The trip to Subarachi began under a pale and forgiving sky.
The morning sun followed the Tsushima car as it rolled down the long countryside road. Its light was glinting off the chrome as fields of golden wheat swayed on either side. The hum of the engine filled the silence and blending with the faint rustle of wind passing through the half open window.
For most of the drive, Shuuji sat quietly in his seat and gazing out at the scenery. His small hands rested neatly on his lap. He was a picture of discipline child. But they knew his silence held something heavier.
Tane noticed first.
"You're awfully quiet today, sweetie." she said while turning from the window to look at her son. "Usually you would be talking about the books you've read or telling us some new knowledge you learned."
Shuuji didn't answer at once. His eyes followed a distant flock of birds cutting across the horizon before he finally answered his mother.
"...It's weird."
Gen'emon, who was sitting across from them, looked up from his phone.
"What is?" he asked.
Shuuji took his time as if he was trying to find the right words.
"Not being with Mariko. I keep thinking she is beside me. But she's not."
Then he glanced down at the empty space beside him.
"It feels strange. Like half of me stayed at home."
Tane and Gen'emon exchanged a quiet look. There was no teasing smile on either of their faces. They only have a shared understanding.
Tane reached across and brushed a strand of hair from her son's forehead.
"That's because you two have a bond that is hard to explain." she softly said. "They say twins share more than just looks. Maybe your heart knows when she is not near."
Shuuji didn't reply but his gaze softened a little.
"We will go back soon." Gen'emon assured. "Once I meet Dr. Kashiwagi and settle things, we will buy your sister some treats from the market. You can give them to her yourself."
Shuuji blinked his eyes.
"We will not stay in Subarachi?"
Tane smiled before she shook her head.
"How can we enjoy a vacation if we're incomplete? Maybe when your sister is in good health, we will visit the beach together."
The boy nodded faintly.
"Okay."
The car continued down the winding coastal road. The sound of the sea was faint in the distance. Subarachi appeared before them like a watercolor painting. There was a seaside town draped in pale mist and the air smelling faintly of salt and cold steel. The ocean shimmered under a muted sun with waves lapping rhythmically against the docks.
They arrived at Dr. Minoru Kashiwagi's laboratory just before noon.
The building stood apart from the rest of town. It was a tall, white structure of reinforced glass and concrete and perched near the cliffside. It looked too sterile. It was like something that didn't belong in the rustic calm of Subarachi. There was also a faint hum of electricity pulsed from inside.
Dr. Minoru himself greeted them at the entrance.
"Gen'emon." he warmly said before stepping forward with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
He looked older now. His hair was streaked with gray and his face was lined with the quiet toll of sleepless nights. But his gaze still carried the sharp intelligence of a man who had seen too much.
"It's been far too long."
Gen'emon offered him a small bow in greeting.
"It has. You look well, Kashiwagi."
"I'd say the same for you." Minoru replied before glancing briefly at Tane and then at the boy beside her. "And this must be your wife and son. But..."
Dr. Minoru looked around.
"I heard you also have a daughter. Where is she?"
"Something happened so she couldn't come."
"Mhm. I see."
Dr. Minoru did not asked more. He just looked at Shuuji again and smiled.
"My, how time moves. You have your mother's eyes, young man."
Shuuji gave him a polite nod although his expression remained unreadable.
They exchanged brief pleasantries before Minoru gestured for them to enter. The air inside was cool and filled with the scent of disinfectant and old books. Strange devices lined the walls. There were some humming softly while others were blinking with faint blue light. There were rows of framed documents and preserved specimens, a mixture of science and something far older and mysterious.
After a few minutes of conversation in the reception hall, Minoru turned to Gen'emon.
"There's something I want to show you. It is in the restricted wing. We can speak privately there."
Gen'emon hesitated for only a moment before nodding.
"Alright."
Minoru looked to Tane with an apologetic smile.
"You and your son are free to look around the first floor. Most of the exhibits here are open to visitors. Nothing dangerous, I assure you."
Tane smiled politely.
"Thank you. We will stay here."
