Sano Kojima

“No curse, as far as I’m aware. But you’re right, maybe I should look into that at some point.” Then his voice grew, if possible, even softer and gentler. “How long did you know…?”

“Akira told me…Do you remember having a fight with him? About an old picture of your parents?”

Sano’s eyes widened. Of course. That damn picture. The death of both their parents had been extremely traumatic, albeit for slightly different reasons. But in both cases, they’d left Sano with a profound sense of helplessness that he truly did not know what to do with. There was no solution to it, nothing to be done about it but move forward and away from it. But that was exceptionally difficult, and it was made all the more difficult when Akira kept things like that picture. Why did he want to remember anyway? Why did he want to hold on to that pain? Even with Akira, he’d been holding on to the search because there was still hope. There was no hope for their parents.

But perhaps talking through it was how Akira moved past things. And if that were the case, of course he wanted to talk about it. Of course he’d talk about it with Annabelle, Sano had made it clear he himself was not an option. She was a better listener in general anyway.

“He was really torn up about it, and he ended up venting to me a lot of stuff," Annabelle continued, scooting a bit closer to him. "Life keeps throwing curveballs at you two." She put her hands on his shoulders. “But, you keep surviving, and growing, and making the best of things. I don't pity you at all, Sano. Honestly, I admire you both. You're incredible."

"Annabelle…."

His gaze shifted back to something more gentle, but there was more there now too; something warmer, more loving, something that didn’t show all the way through too often.

"That's kind of you to say..."

"But I could say the same for you."

"Really?" she asked, looking at him adoringly.

"Really. You've dealt with a lot in your life too....and you've been here for both of us all the same. You were there for Akira in a way I..." 

"…couldn't be. Though maybe I should have." He’d tried to move them both forward for both of their sakes, not just his. For so long he thought that Akira needed someone who wouldn’t fall apart, but maybe it was the opposite. Maybe he needed someone to fall apart with.

"Do you have any idea what happened to that picture?"

Annabelle, understandably, looked very conflicted. Sano waited patiently as she silently considered her options, and finally nodded. Relief washed over him.

“Right before he left for the army, he asked me to take care of it for him."

It hurt to hear, but again, it made sense. Akira couldn’t have entrusted it with him, after all. "I see. So where have you been keeping it all the time? Somewhere in your room?" Before she could answer, he quickly added. “I'm not going to do anything with it. I'm just…curious."

"Yes it's in my room," she replied, looking determined now, even a little excited. “And finally, I can give it back to him~”

That was not what Sano expected. “When….were you planning to show it to him?” While he was usually very good at hiding his emotions when he wanted to, he must have let some of it show, because Annabelle immediately caught on to his intense discomfort with the idea.

“Are you nervous about it?” she asked, looking at him with concern as she rested her hand on his leg.

"Well....yes,” Sano admitted. “He's clearly lost his memory, but there are things...things I think he still at least remembers the feeling of. And maybe more. I don't..." Akira losing his memories of all that was the one good thing to come out of all this mess, the last thing he wanted to do was undo that. 

“This is definitely one of the things I don't want him to remember. Unless there was some way for him to just remember the good but...I don't think we understand it enough yet to determine what is and isn't safe." He wasn’t entirely sure how to go about understanding it more though, save trial and error. And for once, experiments were not a route he was willing to take. He needed more knowledge on the subject, but who would know more? Cain? Karasu? 

"But maybe I can find out."

“Let me know when it's safe to try giving it to him,” Annabelle said.  “I...There are lots of things...that...I'm glad he forgot. What happened to your parents, Cain...Sergio,” she said, hissing the last name. Sano frowned and nodded. Sergio had been…a mistake for both Akira and him on many levels. Sano was starting to wish he’d killed the man instead of letting him off with a warning to never show his face around him again. Still, surely Sergio had some level of self-preservation…?

"I see no danger there as long as he has the good sense to stay away." The first of those two names posed a few more problems though, not least of all because Cain was a major reason he found Akira in the first place. While Sano wasn’t overly keen to ask for more favors so soon, this was important. It didn’t matter what it cost.

 "....Cain is a bit more complicated. But I'm fairly sure I can keep him out of his sight as well."  Sano could only think of one photo with Cain in it, and it was the other family photo he kept safely tucked away in his own room. 

“You know…Cain is one of the main reasons we have Akira back at all.”

Annabelle regarded him curiously.  "How so?" "Well...we worked together to find Akira. He provided a lot of assistance over the past several months...some of my visits were nearly all about that. And he was ultimately the one who confirmed his location for me in the end so I could go meet him."

