Forever SK (03)
Edited: 2014.10.24
Previous: chap02
* * THREE * *
[ Core ]
Nakamura Kenji had easily accepted the new world.
After all, he had dreamed of adventures since he was young. He had thought magic was possible. He had wanted to be a hero. But life had different plans in store for him. None of his fantasies came true. He ended up working as the underdog in the entertainment industry, slaving behind the scenes. He hated that place. Hated his work, that was, until he had caught sight of Sakurai Sho. It was love at first sight.
At that time, Storm had been debuted for two years and the glamour of their fresh concept had already worn off. The duo had gone to the studio that day to work on a new job for the first time in a few months. Sakurai Sho and Matsumoto Jun were two very small boys at the ages of twenty and eighteen. Despite their apparent awkwardness, both stood proudly as they waited to be called onto the set.
Kenji, working in another studio, had stopped by on an errand. He turned and caught sight of the two idols. Sho stood alone because Jun had moved to talk to a staff member. Back then, the older of the duo had yet to become accustomed to interacting with the others, so he quietly fidgeted by himself, nervous and yet also emanating an aura of self-assured confidence.
When Kenji stared curiously, wondering if the two would ever make a hit, he saw Sho shuffle and then turn. Their eyes met. The startled assistant moved back, wondering what he was going to do now that he had been caught staring. However, the idol blinked at him, holding his eyes, and then awkwardly smiled with a small tilt of his head and shrug of his shoulders. As if to say, "Hello. I'm just here. Don't know what to do."
That small action had touched Kenji deeply, too deeply. At that moment, he fell desperately in love with that one tiny boy with the big eyes. That was how the infatuation started, him keeping track of the Idol's progression and work through the years of the group’s obscurity.
When three years later Sho finally joined the caster team where Kenji worked, he almost burst into grateful tears, thanking whoever was responsible for bringing him and Sakurai Sho together. He quietly watched though, gathering pieces of the man that had been thrown away, from used utensils to hand wipes, until one day Sho stepped up and broke the silence between them by initiating a conversation.
Kenji was infatuated. Deeply infatuated. The fantasies that had disappeared with the last dregs of adolescence rose up again and sometimes, he would wake up in the middle of night groaning with the need to embrace them. He tampered with the idea of confessing, wanting to openly express his love. How should it be done?
Shouldn't he bridge the gap between them first? Of course, he had been making the lunch boxes long before, but now Kenji finally had the courage to give it. He did.
And when the news came that Sakurai Sho might go on break from a serious injury, Kenji panicked. He suddenly reached the conclusion that it would be now or never, that he would confess.
All in all, that event led him here, to Core. The place of his dreams. Trust Sakurai Sho to be that link to bring him absolute happiness.
He had hidden and watched in wonder as the Mages fought the Mutants in the rain. And when the battles ended, he vowed to be like that, to have their power. The courage that had disappeared with time as reality on Earth had set in evaporated. Kenji determined that he would grab his own happiness.
First is to become ruler of Core. Second, Sakurai Sho would become his lover.
SATOSHI:
Long before Kazunari became used to the Chamber of Mirrors, he asked what the mirrors were. Except for when his reflection peered back at him from the surface of water, he had never seen such things before.
"They are mirrors," I told him. Just that.
Kazunari said they were creepy. There was too many of them.
But Masaki thought they were fascinating. He liked my room, coming every so often, if he wasn't playing with Kazunari or in his Garden, to play with his own image.
The Chamber of Mirrors is my room, my design.
I never told anyone why it is so.
Mirrors were my solace: before Kazunari's birth, only my reflections kept me company.
[ Core ]
On Masaki's back, Sho held on tightly as the taller man carried him, each arm tucked under his knees. He grumbled, embarrassed but clinging on tighter. (Falling was the absolute worse.)
"Where are we going?" he asked. "When are you going to heal my leg?"
"I have to do this first," Masaki told him, carefully watching his step as he moved across the dark, deserted plains. "Satoshi told me to. He's very worried."
Satoshi? Sho was quite sure no one had talked to Masaki while they were together. In the garden, the taller man had acted weird and uttered the same name then. As Sho was carried by the Caretaker, he tried to convince himself that the other man was not crazy. Otherwise, how could he trust this person to heal his leg?
"Why did you have to take me along?" he grumbled anyway.
"Ah," the other said, though his attention was still wholly occupied by the movement of his feet. "I don't know. I wonder why?"
Again, Sho had to convince himself to not be frightened. There was no point in panicking now because he had no one if not this man. The only sane thing to do was to believe in the guy's prowess, though to think so was already insane indeed.
