There's so much I want to tell you
There's so much I wanted to say
I wonder to myself
If I still have the time to say it
I wondered to myself
Yet time still slipped me by
And I could only ponder
If I had let it all fade away
Mei looked down at the heat stove in front of her, visible black markings still scorched along the edges of the stove.
She couldn't quite scrub it off after yesterday.
She gave the dark streak a lingering stare, the image of the burning pan flashed through her mind before she let out a soft sigh, shutting her eyes as she let the image fade from her head. Refocusing back to the actual burner itself, she promptly turned the knob, igniting it as she carefully adjusted the flame to an appropriate level.
Moving along, she placed a small black pan onto the burner, letting it heat up before coating the black surface with a thin layer of oil. Letting the oil to heat up from the fire for a bit, she turned her attention onto the small bowl on the counter, a mixture of whisked eggs with some light seasonings added.
Carefully lifting the bowl over, she gave the contents inside it a slight whirl before leaning the bowl over the pan, letting the mixed egg yolk pour out from the round edge before settling into the hot surface of the pan.
As she continued to adjust the fire properly to ensure the heat was just enough to cook the eggs but not burn it, at the same time stirring the thin layer of the yolk with a pair of chopsticks, her ears picked up light footsteps echoing from behind her.
Taking her eyes off the pan for a moment, she turned her head backwards and saw Kiana standing at the far end of the table, having changed out yesterday's clothes with the ones she placed on the bed for her this morning; a simple blue shirt and shorts.
Her hair was tied up in a small ponytail that rested behind her head, the girl's eyes drifting over to look at Mei with a hard-to-read expression.
"...Morning," she then muttered, a simple greeting that while devoid of any real energy, still earned a genuine look of surprise on Mei's face.
Her mouth slightly agape, staring intently at Kiana as she processed what she just heard.
Then, the light shock faded, leaving her to give Kiana a warm smile.
"Good morning, Kiana," she gently greeted the girl in turn. "Did you sleep well?"
Kiana lightly nodded at her question, her footsteps resumed its light echo as she made her way over to the table, finding her same old seat from yesterday.
Mei watched as Kiana sat down before she felt content to turn her head back to the pan. Her smile dissipated quickly however when she realized the pan was starting to smoke a bit, quickly turning the knob all the way down as she took the pan off the burner, letting it rest on the hard surface counter.
She checked the now cooked omelet, feeling a pang of relief that it wasn't completely burnt, although still a bit scorched underneath it. She carefully pushed the omelet out from the pan and onto a small plate, before setting the pan aside as she made her way over to Kiana along with it.
As Mei quietly set the plate in front of her, the girl's cobalt pupils dilated a little, a notable look of surprise spread through her face. The expression brought a small smile back to Mei, who promptly moved a bit away as she answered what the girl was likely thinking in her head.
"You told me last night that it was your favorite dish, so I tried making it today."
She felt comforted, and unexpectedly relieved when she saw the girl looking back up at her, still holding that same expression. Thank god she was right.
Kiana quickly broke away her gaze at her though, returning to the freshly made omelet in front of her as she gently picked up the pair of chopsticks beside her. Cutting a small chunk away, she brought it to her mouth, lighting biting on it to avoid burning her tongue.
"…It's nice," Kiana softly muttered, just audible enough for Mei to hear, her smile widened ever so more. "But it's a bit burnt."
That smile quickly turned into a sheepish one, the woman turning her back to Kiana as she awkwardly hummed a little. "I'll try not to burn it next time…"
"It's okay."
The two didn't exchange anything after that, Kiana going back to quietly eating her omelet, while Mei began cleaning the pan and the dirty dishes.
Occasionally, Kiana would let her eyes wander up to Mei's back, taking in the sight of her outfit. It was a similar one that she always seemed to wear every morning, with the occasional changes being her skirt or pants. It was the latter today.
Though, there was something missing that Kiana couldn't quite place, her gaze narrowing just a bit as she kept her eyes fixed onto Mei. Before long, she realized what that was.
"...Your bag."
"Hmm?" Mei glanced back at Kiana when she heard the girl muttering, before letting out an "oh" sound when she realized what the girl was referring to, briefly glancing downwards before looking back up to her.
"I won't be needing it today," she replied with a casualness to her voice, though Kiana couldn't quite see her face when she said it, turning away the moment her eyes traced upwards.
Nonetheless, Kiana didn't question it further, her mind drifting back to the plate before her as she dug into her small rice bowl. As she did, she turned her wrist, taking a moment to memorize the time before going back to eating.
Unbeknownst to the girl, Mei quietly continued washing the dishes, her expression a bit muted now after just smiling at the girl a few minutes before.
She stopped for a moment, resting her wet palms onto the edge of the sink, feeling the world closing around her just a bit.
Mei then closed her eyes, a soft sigh escaping her narrowed lips as she ignored the sinking feeling in her chest. There was no point in dwelling on it right now, after all.
Mei had made up her mind, and she wasn't going to go back on it now from just a little doubt.
Mei quietly strode along the relatively empty road, the familiar sight bringing a small sense of comfort within her. She had grown quite accustomed to passing through here every day now.
Her body felt a bit lighter than usual, freed from the weight of her bag that she had to carry with her every day. Turning a sharp corner onto another road, she noticed a few other people exiting their homes, one of which was wearing similar looking outfits like hers as they seemingly prepared to start their work day.
She gave them a brief glance, before her eyes darted back to the front, noticing a pair or a couple walking opposite of her direction. Swiftly, she turned her foot to the side, stepping out of their way as she continued her walk down the road.
Right before she passed through the two however, she noted the small beret nestled on top of one of them, a curiosity rising within her towards the accessory before she tore her gaze away and continued on her path.
Mei walked and walked, her figure growing further away from the couple as she was now nothing more but a small figure in the middle of the road.
The woman then disappeared as she turned another corner, leading to the couple to stop entirely in their tracks, their body turning back to face the end of the road.
One of them reached into their pocket, their hands shuffling inside for a brief second before taking out a small handheld device, bringing it up to their lips as they pressed the button beside it.
"Captain, this is Owl."
[I'm here] another voice responded to their call, the feminine voice sounding ever so fuzzy through the device's speaker. [What's your status?]
"We located the target. The same road you told us to wait on. Proceed to follow her?]
[Proceed, but keep your distance and stay on guard.]
"Copy that."
The figure named Owl replied, before tucking the device away once more. Breaking away from the road behind them and turning to their right, they looked at the partner beside them. The person simply nodded to Owl, their beret slightly shifted on top of their head.
Owl nodded back in time with them, before the two began to walk, now retracing their steps and onwards to where the woman was heading towards.
Durandal lowered the walkie talkie in her hand and onto her lap, her other hand clenched firmly onto the steering wheel of her car.
