No. 6

CHAPTER 4 - Out, Out, Brief Candle

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time,
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle.
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage . . .

-Shakespeare, Macbeth Act V Scene V

***

Just once, he heard footsteps approach. Someone was trying to run up the stairs. But the footsteps died along with a gunshot, a scream, and someone tumbling down the stairs. He didn't have to see it to know what happened. The same stairs that Shion had flown up moments ago was probably spattered with someone's blood.

Not only the stairs. The floor, the entrance, and the consultation room were probably smeared with blood and littered with broken objects in a horrific scene. A body or two probably lay on the floor.

What about the doctor? What had become of the man who saved Nezumi's life?

"Don't move." Nezumi restrained his arm. "Don't move yet."

Shion, Inukashi, and Rikiga all held their breaths and tensed as if they were bound by his words. Even the dogs lay low to the floor, unmoving like boulders, save to growl softly at the footsteps.

One minute, two minutes, three minutes....

"Freedom for No. 6! Freedom for all of us!" A hoarse, high-pitched scream resounded, its gender indiscernible. Right afterwards, angry voices and the sound of fierce beatings were heard through the window.

It's the same. Shion made a fist. His palm was damp with perspiration.

It was the same―no different from the Hunt in the West Block. The brutality he had seen under the thick snow clouds was taking place again right here.
Stealthily within the walls, openly outside of them―that was the only difference.

The sweat stung the countless cuts on his palm and made it throb slightly. Sweat streamed down his cheek, and entered his mouth.

In No. 6, he used to feel trapped and suffocated, like being forced to wear clothes that didn't quite fit. But until Nezumi had saved him and they had begun to live in the West Block, he had never had much difficulty dealing with these vague doubts and feelings of suffocation. Not until he was given a chance to look at No. 6 from the outside. In fact, he had taken comfort in No. 6's cleanliness and abundant lifestyle. It was true. He had been devouring this comfort and taking it for granted. Back then, the Security Bureau's existence hardly crossed his mind. It never had to; the days still went by. On the surface, time passed peacefully without incidence.

When had it all begun?

Shion was wheeling his bike across the park after his shift. He was allowed to ride his bicycle in the park, as long as he didn't go over the speed limit. But the spring sunset was so beautiful that Shion had felt like taking a stroll to take it all in.

The sky was divided into dark pink, red, and carmine. The streaming clouds caught the sun, their edges glittering golden. The sweet fragrance of the flowers blended with the refreshing scent of new leaves, enveloping the passersby.
"Ah, the end of another day."

"It was wonderful, wasn't it?"

"All's right with the world, as they say. What do you say to topping it all off with a mouthwatering meal and some excellent wine?"

"Oh, how splendid. That sounds great."

He could hear the lighthearted conversation of a young man and woman―were they lovers, husband and wife, or good friends?