The Bishop

The coast was clear, Shion opened the door wide, and Chizuru ran out. Two more doors stood on opposite sides of the tunnel, one unlocked and one had a biolock. Shion turned and grabbed a specimen cup and lab bag off the tiered shelving. She bent down, plucked out an eye, and borrowed a blade from Chizuru then in a single swift motion severed Dr. Yamashita's right hand from the rest of his body. The eye went into the specimen cup, and she stuck it in the hand in the plastic bag. Now at least they could open any biolocks he had access to no matter where they were. Similarly, Shion dugout Dr. Yamashita's neurolink and placed it in her pack, Matt would know how to extract information from it, if it was possible.

They decided to try the biolocked one first. Shion held up the cup containing the Dr.'s eye to the scanner then slipped the man's pointer finger out of the bag to the fingerprint reader. There was a loud beep then a click as the door unlocked. Behind the door was another dimly lit tunnel with a waterfall cascading over the edge. In other circumstances, the pair would have taken some time to enjoy the beautiful sight, but at this point the guards had probably realized that Dr. Yamashita was missing and would come searching for them at any moment.

The sound of pounding water was all they could hear as they walked through the passage under the waterfall. Soon the sound of crashing water faded and the two were walking into what appeared to be a mine shaft with a makeshift freight elevator heading deeper beneath the ground. Chizuru put her foot onto the wooden platform and felt it creaking beneath her feet, then backed away.

Chizuru shook her head violently as she shouted, "There is no way in hell I'm stepping on that thing. I really don't want to figure out how far down the drop by counting the seconds before I hit the floor."

Shion gave the thick rope attached to the wooden platform an aggressive tug. When the rope didn't break, Shion grabbed onto it with her legs and arms and began to slide downward. Chizuru waited for Shion to tug on the rope before following her down. In stark contrast to the rest of the cave, this lower level was extremely hot. After just a few steps, both girls found themselves clearing sweat from under their masks.

After about another half mile, the girls were exhausted and both dropped down to the ground to catch their breath. Finally, Shion could feel a slight breeze coming from the direction they were headed. Energy renewed by the rush of cold air, Shion sprung up and ran towards the breeze. Soon the tunnel opened into a gigantic cave adorned with stalagmites and large, tall boulders.

Magma poured into a pool on one side of the cave, while ocean water splashed over the entrance of the cave creating steam as it hit the magma. From another tunnel emerged none other than Bishop Leary or Dr. Tojo as Yamashita himself had confirmed. Adorned in an all-black robe and his ridiculously tall hat, he was the picturesque vision of a clergyman. If not for his sinister smile it would be easy to believe he was a pious man of the cloth.

In his deep and booming voice, Leary addressed the girls, "Oh. I see you could make it. Just as I expected from you two. Bravo. You have done well to make it this far on your own. I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news, however, but this is where your journey ends. Now that you have come to us we longer have to search for the relative of Adam, instead the missing puzzle piece has come to us. We can take you dead or alive, but considering all the trouble you are, I choose... dead. Beyond the tall crescent wall at the mouth of the cave we have 2000 drones just waiting to be activated. But more importantly I have someone you need to meet."

The Bishop called over his shoulder, "Adam! Come and give our guests a proper welcome!"

Shion and Chizuru held their breath as the 6'3" man stepped out of the shadows. His muscles bulged when he walked and his dark brown hair was combed in a neat and militant fashion. Everything was normal about him except that his brown eyes were glazed over as if he was in a trance. Large numbers were tattooed on his wrist, 250. From under his robe, Bishop Leary pulled out an injection with two different colored liquids in it and slammed it into Adam's thigh.

Bishop Leary pulled out a tablet and clicked a few times then commanded Adam, "Go get the red head, kill the other one." The Bishop appeared to crank some kind of dial with his finger before turning and walking deeper into the tunnel.

Without warning, Adam appeared right in front of Chizuru. The instant before Adam could grab her, someone swung down from out of nowhere and carried Chizuru out of reach before they both went rolling to the ground.

Shion recognized the shadow right away, "Sayaka!" she called before racing in their direction, Adam at her heels. Shion drew her club and swung around blocking a fist aimed straight at her back. Shion slid backwards on the damp rock and yelled out to her companions with tears forming in her eyes, "You two go after the Bishop. I'll handle Adam. Quickly. And Sayaka. Thank you."

Chizuru got up to protest but Sayaka grabbed her arm, "If something happens to you, Shion will not be ok." Chizuru stared back at Sayaka's gorgeous unmasked face, gritted her teeth and ran towards the place where the Bishop was standing.

Shion yelled at Adam as he attempted to veer off in Chizuru's direction, "Hey there big guy! I'm your opponent right now! You aren't going anywhere till I say so!"

The two squared off, slowly inching towards each other. In a literal flash the two flew at each other and exchanged blows. When they retreated Shion looked down at her club to see a large dent in it. She threw it aside. Hand to hand it was then. Shion couldn't help but let tears escape her eyes as memories of her childhood flooded her mind. Images of Shion reading books with her father, going on walks in the tunnels, and the gentle smiles he would give her when their eyes met ran through her mind in a flash.

Her voice was quiet and unsure, and Shion trembled as she spoke, "Papa, you don't recognize your own child?" the two exchanged blows again, this time Shion came out with blood dripping down the side of her face.

Shion balled her fists and yelled indignantly, "Papa it's me. Papa, it's Shion!" A blow came towards her face but then she saw Adam's arm twitch as he redirected his fist hitting the rock behind her.

Shion instinctively jumped to the side. Was that twitch just a coincidence or was her father still in there? She couldn't be sure, but her eyes stopped watering, and she could feel herself relaxing. Meanwhile, Chizuru and Sayaka made it to the place where the Bishop spoke and continued into the dark tunnel. The Bishop was in his 60's and appeared to have a limp, so he wasn't going to be able to escape so easily.

Chizuru turned to Sayaka and shyly said, "Thanks for having my back out there, I really...," Sayaka cut her off before she could finish talking, "Don't thank me. None of this was for you. I just didn't want to see Shion more hurt than she already is. And let me make something very clear. I am madly in love with Shion, if something was to happen to you, she's mine, but because she chose you I'll make sure you don't get hurt. So please do not ever thank me. Now come on let's get this fucker."

Something about the way Sayaka spoke reminded her immediately of Shion. Sayaka's long brown hair and brown eyes attenuate the thinness of her face. Chizuru wanted to hate Sayaka, but she really couldn't blame her for being fiercely protective of Shion since she was the same. The two started up at a light jog down the tunnel.

Chizuru spoke to Sayaka while avoiding her eyes, "I get it. I would be the same way if the shoes were reversed. I do have one question for you as someone who loves Shion like I do, do you think she will be alright? She is facing her father after all."

Sayaka sighed, " Yes Shion is a lot stronger than I think anyone can understand, but let's hurry just in case she needs our help. Adam was a whole different brand of monster from any of the people you have ever faced.”

Soon the two caught up to Bishop Leary who held an empty syringe in his hand and began retching and gasping before collapsing to the ground.