The Idol's arms tightened once more around the neck of said man, pressing them closer together, and he sighed in dread. It was an unbelievable day that Sakurai Sho was weak like this, depending on another person, even depending on someone to walk for him. Who knew? As a child his parents never gave him piggy-back rides. Now, he clung to another man quite desperately. This was an absolute nightmare. Especially, especially that he kind of liked the comfort Masaki gave.
"Where are we going?" he asked again.
"I don't know," Masaki answered. "To find someone."
"And where is this someone?"
"I said I don't know."
"Then where are we going?"
"To find someone."
"What the HECK!?" Sho screamed, sitting back and his unconscious action caused Masaki to teeter back also.
"Hey! You're not weightless!" the Caretaker shouted, tightening his grip on Sho's legs.
"It hurts-it hurts!" the Idol cried out.
Just like that, the pair fell backwards onto the sparse ground. Sho went "oof" when he was sandwiched from both sides between the ground and the other man. He was left groaning as Masaki quickly stood and assessed the damage. His hands flew to help Sho sit.
"I'm so sorry!" he cried.
For the hundredth time since he'd known the man, Sho wondered if he could trust Masaki.
The Caretaker hoisted the Idol onto his back again and started off once more, still chanting his apologies. Weary and beaten, Sho decided to forgive him just because... well, what else could he do?
As they moved on, he asked tiredly, "Who is Satoshi?"
"He's the best person in the whole world," the latter answered.
"And he is...?"
"Satoshi is the greatest person ever."
For the hundredth-and-one time since he'd known the man, Sho wondered if he could trust Masaki. But he curled his arms around the Caretaker's neck and leaned forward anyway, closing his eyes when he decided to keep quiet for the rest of the journey.
[ Earth ]
Jun had just reached home and he wanted to take a nap before heading out again, but the damn creature was pestering him. Kazunari glared at him just as he entered through the doorway and once again, Jun took note that the television was running.
"I don't know half of what they're talking about," Kazunari said, obviously pissed as Jun tried his best to ignore the whining in favor of making himself a cup of coffee. Apparently, no sleep for him. "And what did you call it? A telebizun? Seriously sucks. And they're not even alive."
"The television. The people are alive, just not there," Jun corrected him.
The prince tsked. "But they're not HERE are they? Where are the voices coming from? Obviously, they aren't telepathic like Satoshi."
Again, there was that name that Kazunari always mentioned.
Jun furrowed his brows as he turned around with the fresh cup of coffee in his hands. "Look, you didn't want me explaining the basics of how it worked, so don't complain now."
Nino grumpily crossed his arms as he faced the Idol. "It's boring here. I want to go somewhere."
With just that statement, Jun became alarmed. He straightened and blurted, "No, you can't."
"Why can't I?" Nino demanded. "I'm stuck in this little space and it's so fucking suffocating. I only see you for a bit and then the rest of the time you're either gone or sleeping. I talk to the tedebizon!"
"It's not my fault your people can stay awake for three days straight," Jun snapped.
Kazunari glared once more. "I want out," he stated flatly.
"No." Another impeding argument rose to the forefront.
"How can you stop me?" Kazunari asked, an evil grin twisting his lips. "You can't. Therefore, I suggest you minimize the damage by being my guide. End of story."
Darn fucking creature, Jun seethed, this time it was his turn to glare. He set the hot coffee aside just in case he accidentally spilled it on the freaking man. "I have. A fucking job. In one hour," he muttered.
Kazunari shrugged. "That's great. I'll come along."
One more time, Jun vowed he would get the bastard one day. Surely. Since that day, since he had agreed to their unwritten contract, Jun had been bowing to the latter. He was sure his limit would be reached soon. And for the sake of the small creature, Jun hoped Kazunari would be nowhere nearby when that happened.
*
Thirty minutes later, after Kazunari had changed from his eccentric attire into some of Jun's (larger) clothing, they left the building to go on their way. Outside, Kazunari pulled up the shirt hanging off his shoulder and stared at the car.
"I saw this on that tediberi thing. It moves." He turned to catch Jun's eyes, the Idol giving him a weird look, and Kazunari continued, "Your world has weird pods like these, huh? Frightening."
Dammit. Jun couldn't help it. As he opened the door to usher the awkward Kazunari in, he had to turn away to hide a triumphant grin. This guy frustrated him, but Jun thought his childlike naivety was cute. He knew his knowledge was his upper hand, he just had to figure out a way to use it.
