雨宮 蓮
It had been a few hours since Ren had visited the pet hospital. Morgana wasn't waking up, and the veterinarian couldn't tell Ren why.
"All of his vitals seem normal," the doctor had told him earlier that morning, tapping her pen against her chin, perplexed. As the vet tech slid the pet carrier over the countertop, Ren caught a glimpse of the unmoving dark lump inside.
Morgana hadn't so much as stirred on the trip there. Even though he hated being transported in that bag.
"His internal temperature is a bit low, which might be contributing to his lethargy." She looked up at him, raising a brow quizzically. "Do you know if something happened to him recently?"
Ren drew the bag close to his chest. "I...no. Nothing comes to mind."
He bit back words of frustration. Morgana's condition wasn't just lethargy.
He might have been hurt, Ren wanted to explain. What if he was attacked? What if Shadows got to him?
The vet continued, "There's not much else we can do at this point. Let him sleep a bit and see if anything changes."
The boy's lips thinned into a pale line. He exhaled.
"I understand."
After leaving the veterinarian's office, Ren spent the rest of the morning wracking his brain for answers.
Last night, Morgana had passed out suddenly, and no about of shaking, shouting, or coercing would get his friend to open his eyes. The commotion had awoken his parents, who begrudgingly came to his room to scold him for the noise.
"What's that about the cat?" His father had asked, grumpily. "We'll leave some cash on the table, so you can take him to the vet in the morning. Okay? Just…quiet down already."
It was all he could do to at least keep his friend comfortable as he slept, tucking his small body into the folds of his blankets back home. Morgana's face was a picture of serenity, the steady rise and fall of his furry flank a reminder that he still breathed.
Ren had closed his eyes, sitting quietly at his bedside.
It's alright. It's alright. Something—I'll figure something out by myself. Joker will-
"Senpai?"
The teenager finally glanced up, broken out of his cage of fitful thoughts.
Filling his nose was the earthy smell of rich coffee, and his ears hummed with the white noise of distant chatter. Sitting across the table from him was a highschool aged girl, head tilted slightly as a concerned frown tugged at the corner of her lips. As she did, a lock of scarlet red hair slipped over her elegant shoulders.
"Is something the matter?" Sumire Yoshizawa glanced pointedly at the mug in his hands. Printed on the side of the pale ceramic was a logo: Cafe Chagall. "You've barely touched your coffee."
"It's nothing," he said easily, assuming a relaxed smile. Ren lifted the cup to his lips and took a sip. It was no Leblanc, but the roast and extraction quality was of good quality, rich in flavor and depth. "I was just thinking about how nice it is to see you again."
Sumire just laughed. "Really? And here I was, worried that the coffee here wouldn't be quite up to your standards. It's hard to find a place that makes it as good as Mister Sakura or yourself."
The two sat inside a quaint cafe, basking in a rare moment of quiet on the normally busy street. The central shopping district had, in recent years, opened itself up to more businesses—one of them being the rather famous cafe chain. It was his first time visiting since it opened.
Ren had met up with Sumire at the train station about an hour ago, and they had spent most of the noon hours wandering through the shops nearby. He had been worried that he wouldn't be in the right mood to entertain her, but things seemed to be holding out fine. When he was talking to someone, he found that he could get his mind off of things—if only for a moment.
Ren lowered his mug back onto the table, bemused. "You flatter me. If you want, I can brew you a cup some other time. How long are you going to be staying in the area again?"
Sumire looked no different than he last remembered—and yet there was something distinctly changed about her. On this day, she wore a simple cream sweater, a tan, knee-length skirt paired with black stockings, and a large ruby winter coat. Cradled in her flushed hands was a mug of pale brown coffee. She liked hers with a healthy amount of cream and sugar, he remembered. That much, at least, seemed the same.
"I'm here until the end of the week," she said, swirling what little liquid remained in the cup. "I'm probably going to be busy for most of the week, but I think I'll have some free time before I leave." She paused, peering up at him bashfully. "I-if you're willing, I'd be honored to take you up on that offer. This coffee is good, but I can't help but compare it to yours. That, and I always get a craving for some curry when I drink some."
It looked like her appetite hadn't changed either.
Ren smiled and leaned his head on his hand. "You sure you're not just hungry?"
Golden-brown crumbs speckled the rims of the elegant porcelain saucer laid out in front of her. Where there had once been five different pastries now only remained one—a sweet, honey-glazed waffle. The girl turned slightly pink and pushed the dish away. "That too, but I am making an effort to hold myself back. My gymnastics meet is coming up soon, and I don't want to throw off my balance by eating too much."
"Another big competition, right?" Ren nudged the plate back closer to her. "How is practice?"
"Well," she began, fiddling with the sugar wrappers that were crumpled up beside her mug. "I'm constantly being reminded that I have a long way to go in terms of technical skill. Still, I'm proud to say that I'm a lot happier with where I am now. It finally feels like I'm on the right path forward."
Her face was, as ever, a veil of modesty, but this time Ren could sense a silent, resolute passion burning inside of her.
Ren felt an unexplainable twinge in his chest. He brushed the feeling off and offered the girl genuine praise. "You've been working hard, haven't you? All that effort will surely pay off."
