It's been more than a week since Randolph Carter's disappearance, and everyone wasn't taking it well, especially Yumi, who continued searching for him throughout the whole city, tirelessly without much rest or food, while having to break and enter buildings to see if she could find something about him, only to be greeted with either a dead end or not what she was looking for.
Her obsession to find Carter reached the point where she would never sleep, barely eat, or drink water at all, using every method possible to track him down, even the most dangerous or illegal ones like robbery and violence.
Meanwhile, Sebastian tried to pick up the pieces of calculating the best scenario in seeing the infinite alternative futures that were stored within his mind as he wondered to himself which said scenario was the best choice to look for from the choices he had as he sat on the couch in their living room, thinking thoroughly of this situation.
When it comes to seeing alternative futures in front of him, they are always precise in some aspects. But if it involves finding someone, then this is the most difficult one out of the many possibilities because of the various factors that need to be calculated in order to achieve the most optimal outcome.
And most of all, he is unable to use it in regards to his master, which is the one thing that irritated him the most. That and the fact Carter couldn't be found even though his possible locations of being kidnapped would suggest otherwise.
So the only conclusion he can come up with is the possibility of seeing someone's future tied to his destiny, and that likely candidate would be Yumi herself, although she is currently reckless and unstable on top of being nowhere to be found because of her constant search for Carter, thus making it impossible for him to calculate any future for her when she isn't in his sight.
Without anything to lose, he had to call Koyoshi to help with his problem, having already been investigating the mysterious disappearance of Carter alongside his detective, Misa Namioka, two acquaintances that had worked with them before.
After what seemed like hours of sitting alone, loud knocks emit from the entrance, snapping Sebastian out of his trance and forcing him to stand up with his signature white suit as he walked to the door on this peaceful evening, opening it to see Koyoshi and Misa in front of him, side by side.
Their serious, exhausted, and worried expressions tell him that they must've had difficulty gathering information or clues about the incident so far, but with Koyoshi and Misa joining them in their residence to discuss some things about Carter, it seems Sebastian is going to have to push himself to the limit in seeing all those different scenarios for this conversation alone.
"Come in," Sebastian politely invited them despite how troubled by this whole situation they had all gotten themselves into, gesturing them to come in as they nodded in silence, following the cyan-haired man in the living room before entering the kitchen.
Sitting down at the table, Misa was the first one to speak up.
"That girl in the CCTV cameras is the person linked with both his kidnapping and the ties of Sato Makotori, his statement caused Sebastian to raise his eyebrow in surprise. It took us a moment to get the samples from her left-over fingerprints and hair on that party, but it does indeed prove that she was the one responsible for all of this after making the connection with the other crimes related to them," stating the facts before pausing for a moment, allowing Sebastian to process the newfound information he was given.
"The baffling part is that there was no name, date of birth, ancestry, or anything else that tells us about her in our database." Misa's words left him flabbergasted; it didn't make any sense as to how there was not even the slightest record of her existence when every single person on the planet should've had some sort of traceable history of them being born, living their life, or dying.
"Either this person has zero traces of ever existing in society or something tells me she isn't even human to begin with," grimacing while massaging his temple of that possibility.
"It doesn't matter, whatever the reason is behind it all. The important thing is finding our commissioner and bringing him back to safety," reasoned Koyoshi as he crossed his arms in deep thought. "However, what bothers me is why they haven't announced holding the most important figure in Japan as their hostage," turning his attention towards the butler for some answers of his own.
As Sebastian began to think of his own, he couldn't help but agree on one thing. Despite the popularity of the commissioner, there is one big flaw in this whole kidnapping part: holding him for ransom. Any lowlife would rather keep him alive than dead for how much of a benefit it would do for them because if Carter is dead, it beats the purpose of having him kidnapped in the first place.
"So he's alive?" A relieved smile spread across the officer's lips, "glad to know that there is still a chance to save him; otherwise, this would be harder than it already is," but it was short-lived as the detective shot his idea down with a firm shake of his head.
"Don't be so certain, Koyoshi. If anything, it just means we should be even more careful now that whoever they are, they might be planning something else for the commissioner, especially with that dangerous girl and boy involved with him," reminding everyone of the dangers these unknown assailants present; "besides, the most important thing is trying to find his location."
He stared down at the table, conflicted and unsure of what to do in this situation. After a few moments of deliberation, he raised his hand in the air, grabbing their full attention as he looked up at them with his cyan eyes.
"Do I have permission to use my ability?"
Mysteriously asking while making his intent clear, he raised the stakes as the two gazed at each other, taken back by this unknown request.
"What?" Koyoshi said in confusion, not understanding why Sebastian was asking this question at all or grasping the underlying context of it. But before he could say anything else, Misa took the opportunity to speak on their behalf: "You have something to show us?" Turning her eyes back onto him while analyzing his expression carefully, attempting to detect any deception from his words or gestures.
A smile grew on Sebastian's lips. "Yes, I do. You see, I can look into alternative futures in front of me, in which every future has a 100% chance of happening," he said, walking over towards the cupboard before picking up his white mug filled with tea. "Of course, sometimes they aren't exactly accurate in most situations and a bit vague, especially when it involves finding a missing person," he explained as he took a sip of his hot tea while placing it back down on the table.
