Chapter 1: A Present of Blood
Summary:
Set in the Outskirts of Norilsk, Russia at the year 2006
2 agents from an unknown Resistance Group against SERN must find their way back to camp while severely wounded.But what awaits them at camp, is nothing like they thought it would be
Notes:
TBH you don't really need to know much of the plot of "Hyde of the Dark Dimension" for this chapter since it has no connections to it whatsoever except for the setting and the theme I guess, hell it's not even set in Akiba, maybe on later chapters I'll include something like that
I just really wanted to indulge in a cynical assassin Okabe lol
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Outskirts of Norilsk, Russia [ 2:03 AM] [ December 14, 2006 ]
“Tch..! Seriously, you didn’t need to go that far but… Good job nonetheless”
“M3”
"Come, mission completed, it's time to leave"
- << 000 >> -
[ 12:00 AM ] 2 Hours prior
"Zapustit'! Nado pryatat'sya! (Run! Quickly, we have to hide!)"
Says the man wearing a blue winter parka, with his right hand tightly holding another figure obscured by the heavy snow falling from the sky, while his left supports his stomach, he starts panting as his breath condenses and forms misty clouds in the cold winter air. He’s been shot, a bullet wound lodged deep into his ribs caused immense internal bleeding, his skin was starting to turn milky pale, he was severely dehydrated, gasping at the cold air. Meanwhile the figure whom he is holding tightly was nearing her limit, she’s been running since the afternoon of the day prior and she could feel her legs give out. It is especially hard to run in the deep snow, not to mention her last meal was 3 days ago, she calls it a meal but in reality it was just a piece of bread, some butter and goat’s milk.
“ Zhdat'! (Wait!) I-I can’t… just go! You need to get to the shelter!”
The woman finally gives in, her legs were shaking against the snow.
“What do you mean!? This entire operation was meant to rescue you, you have the files, come, I can’t afford to let you die here…!
The man frantically tries to pick her up despite being wounded himself, but the woman holds on to his hands tight, she spreads his fingers open and places a flashdrive on his palm.
“Take it and go! Marcel will now what to do with it, as long as SERN doesn’t have this, we will succeed”
The man tries to argue and pick her up, but from a distance, he can see flashlights scouring the environment… were they followed? He thought for sure that they had lost the security all the way back in Dudinka . Still the man tried to pick her up, trying to calm her down. She was convulsing, her entire body was jerking violently, what’s happening to her? He takes a moment to survey the environment once again, the lights were getting closer and closer. He takes inventory : a frozen bottle of water, a box of matches, some kevlar rope, and 3 daggers. He checks the chamber of his gun, he only had four more 9x19mm bullets left in the magazine. Racking up his brain to come up with a plan, he leans in closer to whisper unto his comrade.
“Stay here for a bit, I must eliminate the enemies before we can pro-”
AHHHHHH-!
He lets out a loud cry before quickly covering his mouth… he leaned in to grab his comrade by the waist to reposition her better against the snow, but when he expected to feel cold skin firmed up due to the cold weather,
He felt something much more… slimier, a viscous liquid in the place of flesh. Her “body” or whatever it was turning into was warm, and not the good kind of warm. He couldn’t hold back, he was shocked, once again he’s gasping for air. He couldn’t see much because of the dark, no… he didn’t want to see. Though they were trained to stay calm, collected and composed under any circumstance, the mere thought that his partner for 12 years would turn into… one of them, he couldn’t help but feel his heart sink into despair. He composed himself for a moment before taking a match from his pouch, as scary as it may seem he had to confirm it… whether she was indeed…
*strike*
The match was lit, and the first thing he saw through that light was her face, eyes wide open, nose and mouth gasping for air, her lips dry from the cold.
1… 2… 3… 4…
In a matter of seconds, what used to be skin turned into a thick slimy green mass, her head whose shape was supported by a thick skull sank down in and on itself. Like an ice cream cone melting in the summer heat, her entire body melted into a green gooey mess in the winter cold.
The flames of the match burned out and with it… his sanity
The lights were steadily approaching but he could not care less, on the palm of his hand was the flashdrive that she entrusted him. He could still remember the warmth of her grasp, and her gallant voice, she sought to complete the mission through and through, giving up now would only make her sacrifice be in vain. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, once he opened them he felt a heavy hand grasp his shoulder, he jolted in shock and instinctively wrapped his legs around his assailants neck, and in one swift motion, shifted and transitioned into a leg triangle
“Stop! Stop! It’s me!”
He hears a familiar voice, and loosens his grip, the figure coughed as he held his neck and massaged it to alleviate the pain.
“Still as sharp as ever eh? But you could have at least checked who I was first, no?”
The man jests, as he gets back up to his feet, lending a hand to the man who just nearly choked him to death
“Sorry, it was instinct… and reflex”
“I know, I know. Now come, we have to get to the base before more of these troopers get to us”
It escaped his mind, there were troopers scouring the area closing in on them. He was too shocked with what he just saw that he completely forgot about them
“Quick! We have to go! They’re closing in on us!”
He jolts up back to his feet and attempted to run as fast as he could, but as he was about to cover some distance, he felt the same heavy hand pull him back.
“Calm down, I took care of them, I just told you boy. You never listen do ya”
He surveyed the scene only to find the flashlights on but stationary and no longer moving.
“See?”
“B-but… how did you-”
“Up bup bup! No more questions, we need to go now!”
“Wait! We can’t just leave he-”
He rushes to go back for his partner and try to at least give her a proper send off but his body suddenly got heavier and heavier, his vision got blurry, ears ringing and a sharp pain in his temple. Was it a headache? He could only wonder for so long until he finally collapses.
- << 001 >> -
[ 1:04 AM ] 1 hour prior
“Kakiye? (What?) Where am I?”
“So, you’re finally awake. I thought agents like you were supposed to be nimble, you’re heavier than 3 gas cans! WAHAHA”
The man laughs at his own joke, his deep voice matching with his enormous body as he chuckles loudly while driving what seems to be a reworked Snow Service Patrol vehicle.
“I jest, of course. Don’t worry, we’re almost there, we can treat your wounds and then you report what you’ve gathered”
The man noticed that he is no longer wearing the parka, it was neatly folded and kept on the side of the cargo along with his other belongings, he is currently enveloped in a comforter, one that circulates your body heat to keep you warmer for longer.
“H-how did you acquire this vehicle? I thought that Headquarters is unable to transport huge cargo such as a vehicle. Wait… did you steal this from neighboring quarries?! You know we mustn’t use registered vehicles! We might get tracked!
“Calm down, will ye? Tis an old service vehicle I found near one of the bunkers, it’s service date is way past the regulation period, we’re riding on a relic. Surprised it’s been working as well as it is at present”
He quiets down but he can’t feel a bit uneasy, he knows the risks of bringing in a registered vehicle, he also knows what happens when they’re being tracked, he knows painfully well what happens when their location has been compromised. But this is Marcel he’s talking about, he trusts him enough to know what he’s doing.
“Alright we’re here, can you move?”
“I don’t have a choice do I”
“Haha, good lad”
The man struggles to stand, but gathers enough strength to dismount the vehicle, he takes inventory once again and unloads his things. It wasn’t much, just his weapons, a backpack, and of course the comforter that Marcel probably laid over him in his sleep, he tries to put on his parka when Marcel interrupts
“Oy! That’s unhygienic, wear this instead”
Marcel tosses him a black puffy jacket, it was warm and comfortable but not very advisable to use in combat, the puffiness restricts articulation and is heavier than most coats.
“Whatta’re ya waitin fer? Come help me unload the cargo, these firewood won’t put them inside now would they?”
Marcel notices that he might need a little more time to compose himself, after all he’s been bleeding for a while and just underwent a recovery mission that he failed, resulting in the loss of his comrade. No matter how much you steel your heart, that’s still gotta hurt. He decides to let him be for a while
“Look, I’ll go ahead and ready the fireplace, just come inside when yer ready, I’ll get us some ale then we can discuss our intel”
And with that Marcel disappears into the campsite and he is left alone. He has a tendency to look up to the stars at night, thinking about anything and everything really. When asked about it he’ll just look at them straight in the face and say “I don’t really know why either”. It’s one of the most interesting things about him really, his partner even said so whenever they would spend harsh winters near the campfire while on a stakeout or simply setting up camp to rest. He recalls the uproarious laugh his partner would do whenever he fails to make a fire or when he burns his rations because he’s too preoccupied looking up at the stars.
It was when he finally gathered himself and snapped back into reality, that he noticed something… odd. Like there was something missing aside from his partner. Also, the stars that night seemed clearer, like it was the only thing he could focus on. That’s when he realized that the station lights were off when they would usually be on at this time because it was pitch black to see anything especially when the trees would block the moonlight. Those lights were terribly bright and would fight with the glimmering stars.
“That’s… odd”
He circles around the back of the campsite to check if all of the lights were turned off, and they were. And that’s when he smelt it… that disturbing stench of iron. It was quite faint, his senses are in disarray that’s why he couldn’t notice it nearly as quickly as he usually would but he was sure of it, it was blood.
