Apologia Pro Vita Sua (Chapter 20)
Title: Apologia Pro Vita Sua (Chapter 20)
Authors: Scorpions angelinaii, murasaki_plum, nemesis_cry
Characters/Pairings: All (kangteuk, shichul, kihae; potential kyuwook, eunkihae, shihanchul, yeshdong, yewook, minry)
Rating: PG-13 to R
Genre: AU, organized crime, postcyberpunk
Summary: In a world where money and crime go hand and hand, survival is not determined by the fittest, but the ones who will fight to live.
Warnings: violence, swearing, sexual situations
Introduction and Chapter 1 | Chapters 2 & 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 | Chapter 15 | Chapter 16 | Chapter 17 | Chapter 18 | Chapter 19
Banner by angelinaii
PV by murasaki_plum
Kibum paced the room as he spoke, his voice reverberating in such a way in the empty, derelict open floor that Eeteuk felt a migraine threaten to assail him. He fought against it, determined to hold fast until they had a way to fix this. Until Ryeowook was back among them, safe and sound.
"So the H&E is behind this," Heechul summarized, glaring at him as if to say 'what are we wasting time here for, if we know'.
"The H&E was duped," Kibum corrected, pinching the bridge of his nose between two fingers. "They hired someone to do a job for them and then they lost control."
It wouldn't be the first time, as Eeteuk knew well, but it was the first time one of his own had gotten caught in the crossfire. Leaning forward with his hands on his knees, he sighed, trying to gather scattered thoughts and finding the effort similar to catching moths. Every time he got close enough to one, he barely managed to break its thin little wings.
"They supplied the funds and probably the manpower to get the business off the ground. They created a monster, one that is now hunting us down." Was Siwon just an accident or had the faceless man been looking for a specific target? Had he found it in Ryeowook? To Kibum, he added: "Regardless of how they were involved, you said you found traces of a transaction that didn't go through."
"Third order was never delivered," the other man nodded, eyes red-rimmed and bloodshot.
"The Judoh murder," Yesung supplied. "It must've been too close to home. Against orders."
Kangin shook his head. "It doesn't make sense. Why would the faceless man cut out the middle guy? You can't deal with the hospitals directly because they're owned by the mob anyway..."
Eeteuk pressed his thumbs together, then his index fingers, then his palms. The H&E didn't have the foresight to mount such an elaborate coup just to get to him. It was too convoluted, too complex a scheme for their thugs. Like a chess game, every move connected to another, backing him into a corner of the board until inevitable defeat. The H&E would've come at him headfirst. At most, they would've planted a snitch in his midst. They wouldn't have had the patience to go after Ryeowook, and least of all when he was with Kyuhyun.
Sungmin's eyes met his, drowning out the argument stirring around them.
"Did they really cut off his hands?" the younger man asked, his voice shaking but gun hand steady. It had the effect of startling the others into silence, as if recalling what was at stake: not just hypothesis and a few hapless prostitutes, but Ryeowook. One of them.
"Yes," Eeteuk answered with a slow nod. "They really did."
"He wouldn't have gone easily." Sungmin was on his feet quickly making his way out of the warehouse only to be stalled by Kangin's grip on his shoulder. "We can't just wait, he's probably figured out an escape by now."
"Probably isn't good enough," the older man answered with a shake of the head. "We can't risk losing another one of us." They couldn't, even if they wanted to go on a suicide mission. "We don't even know where he's been taken."
Kyuhyun stood from the crate he was sitting on, his face red as he glared at the people around him. "At least he's doing something. Don't you see? Sitting around and waiting for the cop to do his damn job is going to get Ryeowook killed."
A glare shot his way, Yesung clenched his fists. "My mistake. Because when you were supposed to be doing your job, things went so well after all..." His reasoning was simple: Kyuhyun risked his neck for the runner's legs and it had cost them Ryeowook. He was to blame and it was easier to point the finger at someone within range of a punch, rather than some abstract, faceless murderer.
"If you did your job this wouldn't have even been a problem." In their eyes, Kyuhyun was nothing more than a machine. He didn't have nor need the emotions that motivated the rest of them. That did little to stop him from crossing the room to push at Yesung's chest, his voice rising with every word. "You had every chance to end this. I warned you! You were probably glad to have some Bottoms trash taken out for you. You're probably the one that led them here! What else are you hiding from us, huh?"
