The train station was packed with people, and smoke lingered everywhere in the air. Stepping into the railwagon, the man - wearing a business suit with a fedora on his head - settled into his seat.
"So, this is what they call 'train'."
It's nearly evening, and Bi still hasn't gotten anything for dinner. When the Kempeitai raided the place and detained his sister, he snuck out and hid in a small hole in the forest behind the house.
The forest used to be where he played hide-and-seek with his sister. There was a small hole under the grass, which was his favorite hiding place, because for a long time, his sister and friends always had to give up.
Of course, it wasn't long until they figured out where to find him, and as time passed, the small hole could no longer fool his sister and friends. But now, it was Bi's only hope to win this round, and unlike the old times…
"Search the entire place!"
…This time, he couldn't afford to get found.
"Look everywhere, leave no corner untouched!"
"Colonel, he's not over here either!"
"He must be around here! Either you find him, or you will take his place in the 731!"
Thud. Debris fell onto his head. The entire place went silent.
Someone was standing over the hole.
Slowly, a booted foot pressed down the entrance. "見つけたFound you"
A volley of bullets was shot to the ground. Bi tried to dodge them, but he could feel some grazing him.
A hand slammed onto the cracked ground and pulled him up. The Colonel threw Bi forward, where the Arisaka rifles were pointing at him.
"It's over, you brat."
Whimpering is the only thing he can do.
It was nearly evening when he got to Hà Tiên. The railroad ended at Mỹ Tho, forcing him to get here by other ways. At least he doesn't have to stand around in the cramped passenger car.
"Thank you for showing me the way to Mỹ Đức village." He was standing on the hill overlooking the village with an elderly woman.
"You're welcome. It's just a normal thing to help each oth-" Her words were cut off by distant gunfire.
"What's happening?" The man asked.
"Ah, there are some problems that the Japanese have with Yến. Poor girl, the Kempeitai gave her and her brother a hard time just because they helped someone in danger."
"Kempeitai?"
"Yes. They said that Miss Yến harbored an anomalous individual, so they arrested her. Looks like they found her brother."
The man suddenly flinched. "Ma'am, before this 'anomalous individual' appears, was there any weird light, followed by an unusually large wave?"
"Yes, that's right. Wait?! How did you know, didn't you just come in from the North?"
The man ignored the question. "Ma'am, were the Kempeitai able to capture this 'anomalous individual' by any chance?"
The woman hesitantly shook her head.
The man smiled and faced the direction of the gunfire. "So that dream was really a foresight. I didn't come here for nothing after all."
For a long time, he never liked using his power to deal with problems that weren't caused by another anomaly. After all, if one was hunted down since childhood by those in power simply for being 'abnormal', why should he be obliged to help them out with any 'normal' affair?
Despite having certain concerns about how the Axis were able to win the war, he thought that IJAMEA would not last for long. In the end, those with the ambition of dominating the paranormal world hardly have a good end at all.
"What are you going to do?" The woman asked.
But if the dream was right, and the victory of Japan and Germany was the result of a phenomenon that wasn't supposed to happen, then the Judge here had the duty to reverse it and bring the world back to its rightful balance.
"Thank you for helping me earlier." Sparks of fire slowly manifested around the man. "But please leave this place now, ma'am."
He clapped his hands together with determination, then interlocked his fingers. A massive circle of fire suddenly erupted and surrounded the forest. Without hesitation, the Judge rushed towards the direction of earlier gunfires in the blink of an eye, causing his fedora to fall off and burn under the immense heat of a thousand stars.
"It's over, you brat."
Boom. The dark night was lit up all of a sudden. "What's happeni-" Before he could finish, the Judge grabbed the officer by the throat. In an instant, his body was engulfed in flames. Amidst the agonizing scream, the soldiers frantically opened fire at the new foe.
But mundane weapons were nothing to the Judge. He charged at another, swatting the rifle out with his left hand and melting it, while his right hand smashed the Kempei's face. They can sense the smell of burning chunks of flesh and brain in the air.
He didn't stop there and continued to attack. Every single one of them, their screaming mixed with gunfire, all eventually fell. Fire was everywhere.
Bi wasn't sure what was going on, but he knew this person was helping him. "Mister! There is one running away!" He shouted.
The Judge turned and charged at the fleeing soldier.
