Three girls gathered under some blankets, like it was a sleepover; piles of pillows and furniture were propping up the blankets, and they had one torch between themselves. They weren’t supposed to be up this late.
A girl in a wheelchair with light brown hair was handed the torch, and she placed it beneath her face.
“I can't believe we're about to have a Scary Story Night!” the girl exclaimed.
“Be quiet, we aren't supposed to be here!” the girl with flame coloured hair whispered.
“Sorry!” The girl said, “I have a scary story to tell!”
“Oh, do tell!”
“Very well then; on a dark but arid night on the outskirts of Mogadishu or Xamar, as some may colloquially call it, there was a boy who could change the very earth beneath him with a simple flick of his hand. He was made in a facility such as this one, like we were; however, everyone in that facility would DIE!”
“That's hardly scary!” the girl with navy blue hair said.
“I haven't got to the point!” she replied “Anyway, they say they saw him in the flames; nobody knows what happened to him, but all his records were destroyed in that fire; he may be out there, ready to destroy a facility… Maybe he's going to Tokyo; maybe he's coming for us. All his records are gone, except for that incident. So they refer to him as subject NULL… Is he merely a tale, or is he actually coming for us? ooooooohhh!”
Footsteps creak and the window slams shut, the girl with flame coloured hair pounced up like a cat out of fear.
“Was that HU-HU-HU-him?” she said.
“Relax, it's just the wind, and a terrible window!” the girl with blue hair reassured her.
They all giggled in that secret tent they made themselves, unaware of what would come next for them.
—
Reini woke up in the middle of the night, unsure of what time it was; she was shaking, and her breath was shaky, and she felt quite unwell. She walked in a waning manner, her body swaying with each step, and she had a numb headache. She heard something, she thought.
It should be saturday tomorrow.
Should she be worthy of holding great power, the idea of wielding the keyboard, she heard the noise again, but could make out that it was a thud; the rain was hissing from the number of droplets hitting the floor. It sounded like popping candy if it had an audio boost.
She quickly grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled something down on impulse. Her room was on the ground floor, and she could walk out of the window carefully. Maybe she still had time to go to a different country, there were so many places she could try to sneak to, or she could hide in Tokyo again, but this time, dye and cut her hair and dress in Decora with some excessive makeup. Perhaps another disguise idea would be maybe she could wear a face-covering mask and lurk in the night while dressed in a dark and gothic but frilly and pretty dress, and she uses a lacy parasol not only as an accessory but as a weapon, plus having a conspiracy of ravens that spoke; that would be quite cool. She could have a mysterious aura, make her hair a dull greyish mauve, have a headpiece and heavy boots, along with a bag full of books. She was thinking about what outfit to run away in.
She wasn’t going to run away again, not without shoes this time; she was spoiling herself with the luxury of running away with shoes, and she was sure that in time the magical keyboard would pick a new holder. Furthermore, she quickly sneaked to the front area of the house and held her shoes up, so they wouldn’t touch the floor.
She kept a desk lamp on so she could pry the SIM tray out. Maybe she could look for her old phone instead, but for a girl who’s escaped a lab a year prior, she knows how to stay low. She decides to use her old phone, which she never put a SIM in because she needed papers for that. Her old phone has some weird OS she installed to have a kill switch on the antenna- because she didn’t want to commit to prying it out.
She was feeling the same feeling she had felt every month since last year, the same one that covers her in blood when she wakes up. This time, she had some allowance, and she was going to take it all out at an ATM and destroy the debit card. She finished her ‘running away note’, she thanked them for their kindness, but wrote why she wanted to run away; again, she didn’t feel worthy of being chosen for the magical keyboard. Maybe there are better candidates for being a magical girl, but she was aware she shouldn’t let something like this fall into the wrong hands, and she felt she was the aforementioned ‘wrong hands’ because she felt she didn’t deserve such power.
She opened the window, making sure not to get the floor dirty as she put her shoes and socks on. Immediately as she went out of the window, she was blasted with rain, leaving her dark blue hair soaking wet.
The water squelched as she stepped into it, though her socks didn’t get wet from it.
Though that concert/debut was tomorrow… Thankfully, she still kept her old phone and left the new one in the bedroom to avoid being tracked; she was meticulous about this stuff.
Jumping the gate was easy; her strength and agility are above average for a preteen. She landed on her feet like a cat and began to foot it.
Now she had to head to the nearest public transport; she had a hoodie on, so she would be less cold. And less recognised, she also needed to find a cough mask; no one would question her if she wore a simple mask, as most people here wear one for something as simple as a cold. She fumbled in her pockets until she found one.
