What Lies Ahead (Junichi Kanie)

My sight was unfocused and all over the place, did I get hit in the head? I leaned against the wall to stabilize myself. And that is when I saw it…

Her assailant disarmed her weapon, pounced on her and now was attempting to plunge his knife straight into her chest.

“I can’t…hold him…for long… I need help” she said, barely finding the strength to speak

I need to help her.. I looked around and spotted my weapon on the ground. I ran and grabbed my gun and took aim at the attacker’s head. Huh?

Why can’t I pull the trigger? My finger was frozen. Snap out of it…she is about to die…Maybe if I….

I tried to run to her and strike him off her, but I couldn’t move, it was as if I was held down by my ankles.

“No…not again” I muttered and took aim one more time. And I put every ounce of strength I had into the trigger, so much so I involuntarily screamed.

But the gun went click….

“Weapon jam?...No…not now”

“I’m slipping, HELP ME!” she screamed

“MISHA” I screamed and dropped my rifle. I drew my pistol and took aim, forcing myself to pull the trigger….but even it went click “No….NOO!”

“Please….I don’t want to die yet, I don’t want to die… HELP ME………JUN!”

.

.

.

.

.

“MISHA!” I screamed while waking up and sitting up in a panic.

It was the same nightmare all over again…. I covered my face with my hands to recompose myself

“Nii-chan…. You okay?” asked a voice from right outside my door…I already knew from her voice but Mai confirmed her presence by peeking her head through the door.

“Yeah…. I’m fine…. I’ll be down in just a second” I said…taking a couple more moments to recover from that rude awakening.

Before the recovery turned into laziness, I sprung myself out of the bed and joined Mai and Meguru who were up and at it from the noise from downstairs…. I passed the bedroom next to mine only to find the door wide open and empty. Considering that he had gone through nothing but hell for the past god knows who long, I would’ve assumed I would find him in his room still dead asleep.

“Guess he didn’t return after last night” I muttered to myself

I descended the stairs to the sight of the two of them already starting their chores.

“Good morning both of you” I said

“Morning, Nii-chan” and both of them returned it over each other.

I slowly made myself towards the kitchen as it was my duty to keep all of us fed, and the sooner I got it started, the faster my stomach would stop killing me. And after a few minutes, our morning curry was on the table.

“Did you hear back from Akio Nii-chan after he ran off yesterday?” asked Meguru who was setting up the table

“Hm? Oh…. Won’t be surprised if he is doing his own thing… eh, he’ll be fine.” I replied.

“Hey, Nii-chan…. Check this out” Mai suddenly crawled herself onto the table, trying to lean towards me

I sighed in disapproval “Mai… how many times have I asked you to not get on the table especially during mealtime.”

“But come on, Nii-chan… I’ve checked out a couple of raids that we could-”

“Rejected” I shut her down instantly

“Eh? But-”

“No buts… We might have a party of 4 but raids are too risky to take on.” I said but Mai tried to cut me off but I knew exactly what she was going to say “Ah..ah..ah… now don’t you say, how could bronze raids be dangerous…. But it’s still uncharted territory in VR” I concluded

“Boo…buzzkill” Mai muttered

“You said something?” I iterated while serving my plate

“It’s nothing,” she replied, looking away.

All the plates were full and it was time for them to vaporize

“Itadakimasu” we all said at once

While the curry down here was something special, I would kill for a bowl of Master’s signature ramen…. I guess I have Akio and Tadashi to thank for that craving….Feels like a lifetime ago

“Look, I know you guys are craving for some action…. But we’ll get there in time. There’s still many things we don’t know about this place and I’d rather not have us jump into a pit head first without a way of getting out” I reassured both of them

“By the way…. You're still having those nightmares, aren’t you, Nii-chan?” asked Meguru

Eventhough I have seen it many times, the mention of it still freezes me stiff.

“It will pass” I replied briefly

“But you have been saying that for a while now, are you sure you are okay?” she asked

“Meguru…..” Mai called her sister off, nodding with disapproval

“I’ll be fine…. I promise” I reassured them

Our morning continued with our usual banter, and I tried to clear my head from my rude awakening by taking over dishwashing duty from my siblings.

