GetBackers Fan Fiction ❯ Water and Electricity ❯ Chapter 4 ( Chapter 4 )

A letter. For him. He had a bad feeling about this. He opened the envelope and took out the letter, unfolded it and started to read. It was written in an cheerful, hearty tone which made the whole situation seem even more unreal.

'Greetings and goodbye, Midou Ban!

We could kill you without letting you know what happened, but it's more satisfying to tell you about it. That way your last moments will be more agonizing, and that suits us fine. By the way, did you know Chikara lost his voice and became mute after you fought him the last time? That's why he came up with this little scheme. Well, we better start telling you before you die. Samamoto is one of us. He owns this whole area and when he discovered that you and your partner were coming for a vacation here we were so happy. You, walking right into our web, without suspecting anything. Too good to be true, we thought, but you came. As I just said, Chikara came up with the plot and I really liked the idea, so I let my men set this up. Knowing you won't say no to this kind of money, it's easy to lure you into the trap, even though we know you will worry about our presence. We are keeping a watch on this cliff and bay, so when we estimate you're inside the cave, reading this letter, we will blast the tunnel. Goodbye, Midou.

Kitayama, leader of Batsu.'

At the same moment he heard Ginji's voice, and he looked up. "Ban-ch…" Then there was an explosion, the cave was shaking and right above Ginji, an enormous piece of rock came loose and fell down on his partner.

"Ginjiii…!!"

Ban roared. He threw himself into the water, not caring if some other rock would fall down. Ginji. What happened to him? The cave was still and quiet after the explosion, only the water rippled some. He had forgotten his flashlight on the shelf, but he saw Ginji's shine somewhere beneath him. Ginji… it had looked like that big stone fell right on top of him. Not even Ginji would survive that. Ginji, you better not be dead, you fool. He dived.

Ginji was a couple of meters in front of him with his head about one meter under the surface. His left leg was stuck under the rock, and his left arm was bleeding and hang limp. But when Ban approached Ginji turned his head to look at him, alive and conscious. Ban knew the relief in Ginji's eyes when he saw his friend was reflected in his own. The flashlight lay on the bottom shining on them. Hang on, Ginji, I'll get you out of there. Ban tried to smile encouraging to Ginji, who smiled back. He tried to grab the stone and lift it. It didn't move one millimeter. Dammit! He tried to push it to make it fall over. The same result.

Ginji was running out of air now, he could tell. Ban mouthed an 'I'll be back' to him and swam hastily to the surface, took two deep breaths and dived again. Ginji's eyes had a panicked look when he returned. Ban gestured to him to let out what was left in his lungs, and fortunately Ginji understood. Ban took his head in his hands, pressed his mouth to Ginji's, held Ginji's nose shut and blew the air in his lungs into Ginji's. Then he headed back to the surface to fill his own lungs.

Back to Ginji he examined the ground around his leg. It looked like the leg wasn't crushed, but stuck into the tunnel entrance, with the stone keeping Ginji from pulling it out. He tried to move the stone again. Of course it didn't move. Hell. What use did he have of this strength of his, if it wasn't enough to move this damned rock on top of Ginji's leg? He looked for something he could use as a lever. Nothing in sight around them. Again he fetched fresh air and filled Ginji's lungs. He swam to the shelf, got his flashlight-he didn't want to leave Ginji in the dark-and began searching for a lever. It wasn't a very efficient search since he had to get down to Ginji every 30 seconds to give him more air.

The panic rose inside him. How much longer could he go on with this? And even if he somehow could manage to free Ginji, what good would it make? They were sealed in this cave anyway. Bloody fool. Don't you give up now. Of course you can get Ginji up, and you'll get out of the cave somehow. There weren't any other options. He would never abandon his best friend ever. He'd free him. Somehow. Just as long as Ginji didn't give up. Ban knew that if Ginji thought he couldn't be rescued, he would start breathing water to make sure Ban didn't collapse in an impossible attempt to save him. Ginji hadn't read the letter. He didn't know what had happened. He could do such an idiotic thing just to save Ban. When he went back to Ginji this time, he smiled as encouraging as he could to make Ginji understand he still hadn't given up.