“MARCEL! MARCEL! ZHDAT'! (WAIT!) THERE’S SOMETHING WRONG!”
He quickly rushes to the entrance, turning off the safety of his gun, reloading it and equips his flashlight. There was something wrong, those lights should be on at this point, and if there were an intruder, the alarm system would trigger and set the camp ablaze, the transmitter they have on would automatically give them a warning when things went south. That’s when he realized… “When was the last time he checked his transmitter?”. So he quickly took it out of his pocket, there was no signal even if the artificial antenna was literally right in their base, he should have the strongest connection here, but he didn’t, in fact he had no connection whatsoever.
That’s when his heart dropped for the second time. He was alone, Marcel wasn’t responding and worst of all he was injured. Even if there was an intruder, and if he was able to apprehend them, then that only means that their location was compromised. And without the campsite self destructing, all of the intel they’ve gathered from past missions up to know would also have been compromised, if he remembers correctly Marcel also put up security measures for their intel, but who knows if it could be cracked, he wasn’t that much of a Tech Wizz himself so he wasn’t sure.
He composes himself and point the flashlight at the door, he slowly approaches it while reaching for the doorknob to turn it open.
*click*
*twist*
*pull*
*creak*
He opens the door, but the lights were closed as suspected. The security system would have detected authorized agents coming in and would automatically turn on the lights, but nothing turned on. It was quiet, too quiet, too quiet for comfort as he treads the hall towards the curtains leading toward the main lounge. Nothing seemed out of place, but that’s only what it seems, he braces himself for the worst possible outcome and imagines multiple scenarios on how to act in case multiple enemies come at him all at once. He thought of pulling the curtains and using it as a distraction to disorient the enemy as he shoots one in the head and takes their weapon for himself as he uses the corpse to shield himself from the incoming attacks. Another was to wait it out until one goes outside, but who knows how long he’ll last. His priority right now is to notify Headquarters and burn down the campsite, even if there really was no intruder or if it was just a system malfunction, they couldn’t afford to be complacent.
He envisions his plan of attack in his head multiple times running it through and memorizing what he needs to do.
He enters the lounge and what instantly greets him as he pushed away the curtains was the body of Marcel kneeling down, bloodied, bruised and beaten. His arms were tied behind his back, his eyes blindfolded tightly and red with his own blood. His mouth was gagged and was bloodied as well akin to the blindfold. He thought something like this would have happened, but he refused to consider it, though it’s pretty hard to refuse to believe in something especially when it is right in front of you. He scouts the area with his flashlight…
But no matter where he pointed, he could see the color red, glistening like a river underneath the shade of the moonlight. He recognizes each and every one of them, they were the agents currently stationed in this campsite. He couldn’t take a more detailed look at each and every one of them as he tries to locate a possible entry point of the assailant, or at least the light switch. But what he knows for a fact was that each and every one of his comrades weren’t just killed carelessly, some were tortured, slowly and carefully broken down as if being interrogated, needless to say, according to those wounds none of them yielded, they kept their oath of silence to their bitter end. Though some of the other unfortunate ones were swiftly executed, a clean deep cut across the throat, no signs of struggle whatsoever. The intruder wasn’t a trooper, troopers would just shoot to kill, they weren’t smart enough to set up traps, disable alarm systems or interrogate enemies. This intruder was an agent, a Rounder, and a terrifyingly good one at that.
“(Blyad'!) Fuck! Shit who did this… where are they? Marcel was alive just moments ago, they’re still here”
Just as he reaches for the light switch,
*thud*
He couldn’t move his hand, what happened? That’s when he realized… a dagger impaled his palms and pinned in to the wall, the hit was so clean and so flawless that it made minimal sound, he couldn’t even notice that his hand had been impaled until a few moments later, that’s how clean of a throw it was.
“GAH!”
He flinches and reacts for a split second before using his other hand and attempts to turn on the lights.
*patpatpat* *patpatpat*
He hears footsteps quickly approaching, as if dashing at full speed toward him and yet it made very minimal sound. The room was empty and quiet, that’s why he could hear it very clearly, that’s also what made it even scarier.
He flips the lever, *flick* *flick*, the lights turn on and for a split second he sees a fist right between his eyes. He quickly fainted due to the force of the punch and the impact of his head against the wall.
- << 002 >> -
[ 1 : 33 AM ] 30 minutes prior
“Wake up”
*splash*
He felt hot water splash across his face, it stinged for a bit but the cold air quickly cooled him down.
“Kto ty? Chto ty khochesh'? (Who are you? What do you want?)”
Of course he already knows what they want, but he couldn’t help but ask.
“YA zadayu voprosy, a ne ty (I ask the questions, not you)”
The pronunciation was kind of lousy, like it had some sort of accent, he just couldn’t pinpoint where. Nonetheless he understood it completely, the intruder was fluent in russian. He chose to stay silent, not responding to the assailant. He couldn’t see anything he was bound to what seems like was a chair, and his head was covered in a sack, he could still smell the blood and other faint but familiar scent, he was still at the campsite
“Who do you work for? Europol? Stratfor? Which organization do you belong to?”
He remains unfazed, staying silent, he knows he’ll experience excruciating pain soon enough, but if he speaks now then that would be dishonoring his comrades who died keeping their mouths shut. He knows that they’re looking for the Flashdrive, but as long as he keeps his mouth shut, he can at least hope they won’t loot his body or look everywhere else, but he knows that’s too good to be true, he knows how efficient the Rounders can be
It was quiet for a while, until suddenly he felt a sharp pain on his ribs, this time he was stabbed, not shot. He was ready to hear another question, but instead he felt cuts on his arms, legs and other muscles, he tried to squirm but couldn’t. The assailant targeted his joints and a few vital arteries. He was bleeding out, he already lost a lot of blood, he knows he doesn’t have much time left especially now.
“It doesn’t matter who you work for, you’re going to die either way. But I can make yours quicker if you tell me where the Flashdrive is”
He remains silent
*thud* *crack*
The intruder kicks him straight in the ribs, cracking a few more. He remains silent except for a few labored pants and gasps for air
“I’m going to find it nonetheless, make this easier for both of us”
Even then he still refuses to respond, another kick follows, each one more painful than the last. Was the intruder holding back?
“Last chance”
More kicks followed, he couldn’t even keep count how many times he was hit, or where he was hit, the pain and the bleeding made his senses go numb. He felt his head hit hard, he was knocked down by the last strike.
*Click*
He felt a gun against his head, it was warm, as if it had been used just recently
“Very well, any last words?”
The intruder grabs him by the head and removes the sack covering his face. What he saw shocked him once more, probably for the very last time. The assailant was of a slender figure, a bit smaller than what he expected, the figure was definitely male according to his uniform. He couldn’t see the Rounder’s face but for some reason, he felt like the intruder was younger than most Rounders, in fact, he looked like a child, in his teens or so.
“Y-you know, ch-children like you shou-”
*BANG!*
Before he could finish the sentence, the Rounder blew his brains out, in stark contrast to the other victims, he was executed in a somewhat careless and lousy manner, as if the assailant got ticked off.
*Click*
The door opened, and from the outside, a huge figure appeared, he looked much more intimidating and was towering over the teenage assassin.
“Tch..! Seriously, you didn’t need to go that far but… Good job nonetheless”
“M3”
"Come, mission completed, it's time to leave"
“The Flashdrive has not yet been found, mission not yet complete”
“You mean this flashdrive?”
The huge figure pulled out the Flashdrive from his pockets
“Huh!? But I thought-”
“They never got it in the first place, it was with me the whole time, what they got was a decoy”
“Decoy? Then what was this mission for?”
“Gahaha! Don’t get all fed up, we meant to take them out in the first place. This is your first mission, think of it as an initiation. We wanted to gauge how well you’d perform before assigning you to bigger tasks”
“I see...“
“Right! As a reward for a job well done, here, take it”
As if remembering something the man took what seems to be a book from within his winter coat. It was loosely wrapped with some paper and a ribbon
“Tanjōbi omedetō (Happy Birthday)”
M3 took the present in hand, at first he was confused as to why he was given one. But as he checked his watch he realizes…
“It’s that time of the year, huh…”
These types of things seem to be irrelevant and unimportant in this line of work, that’s why he never paid much mind to it. But receiving something like this once in a while doesn’t seem too bad.
“Arigatou”
- << 003 >> -
Notes:
Okay so uh I have to say for a first chapter, me not making Okabe the MC but instead the antagonist seems a bit off and ambitious lol, but at least I hoped to give you an image of a totally different Okabe one that is cunning, cynical and is well, the bad guy of the story. I actually really don't know why I did this haha but I really hoped you like it
While proofreading it I can see that I can be very inconsistent but oh well, I'll just do better next time lol
Edit 1 : I initially wanted to make it Aug 13 (if y'know, y'know) instead of Dec 14 but hey there's no winter at August and uh the chapter title connects with the date and his mission so...