She made it out, way easier than escaping a lab.
She wanted to head to Akihabara and drown out her sorrows immediately with several sets of her favourite rhythm game; her card was loaded enough, and she was gonna keep her phone offline too.
She walked through the alleyways and headed onto the next train; she didn’t really bother to check the time.
She arrived at the station and headed straight for the arcades, playing rhythm games to her heart’s content.
It was getting pretty late, and she was on the final set of the day; the arcade attendants were going to shoo her out of the building. So she decided to leave a few minutes before closing and wander around. Now that most places were closing in Akihabara, she didn’t have much else to wander off to. The rain was still pouring, and everyone was walking elsewhere, into the later clubs, but she decided to sit down and check if she had anything to be tracked with, as far as she knew if they had her MAC address; they could track her. But her old phone never connected to THEIR Wi-Fi, so she was good, she could also randomise it too. No use tracking a person if you don’t know their exact device.
Thankfully, she still had some physical cash so that she could get a snack at a convenience store. There are convenience stores in every city, like any place ever, so she’d be fine. She popped in to get a seaweed-wrapped rice ball and a soda, along with some ramen packets she was going to eat raw.
Akihabara was still busy, so she decided to sit down somewhere a little, and as people walked by in the night, she ate the stuff she brought while people walked by. But now she felt bored, her phone was low on charge and didn’t have a SIM card in it, and as people walked by, she happened to see a public piano revealed by a gap in the crowd, and she slowly approached it, her hair starting to clump from being soaked in the Tokyo rain.
She struck a deep chord.
Everyone continued to walk; maybe one or two people stopped.
She struck a second, and more people stopped to look at her.
And in the third, a crowd had started to gather.
She began playing a melancholy melody, and the passersby had stopped because that tune was familiar to them. People started taking out their cameras; Her dramatic chords turned to a climax of flourishes, and the only thing she could hear was her own playing.
The Agitato transformed into heavy-hitting chord strikes, imposing a sense of dread, and then it descended into a melancholy closing that slowed down.
A foreign streamer looked at her with disbelief. He was doing a stream around Tokyo at night, and he had to get closer to the piano player. It surprised him to see what could be a young girl playing, although she might be tall.
“It can’t be…” the foreign streamer said
“What do you mean?” their assistant, holding the camera, asked.
“Rachmaninoff’s prelude, one of my buddies plays piano, wonder what they’re feeding kids in Japan?”
“I have no idea,” the assistant answered.
“Well, let's go and ask the kid, chat’s going really crazy!”
“Well, I can see that on my end.”
She finished the piece, hitting the final notes, and then took a moment, and the crowd that had gathered had cheered. She was unsure of what to do, and she slowly got up from the chair. Someone had come up to her with a mic and a camera.
“That was awesome, kid-you speak English?” The streamer said.
She was a little nervous, her breath heating up under the medical mask, and her peripheral vision obstructed by her hoodie and overgrown bangs that had gotten damp in the train.
“Uh... yes… I do…”
“How old are ya, kid? And how did you get this good?”
“Uh… I’m 12… and I like piano I guess…”
“What? Bilingual and played a hard piece? Chat’s going crazy, y’know, let me say something.”
“Sorry, I have to go.”
She gave a quick, belated bow and ran away into the crowd out of panic. The streamer was about to run after her, but he gave up quickly.
“Well, you don’t see a talent like that in your life, do ya?” the streamer said, “Can somebody clip that, please?”
“Well, wanna get some takoyaki?” the assistant said.
“Sure, sounds tasty, it’s on me.”
“Cool.”
The streamer and his assistant went off, but she was still running. The streamer was about to head to a takoyaki place that was actually open when a guy ran to him, with layered black hair and alternative clothing, and he was waving at them.
“Us?” the streamer said.
He nodded.
“Uh, what is it then?” the streamer said.
He jogged to them; he took a second to breathe because it seemed he was running for a bit and had tired himself out.
“I am so sorry, but have you seen a kinda tall girl? I saw someone talking about that girl online because of your stream…”
“Wow, already people are looking for her… wait a minute? Are you-”
“Yeah, I am who you think I am, whew, trains aren’t running much, so I had to drive here.”
“DJ D3ATHST@LKER???” the assistant gasped.