He now searched the bottom of the cave down in the water, for something that could help him move that piece of rock. Still nothing. He swam back over to Ginji, to take another look at his leg. Maybe he could see something now, when he had a flashlight in his hand instead of only the one laying on the bottom beside Ginji? What was that? It looked like a smaller stone was stuck like a wedge under Ginji's leg, where it was caught in the tunnel. Could it really be? Ban reached out and touched the stone. It moved a millimeter! Back to the surface, give Ginji some air. Ban returned to the smaller stone grabbed it…and crushed it! Ginji's leg moved downward to where the stone had been stuck. Ban took his friend's leg and carefully pulled it out. Ginji was free!

Up in the air, Ginji hang on Ban, taking deep, heavy breaths.

"Ban-chan…Thank you!" That was all he could manage right now.

Ban helped him up to the shelf and sat down beside him. Ginji was shaking now and had closed his eyes.

"Ginji? Are you all right?" Stupid question, of course Ginji wasn't all right. He must be in shock. His left arm was still bleeding and was obviously broken. In fact, his leg seemed less damaged than the arm.

Ginji took his right hand in his and squeezed it slightly. He brought their hands to his mouth and kissed Ban's hand. "I need to rest, Ban-chan," he mumbled.

"Sure, you do that, I'll keep watch." Ban tried to sound like everything was just fine. As long as you are alive, Ginji, I'll watch over you.

Ginji fell asleep, his breathing calm and steady. Ban put his hand on Ginji's chest to be sure to feel if that breathing stopped. He turned off the light. No need to waste it. He felt a tear run down his cheek, but he didn't bother to sweep it off. Ginji was safe, for the moment. His chest was heaving under Ban's hand. Ban, too, fell asleep.

---

When he woke up, Ginji was already awake, shining with the flashlight on Ban. He didn't shake anymore, Ban saw. Instead he smiled gratefully at Ban.

"Ban-chan. Thank you."

"You've already said that." Ban grunted. "How do you feel?"

"Just fine. Thanks to you. It was smart of you, Ban-chan, to find out how to give me air. I didn't think of that."

It was obviously a lie that Ginji felt fine. Ban knew Ginji didn't complain before he was half, or more, dead.

"Fine, eh? What about your arm?"

Ginji looked at his arm. The bleeding had stopped, but the wound was red and looked infected, and the lower arm was broken.

"Guess I could use a doctor when we come back." Ginji turned his face to Ban. "Ban-chan, what happened?"

Ban sighed. He was extremely happy Ginji was alive, but now he had to tell him that it might be just a temporary condition.

"Ginji. This whole thing was a trap. Batsu made it to snare me. The job, everything, was a fake." He gave Ginji the letter that still lay on the shelf, and Ginji read it.

"But how did they know we would find out about this cave?"

"They were probably watching us when we were out at the bay, so they played us a scene. I remember I thought I felt someone looking at us. I just can't figure out where they were, watching us."

"So we're shut up in this cave. Ban-chan."

"I guess so. I haven't been down in the tunnel to see what it looks like. I had some other stuff to do, you know."

Ginji smiled apologetically. "I know Ban-chan. But how do we get out of here, if we can't get out through the tunnel?"

"First I must dive to the tunnel to see if there is any chance we can get through it. If not…" Ban shrugged. "Well, we'll talk about it then. I'd better do it right now. I'll take one of the flashlights. Can you manage for a minute or so?"

"Of course, Ban-chan. Go ahead."

Ban dived into the water again. He swam to where Ginji had been stuck and tried to find a way into the tunnel. It was totally blocked. Dammit! But he hadn't really expected anything else. He returned to Ginji, and turned off the flashlight.

"No, we can't get out there."

"Can there be another way out, Ban-chan?"

It'd better be. No way he would let Ginji die in this cave. Not when he finally had succeeded in rescuing him from drowning. That must mean they weren't supposed to die yet.

"It might. I don't feel like the oxygen is running out, do you?"

"No, the air feels fine to me."

"That must mean there's some kind of ventilation somewhere. If we're lucky it's possible to get out that way."