Chapter 2: The Italian Job
Summary:
M3 finds himself in a tight situation after accidentally coming across an Italian Mafia while undercover in the beautiful city of Venice.
Notes:
This chapter features a ton of OCs and once again, isn't only just featuring M3's perspective. I think like only 60% of it is, I promise to try and focus on solely him in the next chapters. But nonetheless I hope you enjoy it.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Streets of Campo de Pozzi, Venice, Italy [ 3:00 PM ] [ March 5, 2008 ]
It was sunny Wednesday afternoon in Italy, the smell of olive oil, basil, and other Italian spices circulating through the air. Pizzerias, bakeries and restaurants currently at peak hour with families going in and out of markets, vendors advertising their products and tourists taking pictures to document their travels. The sound of soothing cafe music can be heard through radios and speakers along with a few popular music from the US as well as some local songs. It was quite festive indeed considering Venice is one of the most well known cities in Italy mostly because of its unique transportation and navigation dynamic, earning it the title “The City of Canals”. It is not uncommon to see people riding boats in the canals instead of taking to the streets, nonetheless the city features magnificent architecture and stunning scenery.
They say that you can easily identify a native from a tourist or foreigner in Venice. Those standing on boats are the natives, while those sitting down are the tourists. M3 is no exception, try as hard as he might he could never get used to standing on the boat, it wasn’t due to fear no of course not, I mean… he’s a Rounder who experiences near death experiences and eats pain for breakfast. He works in the shadows and goes into undercover missions, he can’t possibly be scared of the water or falling overboard from the boat. That’s what he says to himself at least.
“The water seems nice today… B-but I prefer walking, keeps me active and on my feet, no matter how charming or tempting it may be, I must not sacrifice efficiency for leisure”
He mutters to himself while deciding his method of transportation to go to the plaza to buy groceries and while he’s there, visit his favourite bakery. Most people would brand a bakery as their favourite because they sell good bread, but in his case, it’s because that bakery is one of the only places that sells Mountain Dew. “All bread taste the same, no matter what you put in it, it’s all carbs at the end of the day”.
He makes his way, walking the streets of Venice as he observes the environment around him. To be honest, he is not sure why they sent him here to go undercover, it’s a highly populated area, surrounded by water making escapes much more difficult, also… Why would they think an IBN5100 would be located here anyway? He’s been here for 4 months and not once did he see a single trace of urban technology, let alone people who would be interested in that sort of thing. From his observations, Venice is a very cultural place, yes globalization has influenced them quite a bit but their way of living is still very deeply rooted to their traditions.
“Seriously, an IBN5100? In this place? Perhaps they were misinformed, I’ll ask them for clarification on my next report but for now…”
*mumble* *mumble*
*faint footsteps approaching*
“Hmm…”
M3 observes his surroundings, he’s been too lost in thought that he forgot to notice that he took the back alleys out of instinct, it was less populated and would give him as much cover as it can. In his 4 months of taking this route he had never heard that type of noise before, it would usually be faint music from the main streets, birds flapping their wings, a small mischief of rats running through the alleys and occasionally… children playing tag in neighboring areas. He made sure to avoid those areas, but of course it is inevitable to know exactly where playful children would go to in the pursuit for adventure, thus he encounters a few of them once in a while.
But this was different, he heard men, 3 to be exact if his senses do not fail him. He’s not the most fluent in Italian, it was sort of a rushed mission, he was assigned to go to Venice 2 weeks after the mission was announced, no matter how smart he was or how much he liked reading and studying, no one can be fully fluent in a foreign language in the span of 2 weeks, especially when you’re still recovering from a previous mission.
He quickly took cover in the shadows of a building, ears open, processing every sort of auditory stimuli that his senses could pick up. He focused on the words that the group of men were muttering, he could make out a few phrases like “Meetup point”, “The boss is waiting”, “Where’s the Chauffeur? We’re already running late”. But what really alarmed him was when one of the men said
“Look, whoever that stronzo(asshole) is we take him out, he’s around this area anyway”
That was all he needed to hear, he was being tracked, if his translation was correct then they don’t have a concrete idea of what he looks like. But he can’t be complacent, in situations like these you have to assume the worst possible scenario and prepare for anything. He’s not sure who he’s up against so he instantly assumes that they have guns, luckily who also has a gun… the thing is, it’s 3PM in the afternoon, he’s out for groceries and he’s wearing casual clothing. This is not a desirable situation but luckily he can make use of his surroundings.
To make sure that he won’t be so easily located and pursued, he takes to the main route, something he usually wouldn’t do but in this scenario, it could be very beneficial for him.
*Footsteps getting a bit closer*
They followed him to the main street, as expected there were some people in the area in which he could blend in. No agent is dumb enough to make a commotion in public, especially in broad daylight, with this he can identify his pursuers.
(Tsk, come on show yourselves)
They were being as careful as he is . No matter where he looked, no one seemed suspicious or out of place, so he spotted a nearby cafe and decided to take a seat in one of the chairs outside. This way he can also see who stopped walking or going through different directions, that way he can identify who’s following him. At the corner of his eye, 3 men all wearing black with a gold chain around their necks, one looked latino, possibly mexican, the others were all Italian. He found them at last, now he had to think of a way to lead them in a secluded area so he could gather information from them.
He left the cafe, heading towards the back alleys once again. He knows of a certain choke point where he could easily maneuver and dodge their attacks, that area is also far off from the main route, he could dodge security afterwards.
Every turn he took, they followed, not too far and not too close. They knew how to keep their distance, they’re probably waiting for him to go to a dead end to finish the job, but fortunately he’s nearing the sweet spot. He took one last corner before preparing his knife, it was made of high carbon steel with a damascus pattern, the handle was made of reinforced kevlar allowing for a tight grip in combat. Other than that it’s basically your conventional combat knife whose design is based on the Nimravus Fixed Blade.
*Footsteps approaching, getting louder and louder*
It’s time, he’s taken on more numbers at once, even in close combat. But today he has to be faster and even more cautious because he’s not wearing his combat attire which gives him better mobility and armor.
3...2...1…
All of a sudden the footsteps stopped, it went silent… they’re close. Judging by the last time he heard the footsteps they are approximately 2 meters behind the corner he is hiding on. He clears his mind and takes a deep breath and as he exhaled,
*Swish*
He felt no resistance, nor did he feel steel cut through flesh or blood splatter across the wall. In fact, no one was there, he just looked like a very calm man holding a knife after striking the air. That’s when he realized, “IT MUST BE A TRAP”
“くそ ! (Kuso : Shit!) “
He quickly rolled to get out of danger, quickly maneuvering through the alleys like he trained, keeping himself moving as to avoid getting shot. They must have known that this area had a choke point, they turned the tables on him. Now, he had no idea where they are, but they might still be watching close, he surveyed the area while moving, it proved to be quite difficult considering how dark it was, it also didn’t help that they were wearing black.
“FERMARE!” (STOP!)
He was stunned by the loud voice of one of the men, he was compromised. He stopped moving his body but his eyes kept surveying the scene, the shout was quite loud and it felt like it came from every direction, this means that they’re near him. From the corner of his eye, he could see a shadow slightly move.
(There!)
He was about to run at full speed to assassinate the target when,
“Erano persi!(We’re lost!)”
“Cosa vuoi dire che ci siamo persi?! (What do you mean we’re lost?)”
“We been in this dark alley for ages, do any of you even know where we’re supposed to be goin?
“Yeah, I thought you knew where we’re supposed to be goin Carlo, you the one who keeps braggin that you fucked all dem signoras up in these areas”
“Aye don’t blame me, Lappaz. Don over here was the one who lost the map, now we fuckin lost. Just cuz I fucked a few of dem chicks don’t mean I know shit about this area”
“Whatever, let’s just get outta here”
*Kringgggg!* *Kringggg!*
“Pronto?”
“Is that the boss?” “Hey yo put it on speaker” “That better be important” “Yo if that’s a booty call Imma wipe yo ass” “Tell whe-”
“STAI ZITTO! (SHUT IT!)”
The man named Don, presumably the leader of this group, got fed up when Lappaz and Carlo started interrupting him on the phone.
[ What did you just say to me? ]
“N-nothing boss! I’m terribly sorry that was not directed to you, ahahaha. It’s just some kids in the slu-”
[ Enough. I’ll hear your stupid excuse later, where the fuck are you?]
“Ah yes of course signor, eh don’t worry we’re on the way, just some minor setbacks”
[ Don’t fucking lie to me Don, I know you’re fucking slacking off again, tell Carlo if I find him fucking some bitch again, I’ll pull off his dick personally and shove it down his ass so he can go fuck himself! ]
[ Nevermind, don’t come here anymore. The meeting’s about to be over anyway, head on over instead to Costruzioni Mose Arsenale there’s something you need to pick up. It’s in one of the shipping containers, you’ll know which one]
“Understood signor, we’ll go there right away. Once again, terribly sorry”
[ Of course you are, now go! Don’t fuck this up, you’re just going to get a package how fucking hard can that be?]
