overcome. Detaining her would not be easy. She would obviously resist him. But he was confident he could explain things to her and convince her to comply. But how to approach her?
How do you plan to restrain her, the voice asked mirroring his exact thoughts.
"I'll think of something," he added coolly.
Are you looking forward to finally meeting her?
It wasn't surprising how well the voice could read into his mind. He wasn't just looking forward to meeting Lucy. No, that just didn't do justice to the excitement he was feeling. He had heard so much about the almighty and terrible Lucy. The presence he had felt when she was first brought to the facility three years ago was so dark it was intoxicating. He could everything about her. Her power and her suffering as if they were his own. He envisioned what an image of beauty she must be with all her hate and skill. He wasn't just looking forward to it. He was ecstatic about it.
"You have no idea."
Now motivated, Tomo put his boots back on and retied them, making sure to commit the sunrise he was passionately observing to memory. Maybe I'll watch a few with you Lucy.Then, he set off in search of his love.
Lucy ran as hard and fast as her sore legs would permit. She didn't know what she was running from, she only knew that whatever it was, she had to escape from it. She was surrounded on all sides by a void that obscured her senses. She didn't even know where she was running to.
Hey freak, a cruelly familiar voice called out from nowhere, You don't get it do you? You're nothing but a monster! You don't belong with anyone!
Lucy pushed her legs harder, trying to outrun the voices tormenting her.
Murder, called out nameless voices from every angle. She pushed her legs harder and harder to the point of numbness. She ran until a severed torso appeared suddenly in front of her. It was the body of a young girl no older then seven, her hair tied up by a pink bow. She laid in a pool of warm blood, the last few seconds of her life immortalized on her face. Her eyes were empty and full of her last tears.
You're the reason he suffers, Kanae said, her corpse stationary and unmoving. You don't deserve him. You killed his family! YOU KILLED ME!
Lucy felt a pair of hands tightly grip her shoulders and spin her around. But there was nobody there, save for the cry of a young boy.
NO MORE! PLEASE STOP IT! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Lucy winched her eyes shut, trying to will the memories to vanish. When she opened her eyes again, Kanae's body had disappeared, but was replaced by something far worse. Looming before her, ready to pounce, was a figure she didn't recognize. Lucy tried to utilize her vectors, but her mind was paralyzed by fear. His aura felt like fire. As if his insides were ablaze, heat breathing through his pores burning her alive. Before Lucy could lift her gaze to his face, there was a blinding flash, a searing pain inside her head, and a bloodthirsty laughter. Then she fell into oblivion.
Lucy jolted upright in her bed so fast it made her back ache in protest. She glanced quickly from side to side to get a firm grip on her surroundings. Breathing a deep, heavy sigh of relief, she placed her palm over her face. Just a another dream. Her white tank top, which was a size too big for her, was soaked in her own perspiration. She had been having a lot of nightmares lately.
Her dreams were often visited by the ghost of her victims, back from death to plague her. But something else worried her this time. When she had seen that giant, she felt a faint, familiar pressure inside her head. In was only for the briefest of microseconds, just barely on the edges of her awareness. But it was so powerful. It felt like a spike being driven into her skull. She wanted to shrug it off as just sensing Nana in the house, but she would have recognized her. Then, just as suddenly as it appeared, it was gone. And she also wondered who that behemoth of a man was in her sleep. She was regrettably well aquatinted with the faces of those she had killed. So then who was he? And why was he in her dreams?
Lucy turned in her bed to seek the shelter of Kohta's love, only to be cruelly reminded that Kohta was not there. Kohta had offered for them to share a room, but she had politely declined his offer. As much as she wanted to accept, she just wasn't comfortable with the idea of sharing a bed with him. It wasn't because of anything he did, she was just afraid of herself. What if she somehow lose control of herself again? It was nights like this when she wished she had said yes. It was funny. Her own self torture had left a far worse impression then anything she had suffered by human hands.
Lucy rested her head back down on the pillow and pulled the covers in an attempt to get back to sleep. She doubted sleep would return to her.
By the time the first glimpses of morning filtered through the windows of Kaede house, Nana was already awake, dressed, and making her way down the wooden staircase, trying hard not to step on any squeaky steps in fear of waking the others. Nana was usually the first one up. She would wake up every morning, feed Wanta, and anything else she could do to help jump start the day. Today she thought she'd get breakfast started. She still had a lot of learning to do, but she had improved immensely. It was only recently that she had been trusted enough into the kitchen by herself. It wasn't much, but at least it was something.
But Nana got up early for another reason as well. Before heading downstairs, she would quietly open the rooms of everyone in the house to make sure Kohta, Yuka, and Mayu were ok. And to make sure Lucy was still in her own room. Lucy's presence left Nana in an almost constant state of anxiousness. She didn't trust Lucy. Why should she? Lucy had torn her body apart, all the while pitilessly mocking her. She had slaughtered countless others without hesitation. She was a vicious animal. Plain and simple. There was nothing to trust. But Nana remained silent. Everyone seemed to genuinely seemed to like her, especially Kohta.
