Justice at Delphi - The Fall of Sibyl

Chapter 27

To be is to do.

-Immanuel Kant

Yoshi awoke with a vicious headache and a churning stomach. His eyelids felt like there were welded shut. Slowly, he cracked them open...and immediately regretted it. He groaned. When did the sun get so bright?  Its punishing rays shone through the Venetian blinds, searing his retinas. Tossing a sluggish arm over his eyes, Yoshi shielded his eyes and tried to remember last night's events.

Ryunosuke, the bar, and all those drinks. Yoshi had forgotten how much his colleague could drink. The man was a legend at holiday parties for being the last one standing and the first one into work the following day. Yoshi vaguely remembered staggering out of the bar - definitely not under his own power - and passing out on Ryunosuke's couch. He shifted carefully, testing his limbs for additional aches and pains. He was pleasantly relieved to find his back wasn't sore. It was the first time in months that he hadn't woken up with a back ache. This couch was infinitely more comfortable than the cot Mr. Koji had scavenged for him. 

Silver lining. He thought wryly.

"Awake yet? Or are you still dead to the world?" Ryunosuke's voice was akin to a foghorn to Yoshi's sensitive ears. 

He growled and covered his ears, curling into the couch cushions. He opened his bloodshot eyes and glared over his shoulder at Ryunosuke. "How are you vertical?" His voice sounded raspy and dry.

Ryunosuke grinned cheerfully. "I forgot you're not much of a drinker. Want a little hair of the dog?" He gestured to the small bar area in his kitchen.

Yoshi leveled a baleful glare at him. "Are you even human? And," he replied, squinting. "Why are you dressed to workout?"

The politician snickered at Yoshi's disbelief. "Because I worked out this morning while you were snoring. Come on, let me fix you a pick me up."

Yoshi heaved his body upright, pausing while his queasy stomach lurched uncertainly. Thankfully, the room wasn't spinning like it did last night. Slowly rising, he took careful steps to the bistro table in Ryunosuke's kitchen. Sliding forward, he rested his head on the cool table top. He looked up at the light tap on his shoulder. Ryunosuke had set a couple of pills and a glass of a mysterious mustard yellow concoction in front of him. 

He raised his eye brow suspiciously. "And just what is that?" He eyed the bright flecks of red swirling in the fluid.

Ryunosuke winked at him. "Hangover cure. My special recipe. Guaranteed to wake the dead."

Yoshi snorted. Popping the pills, he took a swig of the so-called 'hangover' cure. He nearly choked. Everything burned. His throat, his eyes, his nose. Tears streamed down his face as he struggled to swallow the sour spicy mixture. "What...is in that!?" He coughed out.

Ryunosuke shrugged while he fried an egg. "Family secret, but I can tell you the paprika packs a punch."

Yoshi wiped his eyes and leaned back in the chair. "Well, I'm definitely awake."

"So are you going to tell me?" Gone was the easy, cheerful banter. His voice was solemn and serious.

"About what?" Yoshi ran a hand through his wild hair. Though wide awake, his brain still felt fuzzy. 

Ryunosuke chuckled. "Really did a number on you last night, didn't we? You wanted to tell me something." He prompted. 

"Oh." Yoshi nodded, wincing at the ache. "Before I tell you, let me ask. Do you still have the contact info for the DAS members?"

"Doctors Against Sibyl? Yeah, I do. They've been staging protests and questioning the validity of the national mental health data. Those life expectancy numbers really gave them the direction they needed. Chief Kasei has been running ragged trying to assuage fears. They've got the average citizens out there paying attention." He paused to slide the egg onto a plate. "It's not just internet cranks screaming about conspiracies."

Yoshi smiled wanly. "It was bound to happen eventually. Do the ministries still want to scale back Sibyl?"  

Ryunosuke shot a curious glance over at his friend. "As a matter of fact, they do. You weren't the only one who stumbled across some suggestive data. Although," he added, ruefully. "You're the only one who had the guts to post it online."

Yoshi snorted. "Yeah, guts. Now, my name is trash and I live in hiding."

Snagging the toast as it popped out of the toaster, Ryunosuke shook his head. "It was brave. It's a pity more of us haven't been voicing our concerns. It was just easier to sit by and let someone else take the wheel. We could have really used your help. Where have you been all this time?"

"I thought it best to lay low for a while. With my reputation, I could hardly be of any help." 

Ryunosuke set the plate in front of him. "I'm sorry we couldn't do much to support you. We knew it was bullshit."

Yoshi looked up and smiled wryly. "There's something you can do for me now."

"What's that?"

He took a bite out of toast. "Help me take down Sibyl."

***

"Stop brooding."

For a moment, Kogami thought the voice was in his head. He glanced over his shoulder at Koji. The older man was reclining in the shade of the abandoned warehouse. They'd made it their temporary base of operations until the successful theft of the EMP. He opened his eyes. "Relax. I can practically see the tension rolling off you. Don't go borrowing trouble. It'll find us soon enough."

Kogami casually lit a cigarette. "I'm not brooding. I'm thinking."

Koji gave a bark of laughter. "Kid, it's the same thing. Why don't you take a walk? We've got hours  until we make our move."

Sighing, Kogami replied. "I'm fine."

"The hell you are. You're wound up tight. That girl expects you to get back in one piece. To do that, you need your head in the game not up your as--." Koji admonished.

"I got it!" Kogami snapped. The trouble was the man was right. If Akane were here, she'd probably tell him the same thing. Although, far less colorfully. He just couldn't help the nagging feeling that something was going to go wrong. It was probably nerves, but the pit in his stomach told him otherwise. Rising, he slipped on his wrist unit in case he came across a stray scanner. A little walk to work off the anxiety might help.

He took a deep breath as he stepped outside into the warm sunlight. Instead of obsessively going over tonight's plan, Kogami focused on something else. Or rather someone else...and the promise he'd made. He stared up at the passed clouds as he walked. If he was going to stay, he needed to figure out what the hell to do with his life. Since his fall from grace, he'd only been good at one thing. Survival. 

Are you sure you belong with her, Ko? She's not like you...

Makishima's voice returned to taunt him. Gritting his teeth, Kogami kept walking. It was too late to worry about deserving her. He knew he didn't, but couldn't make himself leave her. He would stay at her side until she didn't want him anymore. A part of him prayed that day would never come.

A flicker of movement caught his eye. For a moment, he thought he was hallucinating. He stopped, blinking just to be sure. His eyes weren't deceiving him. It was her. Akane stood just inside a cordoned off warehouse, lost in thought. He moved closer unconsciously. His eyes drinking her in. The light breeze tousled her short dark hair. She absently tucked a few strands behind her ears. Her lips were pursed, her eyes focused.

As he drew closer, he could hear her think out loud. "I know I'm missing something."

A smile curved his lips. She must have caught a new case. He stood a few yards behind her, far enough away from the drones to avoid their cameras and watched her quietly recite her analysis of the crime scene. A wave of nostalgia hit him. It was like catching a glimpse of the past. 

"It still doesn't add up." She murmured, scrutinizing a pile of scrap.

Unable to stop himself, Kogami drew closer. "Maybe you could use a fresh set of eyes?"