Though, he had to tell Kazunari to put his feet down from the seat every so often, Jun thought they reached the building of his agency without much problem.
The real trouble was getting Kazunari to stay still while he had his meeting. The staff would certainly frown at him bringing along another body already. They would most definitely throw him frustrated looks every time Kazunari interrupted to ask an obvious question, a question like what pencils were (well, he had already asked that back at home anyway); questions that were so simple they were frightening.
"Listen," Jun told Kazunari while he turned off the engine. "Keep your mouth shut. And whenever anyone asks where you are from, say you've lived all your life in the wild countryside and you came to visit me in the city for the first time. You grew up on a farm and only had an education up to middle school."
"I won't be of much trouble. I'm not dumb," Kazunari answered with a roll of his eyes. "Seriously, I don't want attention as much as you think, Matsumoto. If I have a question, I'll keep it until we're alone, or close to alone."
Jun frowned at him, but in his heart he felt extremely grateful. True, Kazunari was certainly not stupid. The man could keep himself out of any harm without Jun having to look at him every moment, right?
"All right then. Let's go," he said.
Inside, the secretary at the desk greeted him casually as he walked past and she only glanced momentarily at Kazunari in interest but said nothing. They settled into the meeting room a little later and Jun quickly introduced Kazunari as his cousin. The staff considered him no problem as long as he kept out of their way. The Prince settled into a chair at the back as the rest and Jun gathered around the table to plan for Storm's guest appearance on a variety show.
"It's a pity Sakurai-san isn't here," someone said.
"Can't reach his phone either."
"We'll have to decide on some things without him."
"I know what he likes and not," Jun spoke up. "I can decide for him."
"All right. We'll trust you."
As Kazunari watched, he forgot to survey the room and his attention was caught by Jun's statement. He leaned forward in his chair and placed a palm under his chin while he observed the man who had been taking care of him for the past few days.
I wonder how much he cares for this Sho, Kazunari thought. How much does he know of that man? How close are they? I wonder what Matsumoto's relationship is to that man.
At that precise moment that Kazunari was searing holes into the side of Jun's head, the younger man turned and caught the Prince's eyes. Kazunari blinked rapidly, surprised to be caught looking so intently. And then a knot began to form in his chest, but he played the feeling off by squeezing a grin out at Jun.
Jun returned his smile with an irritated look before going back to give the staff his full attention.
How horrible, Kazunari thought, though his heart had begun to beat rapidly. Too fast for his liking. Annoyed, he sat back in his chair again. All right, he'd find something else to look at then. Not like Jun was the only good-looking one in the room anyway (though in fact Kazunari had to admit he was the best).
It was a long while later that the meeting finally came to an end.
Relieved and satisfied, Jun turned around to address his charge that had been awfully quiet (though Jun may have just forgotten him) and was surprised. He saw that Kazunari was gone. While the others exited the room, he stood behind to compose himself lest he started cursing in his frustration. Alone, Matsumoto Jun ran a hand over his face and calmly exited the room.
As he fumed and stomped all over the building, appearing outwardly calm, Jun went over all the things in his head that he wanted to do to the man. Something evil and vile.
He kept searching, nodding every once in a while if he passed other talents or employees, and awkwardly stole looks around him whenever he could.
Finally, Jun looked on a whim outside the ninth floor window, anxious as the sun was already setting, and saw the source of his trouble.
Darn. The Idol rushed to the window and pulled it open. "What are you doing!?" he shouted above him.
Two floors up, Kazunari stood on the very edge of the rooftop, peering curiously down at the ground ten floors below him. "Well, I didn't want to be a bother to you and I know you don't like people seeing me, so I came here to see the view. There's nothing wrong with that."
"Yes, there is!" Jun exclaimed, almost wishing he had the courage to climb out and up to strangle the man. "Dammit! They'll think you're crazy!"
"Am not!" Kazunari shouted back, this time moving his gaze to meet eyes with Jun.
Jun sat back on his heels and seethed. But then he remembered their very first meeting. Hadn't Kazunari been flying then? He panicked. "Don't you dare fucking fly off!" What would the people think?
Kazunari furrowed his brows and snapped. "Are you an idiot!? I can't fly!"
Now, it was Jun's turn to be confused. Then what about-- "Then what about the mall? At that time, you were floating!"
"The mall?" Kazunari stared back, confused. "What's a mall?"
What a fucking situation he was stuck in. Jun pushed aside the question for later and returned to his main concern. "Kazunari, step away and come down right now! We're leaving!"
Instead, the smaller man straightened and stared off into the distance at the setting sun.