"So what I'm going to do is see every possible future, calculate every consequence and probability of that future into numbers, and choose which one would be the most optimal route for us to take in this situation to maximize the chances of saving him. Of course, it isn't easy to see countless outcomes and analyze their risks and benefits, but it will be worth the risk for our sake. I promise."
They seemed skeptical, having doubts about this rather unorthodox way. "Your posthuman," Koyoshi responded in revelation, having never seen anyone with such an ability as this, "a person who can see the future but... Pausing as he is still hesitant on such a thing, "but are you making this up? Or are you pulling our legs, Sebastian? He pointed his accusatory finger at him in suspicion.
"Do you have your gun?"
Koyoshi froze when Sebastian asked him that question, perplexed by his query, while Misa himself felt intrigued by his sudden curiosity about the firearm he possessed. But as the detective and officer reluctantly glanced at each other, he finally agreed to answer the question with his own honesty.
"Yes, why?"
"Shoot me."
The two stared at him wide-eyed if Sebastian had grown two heads. This caused Koyoshi to erupt into an uproar in reaction to what he just told him to do, obviously against the idea of shooting innocent person, no matter if they're posthuman or not. "WHAT?! Are you insane?" He angrily shouted at Sebastian before calming himself down and sighed, "Look, I know you want to prove your abilities, but coming from me, its against our policy to—"
"Please, don't misunderstand," he said, interrupting the officer in the middle of his sentence while having that relaxed smile of his. "Trust me, you won't be harming me. Because in the end, every future has a 100% probability of occurring, whether it is a good or a bad one. But you'll never know when it happens until it happens right in front of your eyes. And that, my dear officer, is where my power truly lies, which is to see every outcome in the future and see how to avoid and make the best decisions about choosing the right path."
After contemplating for a while, he nodded with uncertainty, agreeing to the request with a heavy heart as he slowly drew out his weapon. Cocking it and aiming towards the cyan-haired man, feeling tensed of himself for what to expect next, he said, Alright, if this is what it takes to prove you have power over the future, then here goes nothing."
Bang?
"It's jammed," Sebastian commented after seeing a small bullet stuck in the barrel of the revolver. Having seen every other possible outcome in this present moment, "I knew the moment you were about to shoot me; the gun was already jammed in the first place," he said, smugly grinning while his index finger tapped on the floor. "Do I need to prove it again for you to believe that I have 100% certainty of knowing future events? Even knowing what will happen next?"
"It might be a guess..." lowering his firearm as he shook his head in disbelief, "Well, it doesn't matter if its true or not as I didn't accidentally kill someone else in the process, so that's a bonus," placing his gun back to holster, "to be honest, I expected better. Don't take it personally or anything, but if you really have the power to see the future, then why didn't you prevent him from ever being endangered?
Misa quietly observed, still curious as to what Sebastian plans to accomplish from all of this, in spite of the fact that she secretly admires his commitment in trying to prove his point in front of them and is impressed by his taking such a risk to do it at all. Even if she does not know this man well enough to make a proper judgment, she can at least tell that he is sincere in his promise.
The butler showed a glimpse of guilt on his face, turning away from them for a second before averting his gaze back to the officer.
"I prefer to have them off when I am free; I'm not someone who enjoys having them on all the time," exclaimed Sebastian with a soft laugh. "It gets difficult for me to keep up with all of that knowledge, honestly. Imagine having so many options laid in front of you, but the only option you have is to make a decision that can affect the outcome of everything."
He sighed before shaking his head and rubbing his eyes; the stress and tiredness of dealing with the many possibilities of the future were finally catching up to him. This left him feeling exhausted as he lowered his arms, keeping his cool while maintaining a straight face, and smiled, "Apologies for that rant I have; my mind is starting to slip up again," explaining the reason for his brief breakdown.
"Now, back to the topic, I would like to proceed with using my power on the two of you to see what lies ahead of the future." Sebastian's stern expression and tone made it clear that he would not let go of this offer until his goal was accomplished.
Misa and Koyoshi glanced at one another again before finally nodding, albeit rather hesitantly. The transvestite closed his eyes for a moment and breathed out as he got up from the chair. "Very well, Sebastian. You have permission to use your power on us and find the answer you seek, but please don't take it personal if it doesn't work out for you this time," said the detective as he watched him closely, examining every move he made and trying to see his intentions. "Are you ready for this?"
A ghostly smirk formed on the butler's lips. "Of course sir," he replied with confidence before opening his eyes wide in their direction, seeing every possible future once again, but this time, they succeeded in getting to Carter's location without much problem.
And in these alternative futures, it leads to some abandoned factory in a swamp, hidden in the faraway parts of the city. With the plan being executed smoothly, the butler's smirk turned into a genuine smile. "There's no doubt about it; I've seen where they are holding him." His words caught their full attention.
Both of them jumped up out of their chairs, shocked about the new hope of knowing where their commissioner might be held captive. "You mean to say that you know the place where they put him in?" Misa asked while trying to conceal her enthusiasm.
"Indeed, they're located at the far end of the city in an abandoned factory that is in a swamp; as for the building number, well, that's for you to find out when we get there."