"Red alert! Hostile sentient Yōkai! Requesting assistance! Red alert-" A punch pierced through the Kempei, then his body was also engulfed in flames.
The Judge pulled his arm out and adjusted his sleeves. Despite the intense battle, his suit showed no damage aside from some blood smeared on it. He slowly approached and knelt down in front of the boy. It was hard to believe such a young face belongs to a man who has lived for nearly five hundred years.
"Can you show me the way to the Japanese base? I need to find an acquaintance there." Maybe he should evacuate this kid to somewhere safe. "Oh, and I'll need a boat," although the Judge was more than capable of summoning one. "The long journey is killing my legs."
Meanwhile, from within Hà Tiên Base, "Seemed like something is happening? The troops are mobilizing everywhere." Cao Văn Đại, disguised in the uniform of the Imperial Japanese Army, was describing his observation through a talisman underneath the scarf covering his mouth.
"I think there is a wildfire. They are mounting on the trucks out here." Secondary Fifth Đào Gia Hưng, sitting on a large tree, answered back through a similar talisman. "Either way, it will benefit us. We will be less likely to be caught if they are distracted." Through a small diamond-shaped matrix near his left eye, he looked for a sign of Hà Thị Yến, Đại's savior. "Left hallway, down the basement. That place doesn't have many people around, but still, be careful."
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Đại moved faster. Although he didn't like the idea of going stealth like this, it was the most realistic plan they could come up with.
Previously:
"Let's do this."
"So what's the plan?"
"We just charge in. You distract them with your magic or something, I will pull the lady out. We are going to rock this place to its foundation."
"…"
"What are you looking at me for? Am I that handsome or something?"
Secondary Fifth Đào facepalmed. How could someone come up with a stupid 'plan' like that? While thinking, he noticed a guard approaching a bush further away.
"I have a better idea."
"What?"
"See that urinating guy? Get there and strangle him, we will 'borrow' his uniform."
"What if the guards from inside the base saw that? We are invisible, but he can still scream and struggle to alert them."
"No problem, I will create a temporary barrier to cover our tracks from them."
"And then what?"
"Use this talisman. It has light antimemetic properties, allowing us to communicate while not drawing too much attention."
"You mean…"
"Yes, you will sneak in to save her."
"I don't know the fucking way!"
"Shhh, keep your voice low. And don't worry, I have a spell that helps me look through walls. I will point you where to go from outside. If something happens, I will use the distraction spells."
"Huh? Isn't it make more sense if you go in there instead?!"
"Didn't I tell you? The Examination Institute currently cannot have any suspicious activities. If I pass one of the IJAMEA guys and they recognize me, then you, I, and the current autonomy of our country, all go down six feet under."
"…"
"If you don't have any questions, then go. He's almost done relieving himself."
Haizz. Đại sighed. He did want to save Yến, but he was more used to confrontation than this spy game. Even though he had to run away from the fascists this morning, he was still confident that he could go up against this base with a gun or a wand or something.
A slight tremor rocked the base.
"Uhm, Đào, what's going on out there?"
"There's a- no, some fireballs are falling from the sky."
"How can you be so calm like that?"
"Focus on the mission. Whatever caused this, it's helping us." Secondary Fifth Đào gazed at the sky. From within the clouds, he could see… a boat?
Within the base, Đại felt a chill run down his spine while moving. He glanced at the Japanese officer who just passed him, his white armband was emblazoned with red "異常Anomaly".
Standing at the bow of the boat under the moonlight made the Judge remember the old times, when he was still working with Chief Bureaucrat Trần. The difference was that instead of floating on the water, the boat was levitating inside the clouds.
"If the kid was right, then the Japanese base should be right about here." As the boat slowly dropped its altitude below the clouds, the Judge could see a detachment slowly heading towards the forest where the battle took place.
The Judge summoned a small flame. "Hope this will help as the dream depicted." As he raised his arm, the small flame turned into a massive fireball.
The light quickly attracted the soldiers below. While they were still confused about what was going on, the Judge had already dropped that 'sun' on their head, causing a violent earthquake.
He continued summoning massive fireballs and dropped them on the area surrounding the base. The remaining soldiers desperately retaliated with both volleys of bullets and colorful explosive spells. A spectacular sight lit up an entire region of dark sky.
Suddenly, a red lightning graze the hull of the boat from below. The Judge gazed down. On the rooftop of the base, Lieutenant General Ryuichi stood defiantly, looking at the one who dared to challenge the Empire.