"Ah... The Star is going down." He was already tired, had his three days of consciousness. Kazunari wanted to rest. He knew Jun would take the bed that night and wondered where he was going to sleep.
"I get the mattress," he blurted.
"What!?"
"I get the mattress," Kazunari repeated, tilting his head down to show Jun a toothy grin. "Tonight, I sleep. I will come down if you let me take the mattress."
"Why should I!?" Jun demanded. It was his bed.
Kazunari moved an inch forward, teetering dangerously on the edge. "Bed or no?"
Behind Jun, a voice suddenly asked, "Matsujun, what are you doing? What are you looking at?"
The Idol heard shuffling of feet as the person who had spoken moved to reach him. Damn his luck!
"Agreed!" he shouted quickly.
The person, an employee, now stood at his side. "Matsujun?" the man repeated, surprised at his scream.
The Idol turned towards the newcomer, once again forcing that all-too fake smile on his face.
"Nothing! I was, uh, just trying to exercise my voice." His heart raced but he tried to appear calm and merry. The employee glanced out and up the window. Jun did the same. To his relief, Kazunari was gone.
"All right," the employee said, giving him a confused look.
When Jun reached his car minutes later, the Prince was already there waiting for him. The cheeky man had the nerve to smile.
"Like we agreed. I know you keep your promises."
Though Jun had been glaring darts at him, he suddenly blinked. Really? The creature had such a good image of him? But what came out of his mouth instead was different from how he felt. "I never promised to not kill you in your sleep."
This time, Kazunari knew enough to let himself into the car without help. As he slid into his seat, he said, "You have your reasons not to. As long as I'm still useful to you Matsumoto, you'll do nothing to me."
"You do not know me!" Jun declared, sliding into his seat also. He started the engine. "Don't act like you do." But then once again, his chest constricted. Kazunari had spoken the truth.
The drive home was silent. Jun had expected Kazunari to talk without stopping, but he realized the silence was due to the creature being asleep. He heaved a heavy sigh. This man went at his own pace and he automatically dragged Jun along.
Along a small street, he saw lights flash ahead and was told to stop by a nearby police officer. As the man in uniform approached, Jun slowed and rolled down his side of the window.
"What's up officer?"
The officer looked somber. "There's been a severe accident up ahead. You will have to take another route, sir." In his mind, images of the slain bodies in a ruined car returned to the officer; of chewed limbs and scattered body parts, of headless corpses, the heads nowhere to be found, guts and teeth spilling all over the place.
"All right," Jun answered.
Occupied, both did not notice the unearthly shadow that hurriedly passed the car and up a tree.
The officer pulled back and saluted. Jun turned his car around and drove away, passed the tree. In the very branches, the Mutant was watching. It smelled faint traces of power. A Mage on Earth. The monster growled, bringing his bloodied claws to his horrid face as he watched the vehicle disappear into the distance. It licked at the blood caked on its claws, knowing this prey would be delicious.
A few minutes later, Jun reached his apartment. He parked his car and paused, debating whether he should wake the sleeping man and tell him to haul his ass inside the building. He changed his mind when he turned and saw Kazunari lying in the seat, for once at peace. Though Jun intensely disliked the fellow, he couldn't help feeling his initial want to protect. Kazunari laid there so vulnerable and full of trust, Jun pressed his forehead against the steering wheel and sighed again. He was too nice. Definitely too nice.
He went to the other side and pulled Kazunari into his arms, then carefully carried the man into his apartment.
As he had promised, Jun set Kazunari on his bed. After a second, he bent over to pull the covers up around the smaller person. He turned to leave but then a small murmur distracted him. Curious, Jun crouched down next to the mattress to hear better.
In his sleep, Kazunari murmured, "Satoshi..."
Again, that name. Jun frowned, somehow disliking that name Kazunari uttered so much, the person Kazunari seemed to revere and depend on. He clicked his tongue and left, his chest feeling heavy.
[ Core, In the Direction of the Rising Star ]
Sho groaned as Masaki set him down on the gravel. He laid back and stared up into the darkness above him.
"Somehow, I'm tired," he said. Then he asked no one in particular while observing the sky, "How would I know if it’s the next day or not here? Or even if there are actually days?"
"There are," Masaki replied, answering his question without much thought. Standing next to Sho's form, the Caretaker stretched energetically as if he hadn't been carrying a man on his back all that time. "But Satoshi is sick and his control over Core is weak. Basically, we're at low power at the moment."
Once again, the Idol groaned. "That's what I don't get. Where's the sun? He controls the damn thing?"
