Exposed Hand

"One official from the respective countries would attend and the officials from the machine factions would meet. There would be three machine officials from each of the factions. As the leaders of the world were quickly to learn there was more than a single machine faction that they were contending with. This revelation nearly destroyed the fragile agreement, finding that disagreements in the machine factions would make negotiations difficult or impossible to agree upon.

"There are many sides to a problem, but the challenge is convincing the other sides that there is only one solution…"

Herbert Stein, Machine Historian -

Black fog around Satoru's head finally lifted, bringing him back to consciousness. He slowly opened his eyes, finding himself to be lying sideways on the ground. When he searched around the area it seemed that he was in a heavy canvas tent set up on the asphalt streets. As he pulled himself up Satoru realized that he was still tied at the wrist in front of him making it awkward for him to sit up. Once he had carefully managed the feat of sitting a familiar voice from behind spoke to him. "Hey, Satoru. I see that you're awake now."

Satoru turned his head quickly, finding someone that never expected to see again. "What? Yuu?" He had never seen what happened to Yuu, but given that the military was going through the facility killing everyone he assumed that Yuu had met the same fate as everyone else. He just hoped that Yuu was able to do whatever it was that he had been attempting before they captured him. "What are you doing here?"

"Being captured by the military," Yuu said with a smirk on his face appearing like he didn’t even seem to care that the military was holding him captive now. He was sitting cross-legged on the street with his arms tied like Satoru. If it weren’t for the bindings he would have looked like he was enjoying himself.

Satoru twitched his right eye at Yuu's response wishing that he could knock the man over for being so smug. "Uh…right…something that's not obvious."

"Where's Asami?" Yuu changed the topic quickly. His expression changed once again for Satoru being serious. The way that he looked seemed as though he knew something, but Satoru had become distracted that he did not notice. "Did they get her as well?"

"Asami? Asami…I've got to find her!" Satoru struggled to get to his feet, but fell over nearly using his face to break his fall. He rolled over on his back working against the bindings to get back to his feet once again.

"Narrow minded…oh well." Yuu sighed to himself while watching Satoru futility flailing about on the ground. "Calm down, Satoru." Yuu stood up slowly walking over to Satoru bringing pause to his fighting. "You need to focus on the more important matter at hand."

"What's that?" Satoru was a little in awe of Yuu casually standing as though being tied didn’t even exist. It brought a jealous focus to Satoru that forced him into concentrating on what he was trying to do. He was able to stand up this time looking level eyed with Yuu.

"Escaping," Yuu said so simply as though it was going to happen that easily. "We can't very well stop the machines from killing everyone at the summit locked up. Asami will no doubt be there as well."

"Are you the only one that escaped from the facility?" Satoru asked, hoping that not everyone had been killed. His heart was already so heavy with the death that he saw he didn’t know if he could take anymore, but he had to know.

Yuu was hesitant to speak knowing how it was going to affect Satoru. He almost considered lying to him so that it was easier for him, but the truth could be learned from anyone around him. He couldn’t have Satoru confused or in circles. It was going to be painful for him, but there was no other choice. "No, I made it out with someone else…"

"Who? Where are they?" Satoru quickly wanted to know who it was that had survived the raid. Even one person more alive was enough to light his heart. "Did they avoid capture?"

"No, they were captured with me, but…" Yuu wasn’t skirting around the issue anymore knowing that holding it back would only be delaying the problem.

"I see…who was it?" There was a small hope that he had nearly crushed, but they were only captured. They were still alive and that was enough right now.

"It was…Natsuko…" Yuu turned away from Satoru.

"But she…she made…" Satoru pictured Natsuko in the facility staying behind to hold back the military's advance. He had thought that she was dead, but she was alive. Satoru could feel him becoming stronger knowing that she was still alive. She hadn’t been killed along with everyone else. He turned to look at Yuu, nearly smiling with joy, but all he saw was Yuu's back.

There was something about the way he was standing that was speaking to him telling him something. Yuu hadn’t told him everything, but he didn’t have to anymore. "Natsuko…I can't believe that they would…no…" Satoru fell to his knees, the crushing weight on his heart dropped him to the ground. He held back his tears as much as he could knowing that it would not do anything. She was dead twice to him. However, Satoru couldn’t mourn her as a heavy footstep broke their peace. "Who's there?"

General Yoshima stepped into the tent pushing the flaps aside as he entered. After a moment of struggling to keep their position the flaps slid back into place closing the space in. Yoshima circled around the tent staring at the two of them. There was almost a pleasant expression on his face as he had everything that he wanted in his grasp. "Satoru Kuromura and Yuu Hongawa, two of the most important individuals that the world doesn't know about."

Satoru pulled himself back up to his feet, working up a glare for the man that had captured him. Everyone seemed to be thinking that he was important, but he didn’t understand what they were getting at. Yuu treated him like he had some special gift and could make a difference. Kiyoshi saw him as some genius engineer and programmer that could magically make anything work. Now this man treated him just like they were. What did they know about him that he didn’t? "What are you talking about?"

