Side Story III : Only Youthful Scars (III)

Chimes rang as the house door slowly opened, and a crippling Haru appeared at the entrance.

He moved forward, barely lifting up his legs.

Muffled howls came from his lips as every movement shot fire to his limbs.

He gripped and pressed a towel against his wounds, all below his abdomen already drenched in red.

The living room was impossibly far, despite how close he is.

The house tiles, once pristine, were painted in a scarlet trail he left behind.

His world is already spinning, and his limbs are refusing to cooperate. Pain stung everywhere, his breathing coming in sharp gasps.

But along the wavering and blurry vision, he managed to catch the figure of his personal caretaker.

His lips parted, but a voice was barely formed.

“S-shi…on…”

The clatter of the kitchen stopped.

And then…

The sharp sound of plates breaking.

Shion immediately dashed forward, her eyes flickering in an unusual blue at the sight of the child she swore to take care of.

“Haru-sama!” she called out, her mechanical limbs whirring in activation.

She catches Haru before he could collapse on the floor.

“What happened, Haru-sama?” as she held his shoulders tight.

But Haru didn’t answer.

His labored breathing and the bloodstains spreading to her apron alone held the answers.

She stopped, calculating the best course of action to take.

Then she pressed another cloth to Haru’s soaked shirt.

While her other hand reached for a roll of gauze, but before she could act, a voice pierced through the kitchen.

“Haru!”

A shadow rushed downstairs.

His mother.

Fumi’s face twisted in horror at the sight of her son—bloodied, barely standing, cradled by the family’s Sentinel.

Behind her, Kenji, already in a lab uniform, stormed forward, his breath caught between disbelief.

Fumi immediately reached for the gauze, barely catching herself as she fell to her knees beside Haru.

“Oh my—what happened to you!” she gasped, her voice breaking.

She lifts Haru’s palm, colors slowly starting to pale.

“Go start the car, Shion!” Kenji snapped, barely keeping composure upon the sight of his beaten son. “Take the wheels and we’ll perform first aid!”

Shion immediately responded, grabbing the keys behind the door and rushing to the garage. The distant sound of keys jingling and a car door slamming echoed through the house.

And engines roared to life.

Meanwhile, Fumi and Kenji kept Haru conscious.

Fumi pressed down on the wound, her fingers stained red. "Haru, stay with me, okay?" Her voice wavered, but she steeled her resolve.

“I still can…don’t worry.” he responded, forcing a smile to his lips. “They will…never show up again…”

“Talking could come later, son.” Kenji followed, lifting him up. “Just focus on keeping yourself awake. We'll be at the hospital soon.”

As Haru's eyelids grew heavier, all he could ever think of was his act of revenge.

How he saved his family. How easy it is to lose one’s life.

His breaths turned shallower, his limbs limp in Kenji’s arms.

A few seconds passed and they were already in the car.

Fumi gently placed Haru in the backseat, staying beside him while Kenji climbed in.

Shion barely waited for the doors to shut before slamming on the gas. The tires screeched against the pavement as the car sped into the empty streets, the scenery blurring past them.

"Hold on, Haru," Fumi whispered, stroking his hair, her grip never loosening.

Shion adjusted the front mirror, keeping her scanners locked on him.

His pulse was weak. His temperature was dropping. He was slipping too fast.

She had read about this. Organ failure. Shock. Blood loss beyond the body's limit.

Her system screamed at her to perform emergency procedures, but she was not programmed for that—let alone take her hands off the steering wheel.

She was a helper Sentinel, not a doctor.

The car was heavier than it had ever been, and each second felt infinite. The silence was loud, their hearts wanted to be ripped out in the open.

“Shion…” Haru mumbled slowly, breaking the spell. “Tell me a story.”

Hearing that, everyone flinched, turning to him.

“Sweetheart…” Fumi responded, pausing on covering his wound briefly. “Not right now…”

“Shion is driving.” Kenji added, his fingers leaping in the phone screen feverishly. Probably looking for the nearest hospitals that can cater them.

“It’s okay, Fumi-sama and Kenji-sama. I am more than capable of multitasking.”

Shion switched gears, and the car gradually slowed down—but it's still overtaking others on the city roads.

As he turned his phone off, Kenji spoke. “I already contacted the nearest hospital that can take us in. But we need a detour on the avenue near the central park to get there faster.”

“But there's a cultural festival taking place there.” Fumi argues, eyes turning to Haru in concern. “Are you sure we could pass through without traffic?”

Kenji hesitates, but swallows hard and composes himself. “That’s our only way.”

Nonetheless, Fumi nodded in agreement.

Silence falls upon the sedan, until Haru breaks it.

“Why is Shion's story taking too long?”

“Apologies, Haru-sama.” Shion’s gears tensed mechanically—as if she cleared her throat.

Then, she began.

“There was once a prince…in a pristine castle. He was small, stubborn—but he did have what other princes never had…confidence.”

“His father was a great king, conquered many nations, and this prince wanted to be like him.”

“When he grew older, and was about to reach the king’s height—he started taking on conquests with his trusted soldiers and commanders. The enemies didn’t anticipate his vigor and skills despite being younger than most of them. He was just a child, but he outsmarted adults. The prince was swift, deadly and determined.”

Haru let out a faint self-mockering chuckle. “Just like me.”

Fumi held his arm tighter, and gave him a reassuring glance.

Shion continued, “One day, there was a ceremony on a faraway kingdom they took down. The king arranged the grandest festival there, and announced that he is passing the crown to the greatest prince.”

“However, a wise old general said that passing it too early will cause conflict in the kingdom, and along with it, other heroes will find it unacceptable.”

“But our young great prince wanted it all, so he was proclaimed.”

Curious, Haru mustered his strength to sit back up the backseat. “What happened next?”

