Chapter Three
Haunted
Takeru drove all the way out to Ginza, far from any known vampire hangouts which suited him fine. As Tatsurou's second, it was rare that he had any time to himself. There were two things he enjoyed helping him relax, one was the castle gardens where he could lose himself, and the other was going to a lounge bar to listen to live music.
The bar he was going to was not one of his usual spots. He heard some people rave about this bar, and he wanted to experience it for himself. It was called 'The Jubilee' and it had a very wealthy clientele. Takeru loved hunting among the elite. The people were gorgeous, and their blood had a unique quality to it. There was something about the blood of the rich that made it more enjoyable.
Takeru drove for about 30 minutes until he made it to Ginza. He left his SUV in a small parking garage a few blocks from the bar, then he headed to the Jubilee. He knew where it was even though he had not been to it yet, and just as he rounded the corner of the bar; he spotted the queue to get in. There were a dozen people clamoring at the entrance. Takeru stealthily walked right by the hostess and entered the bar.
The Jubilee was a large lounge in the shape of a half-circle with the tables and chairs facing a small stage with a grand piano and a microphone. The ceiling lights were small and dim. The only other lights in the room were on the stage. It was a very red lounge with circular booths along the walls. In the middle were red lounge chairs with low tables that were lit underneath.
There was a peculiar gathering of women in the front facing the stage. Their anticipation was noticeable as they kept looking at the stage and checking the time on their smartphones and watches. None of them paid Takeru any mind. He slipped easily through the tightly packed tables and found the only empty one left near the back of the club where the performance stage was barely visible behind bar carts and potted plants. Then the object of their anticipation came onto the stage, and immediately the women clapped and roared..
All Takeru could see from his viewpoint was a tall, black-haired man walk on to the stage and sit behind the piano. Without a word, he played a melancholy tune as an introduction. Takeru could tell he was talented. There was no hesitation in the notes he played. It was perfect. Takeru's carefully honed ears could hear no mistakes. He listened soothingly to the sounds emitting from the piano as he sighed and leaned backed into his seat. This was exactly what he wanted.
The audience quieted down, then the artist sang.. At the sound of his voice, Takeru straightened up immediately as if struck by a bolt of lightning. The singer had an angelic tenor, perhaps even a countertenor, he thought. He sang a beautiful haunting song. Takeru could feel the passion in his voice. He shut his eyes and listened intently to the song, blocking out everything else around him.
I was drawn by your kiss
I was living in bliss
I lived life like a dream
when you were with me
Now that you are not around
All my dreams have turned dark
Never thinking that I
Will love again
I am falling in to darkness
Only your love can save me now
I have fallen
You can't catch me
Now that you are gone
I have been left all alone
Takeru listened to him sing in quiet awe, then he felt them. Silent tears had fallen from his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. He sat in quiet astonishment, feeling the drops with the back of his hand. How had the singer done it? Takeru was a master at controlling his emotions, but this singer had rendered him powerless.
The lyrics in the song hit a little too close to home for him. They were sentiments he felt but never said. It was as if the singer was retelling the story of his beloved Shinosuke. It did not help that the singer's voice reminded Takeru of his beloved. It did not just resemble him. It felt the same in both tone and passion. Another wave of emotion flooded over him, taking Takeru back to happier times. The song was coming to a close and Takeru could not block out the words. He could not stop listening even as his heart was breaking.
From the first time we met
you were almost unreal
I was drawn by your smile
when you looked at me
Now your smile is a dream
there is no light within me
My light died when you did
Now I am lost in the dark
I am falling in to darkness
Only your love can save me now
I have fallen
You won't catch me
Now that you are gone
I will die all alone
The singer played a few more notes on the piano, then the song ended. The audience broke into a spirited applause. Takeru tried his best to get a glimpse of the singer's face, but even with his vampire eyes, he could not see-through human flesh. The women completely blocked the singer from view.
"Thank you, my lovely guest," said the singer flirtatiously as he played a different tune on the piano. "It's nice to see some familiar faces," he added, and the women in the audience squealed with delight.
Takeru's reaction was completely different. As much as he enjoyed the singer's talents, he did not like being reminded of his painful past. With the mention of Dematsu and the singer's lyrics, it seemed as if fate had torture him.
"You want more?" he asked, egging them on. The women replied, "Yes," in unison. The singer smiled and Takeru glimpsed a young man with creamy skin and sparkling eyes when one woman moved, but it was only for a moment.