She had parked the car in an alleyway, one that led to a complete dead-end at that. But most of all, the morning sun barely reached this side of the road, making it so the alley was shrouded in pitch darkness. Even if someone were to pass by, they likely wouldn't even notice there was a police car seated right inside this alleyway.
Still, it would be better if no one did. She had made sure to park here as early as she could to ensure that no one could see her driving it into here after all.
Of course, that meant that she practically had to sleep in the car until the sun began to rise, but whatever slight grogginess that was still there when she woke up quickly faded once she got a report from one of her division members.
Her eyes trained on the road, finding her fingers lightly tapping against the underside of the steering wheel as she took in the somewhat illuminated street road, a wall facing back at her. The sight didn't leave much to think of as she turned her gaze away, this time trailing her eyes over to her side.
Immediately, Durandal frowned, an expression nothing short of worry quickly taking hold of her as she stared at the figure sitting beside her.
It was Bronya, her face subtly covered her long silver-gray hair, her body laid unmoving on the passenger seat.
She couldn't see what expression or face that the girl was making, but she knew for a fact that the girl hadn't slept the entire night.
The thought was equal parts uncomfortable as it was worrisome, her eyes boring into the silent girl as she tried to make out any notable shift of her body, only seeing the slight rise and fall of Bronya's chest as she breathed.
The movement didn't make her feel much better, a firm frown still occupied her face as she contemplated on what to say to the girl.
Subconsciously, or perhaps inevitably, she found herself rethinking about last night, the memories only helped to accentuate the concern growing within her for this silver-haired girl.
Bronya…
"So, to sum this all up…"
A voice rang out within the quiet empty streets, belonging to a girl whose light-blue hair fading seamlessly under the harsh fluorescent streetlights. A white scarf wrapped around her neck, its respective ends rested on her shoulders, before falling down to her chest as the girl let her body fall forwards, landing onto the metal railings placed across the side-walk. Her elbows resting on the metallic surface, one arm raised as she lightly waved it from side to side, a casual movement that didn't quite portray the seriousness of the topic at hand.
"You want each of us to go to these three different locations and learn what we can about it. All the while those two will wait for this, 'Raiden Mei', person to show up at the location you met her in, and monitor her movements just to see where she's going, and if at all possible, locate where your sister is being held at?" she said, her waving hand casually flicking up two fingers as she pointed at the pair next to her.
"Yes, that's our current plan," Durandal nodded, looking slightly to the right to keep her gaze on the girl. Noticing the slightly odd tone the girl was giving off however, Durandal softened her gaze a bit. "Is there something you want to add, Kira?"
"Hmmmm, not really…" Kira hummed, rolling her eyes to the side.
For just a moment, those blue-dotted pupils landed on a certain silver-gray haired girl standing silently at the other side of the group, her face covered by the night as she stood the furthest from the streetlight. "I mean, don't get me wrong, that woman does sound suspicious, but what does that have to do with the three different homes she has going on? Is she really keeping your lil sis inside one of them? We don't even know what those places even look like."
"Are you doubting our captain now of all times, Kira?"
Another voice interjected the girl, this time coming from the man beside her, his sharp tone marking a distinct difference from the girl's more casual tone of voice. He crossed his arms, his head slightly shifted over to Kira, his light gray hair barely contrasted under the streetlight.
"Not at all," Kira quickly retorted, raising both hands up in the air as she waved them around in a slightly exaggerated manner. "I just find it odd that we're getting all this information back to back in the same week, that's all. We have been looking all over for the captain's lil sis for over a month now, and yet suddenly we have accurate details on where she might be kept and who the culprit is at the same time."
The girl didn't glance towards anyone this time, but her tone of voice made it obvious just who she was throwing shade to as she spoke.
"Seems a bit too convenient, that's all."
"Kira."
Another, albeit softer voice joined, making Owl turn his head lightly to the source, while Kira jumped a little from their gentle yet firm call of her. Sheepishly, she turned to face the source of the sound, finding a figure standing beside Owl, a slight frown on their face.
"Please refrain from voicing your thoughts so openly in front of everyone else, especially when it's referring to someone that is currently with us," The feminine figure continued, an evident sign slipped through her throat as she leaned her head slightly to the side, letting the distinct beret that was sitting on top of her ashy blonde hair shifted slightly from the movement.
"Eeek, ye-yes mother Ana…" Kira almost whimpered, her eyes drooping closed as she slumped her shoulders onto the rail dramatically.
"Why you…"
She didn't finish the sentence, merely offering a tired sigh as she suddenly turned to the man beside her.
"You as well, Owl. No need to pin it against her. You know better."
"Hmm," the man simply hummed, dropping his arms to his side as he turned away from her firm gaze. He didn't seem to protest however, keeping his silence towards Kira.
Once that was resolved, the girl lightly shook her head at the both of them before turning back to Durandal, giving her a small smile.
"If Captain Durandal believes this is our best course of action, then I believe in her. We'll do our best to make sure the plan goes well," she said with an assured confidence to her tone, earning a grateful smile from Durandal.
"Thank you."
"Then as we discussed, I will head to the first area marked down the furthest from where we are standing," Rita promptly voiced, letting the other's eyes naturally drawn over to her as she stood on the right of Durandal. "Incidentally, it is also the most recent one of the three. Kira, you will take the second location."
The casual girl simply gave a thumbs up at that, keeping her own silence as well as she seemed reluctant to speak, likely to not provoke the blonde-haired girl any more than she already did.
"Ana and Owl will first head over to Raiden Mei's home, and check if she is inside. If there are no indications of her being there, then you two will move on to the road where our captain first met her, and wait there until she passes by that same location again. If not…"
"Then Rita and Kira need to be on their guard to ensure that they won't stand out once they arrive at their location," Durandal continued from Rita, her eyes lightly scanning over Rita and Kira. "If Raiden Mei were to appear at either of you two's location, report back immediately to me."
Both nodded to her.
"As for the last location…" Durandal raised her voice again, her eyes turning down for a moment before flickering back up with a firm look. "I'll go. If Raiden Mei shows up there, then we'll all regroup, after the other two have gathered whatever information they could gleam from the other location."
She looked over her team once more, finding Ana smiling back at her approvingly. Owl didn't give a response, but his gaze was fixed onto her, a look of understanding painted on his face. Rita nodded to her, however she couldn't help but notice a slight, nearly unperceivable frown etched onto her face before quickly fading away. Nonetheless, they all seemed in agreement to her, except for the silver-haired girl whose face was hidden, and…
"What is it, Kira?"
Her voice seemed to snap the girl out of her light trance, her eyes once again glancing over to the quiet girl. This time though, she didn't move from her spot, her gaze firmly locked onto the girl properly now.
"...I just can't shake off how odd this all feels," she uttered, her arms now firmly planted onto the metal railings as she leaned fully onto it for support. "The fact that she managed to find out about all of this from the woman themselves, and also coming into contact with the only person who was investigating this, being you; it just feels way too coincidental. I mean, if it was that easy, how have we not found anything until now? What makes her so different?"
