[JoJo's Bizarre Adventure] Standstill Bonds

Chapter 39 ~ Into the Lion's Den

In the back halls of the church, Hiroshi and Giorno slipped through stealthily. The distant echo of Pucci's sermon provided them with an unsettling backdrop to their search. The first rooms offered no sign of Josephine's stand disc, nor her memories.

Giorno, glancing around yet another room, asked, "Anything in here?"

Hiroshi shook his head, "No, let's keep moving."

As they continued their search, Jotaro's voice crackled through their earpieces, seeking an update. Hiroshi, tense but focused, replied, "Nothing yet. We're still looking." The reminder of the passing time was of no help to his anxiety.

As they continued on, Hiroshi abruptly stopped in front of a door, his eyes narrowing. Giorno, momentarily unaware, halted and turned back, "What is it kid?" He asked curiously.

"This office is reserved only for the appointed Priest, so right now, it's Pucci's. It's locked though, I don't have the key."

"Let me kid." Giorno asked and Hiroshi stepped aside for him, watching as Golden Experience Requiem manifested. As it touched the door handle, the latch morphed into a small snake, causing the door to gently push open. Hiroshi, freaked out by the transformation, stumbled backward and to prevent any unwanted detection, Giorno swiftly grabbed the snake before it could slither away.

Giorno then updated Jotaro on their progress. "We're inside Pucci's office," he reported, "We're checking it now."

The office revealed itself to be a compact yet meticulously organized space. Shelves lined with religious texts and documents, a polished desk with neatly arranged papers and an imposing, yet exquisitly carved cherry wood crucifix hanging on the wall. The air inside had a distinct smell of old wood and jasmine. The two of them scrambled desperately in continuance of their search. "Time's running out." Jotaro reminded them.

"Jotaro we're doing our best." Giorno quickly replied.

They opened every drawer, searched every corner, every compartment. Hiroshi's eyes darted around knowing their window of opportunity would soon close, with the possibility of it not returning again. In a moment of mounting frustration and desperation, Hiroshi found himself grappling for a solution. In an internal prayer, he directed a silent plea to the divine, seeking guidance. His forehead furrowed and he pressed his fingertips to his temples, as if trying to extract an answer from the recesses of his mind.

With a sudden realization, Hiroshi's eyes snapped open. "Wait a second," he uttered, a spark of hope lighting up in his eyes. Giorno, sensing a breakthrough, inquired, "What is it?"

Hiroshi's gaze shifted upward to the large crucifix hanging on the wall. "Do you think you can reach that Crucifix? Be careful with it though, this might be Pucci's office now but we must be respectful, it's still the house of God."

Giorno nodded, ensuring he showed a respect for the sacred surroundings and for Hiroshi's faith. As he carefully reached up and removed the crucifix from its fixture, he found a softer section of the wall lay concealed behind it. A stretch of wallpaper, meticulously matching the colour of the surrounding surface. Hiroshi and Giorno exchanged glances before Giorno gingerly extended his hand, pushing through the disguised section, discovering a small horizontal crevice. Prying his fingers furthur inside, Giorno retrieved a package wrapped in delicate fabric. Giorno unwrapped the material, his fingers exploring the contents within. Suddenly, he paused when he felt his fingers touch something cool and thin. Swiftly yet carefully, he withdrew two iridescent CD-like discs from the cloth.

The disks appeared blank at first glance, but when Giorno to flipped them over, on one side was a detailed, irridescent printing of Josephine's stand adorned one disc, while the other featured a striking print of her face. An urgent and wide eyed victorious exchange of looks passed between Hiroshi and Giorno and without delay, Hiroshi relayed the news to Jotaro, "Mr. Jotaro, we did it! We found them!"

Their triumph was however abruptly interrupted by the arrival of a mysterious figure, one cloaked in darkness.

"Hand them over... now."

Hiroshi gulped at the intrusion then tapped his earpiece repeatedly, signaling to Jotaro that something was amiss.

"What's going on?" Jotaro's voice blipped.

Hiroshi remained silent, not wanting to alert the enemy to Jotaro's proximity to the church. Meanwhile, Giorno stashed the discs inside his jacket, Golden Experience's energy enveloping him as a warning to the potential threat. Undeterred, the figure summoned his Stand, directing its power toward Hiroshi. A deep violet swirl of cloud-like energy surrounded him, causing him intense pain as his body contorted and collapsed to the ground, strangled groans escaped his throat as the torture burned through ever part of him.

"Stop! What are you doing?!" Giorno exclaimed in horror as he knelt down beside Hiroshi protectively.

The enemy, unfazed, again demanded the immediate surrender of the discs, "Hand over those discs, or he'll suffer more, Cruciare's torture will make him beg for death." the enemy coldly stated.

In response, Giorno summoned Golden Experience Requiem and with a swift strike, it knocked back their adversary. The effects of Cruciare ceased instantly, freeing Hiroshi from the torturous grasp of the enemy's Stand without subjecting him to an eternal death loop, he knew who he wanted to save that for.

"You won't get these discs and I won't let you harm him!" Giorno declared.

Giorno quickly offered the winded and perplexed Hiroshi a hand to help him stand.

"Come on, lets get out of here!" He exclaimed.

Standing up and leaping over the struggling cloaked figure, they sprinted through the church halls. Hiroshi, now guiding Giorno on the way out, suddenly found their path blocked by Aoi. The mysterious cloaked man had soon caught up with them, leaving them trapped between two adversaries.

Facing the hooded figure, Giorno positioned himself back to back with Hiroshi ready to confront Aoi. Both of them summoned their Stands, preparing for a potential battle to escape, one they didn't want to have, but didn't seem like they had a choice.

The cloaked man posed a question, "It's in your best interest to give those back, do you really want to escalate things in the house of God?"

Hiroshi, defiant, snapped back at him turning his head around Giorno to look at the man directly, "Don't you dare patronize me you son of a-" Hiroshi quickly cut himself off before cursing within the sacred walls.

Aoi unleashed his Stand, the green humanoid with extended arm vines reaching straight for Hiroshi, while the cloaked figure's Cruciare was sent charging at Giorno. In response, Giorno and Hiroshi's stands retaliated, setting the stage for a violent clash. However, before their stands could colide, a powerful, booming voice rang out.

"Star Platinum! The World!"

Time came to an instant stop, freezing the unfolding chaos. When time resumed, both enemies were sprawled on the ground, unconscious, leaving Giorno and Hiroshi stunned and confused. Jotaro grabbed at their arms urgently, "Come on, we gotta go now!"

The three of them sprinted through the back halls, Jotaro tapping his earpiece to inform the waiting driver to have the car ready for a quick escape. With only a few minutes to spare before the end of the sermon, they managed to dash around the church and leap into the waiting car. As the driver accelerated away, Jotaro, seated in the front, was quick to inquire about the discs' whereabouts. "Giorno, you said you guys found the discs, do you still have them?"

Giorno, still catching his breath, carefully pulled them out from his inside jacket pocket and handed them to Jotaro. Receiving them, Jotaro nodded to both Giorno and Hiroshi before leaning back into his car seat. Holding Josephine's stand and memory discs in his hand, he felt a profound relief, though their fight was far from over, they had managed to ensure Josephine's life was no longer in the cold grasp of their enemy. She was saved, that was all he cared about.