Chapter 65

Dies Irae

17 years ago:

No. It can't be true. As Sharon struggled to stand, she crushed the paper note in her hand. Her body was seized by nausea and dizziness. Once again, poison flowed through her veins. The drugs the Miyanos had injected to sedate her were still active. In retrospect, she scarcely understood what she had overheard.

Brothers. Murder. Cannibalism. A lie. An experiment. Drugs. The members, his family…test subjects.

She remembered the ritual. The ceremony took place in that darkened church. Under the visage of their goddess Ashiko, the red-white pill is handed to her. Following the usual prayers, they downed the tablet and then—

Sharon gasped, unable to comprehend the state of her body. Having shrunk, she resembled a child...like Chris.

Sharon struggled to leave the hospital bed after her father left the basement lab in a flying rage. The Miyanos noticed, and Elena…that witch, approached with a look of pity. She slipped something into her hand. A paper note bearing Amanda Hughes' name.

"I'm sorry," Elena whispered through tears. "I tried to stop it, to save Chris...but I was too late…he threatened my daughters...please... I'm so sorry…Sharon."

Chris…my Chris…

Just thinking about it made Sharon double over. As if scorched by hellfires. She never imagined she could harbor such pain.

"If you need any help..." Elena pressed the paper against Sharon's numb palms desperately. "Atsushi and I found a way out...if you'd like...you can…come."

Sharon couldn't take it anymore. She crushed the paper in her hands before shutting off. She didn't know how long the drug took to wear off, but the Miyanos were gone by then.

As she crawled out of the basement, she was greeted by a grotesque sight. Ashiko stares down at Sharon as she looks at the faces of those who received the drug. Mouths gaping, eyes melted in sunken sockets, they were disfigured, disintegrating into the wooden pews...smoking in a strange mist that emitted heat, they died in agony—fruitlessly, thinking about the promise they had believed in.

Her heart pounded loudly in her chest as a crippling silence settled. Sharon stops at a certain pew. It was near the back, nothing significant, but she knew who had sat there. Hands reaching for what looked like blonde hair. It was the only thing that stood out among the hideous, deformed bodies of an experiment gone wrong.

"Chris," she sobbed. Confusion turned to pain...and anger brewed through everything it touched.

Soon after, Sharon's tears stopped, and she sat with a burning resolve.

Looking at the paper in her hands, laughter bubbled from her lips.

I'll kill them.

Rage beckons the blood that would stain her path.

Every last one of them.

"My brother?" a one-eyed demon gazed at him with a malicious glint, a twisted smirk cloaked in shadow. A mysterious entity so shrouded in the throes of sin that it was impossible to unravel the chaos that encompassed him.

"What about my brother?" Rum's tone carries a lithe quality as if testing Shinichi. White teeth flashing, a beady black eye—dead like a shark, piercing Shinichi's soul, threatening to shatter his controlled calm.

"Everything," Shinichi continued, "Your actions, the paths you have taken, the sacrifices you have made have everything to do with your brother."

"Oh-ho," Rum whistled, "What makes you think that?"

"Cain," Shinichi reiterated, as Rum's smirks widened, "Am I my brother's keeper. The first murder…the doomer wanderer. Your purpose has not been completed, this," he raised the drug in his hand, "Is the key to getting him back."

"And how?" Rum raps his fingers against the table, forming a rhythmic beat that echoes ominously. "Does revealing what I already know help you, Kudou Shinichi?"

"It doesn't," Shinichi whispered, confident that the story had only one conclusion.

"So why the theatrics?" Rum sneered, and the rapping intensified. "Do you think you would gain an advantage by stalling? That the agencies you have employed would rescue the great detective? Your ignorance," the old demon chuckled, taking out a phone as he did so, "Is astounding, yet fascinating."

"Ignorance?"