"Better start looking, Ban-chan, before we're out of light."

"But we don't need batteries when we've got you, right?"

Ginji grinned at him. "Yeah." His grin faded. "At least I hope so, I'm still really tired."

"Rest then, while I search."

Ban went for another search in the cave. This time he wasn't under such stress as the last time, so he could explore it more thoroughly. What was that on the opposite side from the shelf, behind where the tunnel had been? No, it was only a small hole. He shone on every square decimeter of the cave's walls and ceiling. Up there! That looked like another tunnel! Ban hurried to climb up to the hole and look inside it. Yes, it continued to the left and upwards. He crawled inside it. He felt a breeze, so there must be an opening to the outside somewhere. Hopefully the tunnel was big enough for them to climb through. It looked quite narrow, and it couldn't be an easy climb. Especially not with an injured Ginji. Ban was thinking. They couldn't climb side by side so he had to either let Ginji climb first and help him from behind, or climb first himself and drag him up when needed. Shit. Even if it was possible to get out this way, it sure would be difficult. He climbed down again and returned to Ginji.

Ginji could see on his partner's face that he must've found something.

"What've you found, Ban-chan?"

"There is a tunnel over there. The air is running through it so it must have a connection to the outside. As far as I can see, it's possible to climb inside it, but I don't know how far it can take us."

"It's our only chance, isn't it, Ban-chan?"

"It's the only one I can see right now, anyway. It'll be hard on you though. You've only got one arm. How's your leg?"

"My leg's just fine, Ban-chan. A little bruised, but I think I can use it."

"Stand up and try."

He helped Ginji rise and Ginji tried to walk on the narrow shelf.

"No problems, Ban-chan, it's just fine."

"Let's start right now, then. We'll have to get in the water again to reach the hole. Come on."

They slid from the shelf to the water, Ban keeping an eye on Ginji if he would need some help. Ginji made a small grimace when his arm accidentally hit the rock beside him, but the grimace was so small Ban wouldn't have seen it hadn't he been looking so closely. They both managed to get over to the wall where the hole was. Ban pointed at it.

"It's up there. You go first."

Ban knew it would be hard on Ginji climbing first, with only one arm, and a leg Ban wasn't so sure was as fine as Ginji assured him. On the other hand, if Ginji climbed first, Ban could prevent him from falling.

"You'll need some light. Put this in your swimming trunks. You can't hold it, you know."

He gave one of the flashlights to Ginji, who managed to do as Ban had told him. The light shone up to his face and gave him a ghostly look. Ginji pulled the flashlight a little more to the side.

"I can't have it shining in my eyes."

He looked up to the hole. It was about two meters above him. He reached for a small crack in the rock, found somewhere to put his feet and got up two decimeters. He stopped.

"Ban-chan. Is it this steep all the way?"

"What I could see inside the tunnel wasn't. But I don't know what it'll be like later on. Why?"

"Well, right now I've barely started the climb. Two decimeters. Not much, heh. And I already need your help, because if I let go of the crack with my hand, I'll fall. If that happens when we're inside the tunnel in some place where you can't reach me to help me, we'll both be stuck."

Ban knew what Ginji was about to say.

"No, no, no Ginji, you damned fool. I'm not gonna leave you here alone."

"Why not, Ban-chan? You'll have a better chance to get out without me and then you can get some help for me, too."

"Shut up. I'll help you with this climb instead. Leave the thinking to me, you're obviously worse off than I thought, if you think I'll leave you behind in the dark."

He put his shoulder under Ginji's behind and helped him heave up a little more. Slowly Ginji climbed on and managed to reach the hole.

"You're right, Ban-chan, it's not as steep in here." He sounded relieved.

"Keep going, I'm coming."

They climbed upwards. So far it wasn't as bad as either of them had feared. The tunnel didn't get any narrower and it wasn't too steep. Ginji managed quite well and Ban followed easily. What would happen if the passage became so narrow they had to turn back? Ban refused to think about that. Suddenly Ginji came to a halt.

"Ban-chan."

"Eh?"

"The tunnel splits."

"Shit!"

"The passage is broader here. You can climb up and have a look for yourself."

