Memories of a Rainy Day

Splish. Splash.

The sound of heavy rainfall blended together with my haggard breathing, creating a cacophony of echoes in the narrow alleyway.

Splish. Splash.

My trench coat and fedora had already been soaked. But at this point, I couldn’t distinguish how much of it was the rain, and how much of it was my sweat.

Splish. Splash.

My shoes grew heavier with each step. My eyes started to see only a blur. Chills ran through my entire body.

With my current occupation, I was aware that making enemies would be inevitable. After all, I was a detective — albeit still an amateur. But even then, I only expected to be chased by some goons at worst, or perhaps some organized criminals. Certainly not this.

A crackling sound of thunder ensued. It’s right behind me.

“Screw this!” I shouted in frustration. My hand was still frantically pressing on my phone screen to no avail. Cheaping out of a waterproof screen really bit me in the ass at times like this.

A flash of white burst before me, along with it came sparkles and buzzing sounds like a fireworks display. Lightning had struck a telephone pole, and along with it came the rumbling of something. I couldn’t make out the sound, but it had a mix of an engine rev, as well as the clanging of metal.

Before me stood a figure, but it was hardly human in appearance. Around the body was more akin to a skeletal structure covered around a leather-like, yet metallic-looking jet-black suit. The top was a helmet similar to a kabuto, but the face was covered by a black skull. The arms and legs were covered with the same kind of skeletal plating, highlighted with gold lines running from the shoulder to the tip of the finger. In its hand was a weapon that was similar to a sword at the top, but rounded in the middle and was pointed at both ends. But the most disturbing trait had to be the constant crackling that was coming out of that pointed weapon — pure, untamed lightning.

How did it come to this?

*

A few hours ago…

A knock came from behind my door. How odd. Of course, getting customers was a good thing, but frankly speaking, I wasn’t someone that would receive many in my two short years on the job.

“Come in,” I said.

As the door opened, my surprise was pushed even further. A middle-aged man, a bit small in height but rather large in, hmm, “stature” stepped in the room. He bore a similar appearance to any old man, complete with a complexion that had weathered the years, a gray head of hair, and an equally silver-y mustache. The cane he carried with him bore no assistance to his actual walking, however, but merely a decoration — his style, in essence.

Of course, this was no ordinary middle-aged man. I could recognize that frayed, old suit, as well as that especially shiny Metropolitan Police badge anywhere.

“Uncle Kuroda,” I bowed. “You’re visiting at this hour? May I treat you to some tea? Or would you like…”

“I’ve told you many times, call me ‘Chief’,” answered the old man in a gruff tone as he lightly whacked me in the leg with his cane, mainly for scolding rather than to actually hurt me. “You’re on the job right, Detective Tatsumiya?”

Hearing those words sent a wave of embarrassment onto my head, causing me to scratch my nose in shame. “I appreciate the offer, Uncle, but…”

“Chief,” another light whack on the leg.

“Ah, right… Chief Kuroda. I’m glad you seem to have a request for me, but…”

“‘I’ve only taken small cases like tailing stalkers and finding lost cats’, right?” Uncle Kuroda smirked. “Don’t worry, I know…”

He suddenly paused for a minute, seemingly choosing his words. In the end, the man let out a sigh.

“This case is for you… Renji.”

I had known Uncle Kuroda since forever. He was always the stickler for jobs and roles, with his reprimanding me being one of the many examples. But for him to almost immediately drop all the formalities and address me by name could only mean one thing.

“You mean…”

“Yes. I have news on Reiko. Or at least, rumors.”

“Big Sis Reiko…” I mumbled.

My only family left for as long as I remembered. We lost our parents at a young age, so she was responsible for raising me to adulthood. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she was both my mother and father at the same time.

And yet, two years ago, right on the day of my high school graduation, she just… disappeared. Without a trace. With my limited skills and Uncle Kuroda’s help, I made this detective office just to find anything I could about her, but all I managed to do was solving small, mundane cases.

At least, until now.

Uncle Kuroda took out from his pockets a myriad of different photos, laying them on the tea table one by one. Each of them depicted a different photo of equally random locations — a warehouse, an amusement park, a harbor, a karaoke, a family restaurant.

“We’ve been having a series of missing people recently,” he continued. “The strangest thing is, there’s nothing in common about the victims so far — they have no mutual acquaintances, they work in very different fields, they don’t even share the same hobbies. Ring a bell?”

“Don’t tell me…” My eyes widened in shock. I had seen this case before.

Around two years ago, there was a series of missing people all around the city. No culprit was found… nor any victims as well. The number tallied up to exactly one hundred cases — a record scale for an unsolvable mystery. The victims shared nothing in common as well. Or rather, with a number that large, finding something in common was incredibly hard.