"Do you think so…?" Sumire stopped herself, shaking her head. "No, you're right. I…I have been doing my best to change. It's been difficult, but hearing your encouragement fills me with renewed confidence. I've gotta keep my momentum going and blaze through the next competition." She pumped her fists in a show of self-motivation, grinning eagerly. "Of course, it's all thanks to the people supporting me along the way—especially you, Ren-senpai. I couldn't have made it this far without you."
"Nah…I haven't done much of anything, really." A group of chattering teenagers walked by the shop windows. Ren turned away from the glass and stared down at his tapping fingers until they passed. "All that you've achieved now is the result of your own efforts. You should be proud."
"T-that's not entirely true," Sumire stammered, waving her hand in denial. "But…thank you. It means a lot—really."
He looked down at the still, dark water in his own mug. A muddy reflection peered back at him, expressionless. Ren's lips curled into a thin smile.
"You seem happier. I'm glad."
Sumire blinked.
"Happy?" She furrowed her brows in earnest thought. "Well…I guess you can say that I am. But, you know, things don't always go the way I want them to. It gets a bit frustrating at times. I still get yelled at a lot during practice. Since I'm always travelling around, I haven't been making any friends at school either. My teachers are always scolding me, and my grades have honestly never been worse."
As Sumire spoke, she reached for the final pastry that sat unattended on her plate. She tore the glazed waffle apart with her fork and knife, shyly offering him a half. He accepted it gracefully, pausing before taking a bite. It was candy sweet.
The girl giggled, clearly getting a kick out of the look on his face. Ren took a sip from his coffee to stave off the sugar. The bitterness of the drink mixed with the honey tones of the sugary glaze, blending into a rather mellow, bittersweet flavor. It was a taste he didn't dislike by any means.
Sumire continued, "Last year felt like a dream, didn't it? So much happened—mental shut-downs, psychotic outbursts…and there were those Phantom Thieves too." At the last part, she lowered her voice and looked up at him with mirth brimming over in her ruby eyes.
Ren cracked a wry grin.
"And what a bunch of no-good troublemakers they were," he said, rolling his eyes. "Good riddance."
"Come now, they weren't all that bad," Sumire laughed, a hand over her mouth. She bit into her waffle, chewing slowly to savor the flavors. For how much she ate, Sumire always took her time while eating. Apparently, it helped with digestion.
"You know, sometimes I think about how quickly time has passed since then. Those days won't ever come back to us, no matter how much we long for it. And for some reason that makes me feel a bit…lonely? Maybe lonely isn't the right word. Um…what was it?"
"Melancholic?" Ren supplied.
"Oh, yes—melancholy," she agreed, jumping eagerly onto the word. "It's very strange, isn't it? I don't think I have any regrets or worries, so it feels a bit contradictory."
Ren shook his head. "No. It's not strange at all. People feel that way all the time."
Sumire smiled, relieved. "I'm glad to hear you say that. Honestly, I felt a little bad about admitting to it, considering all that we went through. In a weird way, I'm both happy that those hectic days are over…and sad that they're gone."
He nodded.
"...Yeah."
It had been only a single year. Long while experiencing it, but far too short in hindsight. Their time in Shujin had been a thrilling moment in both of their lives—a rollercoaster of mixed excitement and dread that Ren doubted would be matched in the years to come.
"I felt much stronger back then, emotionally. Nowadays, it's easy to get distracted by all these minor inconveniences," she laughed self-depreciatingly, brushing the hair over her eyes. "But it's always the little things that remind me why I try so hard. For example…enjoying a nice cup of coffee with a dear friend, even if it's only once in a while."
She paused, turning to look out the window and up into the sky.
"I'm not happy all of the time. But I think that's fine too. I can say it confidently now: I wouldn't wish for my life to have gone any other way."
Ren lowered his head, closing his eyes as a quiet chuckle bubbled to his lips.
"If that's your way of saying you missed me, you should know that I'm glad to see you too."
The girl cleared her throat, embarrassed. "Sorry—I've been rambling on about myself for a while now, haven't I?"
She took another bite of her candied waffle and dabbed at the corner of her mouth with a napkin. "How have you been, Ren-senpai?" Her eyes gleamed with barely contained curiosity. "Is school alright here? You're graduating soon—any plans for higher education or a job?"
Ren averted his gaze, tugging at his fringe. "You don't have to call me senpai anymore, you know. Just Ren is fine."
"H-huh? I couldn't possibly," Sumire spluttered. "You've given me so much help in the past year. There are so many things about you that I've always admi—erm, respected." She turned pink and shifted in her seat nervously. "That is to say…it's a bit embarrassing to change how I call you after all this time."
The high school boy tilted his head, puzzled. "If it's about respect, then I respect you plenty too, Sumire."
She turned pink with indignation. "Oh, please," she mumbled, fiddling with her hair.
At that moment, Ren felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Subtly, he glanced down and read his screen. It was a phone call.
"Sorry, I'm getting a call," he said apologetically, lifting his phone. "Can I step away for a minute? I'll be right back."
Sumire nodded, flustered. "Oh, yes. Of course."
Ren stood and wound his way to the restrooms, bringing the phone up to his ear. Once Sumire was out of earshot, he answered, "Hello?"
"Hey, Amamiya-kun. I got your message," Narukami replied from the other end of the speaker. He could hear the sound of a police siren blaring in the background, and distant chatter of people somewhere in the vicinity.