“Y-yes signor, we’ll get it ov-” *beep*
“Great now the fucking boss is on my ass again!”
“Yeah, shit Don that was harsh”
“Best we can do is get there quickly”
“Oh yeah, you fucking hear that Carlo? Better quit fucking them bitches before a mission”
“Yeah yeah, whatever, let’s just go”
\\\ <01> ///
Costruzioni Mose Arsenale, Venice [ 4:00 PM ]
The group of men arrived at the harbor, they showed a tattoo on their wrists to a few guards, they led them into the far back, where the shipment containers are.
“Non posso andare oltre (This is as far as I can go )”
“Grazie (Thank you)”
The leader of the group gave some kind of gesture of thanks, possibly a code from within their mob. M3’s been following suit, hoping he could track down their base of operations as well as that package. There might have been an IBN5100 in here after all. But even if there was, he couldn’t just go ahead and get it. He had to confirm and then report its location, wait for a strike team for backup before finally capturing the computer.
He’s been quite lucky lately, not too many people were in the vicinity, none of the guards that the group came across suspected them for anything, perhaps they had connections to the security? If that’s the case then that’s even more trouble if he’s identified. Most importantly, the group of men doesn’t seem to notice that they’re being followed. Though... they may just be pretending, so he still takes that into consideration and proceeds with caution.
“I wonder what’s inside that shipment, any ideas?”
“Nah, whatever it is the boss needs it, we get it, give it to em, then we apologize for bein late. C’mon we can’t disappoint the boss any further, he’s the one who got us into the mafia in the first place”
“You right, we gotta make it up to the bossman somehow, this the first step”
“Yeah the second step is you cutting your dick off, Carlo”
“Hey man fuck off, I’ll cut off your dick, figlio de puttana!”
After the security guard left, the men started scouring the area, looking for that specific shipping container. Judging by the tattoos they have on their wrists, the container must have been marked by a similar design. It took him a moment to realize this, but once he did,
“The mafia? That’s concerning, I have to report this soon. But what would the mafia want with an IBN5100? I still have to confirm if the package is indeed the computer, for now it’s best to keep out of sight.”
M3 hides in one of the scaffoldings near a construction site, the metal beams and pipes providing adequate cover. He may be far off but he still takes caution not to be seen, one wrong move can cause debris to fall, thus alerting the group of men.
“This it?”
“Looks like it, it has the Rovellini family crest in there, y’know the one that looks like a bra with 2 spears from the sides?”
“Everything looks like a bra with 2 spears in your eyes, stupido”
“Oy! Better watch your mouth when you talk about the Family like that, they hear you spout that shit, they’ll have your head shipped off to your family and your body thrown to the sea”
“Jeez man, shit okay, Mi dispiace(I’m sorry)”
The men opened the container, it was a bit difficult because the door was all rusty and the locks looked out of date.
“Merda! The piece o shit’s stuck!”
“farsi da parte, dai! dai! (Step aside, come on, move!)
*Bang!*
“Figurati(Problem solved)”
The Latino pulled out his Beretta 92 and shot 2 rounds, 1 for each lock to open the container. They pried it open with a crowbar to reveal a single black luggage suitcase. It looked tightly secure, made of bulletproof material, possibly kevlar. It had multiple locks, the type that needed a specific key to open.
“Alright, let’s get it over with, call the boss and tell him we’re headed to the rendezvous point”
“Way ahead of you, papi”
*Kringgg!* *Kringgg!*
[ Pronto. ]
“We got the package signor! We’re headed to the pickup joint”
[ Good, it seems Don relayed the message to you loud and clear ]
“Ahaha, yes signor, I’ll stay even more focused from now on”
[ Che cosa state aspettando? Un Bacio? (What are you waiting for? A kiss?)
Hang up already and get your asses over here]
“Ah! Yes of course, signor, mie scuse(my apologies)!”
*Beep*
The group of men took the luggage and went on their way to leave the area, M3 did the same, going out the same way he came in, everything was going smoothly until,
“FERMATI!” (Halt!)
A security guard caught M3 in the act of escaping. It took him a second to react before rushing toward the guard
*BANG!*
The guard tried to shoot at him, but he narrowly avoided the bullet by strafing to the left. Before the guard could pull the trigger a second time, M3 leaped into the air and twisted his body into a corkscrew to gather momentum before finally landing a solid blow to the guard’s jaw with his shin, instantly incapacitating him. He could only take a breather for so long until he heard another click from a distance.
*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*
Multiple bullets came flying at him all at once, he quickly evaded them by cartwheeling, keeping his eyes peeled to see where the bullets were coming from. It was undoubtedly the group of men in the mafia, he only saw one guard in the vicinity, and that was the one he just knocked out. If only he had a little more time, he could have gotten the gun to defend himself but it was a little bit too late and he’s a little bit too far.
He went to take cover against one of the containers, but he instantly aborts once hears gunshots alarmingly close to him.
“Dove sei, bastardo!” (Where are you, bastard!)
“Mostrati!” (Show yourself)
“Vogliamo solo parlare” (We just want to talk)
The men shot in different directions hoping to scare M3 into showing himself. But he’s smarter than that, he’s heard of how the mafia operates, they can’t afford eavesdroppers revealing their secrets. He gets it, as a Rounder he has to tie up loose ends, finish the job and disappear like a ghost in the wind. That’s why he needs to make it out as soon as possible. He spots an empty crate of beer near the far end of the container he’s hiding at. He quietly but swiftly goes toward the crate and picks it up.
*Footsteps approaching*
*Thud*
“La!” (There!)
*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*
As soon as they heard that sound, the 3 men unloaded all their bullets, decimating a plastic crate into shreds. Then, out of the container came out a figure running hastily towards the exit.
“Cazzo!” (Fuck!)
“Seguilo!” (Follow him!)
“What about the luggage?”
“I’ll take it to the boss, you and Lappaz follow the bastard! Go go go!”
The leader of the group decides to stay behind to deliver the package, meanwhile the Latino and the other Italian pursue M3. He’s gathered a bit of distance but who knows when they’ll catch up, he has to move quickly, right now all he needs to do is survive and report his intel. He might also have to abandon his motel for the time being and let things die down. If he gets followed then that’s gonna be the end of his mission, the Italian mafia would be aiming for his neck.
\\\ <02> ///
Along the Grand Canal, Venice, Italy [ 6:00 PM ]
*pant* *pant*
He’s been running for 2 hours, going through alleyways, markets, shopping districts, even taking it to the main streets. He had to steer clear probably until late night, it may be too much but you can never be too careful. This is nothing, he’s experienced worse both in missions and during training, he once had to stay underwater in the freezing cold for 8 hours in Greenland while waiting for reinforcements, he was neck deep into enemy territory at the time with no food or safe drinking water. Needless to say he was comatosed for 2 months while recovering from hypothermia and frostbite.
He still had some pocket money with him so he could potentially buy some food at a food stand somewhere as for shelter, the dark alleyways, or even under the bridge would suffice.
While he was crossing a bridge, he saw a familiar looking bag in one of the passing boats, black kevlar and multiple locks, it was the luggage from before! This is bad, if the bag’s there then he’s near the pickup point, he’s potentially in Mafia territory. He decides to go back into one of the alleyways and backtrack, he needed to get as far away as possible. But as he turned to one corner he saw 2 familiar figures, it was the 2 mobsters following him from before. He hastily turned back when,
*Click*
“Well well well, what do we have here? You a fucking rat huh?”
The leader of the group caught him off guard, and with him was the luggage. The one in the boat was probably a decoy. The other two came up from behind him and drew their guns.
“Let’s take a walk eh, chulo?”
M3 was a bit gassed, if he was in peak condition he would have killed all 3 of them in a flash, unfortunately he’s still in casual clothing, no guns and a single knife. He had no choice but to follow. They tied his arms behind his back, blindfolded, and gagged him then led him to the boat with the decoy.
“Come ti chiami?” (What’s your name?)
“Per chi lavori?” (Who do you work for?)
They ungagged him but kept the blindfolds on so he could respond. He said nothing and kept silent
*SMACK!*
His temple was met with a heavy hand which caused his ears to start ringing. Yet he kept his composure and sat upright
“Tch- figlio de puta” (This son of a bitch)
*SMACK!*
This time he felt something much harder than a fist, he was hit with some kind of bludgeon, possibly the crowbar from before. He started bleeding after his scalp got cut from the wound. Now his head hurts and he started feeling dizzy, he thought to himself, “To die in fucking Venice, Italy? Really?”. It wasn’t uncommon for him to think that way in his missions, but he’s proven time and time again that he would survive, let’s hope this was one of those situations too.
“Parlare.” (Talk.)
*Click*
“Questo è un ordine” (That’s an order)
From the accent of his voice and his demeanor, he could identify the man speaking as the leader, Don. The voice came from his front meaning he was at the middle of the ship judging from the equilibrium, it was much more unstable, well… to him at least. If the structure of this boat is the same as any then the other 2 men were behind him, one on the other end and the other rowing the boat. He needed a window of opportunity, in times like these where he needs to stall time, he thanks himself for being multilingual.
