006 • No. 462

I don't know how long I've stared out my wide floor to ceiling windows for, my leg bouncing up and down as I refilled my glass with whisky for the nth time. A quiet huff left my nose before I groaned faintly in annoyance, leaning my head back against my couch as a soft sigh left my lips. 

"Aos' above... why is this so—.... Ugh!" I can't even articulate my thoughts properly! Everything's such a jumbling mess, that I don't even know what to think!! I feel like flipping over my couch and tables as we speak, but the clean up would be too much of a pain. 

I swirl the whisky in my glass, watching the amber liquid catch the faint light from the window. Outside, the stars sprawled endlessly, its lights flickering like fireflies. It felt so distant, so... disconnected. 

Whilst I'm busy walloping in my own thoughts, I felt a familiar nudge on my leg, a greeting of a very familiar fluffy friend. I can't help but smile a bit at the furry ball of sunshine. 

"Well, hello there, my little friend.." I mumble, reaching my free hand over to run through the black kitsune's fluffy fur. He rested his chin against my knee, nudging my leg a little in what I'm gonna assume is an attempt at soothing my, less-than-organized thoughts. 

A small whine is heard from the big good boy, before he hops onto the couch and laid right beside me. It was moments like these, where I wish things were just a little bit more different... where maybe... things didn't have to be so hard... where I don't feel like I'm drowning ever so often... Is drowning the right way of describing it..? Haaa, I don't really know anymore. 

How long will I have to be doing this for..? No... I have to do this... if not me, then who? How many lives have been ruined by that slimy cockroach? How many people have died tragically for his own gain, gain that's not even worth it... he says he doesn't want 'fame' or anything... yet here he is... waltzing around this side of the Galaxy System as if he owns it... it makes me genuinely sick to my stomach....

"You look like hell," he remarks, not bothering with pleasantries this time for some... strange reason...

"Try coming up with something a little bit more creative," I shoot back rather quickly with a slight tilt to my head, the lull in my voice felt dull as I reach out to grab a cigarette pack from the table beside me to light up. There was a long, strangely uncomfortable silence that stretched out a liiitle too long for some reason, and of course I have to probe a bit. 

"Now would be a great time to start talkin' a little, Sora..." I blurt out coaxingly, a bit of smoke leaving my lips as I spoke. What I said was enough to draw out a long sigh from the computerized individual. I hear an audible 'sigh' leave his mouth before he leaned back against my couch, crossing his arms against his chest. 

"Rune left you something," he begins, his voice unusually measured, he doesn't meet my gaze, which is rare for him. That alone sends a flicker of unease crawling up my spine. Inei shifts beside me, sensing the sudden tension in the air, a faint huff leaving his snout. I sat up straighter, my pulse quickening despite myself. 

"What'd he leave?" I ask sharply, my words firm and deliberate. I've only ever gotten one singular message from Rune, and that was when I was practically at the lowest low of my life. This fucker came in, and decided to rub salt into the open wounds even further back then, and that was the only message that pinheaded donkey has so greatefully left me. Sora didn't answer immediately. Instead, he taps in the air for a second, summoning a holographic screen in front of the both of us.

"You'll want to hear it yourself...." 

Oh, that's great, a face cam message—...

"What kind of game is he playing now...?" I mutter, my fingers fiddling absentmindedly with Inei's fur as he shifts in his seat, moving closer to me so he could rest his head on my lap, presumably attempting to provide me comfort.

"One only he knows the rules to," Sora replied. "And from the sound of it, it doesn't sound like a very appealing game..."

I don't know why I'm feeling a little nervous... maybe because this can be my only chance at tracking this scum of the galaxy down.

"What's his IP..."

"It was recorded on a burner that I traced back to some desolated planet light years away from the Fú Yùn region. I don't think he'd be that stupid to potentially leak his location by recording on a personal device," He answers as if already preparing for my question. Touché. In fact, he's probably already made a run for it already…

"Fair..." I sigh as I run my fingers through my bangs. Pull yourself together, Izana, good Aos's—!

"Okay— okay, let's just get this done and fucking over with..." I mumbled beneath my breath and tapped 'PLAY' on the screen. It feels like I'm holding my breath as a voice, one I've heard far too often in my nightmares, cracking through the static, low and familiar enough to send my blood into a slight boil. His voice crackles through the static, and my whole body went rigid. It was him. I grip the edge of the couch, my nails biting into the fabric as I force myself to breathe normally.

"Hello there, Little Girl," Rune drawls, his tone like a blade dragging against stone. "Did you miss me?"