"Sun?" Masaki frowned. "What's a sun?"
"The thing that lights up the world and creates daylight. You know, the biggest star in our universe?"
Because the Caretaker did not understand, Sho sighed and closed his eyes. "Forget it. I forgot. This world is utterly different from mines."
He felt a body lie down next to him, most likely Masaki. The man said, "Not totally, Sho. Satoshi told me that your world, Earth, and a few others are actually a lot like ours. You're human, you see. And we are. There are a lot of...creatures like Mutants out there who speak a different language. Whose time is not parallel to ours like how your Earth is."
Surprised, Sho turned his head slightly aside to that man. "You know all that!?" After the Caretaker had shown how idiotic he could be, Sho couldn't believe it.
In response, Masaki gave him one of his most cheerful smiles. "Kazunari forced me to learn with him. But that's the most I can remember about Earth."
The Idol's heart stopped beating for a moment (not literally), but he felt blood rush to his head. He screwed his expression, extremely embarrassed as he mumbled out of the blue, "You have a nice smile."
"Thanks," Masaki said next to him as if it wasn't awkward, and then the Caretaker sat up forming a distance between them. "All right, let's head out."
"Right now?" Sho whined. He was tired. And they hadn't even taken a break for a full hour, at least he suspected anyway.
"Yes, right now," Masaki made clear. "Or else, when?"
Sho grumbled as he was hoisted onto the taller man's back again. He chose to give no reply.
As they went on, he thought about everything that had happened in the last few, what, hours? Days? Inadvertently, that voice he had forgotten returned to his memory. He ran it through in his head. Screams. Masaki. Voice. Rain. Sleep. A lot of sleep. The garden. Right, the garden where he had agreed to come with the Caretaker. For some reason. Then Masaki had been talking to himself. To himself. THAT VOICE. What if...?
Everything in his mind clicked. Sho clutched Masaki painfully tight in his comprehension and exclaimed, "Masaki! The person talking to me was not there! It was in my head! Was that Satoshi? Was that the person you spoke to, the person who gave you this mission to find this someone?"
"You know!?" Masaki bellowed, a little excited for his own good even if he only understood half of what the man on his back was saying.
Sho settled down in disbelief. Another miracle. This world was full of surprises. "He can do that, huh? In this world, this Satoshi can speak telepathically to whoever, whenever, huh?"
The Caretaker grinned proudly. "Only our Guardians have that ability to connect with all on this Land. You'll never mistake who’s in your head, so don't worry. His Essence is the greatest person."
Sho remembered that same voice that had soothed him when he had first come here, after the Caretaker had left him. He had forgotten the feeling but now it all came back. That person who had lent him protection. The one who had given him warmth. He nodded thoughtfully at Masaki's words. "True. He's a great person."
The Idol heard Masaki laugh to his agreement and he wondered if he had said something wrong, even as warmth climbed up his chest, up his ears, and his face. That laughter was musical, belonging to a man beautiful inside and out.
Their journey continued, seemingly endless.
To Sho, the landscape barely changed. Every now and then, he saw paths leading to distant villages, but Masaki never strayed off their route. They passed silent, dark forests, especially eerie with no daylight, and large gates keeping all out and those few in.
Sho wondered if this world was as dead as it looked. It was like a ghost town with its silence, abandoned bridges and pathways. While they moved on, there were no signs of life, no animals, no humans either.
He asked Masaki about it and the Caretaker answered vaguely, "It's not that surprising you know, especially after the battle. People are just afraid that the Barrier will go down again. I'm pretty sure until the Guardian wakes, everyone's under cover."
That confused Sho even more. He had no idea what that "Barrier" the Caretaker alluded to was. He even had no idea what the Guardian was.
Of course, they went on and on. There seemed to be no stop or end to their search.
"How would you even know you've found this person!?" he asked Masaki once when they stopped by a river to rest and drink some water.
The latter shrugged. "I didn't think of it."
But exasperated Sho didn't complain when he was hoisted onto the taller man’s back and they moved on again.
Time passed steadily, though the Idol barely could tell how much as he drifted in and out of sleep in his position.
In the end, they had their tenth meal since traveling (food pills Sho had something to say about, but decided against) and unsurprisingly, idle Sho fell asleep on Masaki's back but this time feeling more uncomfortable than ever.
Masaki felt worn out and he wanted to rest, but knowing that Sho was asleep he didn't want to wake his charge up. So he kept on, stumbling over rocks and rubble underneath him while walking.
"No one can sleep if you're like that," Sho finally said, giving up all pretense of resting.