But Nana had to be the one to protect them. Papa had asked her to do whatever it took to be happy. Nana planned to honor that. She was determined to protect her friends from any danger. And if that meant having to fight Lucy again at one point, then so be it. Nana was finally happy, and Lucy would not destroy that.
As Nana entered the kitchen, she decide that she have another try at making a "traditional" Japanese breakfast. Or at least that was what Mayu and Yuka had called it. Nana carefully went over the steps again in her head before starting, making sure to not make a mistake. Several of her attempts at cooking had ended in her food being burnt or inedible, with Mayu or Yuka always coming to fix her mess. After systematically studying the steps and double checking twice, she started. She went and pulled out a clean pot from under the stove, paused, then went to filled it up with water. She looked like a child who was going through a critical exam in home economics at school.
Nana heard the door open and close behind her. She didn't need to turn to see who it was. Only one person could open a door so darkly.
"Good morning Lucy," Nana said simply out of good manners. Lucy ignored her greeting, walking straight for the counter, grabbing a fresh apple out of a bowl of fruit, then walking back out of the kitchen. Nice to see you too! Before turning her attention back on the rice, Nana decided she was not going to let her guard down today.
It was still early morning, yet the sidewalks had already filled with throngs of people moving into their daily routines. Thick groups of people standing shoulder to shoulder as shops opened, businesses began their work day, and traffic littered the streets with wails of horns. Tomo walked briskly amongst the compact crowds with no destination, taking right and left turns every couple of blocks. As he did so, he keep tossing in and out ideas on how to capture Lucy, each plan more absurd then the previous. This was more difficult then Tomo had originally anticipated.
Getting Lucy to return with him was going to be one thing, but he also had to find her first. While his natural abilities to sense her could tell him if she was near, they couldn't exactly provide a direct map to her location. Especially while suppressing his own essence from Lucy. It was a little trick he learned at the facility. He had the ability to mask his own diclonius aura. The only problem was that doing so interfered with his own ability to sense others of his race.
Also, he had recently sensed that Number 7 was here as well. Apparently she had survived her encounter with Number 35. This was rather unexpected. And from the pressure in his brain, she was with Lucy. She could be troublesome. He could try to get her to come with him also. But what if she resisted? Number 7, or so he had heard, was rather fond of humans. Things were starting to become increasingly more difficult.
"You wouldn't have any ideas would you," he jokingly asked the voice.
You could kill a few people to pass the time. Tomo instantly scolded himself for asking. He should have known better by now.
"And what exactly would that accomplish?"
It would be fun.
"I thought we were supposed to keep a low profile. Besides, we've had his talk too many times before." It was Tomo's belief that diclonius were meant to surpass the humans, but in a rather different way. He believed that they were meant to out breed them with seer numbers. While silpelits infected carriers with the vector virus, he and Lucy would give birth to pure diclonius. And then they would have children. And the cycle would continue until the diclonius outnumbered the humans. To Tomo, using vectors to kill was an insult to their original purpose.
"If I keep killing humans, how will we sustain our numbers over them? We need them as carriers." At least for now.
Awwww. Just one quick one. An invisible hand shot out from Tomo's back and instantly targeted a random pedestrian. Mere inches from lopping them in halve, Tomo restrained his vectors and withdrew them back into hi body.
"I SAID NO! We don't want any unwanted attention." Tomo turned to his right and began walking down a deserted alley way, filthy with an odorous dumpster overflowing with trash, a rusty fire escape, and moldy brick walls on both sides of him. The morning light did not fully reach this ally, casting it into a halve shade of night.
"What I need to do is think of a plan to deal with Lucy and Number 7," Tomo pleaded, hoping the voice might come up with an idea. Before the voice to give a reply, a new and unfamiliar voice called out from behind him.
"HEY, FREAK BOY!" Tomo heard the hard stomp of a foot in a nearby puddle of water behind him and the unmistakable cocking of a firearm. Tomo turned, irritated at being interrupted during his thoughts. He confidently faced his challenger, knowing well that no human or diclonius could defeat him. The man was brandishing what looked like a normal human 9 mm pistol, aiming straight for Tomo's head. His face was contorted in an idiotic grin, his eyes obscured by sunglasses. He was tall and of wide build. His hair was a short light brown color, and was just a hint untidy. His clothes were covered with sporadic dirt spots and stains. He appeared to be a well dressed homeless man then anything.
"Now tell me, what the hell was with those fucking hands of yours?"
Bandoh sat on a street bench taking one last drag of his cigarette before tossing it aside. Shit! That's my last one for a while too. Ever since his last fight with Lucy, he had been living off his savings he had built up from his years in Special Assault. He continued to live in his makeshift home of abandoned crates down by the beach, spending money only for food and the occasional pack of cigarettes.
"Man, I want some real fucking food," he thought aloud as he took an aggressive bite into a pack of crackers he bought earlier, "Like some beef or something."
As Bandoh sat in the same dirty clothes he had been in since his last fight, he realized just a pathetic he looked.
