The Dark Era

Ch.35 Innocent Children

"..."

I was walking down a long hallway all by myself. It's the next day, in the afternoon. The hallway was quiet and empty...a good place to think if I needed to.

"..."

I suddenly feel something land on my head.

"Jeez, what's with that thinking face? It's so...unlike you."

I take the item off my head to find an old, tattered stuff dog. I immediately look back up to find my other mentor.

"Chuuya-san, you're back."

"Yeah. But, I'm leaving again in a few hours. I'll be going to South America this time."

"So you're not staying..."

"...I heard what's happening. Akutagawa is still in the infirmary, right?"

"Yes."

"...You were about to go see him, weren't you?"

"...Yes."

"That'll have to wait."

I give Chuuya back the plushie before facing the voice behind me. Dazai walks up to the two of us with a serious expression.

"We have to go, Shiori."

"...Okay."

I face Chuuya again.

"Bye, Chuuya-san. I'll see you when you get back."

"See ya, Shiori."

Chuuya continues his way down the hall as I follow Dazai in the opposite direction.

"Where are we going?"

"...It's Odasaku... Mimic killed the children..."

~~~~Time Skip~~~~

"Odasaku."

We arrive at the small restaurant that Odasaku brought me to when he was taking care of me. There was a few firetrucks and some police cars.

Odasaku was standing behind a crowd of onlookers, staring at the rising smoke coming from what was left of a van. Dazai called out to him as he did. Odasaku simply turns his head towards us.

"I know exactly what's going through your head. Don't even think about it. Doing that won't-"

"Doing that won't bring the kids back?"

Odasaku finishes Dazai's sentence while returning his gaze to the pitch-black clouds.

"There's still a good number of them left. Not to mention, their location is-"

"I already know where they are... They sent me an invitation." Odasaku cuts Dazai off again.

"Listen to me. The boss is supposed to be going to a secret meeting with the Supernatural Ability Special Investigation Division. There's still something we don't know about all of this."

Odasaku turns towards us and starts walking pass us. He stops behind us as he responds in a quiet voice. 

"No, Dazai. There isn't 'something'. There's nothing..."

"Odasaku-san..."

"It's all over."

"Odasaku. I know this is gonna sound strange, but... Hear me out. Find something to depend on. Doesn't matter what it is. Put your faith in something that will happen in the future. Whatever it is, it will come to pass. It has to..."

"..."

"Say, Odasaku... Do you know why I joined the Port Mafia in the first place?"

Despite all the time we've spent together, Dazai has never told this to any of us.

"It's because I had expectations that something would happen... Violence. Death. Instinct. Desire... By existing in a world of such raw emotion, I can experience true human nature. By doing that, I figured..."

Dazai pauses for a moment.

"I figured I might find a reason to live..."

Odasaku's responds in a quiet tone.

"I wanted to be a writer..."

Dazai and I turn to face Odasaku as he continued.

"I thought I would lose the right to do so if I killed again. So I stopped."

"Odasaku..."

"But that's over now too."

Odasaku begins walking away.

"Wait! Odasaku!"

Dazai tries to grab hold of Odasaku, but comes away with nothing but the air.

"I've only one desire..."

Dazai didn't like hearing that.

"Odasaku!!"

His shouting falls on deaf ears. Odasaku continues to walk... He doesn't look back as he did.

Rain begins to pour down on us as Odasaku disappears into the distance. It was like the sky was crying for a tragedy yet to happen.

I look up at Dazai. He was staring at the last place we saw our friend.

"..."

I wrap my arms around him in attempt to comfort him.

"Shiori..."

I look up at him.

"...The feeling I told you about... It's turning into reality."

"...I'm right here." I reassure him.

I hug him a bit tighter as I burry my face in his shirt.

"I'll always be right here."