Wings of Fate interlude - May 8, 2001 by Afura Mann (afuramann@hotmail.com) ***************************************************** Journal Entry (excerpt) May 8, 2001. 9:39 PM This, the second day of the questioning concluded at 7:27 PM. Today I took a larger role in the questioning process. When I first arrived to work this morning, I noted that I was eager to hear what the day's proceedings would reveal. I was not disappointed in the slightest. Upon arriving at the interrogation chamber, I was informed that I would be directly questioning the subjects, as a number of the other members of our assembled team were occupied in the effort to locate Mr. Iwanaga. To say the least, I was thrilled. Though I could sense some frustration from my colleagues, I was fascinated by our captives' tale. The others wanted me to press the group (namely Judou and Soshi) for details on their magickal experimentations, but I let them continue their narrative. I wanted to hear the full account of the events that led to their capture. There will be time later for a forced extraction of the little details. One of the things I noticed was the decided lack of sorrow regarding the death of the sixth member of their group, Kenchi. Even the people who had broken down into tears earlier in the morning were calm and collected. It is only now that I realize the potential significance of this fact. Perhaps they were aware that their compatriot was still alive? If that is the case, how was it possible? It could be that his escape was planned ahead of time by the party, and that they merely feigned tears this morning so as to aid his getaway. Or, perhaps more disturbing, they had a mental rapport of some sort with Mr. Iwanaga. Given the power they have demonstrated, I do not know if it is within the realm of their abilities. Certainly, I would not discount the possibility. Another thing that I noticed was that there were notable lapses and contradictions in the story. There was something they were attempting to hide, I am sure. I have had enough training in psychology to catch the signs. The easiest way is to watch Miss Hayashi's face. I have determined that she will be the easiest link to break, as she is by nature unaccustomed to controlling her reactions or hiding things from other people. The questioning came to an early end today when Kr'kkwujcik decided to interrupt the captive's story again. I understand that he did have a direct hand in things, both previously when he had taken the place of their foreign friend and this time, taking over Akari's body, but it annoyed me to no end. I wish to hear the account from them, not from the mouth of a creature such as he. I should probably include some notes about Kr'kkwujcik, as he is an important player in all of this. I was told by some of our associates that I was not to enquire into his origin, but I felt that my orders from the Agency take priority over their requests. As the charter of our Agency demands that we investigate all such phenomena fully, I expect the full support of my superiors in this decision. From what I was able to gather from various sources (who all wish to remain anonymous), Kr'kkwujcik is either a demon from Hell or an extradimensional alien being. In either case, he is able to manipulate the threads of reality to perform what we term 'magick'. The best way to describe him is as a coherent cloud of dense smoke in a vaguely humanoid shape, except that no human I know has teeth the size of pencils and eyes as piercing as those hollow sockets. He has claimed to be a powerful being who has been manipulating world events for quite some time now, but I have heard from other sources that he is in fact held in thrall by one of our associated agencies. This claim was corroborated by the captives, who referred to him as a servant. Whatever the truth is about Kr'kkwujcik, I know that I do not like him. He is supremely arrogant and insists upon interrupting our investigation. He seems fond of extolling his accomplishments, speaking of his possessions with extreme bravado. However, he is remiss to even acknowledge his failure in both circumstances, and glosses over them when that fact is brought to light. His feeble excuses ring hollow. The captives were returned to their cells at that time. I was prepared to chastise Kr'kkwujcik, but he disappeared before I had the chance. It will have to wait until tomorrow morning. Right now, I am thoroughly exhausted, as the security guards conducted a full body search upon my exiting the chamber. I have decided to lodge a formal complaint the instant I return to Kyoto, as I should not have to stand for such invasions of my person. I remain hopeful that tomorrow will bring more answers. Despite my fatigue and discomfort, I am still anxious. - Ichida Soujirou Journal Entry (excerpt) May 9, 2001. 