“Hey, Nii-chan…. You joining us for PvE?”

“Maybe later… I have a few things I need to do today. I’ll leave it to you guys…. Oh and Mai…. No scouting raids please.”

I could hear her tone of disappointment from across the room but as she quickly rebounded back to her cheery and unpredictable self, and as always, Meguru is caught in the crossfire

“Alright, let's not burn any more daylight shall we? Let’s go Meguru” Mai had her arms on Meguru’s shoulders from behind and pushed her out along with her.

“Onee-chan….slow down” of course Meguru can never keep up with her other’s energy

A moment later, I had the whole house to myself.

The moment I relaxed, the hand started to shiver once again, as even after a couple of months, I still couldn’t get that day out of my head. Even in front of the bathroom mirror, I just see her crying out to me sometimes.

By the time I finished, the clock showed 10am…. After the few minutes it took me to lock the house up, it was time for me to go.

Eventhough we were in the vicinity of Yamori-senpai’s precinct, this place barely seemed to change. People were still getting robbed for all they are worth, murdered in cold blood…. And the occasional scream or call for help just falls into deaf ears. As much as I wanted to help Senpai out, I didn’t risk the safety of my family over a blind sense of justice.

The L-train was no different from the streets below…. Crowds who were numbed of their emotions and carrying on their day, and the others who are extremely paranoid. The fact that I didn’t have to ride the train long to reach my destination was a mercy in its own way… escaping the aura of dread and despair into the outside where the same is much less notable.

As much as I would prefer to start off with an afternoon drink as soon as I entered Helios Lower’s resident watering hole, I preferred to keep my wits about me, especially if I was to be face to face with this bastard again.

I carefully navigated the crowds and to the stairwell at the back that was well out of sight, and what stood before me were two bouncers about my height.

“Sorry my friend, this area is off limits” said the more buff looking one of the two

I looked around to see if I was followed “I’m here to see the Broker”.

“The Broker? Never heard of him” he replied

“You sure? Medium height, goatee like he unclogged a shower drain with his mouth, very punchable mug? Hard to miss” I retorted

“No… Can’t say it rings a bell….. Does that sound like someone we know, Anders?” the bouncer said back

“Nope…. Never seen anyone like that in my entire life” said the second bouncer, but the Broker really needs a stronger screening process for his goons, as his chuckle gave it away

“Can’t say? Or won’t?.... Cut the crap, I know he is in there and if you let me-”

The man pointed two fingers at my chest and pushed me back and closed the distance, while the other one cuts off my exit

“Are you accusing us of lying?” he asked, turning aggressive

“Oh…wasn’t I being clear about that? In that case, the answer is yeah… I know bullshit when I hear it, and I know that all you guys can do is act tough, or your boss is going to be really mad if figures out that you beat up one of his potential customers…..And you don’t want to see your boss mad… Do you?” I replied

The bouncer took a moment and backed up “Well I can’t help you as I don’t know who you are talking about…. However, let me see if anyone downstairs might know” he placed his finger on his earpiece and paused

“It’s me….There is a guy here persistently asking about someone called…. the Broker…. Do we have any idea who that could be?” he said

At least try to be less conspicuous….

“Uh-huh…. Hold for a moment” he told over the earpiece and took his hand off his ear “Can I get your name please… for security reasons” he asked me

“Sakuragi” I replied

He went back on his comms “Sakuragi…he says” and what followed was a pause… he was looking at me until he got the answer, and I clearly saw the shadow of the guard drawing his gun out.

He got back on his earpiece once again “You sure? Okay… Understood” He then let his ear go once again “Go ahead…the boss will see you now, Sakuragi-san” he told me

“See… now was that so hard” I retorted, giving the guy a tap on his shoulder and entered the hidden area to the welcome of half a dozen goons who carefully led me to their master.

I entered through the blinds and there he was, sitting at a desk playing a game of chess by himself.

“Stop me if this sounds familiar ... .Once upon a time, there was a group of pigs ... .all of them were close friends, and together, they fought and took down wolves...” He picked up the black knight off the board and held it in front of his eyes as he observed it

“On a fateful day, the group of pigs got separated… Some went their own way, some shed their skin and became wolves, and some became lost souls.” He then quickly placed the knight on the board, causing an audible tack.