Oh.
After the events of last night, Ren had sent Narukami a quick text explaining in few words what had happened. A part of him had been hesitant about sending the message—they still barely knew each other, after all—but he was desperate.
"Is Morgana okay? What happened? I thought you said he was-"
"I don't know." A dark mood settled over him in a quiet fury. An image flashed in his mind: the sight of his friend laying there, crumpled lifeless against the floor—it was not a sight he would soon like to see again.
Flood. Not much time left. Hurry.
"He came back around midnight," Ren explained, rubbing his eyes. "From the sound of it, something bad is happening in the cyberworld. Morgana was trying to warn me, but…"
Narukami was silent for a moment, and he imagined the other pursing his lips in deep thought.
"Do you think it has something to do with the notice we got the other day?"
Notice: New LOCATION discovered!
Ren was willing to bet that it did. Whatever Morgana had discovered yesterday—if it had been a Shadow or something even worse—he would only find answers for them in the cyberworld. And, if he was guessing right, using force was likely going to the best way to get things to go his way in there. Thankfully, Ren was quite handy with a gun.
"If it does, I intend to find out," was all he said.
Narukami sounded somewhat amused. "So you're planning to go back, then."
Ren heard someone shout in the background. "Hey, you manage to get everything you need?"
"Yes, we're all good here," Narukami turned from the microphone, speaking to another officer, presumably. "I'll finish the rest at the station."
Ren closed his eyes pensively.
"I've little other choice in the matter. Morgana's probably not going to get better on his own, and I'm not going to sit around and wait for something to go wrong. If you're too busy, I'll manage fine on my own so—"
Narukami interrupted him mid-sentence, voice clear and firm. "When are you leaving?"
Ren frowned. "I…" He shook his head, and against his better judgement, said, "Today. I planned on going today, before the evening."
It didn't absolutely need to be today, but he was starting to feel restless. It was the weekend anyways—there wasn't much else for him to be doing after he and Sumire parted. And his house was too quiet when it was just him.
"Okay, got it," came the surprisingly accommodating response. "I'll need a few hours to get ready, though. We can meet at Junes' food court. Sound good?"
"Why there?"
Narukami laughed. "Force of habit, you could say. Anyways, I've got to go. I'll see you soon."
Click. Ren pulled the cellphone from his ear. He could almost imagine the disapproving look Morgana would have given him if he was here.
When he made his way back to the table, he saw that Sumire was absentmindedly looking out the store windows to watch the passing cars and pedestrians. She had her fingers laced through the handle of her cup, nails rhythmically drumming against the smooth ceramic.
He glanced down to check the time on his phone screen. It had been about two hours since they met up—the only bit of free time Sumire could squeeze out in the midst of a hectic training schedule. She would need to leave soon.
Ren slid up to the table, beginning with an apology. "Hey, sorry about that-"
"Ah!"
Sumire yelped in surprise, all but leaping out of her seat. Her arm jolted out to the side in reflex. Her cup teetered over onto its side, threatening to spill its contents over the edge.
Before he could think, Ren lurched forward and reached over the table. Quick hands wrapped around the ceramic rim, steadying the delicate mug before it could completely tip over.
With a sigh of relief, he pulled his arm away.
But the cup was empty—Sumire had finished off her drink while he'd been away on the phone.
The boy's eyes flicked up, ready to make a joke at his own expense, when he realized just how close their faces were.
At that moment, the clouds blanketing the sky outside briefly parted—a ray of golden sunlight filtered through the glass windows, casting long shadows over the wooden table.
Sumire, the tip of her nose only inches from his, stared blankly up at him. Her expression was frozen stiff into one of surprise.
Ren jerked back. "Sorry," he blurted.
The sky closed up again and the light faded. Sumire blinked owlishly, turning away as she ran fingers through her long hair. "Oh…no. I'm the one who's sorry—I was distracted while thinking about something." Her eyes trailed back up to his face, but there was something off about the look she was giving him. "Um, did something happen? You seem…upset."
"Hm?" Ren brought a hand up to the corner of his mouth. He must have been scowling again. "No, I'm alright."
Sumire seemed unconvinced. She hesitated, drawing in a breath, before saying, "I'm sorry if I'm being a bit meddlesome, but is there something on your mind? You can always tell me if you need someone to lend an ear to your troubles. I've received a lot of help from you, and I wish to be there to do the same—if you ever feel obliged."
Once more, Ren assumed a mask of tranquility and sank back into the soft velvet chair. With an apologetic nod, he reassured her, "You're not being meddlesome. I've just had a lot to think about lately."
Sumire frowned, concerned. "Ren-senpai…"
"I'll be fine, Sumire." He lifted his cup over his mouth to drink from his now cold coffee. The sweetness from the pastry had long since faded from his tastebuds, leaving only the bitter now. Ren met her eyes and smiled, letting her know that he was speaking in jest.
"Like you said. Nobody's meant to be happy forever."
鳴上 悠
Yu took in a breath.
He opened the door to his dresser.
Tucked into the back of the wooden storage space, hidden under layers of jackets and pants, was a dark, metallic suitcase. Stamped atop the smooth surface was a logo: K.
He sighed inwardly. Maybe this is a bit overkill.