Precisely because he was first and foremost a machine, Yesung didn't retaliate with fists. Instead, he reached for his gun, cocking and aiming it at Kyuhyun's head. Just metal. Just a broken, hacked, useless computer. The click of seven other guns echoed in response throughout the room.
"You're the last person to see him alive," he gritted out. "You want to blame someone? Blame yourself. You failed him."
"Not as much as you." Kyuhyun had the nerve to smirk. "Go on, shoot. See if I leak blood or hydraulic fluid."
Eeteuk ignored them insofar as it was possible. "While you're having a pissing contest, Ryeowook is still gone and still probably... likely... soon to be dead. The faceless man is the one you should blaming. Not each other." He clicked his tongue, continuing without waiting for the veiled order to be obeyed. "Kyuhyun, you've had the most contact with the killer. Any ideas, any clues about who or where he is?"
Kyuhyun's focus on the gun in front of him faded then returned. "HUB1957-C. Sound familiar?"
"Tag on the banker's body bag." Shindong announced before Yesung could lower his gun or open his mouth. "Probably the case file too. Our clue's in there?"
"Yeah, with a timer."
"A timer?" Yesung repeated. "Like a countdown? To what?" He had the answer, could feel it scratching at his psyche like nails on a chalkboard. He wasn't prepared to admit it.
Kibum intervened before Kyuhyun could confirm his thoughts. "This is the first time the faceless man cut off limbs, right? He must know we're onto him."
"So he's taking bargaining coins..." Eeteuk frowned, lost in thought. "He sent us on a wild goose chase so he could take Ryeowook, knowing we'd execute the killer he left for us to find."
"Either he's leaving us breadcrumbs or setting us up again." Kangin said before swearing inaudibly under his breath. "Yesung, see if there's anything in that file worth using, but I'm not holding my breath. My guys, you're on patrol unless you're called."
"Keep off your cells as much as you can," Kyuhyun added, his eyes never leaving Yesung's. "I'll try to have our lines clean but I can't be sure."
An ugly smile drew itself on Yesung's lips before he nodded to Kangin and shouldered past. The likelihood of finding anything more developed than their own theories at the precinct was infinitely small, especially considering that the H&E would never publicly admit to paying off a killer that went rogue. No don with any will to live would ever dare look that weak. Still, he holstered his weapon as told, determined at least to throw them off if not use their information.
Shindong followed him out.
Back inside, Eeteuk met Kangin's eyes uneasily. "Bottoms is under lockdown. Clear the streets and then start looking. Bring in anyone suspicious." Ryeowook was family and even if it was nearly impossible any killer with half a brain, let alone one intelligent enough to hack Kyuhyun, would keep him in this part of town, they had to check. To make sure.
"We're taking prisoners?"
He sighed. "We've got to, don't we?" he asked and thought: 'bargaining coin. This is what it's come to.'
***
The game was still on, and Kyuhyun had to play by the faceless man's rules. He didn't have a choice, not when Ryeowook's life could be won or lost. It was his turn, and the faceless man was waiting. The clues weren't difficult to find, in fact they were basically laid out for Kyuhyun on a silver platter. He didn't have time to think about whether they were merely clues to set them up to fail again, or another whimsical ploy to keep Kyuhyun's attention.
He continued his search through the dizzying array of infinite data streams. The clues that were left behind had only faint traces of his opponent, as tangible as tendrils of smoke, taunting him and beckoning him to dive deeper. So close but still too far.
Ryeowook. As long as he was alive, as long as there was a chance that he could be found alive, Kyuhyun would continue to risk losing himself and play his tormentor's game. He knew the faceless man understood that, the painful guilt that had to acknowledge that Ryeowook's capture was just another part of the game, an incentive to keep Kyuhyun playing.
Is this familiar? A distorted voice broke through Kyuhyun's thoughts. He could sense the other was enjoying his emotions, savoring his pain. You can see him. You always could.
Kyuhyun let out an audible gasp, and suddenly he was looking through the faceless man's eyes. The vision appeared with ease, but that was all he was allowed to have. He couldn't move the faceless man's body, he couldn't access the faceless man's memories, he could only have what the faceless man would give him.
Five hours left. Five hours and it will be my turn again. The faceless man grasped Ryeowook's chin and forced him to look into his eyes, so Kyuhyun could see he was alive. So Kyuhyun could see his fear. Five hours.