“But four of them found each other… One was the pillar of the entire group, kept morale high when all they had ahead of them was misery….. and the other, was more level headed… kept everyone from doing things that might get themselves in danger, including his two other siblings, some could even call him…overprotective at times….” He then leaned back on his chair “ These two of said group then approached the fox who owed one of them his life…. and asked him to help find their missing brethren….”

He snapped his fingers and one of the goons cleared the table and took the chess board away. “The fox honored their request, but however very shortly afterwards, their pillar got slain by a pack of dogs that unfortunately ran into….. a pack of dogs that the other would’ve been able to chase away”

This little….

“A while after, the fox is approached once again, but this time…. He was called to by the name of the slain one, only for the other to present himself. And the fox is left wondering, what does this lost soul want from him once again?” he concluded

“You really love the sound of your own voice don’t you…. And fox? If this pig had anything to say about that, I would call you a racoon more than anything. One who digs the trash of others and sells it to the highest bidder” I replied

The broker chuckled “It all comes down to the matter of perspective don’t you think? Mr. Junichi Kanie”.

I was suddenly surrounded, the guards were not trying to hide neither their guns nor the sounds of them checking them. All I could do is move my hand as close to my pistol holster as possible

“Now I am not looking for a bloodbath” The broker called his protection off, to which they backed off a moment later, allowing me to relax

A guard came to the table and place two glasses with a block of ice in them, and poured a stiff drink into each and slid each towards me and the broker. He downed his glass down in one go, letting out a breath of relief afterwards…Possibly to show me that it isn’t poisoned

“It’s 1 o’clock, and besides I don’t think this is the time” I replied to his sentiment.

“Ah, ah, ah…. It is 1 o’clock. In this place, there is no such thing as a bad time for a drink. Take it as a token of my good will and of a…mutual friendship.” He insisted

As much as I wanted to be sober, he would assume the higher ground if I rejected it, considering he himself took a shot beforehand. At least I got what I wished for soooo… Bottoms up I guess.

I finished the drink and slammed the glass on the table.

“Now, to what do I owe the pleasure? I thought I made it clear that I didn’t owe anything to Ms. Sakuragi after our previous transaction….” He started off asking

“Well now, you are not dealing with Misha anymore. This time, it’s all me” I replied

“You know that my services don’t come free unlike last time…. Don’t you, Mr. Kanie?... As a matter of fact, they also don’t come with a lean price tag” said the Broker

“Well we’ll worry about that when we get to that now would we?” I replied, not allowing him to shut me down

The Broker paused for a second “ I suppose so…. It all depends on how readily available the information you want from me is”

I looked him in the eye “Tadashi Chifuyu…. Darkstar, The Immortal Tyrant, whatever people call him these days. Akio told me that he was spotted here in Helios. I want to know why?”

He paused to light himself a cigar “That is quite a challenge you have put in front of me…. However ….” He took a whiff and puffed out a cloud of smoke “That is not something I am willing to offer, unfortunately.”

“Name your price” I said, still not backing down

“It’s not a matter of price… Mr. Kanie. It’s the matter of my rules” he said

“Rules?” I inquired

The broker got up and started walking around in his side of the room with his hands behind his back, with his back turned to me. “The golden rule of my trade, is that I never reveal information about my customers to others….” He then looked at me, turning around halfway “No matter the price they are willing to pay”

“Tadashi came to you? You expect me to believe that?” I asked, to which he didn’t answer

He then sat down again “However, eventhough I can’t tell you anything about him. Doesn’t mean I can’t point you in the right direction. I’ll throw this one in for free as a matter of fact…. According to my informants, it seems that Akio Nakamura had a bit of a face to face with The Tyrant Chifuyu last night. And as expected it had been a….one-sided affair”

I was alarmed by that, but he stopped me before I interjected

He held his arm up gesturing me to wait “I can assure you that he survived, he was just injured and he was seen entering the Sheriff’s precinct near midnight yesterday…I’m guessing if you want to find The Tyrant. Sheriff Nishigaki is who you should look at”

Well that’s a relief, I would take asking Yamori-senpai over this sketchy bastard any day of the week

“I know your kind…. You act generous but there is always a fishing hook behind it. What’s the catch?”

