WARNING: This chapter touches on very dark and brutal themes. If you've seen the film Taken (2008), you know what to expect. Read at your own risk. This fanfic is intended for audiences over 18.
Chapter 35
The warehouse was ablaze with harsh white fluorescent lights. Ochaco sat huddled in the corner of the cage. Her knees were drawn up to her chin. She wore pants and a T-shirt. She was much taller than the other girls who had been dragged from bed in their pajamas.
The air stank of sweat, of fear. There were six other girls in the cage. Some were sobbing... others made no sound.
Ochaco tried to remain calm... but she was afraid. She was afraid for herself... for her mother... for the girls around her. The bandit's words about prostitution were burned into her memory. She watched helplessly as the bandits did this to another girl who had been dragged from the cage earlier.
"Please, don't!"
An unknown girl screamed. Her throat was already raw from screaming. She was surrounded by three villains. The first one struck her in the back of the head with an open hand. The blow was so powerful that the girl stopped moving for a moment. He forced her to step on the scale.
"45 Kilo."
The second villain measured her bust, waist, and hips.
"Breasts 70, waist 60, hips 70. She's still growing, so the prognosis is positive. I saw her mother. She had some real boobs..."
The bandits' laughter drowned out the girl's sobs. Ochaco felt nauseous, tears welling up in her eyes. The third bandit was recording everything on his laptop.
Ochaco lost hope that a pro hero would show up... it all looked like it wasn't their first time. They knew exactly what to do... Soon it would be her turn for the 'checkup.'
Suddenly, the sound of a crash against a metal wall shook the warehouse.
Ochaco froze, her heart pounding. The seven girls in the cage held their breath, some raised their heads, others cringed even more. Fujiko, sitting closest, gripped Ochaco's arm so tightly that her nails dug into her skin. Fujiko asked, terrified.
"What was that?"
Ochaco didn't answer. She had no idea.... Three other villains entered the room. They were armed with swords, as befits the Yakuza.
The villain who was typing on his laptop glanced at the closed door.
"Check it out. And if Ryo's making fun of us with his claws again, tell him he just lost his day's pay."
One of the villains stepped closer to the door and asked loudly before opening it.
"Guys... is everything okay outside?"
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Vesemir looked towards the door. The handle moved down and someone opened it. The man poked his head out and looked at the guard's corpse. His eyes widened in horror.
"What the fuck..."
The gangster didn't finish the sentence.
*Aard*
Vesemir gestured at the door. A powerful wave of energy ripped it from its hinges and sent it flying inside. The gangster himself flew several meters away as well. He was alive, but lying on the cold concrete of the warehouse, dazed.
As if nothing had happened, Vesemir stepped inside. His gaze immediately fell on a partially undressed girl surrounded by several thugs. He shook his head slowly.
"Damn... I just wanted to talk to Sozui, but it looks like I have to kill you all."
"Who the hell are you?!"
The man with the laptop exclaimed. Two bandits with katanas lunged at him. Vesemir truly believed he wouldn't have to kill them, but the sight of this half-naked, terrified girl awoke his deeply held hatred for the rapists. He could do no other.
He rushed to meet his opponents, surprising them. At close range, he slashed the nearest one in the neck.
Blood gushed from the severed throat. The sword's steel played a sad note as the katana struck the concrete floor. Despite the blow, the bandit didn't die instantly. Vesemir wanted him to suffer... to live through every second of his remaining agony.
With a second slash, he severed the hand holding the katana from his second opponent. A horrifying scream, not of pain but of shock, echoed through the warehouse. As quickly as it had appeared, it faded away as Excalibur deprived the opponent of the ability to scream.
His body slumped. He had clearly lost consciousness from shock. It didn't matter to Vesemir.
For a moment, silence reigned, broken only by the dripping of blood from his sword. Sozui finally screamed.
"WHAT THE FUCK AM I PAYING YOU FOR? KILL HIM!"
Vesemir stood unmoved. He looked at the bandit, who aimed his hands at him, flames shooting from them.
*Quen*
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Ochaco watched with horror in her eyes. A blast of air knocked the bandit back. Then a boy with two swords and milky white hair entered. In a matter of seconds, he had killed two villains....
The sight of blood and their limp bodies filled her with a fear she had never known before. Flames shot from another villain's hand, and she could only watch as her would-be savior burst into flames.