"It's about to get interesting." Ryuichi readied himself to attack. A thunderstorm arose, and thousands of red lightning flashed more and more densely.
The Judge got off the boat, surrounded himself with large flames levitating in the air.
Secondary Fifth Đào grew worried, as he looked at the scene from afar. Đại's voice then echoed from the talisman, startling him. "This place is relatively empty now. There's a junction here, which way should I go?"
"Take the right path. The cells are probably that way, and watch out for the guards. Also… I think you should hurry up."
The only light inside the cell came from outside the window.
Boom boom
"Looks like there gonna be a huge storm." A soldier in the tattered green uniform was bandaging the woman's wounds with what she had.
The woman remained silent and unresponsive.
"Done, let's stop the bleeding like this for now. But it will get worse if not treated properly." That being said, the soldier also had multiple wounds from long ago.
"It's- nothing, really."
…
The silent atmosphere were shattered by a gunshot. Then the cell door was creaked open. The soldier moved to the front to protect her. Even in desperation, she still felt thankful for that.
"Hà Thị Yến!" A figure in the Kempei's uniform appeared. "It's time to go."
As the figure stepped into the room, the soldier charged at him and shoved him out. "Run, Yến!" Then the soldier threw punches into the face of the Kempei.
"Ack, argh, aurgh. Who the fuck are you!?" The man in the Kempei uniform shoved the soldier to the side.
"Đại?" The woman slowly got up and stepped out of the cell. She glanced at the stairs and saw that the Japanese guard were already shot dead.
The man also got up and spat out blood from his mouth. "I'm here to get you out." He looked to the side, "Is this someone you know?" He extended his hand and helped the soldier get up.
"Yeah, she's my friend."
"I heard Yến got into trouble, so I came here… Sorry for what I did earlier."
Văn Đại chuckled. "No worries, I'm used to it." The base got rocked again by another tremor. "Ah, maybe we should bail out now. The Japs were distracted by some kind of monster right now."
"So that's what this storm is?" The soldier asked.
"Yeah. Hey, Đào," Đại glanced at the talisman under the scarf. "I got the lady, which way should we go to get out?"
"…"
"Hello? Are you deaf or something!?"
Still no response. "Huh? Seems like something happened to him. Oh well, we will find our own way."
"Is that okay?"
"Of course, I have a gun on me. That guy over there also has one." Đại pointed at the downed guard. "You lady here is a Việt Minh soldier, am I right? You should have some shooting skill already. Miss Yến, if you were exhausted, I can carry you on my back."
"No thanks, I can walk by myself."
"Good, let's go."
Although the Vietnamese Imperial Anomalous Matter Examination Institute was just a proxy of the Imperial Japanese Anomalous Matter Examination Agency, it was still allowed to investigate and contain certain artifacts of the paranormal world as a way to alleviate some burdens on the Japanese forces. Naturally, what they confiscate is often regarded as worthless, but not this time.
Because the one who was burning the sky right now, his appearance was quite similar to that of the last Chief of the Bureau of Anomaly Surveillance under the Mạc dynasty, whose description once excavated by the Institute. Institute staffs would sometime debate about the fate of this Chief Bureaucrat during their pastime: some claimed that he was beheaded by the Lê-Trịnh forces and got erased from history, others said that he took refuge at a foreign country and passed away there.
Right, even in his wildest dreams, Đào couldn't believe that this man wasn't just alive, he was also showing himself to confront the Empire of the Rising Sun. Suddenly, a lightning struck the boat of the Chief Bureaucrat, causing a big explosion. But he was long gone.
Then as if seeing something, Lieutenant General Ryuichi quickly moved aside. Đào was only able to see a fire streak passing through. It was the Chief Bureaucrat. He turned, steadied himself, then cast out a flame at the Lieutenant General.
Ryuichi dodged while charging at his opponent. Honorable Ngô doubled down and threw himself at his foe. The orange of flames and the red of lightning clashed, making debris flying everywhere.
Secondary Fifth Đào immediately manifested a shield to protect his position. Then he sensed something else, as he pulled out another communication talisman. It was a notification from Primary Third Lương. "Primary Third, it's too dangerous to communicate with me now."
"Not good, Mister Đào. The Examination Agency has received reports of an anomalous individual and is sending a response force to the scene. They have blocked off access to the surrounding region."