“YES, glad you like my music, but I’m looking for that girl, she’s kinda under… someone I know cares and she… well, if she sees this, I’m not mad at her, never will be, I want her to come back safe, and that she… well she… she’s probably cold and alone and like she thought she wasn’t worthy or deserving of anything, that’s wrong, but again if she’s watching this, we’ll keep a bed safe for her… I’m just a little scared for her.”
“She uh… went that way, I hope you really do care for her, you do, right?”
“Yes, as if she were like my own child,” he said.
“She went down there as far as I could see. I hope she’s okay,” the steamer said.
“Me too, thanks.”
He started to run again, no matter how tired it seemed to make him. The streamer was a little startled but hoped he was being genuine about finding the girl.
Meanwhile, she managed to run to a more secluded and darker location. The alleyway narrowed, and she started to feel something beneath her feet. There isn’t an earthquake right now, right? She felt something almost catch her, reflexively dodging, and she heard someone behind her talk.
“So you’re the troublesome Japanese girl my client told me about,” he said.
She turned around and brought up her guard, ready for who it might be. She saw a teenager, male, hair twisted into dreads, darker skin colour than she had, donning visor glasses and an outfit that looked business casual, a bomber jacket over a shirt and tie and cargo pants, along with some cool-looking trainers. Thinking about it, maybe she wanted a pair. He smirked and held a rock in his hand.
He then chuckled.
He went in for a strike, which she deflected upwards, then she felt the ground shake and saw something that had formed from the sediment below, pointed at her, a rough, rocky texture. It was pretty close. By centimetres, maybe missing her neck, but it looked quite calculated.
She moved back into a defensive stance. He was ready to attack again, running at her and trying to place a roundhouse kick, which she cautiously dodged.
He looked quite tough. He tried landing a punch, but she blocked it. She was pushing back and forth until she decided to stop pushing to disorient him. She backed up by a few meters and observed the current situation.
He stared into her; the lighting gave off a strong contrast. He turned his head down and snapped his fingers.
The ground was vigorously shaking under her, and she saw formations of sediment grow. She immediately got onto one of the metal stairs and ran all the way up.
A snap of his fingers.
And he changed the very earth beneath his feet…
Was this the ‘subject NULL’ 6174 told her about? She thought he was merely a ghost story, that the disaster in Mogadishu had left everyone dead as far as she heard.
Spikes were waiting for her below; she had no choice but to hop across the rooftops. There won’t be many rocks up here, so she could have an advantage. She didn’t need that keyboard; she could handle this on her own.
This was nobody else's fight.
—
A woman with intricately made Mary Janes paced around the streets of Akihabara. She had a big guitar bag on her back and she shifted through the crowd to look for something.
She was last seen here; her eyes were good, and she could tell that it was her.
Even at night, Akihabara was busy; clubs were still open even after the arcade was closed. She was here for something else, though.
She walked into a crevice and saw something that looked like a fight scene, places where something was brought up, then fell, a crude attempt to clean up after themselves from what could be microstructures from a terrakinetic. Someone else was looking for her.
Someone was here. Before her, that was.
She took her guitar out of the bag and readied her fingers.
With her pick, she struck the strings, closing her eyes tight, playing an electric melody. Switching her fingers around the tabs and strings.
her clothes changed to something a lot more frivolous compared to her jirai-kei outfit, boots laced up with ribbons, a short dress with a petticoat, her hair, long and free-flowing, half in pigtails with ribbons. But with a gradient of pink ends, sleeves that start with a poof near the shoulders and end at the palm, over fingerless gloves. She was adorned with white and pink with heart motifs.
She was going to help find her bandmate, no matter what it takes.
She brought her bandmate's keyboard bag, just in case she needed it, she was always doubtful of herself, but she saw the stream of her playing Rachmaninoff’s prelude in C# minor. So young and so talented, if she recalls correctly, she's 12, making her 9–10 years younger than she was, was going to debut in the band tomorrow, impressive, but the little girl (?)felt she didn’t deserve to be selected for such an honour.
How absurd, she deserved it. Once you get over your doubts, you realise everything has a reason.
She was in such a dark place at one point, too, but she's glad she can feel happy about herself now. If she hadn't met her girlfriend as she did years ago, she wouldn't know where she would be today
Couldn’t spot footprints quite easily. Who leaves footprints behind like that? That's cartoon logic. But she was glad whoever that terrakinetic guy at least had the decency to bring their structures down, sure it causes cracks, but it's not like that it can't be fixed with a little tarmac.