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The barrier held long enough for Vesemir to open a portal right behind the pyromancer. He grabbed him by the neck and switched places with him. The surprised bandit let out a piercing scream of terror and pain as his own fire began to burn his entire body. His clothes instantly caught fire. The source of the fire ceased, but the pyromancer fell to the floor and began rolling in agony.
The bandits looked at their burning companion in horror. They had always been the stronger ones. They had never encountered a pro hero, or even a vigilante, who killed. This time, they had miscalculated. They hadn't signed up for something like this. It was supposed to be just business, and half of them were dead before a minute had passed. None of them understood why.
Vesemir didn't care. He already knew who was in charge. He approached another bandit and simply ran him through with his sword. Pierced his lung. He yanked the blade from his chest and allowed the bandit to drown in his own blood.
Sozui's last subordinate looked at Vesemir. When the young witcher started walking towards him, he stumbled backward. He hit the back of his head against a metal wall. He was 18 years old. He was saving money for his father's surgery. Because of his accident before Endeavor, he couldn't work and thus support his family. Only joining the Yakuza could provide enough money to support his family and pay the hospital bills, from which his father had not yet been released.
Vesemir looked at the boy before him. He began screaming in terror.
"MOMMY!!!!!!!!!!!!! DADDY!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
He stopped a few meters away from him. This wasn't the first time his conscience had bothered him. Most of the time, it ended badly. He knew he should have killed him. He had killed men his own age before, but this one was clearly not a man. Vesemir's voice was calm, but it carried the promise of death if he resisted.
"Children shouldn't play with weapons."
The young bandit tossed his katana aside. Another smell wafted into the room, filled with the smell of death. It was ammonia. Vesemir glanced at the boy's crotch. His pants were starting to soak from the inside.
"Go home. If I see you again, I'll kill you."
No longer a yakuza, the teenager simply fell to his knees and began running toward the door on all fours. He couldn't stand.
Vesemir turned to Sozui, who wasn't running. The man was holding the girl hostage. He held a knife to her throat. He spoke in a trembling voice.
"I don't know who you are, but you've messed with the Shie Hassaikai... even if you kill me, they'll find you!"
Vesemir didn't answer. His movements were calm, almost lazy. He slowly walked toward Sozui. When the bandit yanked the girl's hair, she moaned in terror and pain. The white-haired man stopped and made a gesture with his hand.
*Axii*
"Let go of the girl and we'll talk. There's no point in hurting her."
Sozui, stunned by the spell, slowly released the girl. She fell to the floor and backed away abruptly.
"Uh...yes...yes, you're...right..."
However, before *Axii* wore off, Vesemir jumped in and knocked the knife out of the bandits' leader's hand and struck him with the hilt of his sword under the chest, surely breaking a rib.
The bandit snapped out of his spell and cried out in pain. He didn't understand what had happened, but he didn't have time to, either, as another blow knocked him to the ground. Vesemir cleaned his sword and sheathed it. Instead, he pulled a knife from the sheath on his chest. He grabbed Sozui from behind and pressed the knife to his groin.
"Do you know that no one has ever lied with a knife to their balls?"
Sozui trembled, his green eyes widening with terror.
"What do you want? Women? Money? I have it all. The safe is behind that closet. The code is 5921."
Vesemir shook his head. The tip of the blade sliced through the belt holding Sozui's pants.
"Information. Who is your boss and where can I find him?"
Sozui swallowed, sweat dripping down his forehead. Vesemir cut him off.
"Before you answer, you must understand one thing, Sozui. You will die. You will die tonight, but there are many ways to die. You will not be the first to die by bleeding to death after having your dick cut off. Such a death is not only painful but also humiliating."
Sozui paled, his body trembling, and his eyes begging for mercy he was not to receive. Vesemir decapitated him so he could look directly into his yellow, cat-like eyes.
"Don't do this, Sozui. Don't beg. Don't cry. Just tell the truth."
"His name is Hiraki... but I don't know if that's his real name... He organizes transports... transports of girls further. I don't know where he sends them... I just deliver the goods to him."
Vesemir looked him straight in the eye. He didn't blink, didn't nod in understanding.
"Where can I find him?"