Understandably, Annabelle was having a hard time believing that Cain, the awful, abusive creep that she knew and despised, would do anything kind for Akira.  Eventually, she seemed to come to a conclusion that made sense to her.  "He did it because you asked, right?  I hope he doesn't demand something ridiculous."  She shuddered.  Cain was a very 'favors for favors' kind of guy. "Well....yes, it was because I asked him to," he admitted. "Honestly, I should have asked him earlier.  There really isn't anything he could ask of me that wouldn't be worth having Akira back. But..." He paused, looking thoughtful. "By the end of it, he didn't seem to be doing it just for me."

She laughed, assuming it was a joke.  "Of course~ He was doing it for himself too. I guess I have to be grateful..." She said with a sigh.  "Well, in the end, we're together again.  And that's the best news we've had in two years~"

He raised his eyebrows, smiling a bit more at her laughter. He couldn’t tell whether she found the idea of Cain enjoying the search for the search itself laughably absurd or if she thought Sano was just making a dark sort of  joke about the benefit Cain got from being owed yet another favor. Either way, her laugh was something he hadn’t heard in a long time. Too long.

"You don't have to be anything," he said, pulling her closer again.  "You've played a role in this too, you know. But yes...we are~"

She eagerly cuddled closer; delighted to see Sano in a snuggly mood.  She leaned her head against his shoulder.  "I did~?"

He looked at her with soft adoration, reaching up to run a hand through her hair. "Yes. You've been here with me the whole time, after all, where would I be without you?"

Her eyes widened a little, betraying her surprise.  After a few moments, her expression melted into one of adoration.  Their relationship had had plenty of bumps and bruises along the road, but it was little moments like this that made her realize she didn't regret any of it.  "Sano..."  She whispered his name as she wrapped an arm around him; wanting to be even closer to him.  "I love you~"

Twenty something years ago, Sano Kojima; now a surgeon working for a prestigious hospital in the city's capitol, was then living in a cabin in the woods with his parents; Jun and Kiku, a farming couple, and his younger twin brother Akira.   Living a humble life such as theirs meant that, while they were comfortable enough living in their cozy accommodations and being self-sufficient, there weren't that many opportunities for personal growth.  Sano had dreams of becoming a doctor, having learned first aid for the benefit of his family and few friends.  Without enough money to support his schooling, however, his dreams were doomed to remain a childhood flight of fancy.

One day, at the age of fourteen, an opportunity came to the Kojima’s doorstep.  A recruiter for the army had found them, asking for a bit of time and if they would be so kind as to provide him with a bit of dinner.  They obliged.  The man, a ‘General Nikolai’, entertained the family with many adventures from his past in the military.  He eventually explained that he was traveling through their country to recruit at least one son from each family for the army.  Sensing their hesitation, he explained the benefits to them.  While it was true that they wouldn’t see their son for months or years at a time, he would obviously be allowed to write to them often.  The family would be receiving a stipend to help recover the loss of their child, and of course, their son would be properly compensated for serving their country.  They were given the night to mull it over, while their guest slept on their couch.  Though initially expecting to send the man off in the morning, Sano had been surprised when his brother came forward with his idea.

“I’ll go with him!”  Akira had said while they washed up for bed.

“Wh-What?  Why?”

“Because if I go, I can get stronger, and I can send you back money so you can go to school.  It’s perfect!”

“But I don’t want you to go...”  Sano had protested, his dream dancing teasingly at the edges of his fingertips.  Akira was offering him the world, and yet, to take it would mean to risk losing his best friend forever.  Akira beamed, wrapping an arm around Sano’s shoulder.

“It won’t be forever~  And besides, I’ll come back whenever they let me, and you can patch up whatever wounds I come back with.”  Though Sano hadn’t appreciated the joke, he eventually found himself swayed by Akira’s lofty goals for their family.  In the morning, their parents packed Akira’s suitcase with precious memories along with necessities.  Sano stubbornly clung to Akira until the last possible second.

“You have to write often.  Promise?”

“I promise~”

And the promise was kept.  It had taken some time for Akira to travel to, and then become settled in at his new training facility, but a few weeks after they’d parted ways, the first letter came.  It was fairly long, with Akira talking at length about traveling, and all the sights he’d seen so far.  Along with his letter, he sent along half of his pay, to be put towards Sano’s schooling.  Reading the letter, their mother cried, and it took everything in Sano to not do the same.  He kept a strong facade; appearing cool and calm, playing it off as his confidence in Akira shining through.  They sent separate reply letters in the same envelope.