Hesitant fingers pulled under the clasps locking the briefcase shut. The silver clamps snapped up and back, and the lid cracked open as the pressure holding it down abated. Yu exhaled and pushed the case open.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. Yu pulled it out and pressed it against his ear. "Hello, this is-"
"Yu!" Yosuke's voice rang loudly from the other end. He sounded harried, and he could make out the catchy jingle of Junes' theme song in the background. "Chie told me that you were about to do something stupid. Are you actually going into the TV—er, I mean the cyberworld by yourself?"
"She told you already?" Yu leaned back on his legs, amused.
When he had excused himself from the office about an hour earlier, he'd run into the policewoman in the hallway.
"Yo, Yu-kun," Chie had greeted cheerfully, toting along a cardboard box full of old newspaper articles and clippings. Apparently, she was helping with cleaning out their archives room because it had gone too long without proper organization. "Headed out already?"
"Yeah, I've got some… errands to run," he replied, as casually as his conscience would allow. Chie didn't miss the subtle lilt in his tone, though, and narrowed her eyes at him, suspicious.
"Errands, huh? And what exactly is so important that you've been forced to leave your station at this busy time in the day?"
Chie had always been perceptive, but her senses had only grown sharper over the years—and more ruthless. She cornered him into a dark room and, with threats in her eyes, forced him to spill all the details he had the time to divulge.
Remembering the nasty look she had given him as he left still had him breaking out in cold sweats.
"This is the last time I let you go alone," she warned, brandishing her fist in the air. "You'd better come back safe, alright?"
Yosuke barked out a laugh.
"Well, yeah. You know how worried she gets." He let out a muffled grunt, and Yu heard the sound of something heavy thumping against the floor. "If you were gonna leave, you should have said something sooner. C'mon, partner—we should be in this together!"
"Sorry, it was kind of an emergency," Yu replied, apologetic. "And, besides—you seem like you're busy. Still setting up your event?"
"Well…yeah. We're in the final stretch now so I've been told to keep everyone working at double-time. It's been a real pain in the ass. My employees have been worked ragged for the last week now to get this thing ready in time, and the higher-higher ups have been breathing down our backs to make sure everything's exactly the way they want it. It's even worse because they told us we had to let a bunch of people go last minute-" Yosuke cut himself off with a cough. "Erm, that's enough about me, though."
It sounded like he had a lot on his plate, and few people to vent to. Yu shifted into a comfortable sitting position, head leaned into his phone. "You seem stressed out. Are things not going well at work?"
"Ah, you know how it is." Yosuke's voice softened the way it usually did when they spoke of personal matters. "...I'll tell you more about it some other time, promise. It's nothing that won't go away once the busy season is over."
Yu hummed quietly. "Alright."
"Anyways, cyberworld. You're going with that highschooler, right? I'm guessing something happened. I won't ask for the details over the phone, but will you two be safe by yourselves?"
He nodded in response, even though he knew Yosuke wasn't able to see him. "Yeah. We'll be careful."
Yosuke sighed. "...Okay. I'm letting it go since it's you of all people, but next time I'm definitely coming along, you hear? And if something happens you know who to call."
"Thanks. And tell Chie not to worry for me too. Hopefully she's not too upset."
"Uh-huh. Well, if her forgiveness comes at the price of an expensive steak dinner, I'm not helping you pay for it."
Yu laughed.
His back hit the door of his dresser, and his eyes trailed up to the picture frame sitting on top of his desk. Preserved carefully in the case was a group photo taken several years ago, back when he had still been a junior back at Yaso-Inaba High. It wasn't something he would openly admit to anyone, but he took that photo with him everywhere he went. Luckily, though, he didn't move around nearly as frequently as he did when he was still living with his parents.
"Oh, by the way, I liked the photo you took yesterday," Yu chuckled, remembering the sneak shot he'd found in his picture gallery last night. "The angle wasn't very flattering, though. I was under the impression that you cared about looking good in your pictures."
"Huh? Photo?" Wind crackled against the mic. It sounded like Yosuke was running around outside.
"Yeah, on my phone. Last night, at the bar." Yu sat up, putting his phone on speaker so that he could go back and check. "Weren't you the one who took it?"
He found the picture—the newest one in his gallery. Judging from the angle, the only ones who could have taken the photo were Yosuke and himself. Chie sat some distance from the camera, her arms clearly visible in the shot.
Yosuke made a sound of confusion. "Uh, I didn't take any photos. Maybe I was drunk and snapped it on accident? But, hey—send it to me. If I look really bad in it, you've gotta delete it, okay?"
Before he could respond, he heard a soft knock on his bedroom door. He quickly closed the case back shut and stood up, dusting his hands off. "Sure thing. I have to go soon—talk to you later."
"Okay, see you then. Shoot me a message when you get back."
He hung the call up and reached for his doorknob, pulling it open.
"Yes?"
Standing in the hallway was a nervous Nanako, who was wringing her hands together in front of her chest.
"Oh," she said, peering past him into his room. "I thought I heard you talking to someone. Are you going out again, Big Bro?"
Yu nodded, leaning against the wooden frame. "Yep. It's…work-related. Why? Did you need something?"
She fiddled with the hems of her shirt. Still dressed in her pajamas, it seemed that she had no plans to go out today. Yu crossed his arms as she spoke.