Still, someone was after her bandmate, and she couldn't ignore that
She needed an idea as to where to go. She looked up and saw fire escape stairs: some of the rails were a bit bent out of place compared to others. That could mean anything, but it looked warped to her.
She decided to climb up those stairs so maybe she could investigate better.
—
Meanwhile, Kesshu was still looking around Akihabara for Reini; he was looking for what was still open, and he was even looking in the streets, like the alleyways and the bus stops. He could feel an increase in that internal thumping, then he felt a tap on his shoulder. He jumped up a little from the sudden tap.
“Sorry, uh, who-”
Kesshu looked at the guy behind him, a man of similar stature to him; he had glasses on, his hair was shorter than his own. And there was a slight smile on his face- it felt warm rather than malicious.
It was his cousin; his name is Kuro Kawaki.
“Man… I haven't seen you in forever!” He said.
“Kuro… I'm a little busy.” Kesshu said, trying to get away from his cousin.
“I thought something happened after the war. Gosh, you think about it, there's already been four? Until I saw you were back to making music after a few years, but I wasn't sure how to contact you. There's something I want to say…”
“Again, I'm kinda busy, I really don't wanna talk, I don't really have any interest in talking with you or uncle or auntie. If you want money, then I'll give it to you so you'll leave me alone… Banking details?” Kesshu said as he brought out his phone hastily.
“No, it's not about that, I've come on my own, I don't want any money, I wouldn't ask for that,” Kuro said.
“What do you want then?” Kesshu scoffed.
“I was thinking… Maybe we could reconcile… My parents would always obfuscate things about you and Chiko, trying to keep you guys away from me and stuff, maybe we could ignore that and try again… As a family.” Kuro asked.
Kesshu paused for a moment. He wasn't sure how to respond to his cousin's request, he sighed and looked a bit solemn and began to cringe at how rude he was being earlier(?)
“Oh yeah… I also heard about Chiko and… Your wife… Uh… I feel sorry for you… Chiko was like my little sister, too, like she was yours, and I'm sure your wife was a great woman, but there's something else I wanted to bring up…” Kuro hesitated.
“What is it?” Kesshu asked.
“My job feels a little dodgy, would you believe me if I told you about it?” Kuro said.
“Really?” Kesshu sighed. He knew he didn’t have time for this.
“Yeah, I don't trust my boss. I know I'm pushing papers and going to meetings, I'm gonna get promoted soon, but I feel like I might be working for a fishy company.”
“You don't say, where do you work?” Kesshu said.
“I work for the Gift Development Offices. I have a good position in the corporate division.” Kuro innocently answered.
Kesshu hardened his gaze: why was his cousin working for one of the worst companies he knew, but his cousin was picking up on how suspicious he felt about it. Maybe he could give some subtle hints.
“You don't say… How much do you know?” Kesshu said.
“Well, I know they're gonna debut a new idol, I think her name is uhhhh… Hotaru Yonshi? She seems quite young, but she has no connections as far as I'm concerned. I'm so unsure about this. I've picked up some info on marketing, and I think I might have heard something from my boss… I- I shouldn't be saying this, my wife and co-workers probably think I'm crazy, and I can't tell my daughter, she'd probably blab to her whole class, and it would end up in the tabloids early, you know how young kids are!” Kuro rambled, “Honestly, I feel like you'll understand where I'm coming from!”
“Yeah, I understand that feeling.” Kesshu said, “To be honest… I believe you… But I'm in a hurry; I have to find someone, Tomorrow, right here, at two? That works, right?”
“Yeah… No, sorry, I'm working at that time. I only really have school pick-up time. I'd be happy to give you a ride to wherever you need.” Kuro said.
“Eh… How would you feel if we ‘car-pooled’? Say? Got any stops on the way to that international school?”
“What a coincidence, my daughter goes there; my daughter… She is in the elementary school level.” Kuro said.
“That’s fine then, call me when you can, here's my number,” Kesshu said, shoving a business card towards his cousin, as he slowly went away.
“Thanks! I'll be sure to call you!”
“Please do!”
Kesshu walked away and gradually changed his pace until he saw an alleyway. He progressed through it, hoping to look for Reini, but he only saw Haruno there, transformed into her magical girl attire. He wasn't expecting any of the girls to be up this late as well.
“Kess… I didn't know you'd be here looking for Reini.” Haruno said.
“Oh, believe me, that clip is already going super viral. I had to get to Akihabara as soon as I could.”
He observed the surroundings, tiny fissions in the ground and some dents on garbage bins and some metal frame stairs. There was a fight here. Could Reini have been involved? She couldn't have been. He started to get even more worried sick for her.
