Erase

Act 64: The Consumed

WEEKS LATER

After weeks and weeks of preparation, the day eventually arrived.

It was the day of Evelyn Lau's 24th birthday. A time for celebration and rejoicing for the White Lion triad.

This year, the Triad decide to host a gala night inside their base of operations, the Kai-En-Tai bar and restaurant. It was meant to celebrate a year of success, not just for Evelyn, but for the White Lion triad as a whole.

But to their sworn rivals, the Red Lion triad, today is the day that Evelyn Lau meets her demise.

The Red Lions, formed by the late Richard Lau's estranged half-brother, Henry Lau, and currently being spearheaded by his right-hand man Ren Hong in light of Henry's deteriorating health, have devised an elaborate plan to assassinate Evelyn Lau on her 24th birthday.

And it shall take place that night. Same time, same place.

-Hideout 2:10 PM-

Yuichi, Jun and Shino each stayed at their secret hideout in Ozawa Bar & Drink, waiting for a signal from Ren himself. Inside, they were still shaken after hearing the news about the deaths of Mayuka's parents weeks before, but they knew they had to push through.

"I still can't get my mind off Mayuka's parents..." Said Yuichi.

"Yeah... to think that a few missing yen would cost them their lives" Jun replied. "That Evelyn is one cruel bitch..."

"Mayu... I just hope she's still alive..." Shino added.

"I do too, honestly. I mean, don't we all?" Said Yuichi.

"Mayuka's our friend. Not just that, but she's Shino's girlfriend as well." Yuichi continued. "I'd risk my whole life and limb... just so nobody close to me dies ever again."

"And once Ren e-mails us, then we might get a chance to save her ourselves..." Yuichi continued.

"I dunno about that, Yuichi." Jun replied. "That guy still makes me feel... uneasy."

"What about him?" Said Yuichi.

"I dunno... but there's that... fucking awful aura around him..." Jun replied. "An aura that I just... can't shake off."

"To be honest... yeah. I sorta feel some creepy vibes around him, too." Said Shino. "Kinda feels like he's using us for something else..."

"See? Shino feels that awful feeling too..." Jun replied.

At this point, Yuichi was fed up with the feelings of mistrust that Jun and Shino were projecting toward Ren.

"Look! If you wanna see Mayuka alive and well, you just follow his orders... okay?!" Said Yuichi. "Ren won't do us harm, and he definitely isn't using us for his own purposes!"

"Yuichi, calm do-" Jun replied.

"I'm sick of this feeling of mistrust!" Said Yuichi. "And I'm sick of feeling like I can't be trusted! It makes me feel... hollow! Just like how I used to!"

"If you two wanted to save Mayuka by your own... then fine! Do it! Nothing's stopping you!" Yuichi continued. "I'll be at Kai-En-Tai, fulfilling Ren's promises and exacting my revenge against the one person who singlehandedly ruined my life!"

Yuichi storms out of the room, in much of the same way that he did weeks before when he left for the underground fighting pit.

"Jun..." Said Shino. "I think something's wrong with Yuichi..."

"He's being consumed by revenge..." Jun replied. "I knew it... I fucking knew it..."

"Consumed... by revenge?" Said Shino.

"Think about it this way: once Yuichi gets done with that Evelyn bitch... what will he be doing next?" Jun replied. "He's dedicated his entire life to avenging his sister that... he hasn't thought about what to do AFTER he gets his revenge."

"What does he do... Where does he go...?" Jun replied. "If he carries on with his plan with that Ren guy, he might end up feeling empty in the end..."

"... and that's assuming that Ren guy isn't planning anything behind his back." Jun replied.

"You think we can do something about this...?" Said Shino. "I mean, we have to stop him...!"

"You do that." Jun replied. "Me? I don't fucking care anymore."

"Tried it once. Can't be fucking arsed to do it again." Jun continued.

"But Jun!" Said Shino.

"Y'know what? How about we go to save Mayuka instead?" Jun replied. "After all, that Ren guy already told us about the abandoned warehouse that she was in."

"I know... but still." Said Shino. "What about Yuichi?"

"He needs to learn his lesson." Jun replied. "And he won't fucking learn jack shit until he's too late."

"But-" Said Shino.

"Look, Shino. Do you want to save your Mayuka or not?" Jun replied.

"I do... but... Yuichi..." Said Shino.

"If I were you, I'd let that Yuichi do what he wants to..." Jun replied. "If he wants to kill that haughty piece of shit himself, then so be it."

"At least that way, he'll realize his flaws and where he fucked up." Jun continued. "Now, come. Let's go save our Mayuka ourselves."

Jun leaves the hideout for the garage to start up Ashura, after which, Shino the  follows suit. Shino takes one last glance at Yuichi, who was about to leave himself, before being interrupted by Jun.

"Come on, Shino." Said Jun. "We don't have all fucking day, y'know?"

As Jun said those words, Shino follows Jun, never looking back.

-Streets 2:51 PM-

Meanwhile, as Jun and Shino prepare to leave for the abandoned warehouse, Yuichi thinks about his choices, and whether or not he was doing the right thing to begin with.

"Should I really go with this?" Yuichi thought.

"On one hand... I don't feel all to confident with Ren... I feel like he has something else planned for me... something I feel I would regret..." Yuichi continued. "On the other hand... this is my one and only chance to exact my revenge... the revenge that I've been longing for a long, long time..."

Yuichi clutches his head in confusion over his conflicting inner thoughts.

"I'm torn..." Yuichi thought.

Eventually, Yuichi receives a message from Ren himself. It read:

"Subject: (no subject)

It's showtime."

Yuichi thinks about Ren's reply for a while, before eventually coming up with his decision.

"It's far too late to look back." Said Yuichi. "I need to do this... for the sake of my sister."

TO BE CONTINUED