Chapter 23: Under Control

A/N: Did you know Shizume means "suppressing/controlling." So Shizume Town in the K Project anime is the "Town that is controlled"... Presumably by the kings. Longest chapter yet! Was too lazy to break this into 2 diff chapters, so enjoy the update.

THIS IS OFFICIALLY THE SECOND TO LAST CHAPTER. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS FOLLOWED THIS STORY, I APPRECIATE ALL OF YOU.

Also thanks for the reviews! They give me motivation to keep on writing.

"I might be anyone,
A lone fool out in the sun.
Your heartbeat of solid gold,
I love you, you'll never know.

When the daylight comes you feel so cold.
You know I'm too afraid of my heart to let you go.
Waiting for the fire to light,
Feeling like we could do right.

Be the one that makes tonight,
'Cause freedom is a lonely road.
We're under control."

-"Under Control" by Alesso

December 5, 2012 (Same night as previous chapter)

11:30 PM

There was a pulse that seemed to silently reverberate over Shizume city.

It's interesting to note that regular citizens without access to sanctums are unaware of the clans in their city.

Whenever Kings use their sanctum, a large Sword of Damocles appears over them. However, normal citizens can't see the sword because their biological wave is not synced to the Dresden Slate.

However, those from every clan looked up into the sky and saw a new Sword of Damocles. To most, it was a mystery to whom it belonged to. Was there a new King? A new clan?

The ombre-colored Sword of Damocles hung in the air for a few moments before it pulsed with a pink-colored aura. Not too long after the pulse, it shattered into a million diamonds that glowed pink as they gently settled upon the city.

There were only a select few who understood what just happened and immediately mobilized.

Tatara had already contacted Kusanagi when Hana had left to chase after the shooter. However, he wasn't of much help because he didn't see or hear the shooter. Even when he rewound the tape, all it captured was a blur before Hana's back covered the lens and blood splattered over it.

Tatara had dropped the film recorder in shock, and the only thing that was captured was the audio. It recorded their voices arguing about chasing after the mysterious figure before Hana took off.

As soon as Hana's Sword of Damocles appeared, Kusanagi, Misaki, and Tatara all converged on the location. Despite being the closest to the building, it took them fifteen minutes to figure out where the fight occurred. Floating swords in the sky hover over a certain area. Getting an exact location takes a while longer.

However, they were too late and only caught a glimpse of an ambulance leaving the location and a dark red spot on the rooftop. Police were already starting to arrive, so Kusanagi contacted SCEPTER 4 to handle the matter as it related to the Red King's territory and clan.

Although Hana never belonged to a single Clan (despite promising all those years ago that she had something to take care of first) it was an unspoken agreement that almost all matters concerning Hana Kugawa was the Red Clan's responsibility.

Shizume General Hospital

"Are you all her family members? Only Tatara Totsuka is listed as her emergency contact, but if you are not part of her family then you must leave the room." The doctor declared unknowingly to a room filled with HOMRA's top brass.

Anna sat in a chair, quietly looking at Hana's form in the hospital bed.

Misaki was staring at the corner of the room, feeling resentful for how easily Hana was taken down.

Izumo was in the corner making urgent phone calls.

Tatara just had a soft smile as he brushed his fingers through Hana's hair, careful not to get them tangled in the mess of tubes and wires going to and from Hana's body. It seemed like he was lost in thought for a moment.

Mikoto had his arms crossed and was leaning with his eyes closed against the far wall. "Just cut the shit already. Tell us her condition."

If the King directed this tone at a member of his own clan, they'd be shaking in their boots. When directed at a middle-aged doctor in a white coat, the medical professional could barely stammer out the words fast enough before fleeing the room.

"Ku-kugawa-san is n-not in a cri-criti-tical c-condition. G-gunshot wound w-wasn't fa-fatal. S-she's in a coma and w-we don't know why! She m-may nev-never wake u-up or she might be fine." He managed to finish his statement as he was backing out of the room.

The King remained quiet. If Hana was awake he would shake her and demand to know who dared to make an attempt on her and Tatara's life.

"Where are you Hana? Please come back." Anna quietly murmured as she gazed at the immobile figure.

December 6th (The next morning)

8AM

The white haired boy in a bloodied school uniform was taken into custody by SCEPTER 4.

He had lost his memories from the past year, but was eventually able to recall his name: Tōru Hieda. Using this name, SCEPTER 4 tracked down his origin and affiliation.