If IJAMEA showed up, then their situation would deteriorate. The Chief Bureaucrat could be overwhelmed, and they will be found in an instant."
"Go save yourself, Mister. You will be in big trouble if you are around for longer." The voice of the Primary Third echoed. Đào was silent, as he looked at the battle, then at the base. A slight wind blows through his hair.
"I'm sorry, Primary Third, but maybe I will stay behind."
"…Pardon?"
"The closest IJAMEA garrison to Hà Tiên is one hour out. If I join the battle and helping the anomalous individual, then we might be able to defeat Ryuichi and get out of here in time. Maybe it could even convince him to join us."
"Mister Đào, IJAMEA is something different from the Kempeitai. They have enough resources to sweep that entire place. If you listen to me and retreat, then we can fabricate reports and cover this up-"
"I'm tired of waiting around and 'preparing for the opportunity' now, Primary Third. I'm also tired of relying on other forces to go against the Japanese while we have to go around and pretending to be loyal to the enemy. I want to do something that actually come with results."
"Why are you… determined to do so?"
Đào, holding the communication talisman that was connected to Đại, look at the fighting above. "Because I feel like I'm being called for action…"
…
"Fine, I will report that you were attacked by a monster while on a business trip to Hà Tiên. From now on, we will cut off ties to each other. Take care, Secondary Fifth Đào."
"Same for you, Primary Third Lương."
Đào torn apart the communication talisman connected to the Primary Third at the Institute, then summoned an exorcist sword with a wave of his hand. He created a devil mask, then put it on his face. His business suit turned black and then shattered into pieces, revealing the patterned mandarin clothing.
"It's time to challenge the invaders."
The tremor was getting bigger. They could feel that this place was being tear down and apart.
"Goddammit, this way is also blocked." When they found out the base was under attack, the Japanese enacted an emergency protocol before retreating, causing the group to be stuck in the basement. "Maybe the Japs wanted to lock us down here." Văn Đại said as he worriedly scratched his head.
The soldier accompanying them noticed a strange room and entered. "Hey, you two, take a look at this." Through the live feed of surveillance cameras at the base entrywayhey, they saw a fierce battle between fire and lightning. "This is the monster you were talking about?"
"Yeah, I think I know why my aide didn't response to me now."
"We have to find somewhere to hide quick." The soldier said. "All paths were cordoned off, and with the battle raging out there, this place's gonna get destroyed sooner or later."
"But where can we hide?" Yến questioned.
"How about these?" Đại said as he pointed at the neighboring storage room. "Anomalous artifacts that the Japanese forces confiscated at Hà Tiên. Maybe there's something that can protect us here."
The battle between Lieutenant General Ryuichi and the Judge just got fiercer. Ryuichi shot out a barrage of lightnings, as the Judge bolted and reappeared somewhere else in a blink of an eye. The Judge retaliated with torrents of fireball and flame shots, while Ryuichi either dodge or parried with shielding spells.
Then, suddenly, the Judge quickly flew up towards the sky, above the raging clouds, leaving behind a trail of flames.
The Lieutenant General also became lightning and quickly pursued him. "If you think you can flee with that, then you are wrong!" Ryuichi can easily alter the direction of lightnings from the clouds to strike even above them.
A bonus advantage of it is that it mitigates the chance of his lightning accidentally striking a building, a tree, or a flock of bird. Especially when he is too exhausted to totally control every lightning strikes.
But the Judge soared high wasn't to get out of the range of the Lieutenant General. As soon as he soared above the clouds, he summoned a massive fireball, even larger than the one that kicked off the battle.
And because of the flashing light from the dense cloud, Ryuichi soared without realizing that there's a sun in front of him, until it suddenly dropped on him.
Lightning appeared around the body of Lieutenant General Ryuichi as he was about to dodge when Bzt. A sword stabbed through him from behind his back. "You can't do anything with this piercing through your body." Ryuichi could only see a masked man wearing the mandarin clothing of the Nguyễn dynasty.
The fireball collided with the sword. With the flame above, the Lieutenant General screamed as he was burned to the flesh. Strangely, instead of falling down further, the fireball shattered into pieces. The Judge charged, grabbing Ryuichi by the throat, then yanked him from the sword while continuing to fall down towards the roof of the base, causing a small collision.
