Gunslinger Girl Fan Fiction ❯ Scars & Bullets ❯ Memoria ( Chapter 5 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

By: WarSaw

Disclaimer: No I do not own Gunslinger Girl. Raphael and his other aliases yes but the rest of them no.

It is 10:00 pm and here I am on my balcony on my penthouse, I am suppose to be in some party but here I am stuck in my house sipping sherry from a crystal glass. Well I can't complain about my misfortune, my sources tell me that I might be at death's door tonight. Some agency wants me dead and I can't blame them. I am Armando Estolas the thug organizer of the Mafia. I recruit the laymen of the Mafia and I recruit a lot, that's why the Mafia never dies out, it's thanks too me. If ever the Mafia families need people to carry a shipment they turn too me. When there is a gang war I assure you 80% are people recruited by me. I am indispensable and therefore an appealing target for assassination. I am not an easy target either, I live on a villa on top of the tallest building in this side of Rome, I am considered a god here, and no one dares cross my path. When my men are not out serving the Mafia they are here protecting me. So death can weep tonight because it is not going to claim my soul—. What? Someone knocks on my door at this hour? Who could that be?

“Who are you suppose to be?” I asked, I am supposed to have extra tight security tonight why did my men allow this teenager into my house.

“Hi, I'm Raphael!” he said. This is even stranger, what is his business in my house.

“What are you doing here?” I asked this as I looked out my door and searched for my sentries at my stairs. Oh there's one of them, he's…lying on the ground…in a pool of his own blood! I looked at the boy with distress yet he looked back at me with a sheepish grin, what he said next sent a chill down my spine:

“Do you have any beverages, I could use some refreshment… before I kill you!”

Chapter 5 Memoria

Memory

So here I am 10:30 pm not in a party but on my sofa. On the other chair is my `killer' sipping tea in a cup. I have to think of something, all my men are dead, the only thing I have with me is my Uzi and it's on my desk. I can't depend on my `trunk card' I need to dissuade this kid:

“So who sent you?” I asked him.

He put the tea down and answered, “The Social Welfare Agency sent me, and yes I am being paid, but no you can't try doubling what they pay me I am trying to impress people there, especially this girl.”

Damn he's like reading my mind; I need to use another trick.

“You have a dad, kid?”

He arched his eyebrows and answered, “If I had parents I won't tell you, you can look for some all you want I don't have a family for you to hurt.”

Double drat! He got me again. Well now I have no choice but to wait for my `trunk card' to act up. I have to stall till it starts kicking in.

“So how did you get here without me noticing?”

He revealed his gun holster and showed me one of his pistols, “Silencer, I guess you did not hear any gunfire, you're men aren't fast enough to compete with me… they did not stand a chance they were not able to fire a single shot.”

“I better get better body guards then next time.” I replied as I tried to casually walk to my desk to get my own gun; but then he cleared his throat and put down the empty teacup.

“This is pretty good tea you got here, pure green tea with a little mint, a little syrup and just a dash of bitter almond. Or should I say Cyanide!” that statement stopped me dead in my tracks.

“H-h-how did you know?” he flashed his sheepish grin once more and pulled out his other pistol it was obviously a Desert Eagle.

“First you attempted to bribe me next was to threaten my family it's natural that the next step is to poison me and try to bribe me with the antidote or just watch me die.” He replied then he stood up and weighed both guns in his hand. “Well I don't take beverages from just any stranger… without making sure that I am immune to it!”

My mind kept telling me to reach for the gun but I kept still. He started walking towards me while continuously talking, “Unfortunately for you my blood stream runs multiple antidotes, anti-venoms and anti-toxins. Listen your wasting my time now where do you want to get hit in the chest or on the head? What do you fancy a small clean bullet wound or should I mince you with my Desert Eagle?”

None of these things were registering in my head, with one sudden movement I tried to dive for my Uzi but at the same movement my elbow exploded.

“Aah!” was the last thing that came out of my mouth; on the other hand the lasting I heard was:

“The futile acts of my victims never cease to amaze me. Now let's get this over with.” *BANG*

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Last night's work was quite an exercise. It was like a cat toying with a mouse. However as soon as I got back I collapsed into my bed and slept like a log. What time is it? Damn its 10:00 am already? I need to have breakfast and fast.

When I got to the cafeteria the girls were still there but were having dessert. When they saw me all of them resorted to waving at me, Henrietta however chose to get up and give me a hug.

“Hey Henrietta, I told you a thank you was enough you don't need to hug me every time for saving you.”

She looked up to me and replied “but I owe you my life Raphael, there has be some other way to repay you”

I smiled back at her and said, “Your smiles are enough Henrietta. Besides I think some of the girls are getting envious.”

I was not lying I am sure those stairs from Claes, Rico and Triela mean something. So I sat down with them and waited for something to happen:

“So… I heard you had quite a blast last night.” Said Claes.

“Nah, it wasn't much, it did not take much to wipe everybody out.” I replied.