"This is all that fucking bitches fault!" After she had left him on the beach that night, Bandoh had once again been fortunate enough to have been spotted by some random passer-by and taken to a local hospital. After he was healed and his robotic limbs repaired (which nearly depleted his account) he vowed he wouldn't leave this shit hole town until he found that bitch and killed her. Until then, he'd bury his pride and live this meager existence. If he eventually had that bitches head, then it'd all be worth it.
It wasn't just the fact that she had beaten him on two separate occasions, or the fact that she had the nerve to let him live each time. It was what she brought out in him the last time they fought. As she stood triumphantly over his pain racked body, the same dark expression in her eyes, for the first time in his life, Bandoh had felt fear.
The first time he had faced the possibility of death with words of vengeance. Even after having his eyes gouged out he remained unafraid. But the last time, as he thought she was about to finish him off, he felt like begging. Pleading for her to spare his pathetic life. He wanted to cry like a baby. She had exposed something in him he didn't think he had in himself. Weakness.
As Bandoh finished the last sleeve, he got up to dispose of the wrappers into a garbage bin, when out of the corner of his eye he noticed a familiar, transparent arm. Thinking he finally found her, he quickly went for the gun he keep in his inner jacket pocket. Hands on the grip, ready to strike, he turned to face his enemy. But it wasn't Lucy.
From the bodily structure, it had to be a boy. Bandoh starred at his back as he recoiled his vectors. He even had a bandana on to hide his freaky horns. No doubt about. He then proceeded to follow him, making sure to keep at least two meters between them. What as a monster like him doing out among humans? Whatever the reason, after months of searching, he finally had a possible lead as to were that bitch might be hiding. As the boy turned down an alley way, Bandoh knew this was his chance. He drew his weapon, took careful aim, and made his challenge.
"HEY, FREAK BOY!" By the uninterested look he gave him as he saw the gun pointed in his face, any doubts Bandoh might have had were instantly vaporized.
"Now tell me, what the hell was with those fucking hands of yours?" He didn't reply.
"I'll bet that bandana is hiding a pair of horns aren't they?" Again, all he did was continue to stare. He looked like he had been stopped by some annoying pest rather then a beast bound for retribution.
"ANSWER ME YOU FREAK!" He knew it probably wasn't the best idea to provoke this potential threat, but he had built up a lot of frustration that needed to burst free. Bandoh tightened his grip out anger at being ignored, hoisting it threateningly further in hopes of coaxing a response.
"You must be joking right?" he finally said.
"What," Bandoh answered back, confused by his meaning.
"Obviously you know what I am and what I'm capable of. And with that knowledge do you seriously think you can intimidate me with something as crude as a gun?"
Bandoh stifled a small snicker. "Normally no. But this ain't no average gun here. It has a custom made tungsten bullet. And I don't think your arms will deflect it." He added that last part with a mocking confidence. That runt from the beach hadn't been able to stop these babies, so he shouldn't be able to either. Lucky me I still have some of these left over.
"Care to test that theory?" He held the same poise and assured stature the others had faced Bandoh down with. Those same black hole like eyes. Empty and threatening. Bandoh vowed not to be beaten by those eyes ever again.
"Your funeral." Bandoh took perfect aim and pulled the trigger.
It was all instantaneous. There was a deafening bang that echoed throughout the walls of the back alley. The bullet flew toward its victim with lightening speed. To fast for any eye to follow. And a mere few inches from the center of his forehead, the bullet was stopped by an invisible wall. Bandoh's face grew wide with shock.
"But...how?" The bullet continued to hover in place. They both stood still as a pair of statues in silence. A frozen picture in time until, a few seconds later, the heavy bullet fell to the concrete ground with a ringing clang.
"Oh, too bad. Looks like your precious gun is useless," he said with the condescending tone of a parent talking to a ignorant child. Bandoh prepared to try again, but with equal lightening speed, the gun was wrenched from his hands, floating overhead out of his reach. The crunching sound of metal, and soon the gun was nothing more then a broken chunk of metal.
"So what are you going to do now," he challenged, an evil smirk curving his lips. Bandoh's body went tense, ready to duel with his own hands should the situation call for it.
"I' d like to ask you a few questions," he said calmly.
"Oh yeah like what?" Bandoh spat fiercely back at him.
"You can see my vectors yes?" He didn't continued to sound calm despite Bandoh's rude reply.
"What about it?" Bandoh wasn't sure where he was going with this.
"Interesting. You wouldn't by any chance have seen another diclonius around here? A girl perhaps?" he asked with a confident grin.
"YOU KNOW THAT BITCH?!" Bandoh faces once again became scrunched with fury. Immediately after he said this, the other mans face grew an even wider smile. He seemed pleased about something that had been said. He started walking an even pace toward Bandoh. Bandoh took his fighting stance, preparing himself for any sudden movements of attack. But the man just walked quietly past him before turning back around to face Bandoh once again.
"Why don't take a walk and have a little chat?" he said politely, gesturing an arm toward the busy streets. Cautiously, Bandoh accepted his invitation.