Cards Of The Silent King-Chapter 31: Raikou: The Stormborn

The basement hummed. It was a low sound. It vibrated in the teeth.

Kaito stood in the center of the substation. The lights above flickered. They died. They came back. They died again.

He held a flashlight. He did not turn it on. He did not need it.

The air smelled of ozone. It smelled of burnt copper.

Kaito thought: Three years.

Kaito thought: You have been here a long time.

A voice boomed. It came from the transformers. It came from the wires. It came from everywhere.

Raikou said: "You are small."

Kaito said: "Yes."

Raikou said: "You are quiet."

Kaito said: "Yes."

Raikou said: "I do not like quiet."

Kaito said: "I know."

A spark jumped across the room. It landed on the floor. It sizzled. It vanished.

Raikou said: "I am Raikou. I am the storm. I am the lightning. I am the sound that comes before the rain."

Kaito said: "You are trapped."

The lights flickered violently. They turned blue. They turned white.

Raikou said: "I am not trapped. I am residing. There is a difference."

Kaito said: "The grid is failing."

Raikou said: "The grid is boring."

Kaito stepped forward. He walked past the safety railing. He walked toward the main transformer.

The heat increased. It pressed against his skin. It did not burn. Not yet.

Kaito thought: He is lonely.

Kaito thought: He is loud because he is alone.

Kaito said: "You have been here three years."

Raikou said: "Time is irrelevant to lightning."

Kaito said: "It matters to the city."

Raikou said: "The city is slow. The city is dull. It moves like mud."

Kaito said: "It needs power."

Raikou said: "It takes power. It does not give."

Kaito stopped. He stood five feet from the transformer. The humming was louder here. It was a song. It was an angry song.

Kaito said: "I can give."

The lights went out completely. The room was dark. Only the sparks remained. They danced around Kaito. They did not touch him.

Raikou said: "You are a boy. You are flesh. You are weak."

Kaito said: "I am a gate."

The sparks paused. They hovered in the air. They formed a shape. It was vaguely human. It was made of pure energy.

Raikou said: "A gate."

Kaito said: "Yes."

Raikou said: "Where does it lead."

Kaito said: "To a deck. To a partner."

Raikou said: "I do not want a partner. I want an audience."

Kaito said: "I will listen."

Raikou said: "You do not speak."

Kaito said: "I listen better."

The energy shape moved closer. It hovered in front of Kaito’s face. It was hot. It smelled like the air after a strike.

Raikou said: "Why now."

Kaito said: "The cracks are widening."

Raikou said: "I feel them. They taste like static."

Kaito said: "They will break the grid."

Raikou said: "Let them break. I will leave. I will find another city."

Kaito said: "You will be hunted."

Raikou said: "Let them hunt."

Kaito said: "You will be alone."

The energy shape flickered. It dimmed slightly. The heat dropped ten degrees.

Raikou said: "I am always alone."

Kaito said: "Not in the card."

Raikou said: "There are others."

Kaito said: "Yes."

Raikou said: "Are they loud."

Kaito said: "Some."

Raikou said: "Are they strong."

Kaito said: "Yes."

Raikou said: "Do they argue."

Kaito said: "Constantly."

The energy shape laughed. It sounded like thunder rolling in a canyon. It shook the dust from the pipes.

Raikou said: "I like arguing. I am very good at it."

Kaito said: "I know."

Raikou said: "Show me."

Kaito reached into his jacket. He moved slowly. He did not want to startle the lightning. He pulled out the deck.

He fanned the cards. They glowed faintly. They responded to the presence of another entity.

Kaito said: "Choose."

Raikou said: "I do not choose. I am chosen."

Kaito said: "Not this time."

Raikou said: "You are demanding."

Kaito said: "I am honest."

The energy shape swirled. It condensed. It became smaller. It became brighter. It shot toward the deck.

It did not hit the cards. It hovered above them.

Raikou said: "If I join. I have conditions."

Kaito said: "Speak."

Raikou said: "I do not hide in the dark. I do not wait in silence. When I am called. I strike."

Kaito said: "Agreed."

Raikou said: "I do not fight shadows. I fight storms."

Kaito said: "Agreed."

Raikou said: "And you will listen to my stories. I have many. I have seen three years of wires."

Kaito said: "I will listen."

Raikou said: "Good."

The light flared. It was blinding. It filled the basement. It filled the city block.

Then it vanished.

A card lay on the floor. It was yellow. It had a bolt of lightning across the face. It hummed.

Kaito bent down. He picked it up. It was warm. It vibrated in his hand.

Kaito thought: Thirteen cards.

Kaito thought: One more step.

He slid the card into the deck. He squared the stack. He put them back in his pocket.

The lights above flickered once. They stabilized. They turned a steady white.

The hum was gone. The ozone smell faded.

Kaito said: "Welcome."

There was no answer. Not yet. The card was settling.

Kaito turned. He walked toward the stairs. His boots echoed on the concrete.

He pushed the door open. The night air hit him. It was cool. It was clean.

He looked at the sky. It was clear. No clouds. No rain.

Kaito thought: He is dramatic.

Kaito thought: But he is stable now.

His phone buzzed. He took it out. The screen was bright.

Jin said: "Grid stable?"

Kaito said: "Yes."

Jin said: "Good. Sleep."

Kaito said: "Later."

Jin said: "Kaito."

Kaito said: "Yes."

Jin said: "Sleep."

Kaito put the phone away. He looked at his pocket. He could feel the new card. It was restless. It wanted to move. It wanted to strike.

Kaito thought: Not tonight.

He started walking. The street was empty. The streetlights were steady. They did not flicker.

He passed a convenience store. The sign buzzed. It was a normal sound. It was not alive.

Kaito thought: The city is safe.

Kaito thought: For now.

He reached his building. He climbed the stairs. He unlocked the door.

He stepped inside. He locked it. He leaned against the wood.

The apartment was quiet. The cards were on the table. They waited.

Kaito took off his jacket. He laid it down. He took out the deck.

He placed the new card on top. He looked at it.

Raikou said: "The lighting in here is terrible."

Kaito said: "It is functional."

Raikou said: "It is dim. I could fix it. I could make it bright."

Kaito said: "No."

Raikou said: "You are no fun. The others warned me. They were not wrong."

Kaito said: "Sleep."

Raikou said: "Lightning does not sleep. Lightning waits."

Kaito said: "Wait quietly."

Raikou said: "I will try. No promises."

The card stopped vibrating. It settled. It became still.

Kaito turned off the lamp. The room went dark. He sat on the edge of the bed.

He listened to the city. It was quiet. The power grid was steady.

Kaito thought: Thirteen.

Kaito thought: One more to go.

He lay down. He closed his eyes.

He did not dream of storms. He dreamed of silence.

Morning would come. The lights would work. The city would wake up.

Kaito would carry the storm in his pocket.

He would not mention it.

He would not need to.

The deck was growing.