Fated Encounter

The knife was stuck in Akihiro’s hand. Blood gushed from his palm and dripped down to the floor. Akihiro didn’t scream in pain, nor did he show any signs of discomfort. His eyes were fixed on the darkness in front of them.

-Sync Connected-

A man in a black coat came out from the darkness. He was wearing a broad-brimmed brown hat along with a pair of black gloves on his hands. He lifted his hat and threw it to the side, exposing his blonde hair. His green eyes shined under the flickering street light like a cat’s eye.

“Richard Brown…” Akihiro muttered. He was the same man who was in the car that hit Akihiro the other day.

“I’m glad that you remember my name, Akihiro Kimura.” Richard said as he placed his hands in his pockets.

“What’s going on?”, Natsume asked. “Do you know him?”

“Yeah. He is the same man who was sitting in the car when the accident happened.” Akihiro muttered.
That’s when he realised. The first time he heard the voice in his head was during the accident.

‘What the hell is going on…’

A lady emerged from the darkness too. She was wearing a suit. Akihiro recognised her immediately. She was the driver of the same car.

“Janice, did you see that? I was right after all.” Richard said.

“Yes, I saw it. Does that mean you are actually going to do it?” Janice asked.

“There is no other choice…”, Richard said as he threw his coat to the side.

A gun was strapped to his waist.

“What the hell is going on?”, Akihiro shouted.

“Our little experiment has come to an end. You are a faulty product.” Richard started walking towards Akihiro with his hands in his pocket. “The CIA isn’t very forgiving after all…”

Akihiro stood in front of Natsume. The knife was still lodged in his hand, but the bleeding had slowed down.

‘CIA?’

Richard ran towards Akihiro. He leapt into the air and landed a whirlpool kick. Akihiro blocked it with his arm but the impact was much stronger than he expected. Akihiro couldn’t handle the brute force as he stumbled to the side.

Richard jumped and tried kicking Akihiro. He blocked it again with his arm and closed the gap between them. Akihiro couldn’t close his right fist due to the knife so he began punching Richard with his left fist. Richard’s hands were still in his pockets. He effortlessly dodged all of Akihiro’s punches.

Akihiro’s breathing deepened as his heart rate increased. He couldn’t feel the pain from the wound on his right palm anymore. The adrenaline rush was probably numbing the pain. Blood coursed its way through the arteries to his hands and limbs.

-Stage III-

The sound played in Akihiro’s head again. The man in front of him, Richard Brown, probably knew the truth about the sound. There was no point in thinking about the sound. The answer was right in front of him.

Akihiro jumped in the air and kicked Richard. Richard immediately pulled his right hand from his pocket and blocked the kick. The intensity was much stronger than Richard’s kick. Richard stumbled to the right but still stood on his two feet.

“Not bad. For someone who doesn’t know martial arts, you learn pretty fast.” Richard said as he pulled the glove off his right hand. “Still, the fact doesn’t change that you are inexperienced and I’m the veteran.”

His arms seemed bigger than before. He pulled the other glove off his hand and threw it on the floor. He charged towards Akihiro. Within a flash, he closed in and landed an uppercut on Akihiro’s face.

Akihiro stumbled back but stood on his two feet. He felt dizzy. Richard was too fast. In a flash, Richard punched Akihiro in the face. Akihiro somehow clumsily blocked the punch but he had made too many useless movements to be able to block Richard’s next move.

Richard raised his leg and kicked him in the stomach. The sheer brute power of the kick sent Akihiro flying in the air. He crashed into a wall and fell down.

“AKI-KUN!!”, Natsume shouted as he ran up to Akihiro. Luckily he was still conscious but he didn’t seem to be in a good shape. Akihiro groaned in pain as he tried to stand up.

Natsume clenched his fists.

‘What the hell is happening?’

His dog was still barking ferociously. The dog pulled on the leash and broke through Natsume’s grip.

It charged towards Richard, baring its sharp teeth. It leapt at Richard and pushed him to the floor. Richard kicked the dog off him, sending it flying. It hit the wall and fell to the floor.

The dog was severely injured. A simple kick from Richard had broken several of its bones, making it immobile. It laid on the floor, grunting and dragging itself towards Richard.

Richard stood up. He walked up to the dog, who was now crippled and couldn’t stand up. He pulled out his gun from his waist.

“NOOO!!!!”, Natsume screamed.

The gunshots pierced the atmosphere, ending the dogs howling once and for all. Blood sprayed all over Richard’s pants and shoes, staining them red.

Akihiro couldn’t bear to see the sight. Confusion, the feeling of being preyed on, everything had culminated into pure rage. He could feel the adrenaline in his blood. His heart rate increased significantly. He stood up and dashed towards Richard.

-Stage IV-

Richard pointed his gun and fired three shots. One missed, while the other two hit Akihiro’s right arm and shoulder. But Akihiro didn’t seem to stop in his tracks. Richard pointed the gun at Akihiro again but it was too late. Akihiro was too close to him now.

Akihiro grabbed the knife lodged in his right palm and pulled it out. Blood gushed out of the hole in his hand. Richard didn’t have any time to react. Akihiro slashed through Richard’s arm, leaving a shallow cut.

‘Tsk, I missed.’

Richard reflexively kicked Akihiro, who jumped back to dodge the strike.

Akihiro stood in front of Natsume with the knife in his left hand. Blood streamed down from the wound in his right palm.

Richard lifted his arm, displaying the wound to them as blood flowed out of the cut.

“It was because of me that you came into existence. If I had completed my mission back then, you wouldn’t have been born in this cruel world. That day, I should have killed you. This time, I won’t fail. I will take responsibility for my failure. I shall save you from your bitter fate.”, Richard said as the blood dripping from his arm reduced.

The wound on Richard’s arm was closing up and healing rapidly. Just like how Akihiro’s body had always worked.

“It’s time for things to end, Subject 005.”