“Someone else has been here…” Haruno says observantly.
“I could tell, judging by the microfissions,” Kesshu said
The air smelled like dispersed soil. Like falling dust. Haruno started climbing the stairs.
“C'mon then: we have someone to find!” Haruno exclaimed as she brought her hand out, reaching for Kesshu.
He grabbed her hand, being pulled up while Haruno pulled him up; it seemed her grip was great, but maybe it’s because she’s in her magical girl transformation, or does she lift? Either way, he wondered if he could get some lifting tips from her.
“Hey, you got a strong grip!” Kesshu exclaimed.
“Thanks to carrying instruments and AV stuff all the time, and the gym, of course,” she replied.
“I see, I see, now, we have someone dear to us to find.”
“Very well then, you think she’s gone far, we could use this as a vantage point, though, it probably isn’t the tallest point around these parts.”
“Oh, I’m sure; though it gives us an idea, look around then,” Kesshu suggested.
“Got it!” Haruno replied.
They looked around, but also looked from their vantage point, no sign of Reini from above or below, though; maybe it wasn’t the best spot. She was untraceable, no phone, no card activity; she would have gone to another part of the city now. It was feasible, but they didn’t want to bring too much attention to their search; though, that stream helped a bit.
Kesshu was walking around until he felt something looming behind him. Instinctively, he unsheathed his katana and parried. Trying to push back the attack. He looked towards Haruno. Then back at his opponent.
“Haruno! Leave! Go find her!” Kessu yelled.
“But, don’t you need help?” she yelled back.
“I’ll be fine, JUST GO!”
He slid back from the attack; it was quite a high impact.
“WHO ARE YOU?” Kesshu yelled.
“I should ask the same question…”
A boy with a rock formation on his hands stared at him, despite his visor glasses; the gaze was strong, and he then smiled and let out a little puff.
“You’re looking for her too... right?” the boy said.
“And by her, you mean…”
“Ah… so we are looking for the same person?” he said.
Kesshu pushed back his arm onto him, but he changed the formation and attacked again. He went in from below and brought back his blade to his side. Not intending to attack again.
“Talk… then we shall see if you are a friend or foe. Why are you looking for her?”
“I’m looking for a girl who’s quite troublesome…” the boy said.
“Troublesome? She's really sweet!” Kesshu exclaimed.
“Hmm, my client doesn't seem too sure about that.”
“Who is your client?” Kesshu asked, “And why are they labelling her as troublesome?”
“Can't tell you, but if we have the same goal, I suggest we work together, wouldn't that be quite pragmatic?”
Kesshu was trying not to let himself go; he was still a boy, he didn't need to fight the boy, he was sure he could get him to stop.
“Don't we want to take down their weapons, stop them after all?” the boy reasoned.
“And by them… haha, gift of course,” Kesshu replied.
“Well, yes! We should get rid of Gift’s power; disarm them and take them down.” The boy said.
“But Reini… she doesn't work with Gift… she ran away from them…”
The boy gasped, he realised he got something wrong, he was given outdated info, he wasn't sure, you can't get reliable intel, especially if it's a company such as Gift developments. He let the formations crumble and walked closer to Kesshu.
“So… she's like me…”
“See, this is why I try to talk instead of fighting, especially if it's a kid like you,” Kesshu said.
“My apologies…” the boy said, “my intel is outdated, I had no idea I had the wrong girl.”
“Fair enough, say… my Intel's more up to date, how are you feeling about that?”
The boy nodded at him. Smiling.
“There we go, now tell me, so you find yourself similar to her, don't you?”
“I fled the lab in Mogadishu… after a human-made disaster… I took the initiative on freedom.”
“I see… well… I don't really blame ya kid…anyway, glad we could talk it out first.”
“Perhaps you were the wise one here. I'd like your knowledge; tell me more.”
Kesshu smiled back and looked towards the sky in a moment of contemplation. He was glad this didn't escalate. Haruno had made some progress.
—
Haruno was running in the rain; it would be hard to find Reini, especially in one of the biggest cities in the world. An urban labyrinth, but she knew this one like the back of her own hand. Surely Reini’s at a train station now? However, the trains have stopped operating for the day… so she had to go to a bus stop; she knew some nearby bus stops, maybe she could get there.
She got her feet wet, but was exiting the alleyway, the water from the impact of her feet landing on the puddles fell off her magical girl uniform, and she reached an exit. She could see someone waiting by a bus stop, a little tall-looking for her age. Furthermore, she de-transformed before leaving the alleyway and slowly approached the bus stop.
