Kitty and Damien left the yakuza base and returned home. But this home was drastically different to the one Damien once knew.
For starters, they didn't live in Kuromori anymore. After Damien's departure, Dana became the ruler of Earth. The danger to his allies was so great that they had to leave their old lives behind and go on the run. They moved around a lot and used aliases to avoid being caught and executed. Now, they were staying in a small seaside town, Midoriumi.
"You know, I," Damien began as they were making their way to their current house. "I'm sorry. If I hadn't left, you all would have been safe."
Kitty glanced back at him with a look of surprise. "Dimmy, you died. No one could have accounted for that, especially not you. You have nothing to be sorry for."
"Yeah, but-"
"We're your allies, your family." Kitty smiled. "When we joined you on your mission, we knew the risks. We accepted them. We made a promise to protect and support you, and we'd do it even if we died."
"Please don't say it like that." Damien said. "It makes it sound like you're sacrificing yourselves for me. I'm not that important."
"You are to me." Kitty whispered. "Anyway, we're nearly there. Wait until you see how beautiful our new house is."
They arrived at a long white bungalow on the edge of a pier. Damien's eyes widened in wonder.
"Is that where we live?"
"Yep." Kitty grinned. "For now, at least. Hopefully, our next home will be as lovely."
The guilt Damien felt returned, but he remembered what Kitty had said. It helped a little to lessen his regret. He made a silent promise that they wouldn't have to leave this time. He'd fix this and defeat Dana once and for all.
The inside of the new house mirrored the old one, apart from the Western-style doors and windows. The décor hadn't changed, not even in Damien and Kitty's room. All of Damien's stuff was still there as if he hadn't been away. He gave a sad smile when he saw this. Kitty must have missed him terribly.
They had only been back for an hour when Claire returned carrying three shopping bags. As soon as she saw Damien, she dropped the bags and her jaw dropped in shock.
"You're alive?" She asked in disbelief. She rushed over to Damien and tearfully threw her arms around him. "You're alive! Oh, God, how is this possible? Amazing! It's a miracle!"
Damien laughed and hugged her back. "I'm sorry. I'll try not to leave for so long again."
The three of them spent a while catching up. Afterwards, Claire raced to the kitchen to make a special meal – and Damien some cola – to celebrate their reunion. The others should be arriving home soon. Damien decided to have a shower before they came back.
In the bathroom, he began to undress when he felt static in his brain. He had been hearing a voice in his head, distorted but desperate to reach him. It wasn't unusual. With his schizophrenia, he heard voices all the time. But he had been hearing this particular one since he woke up from his coma.
He shrugged it off and washed himself. Now wasn't the time to worry about his illness. He wanted to spend as much time with everyone as he could. But first, he needed a nap. The hot shower made him feel drowsy. He went to his and Kitty's room to sleep for a while until everyone got back.
☽☾
In his mind, he saw a terrible sight. Blood, corpses, flames, death. All he felt was fear, but for who he didn't know. He didn't recognise these people. Yet he felt he'd known them all his life.
He was watching these oddly familiar individuals die. Then, the woman responsible for it all approached him, brandishing a sword. She'd just killed his family that he didn't know and he was next. But he wasn't afraid, not anymore. He was content to die. His only wish was that his love survived this massacre.
The last thing he witnessed was the swing of the sharp blade, then everything stopped and he was back in his bedroom.
☽☾
Damien woke from this terrifying dream, hyperventilating. He had a thin layer of sweat on his skin and his heart was pounding.
What the hell was that? Why was he so distressed by a random nightmare? He felt as though he had just seen the death of everyone he loved, but he didn't recognise anyone there. It slowly dawned on his that it wasn't him in the dream. He was seeing it through someone else's eyes. But whose?
He sighed and lied back on the bed. The sadistic look in the woman's eyes flashed through his mind and sent a chill down his spine. He couldn't go back to sleep now.