"Um…you didn't tell dad about last night, did you…?"
So that's what this is about. Yu smiled, amused.
After catching her outside with an unknown boy, he'd brought the flustered Nanako and a deformed fruit cake back into the house, sitting them both down at the coffee table in the living room. Before he could so much as get a word out, though, the girl blurted out, "I can explain."
Yu crossed his arms, bidding her speak. "Go ahead, then."
She shuffled uncomfortably on her knees, looking crestfallen. It had his heart wavering for a moment, before he steeled himself with a cough.
"He's just a classmate," she explained meekly. "We were studying at a friend's house, and I left my reference book behind. He came by to deliver it back to me when they realized."
Yu was skeptical at first—what kind of 'just a classmate' came over at midnight to deliver a forgotten textbook to a girl's house?—until he noticed what Nanako was wearing. She had already changed into her pajamas for the night, and her hair was still a bit damp from her bath. She'd clearly been getting ready for bed, if she hadn't been in bed already, when she'd been called out. Plus, there was the actual notebook sitting on the tabletop by her folded hands.
Yu relented with a sigh. "Okay, I understand. Please tell your friend that, rather than visiting late at night, he can come by in the morning instead from now on. If that's all then…"
"Don't tell Dad, Big Bro," she said suddenly, pleading. At Yu's nonplussed look, she continued, "You know how he gets sometimes. If he finds out, he's going to be really, really mad."
And Yu did understand. Though, rather than for Nanako, he was far more worried about what Dojima would do to the poor middle school boy who'd run afoul of the detective's precious daughter. Rationality was thrown out the window when she was mixed into the equation—though Yu could hardly judge himself, considering he was much the same in that regard.
They left it at a promise of silence, and both went about their nights. He hadn't breathed a word to Dojima, with the understanding that the situation was not to be repeated.
Yu reached out to rub the top of her head affectionately. "I didn't. I promised, didn't I?"
Nanako breathed out a sigh of relief, shoulders slumping a bit. "Oh, that's a relief. I made sure to tell my friend not to do that again, so…um, you don't have to worry about that anymore."
Yu hummed, turning back into his room secure the rest of his things. "That's good. So you were studying for exams?" He locked the briefcase up, bringing his thumbs over the clasps to clip them shut. He then straightened, twisting his head to look back at Nanako. "You're not having a hard time, are you? If you ever need help with homework review, you can always ask."
The middle schooler brightened. "Really? Can you do that?"
Yu smiled. "Sure. I might have forgotten a few things, but I'd be happy to sit down with you and go over any questions you have." He paused to glance down at his wristwatch. "Maybe not now though. It's about time to head out—I should be back before dinner."
...
Yu arrived at Junes food court at around 3PM sharp.
The food court was relatively quiet that day, probably because of the rain forecasts. It was overcast and chilly, as had been the norm in the last few weeks weeks. Few people milled about the outside patio, lining up to grab some food, but most of the crowd seemed to be concentrated inside of the actual department store.
As he strolled in, he spotted Amamiya's familiar head of scruffy black hair and his unassuming, lanky frame sitting lone in an unoccupied corner of the dining commons.
He walked up to the table, noticing that the teen was distractedly staring down at his own phone.
"Hey, there," Yu greeted, sliding into the bench across from him. His briefcase landed with a heavy thump on the seat next to him. Amamiya looked up, brow slightly raised as if to say, Finally. He smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I had to prepare some things first."
"It's fine." Amamiya put his phone down and shook his head. He glanced pointedly at the briefcase. "And that is…?"
"My preparations," Yu supplied. "Did you make sure to bring everything you needed too?"
Amamiya nodded slowly. "Yeah. Before we go in, though, I want to set some things straight first." The teen pulled a notepad from his bag, flipping it open to a page somewhere in the middle. At a cursory glance, Yu could see that the pages were already chock full of little memos.
"First, our objective." Amamiya's voice took a hard, serious edge. "Investigate the 'location' the app mentioned. In all likelihood, it's going to be linked to whatever happened to Morgana."
Yu nodded along. "And the risks? Whatever happened to him could very well end up happening to you or me."
Amamiya paused. A small ink pen twirled between his fingers, weaving under and over each digit with startling dexterity. "It's a risk I'm willing to take. I won't find answers or a cure to Morgana's condition unless I go look for it's origin myself. Though I understand if you're not willing."
Yu shook his head. "I'm going in with you."
Amamiya gave him a short nod. "Then, there's something else you should know. Before he…Morgana warned me about changes to the cyberworld. Apparently, strange beings have appeared on the other side. I'm not sure if they're dangerous or not yet."
Shadows? Yu pursed his lips in thought. "If they're hostile like the last Shadow we fought, then we need to be careful."
"All I could gather was that they were 'people' and that they 'didn't seem normal.' But I agree. We have to be on our guards." Amamiya lifted his hand, holding up two fingers. "Second, he told me to look out for 'floods'. From the sound of it, we might be dealing with a lot of water and rain."
"That's concerning. Well, all of that is, to be fair," Yu muttered, hand to his chin. If it was a flood in the literal sense, then maybe they would have been better off bringing in rafts and life jackets instead.
Amamiya shut his notepad. "Unfortunately, that's all the information we have. The rest we'll have to figure out ourselves." It was a bit less than Yu was used to working with, but Amamiya was right.
