〖JJBA - EN〗- Last Judgement

Chapter 16: Death against death.

Somewhere in Pakistan. December 16th, 1988.

After having Jotaro's uniform redone and leaving Anne at the nearest airport, our friends hit the road again in a new car brought by the Speedwagon Foundation. Back in the back between Jotaro and Kakyoin, (Y/N) was dozing off on the redhead's shoulder. Around them the fog thickened, it was a miracle that Polnareff could still drive in such circumstances. Especially since they were following a ravine without any safety rail. After consulting his watch, Joseph asked that they stop in the nearest town so as not to put themselves in danger any longer.

When the car finally stopped, Kakyoin lightly shook the young woman sleeping on his shoulder and she blinked, a little lost.

"... are we there?

- No", he replied, kissing her on the forehead. "We're taking a break, it's too foggy to keep going. Come on, let's find a hotel.

- Do you think I could sleep with you this time?

- Ah... well, we'll see!"

He helped her out of the car and she dusted off her clothes before looking around. The city seemed particularly morbid. It was eerily quiet.

"Let's ask where to find a hotel in this restaurant," Joseph announced, pointing to a sign. "Listen, this is how we say hello here in Islamic lands. We must smile and say: As-salâm alaykum!"

The young ones looked at each other and grimaced when they heard that terrible accent. The man at the entrance of the hotel had no reaction, apart from turning the "open" sign to "closed". Joseph's smile twitched on his face.

"Heh... Don't panic! There is no reason to close! We wanted to ask you if you know where there is a hotel in the area!"

Silence. Awkward. And Joseph was not the type to give up, quite the contrary.

"Hello?

-... I do not know."

The man turned to go back to his building. Joseph panicked, this interaction was a failure.

"Wait! What do you mean? Well... That one looks weird.

- Your speech was bad", Polnareff told him, "he must not have understood you. Let's ask the man sitting over there. Excuse me? My friends and I are looking for a hotel! With clean toilets if possible! You could... Hey! Are you okay??"

The man fell backwards, and from his open mouth came out two lizards. He was completely dead, a terrified look on his face. (Y/N) went through shivers. Why was there a corpse sitting by the side of the road? And why hadn't that alerted anyone?

"It doesn't look like a simple heart attack," Jotaro said as he approached the body. "He has a gun in his hand. And smoke is coming out of the barrel.

- He just fired," Joseph muttered. "Two minutes ago... Or maybe five.

- Just before we arrive", (Y/N) concluded. "It's not a suicide, his body is unharmed.

- How did he die then?" Polnareff asked, panicking. "Look at his expression! You can almost hear him scream in terror!

- None of the residents noticed?" Kakyoin asked. "You over there, excuse me! Someone died, can you call the police?"

The woman he had just called turned around, a baby in her arms and a child held by her hand. She met Kakyoin's gaze, who began to tremble. And that, (Y/N) noticed immediately. She took his hand in hers before looking for the reason for his fear. She understood very quickly. The woman's face was covered in oozing pustules.