Dark blue hair sticking out from that hoodie. And those shoes… blue trainers. Haruno sat down, trying to seem natural.
“I know what it’s like to hate yourself… I've been there once, Reini…" Haruno said.
Reini pounced up as if she were a cat who saw a cucumber.
“What the-What are you doing here?” Reini asked.
“I’m here to make sure you don't feel alone; you're more than just a bandmate to me,” Haruno stated.
“I don’t know… maybe you shouldn’t feel so attached to me…” Reini said.
“I know it hasn’t been too long, but you’ve grown on me like a little sister in our training sessions. Though I wouldn't be mad if you wanted to… IDK… quit? You’re a kid, yes, but dang, are you extraordinary? You might be better than I am at rhythm games.” Haruno said.
Reini swung her leg a little and stared directly at Haruno. It doesn’t seem like eye contact is Reini’s best feat.
“I kinda do… only because I think someone better deserves this power…”
“Well… everyone agrees you’re the best candidate for the magical keyboard; it’s never wrong, the selections… I feel like my guitar is a part of me now…” Haruno recalls.
“Well, it’s… I think someone else deserves it. I've said it before. I think it was wrong...” Reini hesitated.
“Well, just saying, kid… the magical instruments never choose wrong; playing Rachmaninoff at that public piano, I saw you on that stream.”
“You don’t get it! I’M A KILLER, I DON’T DESERVE THIS; I’M A DEFECT; I KILLED PEOPLE IN THAT LAB WHEN I ESCAPED… I-I was… covered in blood… other people’s blood… I lost control, and I got covered in blood… I-I was bleeding at first, I’m weak, I can break at any second…” Reini cried.
Haruno immediately went in for a hug, which was quite unfamiliar to Reini; affection wasn’t something she really felt. She started crying into her friend’s shoulder and wailing.
“It’s not your fault…” Haruno whispered.
“It is…” Reini sobbed. “ I killed them… I killed those Scientists… I killed those guards… I know that wasn’t my blood; I'm a liability; you have to forget about me.”
“No, you’re not… you’re a kid… go easy on yourself… I don’t blame you.” Haruno said.
Reini’s sobbing slowed, then she let go of the hug and looked at the bus schedule; nothing for the next 10 minutes… How convenient, she was pretty much stuck here. So she decided to look for something to do.
“Got games on your phone?” Reini asked, “Rhythm games?”
“Yeah, just play them offline; don’t want you to skew my scores.”
“Thanks.”
Haruno slouched a little and placed her hands behind her head. She hummed; she was actually going to say something.
“Hey, if it helps, I have a secret,” Haruno said.
“It’s fine… you don’t really need to-”
“I’m a transgender woman…”
“That’s cool.”
“I’m sure you didn’t know that though…”
“I do now… but it’s whatever…” Reini said.
“Cool.”
“So that you know, I'm totally fine with it. Already used to this stuff; besides, aren’t you dating Utako?” Reini asked.
“Yeah, I thought ‘secret’ for a secret would help you feel better, y’know!” Haruno said.
“I see, thanks for telling me. Just so you know, I support that.”
“Cool, cool,”
They were waiting under the shelter; the rain hissed as it poured, and Reini was playing a rhythm game. It shouldn't take too long for transportation to arrive. The megacity shone its lights throughout, and the number of people was less than before… The puddles reflected the street lights but distorted them with ripples.
—
“So kid… what’s your name?” Kesshu asked.
The kid thought about it for a second.
“Yusuf… It’s a normal name where I’m from. I kinda just got a bowl and wrote some names down in my head, just thought of the first name that came to mind, to be honest… needed a name for papers.”
“Where are you from, kid?”
“I used to live in Somalia… I mean, I was ‘born’ there, but I fled to London after the…”
“You were just like Reini?” Kesshu said, “Right?”
“Artificially, synthesised freak, sentient being made as a weapon-yeah, would say so!”
“Hey, you’re not any of those things; you’re just a kid!”
He didn’t respond. Yusuf had never been referred to with such sympathy. He took off his visor glasses and sat down on an air conditioner, and stared at the ground below. He audibly took a deep breath.
“Well… this is my biggest job yet…” Yusuf said.
“Probably, you had to go to the other side of the world,” Kesshu said. “You should be studying for a big test. Do they have entrance exams over there?”
“I mean… we have GCSEs… I don’t do them for another two years.”