And then there was nothing, the connection gone as quickly as it was made.
Authors: Scorpions angelinaii, murasaki_plum, nemesis_cry
Characters/Pairings: All (kangteuk, shichul, kihae; potential kyuwook, eunkihae, shihanchul, yeshdong, yewook, minry)
Rating: PG-13 to R
Genre: AU, organized crime, postcyberpunk
Summary: In a world where money and crime go hand and hand, survival is not determined by the fittest, but the ones who will fight to live.
Warnings: violence, swearing, sexual situations
Introduction and Chapter 1 | Chapters 2 & 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 | Chapter 15 | Chapter 16 | Chapter 17 | Chapter 18 | Chapter 19
Banner by angelinaii
PV by murasaki_plum
Kibum paced the room as he spoke, his voice reverberating in such a way in the empty, derelict open floor that Eeteuk felt a migraine threaten to assail him. He fought against it, determined to hold fast until they had a way to fix this. Until Ryeowook was back among them, safe and sound.
"So the H&E is behind this," Heechul summarized, glaring at him as if to say 'what are we wasting time here for, if we know'.
"The H&E was duped," Kibum corrected, pinching the bridge of his nose between two fingers. "They hired someone to do a job for them and then they lost control."
It wouldn't be the first time, as Eeteuk knew well, but it was the first time one of his own had gotten caught in the crossfire. Leaning forward with his hands on his knees, he sighed, trying to gather scattered thoughts and finding the effort similar to catching moths. Every time he got close enough to one, he barely managed to break its thin little wings.
"They supplied the funds and probably the manpower to get the business off the ground. They created a monster, one that is now hunting us down." Was Siwon just an accident or had the faceless man been looking for a specific target? Had he found it in Ryeowook? To Kibum, he added: "Regardless of how they were involved, you said you found traces of a transaction that didn't go through."
"Third order was never delivered," the other man nodded, eyes red-rimmed and bloodshot.
"The Judoh murder," Yesung supplied. "It must've been too close to home. Against orders."
Kangin shook his head. "It doesn't make sense. Why would the faceless man cut out the middle guy? You can't deal with the hospitals directly because they're owned by the mob anyway..."
Eeteuk pressed his thumbs together, then his index fingers, then his palms. The H&E didn't have the foresight to mount such an elaborate coup just to get to him. It was too convoluted, too complex a scheme for their thugs. Like a chess game, every move connected to another, backing him into a corner of the board until inevitable defeat. The H&E would've come at him headfirst. At most, they would've planted a snitch in his midst. They wouldn't have had the patience to go after Ryeowook, and least of all when he was with Kyuhyun.
Sungmin's eyes met his, drowning out the argument stirring around them.
"Did they really cut off his hands?" the younger man asked, his voice shaking but gun hand steady. It had the effect of startling the others into silence, as if recalling what was at stake: not just hypothesis and a few hapless prostitutes, but Ryeowook. One of them.
"Yes," Eeteuk answered with a slow nod. "They really did."
"He wouldn't have gone easily." Sungmin was on his feet quickly making his way out of the warehouse only to be stalled by Kangin's grip on his shoulder. "We can't just wait, he's probably figured out an escape by now."
"Probably isn't good enough," the older man answered with a shake of the head. "We can't risk losing another one of us." They couldn't, even if they wanted to go on a suicide mission. "We don't even know where he's been taken."
Kyuhyun stood from the crate he was sitting on, his face red as he glared at the people around him. "At least he's doing something. Don't you see? Sitting around and waiting for the cop to do his damn job is going to get Ryeowook killed."
A glare shot his way, Yesung clenched his fists. "My mistake. Because when you were supposed to be doing your job, things went so well after all..." His reasoning was simple: Kyuhyun risked his neck for the runner's legs and it had cost them Ryeowook. He was to blame and it was easier to point the finger at someone within range of a punch, rather than some abstract, faceless murderer.
"If you did your job this wouldn't have even been a problem." In their eyes, Kyuhyun was nothing more than a machine. He didn't have nor need the emotions that motivated the rest of them. That did little to stop him from crossing the room to push at Yesung's chest, his voice rising with every word. "You had every chance to end this. I warned you! You were probably glad to have some Bottoms trash taken out for you. You're probably the one that led them here! What else are you hiding from us, huh?"
