“Alright, here we are.” said Kristen, as the ramp extended from the hull of the ship and gingerly landed on the concrete dock across from it.

Ferain examined the surroundings as she crossed, her boots lightly tapping against the metal, leaving minuscule clinks in her wake. It was a small harbor in Koto City, one that was also occupied by mostly fishing vessels and ferries and a couple of passenger ships as well. Of course, like Kristen’s own ship, there were a few others unloading cargo and empty containers in order to make room for supplies and more goods to be transported elsewhere. There were a few parking lots in the distance, full of cars and trucks that probably belonged primarily to the dock workers. She couldn’t really make out any landmarks from where she was, just more similar looking buildings and warehouses to what was already in her vicinity.

There wasn’t a point in trying to act familiar with this place either, having never been here before. Still, she had the information she needed in order to get around, thanks to Itani. She knew the names of areas she needed to be, the names of the people she might need to contact, and the whereabouts of Kiko’s general location. On top of all of this, she knew the route he’d be taking for the transfer, and she already had a good idea of where she was going to cut his trip short. According to her information, he’d be following the highway across the Arakawa River, passing through Urayasu, and boarding a ship in Funabashi, where he’d then be forever out of her reach until the inevitable day where he managed to find her again. She knew that if he escaped this time, she would pay for it dearly in the end.

Not just her either, but her friends, and worst of all, Anita. He almost killed her once because of Ferain’s stupidity and trust. This was a mistake she would not be making again. After sleeping on everything that was said between her and Kristen, she woke up with a determination to see this through, no matter what. It was her choice, and she made it the second she asked for Itani’s help. At this point, there was no turning back. She cut her ties, buried her feelings for the man she respected above any other, and was already here. Too much had gone into it, and if it was all for nothing, if the bruises, the sleepless nights, the broken body, the spilt blood were all for naught… then she really would be lost.

Ferain had to make it count, she had to. It was her purpose, and after that, no matter what Kristen said, she knew it couldn't be any worse than what she was already going through. After crossing over, thinking about her next course of action and when she should start preparing, she heard her name, or, her false name called out to her. Fera turned to see Kristen tugging a bag onto her shoulder as she followed closely behind.

“A little warning before you head off. The city isn’t what it was even a couple of months ago. There are some places where it’s really not wise to be outside at night, and in others… In other places, it’s not even safe during the day.”

“Because of the riots?” asked Ferain.

Kristen gave a short snorting laugh. “If they can even be called that anymore. The news has already started calling any and all ‘riots’ domestic terrorism. That’s the level we’re reaching nowadays. All I’m saying is to be safe. It’s dangerous out there anymore. You never know when a wielder is going to blow a fuse or a human is going to draw a gun.”

“I’m aware, I’ve been keeping up with it.” Fera said grimly. “I’ll be fine.”

They didn’t share any words after that as Ferain began walking off into the distance, keeping her head low and her hands stuffed in her pockets, mostly to hide the bandaged one. According to Itani’s information, she still had the day to prepare, and she had an idea of how she wanted to spend it. There was something else she needed to do, something that would take some time, but it was equally as important as Kiko. This was because if she didn’t do it now, she may never get the chance again. If her planned attack on Kiko failed, if she was apprehended or killed, this opportunity might very well be forever out of her grasp. Ferain waved a passing cab over and saw it stop a few yards down the road after having noticed her.

“Where can I take you?” asked the elderly driver as he smiled back at her.

“Chuo.” she answered, before giving him the name of a hospital that she’d never once visited. She only knew it because of her grandmother, and only cared because of the man who stayed on the sixteenth floor of the building.

The drive was shorter than she expected, only taking about half an hour or so. She paid the driver before leaving the cab behind. The old man asked if he should wait for her, but she didn’t want him sitting there for an undetermined amount of time. She didn’t know how long this visit would take, or if she would even be able to just walk out of the hospital once it was done. There was a small chance, but an existing one, that she might hurt or kill the man she wanted to see. There was still a light rain coming down this morning, and this time, she didn’t use her abilities to keep herself dry. When she walked through the doorway, after the glass obstacles had slid out of her way with a crisp hissing noise, she had specks of rain all over her hat and jacket.

The lobby was the stereotypical idea of a hospital. Pristine, white everywhere from the ceilings to the floors, and an entire waiting area that was full of chairs, would-be patients, and their respective family or friends. Opposite of the doors, she saw a long curved desk that was sectioned off from the lobby, having two sets of wooden doors on either side that led into the room behind it. Standing on the other side were several nurses, one of which, a young blonde one with hazel eyes, beckoned Ferain over.

“How can I help you?” she asked kindly, which earned her a grin from Ferain that probably sent a shiver up her spine.

“I’m here to visit my father.” she said softly.

