“Well that got out of hand”
Habiki
Tamashi #60View on SuiVision chuckled,
Ongaku
Tamashi #66View on SuiVision smiled alongside
Wolfgang
Tamashi #38View on SuiVision and
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision as they stood outside the back of the hotel burning. Ongaku smiled as he recalled
Chem
Tamashi #31View on SuiVision hustling them out of the building with his hands waving. The scene was chaotic, and while the crowd around them were deeply uncomfortable, Ongaku felt at home for the first time in a while. The rush to leave with the crisp cold air surrounded by close friends. It reminded him of the good old days when they were young and touring the world. The manager used to rush them out of venues when the crowd got too rowdy. That was Ongaku’s favorite part.
“Just like old times”
Ongaku
Tamashi #66View on SuiVision grinned, “All we need now’s some liquor.”
“You mean like this?”
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision opened the side of his coat to reveal a large bottle of sake.
“How’d you score that?”
Habiki
Tamashi #60View on SuiVision laughed.
“When I picked this yellow shiny jacket, you all told me it was stupid!”
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision started.
“Because it is stupid.”
Ongaku
Tamashi #66View on SuiVision corrected. “You look like a beehive.”
“Is it stupid that people are distracted by it?”
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision argued, “Is it stupid that you can’t notice if I’m hiding something in my sleeve?” Disco paused, “Because if this stupid phenomenal jacket is the only reason we have booze right now, then someone might have to apologize if he wants some.”
“Well I always liked your jacket.”
Habiki
Tamashi #60View on SuiVision said.
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision happily handed him the booze.
“Fine.”
Ongaku
Tamashi #66View on SuiVision sighed, “Your jacket isn’t stupid.”
“Thank you.”
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision answered.
“It just ‘looks’ stupid.”
“I’ll take it.”
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision replied as
Habiki
Tamashi #60View on SuiVision handed
Ongaku
Tamashi #66View on SuiVision the bottle. “But this jacket will win you over one of these days!”
“No it won’t.”
Ongaku
Tamashi #66View on SuiVision grumbled as he took a swig of the sake.
As the wind whistled past, and the crowd clamored around them, the group was overtaken by an unconscious silence. They all looked slowly at one another as the moment held firm between them.
“Has anyone seen
Jazz
Tamashi #52View on SuiVision?”
Habiki
Tamashi #60View on SuiVision asked.
Wolfgang
Tamashi #38View on SuiVision paused, then answered, “No. Not since
he joined Team Order.”
“He always had to be different.”
Disco
Tamashi #76View on SuiVision smiled.
“Yeah.”
Ongaku
Tamashi #66View on SuiVision grinned, “I hoped we’d stick together.”, he took a swig of the sake again. “I miss that jackass.”
“Is that them?”
Kasimir
Tamashi #54View on SuiVision whispered.
“At least four of the five, yeah?”
Natsuki
Tamashi #65View on SuiVision answered.
“Do you think we should introduce ourselves, I mean ‘really’ introduce ourselves?”
“No!”
Natsuki
Tamashi #65View on SuiVision insisted, “We talked about this! We have an opportunity here to start over. I want to know what it feels like to be just anybody, not, you know, me.”
“I know, I do too.”
Kasimir
Tamashi #54View on SuiVision sighed, “I just thought that they would get it, you know? More than anyone.”
“Then everyone would know. I don’t want to go back to that”
Natsuki
Tamashi #65View on SuiVision insisted, moved closer to
Kasimir
Tamashi #54View on SuiVision and held his hand. “When I met you on that movie set, I was so starstruck. Then came the cameras and the photoshoots. I couldn’t even tell what was real anymore. I just…”
“I remember.” Kasimir looked down and shook his head. “You weren’t happy. That’s why we ‘plugged in’ in the first place. I know how much this second chance means to you and I’m not going to mess it up.” He held her hands and looked deep into her eyes. “Don’t worry darling. We’re going to make this work.”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision waited silently in the back of the diner.
He leaned against the side of the building with his arms crossed, standing firm in
his black suit. He was a tall man and had firm strong muscles from years as a bodyguard.
His physique hadn’t diminished at all, even after years in the facility. After a
few minutes,
Itamae
Tamashi #79View on SuiVision emerged from the back of
the building and tossed off his apron. Noir glanced at the Triangle Company logo
across Itamae’s bandana.
“You’re still wearing that thing?”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision asked.
“If they have the audacity to use the Resistance logo in there, then yeah, I’m keeping my bandana.”
Itamae
Tamashi #79View on SuiVision snapped.
“That must not make you popular in the kitchen.”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision remarked.
“Yeah, but it doesn’t matter. No one back there can cook as well as me.”
