Chapter 8 - More than Just a Contractor

Chapter 8

Misaki watched as November 11 and Hei started a head on fight, November 11's goal in mind was just to get the injection of ME into Hei's neck while Hei's goal was to survive the battle against him and to avoid the syringe. Misaki wanted to get involved but the way that the two of them were fighting, it was best to avoid getting involved in a fierce battle between the two contractors. The Black Reaper wasn't an easy opponent to deal with and neither was November 11 with their abilities to read their opponents moves and then to adjust themselves with the knowledge of their opponent. Hei was reading the fact that November 11 was planning to get the neck exposed while November 11 was reading to see when Hei was going to strike and activate his ability. Misaki felt useless, if she fired her gun at the two of them, November 11 could be caught or the bullet to bounce off Hei's coat. She knew that it was bullet proof so it wouldn't hurt Hei in any forms unless she hit a vulnerable part of his body. She wasn't going to take the chance of injuring Hei.

"Just stay still!" November 11 roared at Hei. Hei remained silent but determined to get the syringe out of November 11's hand and shattered on the ground. He wasn't sure what was inside but if November 11 was so keen on getting it in Hei; he wasn't going to take the chance of him injecting him with anything. The sight of the syringe gave Hei one thought. ME. He chuckled as he caught November 11 off guard and slammed his foot into November 11's wrist. The British contractor's eyes widened as a natural reflex kicked in, dropping the syringe on the floor, shattering on impact. The ME escaped from the container and seeped into the ground where it landed.

"Looks like you failed your mission," Hei said before he performed a back-flip away from November 11 as he watched the shattered glass on the ground with ME. Misaki quickly ran in between them and acted like a stopper.

"Before you two start another fight, November 11, you have to hear me out!" November 11 regained his composure and sighed.

"I don't have much choice, do I?" He questioned Misaki. She shook her head and quickly grabbed Hei's wrist before he decided to wander off towards Hell's Gate. He looked down at her hand and tried to rip himself free from her but failed. She wasn't as weak as Yin was; she was going to hold on while she was breathing. Misaki was careful to look up at his start to see that it was still a pale blue, he was still stable and in control for now. November 11 watched the two interacting, it was slightly amusing but Misaki seemed to be on good terms with the Black Reaper, which probably helped a lot when dealing with him. If they weren't on good terms, then he would have attacked by now.

More than Just a Contractor – Chapter 8

Huang wasn't even sure what he should feel, the Syndicate were after the monster in Hei. There was a strong chance that the Syndicate were going to drop Hei and then maybe the other three. Huang wasn't going to be happy if the Syndicate just dropped them because they worked with Hei. He knew well that Yin was worried about Hei more than both himself and Mao were but having had worked with the contractor since the move to Japan, he couldn't help but feel like he had grown attached to him. It was a rough relationship with him and they often clashed because he was a human and Hei was a contractor but if they weren't like that then Huang probably would have felt like a father to him, he didn't show it but he did care for Hei. He did care for the team enough to put his life on the line much like Hei does on a regular basis. Rarely he gave Mao a pet and said to Yin that she could leave the shop and to see Hei. Of course he wouldn't let his team know how he truly felt, he was their leader for a reason and he wasn't going to let them see the more gentle side he had...No, maybe now was the right time to let them glimpse of the other side of Huang. Hitashi had left too, they were on their own. They had time to strike.

"Yin, is it possible for you to track him?" Huang asked the silver haired doll. Mao's ears twitched as he looked up from Yin's lap and directly at Huang.

"What?" Mao asked confused.

"He's not near water..." Yin replied to Huang.

"Damn, I was hoping that we could check on him." Huang removed the hat off his head and scratching the top of his head.

"Huang, what are you planning?" Mao asked.

"Nothing, just curious on what OUR Black Reaper is doing," Huang told Mao as Yin nodded.

"He's reaching water, I can track him."

"How's he holding up?" Mao asked Yin.

"He's with Misaki, November 11, April and July. Hei looks to be stable for now." Yin informed the two males.

"What are those four doing with Hei?" Mao asked as he started to lick his paw, ready to groom himself.

"I don't know but all we can do now is to figure out a way out of here without getting caught."

"Huang, that's suicidal at the current time. The Syndicate will dispose of you if you step foot out of here." Mao gave Huang a stern look.

"Rather die trying than to die here," Huang growled as he moved to the door.

"Huang, why are you trying this?" Mao asked.

"We're in the same team as Hei, so it's our job to be there to support him no matter what he's going through. Isn't that what teams do?" Huang asked. Mao wasn't sure what had brought this on for Huang but he was glad.

