Chapter 95: Ch133. Karasu no Uta
[PRESIDENTIAL SECRET BUNKER]
[WASHINGTON DC]
A man in a black suit dialed a contact username on his holowatch’s screen, and after a few seconds, the call was completed, and the image of a middle-aged man appeared, looking straight at the device’s camera.
"How’s everything on your end, Quasar Six?" The middle-aged man asked.
He wore sunglasses like it were a sunny day, but he was inside a blacked out room.
And his mouth didn’t move.
"Sir, I’m afraid it’ll take only two or three more days until they find us here. We’re compromised."
The face of the middle-aged man didn’t show any emotion.
In fact, it was as if the face was just a pre-made montage of sorts.
"What a shame... I never thought that I would say something like this someday, but... We need to find those wielders."
The man in the black suit raised his thick eyebrows.
"But boss, every wielder we know of has been MIA for the past few months, or their guilds have been utterly destroyed by the Ishir. How are we-"
"I’m not talking about the wielders." The voice on the screen said. "The Ishir aren’t respecting the agreement with the New Dawn. So they’re going all out against the wielders and the guilds for some reason, that’s not news to me. But what’s new, Quasar Six, is that the New Dawn is ready to issue the Black List, and a protocol named Purge. Do you know, by any chance, what it means?"
The man in the black suit narrowed his dark brown eyes to a slit.
"No, Sir."
"I thought so." The voice answered, unaltered. "It means that those damn purists are now going after the... How do they call it? Oh, yes. The irregulars."
The man’s eyes widened.
"Does it mean the New Dawn finally found out what Dr. Lee discovered about them?"
He heard the voice on the other side of the screen let out a dark chuckle.
"Perhaps you are smart enough to connect the dots after all." The voice said. "Yes. It very much means that the purists have found out that they’re about to be... Basically overthrown by children."
And the voice laughed.
"But the irregulars do realize that once they finally become able to get rid of the New Dawn for us, they’ll be in a great deal of trouble... Since the whole Class and Guild system that have allowed the wielders’ society to live on for so long is going to... Collapse, as soon as they grow old enough to understand the depth of their current actions, right?"
There was silence for a few seconds on the other side of the screen, broken by a different voice than that of the middle-aged man.
"That’s up to you to find, agent Collins. Unless you want those filthy animals to keep allied with the purists... You know what they can cause to our world if they reign further."
Agent Collins froze on his spot upon hearing that voice.
"Yes, Sir!"
"Did you get any news on Kurt Blake?" The other voice asked.
"I’m still trying to figure something out, boss." Collins answered. "his signal disappeared three years ago, so we only have his hospital files and other minor intel ever since. But I’m doing my best."
He felt as if someone was glaring at him that very moment, in that very room of the bunker.
"Your best isn’t going to be enough, Quasar Six." The middle-aged man’s voice became darker and darker, more authoritative. "At first, we thought that the boy was working with them, since they let him leave when the Ishir first arrived. Now, we know that he’s an invaluable asset for the future battle against them, and I won’t. Admit. To assume. That he’s just dead!"
"Dr. Lee had been monitoring him along with you ever since he enrolled in that damn academy, and you two saw him pull things out of his sleeve that, up until then, were considered impossible for any wielder." The other voice spoke again. "That’s what makes us believe that he can’t be dead. And you will believe it either. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Sir."
And the other side of the screen ended the call before Collins could even think of saying goodbye or thanking them for the call.
He turned around and looked at another person in the room.
Another person who looked exactly like him.
"How did you like that performance, agent Collins?" He asked, his tone of voice subtly changing from male to female. "Was I convincing enough?"
The other agent Collins answered with an evil grin on his face.
"Absurdly convincing, Dr. Lee. It seems you’re adapting pretty quick to the new cells, and you’re getting used to the new set of abilities."
She smiled, unable to hide the greed in her eyes.
"And to think that it all started with a power that we thought to belong only in Ishir’s hands..."
"Soon we’ll be able to wipe out every single Ishir from the face of the Earth. And after that, we’ll wipe the world clean from those cursed Nests." The true agent Collins said.
"And with that much research material in my hands, I’ll change the whole scientific world. They’ll bend to my will..."
"Yeah, yeah." Collins rolled his eyes. "But first, let’s get Mr. President out of here, so that we can move on to the next part of the plan."
***
"Anyone here speaks japanese?" Cinthia asked, sighing in frustration.
"Nobody move!" Kurt said.
His tone explicitly implying an order.
But Nikolai didn’t seem to listen to him.
He just gave a few steps forward, raised his hands, and to everyone’s surprise, began talking in japanese with the black-haired man with the katana.
Kurt’s eyes widened ever so slightly, but his jaw dropped low.
"Did any of you know that he could speak japanese?" He asked, looking from Evellyn to Cinthia.
Both of them shook their heads.
And after what seemed like minutes of talk, Nikolai came back to his group and said.
"It’s all good, guys. Tosen-san here is a friend to the russians, and an ally to the Anti-Ishir Coalition. I told them about our... Predicament, and they’re happy to offer us shelter, as long as we prove to be useful."
Kurt raised his eyebrow to him, even though he understood clearly what his friend just did.
And it was not just keeping them from commencing a large-scale battle inside one of the most famous airports in Japan.
One of the other four wielders approached Kurt’s group, and reached into his pocked, taking one pair of what looked like earpieces, and offering it to Kurt.
Kurt frowned, but accepted the small devices.
The man, with grizzly short hair, dark brown eyes, short, and with countless scars across his arms, signaled to Kurt that he should put the earpieces, to which he did.
"Can you understand me, now, foreigner?" He asked.
"Oh, wow." Kurt gasped. "Loud and clear, man!"
"Good. Nikorai-san told me you’re the leader of the group, so tell them to follow us. We’ll take you to Karasu no Oto headquarters."
Kurt scratched his chin for a moment, and as if the man was reading his thoughts, he immediately retorted.
"No ability usage allowed in here! At least until we evaluate the impact of your abilities, and your power rank."
Kurt wanted to show off, but he knew better than to draw any undesired attention, so he followed the man’s rules.
However, it weren’t as if he simply accepted to follow the man’s rules.
When Kurt sharpened his senses, to peek into the group’s leader powers, he felt a chill run down his spine.
’Whoever that man is, he’s dangerous.’ Kurt thought to himself, trying not to look at the leader. ’How can he be as strong as Zaval, back in K’s world...?’
***
It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination, a sober and enormous building right in the middle of Tokyo.
As soon as the automatic entrance doors opened to them, the long-haired man ran inside and bowed to the group.
"Welcome to Karasu no Oto. I’m Kurotsuki Tosen, second in command! I’ll leave Yoshio to take you to your quarters, and I humbly ask of you to not leave until the evaluation process begins."
Kurt didn’t know the first thing about japanese culture, so Nikolai took the lead and bowed to Tosen, speaking slightly louder, after that.
"Please, take care of us!"
Kurt just exchanged glances with Evellyn and Cinthia, completely lost in such a mundane situation.
As they walked through hallways, tons of employees kept staring at them, and Kurt stared back.
He didn’t like feeling like a Zoo animal, but soon, Nikolai approached him and eased him up.
"Don’t worry, my friend. They’re just curious about us. It’s not everyday that a bunch of teenagers appear out of nowhere in the middle of an airport, asking for refuge, right?"
"Yeah, you might be right." Kurt sighed.
But another chill ran down his spine, and he knew that someone had appeared behind him, out of nowhere.