“How are the supplies?”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision asked.
“Not great. Apparently
Chaos
Tamashi #42View on SuiVision burned up a lot of food in the fire. We’re making due, but I don’t think the nearby farm is going to feed a city anytime soon.”
“And the facility has plenty of nutrients. All you need to do is plug in again.”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision stated.
“Only the Resistance could make the founder of eternal bliss a villain.”
Itamae
Tamashi #79View on SuiVision shook his head. “Tell me a
Takahashi
Tamashi #100View on SuiVision story.”
“You want another one?”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision asked.
“I worked for him covertly for four years. You were his bodyguard for ten. I’d like to know more about the guy I’ve never met.”
“Alright.”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision started, “One day I was escorting
Takahashi
Tamashi #100View on SuiVision into a building. There were protesters all around, and one of them broke through the barrier and darted towards him. I wound up my fist and clocked him out. When we got inside,
Takahashi
Tamashi #100View on SuiVision looked at me intensely. It was always intense when he looked you right in the eye. He looked at me, grabbed the back of my neck and said ‘Strong men shape the world’. I’ll never forget it.”
“That’s why I took the job.”
Itamae
Tamashi #79View on SuiVision smiled. “I believed in it. Money doesn’t buy much when the world vanishes in front of you. But ridding the world of pain and suffering, even when ‘The Resistance’ held onto both for some godforsaken reason… it just made sense. What higher calling can there be than that?”
Noir
Tamashi #82View on SuiVision smiled at his friend. “And I bet you were
the best chef he’d ever seen.”
Itamae
Tamashi #79View on SuiVision laughed heartily and pulled a knife
from the back of his uniform. “Yeah” he smiled and threw the knife forty feet to
his right where it impaled itself deep into a brick. “A chef that can do that.”
Miné
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision tiptoed quietly past her
daughter
Tamashi #97View on SuiVision who was listening to music in her room.
Jiro
Tamashi #43View on SuiVision stood quietly beside her in the hallway.
“Hi honey” he whispered to her.
“Where’d your
father
Tamashi #67View on SuiVision go?”
Miné
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision asked.
“Oh, just out on one of his walks. There’s no telling him what to do.”
“How’s
Vault
Tamashi #36View on SuiVision adjusting?”
Miné
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision whispered intently.
Jiro
Tamashi #43View on SuiVision shook his head. “She’s coming around,
but …” he lowered his voice, “She doesn’t want to listen to me. She’s stubborn like
her father, and her father’s father. I …” he shook his head again. “I’m just so sorry.”
“What are you sorry about?”
Miné
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision asked.
“My family. All of this. I wanted our lives to be normal, simple and happy. I made you a promise that I wouldn’t let my
brother
Tamashi #100View on SuiVision interfere with our marriage.”
“He hasn’t!”
Miné
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision insisted.
“Look at our heads right now Miné”
Jiro
Tamashi #43View on SuiVision sighed. “Look at our lives. It’s all on his terms. I’m sorry, I just … I feel like I failed you.”
“Hey!”
Miné
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision protested, “You haven’t failed anything! I married you because you’re your own man. You’re compassionate and a great father, and this life of ours is completely our own. Your brother is gone. You should never had to have worried about him, but you especially don’t now. And
Vault
Tamashi #36View on SuiVision is a kind, sweet girl. She’ll come around. And you’ll be a better father to her than he ever would be. You know that’s true!”
Jiro
Tamashi #43View on SuiVision smiled through his emotion. “Thank you.
I needed to hear that.”
Suddenly, their teenage
son
Tamashi #95View on SuiVision burst through the door with someone else by his side.
“Ka-Gamer”
Miné
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision corrected herself, “Who is this?”
“You insisted we all get to pick our new names Mom, ‘Gamer’ is my name now.”
Gamer
Tamashi #95View on SuiVision stated.
“We’ll talk about that later.”
she
Tamashi #57View on SuiVision said, “Now tell me who this is!”
“This is
Inicio
Tamashi #74View on SuiVision! He’s my age and he likes games too! And don’t worry, he’s not Team Chaos! Can we hang out in my room? It’s been so long since I’ve met a friend my age!”
“It’s nice to meet you.”
Inicio
Tamashi #74View on SuiVision said, “I have a gift for you that I made yesterday. It’s amazing how much tech is lying around the facility!” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a mechanical device with gears shifting and lights flashing in a rotation. Its task was unclear, but it moved in a perpetual state of enigmatic motion.
Jiro
Tamashi #43View on SuiVision bent over to look at it with great interest. “What the hell is that?”
Mizuto
Tamashi #78View on SuiVision grumbled as he rushed to the casino.
