1988, 41 Days to save Holly
Joseph taps the side of the payphone impatiently, and his grip on the phone in his hand tightens the long it rings.
C'mon, Jotaro. Pick up. Speedwagon Foundation told me you successfully landed but…
They had been in Bangkok for a little over a day while trying to get their bearings. Joseph had just received word on Jotaro arriving safely at the Le Meridien in New Delhi but-
"Uh, hello?" A familiar feminine voice answers. "Is this room service? Where's my champagne?"
"Anne, you better not be racking up the bill on the Speedwagon Foundation! Are you even old enough to drink?" Joseph shouts, worry tinging his voice.
"Oh, this is Old Man Joseph."
"What's that supposed to mean? Where's Jotaro?" The voice on the other end is oddly silent. "Oi, Anne. Put Jotaro on."
"He's not here. Call back later."
"Hey, don't hang up on me! What's going on?"
"Oh I don't even know. Him and Jojo left off to go somewhere and left me here to watch the room."
"Who and Jojo?"
"Jotaro."
"No I mean the other person with Jotaro!"
"Oh, uh…" Anne laughs nervously on the other end. "I don't know if I'm supposed to say."
"What? You're making no sense." Joseph's metal hand creaks as he tenses it.
"Y'know what, I'll just wait 'til you meet him. You'll love the guy." Anne gives out a hearty laugh, as Joseph grits his teeth silently.
That little brat's making fun of me. I'm too old for all of this…
"Just, tell Jotaro we're okay. We're heading to Yangon now."
"That all?"
"No…Listen, Anne. Did that other person say something about… a "Stand"?"
"Oh, yeah he-" A hand yanked hard on Joseph's shoulder. Looking back, he locks eyes with Polnareff behind him.
"Hey, Mr. Joestar, our charter is here."
"Anne, I have to go. Tell Jotaro I need an explanation after we get to Yangon."
"Okay by-" Joseph slams the phone back on the hook, partially in hurry and partially in frustration.
I don't even know if Jotaro is okay…Hopefully he's found a trustworthy ally…
On a charter bus to Yangon, sitting between Mr. Joestar and a sleeping mother
Kakyoin flips the page, almost halfway through the book he had bought earlier that day. Despite being a Japanese kid still in high school, he had been fortunate enough to travel with his family and learn a couple of languages. And thus, the Thai novel about an actor rising above his poor upbringing keeps him busy as the charter bus bumps up and down the poor roads connecting Yangon and Bangkok.
Hm. You'd think the Speedwagon Foundation would get us a private transport…Mr. Joestar seemed set on not having us near normal people during our travels. What changed? Is it Jotaro?
He looks through the corner of his eye at Joseph, who stares pensively out of the window beside him on the right. Kakyoin can see the tension in the aged man's whole body. After the briefest of glances, Kakyoin returns to his book with a quiet hum.
No doubt the man is worried to death. He can't seem to get any solid answers about Jotaro. The possibility of losing his daughter and his grandson…
An image flashes through his mind, the faces of his smiling parents as he took a picture of them in front of the Nile. His lips purse tightly in discontent, and a knot feels as if it was forming in chest.
DIO…I'll get you for that. I can't be trapped in fear forever…
From behind him, a few rows back, he could hear an obnoxiously loud yawn from the rear end of the bus. An undoubtedly Polnareff style yawn. Avdol and Polnareff had taken the liberty of claiming the back row several hours ago when they boarded, leaving Joseph and Kakyoin to find a spot for themselves.
After a few minutes, Kakyoin finds himself reading the same line over and over, losing focus. He takes the ball of his thumb and wipes his eyes as he shuts the book, weary. The ache in his joints is getting to him, but the cramped quarters don't leave him much room to stretch. Looking to his left, he sees his neighbor, a mother holding a young baby. They looked so peaceful, as she clutches him tight, both fast asleep.
Might as well check on the other two.
Kakyoin closes his eyes and projects Hierophant Green from his back, looking towards the back row of the bus. He sees a drowsy Polnareff tapping the left side window of the bus, while Avdol shuffles back to his seat, apparently just having left the restroom. With a thumbs up, Avdol gives a serious stare back at Hierophant Green.
Good, no ambushes yet.
He scans the bus with Hierophant, the Stand's notched eyes examining each rider intensely. Despite having his eyes closed, Kakyoin senses something beside him. His eyes snap open and look, only to see the baby beside him, restlessly turning away from Kakyoin in his mother's arms. On his other side, Joseph nudges his shoulder.
"Oi, Kakyoin. See anything?"
"Ah, no. Nothing yet, Mr. Joestar. Avdol seems to have found nothing yet as well."
"Good. We need to hurry."
"If you don't mind me asking, why are we-"
"The longer we wait, the more we get slowed down, Kakyoin."
"Ah."
"Think about it. Every time we stop and prepare, we get ambushed. If we take the initiative, they have to play our game."
"Hm."
"You seem troubled."
"You're worried."
"Yes." Joseph looks at his interlaced hands wistfully. "Jotaro is by himself out there. The sooner we can meet up, the better."