"Nothing ventured, nothing gained," Yu said resolutely. He stood up, as did Amamiya. "Alright then. If that's all, shall we get going?"
"We should look for someplace a bit more secluded to activate the app," Amamiya murmured under his breath, glancing around. "I'd rather not raise any suspicion by disappearing into thin air."
Amused, Yu gestured over his shoulder. "Behind the bathrooms? That should be a quiet enough spot-"
Crunch.
He halted, ears perking at the sound of leaves crinkling underfoot somewhere nearby. The skin at the base of his neck tingled and burned—he felt like he was being watched. The investigator spun around, eyes narrowed as he scanned the seemingly empty roads around them.
There was nobody there.
Amamiya stopped in his tracks, turning to look at him curiously. "Something wrong?"
Yu rubbed his neck, soothing the goosebumps that had popped up on his skin. Scooping up his briefcase, he picked up his pace to catch up with the the other, shaking his head. "It's nothing. Let's go."
...
There was a brief tide of nausea as they crossed over to the other side. Junes faded away into splotches of cold silver rain, and the sound of gentle wind and chattering pedestrians was drowned out by the thundering roar of a waterfall.
Waterfall?
The moment he could feel again, he was immediately assaulted by the cold sensation of water soaking through his clothes and beating against his face.
It was rain.
"Load complete. Welcome, User Amamiya Ren. User Narukami Yu."
The mechanical voice was completely overpowered by the sound of falling rain. As if the skies themselves had been split asunder, a torrent of water spilled forth from the foggy vortex up above with such intensity that he could hardly make out his surroundings. The city's bright lights were little more than blurry splotches, and the shadows of tall skyscrapers faded into the mist. Yu could almost imagine that he was standing in the midst of a powerful monsoon, except for the strange fact that no wind blew through the city.
What he could make out, however, was that they had appeared in a location different than before. They stood in a fairly spacious side street, that itself was cluttered with rows and rows of open stores, glowing street front advertisement boards, and neon signs. Dangling above like strings of lanterns were those translucent tubes, pumped full of the same ethereal blue fluid. Marked on the streets underfoot were flickering electrical street markings that read: 止まれ. Stop.
He felt a hand tug at his shoulder, pulling him away from open rain and under the cover of the awning of a nearby shop.
Joker brushed rainwater from his coat and off of his sleeves. He was already dressed in his Phantom Thief attire, though his mask had been pushed back over the top of his head to allow for easier view of their surroundings.
"It's coming down hard," Yu commented, tugging off his now drenched overcoat with a frown of displeasure. The two glanced out from the veritable curtain of water that streamed from the top of the roof in shimmering rivers. "With visibility so low, it'll be difficult to-"
Joker raised a gloved hand, alarm in his tone. "Hold that thought. Look."
He gestured forward, and Yu followed the line of his gaze.
There, drifting silently through the mist, was a person.
No, not a person, Yu realized, hands already reaching for the clasps of his briefcase. A shadow.
Yu braced for a fight, but Joker stopped him, shaking his head. "Wait," he said, uneasy but not up in arms. "I don't think they're hostile."
Indeed, they weren't at all aggressive—instead, their movements were groggy and faint, as if the slightest breeze would scatter them into dust. Yu squinted to make out their muddied features, but any shape he could make out was warped by heavy rain. Rather than appearing to walk, the figure glided down the street, disappearing into the soft bloom of lights.
"Must be the people Morgana was talking about," Joker muttered, lowering the mask back over his nose. "Stay on your guard. We don't know where they came from or what they're here for."
Yu glanced back around them, muscles tensing. There were more of them along the sides of the street, each shuffling dazedly through the rain. Some carried white umbrellas, clutched in dark fists, while others wandered through the streets unprotected from the storm.
Yu stepped back as one inched by the awning they took shelter under. Up close, he could see that they were more transparent than whole, little more than a featureless blob of black fog that vaguely resembled the form of a human. Where its face might have been was nothing more than a swirling vortex of darkness and crackling static. The shadow-like being seemed not to notice the two, walking past them silently as a ghost.
Curiosity got the better of him. Yu leaned closer and gingerly reached out. Unsurprisingly, his hand passed through the smoky form and out the other end with no resistance. There was no reaction on the shadow's part—just a slight cold chill where they made contact. Yu retracted his arm with a frown and the shade continued forward, unbothered.
Yu watched as it followed in the same path as the others around it, fading into the distance.
He turned back to Joker, mystified, only to be met with the other's bewildered scowl.
"What?"
"I…never mind," Joker said, shaking his head in exasperation.
They're all going in the same direction," Yu noted. "They must be headed somewhere."
They exchanged looks, and Yu knew they were thinking of the same possibility. Whatever it was that Morgana had found, they were likely to find an answer at their destination.
Joker set his mouth into a thin line, before turning to him with a shrug. "I say we follow the creepy bastards and see where they lead us. What do you think?"
Yu smiled faintly. "It's as good a start as any."
Joker dashed ahead of him, leaping up to perch neatly on a light pole overhead. He paused, head twisting around to scan their surroundings. "This way," he called, before he darted to the next landing. Yu picked up his pace, careful not to lose sight of the other.