"He has his base of operations on merchant ships. He owns a shipping company that serves as his cover. He's currently stationed on the container ship Saru. He has about 30 men there, but not all of them can fight. Some are security, some are sailors. He has a team of doctors there who examine the girls' health and check if they're virgins."
"Where can I find that ship?"
"In the commercial port. The port is outside the city. 15 kilometers south on the highway."
Vesemir finally nodded. He plunged his blade into Sozui's chest. The latter was surprised, despite the witcher's warning that he would die anyway. Sozui stopped breathing after a few seconds. His heart stopped beating after fifteen. His death was too quick compared to his crime, but a promise was a promise.
Vesemir released Sozui's body, which slumped to the concrete, blood pooling around it. He looked at the girl cowering under the table, still trembling. Vesemir grabbed the sweatshirt the bandits had forced her to remove for the 'examination' and slowly extended his hand toward her.
"It's all over. You're safe."
He slowly placed the sweatshirt in front of the terrified girl, seeing that she wouldn't offer him her hand. He knew why. This wasn't the first time someone had treated him this way, but he didn't blame her.
He approached Sozui's body again and took the keys that lay next to the severed belt. Then he cleaned the blood from the knife and sheathed it. He went to the cage and opened the lock.
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Ochaco stared straight into the boy's eyes as he approached the cage and opened it.
"You are free to go. I will not harm you. You have my word of honor."
The boy's words were... not haughty... but powerful. All the girls were shocked.
The boy turned and walked to the closet Sozui had mentioned. He effortlessly pushed it aside, revealing a safe in the wall. He entered the code, opened the door, and began pulling out the contents. Rolls of banknotes, gold jewelry, and other valuables. It was more money than Ochaco had ever seen.
She was even more surprised when he approached the cage again and placed the valuables in front of the door.
"Take this. Divide it evenly among yourselves. They won't need it anymore, and the money will be useful to your families."
Ochaco stared at the white-haired boy, still in disbelief. First he brutally killed the villains, then he freed them, and now he was giving them their valuables, taking nothing for himself.
The girls, still trembling, began to emerge from the cage. Ochaco picked up a wad of banknotes... there was enough money here to help her parents' company...
She glanced at the white-haired boy who was taking Sozui's laptop.
She approached him cautiously, keeping him in sight. She stopped a few steps away.
"Who are you?"
The boy looked at her. His eyes changed... from yellow, cat-like eyes to green... a sad look. He blinked a few times.
"Hmmm... I'm Vesemir. A Witcher."
A tear rolled down her cheek. It was a symbol of exhaustion, fear, misunderstanding, and respite.
"Why did you do it... why didn't you summon the pro heroes... why did you kill them?"
Vesemir looked at her. The sadness in his eyes was replaced by indifference.
"Because some people simply need to be killed. You don't make deals with them, you don't make pacts with them, you don't imprison them. The only thing that will deter people like them from harming innocent people is people like me, who will instill fear in their minds. Fear will keep them in check."
The boy's words chilled Ochaco's blood... but she saw something in his eyes... he was feigning indifference. He was hiding something deep within him, carrying a burden he shouldn't have to bear.
Police sirens could be heard in the distance. She turned her head toward the exit. Suddenly, she felt a strange rush of air. She turned and saw Vesemir step through the portal, which closed behind him.
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Vesemir emerged from the portal next to his machine. He put on his helmet and stowed his laptop in his backpack. The Kawasaki's engine roared through the area as he turned the key. He screeched to the port exit. Just before he left, a figure clad in white armor waited for him. Engines jutted from his shoulders. Vesemir stopped about 5 meters from the man who had asked the question.
"Two swords... you are Vesemir. You escaped from the UA today, right? I am Ingenium."
Vesemir narrowed his eyes, but Ingenium couldn't see him, as he hadn't removed his helmet.
"Sir, please get out of my way."
"I can't do that. Everyone is worried about you. I have a brother your age..."
"Get.... out... of... my... way."
Ingenium shook his head.
"Vesemir, please don't do this. I want to help you. You can become a pro hero like me... My brother wants to follow the same path."
The sirens were getting closer. Vesemir decided not to waste any more time. He extended his hand towards Ingenium. Unfamiliar with his abilities, he had no idea what was coming.
*Aard*
End of Chapter 35