Chapter VIII

Chapter VIII

 

“Oh…my…god!” I gaped around me. The situation in Paisley Park by the time my scooter reached it was beyond words.

People were lying on the ground everywhere, all of them in costumes or clown makeup—and all unconscious and tied up.

I know a lot about weird things, and maybe everyone says to ‘talk to Suema Kazuko’ if something weird is going on, but even I had never read about anything as strange as this.

What the hell had happened here?

“Uh…umm…” I said, gingerly picking my way forward, following the path of fallen bodies in the hopes of tracking down the source.

“But…could this really be…?”

It was quiet all around me.

Certainly something strange had happened here…but could it already be finished?

Again?

Yet another mess had gone down right next to me and passed me right by?

“Why does this always happen?” I muttered, really meaning it.

I went a little further in and found someone still awake.

“Unh,” he groaned.

I ran over to him. He wasn’t tied up.

“A-are you okay?”

It was a boy. I hesitated for a second, but then helped him sit up.

And was surprised again.

I knew him.

“Y-you’re…Taniguchi-kun?!

He was the younger brother of a girl I knew.

“Oh…Suema-san,” he said, eyes not really managing to focus on me.

“What’s going on? Taniguchi-kun, what happened here?” I asked. I was getting a little frustrated, so I shook him.

“P-please, I need your help. There’s a girl here somewhere… Help her…” he said, his words slurring.

“Taniguchi-kun?! Hey!!”

“Please…”

His head lolled, and he was out. I slapped and shook him, but he didn’t even bat an eye. He was totally under.

“Come on!!!” I shouted.

I knew the world wasn’t ever fair…but everything around me was pure chaos.

Something had happened—that much was certain.

Taniguchi-kun had asked me to save a girl.

If this were a fairy tale, then he was the prince. It was his job to save the princess and get his kiss.

Why did he have to leave it up to me? Why had he fallen asleep? What was up with all the crazy-looking people in makeup? Would anyone ever explain any of this stuff to me? Just what was my role in all of this?

I remembered back to one of Kirima Seiichi’s books…

“The problem lies with your own frailty of resolve that forces simple, easy to understand answers and resolutions on others. This is the main reason the Imaginator is overrunning the world. No matter how long you wait, nothing ever begins.”

When I read that, I’d thought I understood, but now that I found myself in this very situation, I desperately wanted a simple, easy to understand explanation and a happy ending. I really—

I sighed, took off my coat, and covered Taniguchi-kun with it. I wiped the sweat off his forehead and checked to see if he had a fever. It looked like it was safe to leave him alone.

“But, a girl?” I said. “Which girl? Who is she, Taniguchi-kun…?” I wondered aloud to myself.

Suddenly, a strange voice spoke to me. “That girl is at the top of The Ladder—the tall tower to your left.”

I couldn’t tell if the voice belonged to a boy or a girl.

“Wh-who’s there?”

“You must go to The Ladder, and find the girl, Orihata Aya. Bring her to this boy. The man you are looking for, Asukai Jin, is hanging from the roof.”

“Wh-what?!” I looked around, but I couldn’t figure out where the voice was coming from.

And Orihata Aya? I was sure I’d heard that name before.

“Do you know what happened here?”

“Nothing of consequence.”

“I’ll make up my own mind!” I roared. “I need to know why something this screwed up can happen! What should I do with all the people lying here?”

“Nothing. Soon they will be leading ordinary, tedious lives again. The lives that let the Imaginator hook them…”

“Eh?”

“Forget about them. When they wake, they will know their only choice is to return to the world they left.”

I couldn’t understand this. My head swam. But even so—why? I felt a strange familiarity with this voice. Even though it should have been the first time I’d ever heard it…

“Your earnest strength is an admirable thing, but beware of causing worry for those around you.”

“Wh-who are you?!” I yelled.

From the darkness came a strange feeling, part mocking, part feigned innocence. “You already know who I am.”

Then the feeling melted away, leaving me alone.

 

VS Imaginator Part II – “PARADE” closed.