"Shinosuke?" he whispered his fingers to his lips.
"This is a song that's very close to my heart, so as I play for you, you shall know a part of my heart," said the singer in a sweet voice, then he played a new tune on the piano. His fingers flew over the keys. "Please enjoy 'Before You". It was a song about the joy of first love. As he sang, Takeru's tears stopped, but his face was a mask of grief as he filled his thoughts his beloved.
A vision of his last pleasant memory of Shinosuke swam into view before he could stop it… the two of them in the castle gardens during cherry blossom season. They sat under a blooming tree, Shinosuke had his arms wrapped around him as Takeru sat between his legs with his back to him reading a book of poetry aloud. The wind would occasionally blow cherry blossom petals around them like little pink snowflakes. He remembered his beloved Shinosuke cupping his face up and capturing his lips in a sweet kiss. Takeru put his finger to his lip, trying to remember the sensation. Then his thoughts turned dark and fresh tears sprung into his eyes. He did not want to be reminded of such things. He kept his feelings about losing Shinosuke under lock and key, and this singer had easily unlocked them with the sound of his voice. He had to getaway. He could not stand the pain of his loss for another moment.
Takeru's eyes glanced toward the stage once more, as if hypnotized. He could not move; the singer help him captive. His next piece was more upbeat and Takeru calmed himself. Dried tears on his pale face, he fixed his eyes on the ceiling lights for the rest of the set.
The singer disappeared after two more songs amidst the screams of his throngs of fans, and Takeru was could finally leave the club through a side door. He kept saying to himself, Shinosuke is on the other side, at peace. It is time I found some as well. Working hard to control his thoughts, he glided back to his vehicle, his expression closed, and his fist clenched. "This can't happen again," he said, opening the car door. "This won't happen again."
As he drove through the teeming streets of Tokyo, he thought not of Shinosuke, but of the singer. Amidst the fan's screams, he had caught his name; Yami. Yami's music was calling Takeru to the past, and he could not bear it. He could not go there again.
When he returned to the castle, Takeru hurried to his room, got changed, and then climbed into his bed. He closed his eyes and hoped that he would fall into a blissful sleep void of thoughts of a life he could never return to.
The following day, Takeru woke up to a tap on his door. Unable to shake off the troubling thoughts from the previous night, he dreamed about the first time he and Shinosuke had been intimate. It was everything he hoped it would be it was beautiful, exciting, gratifying, and scary. It terrified Takeru that he would hurt Shinosuke. He made sure that he fed before seeing him. Takeru was gentle and careful, while Shinosuke was impatient and playful. It was the best day of his existence.
Shaking the memory away, Takeru buried his face in his hands as he lay in bed feeling emotionally weak. Dreaming of that joyous night was proof that he was deeply affected by Yami's music and he could not accept it.
Takeru heard another tap on his door so he quickly jumped out of bed, put on his robe, and answered the door to see Lt. Commander Reita dressed in his patrol gear; a black suit and jacket making him resemble a simple salary man. However, hidden in compartments were weapons, vials of poison, smoke screen powder for quick getaways, and black sunglasses to conceal his silver eyes. His short spiky hair gave him a more interesting look than that of a typical salaryman, but he could still blend in.
"Good afternoon,"
"Afternoon?" Takeru repeated, blinking several times at his young friend.
"Yes its 3:00 p.m., nearly time to go on patrol," Reita said staring at his commander with one eyebrow raised accusingly. "We're you asleep all this time?"
"Yes, why didn't anyone wake me before?" Takeru asked as he ducked back into the room to find suitable attire. Reita waited respectfully by the door.
"Lord Tatsurou told us you were not to be disturbed."
"I see."
He was worried about me. He concluded with a soft smile. Does he know something happened to me? His mind raced as he rifled through his closet.
"Lady Tsukihana found us a credible lead to follow," Reita called from the door, interrupting his thoughts for a moment.
"Did she? That's excellent."
Lady Tsukihana's position did not call for covert operations. She was too well known in the vampire world to go around unnoticed, but she was very well informed. It was most often Takeru and Reita who were sent to follow leads in her stead.
Takeru emerged several minutes later fully dressed similarly to Reita, except he wore a black leather jacket.
"Let's go," he said, and then they set off.
The two of them took a quick patrol of the castle grounds before they headed to the town known as Takadanobaba.
