Akira grabs a drink
"You've got to admit, this is a really messed-up plan," said Touka as she paced around and rocked Ichika to sleep.
Ito had been moved to the bedroom for the night. He was nearly healed and would probably be as good as new by morning. The rest of Goat was having a hushed conversation in the dimly lit kitchen.
"Not at all," defended Akira. "I thought it was very clear."
"I mean, it's kind of crossing a line."
"I can't believe I'm being lectured by ghouls of all people." She looked over at Amon. "Didn't my father teach you anything? If you're at a disadvantage, get creative. Fight dirty."
He thought for a moment. "You're right. We're not in a position to play fair…but have you considered the consequences if it goes wrong?"
Akira nodded slowly. When the plan first occurred to her, she'd turned it over in her mind and poked at every angle. It could go very, very wrong. But…there was an irrational certainty she felt in her bones when these flashes of insight came to her, and she felt it now.
They needed to act if Goat was going to stand a chance against whatever was rising from the ashes of the old CCG.
"That's why we need a real doctor."
Nishiki shook his head. "We consulted Ogura when you took a turn for the worst. He said he had to go into hiding for the foreseeable future after he finished treating you…and the heat's been turned way up on all the ghoul sympathizers he knew. Plus, we're going to use the last of our RC suppressant on Ito."
Akira drummed her fingers on the table. "So kidnap a doctor."
Touka cleared her throat. "I think…I know someone we can get. But give me a couple of hours to get in contact."
She caught Akira's eye and glanced at Nishiki, who was laying on the table, head resting on folded arms. Ah, the girlfriend that helped Hide out. She'd have some medical knowledge and a familiarity with ghouls.
"If we can get Touka's contact in on this, it'll work."
Yomo chimed in, "Your face and name are all over the news. You won't make it far."
"So we get costumes. Maybe wigs, too." Akira smirked. There were rough edges, but they were easy to figure out.
"I'm sure Tsukiyama would love to handle wardrobe," Touka said.
After a thoughtful silence, Kaneki stood. "It's insane, but you're right, Akira. This is the kind of move we need to make. The next time there's an attack on the CCG, we kill three birds with one stone. We help defend the investigators against the Clowns, we use it as cover for stealing more RC suppressant from the CCG labs, and we pull off Akira's…plan."
"I'd prefer to call it an act of charity," specified Akira with an angelic smile.
He nodded at her.
Now that he had spoken, the focus shifted from whether they would to how they would. It was the kind of meeting Akira loved, one spent picking apart ideas and fixing mistakes before they even occurred, preparing for every eventuality…
When she finally curled up in the little corner on the floor that had been set aside for her to sleep in, incidentally right next to Amon's spot, she had a smile on her face.
It's way too crowded in this place, but it certainly is exciting to be a revolutionary.
The next day, Touka waved her phone at Akira with a nod. It was difficult to have private conversations in such cramped quarters, but they would be clearing out of the safe house and reuniting with the main body of Goat underground by that evening.
In the meantime, Touka just showed Akira the messages she had sent late last night. The same encrypted app was downloaded on her new phone, but she'd created a different profile to stay as unconnected from her old phone as possible.
You alive out there? She'd messaged Hide, who went by Scarecrow in the app.
The response came a few minutes later. Depends on who's asking. These are dangerous times. I want to double check that you are who I think you are. Tell me something only a friend would know.
You're a loudmouth idiot and honestly I'm kind of glad someone shut you up
Akira cringed and looked over at Touka. "Really?"
She shrugged. "It was late. I wasn't in the mood to play games."
The blonde continued reading on to Hide's response. Hah, no one else I know is that charming. I'm glad you're alive out there, too. How's the little monster?
Happy and healthy, Touka had typed back. Sleeping right now or I'd send you a picture. Listen—we're going to do something crazy. Can you get ahold of your emergency medic? We really need her help on this.
Akira could tell by the timestamps that he'd hesitated for several minutes before responding. Whoa, big ask. Let me see what I can do. She wants to stay until the bitter end, but I think we're getting close, aren't we?
Probably, one way or another. Thanks, Touka replied.
Then, very early that morning, he sent a phone number and one more message:
I worked my magic. Here's the number to contact her at. I told her to expect your call and help you out if at all possible. This'll be the last you hear from me for a while. I've got to really disappear now if I want to stay alive. Very violent villains are gunning for me and the old man like never before. Good luck.