“Ore wa pan ga sukidesu“ (I like bread)
He assumed they didn’t understand Japanese, he needed to say anything really and that’s what came up on the top of his head, probably because he wasn’t able to get bread from the bakery earlier.
“Eh? This dude fucking chinese?”
A voice from behind him spoke, the rowing stopped as soon as it did so he assumed that the Latino was the one in the middle, that’s his potential target. While they were confused, he started bringing his hands lower and lower behind him to conceal them.
“Mantendu wa saikou no inryou!” (Mountain Dew is the best beverage!)
He didn’t care if he was using simple Japanese, it’s not like they understand him. Plus, he was focusing more on cutting himself free, speaking gibberish is all he could spare to do.
“The fuck is this culo sayin? Maybe he knows english? Any of you know english?”
The 2 men both shook their heads, they didn’t know how to communicate with him.
“ Fuck it! Let’s just kill em”
“Hold it. We need him to act as a decoy, else this plan won’t succeed.”
“We need him to deliver the package, so put your gun back in your pocket”
M3 heard an even more distant sound from behind, this man was probably Lappaz.
“How’s he gonna do that? It’s not like we can order him around, he don’t understand shit, he’s tied up and bleeding, best thing he can be is-”
*Kringgg!* *Kringgg!*
“Pronto.”
[ Is everything set? ]
“Affermativa, signor” (Affirmative, sir)
[ Good, the bomb?]
“Affermativa, signor” (Affirmative, sir)
[ And the Decoy?]
“A-affermativa, signor” (A-affirmative, sir)
[ Really? Haha! I never thought you’d do it, but you did. Here I thought you were going to be some coward but you pulled it off, eh? ]
“Ahahah, grazie mille, signor” (Thank you very much, signor)
[ How does it feel to finally be able to get Carlo off your ass, eh? Never liked the kid, always going on about being the head in the future. Tsk! Stupido! Well, now he’ll get to blow up with them WAHAHA!]
*Beep*
“Hey man, w-what the fuck was that? I heard my name and shit? WHAT THE FUCK DUDE?”
*rumble* *rumble* *shake* *shake*
The boat rocked when Carlo leaped at Don, grabbing him by the collar, gun drawn against his head.
“Oy! Calm down!”
Lappaz leaves his post and tries to hold Carlo back
“Don, what did the boss mean when he said Carlo was the Decoy?”
Carlo lets go of Don, eyes piercing through his soul. He hides his gun to hear Don explain what he and the boss just talked about.
“Carlo… was supposed to be the decoy. The boss said that he’s unstable and can’t be trusted, saying you might sell us out when things get tough. I tried to convince him otherwise but you know how he is when he made up his mind. You see… the boss plans on blowing up the Mafia, well… kill the current head at least so he can take over. This decoy luggage is a bomb, it’s triggered by the same fingerprint scanner to open the real one. The only one who can open it is the current head so…”
“Merda… So the boss wanted to start a coup?”
“And take me out with the explosion, 2 birds one stone is that right?”
“Oy aspetta!(Hey wait!). If we show the boss that you got a replacement, and that you got it yourself, then… he might look the other way. You were the one who called him earlier, we can say that you did this by yourself while we handled other shit. Capisce?”
“Alright man I trust you on this, papi. But I swear to Rosalita’s ass I’ll blow your fucking head off if you try anything funny”
“Alright... calma per favore, eh?” (Alright… please calm down)
“Wait a second… where’s the fucking decoy?”
They turned around to see the seat empty and one of the luggages gone.
“CAZZO DI MERDA!” (FUCKING SHIT!)
“I thought you were watching him?”
“Did you not see me, fucking strangle Don over here?”
“I did so I came to hold you back, didn’t I?”
“Yeah well that ain’t my fuckin problem now ain-”
“STATE ZITTO! VOI DUE” (SHUT IT! BOTH OF YOU!)
“Get out of the fucking boat! Find him!”
During the argument, M3 cut himself loose and removed his blindfold. He thought of taking one of their guns but was afraid of making a sound. He insead took one of the luggages to use as a bargaining chip, he just wasn’t sure which one he took. Luckily no one heard him dive to the water along with the luggage amidst their bickering.
“Merda! He took the case!”
“Which one?”
“I don’t fucking know man! All this time I only knew that there was only one case”
“Ch-check the wheels of this one, the fake one’s filled with gunpowder”
*rattle* *rattle* *shake* *shake*
“Cazzo.” (Fuck…)
\\\ <03> ///
Old Harbor, Venice, Italy [ 7:30 PM ]
The 3 men split up to cover more area, they needed to find that luggage as soon as possible or else their boss would blow all of them up instead. They equipped flashlights to see in the dark, they were in the more… shady areas of Venice, so it would be safe to have a shootout here without worrying about civilian casualties.
The Latino went to check the old harbor, he used to hang out there a lot as a delinquent, joining fight clubs and such. He was scouring one of the old tents and warehouses when he heard a creak in one of the warehouses, the back entrance was ajar.
“So this is where y’are, papi”
He opened the door, scanning the area before going inside. Clearly the light switch wasn’t working so he used his flashlight wherever he went. This is both an advantage and disadvantage. M3 could follow the end of that light, and assassinate him if he gets close, at the same time he could spot M3 first and shoot him from a distance. It was a game of cat and mouse.
*rattle* *clank*
Carlo immediately pointed the flashlight toward the direction of the sound, someone knocked down a pile of used paint cans and what looked like the bearings of a fence gate. He scanned the area only to come out empty.
“This culo’s good eh?”
Carlo turned around to scan the area once more when he felt a great force in his hand, knocking the flashlight off his grasp.
* cRACK* *cRUNCH*
*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*
“GAHHHHHHHHHH”
He started shooting in random directions hoping to hit the assailant. His wrist was fractured and multiple fingers were broken. He tried to clench his fist but it didn’t do what his brain was telling them to.
“FIGLIO DI PUTTANA! CAZZO DI MERDA!” (SON OF A BITCH! FUCKING SHITTTT!)
“SHOW YOURSELF MOTHERFUCKER!”
“...”
“(If you say so)”
“HUWAHHHHHH-”
*cRACK* *cRUNCH* *tHUD*
M3 whispered from behind him, catching him off guard, he tries to aim his gun but M3 took hold of his wrist and twisted it, pulled his arm towards him and whipped him overhead for an arm throw takedown. M3 pressured his knee against his neck whilst twisting his arm behind his back. He took the gun from his hands and
“GAHH! PER FAVORE! NON FARLO!” (I BEG OF YOU! DON’T DO IT!)
*bang*
M3 pulled the trigger and just like that, Carlo’s head was blown into bits, the blood splattering across the floor and the smell of gunpowder mixed with blood permeated throughout the warehouse.
M3 was about to stand up when he saw two beams of light from the outside, it was probably the 2 others. He took Carlo’s gun, flashlight and hid somewhere. He dropped the flashlight in front of the entrance so he could see whoever enters, he took cover behind a pile of metal scrap.
“CARLO!”
“OY! LAPPAZ DO-”
*BANG!*
As soon as Lappaz entered the room, M3 instantly pulled the trigger and shot him straight in the temple. His body fell to the ground in a loud thud that could be heard throughout the room.
“Merda!”
“WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU!”
*patpatpat*
*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*
The room was so quiet that footsteps can be heard no matter how nimble your feet may be. This alarmed Don and so he started blasting in the direction that the sound came.
“Come on you son of a bitch!”
*bang*
“GAHHH!”
Don felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, he was evidently shot. He attempted to retaliate when...
*bang*
“GAHHH!”
Before he could shoot, he was shot one more time, this time in the hand that was holding his gun. He felt his palm burn up as his hand twitched involuntarily, he pointed his flashlight at his palm and saw a clean hole right through it. In a fit of rage he threw his flashlight and took the gun in his off hand and started shooting randomly while stepping back to exit the warehouse.
He reached the back exit and was about to turn to see where he was going when he suddenly tripped over something.
“ WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?! ”
What he tripped over was a black luggage stroller, made of Kevlar and had a biometric lock in the handle. He looked at the wheels, at first glance it looked totally normal but...
*rattle*
At that moment he knew-
“Fuck...”
*click*
*BANG!*
M3 walked away with the real stroller as the old warehouse went up in flames, along with the 3 mobsters and any evidence that he, or the Mafia was ever there. Like a ghost in the flames, he vanished.
\\\ <04> ///
Campo de Pozzi, Venice, Italy [ 10 : 00 PM ] [ March 19, 2008 ]
After the incident at the Old Harbour, Carabinieri forces as well as the local Polizia conducted a joint investigation regarding the incident. Many people speculated that it might have been a gas leak, but it was highly unlikely considering 3 unidentified corpses were found at the scene. The police believed it to be an act of failed arson, though no motive could be determined since the Old Harbour hasn’t been in use for quite a while. This led the police to believe that illegal activity might have been done there. For the time being, The Old Harbour and neighboring areas have been closed off from the general public in order to conduct further investigation.