“Yet you slept like a rock last night.” Said Triela with a smile.

“All the running was very tiring thou. It would have been nice to have you guys around but I am a field agent I can work alone if the situation requires it.” I said wryly.

“Yeah that's too bad, don't you find it scary without a handler supporting you?” questioned Rico.

“It's something to get used to.” I reasoned.

Before I could be asked further, Jean approached me and told me that I was wanted in Doctor Bianchi's Clinic so I had to go. When I got into the clinic Doctor Bianchi greeted me:

“Hi Raphael, please sit down. No you're not in trouble I just want a check up.” So I sat down and waited to be questioned.

Bianchi: So Raphael, are you having problems with your body?

Raphael: Well no, as far as I can remember it's working pretty fine. I know I'm supposed to have setbacks due to the gunshot wounds but I feel fine.

Bianchi: Well that's great, how about your head, I heard that you are starting to remember things.

Raphael: I remembered some of the things I use to do, I remember some food recipes, and I remember certain abilities.

Bianchi: And so I heard, you learned to swim two days ago right? How did you do manage, better yet what do you feel when you get a memory back?

Raphael: It either comes through a dream or I just remember it like that *snap*. I don't really call it a memory, I still know squat about my previous life.

Bianchi: I see, it's rather different from what I expected but it's a start.

Ferro: <behind the two-way mirror> what do you think Jean?

Jean: <behind the two-way mirror> he's hiding something.

Bianchi organized his writing then he proceeded to turn his computer monitor to show me the contents of his computer.

“Well the agency tried to look for you in the database but all we found is this kid… the problem is he's dead.” With that he presented me with a headline from some periodical.

Tiago Family Massacred

At the morning of July 14th the police were left yesterday with the grizzly scene of the bodies of the entire Tiago family strewn into their home. For those who don't know, the Tiagos are an aristocrat family led by the father Captain Ricardo Tiago. Last night's murders took the lives of the entire family including Cap. Ricardo's only son Raphael Tiago—

I stared into the headline on the computer as Bianchi read my facial expression.

“So should I call you Raphael or Mr. Tiago? “ questioned Bianchi.

Soon I was able to answer, “but that is not me.”

Bianchi looked surprised but was able to say, “How could you say that?”

“Well first of all he does not look anything like me. Second if ever it is true, it does not explain how a snobby rich kid could wield a gun like I can.” I explained.

Bianchi tried to reason out, “but there is no other explanation, he's dead and you're alive, I could infer that Raphael Tiago is not dead but was presumed dead and the real Raphael is right here in front of me.”

With that I was able to reply, “True, but according to this news clip the entire family is accounted for and is in the morgue. Just because both of us were named Raphael does not mean we are both the same person. Things are not always what they seem. Take this mirror for example, do you know that it is a 2-way mirror?”

I guess he knew since he gave a gasp and asked me how I knew. With that I was able to answer, “Well the light from the room is not reflecting properly on the mirror. Besides watch this.” With that I used the lamplight to flash a beam of light into the mirror, and just as I suspected the light did not reflect.

“See, with that I could infer that I am being listened too the whole time. Thinking about the nosiest people in this agency I could infer that its either Lorenzo or Jean listening in the other side.”

With that Bianchi switched the light and the lights in the clinic turned off and allowed the light in the other room to turn on and reveal the people on the other side. Well I was partly wrong, there was a whole department in there playing poker, but I was right about one thing Jean was there giving me a pissed off look. With that Jean said into a microphone:

“Alright you've caught us, very impressive, you may go.”

With that I got up and was about to leave the clinic but then Bianchi stopped me and gave me a small parcel wrapped in paper. He said it was the contents of the pocket of the pants I was wearing the day I was found. I took it and made my way to my room. There I sat on my bed and looked at the package on my table and at my bare room. It was then, I said out loud:

“I could use more stuff. I got money now maybe I could buy some.”

It seems that Triela was outside and she heard me so she knocked on the door. I asked her to come in and she asked me if I could hang out in her room for a bit so I got up grabbed the package and left with her.

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I led Raphael into my room with Claes already inside. He sat down with us and just stared into his hand. Claes was the first to ask him:

“So what did Doctor Bianchi want?”

Raphael replied saying, “Stuff, mostly about my memory.”

“O, what you got there?” I asked pointing at his hand.

“What, this? Bianchi said this was in my pocket when you guys found me.” He said as he revealed a paper parcel.

We asked if we can see the contents and he did not hesitate. With us at his side he unwrapped the paper to reveal some sort of necklace. It had a piece of gold shaped like a circle with what appears to be fish tails protruding from two sides like wings, I can't really tell there wasn't much detail on it. It was tied to a black string, which he used to wear around his neck.

“This-this was mine. Somewhere in the middle of the gunfight on the town square I placed it in my pocket. I thought I lost it.” He said with disbelief.

With that, all of us were left looking at the necklace as it hung from his neck trying to understand what it meant.