It appeared that Tōru Hieda grew up in an orphanage. After graduating from middle school, he had to work because he couldn't afford high school. After contacting his previous employer, they had said he was a responsible, yet shy worker who just suddenly stopped showing up to work one day.

Hieda couldn't recall anything that had happened between a year ago and when he woke up on the rooftop with the pink-haired lady. He didn't even know her name.

At first, SCEPTER 4 resisted when HOMRA wanted to question the boy. However, Kusanagi made some well-placed calls and they were allowed 10 minutes of questioning as long as they promised to not harm the suspect.

The motive for the crime was a mystery to everyone involved. The only person who may know (that isn't in a coma) is this shady Hieda person.

Another reason SCEPTER 4 allowed the interrogation is because HOMRA has Anna. Anna's powers allow her to read the thoughts of those she looks at through her red marble.

Which led us to now, with the core members of the Red Clan standing at the gates of SCEPTER 4.

"Third King Mikoto Suoh, your actions are wild and chaotic as usual. You should leave this under SCEPTER 4's jurisdiction." The Blue King announced with his entourage behind him. His haughty tone of voice irked the Red King.

"Fourth King Resei Munakata… Your face looks awful and annoying as usual." Mikoto mocked the Blue King who greeted them in front of SCEPTER 4 headquarters.

The Red Clan was walking right into the Blue Clan's territory. It was understandable why there would be high tensions among everyone, especially with their history.

Before a fight broke out and they were forced to get their hands on the suspect with brute force, Tatara stepped in, "Ma ma now, we already discussed this. You said we can have 10 minutes with the suspect."

"That is correct... In exchange, you will have to inform us of all the information you obtain and also hand over the gun you confiscated from the crime scene." Seri spoke up.

SCEPTER 4 wasn't going to allow attempted murder to slide right under their noses. And despite putting on a cold exterior, Hana was a close friend to many people at SCEPTER 4. They were going to do their best to help find the true perpetrator.

HOMRA is escorted to the holding facility located in the basement of SCEPTER 4.

Hieda has a cautious look on his face as unfamiliar people enter the room.

He had already changed out of the uniform he wore the night before, and it was kept as evidence. The blood splatters on it is pretty convincing of his guilt. He wore a loose, unisex outfit. Almost like navy-colored pajamas.

Everyone is tense and quiet as Anna walks up to the white-haired boy. She leans forward and stares at him through her red marble.

Hieda felt as if this young girl was looking right into his soul. As if every thought and every memory he has ever had could not be hidden from the girl's piercing red eyes.

The intense stare-down continued for a few moments until the white-haired girl leaned back.

She shook her head and quietly announced, "He didn't do it. He's lost and has no memory."

Everyone lets out a sigh. The Reds do it in annoyance and the Blues do it out of relief. If he was guilty, he would have immediately been burned until there was no blood, bone or ash left. Not even the Blue King would have been able to stop them if they were determined enough.

Allowing the Red Clan into their headquarters was a risk they took in order to bring justice to the criminal. However, their suspect is innocent and as such they would send him on his way.

HOMRA left the SCEPTER 4 headquarters with the same amount of respect as they entered it. In other words, scorching footprints and a crumbled brick column that somehow offended Misaki as he was passing by it.

The Red Clan was out for blood. With Tatara left behind to keep Hana company in the hospital, there was no one to calm the Red King down.

The whole town was on edge, even if the normal citizens couldn't figure out why. They just knew it was dangerous and that there were patrols of the red gang scoping out any suspicious people. There were rumors that they busted an underground weapons-trafficking ring.

Not even Hana could predict the events that started to occur.

Shizume General Hospital

December 8th (2 days after questioning Hieda, day the anime begins)

8 AM

A scantily dressed girl with heterochromia eyes and a man with long, silver-colored hair stroll into the hospital room.

Muscles tense and gazes harden as everyone's attention, except for the man's sitting by the patient's bedside, turns towards the unfamiliar strangers who just casually strolled into the room.

Kusanagi opened his mouth to tell them off, but was cut off by the girl's words.

"Did Neko win the game? Hana-chan said Neko is good at games! See, see! I delivered it just like I promised!" She waved a letter with the HOMRA insignia stamped on it in the air.

"Neko, please give these gentlemen the letter." The silver-haired man sighed.

As Neko reluctantly handed over the letter to Kusanagi, he finally found his words, "Who are you?"