“ India... Tango… Alpha… Lima… Yankee… Ichi ”
[ Speak ]
“ M3, date of deployment 02/02/08, day 43, log 2 “
[ Report ]
“ In the span of a 43 day investigation I have discovered the presence of a Mafia led by a crime family known as “The Rovellini Family” . I have successfully apprehended 3 underclass members and have secured what I suspect to be an important package. The recent news about the Old Harbor in Venice consists of the security details regarding the state of Italy at the moment. I am currently at [ redacted ] coordinates at [ redacted ] . No signs of an IBN5100, but this package looks intriguing enough to be an item of interest. If possible, I request immediate pickup of this package to be delivered to headquarters for further investigation. End of Report ”
[ Pfft-! WAHAHAHAHAHA ]
“Hmm?”
[ Always as serious as ever eh, M3 ]
“Eh? FB? I thought you’re currently stationed in Akihabara”
[ I am, but I am still your superior and mentor, no matter where you are or where I am, you still report to me. ]
“まったく” (Mataku = Jeez)
[ Hahaha… getting tired of me? ]
“You want me to be honest?”
[ Hahaha, don’t worry I’ll be out of your ass soon. Actually… you’ve been doing great work lately, even the heads said so. ]
“Naruhodo (Understood) , please relay my message of gratitude, I am-
[ Enough of that! You don’t have to be so formal when it’s just the two of us, to be honest with ya I get sick of all these formalities, so just talk like normal ]
“Hmm… sou ka (I see), thank you, FB. What did the heads say?”
[ Ah right, they wanted me to tell you that you have the option of choosing the next location of your deployment. And uhh… if it’s alright with you, I highly recommend going here to Akiba, I need good agents like you. Besides, it’s been a while since you came home. Think about it okay? Over. ]
“Wakarimasu (Understood), I will. Thank you… over”
\\\ <05> ///
Notes:
I have little to no knowledge about Italy or most European countries I set these stories on. I just think that before going back to Japan, SERN would be very European based especially youngbloods like Okabe, other than that idk why I chose Europe.
Also please tell me if y'all want me to use the native script or letter system of the countries I'm featuring like if I use japanese I use the kanji/hiragana/katakana then put the romaji and eng trans on the side.
Chapter 3: Child's Play
Summary:
M3 and other trainees goes on an expedition for their Rounder training, but things go south when their transport vehicle is invaded by unknown assailants.
M3 has a fateful encounter.
Notes:
Might be the most graphic chapter yet?
GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF VIOLENCE INCOMING
just in case that isn't clear, please do be warned
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Old Warehouse somewhere in Europe [ Unknown Time Period ] [ August 13, 2004 ]
“Oy! Wake up!”
*Clang* *Clang*
M3 was woken up by the loud clashing of metal ringing through his ears. He was on the floor, it was cold and there was a familiar taste of metal on his mouth.
It was blood... his blood, and not just in his mouth, he was lying in a pool of it. He raised his head and slowly opened his eyes, one side of his vision was obscured, reddened by his own blood dripping from a cut along his hairline.
He tried to stand up but found it rather difficult. His hands were tied behind his back, making it hard to balance himself, not to mention how wobbly his legs were. Most of his joints were sore and his arms were getting numb due to inactivity.
In the corner of his eye he saw multiple others like him, bound, bleeding, some unconscious, some awake but silent probably due to shock and fear. He can hear faint sounds coming from a different room, it sounded like sharp cries and screams of agony.
(Where am I? What is this?), He thought to himself
“Quiet down, ya runt!”
*Thud*
Near the door to a different room, he saw a muscular man wearing a clown mask take a solid metal pipe and bludgeoned a child across the temple. The child fell on the floor in a loud thud, unmoving.
“Oy! The fuck you doin? Don’t kill the fucking merchandise!”
Another man in a clown mask approached the first man and scolded him while looking frustrated at the sight of the bloodied child.
He pushed the first man aside and knelt down on the floor checking on the child.
“You fucking caved his head in! He’s dead!”
“Kid’s fault for being too loud”
The man gave the other an irritated glare and returned his attention to the corpse.
“Fucking whatever, I’ll deal with you later, help me bring the body in the other room. If this kid’s healthy we can sell the organs”
The other man let go of the pipe and grabbed a body bag. They sealed the body in the bag and carried it to the other room.
“Oy, we got somethin for ya!”
A figure from inside the room opened the door and came out. He was wearing surgeon’s scrubs along with a plastic apron, and goggles. The entire outfit was reddened with blood, he was holding a scalpel on one hand, and a big yellow bag on the other.
“Gottverdammt! (Goddamnit!)“
The instant the man saw the body bag, he knew it meant another corpse, much to his frustration.
The man took off his goggles and mask to vigorously scratch his head with both hands in vexation.
“What are we going to do now? The client wanted 10 live merchandise! Du blöde fick! (You stupid fuck!)”
He slammed the yellow plastic bag hard on the ground, and the scalpel across the room.
M3 kept his eyes focused on the yellow plastic bag, the inside of it looked dark, with a tint of red. There was no question, inside the bag was a corpse. Based on the conversation he overheard, he suspected that the corpse was mangled and dissected for organs to be sold in the black market, because where else would organs be sold?
He finally had an idea of where he is, who kidnapped him and why. He was in what looked like an abandoned warehouse, kidnapped by a group of Child Traffickers either to be sold as merchandise or dissected for organs.
While he was lost in thought, he saw the bag open, and what came out from inside was a familiar sight…
A severed head rolled out of the bag, it was cleanly severed as if it was a mannequin, it’s eyes were gouged out but he could still recognize it. It was one of the Rounder Trainees he was with when they were attacked.
It didn’t have eyes but yet it felt like it was gazing right at him, piercing through his soul saying,
“You’re next”
== : == || { 01 } || == : ==
Railway station near the Mountains [ 10 : 45 PM ] [ August 12, 2004 ]
It was in the dark of night when they were ambushed, the cargo truck they were in looked ill prepared, and the engine was thumping throughout the ride, from the moment they departed he felt that something was wrong, but he was too tired from training that he fell asleep a few minutes into their travels
Their superiors told them that they were headed to a different training facility earlier that day and ordered them to gather their items because they might not come back to camp because reports sent to the command center suspect their location to have been compromised.
There were 10 of them in total, ages ranging from 12 - 21, excluding their superiors whose ages they prefer to keep secret.
They left a quarter before 11 PM in order to cross the borders undetected, this was also the time wherein national surveillance tended to be malfunctioning in that specific area.
M3 was deep in his sleep, his body was aching from the sparring training conducted a few hours prior. The cargo truck was moving at a steady pace, hitting a few bumps along the way when one of the superiors whispered,
“Is this the right way? These roads don’t seem familiar”
“I don’t know either, it’s my first time going to this facility”
The silence within the truck made the superior’s voices echo loud enough for it to be heard throughout the vehicle. This caused some occasional mumbling from within the passengers’ cabin, those awake and alert enough to hear the superior’s worries tensed up and started to worry themselves.
“Quiet down, and wake the others! Stay aler-”
*CRASH* *BANG* *FWOOSH*
An explosion came from beneath the ground they were travelling on, impacting mostly the front of the cargo truck. This caused the vehicle to leap off the air, turn over and crash down hard on the ground.
M3 woke up clumped together with other bodies that were blasted away by the explosion. He pushed off some of the bodies and tried to gather himself, the other trainees did the same.
“What happened?”
M3 let the words fall out of his mouth, aiming to find answers once he goes outside of the cabin. He dragged his legs forward toward the door while supporting his balance with his arms
He reached for the door with his hand only to be met by air when the door opened. This caused him to fall forward, luckily he grabbed the hinges just in time to keep him from falling off when-
*Swing* *Thud!*
The side of his head was met with a solid metal pipe that sandwiched it between the pipe and the door, he instantly fell to the ground, his head was ringing and aching. He tried to stay conscious amidst the pain
“Ah hell! The lil shit startled me.”
“Goddamnit! Is it still alive?”
“Probably, go get the hallucinogens, we need to put them to sleep”
“Yeah, yeah”
Before the man could turn away, the back of his head was greeted by one of the trainee’s shins
“GAH! YOU FUCKING BITCH! THAT HURT! Man what the fuck are these kids? ”
The trainee winded up to leap at the man only to be caught and slammed down on the ground
“Kuh!”
The trainee exclaimed, and tried to get back up when the man stood on their throat preventing them from escaping.
“Where the fuck is that Chloroform?”
*Thumping noises*
The other trainees that were conscious tried to leap out of the opening, one of them tackling the man to the ground. None of them spoke a word but quickly established combat positions, showcasing the discipline and synchronization they learned from training. They didn’t have weapons but their melee combat prowess was nothing to underestimate. Only 4 of them were able to assume position, 2 including M3 was incapacitated, the rest were unconscious, dead or burnt to a crisp from the explosion.