Ginji moved a bit to let Ban climb up beside him. Ban looked around. As Ginji had said, he could see two tunnels in front of him. One was broad, but very steep, turning from the wall upwards, like a chimney. The other one was leading in almost the same direction they had followed before, but it was so narrow Ban wondered if they could get through. Bloody hell! None of these passages looked tempting. What were they supposed to do? He turned from one to the other, trying to figure out which was the right one. If either. Or both, and in that case, which was the easiest. Impossible to know.

"What'll we do, Ban-chan?"

Ban looked at his partner. Ginji couldn't hide the pain from his voice. Or maybe he was so tired he didn't bother.

"Let's rest for a couple of minutes, Ginji. It's a good spot for resting."

After the climb, this place felt almost comfortable. It was narrow, they almost sat on each other, but it was so good to sit for a while. Ginji's leg had swollen and was covered with bruises. His arm looked even worse. Ban couldn't help but be impressed by Ginji making it this far with those limbs of his. Ginji coughed, some blood came out from his mouth. Ban stared.

"Ginji! You're hurt inside, too!"

"Can't do anything about that right now anyway." Ginji didn't even try to explain it away. Dammit! They got to get out soon.

It was a good thing the air was still breathable. Ban could feel the tiny breeze against his face. Suddenly he started. The breeze! He lent towards the broader tunnel and tried to feel the air moving. Probably not this one. He moved over to the other one. Yes! He could definitely feel the breeze from this one.

"Ginji! This one. I can feel the air moving here."

Ginji looked hesitating at the passage's entrance.

"It's good you found out, Ban-chan, but do you think we can get through this?"

"We have to, don't we?"

"Let's go then." Ginji sighed and headed for the tunnel.

"We can rest a little longer if you need."

"No, it's okay, Ban-chan. I'd like to get out of here, soon."

He started crawling into the tunnel. It was hard to make his shoulder come through, but with a little squeezing it actually worked. Ginji gasped a little from the pain when his arm was pressed against the wall. He draw himself further inside. It was a little broader inside, but not much. Ban was watching him disappear. If Ginji could come through, so could he. Ginji was broader than him. He followed his friend. Suddenly there was a crash. Ginji's flashlight was squashed against a stone he just passed.

"Ginji?"

"The flashlight was crushed, look out for glass shards." Ginji's voice was very tired. Ban wondered if his partner could go on much longer.

"Here, Ginji, take my flashlight." He climbed as close to Ginji he could and handed him the flashlight. "Can you reach it?"

"Yeah." Ginji took the flashlight, leaning against the tunnel's wall, putting Ban's flashlight in his swimming trunks instead of the broken one. Ban could feel Ginji shaking again. Don't quit on me now, Ginji.

"Ginji?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't think it's much further to go. We've been climbing upwards for a long time. I guess we're almost at the top of the cliff now. You'll only have to hang on for a little longer, Ginji."

"Um… good."

"Keep going then, fool. You said you wanted to get out of here. It's just a little more climbing and then we're out. Go on."

Ginji started the climbing again and Ban was right behind him. For five more minutes they climbed in silence. Ginji concentrated on one move at the time. His arm and leg were both aching, but he couldn't stop now. Ban was behind him, and if Ginji fainted Ban wouldn't be able do a thing about it. So he just climbed on and on.

It was a dark climb for Ban. The only light was a weak one that sometimes reached him from Ginji's flashlight. The breeze felt stronger, they really should be near the outside now. Ban heard Ginji's voice above him. His tiredness mixed with excitement.

"Ban-chan! I think it's a little lighter! I can see without the flashlight!"

He crawled around a bend in the passage.

"We did it, Ban-chan! I can see the exit! It's just a few meters more."

Ginji disappeared out of Ban's sight and he could see the light from the exit himself. He, too, crawled around the bending. He could now see the exit and Ginji laying beside it. Ban hurried to get out. The sun was bright, and the light hurt his eyes after the gloominess in the cave and tunnels. Ginji lay exhausted outside, but he looked happy.

"You alright, Ban-chan?"

"That's my line, stupid. You're the one injured."

Ginji smiled.