"Kira…" Durandal muttered her name, earning a look from Kira. For once, she looked genuinely serious, and it made the Kaslana unable to return it with anything but a firm look of her own. "Bronya–"
"Her computer."
"Huh?"
Kira utterly, her eyes widened as she looked back at the previously silent girl, now slowly stepping into frame for all of them to see.
"She kept it in her personal computer's mailbox. The reason she didn't seem to bother clearing it up was because it was her work email as well, as it would likely drown out the mails containing those purchases over time, and no one would bother to look through that unless they knew what to find."
She finally stepped into the streetlights, revealing a pale-looking girl, her tired, almost lifeless eyes being the thing that was most obvious to Kira and the rest. She looked like she could barely stand with how sluggish her movements were.
"I happened to be working in a department nearby, so I was able to get inside her personal computer. And because…I was her friend," the girl's voice almost seemed to drop at those last words, her tired gaze falling to the ground as she barely found the strength to mumble the rest. "She had no reason to believe that her colleague would ever look through her personal mails; that her friend would ever do such a thing just to find these…"
Bronya fell into silence soon after, earning a sad-filled worry look on Ana's face. Even Owl gave her a pitied glance, before breaking away as he closed his eyes.
Kira found herself unable to look at the fragile girl, turning away as she lowered her head, nearly bumping it onto the railings.
"Sorry…" she whispered, barely audible from where Durandal stood.
Seeing how utterly gloomy the atmosphere between them all had become, Durandal broke her gaze away from Bronya for a moment, turning to look at the rest of them. "Alright, for now we'll stick to that plan. We'll adjust anything else when the time comes. Everyone, get some rest, we'll start as soon as the sun begins to rise today."
The others got the hint from her, with Owl and Ana turning to leave first as the latter girl gave Durandal a small bow. Kira lingered for a moment, her head shaking from side to side as she seemed to contemplate something, before dropping it as she sighed, turning her gaze to her own vehicle as she quickly made her way away from them.
"I'll leave you two some privacy," Rita gently whispered into Durandal's ears, before backing away as she walked past her, and onwards to the police car that she had managed to "borrow" from the station unnoticed.
Seeing everyone dispersing, Durandal sighed, before turning her full attention towards the still standing girl. Getting closer, she didn't bother to disguise her worry this time as she reached out a hand to Bronya.
"Bron–"
Before she could ask if the girl was alright however, Bronya's body gave up on her as she nearly collapsed to the floor. Eyes wide from shock, Durandal quickly moved to grab onto the girl's shoulders, keeping her just shy from touching the ground with her knees as she pulled her up.
"Bronya!" She finally uttered, genuine panic seeped into her voice.
"I-I'm fine," the shaky woman quickly tried to abate her worries, yet nothing about her remotely indicated that she was okay. "Just a bit dizzy…"
"You looked like you haven't slept," Durandal remarked, finding her silence all but confirmed her statement. It did nothing but intensified her concern for the clearly tired out girl.
"We should get you home, take some rest for a bit. You need it."
"I'm fine."
Having her words cut off so suddenly, Durandal fell into silence, her mouth slightly agape from the unfinished words lingering in her throat. Bronya was looking at her, those eyes sharp and intense, even through the dark bags that were beginning to etched deeper into her face.
She seemed to realize the expression she was making however, the hostility vanishing completely from her face as she turned away, her voice shaky as she tried to mutter to her.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean–"
"It's alright," Durandal quickly shut it down however, holding onto the girl just a bit tighter as she helped her get her bearings back. "I understand. You don't need to apologize for that."
This time, Bronya only kept her gaze on the ground, letting the tiredness seep through her face.
"...I'll rest in the car," she finally gave in, earning a sad, yet relieved smile from Durandal.
"Okay. I'll carry you."
The two then began to make their way over to Durandal's car, each step a slow yet careful one as she held tightly onto Bronya's shoulders. The girl's steps were shaky and uncertain, a sharp contrast to Durandal's own firm steps.
She narrowed her eyes at that, finding herself unconsciously drifting her sight back onto Bronya's face.
She looked so tired.
Durandal's lips thinned, her cobalt eyes flickering under the night with an expression that was nothing but uncertain and most of all, worry.
That same expression was now etched onto her face once more as she stared at the quiet girl, her expression hidden from her.
"…Bron-"
[Captain, this is Rita.]
She tried to reach out to her, only to be interrupted by Rita's voice echoing from the walkie.
Holding her lips together for a moment, she reluctantly broke her gaze from Bronya, turning her attention onto the device as she replied.
Unknowingly to her, Bronya's head lifted as well, turning her gaze over to her as she listened to the next few words.
"I'm here."
[I am at the first location] the woman continued, her voice slow and steady. [The location appears to be a small apartment complex. I have consulted with the owner of the building, and they said that there was indeed someone named 'Raiden Mei' that bought a room here.]
"An apartment?"
Durandal couldn't help but repeat it, unable to mask the surprise from her voice.
[Yes. The owner also said that ever since the room was bought, nobody under that name or anyone else for that matter had appeared to claim residence. And yet, the room is still owned by them, as they continue to pay the monthly rent.]
"...How long?"
[Since September 5, over a month and two days since your sister's disappearance.]
"...Got it."
Durandal silently lowered the device for a moment, her eyes flickering as she processed the information.
Why an apartment? And why has she not lived there?
Those were the biggest questions that plagued her, questions that she couldn't begin to understand.
She had bought it only days after Kiana's missing case, and yet no one has ever moved in there until now. Why?
And why would it be an apartment? Wouldn't that be too risky of a place to bring her along if her goal was trying to hide Kiana? Such a public location just seemed like such an awful choice for that goal.
It doesn't make sense.
[Captain] Rita's voice echoed from the walkie, bringing her attention back to it. [Should I continue monitoring this location?]
"..."
[Captain?]
"...Please keep monitoring it. I'll check on the others."
[As you wish.]
For now, she didn't have enough information to make any decisions. That much was clear to her at least.
Even so, Durandal couldn't help but lean into her seat, her head sinking into the chair as she looked up at the car's ceiling.
Something felt off to her. It was a feeling that she couldn't quite shake.
Perhaps it was the nervousness, or just her nerves acting out a bit, but the Kaslana couldn't help but find the pressure in her chest growing ever so palpable.
[Captain, this is Owl!]
Suddenly, Owl's voice loudly echoed through the walkie, snapping Durandal's head back as she lifted the device towards her. There was an urgency to his voice, one that she found to be unexpected from someone like him.
"What is it?" She asked, her voice growing serious as she listened intently to his audible panting, as if he had just rang.
Bronya sat beside her, her eyes glued to the device as well.
[It's Raiden Mei] his voice echoed through the speaker. [I think she's coming towards you.]