When the dust settled and the thunderclouds dissipated, the Judge grabbed Lieutenant General Ryuichi by the throat and lifted him up. His face was severely burned, his hip was cut through the spinal cord, while blood poured out profusely and painting the surrounding space with a red hue.
"Who… are you?" Being a talented thaumaturgist of the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces, Ryuichi had never thought of being defeated by anyone. "What… do… you want?" Such a meaningless question. Even if he knew the answer, he might not live long enough to get back and report to the High Command. That is, if Ryuichi has the intention to live…
"The thing that helped you win the World War," the Judge calmly spoke, "it was something out of this world. By the looks of it, it seems that having it granted you an advantage in knowledge and technology to nearly overwhelm the Allies."
The Judge tightened his grasp. "And clearly, the appearance of this person you are looking for is a threat to this. So I assume this thing- no, this individual is the same as the one you are looking for, also 'out of this world'."
Ryuichi can feel his end now, as he tried to say something.
"Putting it with what I heard when I visited anomalous vendors, I assume this individual was the head of the Imperial Japanese Anomalous Matter Examination Agency, codenamed 'Harada', is that right?"
"Ban-"
"Answer me, Lieutenant General!"
"万歳Banzai !" Lieutenant General Ryuichi used his remaining strength to summon a massive red lightning striking the building below.
An explosion occurred. Former Secondary Fifth Đào, standing afar, was only able to generate a protective field in the last second. The entirety of Hà Tiên Base was wiped out, leaving no trace of it remaining.
"Everybody good?" The massive explosion felt like it is burning them to ashes. Even as they were hiding under a fabric cover with some kind of weird abilities, Cao Văn Đại can still fell his head spinning around as if something hit his head.
"Yeah, still good." The soldier answered, then turned to Hà Thị Yến. "You good, Yến?"
"Yep…" She felt her wound is aching again, but it looks like those weird leaves have some good healing abilities.
Đại opened up the part at his side, as a layer of rubble covered him. Outside, the dust has yet to settle. Đào Gia Hưng limped towards them. Despite his protective spell, he was still wounded by the tremor. The mask, as a result, also got wrecked.
"So it was no different than my fucking original plan at all." Đại sarcastically joked. Yến and the soldier also got out of the tarp.
"Your clothing… Are you a member of the Examination Institute?"
"Formerly. To them, I was dead." Đào answered. "You lady here is a Việt Minh soldier?"
"Yes, Yến is my friend. I heard she's in trouble, so I came here. Then I was held until you two broke us out."
While they were talking around, the Judge slowly landed.
"Who is it now?!"
"Ah," Đào Gia Hưng chuckled, "this is the mastermind behind all this." He approached the Judge. "It's an honor meeting you here, Chief Bureaucrat Ngô, sir. I have read archaeological records about you."
"So you were the masked one earlier? Thank you for helping me out. My powers are not as strong as the old times now…" The Judge looked at his hand for a while, then glanced at Đại. "And you here must be the one the Kempeitai are hunting down. We have a lot of things to talk about." He smiled.
"Can we do that later? The Japanese forces must be gathering forces to get here as of speaking. If we can't find the way out, then-"
Đào pulled out a green quill pen. "I was told to only use this for emergencies only." Then he drew a magic circle without using any ink.
"This is…?"
"They call it a Way. Where we are going, it's not somewhere people can come and go easily. So mind your manners, especially you."
"What the fuck are you looking at me for!?" Đại shouted.
"Just a general reminder." Đào applied a spell with his hand. A portal manifested out of thin air. "Let's go."
"But… my village… My brother too." Yến hesitated.
"No need to worry about it." The Judge said. "IJAMEA is smart enough to know not to make a big deal of it. Unless they wanted to risk another anti-fascist movement. For your brother, he is safe and sound at the port. I will take him on a voyage, then go back to Saigon. I have a fellow there that can help us get to the Library."
"The Library?" Đại asked.
"That's where the Way will lead us to. You also know that place, Chief Bureaucrat, sir?" The former Secondary Fifth asked.
"Somewhat. I have traveled wide and far, so I have heard about it." The Judge turned towards the East, towards the direction of the rising sun. They can hear the sound of war machines closing in. "Now go. The Japanese forces are closing in on Mỹ Đức now. We will meet again soon."
Đào nodded. "Take care, sir."
"Same for you all."
.
.
.
.jpg){kind=link}