Author's Note: We're back to Komui and Miranda. I need to write more about what happened to him. He's disappeared. So what happened? What was he looking for? Was it involved with what he was looking into? Who or what was stalking him? I might have some answers next season. Honestly, I have the same problem here that I am having with the Tea Leaves series. I need some new ideas and stat. Otherwise... Yeah. I will have to see what I am doing next week. There are three more weeks before the season finale. For now, enjoy this week's key.
Key Twenty-Two: Clues:
Did Komui know that he was going to disappear? On the surface, the answer would be no. However, if you look closer, there might be hints that say otherwise. He left pages of notes hidden all over Heaven. Most of the angels didn't even notice them. They would have to go looking for them first. Now, Miranda had to be the one to find them.
It all started with a key.
Miranda awoke when someone knocked on her door. Nobody was outside in the hall. However, she found a small folded-up envelope at her feet.
"Hm?" The angel knelt down and picked it up. Miranda gently pulled open the top flap. Inside was a small keycard.
"What is this?"
Miranda pulled it out and looked at it. She narrowed her eyes as she tried to place where she's seen this card before.
However, she's not the only one looking for those notes. They already knew where to look. They just didn't have the access.
The following are all from Komui's notes.
-Six Months Ago-
It doesn't add up. I keep looking at the files and the notes. It doesn't add up. I keep looking at all of it. What exactly caused the Great Crash? There's never been an exact explanation for it. Well, not officially actually.
I have only managed to find pieces so far. It looks like there's been some sort of bargain made. That's all I could make out so far. A bargain? What kind of bargain? I tried to think back about what changed for us. It can't be to end the war. It's still going on. New weapons? Equipment? Recruits? I haven't seen any of those.
What was the bargain for?
There was someone knocking on my door. I'm going to have to put this away for now. I will write more when I have the chance.
I've hidden everything that I need in a box in the locker room for the time being. Still, I am going to need to find a better hiding place later.
-Present Day-
The missing keep piling up. What's one more angel? Not if they are in a higher position. That in itself had created quite a… let's call it a situation. Yeah, that's it. They have to keep quiet and look for Komui. How are they doing on that little search? Well… Not so good. What seems to be the problem?
It's not the resources. Heaven has plenty of that. Most of it is going to the endless war but there were still left over to find one of the higher-ups. The other angels have been using them to look for Lee Komui. They haven't had much luck.
Meanwhile, there is another search going on.
Miranda made her way down the locker room. She held out the keycard in her hand. The angel stood in Locker Number 1000. She slipped the card into the lock.
He watches her in the dark. This was going to be the right way to get what he wants faster. The trick was to stay hidden. His darkness provided the perfect cover. He can't follow too close. Though not as strong as the higher-ups, Miranda was still an angel.
Miranda opened the locker and reached inside.
-Five Months Ago-
[Komui's Notes]
I keep going down this rabbit hole. I keep finding more short video clips in those folders. They give me the creeps. At first glance, they don't look like they make sense. But I can't stop watching them. I have to know what it all means. There has to be a pattern there. I'm just not seeing it.
So far, I have been doing good to keep up with my work. Though, I have noticed some of the other angels have been giving me cold looks. It could be my imagination but I am going to have to be careful about this.
Oh, there's another thing that I have to write down before I forget. I keep uncovering art from this artist named Oze Juzo. I'm going to have to look him up later. There might be a clue somewhere. It could be nothing. Only one way to find out.
-Present Day-
The days keep going on. There is still a war, after all. Who is winning? Is anyone winning? Most angels don't even know what's going on. Who is the enemy again? That doesn't seem to matter anymore. Heaven is just tired of this war.
Surely, there had to be a way to end it. Maybe there is.
Miranda spread out the notes on her bed. There were more look pieces of torn paper. Some had writing on them. The angel narrowed her eyes.
"Hm…" she said. What was Komui trying to say to her? Was there a code she was missing? The angel sat back and rubbed her forehead.
"What are you trying to tell me, Mr. Lee?" she asked.
He has the answer. He just can't piece it together yet. That's why he needs her to do the heavy lifting. He doesn't have the hands or body to get the notes. All he has is his darkness. He still has to be quiet. So far, she hasn't picked up that she is being watched. Not him watching her at least. He prefers to keep it that way for the time being.