Owl turned his head backwards, one arm resting over the back of the long armchair he and Ana were sitting on. His eyes focused onto the not so far off figure in the distance, their long-purple hair shifting slightly with each step they took.
According to the intel they were given from that silver-haired woman, the building their target was slowly making their way towards was her workplace. His eyes momentarily glanced at the building itself, taking in its relatively modern look, although mostly the same design and architecture compared to myriads of places he had seen as well.
Noting nothing odd, he lowered his gaze momentarily, before a voice suddenly brought his attention to the side.
It was Ana, her magenta-colored eyes staring at him softly, yet there was a hint of something more underneath it that he can never quite tell from her.
"Do you think we can believe in the intel we were given?" That was the question she asked him, one that caught him genuinely off-guard, his eyelids raising just for a moment before narrowing back to normal.
"...Didn't you say you believed in our Captain?" Owl replied with a question of his own, recalling her words just earlier today.
"Of course I do," Ana swiftly replied, not a hint of dishonesty in her tone. "I'm asking for your sake."
"My sake?"
"What Kira said yesterday…you don't disagree with her, right?"
He didn't answer, giving her a silent look as he always does when she hits the nail on what he's thinking or feeling. He never quite figured out how she always does it.
Ana only smiled at him, noting his deliberate silence as a yes to her question.
"Kira wasn't wrong with what she said. It is quite strange how everything is falling into place so quickly," Ana explained, her gaze drifting to the side as she watched some passerby walk past the two. "She is just…reeeeally bad at wording herself to not sound so horrible."
"...I know."
The girl's smile widened a bit more at that, her head tilted forward as she looked back at him with clear affection.
"Mhm, and because you agreed with her, you tried to get her in line and be considerate in your own way, didn't you?"
Her question left him slightly stunned, unsure of how to respond to that. So instead, he broke eye contact from her, an action that came off as just a little too sudden and hasty.
"...I don't know how you come up with that," he finally replied, though that only made Ana chuckle at him, bringing a hand up to cover her mouth.
"Mhmm, I wonder why I did," she said in a slightly teasing tone, leaning back onto the chair as she lifted her head upwards. "Jeez, it's okay to admit that you were trying to be consid–"
"What?"
His sudden gasp left Ana in a surprised silence, cutting off her own words as she saw the surprise etched into his face.
"What is it?" She asked, her smile quickly vanishing in place of a questioning expression. But without getting an answer, she felt her hand yanked upwards, pulling her off her seat as she began to get dragged away by Owl, a loud yelp rang out from her as she frantically tried to match his pace.
"W-what are you doing?" She asked through each gasping breath she forced her lungs to take as they ran down the relatively empty streets of early morning.
"It's Mei!" He yelled from in front of her, not bothering to look back. "She just turned the corner away from the building!"
Ana's eyes widened at his words, quickly snapping her sight towards where Mei should have been standing, finding nobody there.
Without another moment of hesitation, she quickend her pace, her expression sharpened as she matched his speed, the two running closer and closer to where Mei was last seen standing by Owl.
"Captain–" He lifted his walkie as he tried to connect with Durandal, but right before he could properly press the button, his gaze froze as he turned the sharp corner, finding Mei standing only a couple feet from him.
In a singular instant, he shoved his walkie right back into his jacket, his arms that were gripping tightly onto Ana's wrist felt her coming ahead of him. Quickly, he whipped the girl around him and had her stand right in front of him, a surprised face etched onto Ana as she felt confused on what he was doing, before realizing who was standing next to them.
"Was that enough fun for you?" He found himself sputtering out to Ana, panting all the while as he stared at Ana.
Ana's eyes darted from Mei's figure back to Owl, and in an instant, she quickly composed herself, realizing what he was trying to do.
Following his guide, she faked her fatigue, panting wildly as she strained herself to the side as if completely out of breath.
"Y-you were running too fast while holding my hand! I could barely keep up!" She yelled out between pretend gasps of pain, a face of mock pain etched onto her face. One of her hands shot up to grip onto the beret. "I almost lost this as well!"
"Sorry sorry, I guess I overdid it a little," he muttered back, turning the two of them a bit away from Mei as he continued to play it off.
All the while, Ana lowered her head as she pretended to let out a heavy pant, all the while taking a glance over to Mei's direction when her hair covered her face thoroughly.
She saw Mei looking back at the two, a surprised expression on her face. But it didn't last long, as the person who looked to be the owner of the small store Mei was standing in front of called out to her, grabbing her attention as she turned and paid the man for whatever she just bought.
Then, after she gave the owner a small smile and nod, the woman turned to the other side and began walking in the complete opposite direction of her workplace.
After she was more than a dozen feet away from them, Ana steadied herself back up, her eyes glued to the gradually distant woman. Owl was the same, a confused expression on him mixed with apprehension.
"She bought…snacks?" Ana broke away momentarily to look at the store Mei just bought from, an ordinary bakery selling small sweets and such. "But she's not heading to her workplace anymore…why?"
"..."
Owl didn't reply, his eyelids narrowing sharply at the fading figure.
Something was odd.
Without a moment of hesitation, he took his walkie out from his jacket once more, this time properly connecting to Durandal's frequency.
"Captain."
[What is it?] His captain's voice echoed through the device after a brief delay.
"It's Raiden Mei," he said, choosing the only words he can think of for the woman's odd behavior. "I think she's coming your way."
"What?"
Durdandal found herself unconsciously blurted out, a wide-eyed face plastered onto her features before she quickly shook away the momentary shock, her voice growing slightly frantic as she questioned Owl further. "What happened?"
[I don't know] his reply only made her more confused. [But she just changed her direction suddenly. She's heading somewhere else now, somewhere that isn't her workplace. I can only assume that place would be where you are, or the others.]
"Keep her in your sight at all times," Durandal ordered, "Rita, Kira, you two stay on the lookout for any signs of her as well."
[Understood.]
[Uh, yeah about that, captain…] Kira's voice perked from the device, her tone sounding oddly strained. [I don't think she's gonna be heading towards my direction.]
"Why?" The Kaslana found herself asking, unable to mask the growing confusion in her voice.
[I'm at the second location like you told me, and uh…it's a dump] there was a deadpan delivery to her words as she said to her. [It looks like a half-constructed building of some kind. Maybe a workshop? But yeah, I doubt anyone could even live here with the state it's in, let alone keeping anyone here. I mean, there's barely even a roof over this thing.]
"..."
Durdandal sat in shock, her eyes frozen wide as she mulled over the information she was just given.
If the first already made little sense to her, this one she couldn't even begin to logically come up with an explanation for.
Nothing added up, the information proving too nonsensical for Durandal to make heads or tails. She simply clenched the side of her face, a frustrated expression on her face as she tried to figure out what any of this meant.