"If you want to delight in life stories, then...born Kudou Shinichi, heir to a successful author and actress, he settled into this world with a golden spoon. He was recognized everywhere he went for his genius. Praises were sung for his ingenuity. It was obvious that the young man was destined for greatness. He was revered like a god."

Eyeing him with malevolence, Rum wears a facade of charisma. "What did they call you?" With a cruel smile, Rum spoke every word with cold, calculating prose. "A hero…who never failed…was it?"

Purposely goading him, Rum was feeding off his anguish. The burden of his arrogance weighed heavily upon him, and he was once again haunted by the faces of those he failed to save.

"Shinichi, the great detective, the man of the hour, always fancied himself a man of justice…but deep down," Rum continued, words digging into his psyche like barbed wire, "Kudou Shinichi is no different than a…"

"Fool."

Rum sets his phone on the table and turns on the speakers. An invisible hand coiled around Shinichi's throat as a dreaded symphony of terrified cries echoed through the room. While struggling in his ties, Mouri Kogoro exhaled muffled cries.

Gin's mocking voice reverberated hauntingly as he taunted them about a professor who was shot. When Shinichi hears Gin laughing and the shrunken scientist desperately calling for their beloved professor, his blood runs cold.

"My subordinates were never quite as obedient as I would have liked," Rum continued, his fingers drumming, each tap vibrating like a ticking time bomb. "As much as I would like to ensure the safety of those you cherish," he smirked, "there are certain factors beyond my control."

"You'd like to think that following your plan would result in success," Rum laughed maliciously. "But...atlas...everything...even perfectly executed plans...fall apart."

"I know about the snipers you have waiting across the streets. The way you evacuated the Metropolitan Police Station to avoid casualties caused by the bombs we set, the agents you sent my way...undercover...I might add...or the purposefully leaked date of Gin's release. Do you think I would not be able to detect your ruse?"

Clenching his fist, Shinichi faced the one-eyed beast. "Then why go along with it?"

"What was the saying?" Rum grins maliciously, "Pride goeth the fall."

Involuntarily, Shinichi tightened his fists under the table, trying to quell the rising panic.

Nearing him, Rum whispers into his ears, "Careful now, little boy. Your mask…is falling."

Shinichi withdraws as Rum tucks away his phone, motioning at the wall clock. "As much as I'd like to continue this mind-numbingly conversation about my past, I'm afraid time is of the essence, and I can't allow you to continue your predictable operation."

"So," Rum pressed, raising his hand, showing two fingers, "The options are simple… isn't it?"

With a talent for twisting truths, Rum's inherent ability to exploit vulnerabilities was displayed. Between the superficial charisma was an entity who relished in the suffering of others, and Shinichi is again forced to confront his unfaltering weakness.

In the end, the truth lay in the latter. Rum was right. Kudou Shinichi was arrogant. The fact could not be disputed. It was pride, that all-knowing attitude, that led him to make various mistakes. Although he couldn't be right all the time, the fact that he was surrounded by people he thought beneath him blinded him to his inflated ego. And as he continued down the path of no return, Shinichi was struck with a hard lesson—quite literally.

Shrunk, beaten down, and becoming a child, even the best had to ask for help. To humble themselves before adversaries much greater than themselves. As Edogawa Conan, the cocky detective Kudou Shinichi was put in place.

He had failed and faced hard times...nothing went his way. He had to swallow his pride and learn that he needed help. The people surrounding him were not the fools he thought they were. In that devastating place, even when hope seemed to have succumbed to darkness, Edogawa Conan had something Kudou Shinichi lacked.

"I know who I am…but," Shinichi locked eyes with the one-eyed demon, "Do you, Aberu Nakano?"

Rum was silenced by his unwavering stance.

"As I contemplated and researched the terrible atrocities a man committed," Shinichi kept his voice steady, "I must admit that I was disappointed to discover that the beast I was dealing with was merely…"

Shinichi smirked, "A child."