Precisely because he was first and foremost a machine, Yesung didn't retaliate with fists. Instead, he reached for his gun, cocking and aiming it at Kyuhyun's head. Just metal. Just a broken, hacked, useless computer. The click of seven other guns echoed in response throughout the room.
"You're the last person to see him alive," he gritted out. "You want to blame someone? Blame yourself. You failed him."
"Not as much as you." Kyuhyun had the nerve to smirk. "Go on, shoot. See if I leak blood or hydraulic fluid."
Eeteuk ignored them insofar as it was possible. "While you're having a pissing contest, Ryeowook is still gone and still probably... likely... soon to be dead. The faceless man is the one you should blaming. Not each other." He clicked his tongue, continuing without waiting for the veiled order to be obeyed. "Kyuhyun, you've had the most contact with the killer. Any ideas, any clues about who or where he is?"
Kyuhyun's focus on the gun in front of him faded then returned. "HUB1957-C. Sound familiar?"
"Tag on the banker's body bag." Shindong announced before Yesung could lower his gun or open his mouth. "Probably the case file too. Our clue's in there?"
"Yeah, with a timer."
"A timer?" Yesung repeated. "Like a countdown? To what?" He had the answer, could feel it scratching at his psyche like nails on a chalkboard. He wasn't prepared to admit it.
Kibum intervened before Kyuhyun could confirm his thoughts. "This is the first time the faceless man cut off limbs, right? He must know we're onto him."
"So he's taking bargaining coins..." Eeteuk frowned, lost in thought. "He sent us on a wild goose chase so he could take Ryeowook, knowing we'd execute the killer he left for us to find."
"Either he's leaving us breadcrumbs or setting us up again." Kangin said before swearing inaudibly under his breath. "Yesung, see if there's anything in that file worth using, but I'm not holding my breath. My guys, you're on patrol unless you're called."
"Keep off your cells as much as you can," Kyuhyun added, his eyes never leaving Yesung's. "I'll try to have our lines clean but I can't be sure."
An ugly smile drew itself on Yesung's lips before he nodded to Kangin and shouldered past. The likelihood of finding anything more developed than their own theories at the precinct was infinitely small, especially considering that the H&E would never publicly admit to paying off a killer that went rogue. No don with any will to live would ever dare look that weak. Still, he holstered his weapon as told, determined at least to throw them off if not use their information.
Shindong followed him out.
Back inside, Eeteuk met Kangin's eyes uneasily. "Bottoms is under lockdown. Clear the streets and then start looking. Bring in anyone suspicious." Ryeowook was family and even if it was nearly impossible any killer with half a brain, let alone one intelligent enough to hack Kyuhyun, would keep him in this part of town, they had to check. To make sure.
"We're taking prisoners?"
He sighed. "We've got to, don't we?" he asked and thought: 'bargaining coin. This is what it's come to.'
***
The game was still on, and Kyuhyun had to play by the faceless man's rules. He didn't have a choice, not when Ryeowook's life could be won or lost. It was his turn, and the faceless man was waiting. The clues weren't difficult to find, in fact they were basically laid out for Kyuhyun on a silver platter. He didn't have time to think about whether they were merely clues to set them up to fail again, or another whimsical ploy to keep Kyuhyun's attention.
He continued his search through the dizzying array of infinite data streams. The clues that were left behind had only faint traces of his opponent, as tangible as tendrils of smoke, taunting him and beckoning him to dive deeper. So close but still too far.
Ryeowook. As long as he was alive, as long as there was a chance that he could be found alive, Kyuhyun would continue to risk losing himself and play his tormentor's game. He knew the faceless man understood that, the painful guilt that had to acknowledge that Ryeowook's capture was just another part of the game, an incentive to keep Kyuhyun playing.
Is this familiar? A distorted voice broke through Kyuhyun's thoughts. He could sense the other was enjoying his emotions, savoring his pain. You can see him. You always could.
Kyuhyun let out an audible gasp, and suddenly he was looking through the faceless man's eyes. The vision appeared with ease, but that was all he was allowed to have. He couldn't move the faceless man's body, he couldn't access the faceless man's memories, he could only have what the faceless man would give him.
Five hours left. Five hours and it will be my turn again. The faceless man grasped Ryeowook's chin and forced him to look into his eyes, so Kyuhyun could see he was alive. So Kyuhyun could see his fear. Five hours.
And then there was nothing, the connection gone as quickly as it was made.