Silence In Numbers: File One, page 21
It seemed to bristle at that, blue flames lighting up around it as its voice seemed to roar inside her head. “YOU WILL BE WHAT I DESIRE YOU TO BE!”
“Aah!” The girl dropped the knife and clapped her hands to her ears uselessly, falling to her knees and trying to shake the voice from her head. “Stop!”
“Get up. Collect the weapon and leave here now!”
She picked up the knife again, unsure whether she felt more helpless or more afraid. She pushed herself to her feet and ran off as the sound of approaching sirens neared.
Chapter 11: Exodus
Date: April 6, 2068
Time: 7:32 PM
Location: Unknown
The car screeched around the corner, its tires squealing as it nearly spun out of control. It slipped into an alleyway, slamming through a pile of boxes and sending things flying. Behind the car a figure sprinted around the corner, his movements not only as fast as the car- he was gaining.
The driver, his jaw clenched in concentration, spun the wheel rapidly to execute another mad turn as the passenger banged on the seat with his free hand, gesturing behind them with a handgun at the pursuer he watched through the rear window. “Faster! Faster! Speed up, he’s gaining!” He leaned out and fired the last three shots he had, but the man’s saber somehow deflected them all.
The driver chanced a glance at the rearview mirror, which spurred him on to stomp down on the gas pedal again. “I’m going as fast as this piece of shit will go! What do you want me to do?!”
“Well do something! He’s not stopping!” The passenger watched with fear as the man continued to gain on them, moving like no human he’d ever seen before. He looked human, that’s what made it so unnatural; he was an older man with mostly neat hair in a low ponytail and a short-haired beard, both more grey than brown. He had glasses and wore a nice brown trench coat and tan slacks. He didn’t look like he’d be able to jog for more than a minute, let alone move like a blur and keep up with their car. “What is he?!”
The driver, who, like the passenger, was a member of a pretty big criminal organization, had no more answers than his companion. All he knew is that he’d seen the man easily cut through a garage door with the saber he was carrying, and he had no desire to see what would happen if the guy caught him. “It doesn’t matter what he is… All that matters,” he muttered as he weaved around a chain link fence, “is that,” he grunted as the car bounced off a building, “we lose him!”
The passenger looked forward after sensing a desperate tone in his partner’s voice, only to see a train yard looming ahead of them, filled with numerous train cars strewn about the unused tracks. Worse yet, the car seemed to be heading for a gap between two train cars, beyond which there was only one train track before another unmoving steel train car. Finally, and without a doubt the worst part of this situation, is that the track his partner seemed to be aiming for was in use; a train could be heard coming from their left, getting closer by the second.
“Are you insane?!” the passenger yelled, gripping his seat tightly. “That’ll kill us quicker than he will!”
“Trust me… I see it…” The driver sped up, as the man behind them was only a few meters away by now. The passenger started screaming at this point, and for good reason.
What happened next proved the driver was something special, as he slammed on the brakes and spun the car ninety degrees to the left; it slid perfectly between the two parked train cars with little room to spare, hitting the opposite car broadside but not injuring either. The situation only seemed worse as they both saw the blinding light and heard the blaring horn of the oncoming train, and the driver hit the gas again, wheels spinning as the car took off towards the speeding train.
The obscenities streaming from the passenger were impressive before he started screaming in fear, and the driver joined in screaming in anger and defiance. Both of them saw the man in their mirrors; he’d followed them through onto the track and was still after them, but that was what the driver had planned.
In an event that had both passengers of the car convinced that God was truly forgiving for past sins, their car reached the end of the parked train cars and swerved to the side less than a second before the train that would have turned them into scrap metal roared by. And better yet, the man- or whatever he was- was too far behind to do the same, and there was no space to dodge, leaving no choice but to get crushed.
Surging with adrenaline and victory, both passengers cheered loudly, slamming their hands on the dashboard as the driver hit the brakes.
“WHOOOOOOOO!”
“HELL YES!”
“Did you see that?! That was amazing! You were fucking incredible!”
The driver laughed, grinning at his rearview mirror as he watched the train speed by. “We got some sorta god watching us, man! There’s no way we could’ve…”
He trailed off as his eyes widened, and both paled as they looked behind them. In the air above the speeding train their pursuer could be seen, somehow having leapt the locomotive. He sailed through the air far higher than any normal human could hope, landing on the roof of their car and creating a dent.
Both men could do nothing but stare as the saber stabbed in through the roof, piercing the driver’s chest. The driver grunted in disbelief, grabbing at the blade before it twisted, jerking him into death. That shook his partner out of his shock and he scrambled for the handle, flinging open the door and stumbling out, sprinting away as fast as he could.
Joseph Elwood looked calmly after him, withdrawing his saber and standing slowly, whipping the blood free from the blade. The survivor jumped for a ladder on a train car, climbing up it as quickly as he could in his panic. Once he reached the top of the car, he turned back to look.
It was unfortunate. He was able to see Joseph sprint, barely more than a blur, from the car, across the tracks, and straight up the side of the train car in under two seconds; the man was only able to widen his eyes a bit as he blade came up at him, spraying blood into the night air.