Rum's smile faltered momentarily, but he quickly recovered, his malicious glint returning to his eyes. "A sordid attempt. Though I must commend your efforts, testing my patience at a time like this is not advisable…boy."

"Oh, was I wrong? Having been born as the second son of the Nakanos, he was considered a failure. The boy had no real traits or qualities and was considered a talentless dunce by his father, who, I must admit, took great pleasure in reminding him whenever he had the opportunity."

Though Rum gave no reaction, Shinichi noticed the tempest brewing in the undercurrents. A repressed storm was brewing, and the animosity seemed to dot the air.

"Kazuki Nakano, Aberu's brother, was the golden boy. In addition to his academic excellence, he was a superb conversationalist, able to charm anyone he encountered. It was no wonder...that he was beloved by so many. While Aberu should be jealous and bitter about his predicament, it was a universal fact...that despite everything, Kazuki was Aberu's most treasured person."

"Enough," Aberu Nakano, Rum...had the pistol pointed at him, poison-laced his tone.

Ignoring the festering storm, Shinichi took the plunge. The oppressive nature of a gun's barrel is not enough to stop him. Rum had dropped his mask—it would not last.

"Aberu would do anything for Kazuki," Shinichi could not waste the chance. "He was the only one in his family who treated him with dignity and kindness. Their unbreakable bond was described by many who saw them. However, things would not last. When the war struck, Aberu's world changed in an instant."

As Rum pulled the trigger, Shinichi winced as a shot was fired. A bullet penetrated the drywall behind. Gunfire and smoke signaled the dangerous territory he was entering. He was in a no man's land, and the answer lies in—

"A traumatized Kazuki was never the same again after the atomic bomb. PTSD was probably the diagnosis, but with little understanding of mental conditions at that time, the Nakanos thought he had been possessed. Wanting their son back, the family dabbling in their history of shamanism and unfounded ceremonies brought back an insidious ritual."

"It was a necessary sacrifice," Rum interrupts, still holding the smoking weapon, fingers curled over the trigger. "It will be the only solution."

"No," Shinichi thinks of the missing children who wandered to the Nakano household. Rumors of witchcraft…black magic…demonic rituals. When Satou-san contacted Hiroshima Division inspectors, she found unsolved case files that confirmed what Masako Fumie, the owner of a cafe tucked away at the corner of that very Shotengai, had described. The inspectors' tireless efforts provided substantial evidence linking the prolific family to the crimes.

There were cover-ups. Hush money was given, and years of deceit and murders were buried under time.

"It was what killed your brother."

"Unfounded," Rum interrupts. "My brother was—"

"Murdered," Shinichi snaps, anger overriding fear. Months of research led him down the same path. In the process...speculations had turned into truth, exposing the sins of an insidious family. "By you."

It had been a coincidence. The thumb drive Shiho retrieved contained buried data. It was a possibility that Shinichi didn't dare visit. In Hiroshima, locked in many locals' minds, lay the details of a long-buried case that seemed impossible, too fantastical to be true. This incident is recalled by Masako Fumie.

"By means of the "healing" rituals performed by the Nakanos, Kazuki contracted Kuru, a fatal disease. Ironic perhaps," Shinichi paused, collecting his thoughts before continuing, "that the method used to cure him was the one that caused his predicament."

"It wasn't," Rum states calmly, betraying no emotion.

"Kuru," Shinichi repeated despite the ever-pressing pressure. "Is a rare neurological disorder that is usually fatal when contracted. In the 1950s, it was discovered among the Fore tribe in New Guinea. The scientists were mostly stumped as to how the disease appeared, but the mystery was solved once they discovered the Fore's funeral rituals."

"It was a necessary endeavor."

"Necessary!?" Shinichi's fear was washed away by the absurdity of it all.

"Endocannibalism!" he continued, unable to keep his tone in check. The terror the children must have endured as they were lured and murdered by the Nakanos must have been excruciating. "Your parents kidnapped, killed, and fed the children to Kazuki. Thinking that their essence would cure him of his ailments! And in the end, your brother—"

"Begged," Rum emphasized.