"My name is Adolf K. Weismann, the 1st and Silver King. But also, Hana's friend."

At this point, the room was no longer surprised. Hana was always good at making friends, no matter where she went.

"And I'm Neko! I'm Hana-chan's friend too!" Neko looked around the room, proud of herself. But seeing the expressions on their faces, she became confused. She held her hand up and pawed at an itch behind her ear. "But, but, why aren't you all happy? Hana-chan, why are you being so lazy? I'm here now, you should wake up and play with me!"

"Neko..." The Silver King placed a hand down on her shoulder.

"NO! Stop, why is everyone making that face? Hana-chan is still here. She's okay, see she's just sleeping. Maybe she's tired!" Neko became more agitated as no one responded to her and the girl in the bed didn't move.

The expressions of those in the room were hard to read.

"Ne, ne onee-san." Neko reverted back to the nickname she often used with Hana. "Play with meeeee." She gently hopped over to the other side of Hana's bed, and pawed at her hand.

"Oi! Don't tou-" Misaki was cut off as Anna poked him in the leg and shook her head. Neko needed to understand that Hana couldn't respond to her even if she wanted to.

"Oneeee-sannnn." She whined. "Why won't you wake up? Is it because Neko is bad? Did Neko not do the game right? I promise… I promise I'll do it right this time. So please, just wake up and tell me I did a good job, ne?" Tears began to overflow in her eyes, and Neko eventually ran out of the room.

"Gomenasai… I'll step out of the room and allow you to read her letter. Once you're done, we have matters to discuss." Adolf apologized on behalf of Neko and followed her out of the room.

Kusanagi handed the letter to Tatara, who opened it with a small smile on his face. In the author's opinion, it was a poor attempt to reassure the others he was okay.

Although his voice sounded tired, Tatara still read it aloud:

"If you're reading this letter, it probably means I'm gone, in critical condition, or dead. I told Neko and Addy that if I didn't call them at midnight on December 7, 2011, then they need to find you and deliver this letter to you. You can trust them, I've been good friends with them for years.

I don't know the results of my actions, but I request that you don't seek revenge.

Don't bother going after the Colorless King, I'm pretty sure I've taken care of him. And don't harm the white-haired boy if he's still there. Nothing was his fault, he's an innocent bystander.

The Colorless King was an amalgamation of human souls, which is why it was so hard for me to find him unless he approached me first. But I've released all the souls (hopefully).

There's still so much I wanted to say and do, but in the beginning I knew my time with you was short. Thank you for the wonderful memories and for being my family.

There will still be butterflies in a garden without flowers. So please, let me be selfish and ask that you all be happy without me. I love you all.

P.S. I promised Neko, so make sure to give her lots of fish!

P.S.S. Anna, please have a wonderful birthday. This present is for you to remember me by if I didn't get the chance to give it to you."

Tatara handed a beautiful red rose necklace that was inside the envelope to Anna. It must be the present Hana was talking about. Anna accepted it with both hands, but still buried her face into Tatara's chest.

Kusanagi stepped out of the room to contact the rest of the clan to stop the search parties. Hana clearly explained the situation to them: the Colorless King had been defeated and there was no perpetrator they could catch and punish.

"Tch. She can give the cat lady fish herself when she wakes up." Misaki annoyedly muttered.

With sadness lacing his words, Tatara finally spoke, "You've always taken care of others before you've taken care of yourself huh?" He laid his fingers gently on the motionless girl's cheeks. Although faint, her pulse was still there.

"Why the long faces? There's still hope to wake her up."

The hospital room was filled with various shouts of "eh?" It had only been a few minutes since the Silver King had exited the room to give them privacy.

"What are you trying to pull you bastard?!" Misaki was quick to misunderstand the situation.

Addy cracked a smile and walked over to Misaki. Before Misaki could back away, he was poked in the chest by the First King's umbrella.

Suddenly, Misaki was engulfed in a silver aura and began to float. He frantically flailed his arms around and kicked his legs as an attempt to keep upright in the air.

Izumo, the brains of HOMRA, looked from Misaki to the First King, "What's the point in this demonstration?"

"All I did was tune in to the spectrum of your biological wave, which is synced to the Red Clan, and synced it to my own, which is Silver. You see, we each have an attribute associated with our souls, which allows us to accept the powers of a certain clan."

