22
An hour before sunset, the gray skies turned a greenish pallor, roiling with tepid currents of wind. Moisture carried by the warm front formed a well around the prison, building snow in the blackening clouds far above.
So far, however, the storm had yet to break.
The prisoners had all been turned in on account of the weather, and Arui Gobetsu darted across the empty yard. He ducked his head, struggling against the same violent wind that lashed the tides against the broken teeth of the island's cliffs.
Having lifted a key card from one of the regular guards, he now only had to meet Ghost at the rendezvous point: Containment Block A.
He slowed his pace as he approached a heavy set of blast doors set deep into a concrete bunker tunnel—the entrance to the prison's subterranean levels.
"You there!" A sharp voice called out to him, and Arui Gobetsu froze. "You're one of the guards, aren't you?" He nodded at the other guard who had addressed him— a female officer, from the looks of it, "You're supposed to be at the south courtyard"
Arui Gobetsu turned back only to see a Kunoichi with a knife in her hand, ready to slash at him if he dare to move. Arui Gobetsu is still in Genjutsu, his reaction timing definitely won't match hers, especially when she was already on him.
From his shadow sprout eyes that remain unnoticed under such big targets. These eyes are directly linked to Ghost, giving him an expanded field of vision and can only be seen by him, regardless of whether they are open or not, though the void form appears as a shadow in appearance.
He is able to enhance the visual function and capabilities of the eyes, allowing them to have normal or stereoscopic vision, even allowing him to cast Genjutsu techniques from them.
It was this very technique that he once used to collect top-secret information from an important meeting, right under Iwa Tsukikage's direct nose.
A gust of freezing wind followed in her mind, and the Kunoichi's fingers were trembling—both from the cold and the extreme layer of fear. Before she knew it, she was dead. Her neck was sliced by Arui Gobetsu.
...
Ding. Ding. Ding
The bell of the prison announced that a storm is approaching. Freezing air rushed inside, and the guards shrank back instinctively.
Shizuma, the officer in the prison grumbles, "Everyone is under the warm, why is that only our team has been ordered to fix the water issue"
"Just try not to complain too much", one of the men said gruffly.
As they progressed deeper into the bowels of the prison, the ice began to take on crystalline structures, protruding from the walls at jagged angles. A distant, incessant clanging drummed through the corridor: the sound of air hammering through abandoned ducts. Electricity hummed from exposed wires, and it smelled like salt and chlorine.
"Man. It sure is cold in here", Shizuma's voice echoed in the hall.
"I just hope I don't get frostbite," the other guard grumbled.
"You're damn right," the more talkative of the three agreed, "This is no place for breathing hunks of flesh like us. It's a maze down here", The guard stopped and turned back, "Without the map in my hands. It wouldn't be surprising if we will turn into ice cube just trying to find the exit…" he glanced at Shizuma. "So don't get any bright ideas about trying to run off"
"I'll be sure to keep it in mind," he offered, magnanimously.
Originally, the lowest level of the Prison had been intended to be a reservoir. A tangle of pipes and intake valves filtered in water from the ocean above them. While the system was meant to convert the seawater into a drinkable backup supply in case of a fail-safe in the prison's main source, a series of leaks had long ago rendered it unsuitable for such a purpose.
However, as they stepped into the open chamber, they saw that the containment tank built into the floor below them was still full.
Shizuma lifted an eyebrow. "This place looks dangerous", although the way he said it suggested he couldn't have been less concerned by the statement.
"Shut up and keep moving", the guard behind him told him, brusquely, "Or the warden would kill us for sure"
Their shadows flitted through the icicles dripping down from pipes that no longer functioned, the valves having been shut off so they wouldn't burst. Over time, the excess moisture from the steam had coated the ground in a layer of ice.
Despite this, Shizuma didn't slip, picking his way with sure-footed familiarity along the pathway. The guards weren't as agile, moving slowly as they kept their headlights pointed firmly at the slick ground in front of them.
Already nervous, they tensed as they edged closer to the tank. While the guards avoided looking in its direction, Shizuma peered casually into the water.
"What do you suppose that is?" he asked.
Turbulence had begun to form at the water's surface. Something was moving under the water. A watery form shimmered beneath the wisps of steam.
Unable to resist the magnetic pull of his own curiosity, the guard in front of Shizuma hesitated. He leaned forward and, without a flicker of emotion, Shizuma reached over and pushed him in.
The man shrieked as he plunged into the water. He treaded in the middle of the pool, his eyes wide as he stared up at them.
"SHIZUMA WHAT ARE YOU DOING"
"He's… alive?", The other guard quickly overcame his bewilderment, lurching forward to help his friend.
"Ah, not so fast," Shizuma caught him by the shoulder, pulling him back. "If you grab him, both of you will drown" Then, he gave the guard in the tank a cold smile. "And if I were you. I would not yell so much…" he picked his ears, "It hurts my ear"
Then, he turned to the other guard. "Ah, just so you know I am going to kill him. So, what are you going to do now? You could call for help, but, well, you know I will just snatch that map from your hands"
Shizuma offered him a toothed grin. "I can't say I envy your situation. There's no telling what I might do, after all"
The man swallowed, his eyes darting between Shizuma and the guard in the water.
"You bastard!", But the curse came as a whimper, "Why are you doing this?"
"You will know soon enough", Shizuma assured him as he crouched down, careful to avoid the puddles of water near the tank. "I would hate to miss the show."
"What sh-show?"
Shizuma held a finger up to his lips, "Master's show", he said.
He turned to the guard in the water, shaking his head in mock pity, "Sadly, your friend here is just the first of many"
Sure enough, the man's lips had already turned a bluish-purple, his skin becoming blotchy. His teeth chattered so hard that he couldn't even whisper for help, his jaw locking up to prevent him from biting through his own tongue.
Shizuma turned to the guard at his side, offering his commentary on the situation. "It's a terrible way to go, hypothermia."
But despite what Shizuma had said, an even worse fate awaited the man.
As the guard's movements began to slow, his motor functions succumbing to the cold, a shadow materialized beneath him. It flitted across the bottom of the tank, barely visible through the murky stream. Nothing should have been living in that tank, but then that nothing pulled at his ankle, jerking him down. Staring down, he found two orbs of eyes staring back at him.
Panic gripped him, and he kicked out wildly, splashing towards the side of the tank.
The other guard tried to help.
"Don't go near him! You'll be—"
The man submerged, vanishing beneath the surface.
"Ah!!! It's over already?"
"What," he asked, finally overcoming his shock. "The hell is in there?"
Shizuma turned his wrists, snapping through his handcuffs so he could cup his chin in his hand, "Hmm", he mused, considering the question, "Did you know," he said at last. "That this tank was repurposed according to the specific instructions of the Master himself?"
"W-what are you t-talking about?"
"What I'm saying is that it isn't as empty as it looks", Shizma grinned. "Remember the show I mentioned? It's only just begun"
From deep within the shadows of the prison. Ghost's empty eye sockets open weakly. Tonight shall be the darkest and the longest night this prison would ever have.
Let the show begin!!!!