The twins wouldn’t see each other again in person for the next two years.  Once enough money had been saved up, Sano had started attending school in the city, which was an adventure of its own.  Between training and studying, the boys simply weren’t free at the same time.  Finally, they met again at sixteen, both having grown substantially, both mentally and physically.  The two weeks Akira spent at home seemed to fly by; not being nearly enough after such a long time apart.  More time passed, more letters were shared; at least one a month.  Akira rose in rank, while Sano rose to the top of his class.  When Sano graduated college, he was surprised with another visit from his brother, who had pulled strings and favors to be able to attend the ceremony.

Now that Sano had successfully graduated, there was technically nothing stopping Akira from retiring once he reached the end of his current contract.  Both men separated in high spirits, but Sano’s heart nearly fell out of his chest when he heard news that their country had been pulled into a war.  

A letter was delivered to his apartment, warning him to be prepared for a draft at any time.  The more experienced doctors were drafted first, leaving Sano behind in the city to gain experience at a far more rapid rate than he’d ever anticipated.  A year into the war, Sano was finally drafted.  He was put to work caring for injured soldiers; working grueling hours day after day.  Three months before the war finally reached its end, Sano reunited with Akira once more.  

“I’m not happy you’re here, but it’s great to see you again~”  His arm was injured, though nothing life altering.  The brothers took the opportunity to talk to each other.  Akira had seen some terrible things out on the battlefield.  He’d taken many lives already, and each of them tended to linger in his mind.  Sano listened quietly, thinking of the lives he’d saved, and the ones he hadn’t been able to save...  Akira had only been able to stay in the medical tent for two days, but getting to see Sano again had cheered them both up.

Despite being released from his mandatory service several months later, Sano didn’t hear from his brother again.

A full two years had passed without a hint of Akira being confirmed alive or dead.  Currently listed as ‘Missing In Action’, Sano had stubbornly refused to entertain the idea that something as pathetic as a bullet could have taken Akira out.  Even as he continued to live his life, the life Akira’s initial sacrifice had afforded him, Sano did whatever he could to try and catch even a hint to his brother’s location.  

And that brings us to today, mere months before Sano’s wedding to the beautiful opera singer he’d met while treating patients in the hospital.  A knock on the door revealed Sano’s investigator, a talented detective that greeted his client with a big grin and a folder full of information.

“Take the A-BX train out of Nizhny, it’s the only route with just one proper stop.  It’ll take you to a ghostly little backwater town.  Nothing but bulls and weird natives I hear.  Strange folk.  But~  I’ve heard good talk from my sources that a man fitting your brother’s description is there, living with the locals.”  

Getting a ticket had been an arduous task.  With the war still going on, the usual passenger and cargo trains that made the trip to the Steppe were being used to direct supplies elsewhere.  There was one train going to the town this month, with the departing train not being planned until the next.  Unfortunately, the only ‘seat’ available was in the back of a cargo train.  

The conductor, a deaf and mute man named Gugong, was large and sort of shuffled as he walked.  He had his face covered up in bandages, and further hidden by a tall collar and hooded coat.  Even with all of that, Sano could tell that the man’s face had some sort of swelling going on, or perhaps some sort of medical deformity...  He hadn’t had the chance to ask, as the man barely acknowledged Sano at all, except when it came time to stop the train for a maintenance check, during which he would give Sano his rations for the day.  No matter how Sano presented himself to the other man, Gugong would simply lift and slide a crate into Sano’s train car and then shut the door, letting the eerie silence hover between them.  Had it not been for his woodworking companions, Sano might have gone a bit stir crazy....  

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Stepping off of the train and onto solid ground, our leading man takes his first inhale of countryside air.  It’s fresh, if a little heavy with herbs and dirt.  His stomach is empty after eating nothing but scraps for a few days, and his legs are a bit shaky from the less than stellar sleep he’d gotten riding on that blasted train.  But nonetheless.  He had arrived here, in the so-called ‘Town on Gorkhon’, so nicknamed for being built around the Gorkhon river.  Once he’d gotten his bearings, Sano got right to work.  The Train Station was seemingly devoid of adults, save of course for Sano himself.  There were a handful of children playing kick the can, or otherwise chatting amongst themselves.  None of them spoke English, unfortunately, but one of the older ones figured out that he was looking for someone to talk to, and was kind enough to lead Sano further into the town proper.

Through a number of half-understood conversations in half-broken English or Russian, Sano got his hands on some important information.  Firstly, this town didn’t have much in terms of lodgings.  There was exactly one ‘inn’, a building in an area of the town called ‘The Stillwater’, where the caretaker allowed guests to sleep in a room upstairs.  It made sense fiscally, as the only people who tended to visit this far off little settlement were family members of the residents, or people with temporary business in the town.  With that in mind...If Sano couldn’t find Akira before nightfall, he was going to have to find his way to Stillwater and try to make arrangements to stay there for a while.  