"He begged," The devil pressed the tip of the barrel against Shinichi's forehead, his hands clutching the trigger so tightly that it was turning white. Shinichi couldn't see any light in his eye. It was black. An abyss, a dormant madness, ready to burst at its seams. The feral grin on his lips grew larger. "To be reborn."

Recollections of a basement flooded her mind, pulling her back into that unsettling place. She faced a silver-haired monster with a gun pointed at her. Choose, Gin whispered, the threat directed at a gentle giant. Ryuu, Aperol never had a chance. There was never a choice, and history was doomed to repeat itself.

"Come on, Sherry," he sneered with playful glee, "We haven't got all day."

Taking immense pleasure from her suffering, Shiho was again questioning the sanity of the man who had tormented her all her life. She had tried to understand, tried to put reason to his actions. Hurt people hurt others. She told herself. Statistics don't lie. Around 40 percent of abused children become abusers themselves. It was higher than the norm, and Shiho would attempt to reconcile his actions with the pain he caused. It was the only way she could cope, the only way she could put logic into the terrible things that he had inflicted on her.

Sitting in that dreaded dungeon stuffed in an interrogation box, she tried to justify his actions. Her fault, she told herself. It was her actions that caused him to hurt her. She needed to work harder. She was weak. She had to keep her emotions under control, or the operation would go awry. Gin's actions were justified—for the good of the organization.

She couldn't be a burden.

But she knew better now. The man's actions were not born out of necessity but rather— obsession. His actions were without reason. This silver-haired beast carried a darkness that burrowed deep within. Flowing through his veins, expressed in his crazed eyes and widening smirk. He reveled in it.

Pain.

"Let them go, Gin," she demanded, stepping forward. She positions herself between the gun, the children, Ran, and the bleeding professor. No. She bites her lip hard. She will not think about it. Not now. The professor's condition could be accessed later. "They have nothing to do with this."

A bright spark followed by cries from the children. With her body, Ran shielded them immediately. When Shiho turned around, she saw a hole in the pristine floors. Gin had shot without hesitation, the bullet striking dangerously close to the children.

"And why should I, Sherry?" he chuckled, nearing her. Gin grabbed and slammed her against the wall, pinning her—his grip like thorns on her wrist. The children and Ran, held captive and helpless, cried out in despair.

An amalgam of malice and triumph glowed in those golden beast-like eyes. He finally had her now. Using the tip of his gun, he places it on her cheeks before slowly tracing it down. His vice-like grip tightened as he rested the gun on her chest. "Shall we reminisce on the old days?" his voice dripping with venom, taunting her with the echoes of past abuses. "Or shall we do this the easy way?"

"Let them go," Shiho growled. A flicker of defiance sparked within her amid the suffocating fear.

"Oh?" he sneered, "Do you not remember the last time this happened?"

Shiho winces as he jabs the gun into her ribcage like a knife. He was pushing it in—hard, leaning closer, his breath lingering like a toxic cloud over her neck.

"Shall we show them…" he continued, "What conspired in that basement?"

"Wha—" she could barely reply. Gin let her go, and she fell to the ground. She was kicked in the gut before she had time to react. A flare of agony ignited, and she cried out involuntarily. Gin laughs as he descends over her, and her breath hitches. She lay in a perilous position, vulnerable as he licked his lips, his grip tightening over her wrist as he trapped her to the ground. His pleasure could not be contained.

"How did it go again?" he chuckled sadistically, "Ah yes…"

Again, he slammed her against the floor. "That traitor Aperol had a broken neck," Gin recalled, the memories rushing in like lava. The walls closed in around her. "And you were lying on the ground…just like this, weren't you…"

Shiho flinched when he squeezed harder, "Sherry?"

"No!" Ran gasped when Gin used the tip of the gun to tear open Shiho's shirt. The revelations of what had been done were too much for the raven-haired beauty. Ran launched herself forward, but the silver-haired beast was faster.