8:30 AM I did not return home last night, though I did call my family to let them know I would be held up with work. The entire complex had been locked down, and no one was allowed in or out, until security had the opportunity to conduct a full sweep. The search went well into the night and showed no sign of ending, so I retired for the night. I slept in my makeshift office. It was an uneasy sleep, with nightmarish images plaguing my dreams. I do not remember most of it, but I remember waking to the sensation of a faceless tengu pinning me to the ground with his arms and ripping away my flesh with his beak. Thankfully, I was alone when I woke and was spared the embarrassment of being seen in such a state. I had just prepared a cup of coffee and was going over my notes from the previous day when there came a knock at my door. Answering, I was told that Kenchi had been discovered sometime in the early morning hours. I am surprised I hadn't been awakened by the scuffle that ensued, as there were gunshots fired by our security personnel. Luckily for them, Mr. Iwanaga was uninjured. I caught up with the security team just as they were bringing him to an isolation cell. He was in good shape, and in fact looked as though he were untouched, except for a few scrapes and bruises. Security had been easy on him, all things considered. I was surprised to find Kr'kkwujcik waiting outside the cell. His presence was not anticipated, though I guessed it was because his non-human mind would not be susceptible to Kenchi's magick. I was only able to guess because as we drew closer, Kr'kkwujcik turned to face our group, grinning that horrific smile of his. At that time, Kenchi drew out a small object that he had managed to keep hidden while he was being searched. He appeared to crush it between his fingers and point at Kr'kkwujcik. I will never forget what I saw. It is a vision that will forever haunt me, I am certain, clear and vivid as real life. The air around Kr'kkwujcik seemed to warble and distort, and his face grew distended in pain. He looked like he was trying to scream, but I heard nothing. Quite literally, I heard nothing. Not only his screams, but the astonished gasps of the guards, the clatter of guns on the ground, even the pounding of my own heart were silenced. And then, he was gone, folding in on himself as he flailed about with sickening contortions. I stood in shock for no fewer than two minutes and thirty-nine seconds by my watch. The guards regained their composure quickly and threw Mr. Iwagana into his cell. By the time he was fully secured, I had recovered my wits. I turned on my recorder and entered the cell, careful not to make eye or skin contact. TRANSCRIPT OF CONVERSATION Interviewed: IWANAGA Kenchi Conductor: ICHIDA Soujirou Time: 0730 ICHIDA: Good morning, Kenchi. IWANAGA: Is it morning already? ICHIDA: Yes, it is. IWANAGA: But is it a good one? ICHIDA: Perhaps. Depends on who you are, I guess. [IWANAGA laughs] IWANAGA: Too true! Tell me, why aren't you looking at me... Soujirou, isn't it? ICHIDA: Please call me 'Doctor Ichida', if it is not too much trouble. And as for your question, it is because I believe in taking precautions. IWANAGA: Precautions? ICHIDA: I do not wish to be ensorcelled, Mister Iwanaga. [IWANAGA laughs] ICHIDA: Considering what has just happened, I don't think it is very funny. IWANAGA: Too bad, because I do. You should see your face. It's priceless. ICHIDA: Stop trying to change the subject, Mister Iwanaga. It will only forestall what is coming anyway. IWANAGA: Oh, lighten up! ICHIDA: What just happened? How were you able to kill Kr'kkwujcik? IWANAGA: Krick? Oh, I didn't kill him. ICHIDA: You didn't? Then what did you do? IWANAGA: I just sent him to another dimension. ICHIDA: Oh? IWANAGA: His home dimension, actually. His services were no longer needed, so I banished him. ICHIDA: What do you mean? IWANAGA: Why, he was a double agent! You should know that your friend there betrayed you. ICHIDA: That's preposterous! IWANAGA: Is it really? ICHIDA: Yes, it is. There is no way that he was a 'double agent'. [IWANAGA chuckles] IWANAGA: You see, that's where the beauty of this all comes in. You really can't know that for sure. We might have convinced him to join up with us. Or we might not have. Only seven people would know, and one of them won't be speaking too much any more. ICHIDA: You really expect me to believe that? IWANAGA: No. I'm telling you that you should be careful of what you do believe. You have no way of know how much of what we tell you is true, if any of it. Any one of us could be lying, or all of us could be telling you the absolute truth. ICHIDA: What kind of game are you trying to play? IWANAGA: This isn't a game, Souji, old boy! This is your wake-up call. You might think that you captured us, but did you ever think that maybe we were the ones in control all along? Maybe you and your friends were really cool and managed to trap up. Or maybe we're playing you for fools and let ourselves be caught, so that we could learn more about you. ICHIDA: I am beginning to get angry, Mister Iwanaga. Trust me, you don't want to see me get angry. I tend to get rather nasty. IWANAGA: Oh, don't act so outraged. Last I remembered, you were holding us prisoner. You'll excuse us if we don't bend over and just take it up the ass. ICHIDA: I... will see you later, Mister Iwanaga. END OF TRANSCRIPT I left Kenchi. I am seriously disturbed by what he had to say, but I am trying to temper it with the likelihood that he spoke only to upset me. He will probably be beaten by the guards before he is returned to his friends. As for myself, I must hurry to the interrogation chamber. There is much to learn.