The broker paused and chuckled once again “ And I thought only she could see it” he muttered and leaned back on his chair and crossed his legs “I want to make a deal”

“Of course you do” I said involuntarily

“If you grant me this, however, you will have all the information you need from me… free of charge, for the next time we meet. Even if it requires me to use all my connections, anything you want to know, I won’t charge you a single Rel for it” by the look on his face, I knew for a fact that he wasn’t joking.

But this wasn’t a pretty carrot on a stick…. Anything I wanted to know as much as I want? Free of charge? For a man who leaks people’s browser histories for a living, there is no way he was being this generous if this wasn’t very important to him… I had to know more

“You expect me to drag Izanami Sato to your doorstep or something?” I asked sarcastically

“I assure you Mr. Kanie, that all I am interested in, is information….not solutions” he said

“Information that you can sell to the highest bidder” I finished his sentence for him eventhough I knew he wasn’t going to

“Naturally” at least he wasn’t even trying to hide it

“And what information can I offer you that is- ?”

“Yamori Nishigaki” he said “I have an extensive…..information network in place here, Mr. Kanie…. From Helios, to our neighbors to all their neighbors. I know who runs every place…. And I can predict with relatively high accuracy on major events that will unfold. Just like what you professional players call Macro-plays but instead of tournaments, I do it for this entire world.”

He grabs his pen from the table and starts spinning it on his hand “However, there is one black spot in my network. The only law enforcer that has survived the trials of Arc Sanctuary as of yet, Yamori Nishigaki…. With the few pieces that I did gather, I have come to the conclusion that Sheriff Nishigaki has his own ways of procuring information. One that doesn’t rely on a broker network, and I would go as far as to say that he knows a far lot more than I do”

He put his pen down and leaned forward on the table “I know that you are close to Sheriff Nishigaki… From when you first met him after Ms. Sakuragi's demise, when you took part in The Trial of The Wolf, and when you introduced Akio Nakamura to him.”

How long has he been watching?

“My offer is that you get me anything on him…. Maybe where he stores all that said information. I’ll be in your debt if you do” he concluded

He is asking me to rat on Yamori-senpai? How way over his head is he? But I didn’t refuse instantly, because the chance was high that I wouldn’t make it out alive if I did

“A proposition that benefits me more than it does you… I’m not buying it….. How does getting your hands on all the case files that Yamori-senpai has worked on benefit you in any way… Or are you looking to expand into the realms of blackmail soon?” I avoided directly answering, but I was naturally curious on what he really is upto

He chuckled “I guess there is no coaxing a University trained interrogator to do your bidding…even if he was a drop-out”

How did he…?

“By the look on your face, you never expected that to be known did you?.... But in my line of work, information is like mathematics. You put one part together with another that bears a related sign, and you get another piece of valuable information. And to piece together your acquaintance with the saintly Sheriff was as easy as basic addition.”

What else does he know? Maybe about…. No… there’s no way

He gestures to me to wait once again “Now hold up a moment, Mr. Kanie…. You don’t have to get all stressed up…. I have no interest in personal affairs, nor do I have any ill-will towards you and your family and friends even in the slightest...” He relaxes his leg and leans forward “And I’ve dealt with enough clients to know that you are not going to budge until you’ve run out of questions, so… I’ll do you a favor.”

He leaned back again “I’m not interested in his cases or any information around those. However, my informants have spotted many barrels and crates delivered directly to the Sheriff on many occasions…” he pours out a drink himself this time “And considering who these…couriers… work for, I have a lot of reasons to be interested in the Sheriff.”