The shadow people formed a sparse breadcrumb trail through the winding side streets, and, as Yu had observed, they all did seem to be heading in a single direction. Just like the one before, none of them paid the two any mind, keeping their heads low and forward in a grim march.
They turned a corner, finding a tall set of concrete stairs that led up to an overpass. Under the bridge, a dark, murky current of fast-moving water swelled in steel banks. It was impossible to tell how deep it ran. With how much rain was pouring down on the city, the threat of an actual flood was starting to feel imminent.
More shades hovered over the bridge, inching their way across to the street on the other side.
As they began to cross over, however, a low, loud groan echoed through the city.
The two froze stiff as the floor beneath them trembled. Glass and steel rattled around them, and even the roar of the rain was overpowered by the deep bellow of the earth, rising from under their feet.
An earthquake?
Up ahead, the shadow people that they had been following suddenly flickered. Their dark silhouettes began to twitch erratically, like pixels glitching out on a television screen. Yu rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things. Then, in the blink of an eye, they dissipated all together, leaving behind only the faintest wisp of smoke in their wake.
The shaking stopped as soon as it had started. Yu steadied himself, his shoes slipping on the rain-soaked concrete.
"Joker-" Yu began.
Ding!
Yu looked up, eyes meeting Joker's. It was the sound of a phone. Both of theirs, in fact.
The two pulled their devices out at once and were greeted by a flashing hazard message:
"Flood Warning!"
Their wary eyes fell to the howling river beneath their feet.
Joker pocketed his phone. "We should keep going," he said, tugging nervously at the sleeves of his gloves. "I think we're getting closer."
Grimacing, Yu nodded, albeit reluctantly. Perhaps due to the rain and cold, he was starting to feel the beginnings of a headache settling behind his eyes. Dull pangs of some foreign discomfort clawed at his chest—something didn't feel right.
"...Narukami?"
"Yeah," Yu said, aloud this time. "Let's be careful, though. I'm not sure if I like where this is going."
They continued onwards, against Yu's better judgement. Shaking off his dizziness, he trailed on behind Joker and kept his eyes peeled for any signs of danger.
The landscape of the city began to shift from tightly packed side streets to more open roads and sidewalks. Shadows began to repopulate the streets, filling the city with traces of life the deeper they went.
Towering in the skies ahead, blue light grew brighter and brighter through thick silver mist. The shadow and lights of a tall building blurred into focus, cresting above the rooftops slanting around it. Even over the thundering rain, Yu could hear it: ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.
Now running through wide open highways, Yu spotted familiar traffic lights and zig-zagging street patterns. Yu was fairly confident in his own sense of direction. He had to be, considering the complex and ever-changing nature of the dungeons he'd navigated his own team through when they traveled into the labyrinthian TV world. Approaching an all too familiar intersection of water-logged highways, Yu was almost certain that here was where they'd fought the first beast of the cyberworld.
And yet, there were no traces of the fierce battle that had taken place. None of the cracked asphalt, no pile of lightning-burnt monitors.
A few blocks over, Joker suddenly leapt down and landed on the wet pavement several feet in front of him. Yu slowed to a stop, his feet skidding on the rain-slick sidewalk. From the other's dark demeanor and squared shoulders, he could tell that something was off. "What's the matter?"
Joker pointed a crimson finger up ahead, saying, "Over there. I think we've found it."
Packed into a smaller street that branched off from the highway were dozens, if not hundreds of shadow people, slowly worming into the too narrow road.
Yu wiped rain from his brow and eyes, blinking to see through all the water. The sound of the heartbeat was getting louder.
"Looks like this could spell trouble," Joker said, warily. Yu nodded. Every fiber of his body tingled, almost painfully, warning him not to get closer. He swallowed down a sudden bout of nausea, forcing himself to remain composed. "Are you ready?"
"Yeah," he said, trudging forward through a now ankle-deep slurry of water. Yu's briefcase was watertight, but he still found himself raising it up higher to keep it from brushing the surface of muck. It was getting harder to walk as the water got thicker and deeper. Headlines flashed around them, blindingly bright.
"-and so the Hero returns in the newest episode-"
"-yet another disaster in the making-"
The two pushed through the crowd of shadow people, who dissipating briefly into thin air as they passed through their incorporeal forms. Each one sent a chill of icy cold shuddering through his body, made worse by the fact that he was soaked down to the bone. Static rushed in his ears as the sound of humming electricity and a beating heart reverberated deeper and deeper into his head.
Yu and Joker forced their way through, keeping their heads up high over a mass of smoky heads and stinging rain from above. His feet were dragging now, and the water felt as heavy and thick as bog.
Rising over the din of noise, he could hear the sound of rushing water growing louder. He tilted his head back, letting rainwater stream off of his face. A signboard in the shape of an arrow hung off the side of a building, twinkling overhead.
"Here lies The Heart"
After what felt like ages, the tall buildings flanking the sides of the road caved open into a branching intersection. Up ahead, towering high into the bubbling dark clouds, was that monolithic structure bearing the digitized image of Impulse's logo—a squirming, blue heart. The very same landmark from their first venture into the cyberworld, and a beacon of noise and dread.
Yu, however, was more concerned with what lay directly ahead.
The mass of shadow people hadn't thinned out in the least, but as they entered the scrambling roads, the shades formed almost perfect single file lines, filing into the open clearing from each of the several forking roads out. More piled in, pressing slowly forward towards the street's center.