All the while, Bronya sat in stilled silence, her eyes stuck in a similar frozen look. Yet somehow, there was no real confusion in her irises, but rather, a glint of light that was previously missing from her for the past day. She slowly turned her head forwards, lifting it up as she looked onto the empty road ahead of her, a singular thought bubbling from inside her.
Mei…
"Oh, it's Mrs. Mei!" Carole's voice loudly echoed with surprise as she saw the woman entering her field of view from the end of the road, before quickly turning her head back to face the elderly man she was helping cross the street.
"Can you take it from here, Mr. Koshi?" She asked softly to them.
"Yes yes, you can go on now. Thank you very much sweetie," the elderly man gingerly replied with a wrinkled smile, waving for the girl to go do whatever she wanted.
She beamed at him, before quickly turning her gaze back onto Mei, who seemed to have noticed her.
She sprinted over, her face a permanent smile of joy as she practically yelled out to Mei.
"Good morning Mrs. Mei! What brings you here so early today?"
"Good morning Carole," Mei greeted back, exchanging a small smile back to the girl before her gaze shifted for a moment. "I just need to sort something here. I won't be here for long."
"Awww, really?" She said, her eyes drooped into a sad expression for a moment before she shook it off, returning with a wide-eyed smile again. "What are you gonna be doing though?"
"Mmmm, that's a secret," Mei simply replied, placing a finger onto her lips as she winked at Carole. The action made her heart thump, taken by surprise by the woman's incredibly charming response to her, quickly making her forget the question entirely.
"Here, take this," Mei gently continued, handing Carole a large bag. The girl peaked inside, her face lightened up from surprise at the huge amounts of sweets and other snacks inside it.
"W-what's this for, Mrs. Mei?"
"It's for the children, and for you of course," Mei smiled, making the girl's heart flutter even more. "Make sure you pass it on evenly to them alright?"
"Alright! I'll do just that!" She exclaimed excitedly, feeling happy that she could help Mei in any way, before she was suddenly stopped by the woman's hand gently placed onto her shoulder.
"Ah, before that…" Her voice made Carole turn to look at her, a visible question mark was apparent on her face. "While you do that, can you do me a favor?"
"A…favor?" The girl almost didn't believe what she was hearing, before she shuttered out the next few words. "O-of course! What is it?"
Mei simply smiled at her, a smile that had her eyes closed as she leaned her head to the side.
"Can you make sure that everyone stays away from my house? As far as possible?"
"Rita, how close are you to our location?"
[I should arrive in roughly ten minutes, Lady Durandal.]
[Same here] Kira also said.
"I see…" Durandal muttered under her breath, her eyes drifted off from the walkie and onto the streets. "Ana, Owl. Report status."
[She's inside the building] Owl's voice echoed from the device. [We can't tell what she's doing there.]
Her eyes lingered on the empty road as she heard the report, her mind racking through all the details she has so far.
Mei was here, but why? What's the significance of this particular home compared to the other two?
But even more than that, this place seemed to be the most "normal" location out of the three. From what Owl had described to her when Mei first entered the road, the building seemed to just be a small ordinary house, located in what seemed to be a neighborhood for the elderly to live in, away from the usual bustling noises of the city.
For a fleeting moment, she thought that it might be where Kiana was kept, but that hope was immediately snuffed out once she remembered that the woman didn't exist anywhere near this place.
So then…why?
An apartment. A half-finished building. A house.
There was something she couldn't quite place, something that was needed to make this all click.
"What can it be…"
She continued to mutter to herself, lowering her head as she placed both hands on the steering wheel.
Right now, she needed to wait for the others to arrive. So long as the woman stayed inside that house, there was nothing more they could do to figure out her intentions. Even though she had already discussed this, it did nothing to lessen the frustration bubbling inside her.
If only…
"...Durandal."
The voice of Bronya snapped her out of it, her gaze lifting to turn to meet the girl's face.
"I have a plan."
Her blue eyes widened once she saw Bronya, her face no longer as pale as it was before, although exhaustion still lingered on her eyes. Even then, there was something noticeable in her irises, a glint of light that was missing previously.
"A plan?" She finally asked, shaking away the surprise from seeing her.
Bronya nodded, turning her head onto the road before them.
"I'll go and meet Mei, and try to talk to her."
"Huh?"
Durandal could only let out that exasperated sound, taking a moment to process what she just heard.
Taking that stunned silence to her advantage, Bronya continued, her voice a bit shaky, likely from the fatigue that was still etched into her body.
"Right now, she doesn't know that I'm involved. But if I go and tell her that I saw the mail containing the address to this place, she wouldn't be too surprised by my sudden visit. I can be your eyes inside the house," the girl's voice sounded reluctant to say the latter, her eyes drifting away with a pain that Durandal felt was surely unbearable for her, before she returned with a hardened look. "Right now, I'm the only one she would open up to. Let me do this."
Durandal stared into those gray-colored eyes, a palpable sense of desperation glimmering within her irises, yet also something more. Something that the Kaslana didn't know if it was foolishness or…just a mirror staring back at her.
"...Are you sure?" She asked, her voice firm yet soft, giving the girl a serious look, no longer that of concern for her well-being, but a genuine assessment of Bronya's will.
Bronya didn't respond immediately, taking a moment as she lowered her gaze. Then, she returned with a similar look towards Durandal, a familiar expression she once saw back when they first met.
"Please."
A single word, yet it carried all the conviction and weight to Durandal.
"...Alright."
Durandal relented, relaxing her shoulders as she then dropped back onto her seat with a light thud.
"But I need you to record the conversation you may have with her, can you do that?"
"…" Bronya's eyes widened slightly as if she wasn't expecting her condition, before quickly falling into a frown as she contemplated her words. Finally, she nodded, taking out her own phone. "I'll record what I can with this, and send it to you once I'm done."
Durandal nodded, a look of trust held on her expression as she motioned for the girl to take her leave. Heeding her gesture, Bronya opened the passenger door and stepped outside, her eyes locked onto the view of the house from afar as she steadied her nerves.
Durandal gave the girl a longing stare as she began to walk forward, gradually growing further away from the car and towards the distant house. The Kaslana found herself gripping the wheels just a little tighter, a weight seemingly pressing down on her chest as she voiced these words only to herself.
"Good luck."
Taking her eyes away from Bronya soon after, Durandal turned her attention back to the walkie talkie, leaning her head back as she pressed the button on the side of it.
"Owl, report your status."
"Owl here, nothing has changed so far. Our target is still inside the house."
[Alright, here's the plan] Durandal's voice lightly echoed from the device as he held it next to his cheek, standing behind a "Stop" sign as he kept his eyes peered for the house. [Mrs. Zaychik will move into the house and attempt to get inside with the target. She'll be recording her conversation with them. You and Ana should proceed to survey the surrounding area, look for anything of note that might suggest any significance to this location's placement if at all possible. Me and the others will meet up with you once we do a full survey around the area.]