Joseph sheathed the saber in its scabbard on his hip as he reached the trunk of the car, opening it up and spotting a black box. He ignored the money and other things in the trunk, not even bothering to close it as he started walking away. He withdrew his phone, making a call as he headed towards the entrance to the train tunnel, hearing another train coming. “I’ve got it,” he said into the phone in an even voice as he tucked the black box under an arm.
“Excellent!” the other voice replied, and Joseph could hear the grin on Sigma’s face. “Bring it immediately and we can get started on phase two.”
“I’m on my way.” Joseph ended the call as the next train sped out of the tunnel. He leapt up into the air, landing on the third car as it flew past. He straightened on top of it, having no problems maintaining balance despite the speed and the heavy winds that whipped his hair and coat around. He calmly began pressing keys on his phone, paying no attention to his surroundings as the train rushed into the night with its unknown passenger.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Date: April 6, 2068
Time: 7:38 PM
Location: SIN Tokyo HQ
1 Unread Message.
Text Message: She’s getting worse. We both know it.
“Miss Samakura.” Katsumi started, looking up to see M smiling at her. “Something important?”
“No,” Katsumi replied as she shut her phone, smiling at him. “So, do you have the details?”
“Of course, I didn’t call you here to waste your time. Get your team to the Briefing Room.”
“Understood, Director.” Katsumi used her cyber link to tell everyone to head to the room as she went herself.
Ten minutes later the full team was seated in the room and M walked in, dropping a file on the desk at the front of the room. “Missing persons.”
Reno raised his hand. “Uh, ‘what are the pictures on milk cartons representing?’”
“Your knowledge of last-century television being impressive as it is, Mr. Hillford, I don’t think that reference is anything but anachronistic.”
Reno shrugged. “You got it.”
“I am a genius,” M smiled. “Is there another comment you’d like to make, or shall we move on?”
Reno hung his head. “Sorry, teacher.”
“Put him in detention!” Sano shouted as he leaned around from the seat behind him.
“Behaving like children does not make this a classroom,” Katsumi interrupted. “Now settle down until recess,” she added with a smirk.
The two chuckled, as did M while he turned on the screen on the wall on their side of the room. “I would have no problem handing out more homework if you’d like.” He stepped to the side and a picture appeared on the screen beside him.
It was a picture of a smiling woman with shoulder-length brown hair and gentle blue eyes; she was pretty, and obviously didn’t look like a threat, meaning she was probably the missing person M had referred to. Kurasano leaned forward to look at the picture. “Whoa, she’s pretty. Please tell me she’s not a horrible demon.”
“Unlikely,” M replied, “as demons don’t have the kind of family she does. No, Mr. Lionel, this is our ‘victim’.”
Katsumi narrowed her eyes. “Victim of what?”
“We’re not sure at this point, but certainly some sort of spirit. Security cameras at a local store caught this footage last night.” The screen switched to video showing the woman outside the window. She looked scared and seemed to be talking to someone outside the camera’s range; she eventually broke a window, grabbed a knife and ran. “She’s a florist, and has no history of violence or criminal activity,” M added.
“Someone was making her do it? She’s talking to someone off-camera.”
“And not just anyone, Miss Samakura.” The video switched to a feed of a nearby traffic camera that showed her standing outside the store; more importantly, it showed that no one was standing anywhere around her.
“Invisible companion can certainly mean ghost,” Rufus noted.
“Or dementia,” Katsumi pragmatically cautioned.
“She has no history of mental illnesses, except one note.” M smiled thinly, pushing up his opaque glasses. “She’s made multiple claims over the course of her life about ‘odd noises’ and spectral visitors, dismissed as paranoid ghost stories. In addition, the knife she stole is an ancient sacrificial dagger – though the store owner had no clue as to its true origin and value.”
The others looked at each other and Katsumi nodded. “Now it makes more sense.”
“I thought it would. Now, as for the ‘missing’ part… Her shop has been closed for a week, and she’s not contacted her friends or family in the same amount of time, which is very unusual in her case. Her apartment, however, remains locked, and we believe she’s inside.”
“Doing what?”
“That’s for you to find out.”
“Age?”
“She’s twenty-eight.”
“And single?” After M’s nod, Katsumi smiled at Kurasano, who blinked in response.
“What, me?”
“You’re our usual inside man anyway. Besides, if you go in alone, it will be less suspicious.”
“Alright, I got it.” Sano looked back to the picture. “So what’s her name?”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Hitomi Saizen,” the young woman answered with a tired smile at the man. Honestly, she wouldn’t have opened the door for anyone she knew, but this was a stranger and he seemed friendly enough.
“Fitting,” the man smiled. “That name means ‘beautiful virtue’.”
“So what does your name mean?”
The man rubbed his head. “Kurasano? I dunno, I think my dad just thought it sounded cool.”
Hitomi’s smile grew a bit. “Your mother let your father name you?”
“Well she wanted to name me Richard, after him, but he thought Japanese names like hers – Matsumi – sounded better. My dad was kinda funny that way.” Sano grinned. “Anyway, I was actually hoping I could come in and talk to you about something important.” He pulled out an Aegis badge.