As Gen'emon followed Minoru deeper into the corridors, Tane and Shuuji began to explore the open area of the lab.
The place was eerily fascinating. There are rows of display cases showing old scientific instruments, faded photographs of experiments long past and journals filled with strange equations. There was a glass case containing fragments of something crystalline and shimmering faintly when light touched it.
Tane paused before one of the displays. Then she read the engraved plaque aloud.
"Project Seraphim. A theoretical model for synthetic memory encoding..."
Her voice trailed off in mild curiosity. But Shuuji's attention had already wandered elsewhere.
The boy's eyes moved methodically from display to display while memorizing everything like the placement of tools, the names of projects and even the serial numbers etched into metal tags. His mind absorbed it all effortlessly just like the way other children memorized songs or stories. His memory was photographic although he had never told anyone in detail how vivid it truly was.
While walking toward another section, he caught a glimpse of movement in the reflection of the glass wall. Two figures were passing through the far corridor.
He turned slightly and his sharp eyes catching only fragments. The first one was tall and slender with his braided hair so pale it almost glowed under the fluorescent lights. The second one has dark hair and wearing a thick scarf and earmuffs that seemed oddly out of place indoors.
Their steps were quiet and their gestures restrained.
'...Are they foreigners?' Shuuji thought.
The way they moved and the subtle precision didn't seem like ordinary scientists.
Before he could get a better look, the pair disappeared down a side hall.
"Shuuji?"
Tane's voice drew him back. She was standing by another exhibit and smiling faintly.
"Don't wander too far, sweetheart."
He nodded and rejoined her although his eyes flicked back toward the direction the strangers had gone.
Several minutes passed before Gen'emon returned.
He looked pale.
The confident and calm composure he always carried was gone. It was replaced by a tightness in his jaw and a shadow in his gaze. His movements were sharp and restless. There was a look on his face as if he couldn't stand to be in the building another moment.
Tane immediately sensed it.
"Gen'emon? What happened?"
He forced a small and tight smile on his lips.
"We will talk later. Let's go."
Minoru appeared from the corridor behind him. His face drawn but composed. "l
"Gen'emon, please! Listen to me first. I didn't mean to—"
"I've heard enough." Gen'emon interrupted. His voice was low but edged. "Whatever you've done here... Whatever you think you've discovered is not something I want my family near."
"But this is the greatest discovery that a human can do!" Minoru urged while taking a step forward. "You of all people should understand the necessity—"
Gen'emon's tone hardened.
"Not like this. Never like this!"
The tension between the two men thickened and crackling like static.
Tane watched the situation carefully while holding Shuuji close as the boy studied the exchange with careful eyes.
"Father..." Shuuji began softly.
But Gen'emon didn't hear him. His focus remained on Minoru. The look in his eyes was telling them that he became a man who had seen something he could never unsee.
At last, Gen'emon turned away.
"We're leaving."
He firmly took Tane's hand and guided her toward the exit. Shuuji followed while still glancing back at the doctor. Minoru just stood there. He was breathing heavily and frustration was warring on his face.
"Gen'emon!" Minoru called after him. "You will regret walking away like this. This discovery could even make a human into a real god!"
Gen'emon stopped briefly. With his back to the man, he spoke in a quiet and final tone.
"Stop. I've seen enough."
Gen'emon wanted to get his family out of this situation. They have already left the darkness. Whatever Minoru discovered, he does not want his family or himself to be involved in it.
They were about to get out of the laboratory when all of a sudden...
The world split apart.
A violent tremor surged through the ground then followed by a deafening roar. The laboratory windows shattered in unison with glass spraying like shards of light as a massive explosion tore through the east wing of the building.
Flames and smoke burst upward and devouring the pristine white structure in a bloom of fire.
Tane instinctively pulled Shuuji into her arms as debris rained down. Gen'emon threw himself over them and shielding his family as the shockwave rippled outward while the shook earth beneath their feet.
The air was filled with the sound of alarms, the distant cries of people and the relentless roar of fire consuming metal.
When the smoke cleared just enough to see, Gen'emon lifted his head.
Behind them, the laboratory was burning.