Masaki perked up. "Oh! You're awake!"
Sho sat back groggily, frowning. "How could I not when you're jumbling all over the place? But it's all right now. You can set me down."
Masaki grinned apologetically and crouched down to position Sho on the ground. "It's a relief, but sorry."
"I've been in and out of sleep anyway since we've started. How much time have passed since we've begun this endless journey?" The Idol leaned back against the gravel to stretch.
Masaki stretched also and yawned. "Three days."
Instantly, Sho shot into a sitting position again. "Three days!?"
"Yep," the Caretaker answered nonchalantly.
Never mind that the man could even tell, Sho was furious about another thing. "You mean that I've been on your back for three whole, damn days!?"
"Yep."
"Dammit!" Sho fell back again. "Just heal my leg so that I can walk! How much longer are you going to drag me around?"
"Until we find someone."
Sho groaned. That again. "Heal my leg."
Next to him, Masaki frowned. "You really want to? You can't wait?"
"I can't!" he declared. Anyone would've had enough by now.
The Caretaker sighed. "Let me sleep first. At least for one day. Then I might have enough energy to help you."
"One day!?" Now, Sho was incredulous. "You mean I'll have to just sit here and wait twenty-four hours!?"
The latter furrowed his brows at Sho's tone of voice. "Yes! You'll have to wait! I'm actually getting only...half? A-a third? I don't know, but I'm only getting a bit of sleep!" Instantly, Masaki plopped down on his side, away from Sho and closed his eyes with his arms crossed defiantly.
"H-hey!" Sho shouted, sliding over to shake his arm. "Hey, Masaki! What am I supposed to do?" Suddenly afraid, he looked around him at the barren land. It was dark and he would be alone? They were in the middle of nowhere. Unsurprisingly so. "Hey Masaki..." he started weakly.
"Just sleep then," the latter said, still refusing to face him and giving him the cold shoulder.
"B-but," Sho started, continuing to shake. "If we're both asleep, it's dangerous."
"Then you stay awake."
"I can't!"
"Then sleep."
Sho removed his hand and pressed a fist against his forehead. Such an idiot he was stuck with!
"Don't worry. Unless there are Mutants around, nothing is going to attack me," Masaki assured him, his voice starting to fade away as drowsiness overcame him.
"What about me?" Sho muttered to himself miserably.
"You can sleep," Masaki mumbled. "Asleep you're unaware and unafraid."
"Your logic is so simple," Sho sobbed, but he lay down on his side also, his back to the Caretaker. He felt vulnerable and cold in the open. The Idol curled up and clenched his eyes shut, hoping desperately that nothing attacked him while he was unconscious. He stayed that way, shaking and uncomfortable for a few minutes until a sudden arm wrapped around him from behind.
Sho jerked awake, but then the familiar scent of Masaki filled him and when he was pulled backwards by the latter, pressed closer towards the taller man, Sho realized that the Caretaker was protecting him. And this time it was his heart beating abnormally, too fast, that prevented him from sleep. Even as he felt Masaki's evened warm breath on the back of his neck.
[ Core, In the Direction of the First Point ]
Nakamura Kenji hauled the lifeless body to the pit and threw the dead man in. He trembled as he watched the corpse. He hadn't meant to kill the old man, but had become blind in his fury when the elder had refused to cooperate with him. Kenji had never killed before, hadn't even intended to when he beat the old man, and in his panic only one thought had occurred to him; he had to hide the body.
Now, he shoveled dirt into the hole and watched as the dead body bled onto the ground, mixing with the Land.
"I will be Ruler," Kenji seethed, sweating as he piled the dirt in. There was no turning back now.
Later, as he packed the soil in, he heard a soft weeping in his ear. Afraid, Kenji looked around. "Who's there!?" he shouted as his heart raced emphatically. No one. Just him on that farmland.
The soft crying continued. Kenji shivered. He immediately hid behind a barren tree, wary eyes searching for the source. A ghost? A child? Until...
Until he realized it was not his ears hearing the sobs, but that it came from his head. At the realization, he froze.
"You will never win the hearts of our people," the old man had told him earlier. "The Guardian has our love and loyalty. He is the Heart of Core and us. You fight in vain."
Those were the words that had caused Kenji to teeter over the edge and beat the man. And accidentally killed him. He had refused to believe the elder.
But at that moment as he hid and heard the crying fade away to be replaced by silence, Kenji trembled and wondered what he had gotten himself into.
