The sun finally hung high in the air. After a long night and even longer month, peace finally started to arrive once more in their home. But it wasn’t going to be an easily built peabsp; This much all of them knew. They learned almost too well from the survivors how true that it would be. A first step was all that was taken today.

  UN forces tio patrol the battle site for any survivors that might have been missed. The destru was too vast and the influehat Takako held over the whole area made it impossible to be certain that they had found everyone. They had taken over much of the site now as Hiroshi and the others pulled back.

  Masayuki stood in a euation before the teehat helped salvage a terrible situation. He made an agreement with Hiroshi and things looked up. “I hope that this will work t cooperation together between us. We don’t have to be w in separate ers.”

  “I’d like that as well. Though it’s going to be hard ving everyone else. Your reputation here isn’t a positive one.”

  “I’m all too well aware of that. But we’re only trying to proted keep people safe. The rise of the Empowered has required a different approabsp; If we, the Japanese, 't prove roted govern ourselves in this situation we’re only going to see even worse aspects of the world in our homend.”

  “People are still very scared and frightened about everything happening. This isn’t going to be something fixed ht.”

  “No, it’s not. But all we do is keep trying.”

  Saki stepped out from Hiroshi’s side, joining Masayuki. She looked back at the others. “Trying is going to be the important thing. You ’t stop moving forward.”

  Everyone looked a little fused at what Saki was doing. “What are you doing, Saki?”

  “What I must do as well.”

  All of the fusion tinued while Masayuki stepped forward with an expnation. He swallowed roughly knowing what he was about to do. “This woman has openly admitted to numerous crimes. Even if her as did lead to the resolution of the crisis, what she’s done ’t be ignored.”

  “What?! You’re still going on about that! I thought we moved past that!”

  “Crimes are still crimes. If we ’t show that we maintain order and carry out justice then all we have is anarchy. We ’t pardon violent unsaned as.”

  Hiroshi tightened up his fist. ‘She’s been pnning this the whole time. She’s going to take the fall for all of us. Dammit! Once more I ’t do anything for my friends!’ He wao do anything for Saki, but the pead good well he built would be destroyed. “…Saki…”

  “Don’t worry, everyone’s in the pces they’re supposed to be. Do what you’re supposed to do now.”

  Looking up at Saki, he stared into her eyes to see her resolve. She held steadfast and unwavering on her path. But she was also telling him as well. She told him where he belonged and was meant to be. It left him stunned for a moment realizing what she was doing. ‘You pnned all of this?! You iionally did all of that to put me in this powing that someone you could trust was here?! Saki…dammit…this makes it even worse… What do I tell Yuki when he wakes up?’

  Tatsuya came up behind Hiroshi and put a hand on his shoulder. He uood as well as Saki the course aination that she put them. “She’s right, man. This is where you should be. Don’t look away.”

  Hesitation a still filled up his chest trying to push out the hope that he desperately tried to hold. The hope that Saki gave him arusted him. He had to keep it safe. Yet he feared that the darkness of his ow might taint that hope. “…I know…I’ll keep looking forward.”

  Chapter 366 – Broken Paths

  Ihe APC, Masayuki sat in the back along with his team and Saki as her guard. They had no tai cells for Saki given that they were all ed by the survivors. So they acted as her prison, for what it actually was worth. They all had seen a taste of her power and that she only came because it was her decision.

  Over in the er, Nawabe tio nurse a bloody nose and swollen cheek from Saki’s fist. He gred at her for the entire ride knowing that she was better than him, but having trouble accepting that fabsp; A slow burning rage fueled by his destroyed pride began to build inside him.

  “Looking to get knocked out again?” mocked Umari. None of them could miss the signs that he put off. Probably only Masayuki’s presence kept him from making aupid mistake.

  The hed at him while hiding their own fears and relief. All of them wanted a piece of Saki, but Narovided them all with enough sed thoughts to not a their instincts immediately. He growled lowly at all of them for being the mockery of the team. “She just caught me off guard.”

  “Says everyohat gets pletely curb stomped.”

  Masayuki fixed his eyes at his team to get them in order. He earned a little more respect from them thanks to Saki. ‘Up until now, I’ve never had to show muy power thanks to the criminals we faced being weaker than us. They’ve never seen me go all out. They only khat my powers made me annoying for them, since I never gave into their baiting. While she didn’t intend it, this teenage girl’s done a lot for both of us…’ Thanks to that reition from his team, they silenced up pretty quickly. “If you don’t want to get caught off guard ime, train harder Nawabe and follow my orders. I don’t give them because I like hearing myself talk.”

  “Yeah, yeah…” Nawabe tried to py off his uled feeling with a casual reply. All he got for his troubles was another pierg gre from his Captain. “…sir…”

  The vehicle came to a stop suddenly. They arrived at their destination, the headquarters of the UN withiy. As the back hatch opeo flood the chamber with light, Saki finally got a look at the heart of their unknown terpart. Dozens of soldiers marched around the fenced in base along with aire fleet of the most advanced modern vehicles and equipment that the world powers had to offer. She had a brief moment of impressive awe at their dispy of arms only to realize how pointless all of it was made. ‘This is purely ay show of strength. Against us superhumans, these ons are nearly meaningless. I could pletely destroy this base on my own, if it were just normal humans.’ Taking up her side on the left was Masayuki, a remihat she wasn’t alone and that he only stood as one of many like him on the base.

  She had many questions about the UN and their true iions in this polig a of theirs. ‘This man seems sincere, such that he doesn’t really belong in this sort of pbsp; He’d dood alongside Hiroshi. Who are the ones giving him his orders?’