“O-of course, miss. Your name?”

“Ferain Hirigaya.”

“Hiri…” muttered the nurse as she looked up from her computer to look more closely into Ferain’s eyes.

“I know he hasn’t had many visitors, but I wanted to see him. Would you mind showing me the way?”

“Of course, Ms. Hirigaya. Here, let me just get your visitor pass in order.” She continued typing on her keyboard before asking Ferain to hold up her wrist. As Ferain did, she heard a printer working away behind the desk, which quickly produced a thin paper band that was soon clasped around her revealed outstretched limb. “I’ll come around and take you myself.” she added, rising from her seat to make for one of the doors.

Shortly after, Ferain was following her into an elevator on the far side of the lobby, which quickly took them up towards her father’s floor. There was another nurse’s station directly outside the lift, and dozens of doors with holographic plaques beside them could be seen as she started working her way down the corridor. Eventually, the pair of them arrived at a plaque that read out her family name, meaning she was only seconds away from meeting a person she hadn’t seen face to face in eleven years. It would be different, she was aware of that, but there was a part of her that was afraid to find the same man that shot her all that time ago. She was worried he would be standing there, his gun pointing directly at her, and a face of pain and hatred and remorse plain for all present to witness.

“Would you like me to accompany you inside?” asked the nurse.

“That won’t be necessary.” Ferain murmured, pushing past her and reaching for the silver door handle with her right hand.

Her reaching, wrapped fingers trembled as they touched the metal. Her heart was racing while her mind questioned what she was even doing here. She made her peace with not seeing him again, she decided that it would be best to forget he existed. Still, deep within herself, she felt it was necessary for moving on, just as much as finishing things with Kiko was. Fera took a steadying breath before pushing down on the handle, undoing the latch that kept it shut. She pushed it open, taking in the room as quickly as she could while entering. There was monitoring equipment organized neatly on the counters within the room, and there were a few along the side of the bed that beeped consistently, making it clear that the sole occupant of said furnishing was very much alive and well. The thin, frail-seeming figure that was resting in an elevated position atop the mattress was staring out of a massive rectangular window, showing them the city-scape as gray skies and a light drizzle blocked out the sun and kept the world cool.

This man’s dark colored hair was dull, having lost its sheen from either age or lack of health. It was also shaggy and unkempt, something that was undoubtedly from his condition and his position of being here for so long. What did it matter how you looked when the only people that ever came to see you were a few nurses and a dying old woman? He had no reason to keep up appearances or to clean himself up anymore. The door creaked quietly as it closed behind her.

“If that’s you, Skylar, I told you that I wanted to be left alone. Why do you have to keep bothering me every hour?” asked a weak, wispy voice that came from the bed’s direction. Ferain made no sounds as she took a step forward, and then another. “Skylar?” the man asked, finally turning his head.

As Ferain anticipated, the stunned face that looked at her now was not the same man from those many years before. There were now wrinkles where they hadn’t existed once, and the dark eyes that were as wide as if he’d seen a ghost were heavy and dull. Even the ruffled black hair had strands of gray entangled within. A scruffy beard and sideburns had now grown in, and it was just as unkempt and curled as the hair was messy and tangled.

“Harriet?” choked Tobi.

“Guess again.” Fera murmured, glowering at him with no hint of pity, only rage. She was angered by the unfairness of it all. The fact that this man was alive while her mother was dead ran through her veins like a poison. The thought made her sick, and an image that once would have revolted her became so enticing, it was hard to avoid acting on it. She knew now, without any shred of doubt, that she wanted to kill this man just as much as she did Kiko.

“Ferain?” he then gasped. “Fera, is that you?”

“Don’t call me that.” Fera growled.

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

“Your grandmother said you wanted nothing to do with me. I didn’t expect to see you.”

“I don’t.” Fera stated. “But, this may be my last chance. I had some questions, and I needed to know where I stood on something. I never knew how I would react to seeing you. I was worried that I might try and forgive you. Now I know that it’s impossible. You shouldn’t be here. You shouldn’t be awake.”

“I can’t blame you for feeling that way.” Tobi said softly. “I made a mistake.”

“A mistake?!” Fera shouted. “Your mistake caused all of this! It cost me my parents! It cost me my life! A mistake?!”

“I’m sorry.” muttered Tobi. “Harriet wasn’t supposed to be caught up in that.”

“Well, that makes me feel better.” Fera stated, walking towards the bed. “It’s good to know that Mom’s death is the only thing you’re sorry for. Not shooting your own child. No, that was right, that was just, wasn’t it?”

“You don't understand. I had to do it. You were a danger to everything around you. According to Emma, you’re better now though.”

