3 A Stained Mask

As Ken drove his motorcycle, he thought of his reunion with Itsuki. Those few years apart felt like a lifetime for Ken. He hadn't realized how important Itsuki was to him. Seeing her was nice though. Knowing she was still the type of person Ken grew up with was relieving. He was most afraid of her diverging from the image Ken had of her. Although, he was somewhat insulted that Itsuki decided to stay with Yuu, since seeing her was such a rare opportunity. He decided not to take it to heart, she probably didn't mean to insult him.

Ken drove down the city path. He passed places he'd been to before, some he remembered, others gave a vague feeling of familiarity. Ken felt that each block was like reading a paragraph of his past, and each street a new chapter. It was surreal, his old school grouds, the pastry shop owned by his old babysitter, the music studio he studied piano at, all these places held more memories than an entire collection of diaries could. And without realizing it, Ken found himself right in front of it, subconsciously he had driven right in front of his old house.

Within an instant, Ken's mind was filled with a series of negative thoughts and emotions. He began to remember his father and their relationship. He remembered how his father wanted him to be the best at everything, and that anything besides that was failure. He would force Ken to work harder than anyone else in his class, and more than most upperclassmen. His days in that house were exhausting physically and mentally. His father would always put on a mask around other people, pretending to be a normal person and not the monster he really was. He swore after leaving for college he would never return to this place, and yet there he was. He hated himself for going back to that wretched corner.

He closed his fist in hatred of this place. His childhood home, a place that should have brought happiness and bliss brought nothing but anger. Ken stepped off his bike, leaned down, and picked up a rock from the roadway. He clenched his hands even harder. So much so that his hand began to bleed. Fueled with anger, Ken wound up his arms and threw it. It flew fast threatening anything that came in its way. It shattered straight through the second story window right into his father's office. It took the alarm going off to bring Ken back to his senses.

"I-" Ken struggled. He didn't notice any street cameras, and none of the neighbors seemed to have woken up yet. It was late at night anyway. Ken thought about leaving a calling card, but it was too petty of a crime to be his grand introduction, so he ran.

When Ken finally arrived at the apartment complex, and into his room, the clock read that it was 1:28 am. Ken set all his things on the living room table and began unpacking his clothes. When his luggage was all put aside, Ken's phone rung. He received a text message from an unlisted person that read '2:00 am.'

"Pretty short notice..." Ken said to himself.

Ken opened his leg bag to take out a wooden knife. He took to his luggage bag where the bottom had been previously stitched together and cut it open. He reached in and pulled out a Mardi-Gras mask. It was black, and the type that covered half of the face with an elongated nose. Purple flame-like patterns flowed around the eyes. He slipped it in his black trench-coat. As Ken walked to the outside staircase, the warm summer breeze rushed through the alley-way. The dim streetlights emanated a soft light that burned through the darkness of the night. Ken jumped on his bike and set off for the Shibuya district.

Tokyo after 2040 was a lot different than even just a decade before. After the war, Japan constructed a new district with the U.S. as a symbol of peace between the two. They called the new district Shin-Tokyo, or Neo-Tokyo depending on who you asked and what language they spoke. It was a man-made Island, technically not connected to mainland Tokyo, just south of it. It was made up of two levels, the bottom, at sea level, was the residential ward. Although it wasn't exactly suited for the average citizen, most of the housing were high-class estates and resorts.

Above it was a city in the sky. It's base looked like a cone with the city enclosed in a glass dome that made it resemble an ice-cream cone. It had a tube-like elevator connecting it to the residential area below and was connected to mainland Tokyo by a series of bridges and ferry routes. This was the industrial ward, it contained the shopping district and housed the AGUS x Japan ally branch. AGUS being the Allied Government of the United States. While to the public eye it seemed development was coming, in the shadows, gangs and Yakuza clans already began showing up in the region. For the time being, they kept their presence to a minimum. Only visible for those who looked, but they were there. One gang, in particular, was what brought Ken back to Japan in the first place. A gang called the Guns with Roses.

As Ken drove across the Ishida bridge, giant advertisements hosted on large tv screens emitted neon lights to everything around it Ken passed all kinds of stores on his way. The farther inward he drove, the larger the buildings were and the more advanced they became. Some of the buildings he passed sported entire walls made up of LEDs showcasing commercials, music videos, and all sorts of entertainment. Public buses, taxis, and other vehicles sported no wheels and hovered above the ground, quite a sight to behold. Hover tech was something Ken was interested in as a kid, so seeing all this was surreal. Neo-Tokyo was the only place to successfully apply that tech to such a large scale, once again it proved to be the capital of technological advancement.

Ken continued driving towards the center of the city and near the elevator system connecting Neo-Tokyo's Industrial and Residential wards. The crowd of people grew substantially the closer he got. Although, since most people were asleep, he was lucky enough not to get lost in the crowd. When he finally passed through the crowd and into line for the motorcycle/bike elevator, it was already 1:50. There were only 2 people in line before Ken, who took the last two elevators. A few minutes passed and Ken finally made his way into the elevator.

The view from the elevator was remarkable. Below him, he saw mansion after mansion and expensive resorts all glowing colorful lights trying to attracting his eyes. Ken was a sucker for that type of thing. It was almost like they were mocking him, saying "I bet you wish you were this rich." From how high up he was, Ken could also see the rest of mainland Tokyo. It was hard to make out, but Ken could see the Sky Tree as well as the Police Academy his father taught at. By the seashore, Ken could see large blimps and crowds of people celebrating the summer festival.

'It would have been nice to go there with Itsuki,' Ken thought to himself.

The elevator reached ground-level, and Ken set off to the shore. He arrived near a grand hall, it looked just about the size of a major convention center. He drove into a nearby alleyway where a black SUV was parked. Ken stopped the bike, slipped on his mask, and was ready to meet the team. The team for his first heist in Japan. He knocked on the back of the car.

"Oh, you must be Ken." Said a tall girl with short purple hair. Her brown eyes were narrow, and her face was filled with disappointment as she addressed Ken. "You're late you know." She said eyebrows raised.

Ken checked his watch, and it read 2:01.

"Come in, I'll introduce you to everyone."