“How old are you anyway, kid?” Kesshu asked.
“Fourteen… I guess…“
“Is this the life you want… I was there once.”
“What did you do when you were my age?” Yusuf asked.
“Vigilante and broker stuff.” Kesshu said, “You’re mini-me, huh.”
“I guess ahah!” Yusuf said
“I should let Reini know it’s fine if she doesn’t wanna do this stuff, despite the magical keyboard, but even if she accepts it, it takes a lot of guts for someone to become-well… some kinda hero!” Kesshu continued.
“Well… for me, I wanna take down that evil company that made me.”
“Glad to know we have the takedown of Gift Developments in common,” Kesshu stated.
They laughed lightheartedly and sighed. Kesshu handed over some sweets he was eating as he bonded with Yusuf. He polished his visor and put it back on, while it reflected the city lights. He got the wrong girl, but he thinks he found the right people.
“Well, we have to make sure Reini is okay!” Kesshu said, “I’ll text Haruno and ask where she is.”
“Got it.”
They sat on the rooftop watching the view, lights and noise and all. But Kesshu got a response from Haruno quickly.
Haruno: Heya! Reini is with me, sorry if I took a while to respond, I let her play with my phone!
He smiled in relief, knowing that the kid was safe; they weren’t THE lab. And she is free to delay her debut.
“Hey kid… what do you like to do in your free time?” Kesshu said.
“I like to read comics… and draw and write…”
“Yeah, honestly real.”
“I guess I also like to produce… now that we aren’t fighting…aren’t you DJ De@THSTALKER?”
“Yeah… how'dya recognise me!” Kesshu teased.
“I like to listen to a lot of music… including J-core quite recently, I kinda wanted to listen to something from Japan before I came here, yeah… but I’ve been quite fond of Jersey Club lately too.”
“Oh, that’s cool, I think I know Jersey Club,” Kesshu said.
“Cool! I usually listen to retro hip-hop and some afro-beats, it’s got quite the history to it, y‘know, are you cool with that?” Yusuf explained.
“You know what, kid? I’d be happy to listen to that stuff with you sometimes. I know some great artists who match that vibe.” Kesshu responded.
“Cool, cool,” he responded “, I liked to listen to a lot of late 20th century pop too, there’s this one, where it has a music video, and they’re all zombies. My mate showed it to me, and I really liked the video…’
“Zombies??? Oh yes, I know that one! One time, someone did a presentation of the impact or something in music class, THEY WERE OBSESSED with that artist, what was their title… "How African culture and the diaspora influenced music from then and today’ it was very eye-opening for me, it’s been like YEARS since I’ve been to school, as I'm old, mine was like what? ‘How bland music would be without eccentricism and how it affects our music today’, I'm quite fond of eccentric-labelled artists, I just kind of resonate with them, our teacher made us do how historical things affect-”
“Haha, you talk too much.”
“Yeah-sorry, I guess I talk too much about years long gone, now that I'm old, and I'm reminiscing out loud.”
“Must be 30-something then.” Yusuf teased playfully.
“Spot on, kid,” Kesshu replied.
They sat together, watching the city still awake in these dark hours. Many cities never fall asleep; Tokyo is certainly one of them. The billboards still shone their lights and people were still up in their flats.
—
Reini had fallen asleep, Haruno making sure she was within eyesight. She got her phone back and sent a few texts. Reini fell asleep easily as she was still quite young. An SUV had come near the stop, and the window rolled down quickly to reveal Tatsu in the driver’s seat.
“Get in!” Tatsu cried out, “I can’t stop in the bus lane for too long!”
She picked up Reini and put her in the back and buckled her in the last row. And Haruno sat in the front, going back to her phone.
“Hey… so about the show later,” Haruno asked.
“Mhm…” Tatsu responded as he steered.
“Well…” Tatsu hesitated.
“Did you tell Ai yet? Y’know, of Ai caramba…”
“I’ll inform her team as quickly as possible, though I did tell Mirai to report the situation asap,” Tatsu said.
“Uh-huh,” Haruno replied.
“Do you wanna get off? Where should I drop you off?” Tatsu asked.
“It's fine as long as you get me near Shinjuku, I live there.”
“Well, I know that, I'm your boss!”
They both chuckled lightly.
“It should be on the way…”
The driving went smoothly, except for a few micro-jams. He then slowed down until he reached a residential area. The pavement was getting too narrow for his SUV.
“Well, this should be your neighbourhood; see ya.”