"Right now, everything feels wonderful. Don't you worry about me, I'm just fine. Where are we?"

Ban looked around.

"We're on the cliff above the cave. It's not far from where we laid our clothes. I'll go get them."

Ban went to get their clothes. They still lay where they had put them. He took the clothes and went back to Ginji.

"Wanna rest some before we get out of here? I don't think we can rest very long, though. If the Batsu members find out our clothes are gone, they might understand we made it out of the cave and start coming after us again."

"Just one minute." Ginji smiled. "But don't give me any dreams, Ban-chan. I'll stick to reality a little longer."

Ban sat down at his friend's side. He examined his arm and leg.

"When we're back at Honky Tonk, I think I'll connect you to a socket. That way we may avoid the hospital bills."

Ginji laughed softly.

"Yeah. Maybe I need that. Come on. Let's get dressed and get going."

Ban dressed himself and then helped Ginji. That guy sure did his best to manage by himself but it was easier this way. He laid Ginji's arm around his shoulders and put his own arm around Ginji's waist to support him. They slowly walked through the wood.

"Ban-chan?"

"Uh?"

"How can we get our stuff?"

"I guess we can't. We must concentrate on getting to the Ladybug without being seen, so we can get out of here."

And that was gonna be hard enough, Ban knew. So did Ginji.

They reached the road outside the forest. There were no one in sight, but to be on the safe side they didn't walk on the road, but along it, at the edge of the forest. When they reached the bridge, they crossed the road to get over it.

At that moment Ban felt a sting in his neck, and at the same time Ginji fell down to the ground, dragging Ban with him. Ban discovered he couldn't rise from the ground. He could see and hear, but not move, not even talk. He and Ginji were facing each other and he could see the same thing had happened to Ginji. Ban immediately knew what had happened. Hell! Batsu had caught them! They hadn't been cautious enough when they walked from the cliff. Or maybe they had been seen all the time, since they came up from the tunnel. Chikara, Sensou and another man that fit the description for Kitayama, came into his sight. Both Chikara and Sensou were wearing dark sunglasses. Not Kitayama, though. Chikara wore a tube and some arrows. Ban guessed he had blown arrows dipped in some drug at them.

"Good catch, Chikara." Kitayama said. "I told you, we shouldn't underestimate Midou again." He looked at Ginji. "His partner doesn't look so good, though."

Ban felt a pain in his arms as he brutally was raised from the ground by Chikara. Sensou did the same to Ginji.

"Chikara, don't kill him right away." Chikara loosened his grip a little. "Don't you think you'll enjoy it more if we extend the fun a little longer? Maybe we can keep him alive for a couple of days at least. We'll take him to the house at the cape and let you and Mizuno Ikimono play with him."

Ginji tried to fight himself free, but not a muscle moved. They were gonna torture Ban?! He had to get free so he could prevent this.

"What'll we do with this weakling?" Sensou was shaking Ginji. "Can we use him somehow?"

Kitayama looked thoughtfully at Ginji.

"Amano Ginji. Never heard of him before." He turned to Ban." How could a man like you be involved with a good-for-nothing boy like this?" He turned back to Sensou. "He doesn't seem to be able to do us any harm, and he's half dead already, but throw him in the waterfall to be on the safe side."

Ban struggled inside but nothing happened on the outside. He couldn't do anything but stare infuriated at Kitayama, who saw the look in his eyes and laughed.

"So that's why you're together with him. You love him, don't you? Makes me enjoy his death even more."

He gestured to Sensou, who dragged a helpless Ginji to the bridge, and while Ban was just as helplessly looking, threw him over the rail down into the waterfall.

Ginji. Ban heard how the Batsu members were laughing, but he didn't care. He was concentrating on the feeling of Ginji's presence. Ban could feel he was still alive, but for how long? His concentration was broken by Kitayama, who took his chin in a firm grip and looked into his eyes.

"Don't try your Jagan on me, Midou, it won't work. I'll just want to make sure about your near future."

First, there was only darkness. Then he heard Kitayama laugh, an evil laugh. "This was unexpected, Midou, but I like it! Have a look!" And Ban saw his death... caused by Ginji.