Chapter 60: Despair and Madness
The air in the underground platform grew heavier, more foul. The weak groans of the dying old man eventually faded into silence.
All that remained in the darkness was a dead quiet, punctuated only by the increasingly ragged breathing of the survivors. Trapped in this confined space for so long, deprived of food and water, everyone's minds and bodies were at their breaking point.
To stay here was to wait for death.
It's unclear who stood up first, stumbling toward the exit that led back to the surface. The others followed numbly, like sleepwalkers shaken awake. It was better to return to the ruins than to suffocate in the unknown darkness. The surface was broken, but at least you could see the sky.
Maybe… maybe there was still a sliver of hope? A scrap of food, or… a drop of water?
The group staggered up from the suffocating depths and back onto solid ground. Before them, once again, was an endless expanse of rubble. The lead-grey sky hung low, so oppressive it was hard to breathe. They stopped in a slightly clearer area on the edge of a bombed-out commercial plaza, a place littered with the shattered signs of luxury brands and twisted steel rebar. It would have to serve as a temporary resting spot.
The people collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. The long period of darkness and oxygen deprivation had left them dizzy. Hunger and thirst gnawed at their will. The despair was even thicker here than it had been underground. Back on the surface, the apocalyptic scenery was more direct, more suffocating.
Just then, Akemi Miyano spotted something glinting under a pile of rubble nearby, a spot that had been washed clean by the rain. A flicker of hope stirred in her heart. She struggled to her feet, crawled over, and carefully pushed aside the debris. It was a plastic water bottle!
The bottle was half-crushed but not completely empty. Inside, about a small cup's worth of water remained. It looked relatively clean. In this desperate situation where water was a forgotten luxury, this small amount was precious enough to ignite everyone's madness.
Akemi's heart pounded. Her first instinct was to hide it. But then she looked at the children, nearly unconscious, and at the others around her, all struggling on the edge of death… The last bit of kindness in her soul forced her to make a difficult decision.
She didn't drink the water. With trembling hands, she twisted off the cap and spoke, her voice hoarse and strained.
"I found… a little water…"
Her voice was quiet, but it instantly captured everyone's attention. The silent crowd jolted as if struck by an electric current. Their once-empty eyes lit up with a raw, naked desire. Greed began to fester. Suspicion lingered. Despair was interwoven with it all. These emotions flickered in eyes made murky by suffering.
Some struggled to crawl to their feet. Others propped themselves up on their elbows, a hoarse rasp coming from their throats. The air froze. The atmosphere was now even more tense, more dangerous than it had been in the subway.
The old woman slumped in the corner shot her head up. Her clouded eyes locked onto the bottle in Akemi's hand, then shifted to Akemi herself. A low growl rumbled in her throat.
Akemi suppressed the unease in her heart. She knew what the appearance of this water meant. She gripped the bottle tightly, trying to maintain some semblance of order. She carefully used the cap to give a few drops to Ayumi, then a few to Genta, moistening their cracked lips. The children's unconscious swallowing motions calmed her slightly.
Ai Haibara leaned weakly against a broken wall nearby. She watched her sister's actions with a complex expression. The deaths of her comrades, one after another, the successive Witchifications… the immense psychological pressure had nearly drained her of all energy. Her thoughts were sluggish, like rusted gears.
Then, Akemi stood and faced the agitated crowd. Her voice trembled with weakness, but it held a trace of resolve. "Everyone… please, calm down… there's very little… just a little for each…"
Before she could finish, the crowd began to shove.
"Why do they get to drink first?!"
"We're thirsty too!"
"Give it to me!"
"It's mine!"
"Don't push!"
Despair had conquered reason. The fragile order shattered in an instant. The crowd surged forward chaotically, and the motion made Haibara's head spin. Her mind was already stretched to its limit.
Her view was momentarily blocked by the figures scrambling forward. At some point, the white-haired old woman had pushed her way to the very front. Her eyes gleamed with a near-maniacal light. She stared at the water bottle, her withered hand reaching out, trembling, as if grasping for a life raft.
"Water… give me water…"
Akemi's heart tightened. She saw the madness in the old woman's eyes and hesitated, but still carefully extended the bottle toward her, hoping to placate her with a small amount.
Just then, the crazed desire in the old woman's eyes abruptly transformed into an intense, venomous hatred. The hand she had extended didn't reach for the bottle. It snapped back. From the tatters of her clothes, she pulled out a rusty, filthy fruit knife she must have scavenged from the ruins.
Her face twisted into a demonic snarl. As if using the last ounce of her strength, she lunged at Akemi and plunged the knife deep into her chest.
SHLICK—!
Blood sprayed out, staining the front of Akemi's shirt and spattering across the old woman's contorted face.
An expression of utter disbelief crossed Akemi's features, a mixture of pain and shock. Her body swayed, and she slowly crumpled to the ground. The precious half-bottle of water slipped from her grasp, spilling onto the dirty rubble. The water quickly soaked into the dust and vanished.
"Why…?! Why didn't you save my son and his wife?! Huh?!" the old woman shrieked, her voice cracking. "It's all your fault! All of you damned freaks! If you hadn't been there… they wouldn't have… they wouldn't have died!!"
But deep down, she probably knew the truth. Her son and daughter-in-law had died because of their own selfish squabbling. Because of the distance. Because of the damned surprise attack…
But she couldn't admit it. She couldn't bear the guilt and the pain. Someone had to take the blame. It couldn't be her. It had to be them. It could only be them. These "monsters" with "powers"! They brought all of this! They failed to protect everyone! With great power comes great responsibility, but they had done nothing!
"SISTER—!!!"
Ai Haibara let out a heart-tearing scream, frozen to the spot. She watched as her sister's body collapsed in a pool of blood, as the light faded from those gentle eyes once again.
The clamor of the crowd faded away, replaced by an infinite ringing in her ears.
Again… she died in front of me, again… No… why… why does this keep happening…
Her mind went blank. Her silver Soul Gem was instantly flooded with a deep, thick darkness, leaving only the faintest sliver of light at its edge, flickering frantically, struggling.
The old woman's shriek was the lit fuse. A murderous glint appeared in the eyes of some of the other civilians. They too had lost family. They too were filled with hatred.
"That's right! It's their fault!"
"Kill her! Kill this witch!"
"We're like this because of them!"
"We're going to die anyway! We'll be doing the world a favor if we take a few of these demons down with us!"
"Kill them!"
"KILL!"
"KILL!!"
"KILL!!!!!"