"Copy that," he replied, momentarily breaking his focus to look at Ana standing not so far from him, her eyes drifting onto a small vending machine situated in front of a convenience store just outside the neighborhood.
The girl noticed his gaze at her, glancing back as the two exchanged a short nod to one another. Then he pushed himself from the pole as he made his way over to Ana.
"Captain ordered us to take a look around," he curtly said to her, his eyes all the while glued to the house far away from them.
"Is that so?" Ana responded, her eyes drifting over to the side as she looked out onto the streets, kids roaming around the car-less roads as they joyfully laughed and cheered with snacks and candies in their hands.
"...That's a lot of kids," she found herself muttering.
"Hmm?" The strange statement caught Owl's attention, his light blue eyes breaking away from the sight of the house and towards Ana. "What do you mean?"
Ana raised her arm and pointed at the scene a bit away from them, bringing his attention along. He looked onto the oddly busy streets, kids gathering and playing with each other. But even more than that, there were people exiting out of their houses and moving a fair distance away as they gathered with the children. All done by a singular girl, who seemed to be knocking and persuading people to leave their homes.
That girl…, he mulled to himself, narrowing his gaze. She was the one that Raiden Mei talked to earlier.
"I wonder if there's an activity going on," Ana muttered casually, her eyes wavering from the sudden crowd slowly forming nearby, while Owl continued to focus on the girl getting the people out of their homes.
Activity? What kind of activity could that be?
He found himself thinking, taking in the strange sight before him before he let his gaze wander back to the house, the one place that the girl last stood before as she finished her conversation with Raiden Mei.
His eyes widened as he finally noticed something, a detail that made him freeze in his place, even grabbing Ana's attention as she looked back at him.
"Owl?"
"...The house," he found himself muttering.
"What?"
"The house…except for that one, everyone else has been leaving their homes. All of which were nearby Raiden Mei's house."
Ana's eyes widened at his words, before she turned and noticed the strange detail as well.
Something wasn't right.
Both of them came to that conclusion.
With a grim expression on his face, he quickly took his walkie out, and for the first time, there was a genuine sense of nervousness echoed in his voice.
"Captain, something's happening."
Mei let out a heavy pant, a bead of sweat dripping down her forehead as she moved her arms, wiping it away with exhaustion evident in her limbs.
She turned her gaze over to the window not too far from her. Even from this angle, she could see the faint figure of Carole walking down the road, along with other people, both children and elders following her along.
She thinned her lips, finding it awfully dry.
If she could have helped it, she didn't want to get Carole involved in this in any way. But she didn't have much time, and this was the best possible way she can think of that will ensure things don't go badly.
Thankfully, Carole didn't pried too much, having placed so much trust and faith in her already to do so. The thought comforted her, yet she couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt trailing up her chest and to her throat, threatening her lips to mouth a "I'm sorry" to no one in particular.
Even so, Mei pushed that guilt downwards, resolving herself to focus on the task at hand as she turned her gaze away from the window, and back onto the floor.
Laying in front of her was a busted flooring and cracked wall, exposing the inner pipes that were used to house the complicated wirings that powered her house's light and electricity devices. One of the pipes was broken, leaving a mess of wires ripped and cut hastily and without tack.
It was a complete and utter hazzard, sparks of electricity almost visible as it lightly touched one broken end of one wire to another. The lights in her house flicker, with some already turned off because of this, but Mei didn't give much of a reaction to any of it.
"This should be good enough…"
She mumbled to herself, before turning her gaze to where her kitchen was, her feets slowly making its way over, nearly tripping over the mess that lay scattered about the floor near her.
Reaching the kitchen, she placed her hand onto the large gas tank situated at the corner of the kitchen counter, its pipe traveling downwards and behind the cabinet, connecting it to the gas stove she had installed.
Her fingers trailed over to the vale of the tank, her eyes staring at the pipe that was connecting it to the gas stove. Her other hand lightly grazed the surface of the pipe, before wrapping her digits around it as she held it firmly.
If this goes well, then the only person who would be suffering from this is her.
However, the attention this would draw onto her, both good and bad, would be more than enough to deter, or even completely shut down Durandal's investigation on her. She would become too prominent of a figure in the news, a victim of an unfortunate gas leak inside her own home that caused massive damage to her finances and stability, that the woman's evidence of her potential suspicion of being a culprit to a missing persons case from months back would seem too out there for anyone to believe in.
She would hope that that would be enough to at least give her time to figure out what she should do after this.
In fact, she would have liked to have more time to ensure this plan would work.
But that was impossible now, with how she was actively being tailed by those two people, and very likely, Durandal herself.
Mei was paranoid.
Even when she acted calmly in front of Kiana, her mind was still swimming with anxiety. It didn't help that by the time she went to work, she had passed by dozens of other people that she found herself unnecessarily focusing on.
But perhaps for this moment, she felt thankful that she was, because it made her make the hasty decision of suddenly switching course, turning away as she pretended to buy something nearby. Only to then notice two individuals rushing down the road and out from the corner, seeming like a couple just trying to have fun.
Her paranoia made sure that she recognized those two from the first moment she passed by them on the streets, and she knew she can't go back on it now. It was now or never.
There was no way she could possibly go home to Kiana with her being tailed, and she absolutely can't leave the girl alone until they were gone. She needed this plan to work, or at the very least drive their attention away from her enough that she is allowed to go back home undisturbed.
If Durandal was nearby and watching this…well, that might speed up the process of elimination.
The woman would have no choice but to go back to the station to report on the situation herself, being an eyewitness to it. As for Mei? She'll quietly sneak out through the back door, leading to an old road on the other side of the neighborhood, a street that has been abandoned there since decades back.
At least, she hoped she could make it out the door before the gas ignited.
Mei sighed, feeling her nerves shaking for the first time today.
Strange, she felt like she was ready for this, but she couldn't be any less so.
She turned her gaze back to the rest of her house, taking in her surroundings one more time. She can still see large boxes still laid unopened near the staircase, half-finished parts laid across the ground.
She was supposed to share this house with Kiana once everything died down, and the two would have gotten more comfortable being around each other.
That dream of living that cozy life together…
Mei bit her lips, closing her eyes as she felt her shoulders slumped.
That will have to wait, I suppose.
With that, Mei reopened her eyes, a firmer expression taking over her as she looked back to the gas tank, putting slight pressure in her grip as she prepared to pull out the pipe.
"Here goes…"
Bronya walked towards the looming house belonging to her friend, a house so unfamiliar to her eyes.
She could feel her heart pounding in her ears, her eyes remained unblinking as each step brought her closer to it.
She gulped down a bead of saliva, yet her throat had never felt drier. Her mind raced, wondering just one thing.
Mei…
She was stubborn. This was the one thing she had always given herself credit for, for better and for worse.
She had always been stubborn to a fault, to the point that it has hurt so many people she once cared so deeply about.
She still wished she could take it all back. She wished that such a possibility was even possible.