With lightning speed, he raised the gun and fired twice. Shots whizzed past Ran, scarring her cheeks, and she fell backward.

"Ran-nee-chan!" the children screamed. Genta stepped forward, extending his hands to shield the raven-haired beauty. The chubby boy then picked a stray book from the broken shelves and flung it at Gin.

"You monster!" he roared, trembling furiously but still mustering the courage to stand his ground. "Get away from them!"

The actions he takes spur the other two. Ayumi and Mitsuhiko gathered books, cups, cushions, whatever they could find, and did the same.

"Get back, Kojima-kun!" Shiho shouted. "Tsuburaya-kun! Ayumi-chan!"

"How touching," Gin laughs, "Friends, family…you seemed to have found it, haven't you, Sherry?"

"Leave them out of this!" Shiho snapped, and he slammed her down again.

"Let her go!" Genta demanded a second time before gasping as Gin fired another shot in their direction. Shiho gasped as they screamed.

The detective boys froze in terror as he strung his free hand around her neck.

"Do they know what you are?" he squeezed before running his hand down her naked chest, tracing it down. "Do you know what you've done?"

"Stop!" Ran screamed again when his hands lingered over Shiho's skirt, his grin widening at her protest.

"Remember, Sherry," as he reveled in their vulnerability, "defiance comes at a cost."

Ripping half her skirt off, Ran and the children screamed in horror.

She had never intended for them to know about this. This was not what she had envisioned. Defeated and terrified, her loved ones stared back at her, defenseless. Their anguish amplifies her own. Sadness threatened to consume her, but she held it.

"Are you sure, Shiho?" Shinichi had confronted her a week earlier. Upon learning of the onslaught that was to come, their plans changed drastically.

"Yes," Shiho had answered.

It was the only way.

Inhaling deeply, Shiho takes a deep breath as Gin digs his nails into her skin, leaving marks.

"I must say," Gin taunted. "I did enjoy our time together…"

Panic gripped her, but she controlled it. She closed her eyes using the mantras he ironically taught her. As she willed herself into darkness, voices faded. As the silver-haired beast continued his attack, emotions raged. The pain stoked a fire, burning, hot.

In this difficult dance of torment. The weight of her sins threatened to overwhelm her. But—

"Shiho," Shinichi's voice echoed through the darkness. "He holds no power," the boy clasped onto her hands. "You will overcome this. In fact…"

Warm seeps through as he eyed her with determination and that comforting cocky smile.

"You already did."

Although she did not comprehend Gin's actions or motivations toward her, she was familiar with his habits. Confronting it again would be challenging, but it was crucial. It was a double-edged sword she could use. Biting down, Shiho opened her eyes, locking gaze with her tormentor.

"I didn't," she retorted, keeping her tone steady. Refusing to show Gin fear. "It was abhorrent."

"Really?" he sneered, pressing down harder. His hands coiled dangerously close to her inner thighs as he drew blood and sunk his nails into her flesh. "Not when you were crying…in pleasure?"

He was purposefully goading her. As he always did. Shiho should be used to it, but the memory of the incident always leaves her breathless. The phantom ache rushed back, racing through her chest, down her gut, burning her body.

Stop it.

She only had one chance. Though he remained aware of his surroundings and could easily overpower them if he wanted to—he was distracted now.

"Didn't you like how I made you feel?"

Regaining control, she faced him with a bored, irritated expression. "No, actually," she retorted, refusing to let him dominate her any longer. "It was rather," A smirk curled to her lips, "small."

It lasted for a split second. His guard had slipped, allowing him to loosen his grip on her momentarily.

"Run!" She took the opportunity. Grabbing his gun with both hands, she struggles to pull it away. "Run!" she shouted again.