“When they returned home,” Shion started once more. “Their own kingdom was in ruins. Citizens have fled, some were left in the ground, injured. What remained there was the very own soldiers he treated as brothers.”

Haru’s fist clenched tightly. “So they were traitors?” he asked.

Shion’s voice, usually flat and steady, held short answers.

“Yes. And the prince was very furious. He fought all of them, and in the end—he won. But he was badly injured.”

“But then—”

“Then what…?” Haru asked. But the answers didn’t return.

The soft glow in Shion’s hazel eyes flickered.

A static screech echoed.

The sound was faint, but Haru heard it. A sharp, electric crackle, like a wire burning from the inside.

Shion’s fingers twitched on the wheel.

Haru blinked. “Shion?”

“But then—”

“But then—”

“But then—”

It repeated unstoppably, and the noise inside her was deafening.

“Shion!” Kenji dropped his phone, shaking her shoulders.

Fumi gasped, and the car engine started to rev up faster and faster. “What’s happening?”

“F-fumi…sama…” Shion barely mumbled out. More statics resonated, like a radio continually changing channels. “There appears to be…appears to be…a problem in my…control…”

Her limbs twitched, but she tried her best to grip on the steering wheel.

The festival packed with participants loomed closer in the windshield, and the car was not slowing down.

“Ah!” Shion screamed, her hands started to rake violently on her crimson hair, trying to tear them apart. “But then—But then—” she constantly muttered but this time, it was sharper and in pain. She was fighting something unseen.

“Take the wheels, Kenji!” Fumi ordered. “I’ll try to reset her system!”

Kenji jumped to the driver seat, trying to pull the metallic arms of the android off the wheel.

“She’s gripping too tightly!” he groaned, veins starting to pop out his temple in effort.

Her grip was iron, and Kenji tried to counter her turns using his own. The car swerved violently, making Haru scream.

Fumi jumped in the front seats, reaching for Shion’s chest. She was looking for the hard reset chamber.

But at the height of the moment, their eyes met, and Shion’s eyes flickered blue, her hands placing gently on Fumi’s chest.

“I’m sorry, Fumi…sama…and…” her head twitches side to side hastily. “Haru-sama…Kenji-sama…”

“What’s happening…Shion?” Fumi questioned, voice thick with panic and desperation.

Tears fell one by one to Shion’s cloth, right in the flower embroidery which Fumi did herself.

“My…data…ah…”

“Listen to me, Shion!” Kenji voiced out. “Try your best to control your motor functions! Override your system!”

“I’m…trying…” her head jerked back and forth, voice a mess of glitches and statics.

Car horns blared as people screamed. They were already nearing the festival grounds, and Kenji counter-maneuvered precisely, avoiding collision in either lane.

Fumi gripped her arms tightly. The reset interface on Shion’s chest glowed in activation, and Fumi’s tears started to stream wilder.

She knew that resetting Shion not just restarts her functions, but it also wipes her memories of the past 15 years they’ve been together.

In short, she’ll be the Shion that they first met in the factory.

“I love you…Shion…”

Fumi shut her eyes tightly, and lifted her hand, aiming for the reset.

“NO!”

Shion screamed, shoving her arm sideways. Fumi and Kenji was sent into the passenger seat.

Ice trailed on Haru’s veins. He had never heard Shion talk that way, let alone hurt his parents.

“Shion…”

She wasn’t supposed to do that. A twinge shot from Haru’s chest—more than the wounds he’s carrying.

But he can’t do anything. He was already badly injured, on the verge of his own demise.

Thoughts started to form, what if he didn’t let his own desires take over him?

Will this never happen if he did?

As if destiny played tricks on him—problems arise at the times he can’t fight back. When he was at his breaking point.

When he’s already vulnerable.

At the front mirror, Shion’s eyes crossed his. It was far from what he had seen before—her eyes turned yellow, black oil streaming beneath it.

“Initiating self destruction.”

Her voice was cold with malefic conviction.

And at the very first time…he felt…fear.

He feared Shion.

The car halted to a stop, just in front of the crowd participating in the festival.

Shion probably has shut down, her head pinned on the steering wheel, motionless. But static came from her core, electricity crawling from her chest to her limbs.

Seeing this, Fumi helped Kenji recover immediately.

“Kenji…” Fumi mumbled. “She’s…”

Their eyes met, and there was an agreement between them that Haru didn’t fully understand—not until years later.

His family had one choice. They could have tried to jump out—but the streets had been too crowded. Too many pedestrians.

If Shion would self-destruct there, there would have been too many casualties.

So his father and mother had done what they always did.

They had put others first.

“Fumi,” his father’s voice was barely a breath. He knew. “I always loved you.”

Fumi nodded solemnly, a bitter smile forming on her lips.

He pulled the lever on reverse, and started to drive away from the crowd.

The lanes turned wide, and traffic became less dense.

Here, it was much safer. He could take them to an isolated corner and leave to safety.

“Shion’s already shut down.” Fumi remarks slowly, inspecting the android. “But her core is destabilizing and heating up quickly. We must hurry up or we’ll get caught with it.”

“I know.” Kenji responded, eyes glued on the road.

He drove faster, steering past other cars seamlessly.

His father took a deep breath. Then—he looked back at Haru.

Soft. Gentle. Like this was just another normal day.

“Well get over this, Ha—”

But a voice rips in the sedan, loud and desperate.

“BUT THEN—”

Shion activates and retaliates, jerking her head back and smashing it on the steering wheel, crushing it.

The car shook violently and swerved sharply, almost crashing to the cars around it. Fumi leaped on the backseat, covering Haru.

Kenji tried to respond, but it was too late. The car was already way out of control.

The last thing Haru saw was the center island before everything turned black.