He’d heard there was a fire and panted as he arrived at the scene. He saw the sight
of a few flames dwindling, but his experience told him that the fire wouldn’t spread.
He sat down and leaned against a nearby building to catch his breath. What was it
with these people? Always burning things. He knew a world without a formal government
would be chaotic, but he didn’t expect anything like this. He’d hoped
Order
Tamashi #41View on SuiVision would bring things under control, but without running firetrucks, he was helpless
against these frequent fires.
Heart
Tamashi #6View on SuiVision with a beating heart on his screen approached
Mizuto
Tamashi #78View on SuiVision
. “Are you okay?” the man asked him.
“Am I okay? Are you okay? Every time I blink, there’s another fire. How crazy are you people? This is insane!”
Heart
Tamashi #6View on SuiVision sat down next to
Mizuto
Tamashi #78View on SuiVision
, and gave his question serious thought. “They’re afraid.”
Heart
Tamashi #6View on SuiVision finally answered. “They’re afraid that they’ll never experience the happiness
they crave so deeply. The freedom from the isolation we’ve all experienced. So they
take shortcuts through short-sighted destructiveness. They just want to feel something.
And
Chaos
Tamashi #42View on SuiVision does too. Neither of them will be
satisfied in the end. The only difference with Chaos is that he doesn’t care.”
“Then why are you with these people?”
Mizuto
Tamashi #78View on SuiVision asked. “If you’re opposed to all this - why are you still here?”
“I don’t want to sound patronizing,”
Heart
Tamashi #6View on SuiVision started, “But someone needs to look out for these people. Otherwise they’ll be alone when they wake up one day and have to pick up the pieces.”
Mizuto
Tamashi #78View on SuiVision smiled, “And I’ll always be here to
clean up the fires. Although it would be nice to have a working fire truck.”
“Hello!”
A man
Tamashi #39View on SuiVision with a snowman on his screen approached. “My name is Shimo! Is everyone alright here? I know
Order
Tamashi #41View on SuiVision led a charge here, and I want to take care of the wounded, on either side of course!”
“Thank you so much for coming. It’s good to see someone like you out here.”
Heart
Tamashi #6View on SuiVision answered. “
Chaos
Tamashi #42View on SuiVision is inside the hotel nursing his wounds. He broke something in his fight with
Order
Tamashi #41View on SuiVision.”
“On it!”
Shimo
Tamashi #39View on SuiVision nodded and walked into the hotel.
Mizuto
Tamashi #78View on SuiVision looked to Heart. “So is it over then?
Is the Order Chaos war finally done?”
“I hope so.”
Heart
Tamashi #6View on SuiVision answered. “Most people evacuated out back, but
Order
Tamashi #41View on SuiVision and
Kitsune
Tamashi #9View on SuiVision came through here not long ago to make sure no one had planned anything reckless. I don’t think
Chaos
Tamashi #42View on SuiVision will take it quietly, but I think “Team” Chaos will be a lot quieter from now on.”
“I’m grateful to hear that.”
Mizuto
Tamashi #78View on SuiVision answered. “In the meantime we have people like
Shimo
Tamashi #39View on SuiVision to help out.”
“In any war, you need people who see outside of it to help others.”
Heart
Tamashi #6View on SuiVision stated. “I think the three of us are well suited for it.”
Aeth
Tamashi #12View on SuiVision sat alone atop a clearing overlooking
the city. She could see the entirety of Nozomi, the three square blocks where the
lights were on and citizens made their homes, as well as the remaining city that
still had no access to electricity. She could even see the makings of a small fire
on the top of a building. This was of course the Order / Chaos conflict.
Aeth
Tamashi #12View on SuiVision decided not to take sides in the faction war. Both leaders seemed selfish and
small-minded. While they quarreled over details and philosophies, she thought they’d
missed the greater picture. They would get nothing done at all unless they were able
to come together.
“How’s the view today?” A familiar voice said from behind.
“Chaotic as usual. The conflict doesn’t appear to be over yet.”
Aeth
Tamashi #12View on SuiVision answered, facing forward. “How are you?”
“Oh, you know me.” The voice said, “I’ve been better. But being outside like this among whatever nature’s left … it reminds me that not everything has changed.”
“That’s good.”
Aeth
Tamashi #12View on SuiVision replied, “The world has been reset. We all have a second chance here.”
“I know. I just …” the voice cut off. A loud echo boomed through the air. The ground started quaking beneath
Aeth
Tamashi #12View on SuiVision’s legs, as she found her bearing amidst the vibrations.
“What was that?”
Aeth
Tamashi #12View on SuiVision asked. “It sounded like it came from the facility..”