"According to Lady Tsukihana, some Madoushi were seen in that area a lot lately, a town known to be crawling with rogue vampires," Reita said. Takadanobaba was an overpopulated area of Tokyo filled with people from all over. Tourists and young people frequented the area because of its live venues and ethnic foods.
The streets were very narrow and the deafening sound of trains passing was a frequent occurrence. It was the perfect place for vampires to hunt. No one would notice in such a large crowd; someone being led away between buildings where their blood would be drawn. The Ryoku worked tirelessly to keep the people safe from rogue vampires who were quick to kill. As the Ryoku were a powerful clan, whose bloodlines were stretched back thousands of years, they were not required to kill to quench their thirst for human blood.
It was very suspicious of the Madoushi to enter the known territory of other vampires, and especially so for rogues who were very unpredictable. It did not take long for Takeru to feel the vampiric energy when they arrived in Takadanbaba around 4:00. They followed the energy to a dark and cramped basement performance venue.
There were posters of previous performers plastered on every inch of the walls. The floors were grimy, like they had cleaned them with a dingy mop. The patrons were young, mostly female in gothic attire complete with fishnets, lots of spiked jewelry and piercings on every available appendage. Cloaking their own energy, Takeru and Reita hung in the shadows, eyes, and ears open for anything suspicious. It was a completely different crowd from the people who had attended the show at the Jubilee. The music was ear-splitting metal. The patrons swung their heads from left to right like a pendulum in sync with the music, hair whipping from side to side.
Takeru scanned the audience with his gifted eyes, and he deduced by the amount of energy that there were at least 10 rogues in the venue. Three of them were on stage clad in red patented leather and playing instruments. Three were head banging with the audience. Two were unaccounted for. They are probably trying really hard to cloak their energy, Takeru surmised. It felt like being in a room full of hornets' nest, buzzing loudly but completely invisible. Takeru felt a strong buzzing of sorts, and the other two more powerful, non-rouge vampires caught his attention.
Takeru signaled to Reita, and they watched the unknown vampires who blended in with the visual rock dressed patrons in the crowd. They approached a pair of rogues leaning against a black wall, and when the stage lights were bright, Takeru caught sight of the vampire Rin. The ice whip, now hanging off a belt on her left, was unmistakable. She handed the rogues a thick envelope. The female rogue did not open it. She nodded and walked away, disappearing into the crowd with her companion. Soon Rin and her guard did the same. Takeru and Reita exchanged wide-eyed expressions.
"Something definitely is off here," Takeru commented, slipping out of the live house soon after they witnessed the exchange. "Since when do rogues meet with Madoushi and pass patted letters?"
"I don't know," Reita replied, eyes narrowed. "Perhaps they are negotiating over hunting grounds. Madoushi has no place in Kanto. Their home is in Osaka. The rogues are disorganized, leaderless. They are not even a clan. But the Madoushi might still want to avoid an open confrontation with them when they are conflict with us."
"That is reasonable," said Takeru thoughtfully. Then he looked back at the live house. "You know, there have been whispers of a leader among them, or at least someone who wants to lead them."
"It's just a rumor Sir," said Reita, looking up at his leader. "They're far too many of them for one person to lead them. Only a powerful and I daresay reckless vampire could accomplish such a thing,"
"And what if there, is huh? One rogue among them, powerful enough to get them all to listen to him or her, we'd be outnumbered by who knows how many," said Takeru stopping in front of his car. "And then there are the Madoushi. If they team up, we could have a very bloody war on our hands."
"The Madoushi and the rogue vampires working together?" said Reita his hand on the passenger side door. "This conflict just keeps getting more and more complex."
"Put two of our best trackers on the Madoushi vampire Rin, see what we find out."
"Yes, Sir!"
They got in the car, then headed back to the castle. For the entire drive, Takeru was completely distracted. His thoughts were on Yami as the streets of Tokyo flew by his window in multi-colors. Takeru clutched his un-beating heart through his jacket as an image of Shinosuke swam into view. He wanted to shake it away, but he was aware of Reita's eyes on him in the SVU. So, he pulled out his notepad and pen from his breast pocket and jotted things down he had observed from the night's patrol.
All the while he knew the singer's effect on him had been lasting. Takeru had not thought so much about Shinosuke in decades. Through the years, he had effectively closed off all of his emotions to become the feared Second in Command Leader of the Ryoku. As Takeru mindlessly wrote on his pad, he could not deny that the singer Yami had touched an unreachable part of his heart with the sound of his voice and the haunting lyrics of his songs.