“Ishchu muzhchinu pokhozhego na menya. Moy brat.”  (I am looking for a man that looks like me.  My brother.)

He was handed off from person to person, until finally he lucked out and someone seemed to think he looked sort of familiar.  They kindly led him through the village, towards a monstrously large building complex they called ‘The Termitary’. 

“Vy idete sami. My ne zakhodim vnutr'. Tol'ko Kin i ikh khozyayeva.”  (You go by yourself.  We don’t go inside.  Just the Kin and their masters.)  To this, Sano raised a curious brow, but nodded.  He thanked his helper and stepped forward, looking for an entrance.  The Termitary was a housing complex for the people who worked in the local factories and cared for the local livestock.  It seemed as though everyone living inside the Termitary belonged to the same caste of people, an Indigenous group that called themselves Kinfolk, or ‘The Kin’.  The doors to the Termitary were wide open, with people coming and going as they pleased. Stepping inside, Sano was immediately met with the smell of Earth, leather, coal, and burning incense.  The interior was largely made of stone and brick, with rugs lining the floor for comfort.  Beautifully handcrafted tapestries decorated the walls, depicting artistic interpretations of what Sano could only assume was the local folklore.  In between the tapestries, the wall was covered in paintings of runes, hieroglyphs, handprints, and thousands upon thousands, probably millions of individual pictures, each painted by one of the residents of the Termitary over the years.  It was as rustic as it was stunning.

Aesthetics aside, Sano was almost immediately aware of the strange...’Vibe’, the building gave off.  Or...Was it the people themselves?  The people in this ‘Termitary’ came in all skin tones, offering a bigger variety than those outside in the town.  Their eyes caught the light of their lanterns, or the sunlight beaming in from the windows, and seemed to shimmer unnaturally...But only for a moment...Which meant it was probably just a trick of the light...Right?  They looked over at Sano with quiet curiosity, seemingly not too bothered by the unfamiliar face, almost as if knowing he wasn’t a being that would bring them danger.

Sano was now standing in the center of what looked to be a large common area.  There were a number of couches, chairs, and stools strewn about the area, surrounding a large fire pit that is currently unlit.  There were a few areas that seem to have been claimed by children.  In one of these areas is a fortress made of crates, blankets, and pillows, with arts and crafts in various stages of completion being worked on.  A circle of women were chatting amongst themselves as they knit, stitch, or crochet.  Occasionally, one of the Kin glanced over at him, but only one of them took the initiative to approach him.  A small girl, no older than ten, stepped over to him, looking up at him with curious eyes.

“Privet!” (Hello!)  Though it was certainly a challenge, the two of them managed to get it across that Sano was looking for a man that looked like himself.  The little girl thought it over, before her eyes lit up with realization and she beckoned him to follow her.  “Vam nuzhen nash byk! To zhe litso~” (It is our ox man you want!  Same face~)  Sano is taken from the main chamber into a separate, much larger area of the building.  Here, looking up, Sano might be able to put it together that this is where a great number of the Kin lived.  This area is a massive stone tower with walls similarly decorated with paint and tapestries.  There are seven floors, connected by stone staircases and open hallways that lead you up towards the top via a square spiral shape.  It’s no easy feat climbing from one floor to the next, let alone the three floors Sano is made to climb.  The child hums to herself, quite used to this workout, occasionally stopping to wave and greet her neighbors.  After what seems like forever, they approach a large and thick pair of double doors.  The child gets Sano to use the bull themed door knocker to announce their presence, and then boldly lets herself in before being told to come in. "Byk! Tebe yest' kogo uvidet'!" (Bull! You have someone to see!)  

Sano’s view of the apartment was limited to what could be seen from the hallway.  From around the corner, a deep and familiar voice met his ears, shocking him to the bone and making his heart tremble with hope.  Could it be?

"Ey, ey! Chto ya tebe govoril o vtorzhenii! Chto, yesli so mnoy budet zhenshchina?" (Oi! Oi!  What did I tell you about barging in like that!?  What if I had a woman with me??)  A tall, handsome, strong looking man comes into view, slipping his shirt on while lecturing the child.  When their eyes met, for a moment, the world seemed to stop turning.  The man that simply had to be Akira looked at him shocked with awe, stepping forward as if in a daze.  By the time he was in front of Sano, he was offering his hand for a shake, a big smile plastered on his face.  

