Their plan was put to execution. They all geared up with what they could, preparing themselves to end this once and for all. To end what they should have ended long ago. Clear escorted Aoba all the way to the shop, Aoba's eyes lighting up in memory of the place. When they entered and encountered Haga, it was as if time had turned back, and for a few moments, Aoba was back to his old self again.
"Haga, we're here!" Clear called, the older man walking in. He looked only slightly older since last seeing him, smiling as he hurried to Aoba.
"Aoba!" Haga said, quickly hugging him, to which Aoba hug back.
"Haga. Long time no see." Aoba hummed, Haga excitedly nodding.
"Welcome back!" Haga said.
"We don't want to leave Aoba alone while we go to pick up some things. I was hoping he could stay here for a while." Clear explained. Haga nodded eagerly.
"Of course! Aoba's welcome here any time!" Haga said. "It'll be like old times!"
"Yeah." Aoba said, though his smile never wavered. "I think I still remember how to handle inventory."
"See? Come right in then." Haga said. Clear turned to Aoba.
"We'll be back before closing time. If there's anything, you can always call us." Clear said, gently holding Aoba's head, and landing a soft kiss on it. "We won't take long."
Aoba forced a smile. He knew better. He knew their intentions. Their plan. What they were really going to do, and yet...he wanted to trust them. They had gone through so much to help him. To save him. He didn't want to be a bother. To be a burden to them in this dangerous attempt.
I don't want to lose them again.
"I'll get going then. I'll be right back!" Clear said, waving cheerfully before he left the store. Aoba waved at him, his smile fading slightly as he felt his heart ache for just a moment.
Please come back to me.
...
By the time Clear returned, Noiz had already scoured through the local forums and sites in search of clues involving the Morphine leaders.
"Do we know where they are?" Mink asked, looking over Noiz' shoulders.
"There is not exact location...but all signs, and information from the forums point at the same place." Noiz said, looking up at the group. "The remains of Oval Tower."
"Figures they'd choose that place out of a whole island." Koujaku scoffed. Ren gripped his fists tightly.
"Are...are you guys ready?" Ren asked, looking up at the group. "Once we start...there is no going back." The group exchanged glances, equal of worry and determination. Mink cleared his throat.
"No point in giving up now." Mink said, cracking his knuckles. His golden eyes glanced up at the group, a glare eminent. "Let's make these bastards pay."
...
After Toue's downfall, Platinum Jail opened up for everyone, and gave-way to a new chapter of the island. Ribteams and Rhyme teams alike like Scratch and Ruff Rabbit moved in, taking the chances to start new lives for themselves, helping set up businesses over the ones already there and making it a grand tourist destination, bringing much welcomed income to the island. Yet, not all was as grand. Oval Tower and its surrounding areas remained as they were since their destruction, sitting as a remainder, the attempt to clean up or even rebuild the place too much of a task for anyone to really bother. Deserted, and hidden in plain sight, the perfect place for Morphine.
"It seems only yesterday that this thing fell into pieces." Koujaku hummed, careful to climb over the debris as they entered the area.
"I think this place looks better this way." Noiz joked, a smirk on his lips as they walked deeper into the ruins. The tower remains created arcs and tunnels out of piled up debris, some rooms from the very bottom of the tower remaining miraculously, filling the place with shadows and darkness even in the sunniest of days.
"Are you sure they would be here?" Ren asked.
"I hate this place." Clear added, whispering under his breath, gripping his fists tightly.
"That makes 5 of us." Mink said, patting Clear gently on the shoulder. Noiz stopped dead on his tracks, the rest of the group slightly bumping into him as they stood in front of a large tunnel of rubble.
"There are two heat signatures ahead." Noiz whispered, looking down at his tablet, narrowing his eyes. The group instantly tensed up, looking at each other for confirmation. It was mutual, the group prepping up physically and mentally before entering the dark tunnel ahead. They stuck together, Noiz keeping his eyes on the screen as they approached the heat signatures ahead, stopping just a few feet in front of them, though they could not see them.