What are they gathering around?
Yu pressed forward, stepping out of the column of shadow people to get a better view. Joker followed suit, stiffening in alarm.
"What the hell," he muttered, pushing his mask back over his bangs as if he could hardly believe what he was seeing.
Where all the intersecting streets collided, running over with rivers of black water, was a massive sinkhole.
Spanning around the length of a bus, the ground caved in abruptly and angled into a steep drop down into an endless abyss. Rainwater gushed in from streets and rooftops, spilling over the edge into absolute darkness. Yu couldn't hear the sound of water crashing at the bottom—was there even a bottom?
Here, the water ran almost up to Yu's knees, pulling at his legs and threatening to knock him off balance. The shadow people seemed unfazed by their environs, however, and continued onwards.
The two watched in muted horror as the ghastly beings reached the edge of the powerful waterfall. Tipping forward, a person resigned to fate, they threw themselves into oblivion, one after another. In the blink of an eye, the shades were swallowed in their entirety, disappearing into the dark water without a trace.
"What…?" Joker's voice was barely audible now. He'd taken a measured step back, as did Yu, but his eyes were glued on the awful sight, unable to look away. "Why are they—is this what Mona found?"
Before Yu could even begin to speculate, a sudden, sharp noise echoed in his skull. He looked around, alarmed, and judging from the muffled sound of surprise coming from behind him, Joker had heard it too. A mechanical voice rang in his ears:
"Location mapped. Aorta is now a registered destination."
Familiar words bounced around in his head, but he could hardly finish processing them before another shrill sound pierced through the sky. This time, it was out loud, pulsing through the air with such intensity that the raindrops themselves trembled.
"FLOOD WARNING!" Came the ear-piercing shriek. "FLOOD WARNING-"
The sound of an air horn—a siren, tore through the city, so loud that it nearly made him fall to his knees. The pale lights of billboards and monitors around them abruptly dyed red, coloring the blue city scarlet.
And then all was silent.
The rain ceased abruptly, trickling to a quiet stop as the whole world seemed to come to a grinding stop. The shades, too, disappeared, whisked away by a ghostly breath.
The cyberworld was as quiet as the day they'd first entered, devoid of life and sound.
Yu turned back to Joker, the hairs on his body all standing on their ends. He didn't realize that he'd been holding his breath until he spoke, breathless. "This isn't safe. We need to get back-"
Then came the rumbling.
Beneath his feet, the floor began to shake and the water around them sway. Knee-deep water sloshed violently around them, forming violent waves that nearly swept them both over.
The water, was Yu's first instinct, and he whipped around, searching through the corridor of buildings for signs of the imminent flood.
But all seemed calm behind them. Rivulets of runoff streamed down the gutters, quietly trickling into the main intersection where they stood. Frowning, Yu glanced down at his cellphone. It, too, blinked with red light: "Flood warning!" it read in bold text.
And then he heard Joker call out in warning, "Wait—over there."
Yu turned back. Thick, black water drained rapidly from the city into the sinkhole. By then, most of the water had receded and now was barely up to their ankles. With the ground mostly exposed, he could now see around the lip of the abyss. The transparent tubes running above the city and webbing between each building were sprawled across the floor, and, like roots, crept into the gaping maw below.
The light from the glowing blue liquid pumping inside the tangle of wires was faint, but enough to grant the barest of glimpses into the darkness below. And Yu almost wished he hadn't looked.
Lining the walls of the massive tunnel were thick pockets of raw, pink flesh. Purple veins streaked across the length of the slimy walls, oozing with black water and shimmering blue fluid. The tubes sank into the bulbous mass of tissue, which itself twitched as if it were alive.
Faint noises echoed from within. Yu could make out the sound of something gurgling and spitting. Suddenly, a single drop of water rose from the depths. The two watched, transfixed, as it floated into the air above them, strung up into the sky as if by an invisible string.
More joined it in the mist-strewn air, drawn together like beads of iron to a magnet, and formed a slowly growing, wobbling dark sphere. Gradually, the shape grew into an oblong cocoon about the size of a human child, wrapping itself in tendrils of water and muck. Faint light began to pulse at its center, and he could hear the infant sound of a heart beating from within its shell.
A cold chill settled over the street. Goosebumps prickled over the length of his skin, and his body felt as if it had been frozen over. Stifling pressure emanated from the dark object, squeezing at his ribcage. It was getting hard to breathe.
The dull headache bloomed into a painful hammering at the base of his skull. Heat twisted at the back of his throat. Yu grimaced, knees starting to buckle beneath him.
Prying his eyes away from the wriggling thing was almost agonizing. He forced words as heavy and thick as bricks from his mouth, struggling to speak straight.
"Joker, we have to go, now-"
Instead of the usual cool mask of calm, writ on Joker's face was an expression of shock. His gaze was directed not at Yu, but behind him. The thief's eyes darted back to him, and before Yu could even react, Joker lunged.
"Narukami!"
Yu twisted around.
Too late—something hard slammed into his temple. The force of the impact sent him staggering, stumbling through the shallow pond of rainwater.
Yu registered a loud, clear crack in his ears. Heat flared at his eyes. There might have been pain too.
And then, for a moment, everything went black.