The silence that stretched between conversations as he was passed from person to person left Sano plenty of time to digest the information he learned. The name of the sole inn, “Stillwater,” struck him as oddly fitting. The whole town had a sort of ‘still water’ feeling about it—a quiet, serene sort of unease that came with staring at a puddle of stagnant water, wondering what sort of pathogens lurked beneath the murky surface. He also found himself quietly building a theory for why Akira—if indeed he was here—would have gone so long without even writing. 

The place was very remote, that alone could make leaving difficult. As far as he knew, Akira did not speak Russian, so he probably had even more issues just getting his bearings than Sano. Perhaps Akira had just been trying to survive, trying to figure out where he was and what to do next. But was that really enough to keep Akira Kojima from finding a way to contact his family all this time?

The building he finally ended up at was where the 'Kin' lived—he could only hope his was there as well. The moment he stepped into the ‘The Termitary’, everything about the town’s ambience seemed to intensify tenfold, for better and worse. The residents’ gazes were not malicious or hostile in any way, and yet….something about it was uncanny.  For the first time since entering this town, Sano began to feel more like an intruder than a visitor. Paradoxically, the entire building felt much more like a home from the inside than it did staring at its foreboding exterior.  The sights, the smells…they all felt familiar, yet completely foreign at the same time.

Unlike at the train station, Sano felt it would be unwise to approach any of the children in here. For a while, they just observed one another, until finally one young girl spoke to him. Getting across what he was looking for proved a bit of a challenge, but once she understood, the girl she lit up.

“To zhe litso.” (The same face.)

His heart skipped a beat at those words. If their faces were so similar that even this little girl took notice of it…but no, he couldn’t afford to get his hopes any higher than they already were. Not yet.

Sano was a little surprised to see the girl walk right in after knocking, but followed all the same. The voice that came from within was unfamiliar, which made his heart sink a little. But once the ‘ox man’ came into view, it stopped altogether. 

His voice was different, but his eyes were the same, his smile was the same. It was Akira. 

Sano watched his brother approach as if in slow motion, unable to speak, unable to move, barely able to breath. It wasn’t until Akira extended a hand toward him that Sano finally forced himself to reach up and grasp it in a firm shake. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out for the first second or two.

“English,” he forced out at last, letting go of Akira’s hand. “Moy russkiy... ne ochen' khorosh.” (My Russian is…not very good.) “You are…you said your name was…Vincent?” he continued, quickly regaining his bearings as the world began to turn again. Why was Akira going by another name though?

"Not a problem, I speak English.  Yeah!  Call me Vince.  What's yer name?" 

"Sano. Ah, Sano Kojima."  Reaching into his pocket, Akira pulled out a small wrapped candy, handed it to the little girl who had brought Sano to him, and ruffled her hair.  

"Idi igray, Natalia." (Go play, Natalia.) Delighted, she waved goodbye to both men and ran off. "Take yer shoes off if yer gunna come in,” Akira said, “Lyvetti'll have my head if we track mud on her 'nice, clean floor." 

The request to take his shoes off was strangely comforting, but perhaps it was just familiar. While he was a bit curious who Lyvetti was, he decided to keep that to himself for now.

Sano continued to watch his brother with a mixture of disbelief and curiosity as Akira chuckled and led the way into what resembled a cozy-looking studio apartment. Was this all just a very convincing act, or did Akira truly not remember him? The latter seemed increasingly likely, however medically rare it would be. Once they were both inside, Akira sat down at a table, motioning to the other chair, which Sano quietly took a seat in.

 "So what's up?"

"Well…I came here looking for someone,” Sano began. “And after asking around a bit, your name came up as someone who fits the description...of who I'm looking for." With every word that left his mouth, it started to feel more convoluted, more evasive. Should he just come out and say it? Could he just come out and say it? That was a lot to spring on someone he just met, especially without a shred of evidence.

Akira looked him over carefully before speaking.  "You do...look a bit familiar," he admitted, rubbing his head.  "Do you...know me?” There was no reason for him to ask that if it was an act, they were alone now. “Truth is, I'm not all together up here," Akira continued, tapping his temple.  "Don't remember nuthin from before I woke up here."

Although Sano already suspected it at this point, hearing Akira confirm his amnesia theory was somehow no less jarring. But he said he looked familiar! That had to mean he remembered something, right?

“Yes,” Sano said after a moment. “I believe I do. My brother Akira fought in the war for many years. Two years ago, he went…missing. Many presumed him dead, but no body was found, so I refused to accept that as an explanation. I came here because someone fitting my brother’s description was reported in this town. And you look…" He took a breath.