"We're still very far from New Delhi, even if we take another train line." Kakyoin reviews a mental image of a world map. At this rate, they would have to ride north to the Himalayan mountain range, only to cross most of India still. "Besides, hasn't India closed its borders to Burma? There was a military cou-"
"Not to worry, Kakyoin. There's a reason we're stopping at Yangon."
"And why's that?"
"We'll be going under the radar there. There's a small dock on the shores near that city. I've arranged a state of the art speedboat to take across the Indian Ocean. Once we arrive in Calcutta, then we can decide our next move."
"Hm. Won't we run out of fuel?"
"Oh Kakyoin, for being young you don't keep up with the times." Joseph chuckles a bit to himself, causing the baby on the other side to tense up.
"And why's that?"
"Kakyoin, have you ever heard of solar panels?" Before he can respond, Kakyoin feels a tug on his school uniform's shoulder. The mother beside him looks at him with sleepless eyes and speaks.
"Did I hear you say you were going to Calcutta?" Her eyes have a pleading look in them.
"I did say that, ma'am." Joseph responds as Kakyoin stares at her, focusing on the bags under her eyes.
She must be stressed from that child…
"Oh…I couldn't…"
"What's that?" Kakyoin responds in soft tones, but his eyes drift down to the child beside him. The child, too, seems to be giving him puppy-dog eyes.
"Well…my child is sick, and I have an appointment with a top doctor in Calcutta…"
"Ma'am, with all due respect, it's a bit dangerous to go the way we're going." Joseph scratches his chin in thought, his eyes avoiding meeting hers directly.
"Bu-but…" She seems to stammer out her words, and Kakyoin notices the baby clench onto her mother's arm tightly. "I mi-might miss the appointment!"
"No worries, ma'am. I have a soft heart in my old age, I'll buy you a plane ticket to take you straight there." Joseph grins and shoots her a wink, though the woman's gaze doesn't seem to relax in the slightest.
"Y-yes…thank you. I appreciate the kindness." Kakyoin continues to stare at the child, but senses something behind him. He strains his neck a bit looking behind him, seeing Avdol beckoning him with his finger.
"Pardon me, lady. I need to use the restroom." He stands and waits as the woman clears into the aisle to let him out.
"Oh, yes…of course."
Burma, 4175 miles from Cairo
There's no way I imagined it.
Avdol eyes the child squirming in its mother's arms as Kakyoin approaches. He saw it, the way it seemed to clam up in fear as Hierophant Green surveyed the room.
I don't wish to alarm the others. It seems like, if it truly is an enemy Stand user, the child cannot quite attack us here. Otherwise, I'm sure Kakyoin and Mr. Joestar would already be fighting.
He narrows his gaze to focus. The baby seems to notice, shifting and tugging until its mother switches her way of holding him.
That baby knows as well…
"Yes, Avdol?"
"Keep an eye on Polnareff for me. I have to speak with Mr. Joestar." Avdol gets up, sidling into the aisle to let Kakyoin into his seat.
"Of course…" Polnareff still stares groggily out the side window, head nodding as he toes the edge of sleep.
"Thank you, Kakyoin." Avdol shuffles his way through the aisle until he arrives at Joseph's row.
"Excuse me ma'am, I've switched seats with the teenager who was here before."
"Did you want to discuss something, Avdol?"
"Yes, I'd like to do a reading." The woman simply looks in confusion, before scrambling to get up once more. The baby cries a bit as she does, causing her to rock the child and calmly whisper to it.
Time passes…
Avdol draws two cards as the crackle of Hermit Purple bleeds into the tarot deck. He sets them face down on the flip tray of the seat in front of him, then looks Joseph in the eye.
Let us see what this baby has in store for us…
He flips each card, revealing Death and The Sun. Joseph withdraws Hermit Purple and grits his teeth.
Death? Or the Sun? Hm. No need to tell Joseph, yet.
"Avdol, we must be vigilant. They could be on our tail."
"Yes, Mr. Joestar. I'll keep an eye out." He casts a harsh stare at the baby beside him, who seems to stare right back with even more hostility.
?
Polnareff opens his eyes with a jolt, only to find himself no longer in the bus seat. Instead, a vast and pastel colored theme park seems to stretch endlessly in each direction. Well, it would seem that way if he weren't constantly spinning. He tries to get his bearings but finds himself in a spinning teacup ride, the yellow sky blending with the light pinks and greens of the world around him.
How the hell… is this an enemy Stand or a dream?
Polnareff stumbles his way off the ride, dizzy and nauseous. After shaking his head for a few seconds, he soaks in the park around him. He sees a distant Ferris wheel, some cotton candy stands, and far-off roller coasters. The one thing that truly stands out to him is that, despite it seeming like a dream…
This place is completely deserted! What a terrible dream. No cute girls or friends to enjoy all this with!
He approaches a cotton candy stand, and attempts to reach for a handful. Before he can grab any, though, he feels an intense deadly intent from behind him. Instinctually, he ducks down and rolls to his left, and as he does so the cotton candy cart is sliced cleanly in half.
What the-
Looking behind him, he sees a floating specter holding a scythe and sporting what looks like a clown mask with empty eyes. It cranes its head slowly towards Polnareff and realigns its fingers on the scythe.
"Lali-ho, Polnareff!"
END OF INTERLUDE 6