The surprise on her face was obvious, she knew that, but she couldn’t help it. She looked over her shoulder, but he wasn’t there at the moment, so… “Yes, of course,” she smiled, “as long as it’s quick.”
“I won’t take up much of your time.” Sano stepped through the door as she held it open for him, his brown eyes scanning the apartment and taking in every detail. It was dark, with all of the curtains pulled closed and most of the lights off. The place was messy, but Sano had seen enough messed-up rooms in his experience to tell the difference between the types. This wasn’t the type of messy that Katsumi’s place was, with trash and clothing scattered about showing that the person didn’t care about the appearance or organization of their home.
No, this was more the “messy” that you’d see after a place was broken into, with things rifled through and thrown everywhere. To her credit, though, the girl tried to pass it off as the former, despite it not fitting her profile.
“I’m sorry the place is such a mess,” the young woman said with a sheepish smile as she removed some things from the couch for him to sit, and turned on a lamp. She took a seat in a chair beside the couch and ran a hand through her hair. “I’ve just had a bit of a rough week, and you know how things can slip when you’re busy.”
“Of course, we’ve all been there,” Sano reassured her with a smile. “You won’t get judgment from me; my best friend’s apartment is so bad that maids want to compete to clean it for the bragging rights.”
Hitomi smiled gratefully as she folded her hands in her lap. “I don’t think I could live like that; usually I keep things pretty neat and clean, if not orderly.”
“Extenuating circumstances, I’m sure.” Sano noted that she seemed very tired, though he knew she hadn’t been busy at her job seeing as it had been closed for a week.
“Yes, but I’d rather not discuss that. How about we move onto your business?”
“Right; well, I’m sorry to come in the evening. Half past eight is not the time I’d prefer to bother people, but this is a special case that had to be taken care of quickly.”
Hitomi frowned. “I’m sorry?”
Sano sat back, wishing he had Katsumi’s ability to seem so totally in control and knowledgeable. “There was a break-in at a store very early this morning; the security camera caught some interesting footage.”
Hitomi paled, seeming to shrink a bit. “Oh no… Oh no, I thought I… Look, I have an explanation…”
Sano raised an eyebrow, showing a bit of curiosity without revealing any other emotion or knowledge; in reality, he was simply mimicking Katsumi and hoping it worked, which it seemed to. “Do you?” he said in what he believed to be his best impression of his boss. This obviously wasn’t lost on the others as he could hear Reno’s snickering in his ear, which made him have to fight to prevent a smirk.
“Yes, but it’s… You’re going to think I’m crazy…”
“Crazy is better than criminal. Continue, please; I am truly interested to hear your story.”
Sano, if you don’t stop doing that crappy impression of me, I’m going to hurt you.
Captain Sama, how dare you! It is a fabulous impression.
Fine. Here’s my impression of you: I’m Sano! I don’t know anything! Even though I’m thirty-three I’m still a child without even a grasp on the concept of maturity!
Okay, see, that was a crappy impression.
I also don’t know what a good impression is! And I’m stupid!
Now you’re just being hurtful, boss. And I’m not stupid! I’m really good at math!
What’s a math? Two plus two is five! I’m gonna go play in the street!
I’m done talking to you!
“Um… Mr. Lionel?”
Sano blinked, looking up. “Huh?”
Hitomi looked confused. “You sort of blanked out for a second there…”
“Hahaha, nothing to be alarmed about, only thinking about something!” Sano laughed, waving it off.
“Oh… Okay.”
“Please, go on with your story.”
“Right… Well, you see… There’s this, um… Person…”
“A person.”
“Yes, a person… He threatened me to make me steal that knife, and wanted me to do worse…”
“So why didn’t you call the police?”
“Well, I figured they’d think I’m crazy…”
“None of this sounds crazy so far. Where is this ‘person’ right now?”
“Well he might be coming back soon, but…” Hitomi looked at Sano. “You shouldn’t be here when he gets here.”
“Oh, I plan to be. It’s not a problem.”
“You can’t! You won’t be able to hurt him, he’s… I mean, he’s…” Hitomi swallowed. If she was hauled in to a psych ward, at least she wouldn’t be used by the thing anymore. “He’s a… ghost.”
Sano opened his phone, doing something on the screen. “I know.”
Hitomi blinked. “You…” She blinked again. “You… You know?”
“Yep. It’s kinda why I’m here. Tell me something, can you tell me which of these he looks more like?” He held the phone out to her, which showed three pictures; one of a white spirit in a humanoid form, one of what seemed to be a vortex of static, and one that was a blue cloud of flame and burning coal eyes just like the one that had recently terrorized her. She had, though, seen all three examples before.
“These… These look like real pictures…”
“Yeah, they are.” Sano leaned forward to look at the phone as well. “I mean, it might not be one of these, but we’re betting it’s one of these, so what do you say?”
Hitomi pointed to the one on the far right. “It’s… That one…”
Sano blinked. “It’s that one? You’re sure? Like, sure sure?”
Hitomi nodded. “Y-yes… Why?”