“You and Grandmother can go rot.” Fera’s eyes began to glow as she held up her left hand as it came alive with electricity. “I should do it. I want to do it.” came a hissing tone through gritted teeth and clenched jaws. “But you’re not worth it. I have one question for you before I leave, that’s all I want and I’ll let you sit here and waste away. A friend of mine said that you were working with some people in the past. She implied that I might be in danger from them. Is it true?”

Instead of answering right away, he chose to look out the window again. For a moment, she thought he was simply ignoring her, refusing to answer her question, but as she was about to make another demand or threat, he began to speak.

“Yes. I did have some colleagues in the past that dabbled in some nasty things. When I asked Emma to bring you to me, that was one of the reasons why. I wanted to warn you myself. I don’t know if those people are still active, but if they are, they might set their sights on you at some point.”

“Why?”

“Because, I promised them. I was stupid, and I told them that I’d let them have you.”

“You what?” Fera spat.

His head shifted so fast and the look in his eyes was so crazed, she took a step back on pure instinct alone, possibly worried he’d attack her. “You don’t understand. You were a monster, Ferain. You were out of control and there was nothing your mother or I could do about it. Even when your powers first came in, you were too strong. Your powers were hurting your own body, and you would lash out at everything around you without meaning to. These people, I met them some time before you were born. They were studying wielders in ways nobody else was. They said they could help so I promised that they could take you. I just had to get you away from Harriet, but she refused.”

“Then why try to kill me? If you had a way to get rid of me, why resort to that?”

“They were going to kill your mother in order to collect you themselves. If it was between you or Harriet… I had to choose.”

“And you chose her.” Fera breathed. “I have one more question then. You said you wanted to warn me. Why now? You don’t seem to care about me. Why bother?”

“So you can give yourself up if they do come calling. That way, you can protect those you’re getting close to. Otherwise, you’ll get them all killed too, just like you did Harriet.”

Fera looked up at him with narrow, animalistic eyes that were as bright as ever. The machines around the room began to spark and smoke as blue currents suddenly burst around them. The air became heavily charged with energy as her body became engulfed in an armor of static.

“Don’t put that on me. That was because of your choices.”

“Which I made because you were born. After all, you were the biggest mistake of her life, whether she wanted to admit it or not.” In a flash of light, Fera was perched atop the bed, one hand clasped around his frail throat while her right hand was in the air with electrified claws at the ready. Her breathing was growing heavy and her heart felt hollow. There was no other word for it anymore. “Are you going to kill me?” he asked her. “Just like how you killed your mother?”

“Shut up!” Fera screamed, swiping down at his face.

For several seconds, Ferain could only hear her own heart pounding in her chest, and the mixture of hers and her father’s hastened breathing. Another three seconds passed before her eyes dimmed, her breathing steadied, and her shocking claws returned to normal. Just by Tobi’s head, burned into the fabric of his pillow, were four long slashes. Tobi was left in a state of bewilderment and speechlessness. Ferain, on the other hand, managed to finally feel the oxygen flooding into her lungs again.

“I didn’t come here to kill you.” she said, gritting her teeth, biting down on them so hard she thought they might shatter. “All of these years, I’ve always wondered whether you ever loved me, or if it was always just Mom. Before that night, I wondered how much of it was a lie. I looked up to you once. I knew you would always protect us. When I didn’t know it was you chasing us that night… No, even after I knew it was you… I thought you were there to keep us safe from the real threat. Afterwards, during all of these years, there was still a little bit of love for you still in here.” Fera said, tapping her chest with a finger. “I have my answer now.”

Ferain climbed off of the bed, grabbed the hat that fell off when she charged for her father, and placed it back atop her head. Looking over her shoulder, she grinned. “Thank you. Now that I know the truth, I don’t have to carry that burden anymore. I hope whatever is left of your life is spent remembering the look on Mom’s face when you betrayed her. I hope every good memory you have of her sits on your brain like a poison that slowly eats away at you. I want you to suffer as much as I did for all of this time.” Fera turned towards the door and reached out for the handle.

“Fera.” he called out to her, using such a defeated tone that it almost made a tinge of pity rise up in her freezing heart. She didn’t look back, she only stopped, giving him just enough time to say what he wanted. “If you think I’m the only one lying about something, you’re just as ignorant as a child. Your entire life started as a lie. Harriet lied to you, I lied to you, your grandmother too. Even Guji is lying to you. You condemn me for lying about loving you? I’m only one of the people that belong on that list, sweetie. I hope you carry that for the rest of your life, the knowledge that everyone that you thought cared about you were nothing more than liars, fibbing their way into the heart of a monster that doesn’t deserve to still be alive. I’ll give you one final truth before you walk out that door. I never loved you. I never wanted you. Nobody ever wanted you.”