  Masayuki waved off his team to dismiss them. “We’re going to my superiors. They’ll be the oo determine your fate.” He began to walk ahead of Saki as her guide.

  ‘Very trusting man…but he knows that I’m not at full power yet and that we’re evenly matched. Let’s see what the big shots are like.’ Keeping close behind him, she kept her senses open still not trusting anyone else in the plex. She didn’t know if his team would try to make atack, a sneak attack for retaliation for what she did or if someone else might want a piece of her. Though she felt the tter had small odds since she didn’t have a name for herself yet.

  The building the UN took over was a familiar one. They set up ihe heart of the city within the ercial distribsp; After the I, much of the heavy traffid popur areas of the city became deserted. Entire skyscrapers remained untouched as no one wao work in such a city anymore. Fear and uainty were to. Only the brave and stubborn attempted to keep some sembnce of their former lives going.

  It left plenty of pces for others to e in and take over. trally located and well equipped to hahe infrastructure that they carried, it was well suited for their needs. Several city blocks came uheir arm of trol and bore the fgs of the UN and joint nations.

  Ihe rge open thirty-fifth floor of an office building, the main and structure of the UN’s headquarters took everything over. Wires and maes ran about everywhere in a very ordered chaos that only those that put it together could uand. None of it was something that ied Saki, just how well built-in they were.

  At the back, where a boss or manager likely sat when it was still just a regur tepany, the superiors that Masayuki mentioned awaited Saki’s arrival. They knew of her arrest and prepared ahead in a rge show of force that Saki could only scoff at. Aire ptoon of normal multinational soldiers followed her and Masayuki.

  They stopped at the door where Masayuki gave her entry. Inside behind ara long desk, extended by adding another desk from some other room, sat the Generals and a man in a business suit. Saki kept her reas to herself without giving away anything. ‘What’s a regur office worker doing here? This is a military operation.’

  “Captain Ayabito, is this the criminal Saki Furukawa?” asked General Evans. Ever sihe bombing ihe other day, Evans had been visiting from Tokyo. He came uhe guise of monit the effectiveness ahods of the branch.

  “Yes, sir! She has admitted to the murder of the gang leader known as Takako Yamazaki, who held eastern neighborhoods of the city.”

  He measured Saki up and down trying to get a read on her. It seemed that she didn’t give him an impressive rea as he leaned ba his chair. “This girl wiped out the gang and leveled aire neighborhood?”

  “That’s right,” Saki answered, speaking out of turn. She crossed her arms not feeling any of the intimidation that all of the men in the room tried to emit. ‘They’re more scared of me than anything. They’re just trying to cover it up.’

  “If that’s so, why has she not been pced into a tai cell?”

  The businessman perked up joining the versation, “All of our pany’s equipment is in use currently.”

  “We had enough equipment you said for the wo months. Is your produ behind schedule?”

  “No, General. We’re ahead of schedule in fabsp; But thanks to ying the gang war to an end, the number of Empowered o be kept locked up has exceeded our estimates.”

  “We’ll speak about your produ ter. Saki Furukawa, you’ve been charged with the murder of a Japaizen, assault of a UN soldier and excessive property damage. How do you plead?”

  “Guilty.”

  “Very well. Under martial w, the UN will pass your verdict rather than a civil court. I hereby pass judgment upon you. Saki Furukawa, you have beeeo death for the murder of a Japaizen.”

  Masayuki jerked forward in surprise. “Sir? She brought ao the flibsp; Why isn’t that being ated for in her judgment?”

  “Captain, w and order are two things lost since Japan has ged. Those must be maintained and shown to still be the g forbsp; Murder regardless of i is still murder and ’t be justified.”

  “So you’re just using her as a tool!”

  “Captain, you’re out of line. Any further and I will hold you in pt.”

  Uo speak back further without ruining his own position, Masayuki cmmed up quickly. He tightened up his hands in frustration. ‘They’re just going to execute her to show that they’re in trol and that they’re still superior over all of the Empowered. All of this is just political!’

  General Evans tinued with Masayuki’s interruption silenced, “Your execution will be carried out tomorrow at noon. And find a tai cell to put the criminal in under her execution. Dismissed!”

  Only able to escort Saki out of the room, Masayuki walked with her to the elevator. His mind spun with various thoughts, ohat he should never be eveertaining. Ohe door opehey walked in without the rest of the show of force with them. He had trouble looking at the girl knowing that she was just being used.

  Saki remained ued by everything. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about me and don’t be thinking up any stupid ideas.”

  It took him a little back that she realized that much was going on in his mind. “I ’t believe that they would go this far just to prove their efforts. I figured you’d be given life or something. But they don’t even care.”

  “I expected this sort of thing.”

  “Yoing to be killed for a pletely selfish and pointless reason. How you be so calm?”

  “This isn’t the first time I’ve faced such things. If this is where I must die, then so be it. I’ve got s with what I’ve done. Others carry on my work.”

  He threw out his fist pung a hole in it and shaking the chamber. The lights flickered a bit from the force, but it tio go. ‘Dammit, this isn’t right! The young shouldn’t be dying for us!’

  * * *

  Across the city about a kilometer from the ruined grounds of the school, two figures in bck turned away from their monit positions. The man on the left closed his device while the other finished his versation on his cell. The man with the cell looked back at the ruins. “The surveilnce is plete. They’ve got all of the data that they need.”

  Returning the device bato a briefcase, he picked it up and began to walk away with his partner. “Seems the first field test was successful.”

  “Yes, but it only works on Meso Prosecho users.”

  “It’s enough to begin Phase 2.”