That was followed by one last message from Touka:
(!) Undelivered message: Stay safe. You're welcome to join us in the 24th if those villains get too close.
"His account's gone. There's no reaching him anymore. I think he ditched his phone."
Akira pushed aside the nerves she felt. "He's alive, and Marude's alive. That's good. Can you arrange for her to meet one of us somewhere?"
Touka nodded. "I'll sneak away and make the call right now."
An even worse-looking Ito with a mostly-healed hand—just a few raw-looking spots on his knuckles—shuffled into the living room with Banjo's help. His skin looked pale and waxy, except for his cheeks which were flushed with fever. "Am I done yet," he whispered in a hoarse voice.
Nishiki grabbed the last needle of RC suppressant from a drawer in the kitchen. "Uh, yeah. I think it's time to get you that shot."
Within a few hours, Ito made a miraculous turnaround. He tested out his hand as he watched the ghouls pack up and start to depart.
As they left, alone and in pairs for the nearest entrances to the 24th ward, the formerly bustling living room grew quiet.
Touka was nice enough to add Akira's one rolling suitcase to the bags she and Kaneki were carting along. She paused as she was leaving, looked around, and discreetly kicked the plug of the fridge out of the wall.
By the time the place was empty, the investigator was looking well enough to be sent back into the world. Akira threw jeans and a T-shirt they had scrounged up at Ito. "Change into some clean clothes. Let's go meet Takeomi."
He changed quickly, and so did Akira.
On the way out the door he looked around at the house, which had frankly been left a mess. Trash and dirty dishes covered the kitchen counter, the blankets and towels had been raided more thoroughly than a cheap hotel room, and someone had spilled coffee all over the wheat-colored futon. "Do ghouls just…live like this?"
Akira tossed the key on the counter as she left and didn't bother locking the door behind her. "Not really. They didn't try too hard to keep this place clean is all. I put them in a CCG safe house, after all. Why wouldn't they trash it?"
For a moment he stared at her with a look of shock on his face. "I still think you're gonna die…but holy crap, you're insane enough I almost want to root for you."
Ugh. If my wanted poster wasn't on the nightly news, I would never be caught dead dressed like this. Wearing leggings and a crop top—because apparently that rendered her completely unrecognizable—with a beanie covering her hair and someone's borrowed reading glasses, Akira walked with Ito into the chosen bar.
He kept looking down at his hand, flexing the fingers and turning it over to inspect it. "It just feels…normal. Do I have the same fingerprints? Will it set off the RC gates?"
"You know, I honestly don't know. I guess you'll find out at work tomorrow."
He grumbled under his breath.
She picked a table in the back and ordered him to sit, then sat herself at the next table over to keep an eye on him.
He glared at her from over his menu.
Takeomi arrived several minutes after the appointed time. For someone who was habitually punctual, it was practically a cry for help.
They exchanged pleasantries, with Takeomi commenting that he was glad Ito had recovered from his illness so quickly, and Ito nervously thanking Takeomi for meeting him. Within two minutes, a waitress set ice-cold pints of beer in front of them.
"I know that you're just trying to cheer me up. Thanks, Kuramoto, it means a lot."
Ito fidgeted, looking anywhere but at his friend, not playing the role of double agent well. "Well, yeah, you know…I was stuck inside for the last couple of days and I wanted to celebrate by getting out."
Takeomi looked downward and shook his head. "Don't do that. I know exactly what you're doing."
"No, actually…I don't think you do."
"I see the way everyone looks at me. I know you're all worried about how I'm handling everything with Yoriko." His voice was so pained it broke Akira's heart for him. "I bought a ring. I was going to propose. They got Yoriko and Ichika out of Cochlea…I know Ichika was important to them, so I keep hoping that Yoriko was spared for taking care of her."
"Who was Ichika, again?" Akira could almost hear Ito's face scrunching up in confusion.
"Oh. I wasn't supposed to talk about her but I suppose it doesn't matter anymore." He glanced away, lost in his thoughts, in the way of someone who wasn't fully present in the conversation. "That's the name of Haise's daughter with that ghoul who dragged Yoriko into all of this."
"Holy shit! That's who that baby was?!"
Takeomi was quiet for a long moment. "Kuramoto, what do you mean, 'that baby'?"