"This sounds like something Hana had mentioned once…" Tatara put a finger up to his chin in thoughtfulness, "M-my… Myers…. Bridge.. No… Briggs?"

"Ahh yes, the Myers Briggs Personality Test. While it is true that these wavelengths have a slight impact on our personality, it is hard to say with so many variables present. The parallels can be summed up as so: There's a spectrum and some people may fall more towards one end such as 'Judgers,' like the Blue Clan. These types of people tend to be well-organized and prepared. They are comfortable following most rules and like to stick to plans. On the other hand, there are people who are the opposite. They are 'Perceivers.' Perceivers like to keep their options open, act spontaneously, and see rules as flexible. As you can probably tell, these types of people are those that typically belong to the Red Clan."

As the First King's explanation dragged on, you could see the steam coming out of Misaki's ears. There was just too much information to process all at once.

"Just get to the point already!" Misaki couldn't hold back his impatience.

Addy chuckled. "By syncing up with someone's sanctum I can temporarily give them access to the Silver King's sanctum to manipulate gravity. In one way, sanctum can be seen as a person's life force. The more depleted it becomes, the weaker one is. The more out of control it is, the tougher it gets to control one's powers. Hana also did the same thing I just did; she synced her unique sanctum to the Red King's in order to heal him. But what if we did it in reverse? What if multiple Kings come together and sync their sanctum to hers and give her each a small part of ourselves. This way we can replenish her life force while doing minimal damage to ours."

"They would do just about anything for you it seems." Dresden leaned back as he rested on the slate. His head tilted back as he took a sip from the yunomi (traditional Japanese tea cup) in his hands.

"Hmmm..." Hana took a sip from her own yunomi. She was enjoying the flavor of the Hōji-cha tea as she watched the events occurring from a white screen. It was like a projector screen that showed the events as they occurred.

It reminded Hana of when she used to watch anime; she was disconnected from the events occurring on the screen and couldn't interact with them in any way.

When she first fell into a coma and arrived here, she tried to touch the images that appeared on the screen and respond to the voices that she heard but to no avail.

"I can send you back to your original world. You've completed the task I requested of you."

Hana remained silent.

"You've been in a coma in your original world for the past 3 years you've been here. If you choose to stay, you'll die there. And that's only if their plan works. Because it's true, your sanctum was completely used up and needs to be replenished before your soul can return to your body. Your soul is here with me for right now, but your life force and your sanctum are pretty much nonexistent. I am keeping you in a temporary state of stasis."

Dresden sighed softly, "I had to cut your sanctum's access to me, to the Slate, because you were using too much of it, too fast. You would start to affect the other Kings if I didn't do so. That means I can't directly restore your sanctum."

Hana places her yunomi down on the Slate's surface. Despite knowing the answer, she asked anyway: "What would happen if I choose to return back to my world?"

"You'll die here and can never return."

She couldn't hold back a wince at the blunt words. She was already prepared to never see Tatara, Mikoto, Anna, and the rest again.

Memories of the past 3 years came crashing down. But at the same time, she also couldn't forget her best friend from back home, her family, her dreams and goals and aspirations. When she had to leave them behind, she tried to at least fulfill them during her time in the K Project world.

Her pink hair settled around her as she flopped onto her back. Staring into the endless sky above, she paid no mind to the floating island she'd been relaxing on for the past few days.

It wasn't an actual island, but the Slate itself. It was just like when she first arrived in this world.

Dresden was there to keep her company and this was akin to a dream world. She was never hungry, but when she craved tea or pocky it would appear. She didn't really sleep but could close her eyes to pass the time.

"If life was easy, it wouldn't be worth living. As my mother often said, 'Life doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful.'"

"And those readers will be really sad if you just gave up at this point." Dresden pointed out.

"... don't just casually break the fourth wall. We've got an image to maintain." Hana sent a small glare to Dresden Rex.

A/N: Read this on Wattpad for images/videos that go along with scenes. This chapter was supposed to be the last one... but it turned out pretty long. We're almost at the end! Another chapter will come out when I'm done with finals.

S/O to Shannyrox101, Trafalgar D. Water Rena, MarvelGeek13, Scarlett D. Uchiha, michelly ciel, MeiLinX, MeiLinX, KaliRenee, Casey Nicole Delgado, Pokechan123, & Black-Rabbit32 for the fav/follow!

Thanks for the reviews everyone! Sorry I haven't been responding as much as I'd hoped. And as I promised, there will still be a happy ending!