Ferain closed her eyes, swallowing down the emotions that were threatening to overtake her, and pulled the door open. With a slow inhale, and an equally steady exhale, she lifted her head and started for the elevator. When she was alone in the lift, when any prying eyes were off of her, her back hit the metal wall and she slid down into a balled up position. Her father’s words, Guji’s words from before she left, and all of Itani’s lessons all played back in her mind. They spun around and around like a carousel of unwanted phrases and undesired collections of memories. This wasn’t a surprise, that wasn’t why it hurt so bad. She knew everyone was hiding something. She even confronted Guji about it, yet he refused to give an explanation of any kind. If she had to be honest, she didn’t really know why it hurt so terribly. If she had to guess, however, she’d say this fresh pain was caused by what remained of her heart shattering into nearly unrecognizable fragments.

As the lift reached the ground floor and the doors slid open with their accompanying bell-like signal, Fera was already on her feet. She marched out of the elevator and across the lobby, only stopping to smile at the woman who showed her the way earlier. Her final destination before dealing with Kiko was a new one, one that she didn’t plan on visiting originally, but she figured she had to time for one last detour. The next cab she hailed pulled over to allow her in, and she was off towards her old home. She didn’t intend on actually visiting, just in case her grandmother was there for some reason, but she wanted to see the house one last time. During the trip, however, they came across a series of blocked intersections.

Officers were making sure motorists didn’t attempt to get through the blockade of warning signs and caution tape. Several police cruisers, as well as other emergency vehicles, were also present at each obstructed route that they came across.

“What happened?” asked Ferain, watching the dozens of begging people that seemed to desire passage, but they were all being denied.

“Ain’t seen nothing like it in my life, I tell you.” said the elderly man that was her driver. “An entire section of the district was reduced to rubble. Houses were turned upside down, and dozens of families were either killed or left without homes to return to. According to the folks that got out of it, the roads just shifted and blew up, tearing their homes apart in the process.” explained the man.

“Earthquake?” asked Ferain.

“That’s what the news is saying, but, ehhh… I don’t personally believe it. Wielder, more like. I tell you, this escalating violence is nothing but wasteful nonsense. Breaks my old heart, it does, seeing so much unnecessary death and destruction. People should just get along, you know? Can’t be that hard to hold out a hand for somebody or ask how a person’s day was. Hell, it’s my job, I do it every day.”

“Do you really think something so simple would work?” Fera inquired.

“Not at this point, sorry to say.” the man answered. “No, we’re too far gone now. The chicken’s well and truly cooked. A shame, really. Makes me feel for the wielders at those schools.”

“Why?” Fera asked.

“Well, who do you think will be the first to get enlisted? Tell you what, kid, if you think wielders have equal rights to humans, you’re wrong. No, the government will enlist the kids before even sending out human soldiers. It’s what they were made for, after all.”

“It’s not like we’re expendable.” growled Fera. “We’re still people.”

“Right as rain, you are, but they don’t see it like that. Wielders will be the first line of defense in the case of a war breaking out. On top of that, it will be wielders killing wielders, I imagine. They’ll use the kids and volunteers to start getting the supposed rebels in line before targeting any humans.”

“What makes you say that? How would you know?”

“I don’t, but my gut is hardly ever wrong. With a new human governor about to be elected as well, it’s only a matter of time anyway. He’s spoken out about putting leashes on the wielder population here in the Sakura Nation, starting in Japan and working his way outward. Eventually, he promises to share his policies with the other nations too. A real tragedy.” the man muttered, shaking his aged head. “Seems like every human politician that’s running is turning this into a competition over who can strip more rights away from wielders in the shortest amount of time.” He looked in his mirror and saw Fera’s contemplative face and smiled. “I’m sorry, kid. I didn’t mean to get you down. Try not to worry about it too much. Besides, like I said, it will be those students that’ll be enlisted first. An old friend of mine that worked on the board of national security some ten years ago now said that the whole purpose of keeping those places open was to train future soldiers. But, you’re not there, are you? You’re all the way back here, safe from it. You’ll be spared for a while.”

“Soldiers.” Fera repeated silently. “I wonder if Guji knows about that.” she wondered, watching the world pass by as they continued. After a minute, she looked at the time on the man’s car radio and glowered. “Change of plans, sir. Can you take me to Koto instead?”

“I don’t see a problem with it, but can I ask why the sudden change of heart?”

“I’m running out of time. I didn’t expect the detours to show up and I’m on a tight schedule. If I have the time, I’ll come back later.” Fera said, smiling at the older man.

She gave a final look back as the cab changed course, imagining what was left of her house, as it resided in this very part of the city. She then decided that she would come back, just to see it, but there was Kiko to deal with first and foremost. She had one shot at him, and a thousand other opportunities to see some rubble on the side of the road. If she had to choose which to go to first, she knew which one was more important.