Ran understood right away. With the children's help, the raven-haired beauty grabs hold of the professor and descends toward the basement. Gin escapes Shiho's grasp and throws her against the wall. Raising the gun, he fired in rapid succession. The bullets missed Ran and the children by a mere hair's breadth. Silence followed before the distinct click of a basement door being locked.

"Really, now?" he chuckled. Although he appeared unperturbed, Shiho wasn't fooled. His features seem to blur and shift. Though he smiled, his eyes were simmering, holding within the endless pits of hell. There is a void so deep that it resembles an abyss. Cloaked in an unsettling shroud, he stands slowly before lifting his feet and slamming it down on Shiho.

She cried out as a sharp pain cascaded over her. "Running?" His movements are deliberately calculated, like a predator about to stalk his prey.

Shiho heard cracks as he stepped down harder as a rib bone gave way. "That," he motions to the basement, the air charged with palpable tension, "would be their graves."

"No," Shiho tried to stand but stumbled as an assault of pain ripped through her.

"Didn't I tell you, Sherry?" his voice echoed, "You've made," a vortex of malice surrounds him,

Cocking the pistol, he sauntered down the stairs.

"Your choice."

"Begged?" Shinichi spat harshly. "There is nothing," he repeated, driving home the point, "That can revive the dead."

"Dead," Rum growled as he pressed the gun tip against Shinichi's forehead. "Is not what I would use to describe my brother."

"He's dead," Shinichi seethes. "You've killed him with your own hands! Your delusions have gone too far, Aberu!"

Shinichi reflects on a forgotten case discussed weeks ago. As Akai Shuichi and Rei Furuya pondered over the files, the true nature of the one-eyed demon emerged from the void. The complexities of a man was stripped away, reduced to—

"A lost child," Rei curled his hands into fists, unable to grasp the purpose of Rum's actions. "Hurt by the world, losing his very purpose in life," Akai continued, placing a supporting arm over Shiho, who was shaking.

"Would do anything to get it back," Shinichi concluded, crushing the case file.

Aberu had murdered his brother. In the course of his battle with Kuru disease, Kazuki Nakano experienced its effects. Involuntary shaking, loss of limb control...and mood swings likely plagued the poor teenager. A local recalled when Kazuki had torn his left eye out after flying into fits of rage, cursing and screaming. A similarity which a one-eyed beast carried.

Aberu Nakano was brainwashed by his parents to save his brother and participated in the vile rituals at the age of 12.

There was nothing new about it. Shinichi had heard of it. In many parts of the world, long-forgotten ancient beliefs still exist. Though the nature of the practice differed, in Japan, consuming the deceased's bones was considered sacred. In part, the consumption of the flesh of loved ones was regarded as a way to carry on their legacy. It is a ritual born from affection and deep respect. It was, however, a ceremony that could be distorted. Taking it further, the Nakanos infect their son, Aberu, with their toxic views.

As the ritualistic murders continued, Kazuki Nakano's illness worsened. Kazuki probably begged Aberu for release from his suffering, and Aberu, who did not understand the concept of permanence...did as asked.

That day, something broke in the boy. The Nakanos discovered Aberu standing over his brother's body with bits of flesh hanging from his lips and an eye hanging from his left socket. The boy gouged his own eye out. Several witnesses described a laughing boy being escorted out of the mansion, yelling incoherently, claiming he carried his brother's soul.

Because of the Nakanos' influence, the case was again buried, and Aberu was committed to a mental hospital. It was there that he spent five years muttering and talking to himself. At that time, psychiatric reports indicated the boy suffered from a psychotic break, but his records were wiped clean, and he was released at his father's, Hideaki Nakano's request.

The only heir of the Nakano family, Aberu, was raised as a replacement. And he did a splendid job playing his brother. Many who had met him later said he was a changed man. Others whispered...that Aberu acted and bore a striking resemblance to his brother.

"We saw him…walking out of the fires," Masako Fumie had told them a witness statement that the police, bribed by the Taizaki's 17 years ago, had mocked. "Kazuki Nakano. That one-eyed ghost…we would recognize him anywhere."