“I got em!”
“Yeah too fucking late for that now ain’t it!”
The other man came back after retrieving the chloroform only to be met by 4 of the trainees, injured and fatigued but still looked deadly and menacing.
The trainees scaled the first man up, and after a moment, 2 of them charged him and targeted his legs to restrict his movement. Simultaneously, another trainee ran towards the man and leapt off the air flipping their body forward mid-air and extending their hamstring before hammering their heel down on the man’s forehead.
The man staggered back and his legs were swept off the ground by the 2 trainees which caused him to fall down hard on his back.
While preoccupied, the other man didn’t notice where the other trainee went until he felt a hard hit on the back of his knee which caused him to kneel down on the ground.
“GAH FUCK!”
Right before the man turned to see who attacked him, he felt a firm grip on his forehead and chin.
“WAIT!-”
*Snap*
The man fell to the ground, eyes wide open, neck wobbling like gelatin.
The first man stood up and felt a sharp pain in his head, it was bleeding profusely. He was dumbfounded not by the pain but how he took such a hard hit from such a small body.
“Alright, playtime’s fucking over! Go to sleep”
The man pulled out a Glock from within his pockets and grabbed one of the trainees by the head. The trainee tried to avoid him and run away but it was too late and the man’s grip was firm on the trainee’s hair. Without hesitation the man put the gun against the trainee’s temple and pulled the trigger, dropping the trainee instantly.
The other trainees saw this and promptly ran away in different directions
*Bang!*
He shot one of the trainees square in the back, killing them in a matter of seconds. He aimed at another one when his gun was knocked away from his hand. He felt a tight grip on his wrist that tried to pull him down
“Shit, what’s up these fucking kids!”
The traineed stepped their foot in between the man’s legs, stepped to their side to gather momentum and with adequate force, pulled the man’s arm down, using the momentum to throw the man down on the ground
“Guah!”
The trainee didn’t release their grip after the takedown and instead stepped over the man’s head, dragged the man once more to the ground and locked their legs together to complete the leg triangle choke.
The man couldn’t breathe and was squirming vigorously, the submission was locked in tight.
“GRAHHHH!”
The man held his hands together, postured up and with a loud roar stood up and lifted the trainee off the ground only to slam them against the metal wall of the cargo truck, forcing them to loosen their grip.
“Hah- haahh, huahhh”
The man recovered his breath before approaching the trainee once more and before they could react, stomped his foot multiple times all over the trainee’s body. He didn’t stop until he could see blood dripping from his boots.
“FUCKING BITCH!”
The man shouted and sighed in relief. He tried to find the other trainee who escaped but to no avail.
*Buzz* *Buzz*
[ Status Report? ]
The man heard a voice from his radio
“Uhh… cargo secured, one casualty. 10 confirmed bodies, status unknown”
[ One casualty? Status unknown? ]
“Uhhh… yeah my partner got his neck snapped in half, some of them kids fought back and I had to uh… resort to other methods to shut them down.”
[ God fucking damn it all you had to do was kidnap some kids how hard is that, a kid snapped his neck? Are you sure you didn’t just kill him? ]
“Hey! Listen here motherfucker! These fucking kids ain’t normal or shit they’re like trained in some martial arts bullshit, and if I wanted to kill this stupid motherfucker, I woulda done it ages ago along with you, aight?”
[ Whatever, get your ass back here ]
The man cut off the connection with the other line on his radio and promptly started to collect the bodies. Some were still alive but unconscious so he injected some kind of serum to keep them asleep. 3 died from the initial explosion, 1 was severely injured but alive and unconscious, 2 of them including M3 were incapacitated, 3 were killed and 1 escaped.
He loaded the bodies on a separate truck and grabbed a canister of gas and splattered it all over the truck, then washed his gear along with his truck with bleach and other cleaning agents. He lit a match and lit the truck on fire before driving off to the horizon.
The last of what M3 remembered before finally passing out was the sound of the engine revving and the smell of cigarettes.
== : == || { 02 } || == : ==
Old Warehouse somewhere in Europe [ Few Hours Later ] [ August 13, 2004 ]
“Ey, don’t worry, one of them merchandise is worth more than any of these runts combined”
“The fuck you mean? Wait… don’t fucking tell me we kidnapped royalty you shit! God knows what’ll happen to us when we get caught if we took some royal fucking-
“Calm the fuck down would ya? Remember that cargo truck? The ones with super kids in em?”
“Super kids, yeah alright the ones who fucking killed one of us”
“Naw I’m tellin ya, this is a serious bargain, one of em was left over right there near the end of the room, I’m tellin you they’re dangerous, like ninjas or so”
“Kid fuckin ninjas are you serious? And if they are dangerous than how can they be a fucking bargain?”
“Well… I don’t know maybe our fucking client wants to adopt an assassin or somethin, hell he’s more capable than any of these runts over here”
“Especially this bitch right over here, didn’t say shit, didn’t move, didn’t do nothin. But hey… she ain’t half bad I gotta say , if our client wouldn’t mind waiting a few years this’ll be a good investment haha”
“Yeah of course you’d think that fucking way your brain’s all the way down in your balls, ya fuck”
“Hey! Just sayin you know”
“Fick! (Fuck!) Quick, ready the merchandise, the client wants to see them tonight”
“God shit, seriously?”
“Best get to cleanin”
A grin forms on the lips of one of the men at the thought of cleaning the merchandise, the other notices to which he quickly retorts,
“Shit, I’ll do the fucking cleaning, who knows what weird shit you’re planning”
“Wha- Hey! Give me more credit than that!”
“Not when you’re pitchin a tent with your mouth open”
The man leaves the predator to his crooked fantasies and leads one of the children into a wall rigged with a makeshift sink and shower. Meanwhile, the man in scrubs took care of the body and went back into what M3 suspected was an operating room.
*Swish* *Swash*
The merchandise were lined up in the wall in batches of 3 and then sprayed all over with water to wash off the dirt and blood, but the chains that bound their arms together remained intact throughout the process. The high pressure of the water stream made it feel like a barrage of hail crashing against the skin.
Some of the children writhed in pain, pleading for their torment to stop, others rolled up into a ball into the floor, trembling as they tried to shield themselves as much as possible. Nonetheless, the screams of children were once again heard in the silent warehouse.
It was the last batch of children, one of which was a small boy in his pre-teens with short brown hair and big black eyes, widened profusely due to fear. He's been silently crying this entire time, too scared to make a noise. The other was a girl in her early teens. Her body, as described by one of the men, was already developing, she silently obeyed their order to line up against the wall. Lastly was M3 himself, he was still in his semi-casual training attire, he steadied himself and walked slowly towards the wall.
Once against the wall, he shot a look towards the door leading to the other room, and then surveyed his environment closely. There were no windows except for a few rusted vents, no cameras, one central light switch operated by a lever mechanism, a table that looks like a communication console and in the very far end of the room, a gate that he suspected to be the exit.
Taking his physical and mental state into consideration, escaping this situation might take a miracle, especially when he’s bound, fatigued and suffering significant blood loss. He had to free himself first, but with 2 enemies constantly watching, it would be hard to do it undetected. He’ll have to think ahead and execute his escape in a smooth series of motion. One wrong move is all it takes for him to take a fatal bullet to the body, it doesn’t even have to be an organ, just the shock and injury of getting shot is enough to shut down his already beaten body.
He has much better odds fighting one on one, he thought of acting limp so that he would seem dead and be taken to the other room. But he needed an excuse to make it seem believable, and fortunately that excuse is about to be splashed all over him.
*Swish* *Swash*
*Thud*
He jerked his body against the wall as soon as the water came in contact with his skin and “fell down” hard on the floor. He attempted this multiple times to escape training or have some more time to rest but the instructors could always see through him. But his multiple failed attempts were not in vain as he perfected the technique and learned from what he did wrong the previous times. Through sheer will and discipline he managed to make his pulse near undetectable, and make his heart seem like it stopped beating.
“Shit! What now!”
“See, told you I shoulda been the one who did the cleaning”
“If you ain’t gonna help get the fuck outta here then”
The man signaled the other to help him take care of the “body” and like before, transported it to the other room. The man in scrubs opened the door and shot them a glare of irritation, but this time remained silent and took the body.
*Thud*
M3 felt a hard impact as the bag he’s in was thrown unto a metal operating table
*Metal clanging*
He couldn't see anything and he fell in an uncomfortable position but chose to stay still so as to not get compromised. From outside he can hear the man in scrubs yell and tantrum in frustration.
“Blöd fotze! (Stupid cunt!)”
“Blöd arschloch! (Stupid asshole!)”
“Fick! (Fuck!)”
“der Scheisskerl! (Piece of shit!)”
The tantrum went on for a few moments. The clanging of metal, loud banging mixed with frustrated rumblings were soon followed by a moment of stillness. It was progressively getting harder to breathe especially while enclosed in a small space, he has to get out of the bag before he loses air.