More than Just a Contractor – Chapter 8

Misaki watched as Hei bandaged himself up using the basic first aid training that he had received from the Syndicate. November 11 watched the Black Reaper; they had all agreed that if BK-201 turned aggressive and his star remaining the same pale blue as the other stars then they could try and take him down. If the star had changed to a deep red, then they agreed that it was be safer to leave him alone but follow him. If he got closer to Hell's Gate, then April and November 11 would have to spring into action and to try and get him away from the gate as possible. It was easier said than done though as BK-201 had skills superior to both Misaki and November 11.

"There's another issue...the more contractors stay around him then the more unbalanced he'll become," Misaki told November 11. After hearing what Amber had told Misaki, it was probably the best they kept their distance from BK-201 and Misaki was going to be better. They would be more damage than any good if BK-201 went full contractor...right? November 11 and April didn't want to risk it so they both agreed to keep their distance enough to not have any influence over BK-201. They both still stood by what they had said before, about the fact that if BK-201 turned aggressive naturally, and they'll step in to take care of the damage.

Hei looked in the direction of Hell's Gate. That was where he wanted to be and he was going to get there. He could easily do it on his own but Misaki had followed him and broke up the fight between him and November 11, not many people would actually do that. They would much rather wait for the battle to be over and one or the other had their blood painted on the ground as it leaked out from their bodies. November 11's blood preferably but he knew that November 11 wasn't like the other contractors faced in the past. November 11 had keen eyes and detected his opponent's next move. Average contractors just get cocky and believe that they're going to win regardless on their opponents or started to sweet talk their way out of things by trying to reason with the way contractors work. That never worked with Hei, he was far too loyal to his team than to go trying to bargain with others. If they had what he wanted, then he'll kill them and walk away without any thoughts the quick and easy way. Then there's the other method...depending on who the 'victim' stands for. An innocent wouldn't hand over anything without Hei's sweet side to butter them up, gain their trust and act as a friend. When ready, the switch to the Black Reaper granted them a quick death too. All he did was to send a strong impulse of electricity through their bodies, enough to shut the mind down for a bit while it dealt with the foreign charge. If they were lucky they survived.

A gentle melody drifted through the air, catching Hei's attention. Many times had he heard the melody drifting through the town recently, as a result, something stirred within himself. A fire was lit inside him after hearing the melody for a while. It was the same melody he started to hear after he entered PANDORA...and the meteor shard was in his hand. That was when Hei started to hear the melody and the drive to find his beloved sister started to become his dominant drive. She was in Hell's Gate...that's what he believed, that's what the melody told him. He didn't know why the melody made him think and feel like that but he could feel his contractor side getting confused and angered by the confusion. That's when things started to get...blank. It felt that what was left of his human side was slowly being consumed by the contractor nature instead of it remaining in a balanced state but as much as Li hated it...he couldn't do anything to change it. All he could do was to fall into a nightmare as BK-201 took control and wrecked havoc to those around him.

"Li...Are you okay?" Misaki questioned.

"I'm...going to Hell's Gate..." Hei started to get up from the ground he was sitting on. Misaki went for her gun, safely curling her fingers around weapon, ready for a quick-draw if needed. She could already tell that November 11 and April were ready to spring into action now that BK-201 was there. Now was not the best time for Li to become unbalanced. Hei started to make his way in the direction of the gate. Misaki quickly got up and grabbed hold of Hei's hand, halting him in his tracks.

"You're not going to Hell's Gate. I can't let you. Amber t-"

"Amber? Why would you talk to her?" Hei snapped at Misaki, she was talking to Amber? It wasn't much of a surprise that she didn't want himself to go to the gate. She probably wanted him out the way so that she can do her own plan and make Hei lose everything once more! No, he wasn't going to let Amber take everything away from him again!

"She's worried about you," Misaki replied back to him, remaining calm to further anger the contractor in front of her. She knew that there was some sort of connection between the two of them. Just the mention of the name was bad news for Hei at the current time.

"She wouldn't be worried about me; she just wants to take what I have away from me again! She took my sister away and you expect me to believe that she's worried about me?" Hei placed his hand around her neck, he saw the panic flood her body as she grabbed hold of his wrist and desperately tried to take the gloved hand away from her. If Misaki wanted to live, removing the gloved hand would be something that she needed to do. It didn't take long before Li slowly released her from his grip and backed away. Misaki looked at him but his attention was directed next to her, his aura had changed from hatred to...loneliness. The fearsome Black Reaper was feeling lonely?

"Misaki, move away from him!" November 11 yelled Misaki did what November 11 said and backed away from November 11. There was something there that November 11 could see and that Hei could see but nothing that she could see.

