"True. Let's wait for him to contact us," decided Tessa. "Keep the ship at periscope depth."
Despite the gravity of the situation, the students on the plane were abuzz with excitement.
The other passengers on the aircraft sat gravely awaiting new developments, but the Jindai High School students revolted against boredom with all kinds of raucous behavior.
Intense Hanafuda and mahjong card battles erupted. LIFE and Monopoly spread out across some of the seats.
Some of the students were yukking it up with handheld karaoke sets, some were getting a head start on the class-trip tradition of telling dirty stories, and some were racing remote-controlled cars up and down the aisles. The stewardess' head pounded so hard, she was nearly ready to make a break for it. The teachers tried to maintain some semblance of order; but the kids were so rambunctious, they had no choice but to give up.
"Hey, Kana, are you hungry?" asked Kyouko as they worked through a game of Old Maid.
Kaname watched Kyouko draw a particularly terrible card; then she said, "Yeah. I wonder when we'll be able to get some food."
Maybe there's a convenience store around here," suggested Kyouko. "I'll just give you the money, and you can go out and get some food, okay?"
"Ha ha. Even if there was a shop around here, it wouldn't be Lawson, it'd be Il-Sung. Ew!"
"What's wrong with Il-Sung?"
"You don't know? What is wrong with young people these days?" joked Kaname. She turned around and looked at the seat behind her.
Sousuke Sagara sat nearby, quietly thinking.
That's how he reacts to an emergency like this? What the hell is the matter with him?
Absentmindedly, she pulled a card from Shouko's hand: a joker.
"Crap!"
"Oh, that's really a shame. Too bad," said Shouko.
Suddenly, silence rippled through the plane's cabin. Three men who had accessorized their suits with submachine guns entered the passenger compartment. A fourth man also entered; he was empty– handed and smirking. He fixed the collar of his expensive-looking suit and magnanimously spread out his hands.
"Carry on. Don't mind us!"
Only a handful of the most brazen students resumed their activities. The smirking man whispered something to the other three men, issuing instructions.
"What's this all about?" Kyouko asked uneasily.
"You, there," he called; it was the same voice they'd heard over the loudspeaker earlier.
Who was he talking to?
"Perhaps you didn't hear me. You, the pretty girl with the long hair."
Kaname sat blankly, unsure how to respond.
"Yes, you." He came closer and looked down at Kaname. He had a large, straight scar on his forehead, and his eyes had the same glassy lifelessness of a doll's.
"Can I help you?" Kaname asked.
"We're making a little video to send to the press, and we need someone to star in it."
"Oh, I see. I don't think I'm really cut out for it. I mean, I'm just an ordinary girl," protested Kaname.
"Nonsense. You're perfect for the role. Just come with me."
"But—"
The three goons with guns grabbed Kaname and brought her to her feet.
"Hey, let me go! Find someone else."
"Kana!" screamed Kyouko.
Heroically, or perhaps foolishly, Eri Kagurazaka laid into the man with school-teacher ferocity. "What do you think you're doing with my student?"
"We're just going to borrow her for a minute. We'll bring her right back."
"I won't allow it. If you have to take someone, take me," insisted Miss Kagurazaka.
"It wouldn't be as effective. We need—"
"Don't make excuses, you coward!"
The man's face coldly registered the verbal abuse.
"Who do you people think you are, anyway, hijacking a whole plane of people? Despicable! And now, you want to kidnap a chili? Your morals are garbage! Whatever reasons you have for doing this, you can be sure—"
Smiling, Gauron pulled a pistol from under his suit. The little red laser rested on Miss Kagurazaka's forehead. "You talk too much."
"What? Please—"
Heedless, the terrorist slowly tightened his grip on the trigger.
BANG!
Everyone in the passenger cabin flinched as the sound resonated trough the plane.
However, it wasn't a gunshot, just metal clanging. Everyone turned to look for the source of the sound.
A male student slowly picked up a tray and fork from the aisle.
"Excuse me," said Sagara, and he sat down as if nothing had happened.
Gauron stared at Sousuke, scrutinizing him. Sousuke kept his face down, silently staring at the cup in his hands.
Like prairie dogs, the students rose above their seats and looked back and forth from the man to Sousuke.
"Hmph," said Gauron, quickly losing interest. He put the pistol back under his coat. "Let's just go. We have what we need."
The terrorists headed for the exit, dragging Kaname past her gaping teacher.
Realizing how close she'd been to dying, Eri Kagurazaka fainted.
Students rushed to her aid, shouting for doctors. Calmly, Sousuke pushed his way through the plane until he reached the galley, where he placed his hands on the sink and finally breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Idiot.
It was far from sane to purposely attract the enemy's attention. But in the moment, he had known it was the only way to save Miss Kagurazaka. His mind had fought its own battle. He knew it was not his duty to protect his teacher, but he also felt the very pressing desire to save her.
In the end, he did not understand why he chose to compromise himself to save the woman.
When the enemy had stared at him, it seemed to last an eternity. Masking his fury in a calm, albeit slightly ruffled exterior took every bit of Sousuke's willpower.
It's a miracle that he didn't recognize me.
Taking a moment to collect himself, Sousuke stretched his back. He would have to act quickly: Kaname Chidori was in the enemy's hands now.
I must respond to the situation.
There were no soldiers standing guard inside the plane—they mostly lurked around the outside of the plane, making sure no one exited. The plane was out of fuel, so there was no risk of it simply taking off. And there was no way of contacting the outside world, considering that Gauron had destroyed the plane's long-range communication equipment. Indeed, the jumbo jet made a great prison.
Sousuke needed to break out.
If he could just make it to his own luggage, he would be able to contact his allies and resume his search for Kaname.
Being careful to make sure no one was looking, Sousuke crawled into the galley elevator and lowered himself down a shaft into the cargo hold.
Cutting through the darkness with a penlight from his pocket, Sousuke searched through the large containers of luggage.
After looking through at least a dozen large containers full of bags, he found his own. He discarded the change of clothes and toiletry set; eventually, his hands found what he wanted—a high– powered satellite communication device with an attached codec.
Happily, Sousuke also retrieved a twenty-thousand volt stun gun from the bag. It was enough to incapacitate an average man with just one zap. He thrust a few survival items into his pockets and lamented failing to pack any guns or knives.
As Sousuke slung the gear over his shoulder and started to close the container, a shrill noise caught his attention.
Somebody was opening the luggage-loading door!