But that was a fever dream, one Bronya can't and won't bring herself to imagine.
She, out of all people, doesn't deserve such a fantastical dream.
However, if there was one thing she would allow herself to wish for, one singular thing that she could allow herself to want, to think, to pray to anything and everything that she could pray towards…
It would be this.
She stood in front of the door, its white frame seeming so small up close. She bit her lips, her hands gripping tightly beside her as she contemplated, again and again.
She wanted her friend to be innocent. She wished and prayed that Mei was.
The inconsistencies and oddities of these locations that Mei has bought had brought a surge of hope into her heart. A foolish, idiotic and naive hope, yes, but she can't bring herself to let go of it.
How could she?
Mei was all that she had left.
Mei was the only thing Bronya had left.
The only person she could consider her closest friend.
The only person that was her only friend.
The only one who was there for her when she couldn't bring herself to reach out to anyone.
The only one who accepted her for who she was then, and even now; always with a smile and that sweet soothing laughter.
The only one who comforted her, who gave her a reason to even wake up.
The only reason why she was even standing here in the first place.
Mei saved her life. And now she couldn't even bring herself to have faith in her for even just a moment?
How disgusting of me…
She hated herself so much. She hated how clouded her thoughts have become. How muddied and fractured her mind has been left this past week. She wished none of this would have happened in the first place. She wished things could have stayed the same before this.
Even if it meant running away from everything. Even if she kept on running.
She would take it.
Bronya would gladly take it. She would gladly take that fleeting happiness over the broken reality that was her life.
She would gladly believe in a stupid fool's hope, rather than reliving the pain she experienced that day. The day that she once thought ended everything for her. The day that she did lose everything.
It was the day that she felt her very world turned upside down, where reality hardly felt real anymore, where the things she once believed in shattered and burned away into ash.
She hated herself for wishing that she never experienced it.
She hated herself for thinking that she could ever keep living after all that. Knowing that those very same things, those very same people are still out there, still alive, and she had abandoned it all just for this.
A life that she did not deserve.
A friend she couldn't ever dare to ask for.
A Bronya that could laugh, cry, and suffer like everyone else.
She would abandon it all, if she could have this again.
If she could have her again.
Despicable.
Bronya shook her head, her gray irises shaking visibly as she pushed away the overwhelming thoughts.
Forget about it.
That's what she's been doing all these years now. There was no point digging them up.
Right?
She hated that she couldn't answer that anymore.
She stared at the door, taking her first step onto the small staircase. She reached into her pocket, taking out her phone as she felt her trembling fingers danced over the numbers on the screen, and she began to dial for a certain someone.
Please…
She felt her heart pleading inside herself as she waited for the call to connect, pressing it against her ears as she took in a long, shaky breath.
It was now, or never.
Bronya can't take any more of the latter. Not this one.
Please pick up…
"Phew, that's everyone I think.."
Carole wiped the sweats from her forehead, her back bending forward as she took a light breather. Panting, she looked up to see all the kids roaming around nearby, or busy eating the snacks she had given to them. The bag was just enough for all of them.
She turned, finding the older, more elderly adults chatting amongst themselves. Some seemed quite content with the fact that she just dragged them out of their homes for little to no reason, while others seemed a bit confused.
Nonetheless, when she told them that it was Mei's request, they went along with it quite quickly. That just goes to show how fond of everyone was with her.
She stretched her back, taking a moment to pat herself on the back for doing exactly what Mei told her. She was curious as to why the woman needed her to do this of course, but she had no reason to doubt her intentions. She probably was preparing some kind of surprise for them.
With a clap of her hand, a smile spread onto her lips.
"Might as well get everyone psyched up for it!" she pumped herself up, figuring that she should get everyone prepared for whatever surprise Mei was about to spring on them.
"Uh, Mrs. Carole."
Suddenly, she felt the tug on her clothes as she turned to the side, finding a kid tugging at her as they looked up at her face.
"Hmm? What is it?" she leaned down to meet their gaze, a smile still present on her lips.
The kid simply pointed to the side of them, an innocent expression on them as they spoke.
"Someone is walking over the house."
"Eh?"
Carole found herself blurted, her eyes slowly crept to the side. Sure enough, there was someone making their way up the stairs, seemingly about to open the door.
"Ahhh!"
She yelled, her feet kicking up as she began to run as fast as she could towards that person, waving her arms frantically to try to catch her attention.
One hand raised over her mouth, she yelled out to them with all her breath, her eyes glued onto their surprised expression as they turned to look at her.
"Hey miss!—"
Mei walked down the lone empty road, her gaze transfixed onto the messy concrete floor filled with cracks and busted cobble.
She found her eyes unconsciously turned to the side, spotting empty houses littering the area. In fact, the road she was walking on was filled with these kinds of abandoned buildings, all left to slowly fade away from the collective's memories.
She remembered faintly reading somewhere that there was a fire that once engulfed this neighborhood that went unnotified. So many people burned that day, and even now, the streets are left as a ghostly remnant of what it once was.
It felt unsettling to her that the government would build a neighborhood for the elderly right next to such a historical place, a stain of this city's history so willingly, but for now, she would rather not think about it.
Mei turned her gaze back to her house, now a fair distance away from her. She wondered how long it had been since she exited it, but found no real answer.
For a moment, she wavered, choosing between staying just to watch, or to quietly keep moving down this empty road and going somewhere else. Finally, she decided to build her facade for now, turning forward again as she prepared to keep walking.
But right before she could, a loud ringing emanated from inside her pants, catching her attention as she looked down to her pocket.
She took out her phone, her eyes widened as she recognized the familiar name that was calling her, answering it immediately.
"Bronya?" Mei called out to her friend, pressing the phone firmly against her ear. "It's so early in the morning for you to call me. What is it?"
[Hey…] Her friend voiced, sounding a bit…fatigued? [Yeah, well, I guessed I just woke up early today.]
"Are you alright?" Mei continued to ask, noting how off Bronya was sounding. As she did, she resumed her walking again.
[Yeah, I'm fine. It's just..I need to tell you something.]
"What is it?"
[...I uh, kinda read through some of your emails yesterday, and found something odd.]
"Eh?" Mei yelped, turning her head as if Bronya was speaking next to her, finding nothing but empty houses on the sidewalk. "What do you mean? And why were you reading my emails?"
[Sorry, it was kinda there and I accidentally took a peek…] she said, a strain in her voice that made it difficult for Mei to discern whether she was being completely honest with that. But soon after, her voice seemed to settle down a bit, sounding a bit lower than she usually does. [Mei…did you buy a house?]
Huh?
Mei stopped in her tracks, her indigo eyes stuck frozen in front of her.
[It made me really curious when I saw it, so I was wondering why you would need another one. Were you planning to move to a new place? Why didn't you tell me about it?]
"..."
Mei couldn't speak. She couldn't find the will to say a single word.
