Ultra Symphony
Chapter 3: "Setsugen Shiriasuno" (Serious Declaration)
*** Ultraman and all respective characters, likenesses and items are copyright © 1966-2002 Tsuburaya Productions Co., Ltd. Original characters are the property of Chibi Cel-Chan, except where specified, and are not to be used without permission.***
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"I heard it was Ultraman!"
Sairai Kawarinou turned around in his chair to look at the young woman behind him. She had a giddy and faraway smile on her plump face and her eyes closed demurely behind thick and out-of-style glasses. "Personally, I would love to see that darling Taroh in action again." She blushed and put her hands to her cheeks.
Sairai shook his head and went back to his computer screen. "I'm sure it wasn't Ultraman. Whatever it is, he's long retired.."
The woman came up behind him and peeked around his chair to look him in the face. "Oh REALLY, Mr. Know-it-all? And how would YOU know about something like that?? Huh? Do you have some sort of secret identity we don't know about??"
"Yeah, when he's not at work, Seshiru puts him in a dress and makes him scrub the floor as he sings songs from Seramyu!" Ryosuke Susumeko muttered from the cubicle next to Sairai's.
Sairai rolled his eyes and went back to the computer screen. The woman who had been hanging over his chair glared and went over to Ryosuke. She prepared to smack him, but he covered his head. "Wait wait wait! Come on, I didn't mean it!"
She whacked him in the back of the head and walked away in a huff. "No one talks to my Sairai-chan like that!" She gave Sairai a big hug from the back and twirled around, happily singing, "Kaettekitazo, Kaettekitazo... Urutoraman!"
Sairai smiled to himself, noting that he had put in a few wrong entries in the database he was working with. He decided to leave them, maybe he could get Ryosuke fired.He pushed his chair backwards and put his feet up on the desk. "Hey, Kimchi?"
The woman stopped singing but continued dancing around. "Hey, Sairai?"
"Why were you talking about the old 'Man anyway? Was some huge dog monster stomping buildings while I was in the warehouse?"
Kimchi frowned and walked over to his desk. "What do you mean?"
"Well, why bring up Ultraman? What happened that you think he was involved in?"
She stared at him. "Um... the Hayagane concert.. hello?"
"What Hayagane concert?"
"THE Hayagane concert."
Sairai shook his head, closing his eyes. "I haven't seen the news in a few days.."
"The.. wait...You.. seriously don't know what I'm talking about??"
"I seriously don't know what you're talking about."
"No, I mean... for REAL?!?"
"What, a riot??"
"A terrorist attack.. damn Kawarinou, where the hell have you been?!", Ryosuke exclaimed from his cubicle.
Sairai paused.
"Wait! What?! Terrorist?! Wha?!"
Kimchi nodded. "Some plane or something shot a bunch of missiles or something at the outdoor stadium. It killed like a thousand people or something, but then the plane got shot down. You REALLY didn't hear about it?!?"
Sairai blinked. "Wait.. you're kidding me, right?"
"Hell no!"
"Wait.. downtown HERE?!"
"Yeah downtown here!"
"I LIVE downtown!"
"Holy crap, i was wondering why you weren't talking about it.. you really didn't know?!?"
"I didn't hear word one!! What kind of terrorists?!"
"Well.. actually, I think it was aliens myself... Which explains why Ultraman was involved. Someone shot down the.. 'plane', but there's no debris from it or anything. It's like it was totally vaporized!"
"Couldn't it have just gotten away?"
"Witnesses even SAW it get shot down!"
"Yeah.. witnesses.. HYSTERICAL witnesses who saw a thousand people around them die and who were probably scrambling for their own lives!"
"Yeah, and that's all there is!!"
"This is psycho!! Who the hell would attack a freaking concert?!"
Kimchi shrugged. "I don't know, but whoever it was, they're going to pay. My next door neighbor's girlfriend was at that concert, and they don't know if she's dead or what. There are a bunch of people missing, too."
"This is insane!! How could I have not heard about this?!?"
Kimchi shook her head. "Like you said, you don't watch a lot of news."
Sairai shook his head and got up from the desk. "Oh my god.. this is crazy.."
"You want some coffee?"
"I think I need a cigarette."
"You quit smoking, Sairai."
Sairai turned to look at her. "No.. no, I didn't." And he turned and walked out the back of the office and out the door.
He looked out into the late afternoon sunlight and squinted to see the skyline of downtown. He shook his head. Planes.. terrorists.. dead people? Missing people? It was totally unbelievable. And how could he have missed it all? Not heard a word about it?? Admittedly, Seshiru never had the news on TV, but just the same.... why hadn't he heard about it?
He walked down the stairs and wandered aimlessly around the parking lot for awhile. He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but he hadn't lit the cigarette yet. He realized then that he didn't even have any cigarettes. And it really didn't sound all that good anyway. Or did it?
He looked up and saw a man about 30 meters away from where he was. The guy looked just as exhausted and stunned as he did. And he took out a cigarette, so Sairai decided to stroll on over and bum a smoke.
As he got closer, he noticed that one of the man's pant legs looked a bit off. It looked almost as if his leg was smaller on one side than the other side.
Then he noticed the metal platform at the base of the smaller leg in place of a shoe..
Holy crap, it was a prosthesis.
And then he looked at the guy's face, and the guy nodded in acknowledgement. "Afternoon."
Sairai stopped. "Afternoon... could I..."
The guy looked at him.
"Ano....."
"What, you need directions?"
"Anoo.."
"....You need..what...?"
"Tabako?" Sairai squeaked out.
The guy frowned. "Ya know, these things'll kill ya." But he tossed one to Sairai anyway and turned back to what he was looking at.
"Moroboshi Dan.. right..?" Sairai asked.
The guy turned back. "Hai. Can I do something else for you?"
Sairai frowned at him. "Yes. You can."
Moroboshi shrugged. "What, no lighter?"
Sairai walked closer to Moroboshi and met his eyes. Moroboshi seemed uncomfortable momentarily, but got his confidence back and stared right back.
"Is this about the warehouse petition? Look, if you moved closer to the industrial center, I'm TELLING you that..."
"Do I actually have to die first?"
Moroboshi stopped dead, and his eyes widened.
"..What?"
"Do I...."
Suddenly Sairai's eyes became large and frightened, and he was unable to finish the question. Moroboshi frowned, confused, and then Sairai collapsed, face down on the concrete. Moroboshi quickly stepped back, and then gasped at what he saw.
Sairai's back was drenched in blood, and a large spiked dagger stuck out of the back of his head.
Moroboshi grew dizzy.
My god.... no... not.. again...
Not.. the blood...
Not the sunset...
Not... NOW!!!!
An image from years ago entered his mind. The sun was setting, and a pool of blood surrounded the much younger man.. who sequentially grew older.. and older..
He had seen the image a million times before.
And heard the triumphant laugh...
A shadow crept up on the bleeding body on the pavement.
He looked up, and to his dismay, what he saw wasn't human.
No... NO!!!! Not again!!!
"Wasn't it inevitable, Seven?"
Moroboshi's eyes grew wide.
"Wasn't it inevitable, that when you are the only one remaining..."
God... god.. NO!!!
The creature chuckled.
Not now.. not like THIS!!
"That you'd have no say in the fate of this pitiful world?"
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