Bad Plans

Silence. Awkward silence was definitely it. After flame and rage, it might have been preferred. Though it came with the same problem. It solved nothing. And a void of nothing was all they were good for. Apologies only went so far to fix things.

Little came from Okamura, not that Yori expected as much. Even as loud of a secret as the auction had to be to involve so many parties, it wasn’t something that the man messed with. Okamura knew what happened in the dark corners of Japan, but chose to stay clear of it. Though even information trading didn’t exactly keep someone clean. But whatever helped him pretend his soul was still worth something.

The auction definitely sat deeper than trafficking. Though staying clear of them also kept him out of the sights of groups like the Seven Lotus. Such precautions ended up failing in the end. The bridge was already burned at this point with such organizations. But he was probably never going to touch that business again. Yori couldn’t say that was a bad move.

But they returned to his apartment, leaving Okamura to his work. Yori left a tracker on him as a warning that he would dispel once he came through with the location. Until then, it was just a waiting game. But they still had something else to do.

Getting into an underworld auction was the last thing on his mind. Though there was no way out of it anymore. He committed himself to the course. People needed to be saved. There was nothing else that he could do. Miho seemed to understand that now.

It still troubled him that he lost himself. It had been a while since that came out. He normally kept it reigned in. This life stripped away a lot. But it was the only thing that he kept and stayed focused on. The part that kept him sane. The part that convinced him that there was still justice in the world, even if he was the only one carrying it out. He could still believe in something if he did this. He could follow orders. He could be the Guardian.

Rather than allow Miho back into his kitchen, he took to preparing some tea. If this kept up, they might actually get some sleep at a normal time. Though Yori didn’t count on it. There was still work to do. And they were going to need at least two days to figure a way in that didn’t end with her sister’s death.

He pulled down cups as the water boiled. On the couch, he caught Miho sitting, throwing her jacket over the back. “I only have a vague notion of what this is going to be like. I don’t have a good plan on how to approach this. And as much as I would love to save everyone, without support, I don’t think that’s going to be practical.”

They didn’t even know how many were going to be auctioned. It was best to assume people weren’t the only thing being auctioned. But new mages were a highly valuable commodity in a magicless world. So it would likely be the main event. Ruining the big show, would they even live to see it completed? He didn’t really care about that. Just that the innocents got out safe; he could live with anything else. Perhaps, Miho was right.

“We save my sister.”

“And anyone else we’re able to.” She looked over at him from across the room. There was a bit of a glare, though more of a question of that reality. “Can you just take one person and look the rest of them straight in the eye and say they’re alone?”

Miho looked away. There wasn’t an answer. There couldn’t be an answer. They both knew what it was without saying a word. It was still a stupid thing to try to do. And they were going to do it anyway. They both knew that.

“How do ye plan to keep them safe? They’re not gonna be pleased with us.”

“No, I’d imagine not. As much as I’d like to say we could use my place, it’s not safe enough. No, there are only two options. Section 14 or my family.”

“Didn’t ye say that ye have a strained relationship with them?”

“Yes, but one thing you can count on them is their damn pride about justice. Doesn’t matter who it kills if they’re upholding the Will of Akasha. And this would fall under that.”

“Wouldn’t Section 14 be a better pick?”

“Normally, but we aren’t exactly following procedure right now. I haven’t told them what we’re doing, but we’d never get approval. As much as they like justice, they’re not in the business of pissing off the underworld that much. It’d make too many enemies with people who have deep pockets that can affect policy.”

“But they’re the only way to get permission for the mana train.”

“I figure if we just show up at the station, what are they going to do? Job’s already done, and getting it out of sight is better than the potential turf wars that would be sparked.”

“How bad is the fallout gonna be for ye?”

“Me, a slap on the wrist. I’m the Guardian. I didn’t exactly get hired. My employment is mandatory. Worst that’ll happen is they may try to assign someone to be my leash. The city I’m more worried about. No one’s tried to do something this big. I can’t imagine what’ll happen. I might be dead with a knife in the back come next week.” She actually glared at him for that. “But not the focus for now.”

The water heated quickly, seemingly impatient from the tension of the room. He groaned a bit and turned off the stove. There wasn’t much in the way of quality stocked in his apartment. She was just going to live with a very average green tea.

Once it was ready, he stepped out into the living room, taking a seat opposite her. He settled on the idea that there was comfort to be found. Despite the softness, it felt stiff and uneasy to rest on. “We’ll need a way to get in the back so we can look for your sister. Though I’m worried my face might be a little too noticeable right now.”

“I haven’t been hidin’ either, ye know.”

“Sure, but you’ve been here a few days. I’ve worked this space for years. They might have your face hanging around, but they certainly have mine.”

“Ye got a magic tool to disguise yourself?”

“No, but I can pay a visit to a magic shop before the big day. Though anyone with any discerning eye is probably going to know something’s up.”

“Definitely. The back will have more security or eyes watching for suspicious people.”

“You suggesting you go in alone while I’m out in the front? Splitting us up? The job’s already dangerous as it is.”

“I’ll pretend I’m one of the sorcerers.”

“Tat’d up to the 9s?” She couldn’t pass for a mage if she tried. This sounded like it was destined to fail. They really needed a better plan than just trying to walk in the front door. If he had time, he could have arranged for some falsified documentation and a convincing approach. Her plan of sneaking into the back wasn’t bad, but with just two days, it was certain to crumble.

Yori drank through half of his tea in silence. The options and magic available to them turned over in his mind. It was a limitless path, which made it a double-edged sword. He could see lots of ways it could work, but they could be countered. They weren’t dealing with some low-grade sorcerer that thought they were hot shit. These were professionals working for the syndicates.

The tea calmed his mind, but did little to ease his exhaustion. He stood up. “I’m going to get some rest and think about our options. We have two days. There’s got to be a way that doesn’t end up with us dead two steps inside.” She gave him a distant nod, likely also trying to consider the options.

Falling back on his bed, he tried to relax. Ryota drifted back into his thoughts only to be replaced by the shouting voice of Miho from earlier at the park. He rolled over, digging his head into the pillows.

She was right. Dammit.