That one-eyed ghost, Kazuki Nakano, likely—Rum.

"Mors tua, vita mea," Shinichi recited, the famous phrase that the cult had used. "Your death, my life. Through your delusions, you…became him."

"Delusions?" Rum sighed, loosening his hold on the weapon. The wild smirk remained on his face as he regained his composure after his sudden outburst. It echoed off the walls of the dingy office. "Do you not see the fictitious nature of your notion? How can you reject facts—when you are living proof? Can you not see the beauty behind my purpose? The power that I have unlocked that would alter the very fabric of reality?"

"What do you mean?"

"You've experienced it, Kudou Shinichi. This miracle would allow us to be freed from our physical limitations. A world where time would no longer be a constraint. A place where mundane rules and pervasive lies of the masses would not restrict us. A miracle drug that would…"

"Revive the dead?" Shinichi snorted, watching the one-eyed demon carefully.

"Yes," Rum whispered, grinning without holding back any emotions. A desperation that had persisted over the years. The monster was born in a single second...his vulnerability was revealed. The ramblings of madness the Miyanos had to witness firsthand spilled. An impossible dream.

"And you...are the embodiment of that outcome...a man...who turned back time. Almost like…a dream…so close, Kudou Shinichi…I was so close, and yet," he spat out, losing all semblance of control again, his character splitting as Shinichi braced himself. "They destroyed it. All the progress went down the drain! My aspirations were shattered by bastards who paid no heed to the cause. To the progress that would be made!"

He settled down again, adjusting his tie, the calm returning, and Shinichi felt a slither of fear going up his spine. Rum was different. As Miyano Atsushi had put it—

"An unpredictable monster who lives at the brink of insanity."

"Nevertheless, we got her, Sherry, a child prodigy more brilliant than her parents...able to bring the drug to where it is today. It is incomplete, unrefined, but—works."

"Turning the world into an experiment," Shinichi seethes, "will not yield the results you want."

A single eye burned with unsettling intensity as Rum leaned in. "It doesn't matter what you think, boy. It matters whether it can be done, and I'm offering you a chance. To bask in this revelation, in what can be achieved."

"It," Shinichi repeated. "Will not bring back your brother."

His heart raced, torn between repulsion for Rum's twisted ideology and the terrifying consequences it carried. Gathering his courage, his purpose became exceedingly clear. They—

Had to stop Rum.

"I won't be a part of your madness," Shinichi's resolve hardened, and he stood tall, staring down the gun barrel. "Regardless of the cost."

Rum's smile faded. "Very well," he rose and pressed the gun further, his expression hidden, disappearing into the deepening shadows. "If you insist on being a mere pawn in this grand tapestry, you leave me no choice."

Shinichi couldn't react, wincing and closing his eyes tight as the demon moved in quick succession. Following a bright spark, a single gunshot erupted, leaving a heavy stench of gunpowder behind, and Shinichi gradually opened his eyes.

He expected pain— gushing from a gunshot wound. While inspecting himself, he was surprised to find that he was untouched, yet...he could hear the cries and moans of an injured man.

Shinichi gasped when he realized what had happened. As he turns around, he sees Kogoro Mouri slumped over. Blood gushed from his chest as he gasped, still tethered to the chair.

"Oji-san!" Shinichi flinched when Rum knocked him to the ground.

"I must say," Rum purred, "Your dedication to unraveling my past has been most entertaining," his voice dripping with sinister taunts, "But I grow weary of our little dance."

As he aimed the gun at Shinichi, a crazed smile danced across his lips, a mixture of arrogance and madness. The same expression described by Masako as he emerged from the fires he started 17 years ago. "You would soon learn that insubordination…has its price."

Red smeared across the floor, leading down the stairs. The overpowering metallic stench is familiar. Gin's heart squirmed with excitement as he grasped the gun's girth. It was the feeling of a hunt, the screams of the insects he had to kill. Anticipation broke through the gray.