[ Earth, Tokyo ]
It was stupid. The first day of peace while Kazunari slept and left him alone, Jun felt extremely happy. The second day he felt uncomfortable, as if the house was now too quiet without the creature complaining every second. On this third day, Jun was feeling extremely glad that Kazunari would wake the next morning. And that was the part that was stupid. Why should he be happy to have that thing following him around?
Life is just awesome, Jun thought sarcastically. Everything is so smooth and logical. Then he mentally laughed at his stupidity. At that moment, Jun stood at the back of the crowd (the staff of the program he was currently on) waiting to be called on for his role. A melodramatic scene was unfolding on set and if he burst into laughter, surely someone would think he was rude.
"Well, isn't it the grand Kaze," a disturbing voice said, breaking him out of his thoughts.
Jun steeled himself and refused to acknowledge the presence of Tohru.
The musician came to stand beside the Idol anyway. "Isn't this just nice? Whenever I'm in this building, seems like you're here too. Bad luck."
"Definitely," Jun muttered under his breath. Here he was, being frustrated by himself until someone had to come and tilt him over the edge.
Tohru smirked and crossed his arms. "So Kaze-sama, another week and your Yama seems to be gone. Unreachable. I heard your cousin has come to town though. Don't tell me the two of you had your partner killed and buried somewhere."
"Leave them out of this, Fuji," Jun threatened, finally turning to the bastard. "Kazunari and Sakurai-san have nothing to do with your anger."
"So his name is Kazunari?" Tohru asked, pretending innocence.
Jun glared at the musician and his tone suddenly lowered. He whispered so quietly that even Tohru had to strain to hear, "Don't you dare go near him, Fuji or I swear, I will rip your fucking head off."
All the years that he'd hated Jun, Tohru had never seen the man so serious. For one split second, he was shocked. After that, he recovered enough to force a grin on his face. "Ah. I want to see him now." Before the Idol could snarl, Tohru was already on his way out.
Tohru realized this cousin may be his ticket to finally getting Jun.
*
The shoot finished hours later.
On his way home, the Storm Idol retained a foul mood. Sure, he had smiled in front of the staff and assistants in the studio, but that had all been an act. Fuji Tohru had literally ruined his day. That was, until as Jun neared his apartment he thought about seeing Kazunari and his heart somehow seemed to lighten. (Despite the fact that the man still frustrated him.) Kazunari would wake up today. And in that moment as he parked his car in the lot, that was all that seemed to matter.
However, as Jun entered the lobby, the person at the desk stopped him.
"Matsumoto-san, there've been complaints about some noises coming from your room. Your cousin didn't open the door when one of our employees went to issue him a warning though. We considered if we should call you, but of course you must have been busy."
Jun frowned. Trust the little brat to cause trouble as soon as he woke.
"I'm sure he's okay. Thank you and I'm sorry," he said. "I'll tell my cousin to watch his noise level next time."
She beamed at him. "Thank you very much for your consideration, sir."
Jun made his way up the stairs, using the extra time to think. What could Kazunari have done to make so much noise that it had become a disruption to his neighbors?
Maybe he finally learned to turn up the volume on the television, the Idol thought crudely as he reached his apartment door. He took a deep breath, preparing to be bombarded with complaints of boredom as soon as he stepped in, and turned the knob.
Instantly, a foul scent wafted through the crack. Jun gagged and flung open the door in alarm. What the heck! He was struck with the sight before him. Ripped furniture. A broken window. Drops of blood everywhere. Where was Kazunari?
"What happened here!?" he shouted. What had the little monster done? Jun stood in the doorway, utterly astounded. That creature! That little pest! A wave of fury and fear engulfed him. Jun didn't know what he should do first. To find that creature and demand answers or to clean up the mess. He shouldn't have expected better. He shouldn't have thought the little monster could handle himself. He felt like a damn fool.
"Matsu...moto?" The small voice broke through his anger.
He twisted to the source of that sound.
Kazunari stumbled up from his hiding spot.
Jun's anger faded away as he registered the blood on the smaller man's frame. Blood on his skinny arms and body. Blood on the side of his head, caked, but nowhere near healed.
The Prince staggered towards the Idol. "You're back. Finally..."
Jun could not utter a response. He was horrified.
Relieved, Kazunari let himself fall.
Jun rushed forward to catch the injured man. That was Kazunari's blood, staining his clothes and body, trailing a line. The body felt weightless in his arms and the strong scent of metal and rust filled Jun's nostrils. All fury dissolved, his heart slammed itself repeatedly against his chest. "What happened?" he whispered. "Kazunari..." Jun's hand traveled to the pale face, touching those smooth cheeks gently.