He looks at me and jerks the bottle, asking if I would want one… but I waved him off. “His precinct is a black-site and unfortunately, I’m not interested in stealing or snooping on someone who could potentially track me down…. And as to why, you wonder?” He downs the shot in one go and slams the glass on the ground… causing me to involuntarily twitch

“Information brokering is an arms-race….so we speak. There are many other brokers all over the place that would love to know all that happens in Arc Sanctuary inside and out…. I happen to be in the lead and after doing the literal…math…. I presume that Yamori Nishigaki has what I need to keep me in front of the race for good…… So much so, that I might even be able to focus on what awaits us next before anyone else.” He concluded

“What awaits us next?” I questioned

“Cathedral City…. One of the most unique settings in Arc Sanctuary, the sole central hub of the silver layer…. Just like cities down here, back in the day, they were all peaceful civilizations of NPCs and Players alike, but what about now? When NPCs have become more sentient, much more indistinguishable from a player? Wouldn’t people pay the big bucks just to know what awaits ahead?” he informed me

“Cathedral City? You are planning way too far ahead aren’t you? People are barely scratching the surface of bronze rank with all the taxation, murder and intimidation going on, and your biggest priority is on how to make the quickest buck?” I involuntarily chuckled “You are no racoon, you are bloody weasel”

But as I said that, a dozen guns were pointed directly at me… Crap, did I mess up?. I gripped the table as my anxiety rose in that instance.

The broker made a fist and raised his hand, signaling his men to stand down

“Apologies for that, lets just say my employees are rather enthusiastic about their job” he said as he raised his hand and twirled his finger.

“Unfortunately, that all I am willing to give our for free, Mr. Kanie…. I’m afraid that if we are to continue, it’s Rels that need to do the talking. Of course, the alternative would be that you take me up on my offer… and maybe I’ll toss you way a piece of crucial advice that maybe quite valuable to you in the upcoming weeks.” He said

This crafty piece of work….. he knew my playbook from the beginning and he has backed me into a corner. Right now, I have the choice to walk away with the bare minimum, or agree to his deal. But I know for a fact that if I do walk away, I’ll be losing a valuable, albeit pricey, asset for the rest of the time we are trapped down here…. But if I accept…..

“What if I fail? Let’s say that I take you up on this offer… What guarantees you that I will be able to get you anything of use?” I asked

It seems that the broker suddenly lost all the smug confidence he had all this time as he took a moment to process what he was going to say “Unfortunately, that is a gamble on my behalf. You get me anything you can from Nishigaki, and we can call this a successful trade.” He answered “And besides…. It’s fair to say that I can be perceived as trustworthy…I’d say the fact that my aid helped you to find Akio Nakamura, would strongly skew that argument in my favor, don’t you agree?”

“I’ll think about it” I said as I got up and turned towards the exit

“And don’t assume you will last very long trying to deceive me. My trade is knowledge, and sooner or later… I will know if you do. And of course I won’t expect my people to be able to collect from a group of the best players known to this game, but I know how to hurt you, Junichi Kanie. I just have to direct them towards the people you care about…. Akio Nakamura, Hayato Ishikawa and his new friends…”

That immediately got my attention

“And your dear little sisters… Mai and Meguru” but that was my tipping point

I immediately drew my gun at him, eventhough I knew it was a bad idea on all fronts. To which I was reacted to with a dozen assault rifles about to turn me into Swiss cheese.

“You even fucking dare about bringing those two into this, there will be no place in this god-forsaken world that I won’t hunt you down” I said to threaten him, trying my hardest to hide my anxiety and fright in the instance.

He gestured to his goons to lower their guns… but I still didn’t drop mine “Of course, it won’t come to that if all goes as agreed. Like I said, Mr. Kanie… as long as there is proof of your efforts, I will be in your debt.”

He gets up and walks around the table and towards me clearly aware that I couldn’t pull the trigger. “ And as a token of assurance, I will give you a bit of advice that will be crucial for your upcoming days.” He walked passed my gun barrel and placed his hand on my shoulder “Best that you start looking for a tank player”

He then turned around and walked towards his chair “I know that it still might be hard for you after losing Ms. Sakuragi…. But even I know that she would’ve wanted you to move on ....”

My aim started to shudder, and it wasn’t because my arm was starting to tire.

“But there is going to be a chain of events soon, and with that will follow the taxation to be ... .inconsequential, which will lead to the first step in our escape…. The Ascension BR” he then returns to his seat “And if you don’t want to fall behind, and to be in that first wave of clans who’d make it to Cathedral City. I’d recommend you learn to let her go, and move on”

Without saying another word, I stormed out, realizing I had played right into his hand

Misha….what would you do?