"X marks the spot," he grinned, recalling the mantra his mentor taught him years ago. An old story, it was. The son of a prostitute and a drunkard. He was found holding a broken beer bottle. When red broke through the dull world, Gin felt something new—a spark in what he called the "gray." A dull world where nothing exists, where faces are meshed into an unrecognizable blur.

The peeling wallpaper of that dingy, moldy apartment was splashed with blood. On the tiled floor, two bodies were strewn, their faces always blank, no eyes, mouths, noses...nothing, just an X.

X marks that later turned into targets. Vermin, insects. Gin killed without hesitation. A machine that hunted his targets with no exceptions.

She, though, was different. Gin felt the thrill of excitement bubble up as he tightened his grip on the gun. He had met her when she was just ten years old. When he was assigned the mission, he had thought it would be a bother. To end the session, he planned to kill her, though when he entered the room, the thoughts stopped.

Blonde strawberry hair. Petite. Emerald green. Gin was startled by her face. Not a red X…or a black O, but rather…an expression. He approached, lighting a cigarette, and then he hit her. Her eyebrows scrunched, little gasps escaped her lips, and her eyes widened. A spark ignited in his chest, and he took her in. Trained her, watched her grow, and molded her to the purpose. As time went on, his obsession grew.

Fascinating.

The only face he could see. She was special. She must be.

Sherry…belonged to him.

Gin cocked the gun, smelling his targets ahead. They had foolishly locked themselves in the basement. The dying breaths of the old man he shot lingered in the air. He chuckled as he remembered the strawberry blonde's twisted features. The sharp pain in emerald bright eyes. The groans and moans he incited as he…

Gin grinned, unable to control it any longer.

He wanted to see more of it. He wanted to study it. He wanted her.

She had always been disobedient. A trait he knew she carried. But—

"It's only a matter of time, Sherry."

She will be his. She will not run.

He'd break her legs if he had to.

Aiming his pistol at the locked door, he fired once. Taking the handle off with the bullet. Metal thudded against the ground as it fell. He frowned as he looked through the peephole he created. Rather than a hole, he was greeted by the sight of heavy...metal.

Backing away from the door, he fired a few more shots. There were a few minor dents, but there was almost no damage. The realization hits him, and he punches the door. He feels an ache in his hand. Cast Iron…the door had been reinforced!

There was no way of getting in…and—

While running up the stairs, he sees Sherry standing near the kitchen table, grabbing something. He raised the pistol, about to shoot her legs, when a cloud of smoke assaulted his senses. He drops to the ground, coughing with his hands covering his lips and nose. As soon as the smoke cleared, he noticed the girl was gone.

"Sherry," he whispered, excitement and anger mingling. She had tricked him. As he cocked his gun, he began to laugh. The girl…an enigma, thinking she could outsmart him…again.

"Sherry!" he growled.

She would not. No.

She belonged to him.

I'll be honest. I'm having trouble stringing my thoughts together XD I am not very good at writing intense scenes such as these, and maybe an edit should suffice later on. Even so, I've tried my best in trying to make it clearer, but I would not be averse to feedback or certain thoughts about how this could be improved. Again, I would like to thank everybody for reading and liking my fic. I initially wrote this on the tangent that nobody would read it XD. I enjoyed writing, and this certainly has brought me much joy. I did not expect fan art or reviews, and am grateful for everybody who stopped by and visited this world for a while.

P.S. Clues of what would happen in the next chapter can be linked to these chapters ;)

Chapter 33: Fish Chum

Chapter 36: Sitting Ducks

Chapter 37: Red Herring

Chapter 39: Cat in the Box

Chapter 50: Of Thieves, Scientist, and a Shrunken Detective

Chapter 59: Ice

Chapter 61: Lockets and Family

If anybody has any theories I would be happy to hear them XD.