Hei's thoughts turned to mush and his insides turned cold as the familiar sight entered his field of vision. The simple suit with blue and black, the blue eyes still held the gentle feeling like they did before they were closed. The pony tail was as neat as she made it with her skin as smooth and well moisturised. The smile...as innocent as a child's smile, he loved the smile. Hell's Gate wasn't even close to them or the Meteor Shard so why was this happening now? The smile of his sister, the one purpose he had left yet she was standing right next to Misaki. Was this just going to be another trick that his mind was playing on him? It wasn't impossible, not with everything that was happening to him recently. He was becoming unstable, the two personalities he had were fighting over control, and he had lost control over both Li and the Black Reaper. He couldn't let one side win without losing the other side. This was his choice...he couldn't just lose one side...if he was going to lose one side...then he wanted to lose them both. He would rather be nothing than only being half a person. Small tears started to roll down Hei's face, collecting on his chin and then dropping to the floor. Wiping the tears away, he grew more confused.

"Li...I need you to calm down..." Misaki spoke gently, watching the struggle Li was going through and now with the confusion of the tears falling down his face.

"But...my sister..." he said, starting to fall back into the 'Li' side. His voice returning back to his soft voice he used when he went undercover. Misaki moved closer towards him, and gently wrapped her arms around Hei, pulling the Black Reaper into a hug. Hei felt himself pulled into the warm hug that Misaki was giving him, more tears formed and fell down his face but now falling onto Misaki instead of the ground where they once fell. The strong drive to return to Hell's Gate vanished instantly, for once, Hei didn't feel like his contractor side was connected to him at all. All he could feel were the human emotions starting to become unpicked from where they were sealed. He didn't want to let her go while she made him feel...human. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled Misaki in, letting her warmth fill his body. He couldn't feel like this forever, but it was nice to hold someone 'normal' like this for a change.

"Wherever your sister is, I'm sure she doesn't want to see you suffer..." Misaki whispered into Hei's ear as they held onto each other.

"I just...want her...back..." Hei whimpered slightly, his breathing had changed from calm to rapid. Memories of the past came back, before Bai became BK-201, the first time.

"Li, for now, you're unstable. You're in no fit state to find her. You don't need to go to the gate, that'll only cause you more trouble."

"Xing..." Misaki struggled to hear Li like this. A broken soul just trying to find something that (from the looks of things) wasn't ever going to be found. How long had Li been on this quest? This fruitless quest which was only going to consume him more and more? The more tears that fell on her, the more she felt herself struggling to control her own emotions. Li had gone through Heaven's War, lost his sister, became the Black Reaper to search for his sister. Misaki was pretty sure that she couldn't handle living a life like Hei could but as much as she tried, she could never truly understand what Li was feeling. She could only guess, but even that was going to be a struggle.

"Would you like to see the stars?" Misaki asked Li.

"What's the point? They're all fake stars."

"Even the fake stars have their own twinkle which makes them special. So what if they're tied to a contractor's life, they're still stars. I know I'll miss them if they suddenly leave, just like the real stars did."

More than Just a Contractor – Chapter 8

The furious sound of keys getting mashed on keyboards echoed through the room, the screens blared information at the workers in front of them. All of them were trying to work out what connection there was between both BK-201 and Hell's Gate, the activity spiked a short while ago but now it was starting to drop back to normal terms, like with any contractor. Why was BK-201 so different that the gate was resonating with him? Hitashi watched Hei's blood sample as the resonance was dropping. It wasn't possible that the gate had some form of consciousness hidden deep inside. Many camera droids, probes and anything else they could send into Hell's Gate just showed a distorted image with static and very little sounds. The wild life which grew there was just as weird and unusable to them, possible for contractors and dolls to use? They didn't think so. The more they left BK-201 out there, the more danger he was going to cause them if he went into the gate. They couldn't send anyone in there, contractors would be driven insane and any human who went in there...well they always suffered some psychological damage. Something that therapy couldn't repair. It wasn't far to send people into a forbidden land they shouldn't walk. It was dangerous to even be stationed near the gate itself.

"Sir, the resonance has dropped, detecting no resonance between contractor BK-201 and Hell's Gate," one of the workers told Hitashi. He simply nodded.

"That could mean that there is something else which is affecting the resonance between the two." Hitashi looked away from a sample of Hei's blood and towards the workers. It wasn't impossible that something was affecting the results. For all he knew, Yin was doing something. "Why did this happen after we sent him to the gate the first time?"

"Maybe because then, he didn't see a ghost of the past," a new voice entered the room. Hitashi felt himself smile.

"You've come back, Amber."