[Mei…]
Her friend echoed again, this time so soft yet so small.
[Is there…something you don't want to tell me?]
"...Bronya," she finally uttered, her voice devoid of any hint of emotion, her grip on her phone growing unusually tight. "Where are you right now?"
[...]
A long pause, Mei's ears only accompanied by the loud beating heart that came from her own chest. Her eyes stuck in place, unmoving and unblinking.
"Bronya."
She repeated, this time with an urgency that she couldn't quite mask.
[...I'm–]
[Hey miss! You're not supposed to go near that!]
Mei ran.
Yet she felt like she was floating.
Her feet kicked into the air as fast as she could muster, her legs swung back and forth with a frantic rhythm that bordered on hysterical.
She never knew she could run so fast.
Her eyes trained onto the gradually closing building, air caught in her lungs as she didn't dare to breathe a single gulf of it.
She ran and ran, until the only thing she could hear was her own heartbeat drumming inside her ears.
Until all that she could feel was the hard concrete floor colliding with her foot, sending jolts of pain through her limbs that made each fall of her leg utterly painful.
Yet she didn't stop.
She can't.
Not when she could still hear the faint noises from her phone swinging wildly to her side.
Not when the house was still so close in her sight.
Not when her friend was still there, a gasp of surprise echoed from the device that was unmistakable hers.
"BRONYA!"
She screamed into the open air.
A scream she never knew she could muster, so intense and yet so utterly feeble.
A scream that brought utter dread to her every nerve.
A scream that echoed the sheer desperation clawing through her chaotic mind as she found the singular act of running being the most important thing in her entire existence.
The second most important.
"GET AWAY FROM THE HOUSE!"
[Huh?]
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
For a brief second, all Mei could see was red.
Then it was utter darkness.
And then, it was the sound of something falling to the ground with a heavy thud.
Only for her to realize that it came from her, a surge of pain shot through her brain as she pried her eyes open, wide and frantic as she slowly returned from the faint state of unconsciousness she had just fallen into.
She gasped, air barely entering her lungs as she struggled to lift herself off from the broken concrete ground, her eyes a chaotic mess as she reoriented herself from the abrupt change of perspective.
"Nghk!"
She grunted, every limb in her body trembling and screaming at her to stop, telling her that whatever she's trying to do was not worth it.
She didn't care.
Her head shot upwards, her hands shakily pressed onto the ground as she focused her eyes, adjusting herself to the straining bright light staining her vision.
It was so incredibly bright.
It was so unbelievably…red.
And it was then that her vision finally cleared, blinking away the hazy smoke that seemed to float towards her.
Her body froze as she looked at the sight before her.
The house was burning.
Her house was burning.
A fire so large it engulfed the entire building, scorching every last bit of any remnants of what was once there. Black smoke rose up from the crimson inferno, the sky darkened from the sheer intensity of it all.
Mei laid on the floor, staring at the flame that ate away at her house.
Before the next second, she found herself standing, her foot turning to the side as she broke away from the fiery scene, bolting her way through one of the alleys close by as she ran.
She ran, even as each step sent an unimaginable level of pain through her.
Mei could only wince and gritted her teeth through it all.
She tumbled forward, barely holding onto her balance, uncaring of the bruise she had sustained from the blast. She could hardly register that her body had started limping forward, one foot slightly dragged behind as searing heat trickled down her leg.
And as she finally exited out of the cramped alley and onto the familiar street, she found a crowd standing far away, their eyes glued to the scorching sight that left them shock-stilled.
She gave them barely a glance of acknowledgement, her trembling eyes snapped towards the side of her house, dragging her banged up body forward.
She tugged at her shoulder, finding it difficult to even swing her arms. She let out a harsh breath, barely taking in any air into her breathless lungs as she dragged herself over.
She kept looking at the fire. She couldn't look away from it, not even for a moment.
Her mind churned and rumbled, her thoughts consisting of nothing else but only one thing.
And as she felt her foot caught onto something, she tripped, landing face first onto the ground as she let out a pained grunt.
Painfully and shakily, she lifted herself off the floor, her gaze falling onto the ground with her.
At that very moment, the world just stopped.
There was a fire burning in front of her, one separated from the rest of the scorching hot building.
Its crimson embrace enveloping something beneath it, the shape barely discernible from the raw fiery fuel that continued to burn and ebb away at the core.
No. It was not a shape, nor a thing.
Engulfed by the flames was a figure, their body caught by the same intense embrace of the flame. Their clothes burned and kept burning, their limbs sprawled out on the ground, unmoving.
But even through the flame, even through the gears that threatened to blur her vision from how intense the fire was, there was something unmistakable, a singular thing that made it all the clearer to her who this person was.
Their hair, adorned with a silver glow to them, now reflecting the burning embers that scorched their very body, slowly beginning to spread from their head and onto the side, each end caught with the similar embers that left nothing but ashes in its wake.
Mei found herself uttering, her lips moving unconsciously as she stood in front of the lifeless body before her.
Once more, the world began to turn.
And the inferno screech was all she could hear.
"Bron…ya…?"
AN: : )
Two years. This chapter has been in the works for two whole years. I have been living with this circling in my mind for two damn years, and now…it feels surreal that it's actually here. Honestly, it feels unreal that I'm this far into the story already, and there's still so much left to go. I'm eagerly looking forward to all that next.
But anyhow, that's the third and last act for this three-act-chapters! Hope it was worth the wait, or well, hope it was shocking at least heh. Things are going to get crazier from here on out, so look forward to that, or dread it. Either one will be fun to see for me.
Oh, this would be a good time to announce it, but I am going to be doing a full rewrite of the earlier chapters for this story. A lot of things have changed from the original vision I once had in the beginning, to now, it just doesn't really work anymore, or downright out of pocket now. Cough cough chapter 4…
So yeah, I'm going to be working on rewriting the early chapters, getting them more in-line with the vision I have now, and also updating the characterization of many of the characters, especially Mei. She's the main reason why this is necessary really.
I'll still work on chapter 15 as I'm doing this of course, which I hope wouldn't slow down the updates too much. I would like to keep a consistent schedule of one new chapter and maybe one rewrite chapter per month, but we shall see.
I hope that by the end of this, I'll be left with a much more cohesive and consistent story from beginning to end. I think some of the scenes I'll be adding for the early chapters will be worth the effort, so be sure to keep a lookout on that as well!
Anyhow, I have rambled long enough, so it's time to say goodbye. Hope this explosive chapter was enjoyable to read, and as always, I would love to hear you guys thoughts on it! It really does motivate me to continue writing for this story, beyond just for my own personal desire to see it become a reality.
Alright, I'll be seeing y'all in the next chapter. Bai bai.
P.S: I made a discord server, so come join if you want to see me go insane about this fic in real time, ooor you just want to have a chill place to hang out with others: gg/ZQXMbKpxTE