"You might be a dime a dozen engineer, but you've seen more of the gears that turn this world than most. You also control one of the most advanced machines ever developed."

"I don't control anyone!" Satoru still didn’t see what the man was getting at anymore with that crazy answer. He barely had seen anything from what he had heard already from Asami. There was an underworld that no one knew about existing that seemed to be slowly seeping into the world that everyone else lived in.

"And Yuu Hongawa, many have been searching for you. In all of the places to hide yourself the CEO of a corporation is certainly a clever one. Now that we have you, you will tell us what we want to know."

"Hiding…now really," Yuu said, shrugging his shoulders looking away playing innocent. It was a little difficult to tell if he was actually innocent, but the man held more secrets that weren’t seen. There was nothing certain about who he actually was anymore. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You can drop the act, the only one you're fooling at this point is him," Yoshima said pointing to Satoru.

"What's he talking about?" Satoru moved towards Yuu looking for some answers. They both seemed to know something as though they were speaking in a different language leaving him stuck in the middle like a lost child. He still didn’t seem to understand anything even though he felt like he was finally seeing the world for what it truly appeared to be.

"Just someone who thinks he knows everything," Yuu said with a knowing smile that was all too familiar. Satoru had seen the same look before as though Yuu had the upper hand and knew something that was giving him the advantage. It was an annoying expression. "It’s surprising how little one knows even when they think that they have the world in their palms."

"Still playing games huh?" Yoshima tired of running circles with him. He pulled out his side arm from his hip, aiming it at Yuu without hesitation. Satoru's eyes widened in surprise that the man was so desperate that he would go this far to prove his point. There was no waiting as the gun fired, putting a bullet through Yuu's arm.

Yuu fell back a little leaning against the center pole supporting the tent attempting to hold his bleeding arm in his good hand while tied. Satoru stepped in front of the two, still not sure why he was standing up for the man that tormented him. "What do you think you're doing to him? You'll kill him!"

"Stop with the games! I know you aren't really hurt!" Yoshima pushed Satoru aside, putting the gun to Yuu's head, pressing it painfully against his forehead. His eyes were gleaming, seeking the truth that he knew Yuu was hiding from him.

'What's going on?' Satoru fell backwards to the ground staring at the two men in a standoff of wills. He did not know what the General was looking for, but if Yuu didn’t tell him what he wanted then Yuu was going to die. 'What's this man saying? Is he saying that Yuu's…' Satoru thought back to what the General had said. He said that the bullet didn’t hurt Yuu even though it appeared to him that Yuu was in a great deal of pain. If the General was implying what Satoru thought then it would explain so much and change so many things.

Yoshima became tired of the pointless staring they were doing and hit Yuu with the hilt of the gun in his hand sending him to the ground. Yuu collapsed to the ground coughing from the pain that he must have been feeling. Yoshima pointed the gun down at him, not going to take these games from him any longer. "Stand up you pitiful little-"

The seconds slowly counted out as Yuu stared at him knowing that he couldn’t let it end like this. He pulled his arm apart snapping the bindings effortlessly and in a fluid motion grabbed the pistol from Yoshima's hand. Yuu stood up spinning it casually on his finger looking at the General. "You really should be more careful where you aim that."

Satoru couldn’t believe what he saw just happen. Yuu had been down injured and in an instant was standing back up turning the tables on the General as though it was nothing. He had been just toying with him this entire time. It really was true. The proof was undeniable at this point. "Yuu…you're a…"

"Yes, I am," Yuu said, a little sad that he was forced to reveal his secret. It was going to make things a little harder for him, but it couldn’t be avoided now. He had a more pressing matter at hand.

"So Malakh, you finally decided to remove your mask," Yoshima said with a smirk on face not even caring that he had been disarmed. It didn’t matter to him with his men standing guard outside.

"Well I can't let myself die yet. There's still things that I need to do," Yuu returned the smirk back. He dusted himself off and examined the hole where the bullet went into his arm. The fake blood had already stopped pouring out leaving only a dark hole now and his shirtsleeve soaked through.

"Now tell me the activation code for Adam!"

Satoru's eyes widened in shock at hearing those words from the General's mouth. He had thought that only Kiyoshi was obsessed with Adam. He knew that the military knew about it, but he had thought with Kiyoshi dead that interest was gone now. But now it sounded like they had already completed it. That didn’t make any sense knowing Kiyoshi needed him if it was already finished. "You mean you've completed it?!"

"It was never incomplete to begin with! Hashimoto was led to believe that it needed to be updated. He was only working from the incomplete prototype. But Adam was completed right after Isaac and it is far more advanced than the records would have you believe. It's constantly evolving, it is superior to all machines even today!"