"M-mutant," the smaller man muttered and he started shivering violently. Without his brother there, he had not had the power to break Earth's Laws, to hold his electricity long enough to fight the monster.
Jun felt warm liquid burn down his hands and he knew Kazunari had not stopped bleeding.
The small man went quiet in his arms; the Idol felt suffocated.
[ Core ]
Masaki had lied. Sho spent a long time agonizing by himself, restless until he was sure a whole day had passed (how the heck was he supposed to tell?) and then he hopped around the man just for the sake of exercising until Sho became hungry and had to dig around in Masaki's pockets for some of the tasteless food pills. Later, he decided he was going to explore the area and using a nearby twig as a crutch, Sho had suppressed his fright (boredom was a very powerful thing) and wandered all over the plains.
Much, much later, when he finally found his way back to the Caretaker after getting lost, Sho had fallen on his side next to the man and curled up to sleep, grateful for the exhaustion.
When he woke up, it was due to something crawling on his leg.
Instantly, Sho jerked awake and away, until he saw that it was only Masaki leaning over him. No, that was not all. The Idol sat up and rubbed his eyes. He was seeing right. For the first time since arriving there, Sho saw another human being.
"Stay still, Sho," Masaki ordered him. "I'm going to heal your leg."
A man wearing pure white robes stood behind the Caretaker. He had a menacing scar on one side of his face.
Sho gulped and turned his eyes away to face the Caretaker. "Right now?" He had just woken. When Masaki had promised to heal his leg, Sho had expected there to be some kind of preparation beforehand. Time for him, at least.
"Right now," Masaki assured him. His hands traveled up Sho's leg again and now the Idol realized that his jeans had been ripped apart. Stiff and weary, Sho opened his mouth to complain until he saw the man in white reach out to grasp Masaki's shoulder tightly.
"Steady," the man said and that was when Sho realized that the Caretaker's hands were trembling, cool fingers wavering as they touched his bruised skin. He looked closely and with a pang saw the tear lines that marked their way down Masaki's face. What had happened while he was asleep? His breathing constricted.
And then all of a sudden vines shot out of the ground and wrapped around his leg. They intertwined and squeezed in an effort to align his bones.
Sho cried out from the excruciating pain.
*
Kenji hid himself in the shadows, retching and crying. He hadn't meant it. He hadn't meant to hurt all of them. His whole body trembled and once again, Kenji knew it was all too late. He would have to move forward with his plan. After he stopped retching.
A thousand miles away, the Mage of Creation took one long look at the village, burnt to the ground. Of charred bodies lying around. Children clutched tightly in their parent's arms. Faces now unrecognizable. Smelling of smoke and ashes and the sour smell of burnt flesh.
From the rubble, the Holder of Heat and Wrath stood. "We arrived too late," he said. "I took away the fire though, but everyone's--"
The Mage cut in, "Who else will be here?"
At the side, the Mage of Elasticity emerged. "Air and Breath went to get the Caretaker who was nearby. They will be here shortly."
The Mage of Creation turned away, lowering her eyes. "Masaki will surely cry," she whispered to no one but herself.
The Holder went to stand before them. "When the Guardian called me, I was on the other side of the Land. I'm sorry I didn't get here in a hurry."
"No one's at fault but the culprit," Elasticity said. "And we will catch him, but at the moment the Guardian is still rebuilding strength. We will all have to search without his help until he's solid again."
Creation blinked rapidly as she understood. "The Guardian called? I didn't know the Guardian had spoken. Is he strong enough now?"
The Holder of Heat and Wrath shook his head. "Except from when he called me, I haven't heard from him again. His Essence's voice was weak. I haven't checked the Blue Lake, but I'm sure he's not ready to return yet."
"He's not ready."
[ the Blue Lake ]
A thin pool had filled up. From the surface, bubbles formed. And then a whispery man crawled out. His watery arms sunk into the soft floor of the basin as he tried to climb out of the almost empty fissure. To no avail.
Satoshi peered up at the dark sky. He didn't have enough energy to summon up the Star. He didn't have enough energy to be solid. He felt helpless as he clung to the dirt.
And then the Guardian gasped, clutching at his transparent chest. "Kazunari..." His brother was hurt somewhere out there. Hurt and dying. And Kazunari was desperately trying to survive.
The Prince sucked out Satoshi's last strength in his fight with life. With one last sob, the Guardian dissolved once more.
* *
Next: chap04
A/N: Unenthused Yay... I should really work on updating this. Seriously, I can't wait until Ohchan comes back =(