Akira rolled her eyes and stood to switch tables. She plopped down next to Ito. "I swear, Ito. You see a baby being passed around for two days and you never thought to ask where she came from?"
"I was suffering from blood loss. You're such a bitch," he whined without any real heat.
"Mado…what are you doing here," Takeomi asked in a low voice.
"Mostly just trying to tell you that Yoriko is safe. She's among friends, and she misses you." She grabbed Ito's beer, which he'd barely touched, and took a long drink.
"Hey!"
"Oh, that hits the spot. Listen, Takeomi, it's been a crazy couple of weeks and Rushima was a madhouse. I'm so sorry for how it all turned out."
"You had knives sticking out of you…how are you alive?"
Akira finished Ito's beer. "Damn. I needed that. As for how I'm alive, ask Ito. He's got a hell of a story."
"I'm never going to forgive you. You drink my beer, you cut off my hand, you're going to get me fired…"
"…What the hell are you two talking about?"
Akira reached across the table, taking Takeomi's beer this time. "Listen carefully, you two. Goat is not on the side of the CCG, but we are on the side of humans. Your new chairman cannot be trusted. I'm pretty sure he's coordinating these attacks with the Clowns to make himself look better."
Ito and Takeomi both stared at her.
Takeomi spoke first. "Mado…you're the ghoul collaborator."
She waved away his words as she took a healthy quaff of beer. "Yeah, but I'm doing it the right way. Time to grow up. There is no ghouls versus humans. There's ghouls and humans on all sides. Everyone goes to war for the sake of their peace, so you've got to decide whose peace you really want." She shook her head. "Ugh, Amon's rubbing off on me. He's the one that says dramatic shit like that."
"What are you talking about?"
Ito turned to Takeomi. "Oh, yeah. Amon is alive. I saw him. Did you ever work with him or was he before your time?"
Akira nodded and drank several more gulps of beer. "He followed us here to make sure you didn't get up to any funny business."
Takeomi stared at her. "What is happening to you? Are you having some sort of manic episode?"
"Look. I know that this is the craziest thing I've ever done. Did you ever think I wasn't aware of that? But I'm not stupid and I'm apparently too coldhearted to be manipulated." She rolled her eyes and took another hefty drink. "So I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be, and for the right reasons. When you start to see that, you're welcome to get in touch."
He looked at Ito. "I mean it. Is she having a psychotic break?"
"I am, unfortunately, sane." After she finished off her second beer in ten minutes, she asked, "Before I go…What are people saying about me?"
She could pretend that it was valuable intel to get, but the truth was she wanted to know out of insatiable curiosity, and just a little bit of vanity.
Takeomi spoke slowly, steadily. "They're saying that you've always been a bit cutthroat, and you've always loved your weapons. The bigger, the better. That maybe that was more important to you than the CCG's mission ever was, after all. All your father's quinques weren't enough, being under Arima on the Quinx project wasn't enough, and that maybe having the ear of the One-Eyed King and power over half the ghouls in Tokyo is what'll finally satisfy you. Or maybe, not even that will be enough for you."
"I do love a big ass sword," she admitted reluctantly. In some ways, they're not too far from the truth.
Akira stood up. She took Ito's cell phone out of the pocket she'd been holding it hostage in and set it on the table in front of its owner. "I have one request. Watch out for the Quinx squad. None of them are involved, but I always have the fear that the CGG will turn on them. Especially after me and Haise defected. Just…look out for them?"
They both stared at her blankly.
She sighed and stood to leave. "Bye boys, thanks for the drinks!" On that note, she sashayed out of the bar and down the street.
Amon quickly walked up beside her. "It went all right, I take it."
They turned down an alley. She nodded. "Yup. I'm ready now." She stumbled a bit, but he caught her before she fell and steadied her.
"Whoops," she laughed and then hiccupped. "I just needed a little bit of liquid courage for this."
From here on out, she had to trust Amon's enhanced sense to guide them in the correct direction. He led her through a broken door, down a set of stairs and into a dank basement. In the corner, behind a stack of old wooden pallets, was a poorly disguised hatch.
"Exactly where the ghouls said it would be," remarked Amon as he cleared away the debris from the entrance into the underground tunnels that led to the so-called 24th ward.
Akira gulped. Amon grabbed her hand and helped her step down into the underworld.
Next week: Akira takes a little trip to the seaside