Miranda looked up when she heard knocking on her door.
"Coming!" the angel shouted. She shoved the notes under her pillow and walked up to the door.
-Four Months Ago-
[Komui's Notes]
There's somebody watching me. I'm not talking about the other angels either. There's something else. Someone else. Every time I look at what I've found in the box, I feel that someone is in the room with me. I've tried calling out to them but I get no response. I don't know what to make of it. I doubt that it is on my side.
The closer that I think I am getting, the more I keep uncovering. I don't want to see where this ends. I don't even think there is an ending. Okay, okay. I probably need to back up some.
Okay, I'm back on track now. I have started to sort out what I am finding. There are four things that I am chasing. I have to break them down and work with one thing at a time. Somehow, I don't think I have enough time left. I can't help but get the feeling that something else is at stake here. If I knew what, I could probably turn things around.
I am going to start on the Bargain pile today. I will write down what I find later.
-Present Day-
Miranda has to pretend that everything is normal. Well, as normal as they can be. She too can feel eyes on her. Do they know? That can't be, can it? No one has said anything. That should be a good thing, right? Miranda knows that she can't do this alone. She has to for the time being. But someone else is tracking her every move.
He's watching her again. He keeps a close eye on her. This angel was the only way to get what he wants. It's taking her a little bit longer to find the pieces of the puzzle. He wants to yell out to her to find everything faster. He already knows most of the answers. Still, he has to hang back. He can't afford to lose this lead. But the pace Miranda was going was so frustrating. He might have to change everything to get what he wants. But how to do that without giving himself away? He is working on that little problem.
For now, he's going to hang back and wait.
-Three Months Ago-
[Komui's Notes]
This is just maddening. How long have we been sitting on all of these files? They are all files on the missing. At least, that's what I thought they were. There's just one file that doesn't make sense. There has never been a soldier named Harry Price. I have looked in the database several times. Nothing comes up. Maybe it was an old file they forgot to throw out. But that didn't make any sense. That's not the only thing I have noticed.
Charles Day. Luke Thatcher. Pat Temple. Pasty Wells. Jamie Scott. Natalie Fisher. Harold Smith. Bill Utah. Billy Bob. Michael Ross. William Updike. Dylan Ross.
None of these angels ever existed. I have checked them many times and nothing has come up. The more I keep looking at these files the more I get confused by them. That isn't the only thing that I have noticed.
I think I recognize some of these dates of the missing. March twelfth. What happened on that day? What happened? What happened?
I will have to look later. I don't think it is safe to look through the files around Heaven anymore. Someone keeps following me. I don't know who or what it is. I don't think I will be staying in Heaven for too long. I will have to see.
-Present Day-
Miranda started to hear a little rumor that Komui might have run away. That didn't sound like him. H wouldn't ever leave Lenalee behind. Something bad must have happened. But why would they kidnap him? Did it have to do with these notes that she keeps finding?
But he knew the answer. In fact…
-Two Months Ago-
[Komui's Notes]
It's been getting worse. Even when I am alone, I feel that I am being watched. It isn't the angels this time. I don't know who or what they are. I don't even know how they got into Heaven. I do have a theory. If it is what I think it is, I am doing to have to sound the alarm. But I don't know how to prove it. I think I have a plan.
-Present Day-
He broke into her room while she was out. He's been waiting in her room all night. He could've looked around while she was asleep, but it felt too risky. Right now, he didn't have much time. He was going to have to be quick about it.
How far has Miranda gotten? She must be on the track to something. If she was, she didn't show it. Maybe she had someone else on her tail too. That made sense. Right now, he had to focus on looking for the notes that she found.
First was her pillow. They weren't there anymore. Okay, so she's moved them around. This was a small room he was in. The bookcase would be too obvious. Still, he had to go and check there too. It didn't take look for him to use his powerful eyes to find that the notes were nowhere in the room. She must have taken them with her. Heh. He had to give her credit.
But still, he had to look for those damned notes. Right now, he was going to have to hide in the darkness for Miranda was coming back to the room.
-One Month Ago-
[Komui's Notes]
He's looking for whatever I am looking for and he is getting restless.