4/10
Evening
Port Island- Alleyway
---------
In the alleyway with the bar, just before the gate sealing off the border between the alleyway and a nearby apartment complex, a man stands alone in the shadows staring fondly out in the distance. The delinquents that usually frequent the place are absent, giving the atmosphere a rare and serene quality to it. The cold and concrete visage of the area takes on a blue hue, making the red vest on the man stand out even more than usual. The world is silent, in respect for the man’s solemn mood. He stoops down slowly to place a single flower on the floor and makes a silent prayer before standing up and dusting himself off abruptly.
“It’s been awhile… huh, Shinji?”
He asks no one in particular, running a hand through his white hair, and scratching the back of his neck momentarily before continuing.
“It’s been four years since the prevention of the Fall. It seems as if nothing has changed, but… things seem more peaceful, somehow. Although, we really have our leader to thank for that.”
He sighs sadly,
“He gave up everything for this peace… a lot of people did, but he- He was something else.”
He stood straighter, a determined smile spreads across his face, eyebrows set as if focused on some goal.
“And I’m giving it everything I have to make your sacrifices worth it all.”
He froze after this statement, noticing the scuffing noises of shoes on pavement. At least three guys. This wasn’t the kind of place where noises of any kind in the dark where safe to ignore. He faced the direction of the noise, not near enough to cause trouble yet, but… something didn’t feel right. He walked silently toward the sound.
---------
Three men stood close enough to block a corner completely, the tallest – at least twenty by his looks- had his hands in the pockets of his dark, baggy pants, his head was tilted to one side, moving his bleached and disheveled hair enough to show a hint of a tattoo. His companions were equally as shady looking, glancing around them once in awhile to see if anyone was watching them. All three seemed to be talking to someone, rather… toying with someone.
The tallest began, “Hey, you don’t seem to be from around here. Are you lost?”
No answer from whoever was in the corner.
He continued, “Why don’t you come with us then? I’m sure there’s plenty of room at my place for you.”
This invoked a response, a young girl, by the sound of it, “I’m sure there is, no doubt. But I’ll have to say no.”
The girl attempted to walk past one of the silent guys, but a quick arm slammed against the wall to her left, forming a sort of barrier.
The punk talked, “Aww, that’s no good. Bro here is just trying to be nice…”
The other chimed in, “It would be rude to refuse his kindness.”
The girl answered, voice unwavering, “My bad for being rude then. But I still say NO.”
It was obvious that this was going nowhere good for the girl. The man in the red vest walks forward.
“I doubt she’s interested in where this is going. How about you cut it out?”
They turned abruptly, the tall one exclaiming, “Yeah? Well how about you mind your own f*cking business?! Eh…? Sanada?! Sh*t!”
“Gekkoukan’s golden boy in his day, huh? Bro, we better go.” One of the others offered.
“Or by all means, stay and see what happens next.” The man warned, already in the stance for a fight.
Reluctantly, they left quickly, cursing their luck. But that was irrelevant for now. The young girl, about sixteen, fell soundlessly to the ground, leaning into the corner for support. She let out a sigh of relief and turned to regard the man in the red vest critically.
-------
“Sanada ……. Akihiko Sanada?” She asked, eyes wide. Her eyes were a light brown, almost yellow and she had long hair, tied loosely in a ponytail but placed over the shoulder. She wore a short sleeved hoodie and dark plaid shorts. Her sneakers were clean, but worn. She had been walking for a long time. Even though she was sitting down, he could tell she was a little on the short side.
“Yeah that’s me. Have we met?” He answered, looking at her questioningly.
“Nope, never. But-” She stood up quickly, one hand on a hip and the other behind her back, “I have been looking for you.”
This caught Akihiko off guard, “Looking for me? Wait. First, is everything okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” He stepped closer to her, bringing her within arm’s length of him.
“Everything is most certainly NOT okay.” Was her only reply as her hand moved quickly from behind her back, flashing a gun aimed straight at his head.
“W-Wait a-”
She pulled the trigger without hesitation. The bang resonated within Akihiko’s head with the force of a tsunami, pushing him on his back laid out flat on the floor. He felt as if his entire being was shattering, the pain was immense but lasted only a moment. Everything went black, momentarily.
Akihiko opened his eyes, light resonated from something above him.
?!
“Caesar…” Akihiko knew his persona any day, but… It had to be impossible.
The girl was still in front of him, no smoke came from the all too familiar gun.
“How?” Akihiko couldn’t finish his question, a throbbing pain came to his head, blackness was creeping into the edges of his vision. Keeping his eyes open was beginning to hurt, too.
“No Dark hour. The threat of the Fall is long gone, too. And This-” She angled the evoker, the light radiating from Caesar showed the S.E.E.S emblem inscribed on its side. “Something’s going on.”
She put the gun away and turned to walk. Akihiko couldn’t move to follow her.
“Wait…”
Everything went black.
….
…. …… ….. Wait…..
…. …. … … …… ……. ……. ……