*F o o t s t e p s*
The silence was cut by steady footsteps approaching him, he primed himself, trying to make himself look as much of a corpse as possible. The sudden introduction of an auditory stimulus after a moment of silence was enough to make his body react in a certain way that would distract him from his lack of oxygen. He was as alert as ever, playing multiple scenarios in his head on how to act as soon as that bag opened. He thought of taking in a deep breath of air first before making his move, he also considered breathing while in motion so as to make haste. He thought of where to strike, which arteries to lacerate, which organ to rupture, which bone to dislocate, joint to break, which choke hold to use, which muscle to move first, should he bite?, target the eyes?, the pelvic area? Nothing was out off the table, then again these are all just scenarios, and about only 1 out of hundreds or even thousands of these scenarios are to happen, there’s also no guessing how things will go until the moment comes he can only-
*Zip*
*Open*
*FWHIP!*
*sMACK!*
Like a lasso, he whipped his arm and delivered a chop aimed directly at the surgeon’s neck, he simultaneously got out of the bag, off the table and onto the floor. The man in scrubs attempted to yell but only found himself gasping for air, he suffered a laryngeal fracture and the airway trauma disrupted his respiratory cycle, preventing him from shouting or breathing normally. The man looks up at M3, who in stark contrast to him, is taking a deep breath before forming up.
Before the man could blink, M3 was already out of his sight
*Swoosh*
The man felt a gust of wind from beneath him, followed by a forceful impact, his chin was met with the heel of M3’s foot. The prior injury he suffered caused the muscles on his neck region to stiffen and contract, the power of the kick caused his head to snap back past the neck’s intended articulation point which meant that the Atlas, Axis and other bones connecting his skull to his spine and vertebrae were fractured or broken. His body instantly fell to the ground, jaw broken in multiple places.
M3 didn’t waste any time, he instantly looked in the drawers, cabinets and other compartments for medication or first aid such as bandages, gauzes, disinfectants and painkillers. He stumbled upon what seemed to be vials of Epinephrine, or Adrenaline shots. He recalls the information he read about adrenaline in a science book he picked up while training. In his state, a rush of adrenaline and a dose of painkiller was probably exactly what he needed to boost his physical capabilities momentarily and get out of this mess. At the same time, that exact combination might cause his heart to explode and kill him upon intake.
He takes a moment to decide what to do, what to take and where to go from here. He already treated his wounds and bandaged himself up to the best he could while making sure not to sacrifice mobility. He looks at the Painkiller and Adrenaline shot once again, all of a sudden he feels dizzy, his legs were shaking and felt like puking. He supports himself against the wall and that’s when he noticed…
B l o o d . . .
So much blood... all across the room, there were plastic sheets dividing the room and all of them in one way or another were wet with blood. He was too focused on the elephant that he totally forgot about the room, there were similar plastic bags like the one he saw before clumped together in one corner of the room, the sinks were filled with surgical apparatus doused in hot water and cleaning agents for sterilization which caused the nauseating smell of bleach and blood to permeate throughout the room.
As a Rounder, blood, death and violence was not a rare sight. But inside that room, he didn’t feel like a Rounder trainee or an assassin or anything. He felt like he recessed back into a child lost in the forest scared speechless, this was much more than what he’s seen before. He felt like the way he was back in that fateful year, 4 years ago when his life started to take a very dark turn.
He tries to gather himself, and collect his thoughts, to distract himself like he has ever since that incident . But being exactly where he wanted to distract himself from proved to be difficult, he had to get out, being sold as merchandise might have been a better outcome after all.
He closes his eyes, drops to the floor and tucks his knees into his chest and covers his ears with his hands, hoping for salvation. Hoping that someone would come and rescue him if he hides long enough just like he did 4 years ago.
== : == || { 03 } || == : ==
Old Warehouse somewhere in Europe [ 12 : 01 AM ] [ August 14, 2004 ]
“Man, it’s getting late, where’s that buyer we been inspecting, these kids’ll be grown up before they show up”
“Be patient, it’s only been… a minute after 12 anyway.”
*Tires screeching*
*Break noises*
“Speak o’ the Devil!”
“See? Told you to be patient”
“Yeah yeah, shut up”
One of the men opened the gates of the warehouse, letting a four wheeler, all terrain vehicle enter. It looked roughed up, with a few scratches on the sides and a broken headlight, the windows were smoked so that no one could see from the outside.
“Hey, you sure this is the buyer?”
“Who else would it be?”
“Something feels… off?”
One of the men approached the passenger’s side of the vehicle and knocked on the window. There was no response, so the man instinctively moved back and drew his gun.
“I don’t like this man, something feels off”
“Me neither, gonna go ask our surgeon buddy what the fuck is going on”
“Yeah, you go do that”
The man approaches one more time, this time trying to use a flashlight in order to see the reflection from inside.
*Windows rolling*
“SHIT!”
The man jumped backwards and fell on the ground startled by the windows
“Oy! Someone better start introducing themselves or I start shooting!”
No response.
“One!”
Still none.
“Two!”
Nada.
“I ain’t fucking joking! Once I reach three I will unload magazines on y-
*Door creaks open*
*BANG BANG BANG*
The man unload his entire magazine unto the vehicle, startled once more by the door opening
“Sh-shit...”
The man slowly approaches the vehicle
“C’mon the hell happened here”
*Hissss*
“Eh?”
*BANGG!!* *fWOOSH*
The vehicle exploded blasting the man away, unfortunately, majority of the children were near the explosion, many died from the impact alone while some others were far away but still suffered burns in several places, only a few survived.
After the dust settled a figure emerged from the smoke…
It was the Trainee that escaped, they also looked greatly injured and suffered a few burns from the explosion.
“T-targets eliminated… 10 casualties”
The trainee fell to the ground, succumbing to their wounds.
*Door creaks*
From the other room came out M3, the explosion would of course wake him up and restore him to his senses. What greeted him as he opened the door colored him dumbfounded, it was like a totally different world than when he left it. He wondered if this is the salvation he asked for but quickly discarded it, he knows that he doesn’t deserve salvation, nor does it exist.
He surveys the surroundings once more, burnt corpses filled the room and at the very center was a flaming vehicle, he saw one of the masked men lying down on the floor, his clothes were burned off and his back was burnt. The smell of burnt skin and blood evaporating made him uneasy once more, but all of his uneasiness went away once he saw the gate of the warehouse wide open.
There it is, his way out.
He tried to scavenge whatever was left, weapons, provisions, water and a radio if possible. Only to come up with a few pieces of rope, half a bottle of water, and a shard of glass, none of which would be of any real use, the guns that the men held got melted and rendered useless.
He approached the truck and saw a familiar uniform, it was their combat attire. He took a moment of silence before scavenging the body, they didn’t have a connection but it wouldn’t hurt to pay respects. He found a radio, but the antenna’s been broken and the batteries are dead.
He didn’t dare touch one of the burnt corpses, not out of disgust, but out of respect or whatever he had left of it. He packed the supplies he was able to gather and headed for the exit. Before leaving he turned around, held his hands together, took a moment of silence and bowed. His instructors told him to forget the courtesies, but it’s always been a habit to him.
*Rattle*
The noise alerted him and he quickly drew the shiv he made out of a shard of glass and a cloth he used as a handle. But quickly withdrew the weapon and approached the direction where he heard the noise.
“The exit is open, you can leave, it’s over.”
In a far corner near the entrance, there was a girl with ash blonde hair, a pair of glasses, burn marks, bruises and lacerations on her wrists. He doesn’t know if those wounds came before or after this hellish incident, but he doesn’t care to ask.
She looked up at him, her eyes were lifeless, skin pale making the blood look much more vibrant. She stays like that for a moment but then retreats and hangs her head low.
“(There’s... no... point)”
She responds slowly and silently in a raspy voice
“(I… don’t… have… a… place… to… go…)”
“( I… should… have… just… died…)”
The girl said in a slightly more upset tone, this time burying her face more and more on her knees. M3 was stunned by what she said, it sounded awfully familiar, like he felt a strange sensation of Deja vu. It’s as if he was talking to himself, 4 years ago. He remembers feeling the same way she did, the pain and hopelessness she’s feeling at this moment, was akin to what he felt that time. He also remembers seeing a strange figure walk up to him, he doesn’t quite remember what happened next though... but what he does know, is the feeling of hope returning to his body.
Was it something that man said? Something that man did? He doesn’t remember but he tried to recall what the man said to him on that day.
It was something like….
== : == || { 05 } || == : ==
Notes:
(Kind of a spoiler?)
Okay so apparently Okabe and Mayuri were separated after the Y2k crash and was reunited 7 years after, which makes that 2007... so it's not coherent with my prev chapter...
BUT! For plot convenience it didn't really say what year they separated, just after the Y2k so let's just say they got separated mid-2001 or so hehe
therefore, they meet mid-2008
* Also not sure where to put this note so I just let you guys read the chapter first and then explain myself.