"Hey!" Ren yelled, gritting his teeth. "We know you're there!"
Mink stepped forward. "There's nowhere to run. You wanted us? Here we are." He called.
For a moment there was silence, before there was the sudden sound of laughter, causing the group to instantly tense up.
"You guys are more predictable than Aoba." Virus hummed. "Isn't that right, Trip?"
"Predictable predictable." Trip agreed. Ren growled.
"You call us predictable? You're the ones who came right back to the only place your egotistical minds feel at home." Ren hissed.
"We missed you too, Ren." Virus hummed, rather cheerfully. "But we miss Aoba more...now we are going to give you a chance. Hand over Aoba, and we let you go. We leave with Aoba, and you return to your lives."
The group scoffed.
"We must've hit your head a bit too hard if you think we're giving up Aoba back to you." Koujaku said.
"If you want Aoba, you'll have to get through us first." Mink added, the group standing together, forming a barrier between the exit and Virus and Trip. There was silence, before a loud, exasperated sigh escaped Trip's lips.
"I told you they wouldn't do it." Trip said.
"Oh, at least we can say that we at least tried." Virus said, his tone amused. "But I guess we have no choice now, do we?" Just as suddenly, from behind the rubble, hooded figures stepped out. The group quickly got back to back against each other, looking as the figures blocked the exit from them.
"You think this is going to stop us?" Mink asked, glaring around at the group. They weren't even that many, just one or two people more than them. They could easily take them on. However something was off, and it was Clear who was the first one to notice, his eyes widening as he gasped.
"Clear?" Noiz asked. Clear looked back.
"Their eyes!" He said. That brought attention to something they didn't see at first. The eyes of the young men were glowing in the dark, a bright crimson red that pulsed, their pupils glazed over.
"Are they...what's wrong with them?" Koujaku asked, glancing around.
"They're in a trance, obviously." Virus explained. "You see, even after the fall of this tower, we managed to save enough of the research. Even while we had fun with Aoba we never really stopped working, you know." Virus said, gaining death glares at the mention of fun.
"So we thought it'd be best to make a comeback with our latest creation." Trip said, snapping his fingers. Suddenly, the group of men took out something from their backs. They were strange contraptions that looked like a mix of a megaphone with a small computer machine attached to them, holding them as they pointed them at the group. Ren's eyes widened, glaring at the two.
"Scrap." Ren hissed.
"Shit." Mink said, looking over at Clear. "You have to counter it!"
"I-I'm on it!" Clear said, though this caused Virus and Trip to laugh.
"Oh you wish." Virus said, and with another snap of his fingers, the group of men activated the machines, sending sound-waves of Scrap-like power towards the group. Clear quickly began to sing, but even his voice, as loud as he could, was no match to the improved machines, which quickly overpowered them. The group screamed, falling to their knees as they began to hold their heads. Their heads ached, they pounded, the song reaching into their psyche and beginning to pull at their consciousness to take control. They fought. Oh how they fought, wrangling on the ground as they struggled to keep their own thoughts under control. It felt like they had suddenly become a puppet, and the puppeteer was roughly pulling at the strings, and they were pulling back as hard as they could. And they were losing.
"You see, we learned from Toue's mistakes." Virus explained calmly over the screams.
"We upgraded and experimented. We never thought we would get the chance to use it...but my what a darling surprise." Trip said, a smirk on his lips as he watched the group struggle on the floor.
"Damn you...damn you...!!!" Koujaku screamed.
"My head...I can't...!!!" Clear said, barely able to speak as he could feel that the song even affected his programing.
Mink glared up, looking up at the twins even in his pain. "You won't...get Aoba...!!!" He hissed.
"Oh we know." Trip said. Virus smirked mischievously.
"You will bring him to us."