“Thanks!” Haruno exclaimed as he eventually drove away, with Reini sleeping in the back.
He adjusted his mirror and saw a glance of the kid, thankfully buckled in, but probably quite tired. He kept his eyes on the road, making sure he wasn’t distracted by anything, as cars were still on the road this time.
The kid was sound asleep, not making a peep. Maybe she was tired after this; if they could get home quickly, she could get enough sleep for school. They should cancel the debut and turn it into a teaser instead; she needed more time. She needed her sleep; she’s only a kid…
Why was Tatsu doing this anyway? Maybe he should just give the kid a lot more time. If she wants to, of course.
He doesn’t want to stress her out. They’ll make it home easily. They were safe for now.
—
Haruno was walking through her alleyway. She had just been dropped off, but the car couldn’t make it further. Clutching her guitar bag as she took gentle steps, she was thinking about Utako, did she leave the light on, did she fall asleep and take the whole blanket again. She fiddles with the engagement ring Utako gave her, a ring with intricate designs and a pink diamond centre-piece. That idol work they’re doing sure paid off.
Until something landed right in front of her, pointing a blade of solid light at her. In the glow, she could see it was a woman with long hair; her outfit looked kind of tactical but still had a slight femininity, perhaps lending it a femme fatale cadence. That blade was pointed at Haruno’s neck. She wasn’t sure why. She could see a gift armband, but black and grey, probably for camo.
Haruno made sure her heartbeat was normal. What if she could read that heartbeat with her visor? She may feel a bit panicky, but she needs to act normal first. So nobody suspects anything. Maybe it’s that TV show she’s watching where the antagonist can sense people’s heartbeats, and it reminded her that maybe she should continue watching it when she gets home.
She saw a name tag on the left side of her chest, reading ‘Akegata’, and she was making sure not to come off as anything and trying to put on a civilian act.
“Have you… Seen anything?” Akegata recited in a monotonous way.
“Geez… maybe only you…” Haruno answered.
A man walked out from the shadow of the alley and looked at Haruno.
“Let me do the talking,” the man said.
Compared to the woman, he was a different ethnicity entirely from his face alone, with brown hair that was slightly loose, maybe long enough to be in a short ponytail. His tag reads ‘Yugure’. He glances at her as if he doesn't trust her.
“Sorry ‘bout that mate, she gets everyone's knickers in a right twist, did you see anything… suspicious…?” He asked.
“No, no, I'm just walking back home; I just had a rough night out!” Haruno said.
“Reckon ya did, but… have you seen a child anywhere?”
“I've seen many…” Haruno bluffed.
“That doesn't help at all, mate, looking for a child, yae’ tall, female, a little scared, like she just got blasted with a didgeridoo?"
“I'm not gonna remember a face like that, I don't know. I’ve seen children, but not that specific child… I couldn’t tell. I am sorry, but good luck on your search; it's getting late, and I'm tired.”
She gave a quick bow and walked her way out, making sure to run too fast so she wasn't suspicious.
“I guess that was useless.” Akegata lamented.
“God, how many times have I told you to stuff a bikkie in that gob and let me negotiate?” Yugure vented.
“Do I have to?” Akegata teases, with a slight flirty tone.
Yugure gets flustered, maybe about her tone or the way she leans in a little.
“Maybe not then… guess this mission was a bust, ain't it?”
“Well, I guess, but it helps narrow down suspects.” She said.
“Gotchya.” He replied.
Meanwhile, Haruno arrived home safely. She placed her guitar bag on the side of the door and sank into her couch after getting her shoes and socks off. That was a close call for her! She peels off her socks as she reels in the pleasure of taking off old socks as she sinks into the sofa.
Gift operatives, she's never seen them before, but she probably has to tell her unit about it now.
She turns on the TV. It's late, but she doesn't care; she'll sleep off, eventually.
As the TV drones on, she pays Less attention and starts closing her eyes. She notices Utako’s bass lying around somewhere, probably tossed because she was tired too.
She was watching a TV show she meant to catch up with: that character on the TV, a physically powerful guy, but she wouldn't trust him with his own kid…he's an awful character… It's great how the actor makes him seem so soulless, as if he were a doll; acting is really an important job to her.
Her parents wouldn't let her do anything creative, but she made sure to do creative things with her computer science degree. She might do a master's next year.
The television drones on until she can't get herself to wake up because she’s as tired as she can be. Maybe Utako would wake her up if needed; for now, dozing off was something she was doing.
And it wouldn’t take long. She was tired as hell. The couch claimed her now.