And the last one was Reiko. After her disappearance, things just… stopped. As if these people had never existed in the first place.

“But…”

“I know what you’re thinking, Renji,” before I had the chance to continue, Uncle Kuroda had already let out a sigh. “There’s still no proof that it’s the same case, right?”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“While there is nothing in common between the victims, there is one thing similar: look.”

As the man lightly tapped on the pictures, I grabbed one and took a closer look. And soon enough, my doubts were clear.

There it was. That back-length black hair. That pure, almost pale, white and unblemished skin. Those dark eyes, lifeless but burning with passion at the same time. I just knew it.

“Reiko…”

“Close,” nodded Uncle Kuroda. “There’s no proof to confirm that she’s indeed your sister, but she has appeared in every picture we’ve taken of the crime scenes so far.”

Checking his other photos, I soon realized Uncle’s words were true. The woman in question was there, subtly hiding in every frame, almost intentional in her appearance. But the problem was…

“Why?” I muttered. “For one, there’s no way Sis is involved in this case.”

“I know, Renji,” Uncle Kuroda sighed. “I know Reiko too. Both of you were good children. I don’t believe she’d be responsible for these crimes either, but this is the only proof we have. This case hasn’t been publicized yet, and that’s why I’ve come to you. I’ll get some of my other men to search in the scenes as well, you keep an eye out for anything unusual. If you manage to find this woman, notify me as soon as you can. And if she’s really your sister…”

“Then I’ll get her back here even if I have to drag her kicking and screaming,” I clutched the picture in my hand, almost crushing it. “Thanks, Uncle. I’ll call you as soon as I find her.”

“Oh, and remember, Renji,” as he stepped out of the door, Uncle Kuroda poked his cane onto my chest one final time. “No running off on your own. I’ve known you long enough to know that your head is on the clouds a lot of times. Got it?”

“... Of course, Uncle,” I firmly nodded. Only then did Uncle Kuroda leave with a satisfied smile.

Waiting a while later to ensure that he had completely left, I took my coat and hat, locked the office door, and headed out on my own.

Sorry Uncle, but are you expecting me to just play it safe? I can’t be that kind of good kid.

These missing people cases might not share a point of common among their victims, but they did have one key feature. All of them happened in a relatively closed space, preferably with not many people around. The family restaurant might be the exception, but not exactly — from the picture, I could see that there was a hallway leading to the bathrooms in the back; a perfect hidden corner.

Which meant that I only needed to check any hidden places on the road. If it was really that case from before… If it was really random people… Then this was the best thing I could do.

I crossed a back alleyway. And at that moment, a miracle happened.

There was a woman dressed in white walking opposite me. Both her shirt and pants were a bit too baggy, almost as if she was wearing a costume. Her wide-brimmed hat also did not match her outfit at all, only serving as her disguise along with her pair of sunglasses. But it wasn’t enough to fool me.

“Sis?” I called out. “Big Sis Reiko! It’s me, Renji!”

The woman stopped walking. She uttered something, but I couldn’t recognize what she had meant. However, right as I tried to walk forward, a flash of lightning struck right on the space separating us.

Before I knew it, I was running for my life.

*

Back to the present

I didn’t expect that I’d find her this soon though. And it wasn’t even anything special — all I did was wander around a back alley when I happened to see her. But when I did…

Another stroke of lightning blasted down, but thankfully, I wasn’t hurt. Instead, the lightning struck the strange creature dead-center, flashing a blinding white as well as sending a burnt scent into the air.

As the smoke cleared and my vision returned, before me was the same suspicious woman from the picture. And to make matters worse, now that I’d gotten to see her up close, she really did look like Reiko.

Emphasizing on “looked like”.

I’d spent my entire life with my sister. Of course I’d recognize her anywhere. And while I was fooled because of her disguise earlier, but now I was clear. This was definitely not Reiko.

The picture wasn’t clear, but while her eyes had the same bags and mood, they were not brown. Instead, they were a beautiful teal green.

The woman uttered something, but I couldn’t make out what it meant. Partially due to the booming thunder, but mainly because none of her sounds made sense to me. A foreign language, perhaps?

Another thunder strike, and before I realized it, the woman had already appeared before me. In her hand was still that same sword-like weapon.

With a swift thrust, I felt a burning pain in my throat, going from my mouth to the back of my head in a blink. I could taste the salty, warm scent of blood gushing out as my vision grew wearier by the minute.

“... Ren…”

Suddenly, I could hear a sound. The woman’s words were starting to make sense.

“Renji… I’ve finally found you, Renji.”

Those were the final words I could hear as my consciousness was plunged into darkness.