#ch76

Oda never forgets

CHAPTER 76: Lost and Out of Time

Before the ashes of the riots had cooled, the Congregation rose to power, quickly absorbing or driving out the lesser gangs within the Black and Asian communities. Soon they expanded, making contact with the cartel and subjugating them.

All-Kill was there to witness the first Stand ritual. The disgraced luchadora, Phantasma Juarez, graciously accepted her own Stand from Dust, somehow finding a kindred in the preacher. He remained as pious as always, saying to the masked woman, “I see your heart, and it is pure. You will certainly lead the worthy into Paradise. You will be a true hero.”

All-Kill always saw through him. The dream of Paradise was empty. He believed only in his own ambition.

With the fast friendship between his new ‘business partners’, All-Kill offered his comrade, Gangak, a position alongside him in the organization. What he needed now were allies.

He had already started by taking in Sang-ok. Then Gangak acquired his own Stand, in a sense finally becoming equals with All-Kill. And later, in the ruins of a small town in Northern California, All-Kill found a young woman like himself. A girl born with her Stand.

Thus All-Kill’s family, the Daesang, was born.

***

1995. On the docks of San Francisco, with the Golden Gate Bridge in sight, Gangak makes his way discreetly, avoiding the streetlight. He could see his ride, a freighter about to embark on a voyage to the Far East. 

Gangak smiled confidently as he walked to the pier.. But in the shadows he spied a glint of light and a chill ran down his spine. The glint stepped towards, the light reflecting off a pair of thick glasses.

“What do you think you’re doing here, Gangak?” All-Kill demanded.

Gangak gulped, but he stood firm. “I’m leaving, Ganmyeol. That’s what.”

“Don’t say that as if you’re going on some trip…” the boss says, bitterness coating his voice. “You’re bringing your crew with you. Bringing old man Sanjo. You’re abandoning me.”

“That’s right…”

“Why? What has brought on this absolute betrayal?”

The taller man bristled and pointed aggressively at his best friend. “That kind of shit right there, for a start! Do you ever LISTEN to yourself?!”

All-Kill narrowed his eyes. “I’m just trying to understand… Why would you try to do this to me.”

“To you?! I’m not the one siding with the man who destroyed our neighborhood! A man who helped instigate the fucking riots!!”

“Is that what this is about?” the man in black sighed. “I told you… I’m biding my time. Of course I’m not on board with this deranged Paradise scheme, but if I fight with Dust now, I can’t guarantee that I’d win. Who’ll defend our people if I’m gone?”

“I-!” Gangak stammered, but All-Kill continued to speak over him.

“And as soon as I have the right opening, I’ll take care of him. You just have to be patient.”

Gangak stared at his friend, a lump building in his throat as his worst nightmares came true before him. “AND THEN WHAT?!!” he shouts. “Once that bastard’s dead, what are you going to do?!”

All-Kill kept calm. “Dust holds LA in the palm of his hand. Once he’s eliminated, there’ll be a scramble to fill the vacuum of power. A little discord is inevitable, but if we take control quick enough, we can keep it to a minimum. That’s why I need you-”

“No. No way! I don’t want this!” the bigger man shakes his head, “I didn’t want to control LA, I just wanted to protect my people!”

Finally losing his composure, All-Kill snapped. “THIS is how we protect our people! Unless we take a position of strength, they will ALWAYS be under threat!”

“The threat is YOU!!”

Gangak’s voice resounds. His best friend, closer to him than a brother, shudders at the sound. He stares through the thick lenses of his glasses, breathing deeply, as if he’s been struck across the face. “...What did you say?”

“T-The… The threat… is you…” Gangak repeats, his breathing also heavy, “You’re gathering all these people. Working for Dust and that woman in the mask… You took Park’s son for yourself! You picked up that creepy ass murderer girl! And you… You’re one of them now…! God, I’m one of them now… And maybe… Maybe you were always one of them, deep down…”

He raised his face, standing firm in his resolve. “It's too much. The fact I had to sneak out of my home, knowing you wouldn’t let me leave on my own… You’re no protector. You’ll drag everyone around you into your nightmare. That’s what makes you the threat.

All-Kill’s mouth hung open. Struggling to speak, he said “Gangak... come back with me… don't walk away from me…”

“No.”

“Gangak…”

“No.” The hazy figure of his Stand emerges from Gangak’s spirit. He gestures down. “I finally noticed, after all these years. When you bring out BLACK KEYS… You ball your hand into a fist…”

All-Kill looks down at his shaking fist, then back up at Gangak. His pleading expression morphed to pure rage and he propelled himself at his former best friend. “BLACK KEYS!!”

Gangak's Stand fully materialized next to him. “SLEEPYHEAD!!!”

The foggy Stand landed a punch right on All-Kill’s cheek. All-Kill groaned as the knuckle grinds against him, but he still moved to pierce the Stand’s arm. But he was too slow. He had to watch as SLEEPYHEAD moved its other arm in front of Gangak, somewhat merging with him. And with that, they both dematerialized into fog, disappearing on the wind. The boss of Koreatown is left to stare at the sky, the lights and smog of the city blotting out the stars.

He wasted no time looking for a replacement. No sooner did he return home did he pay a visit to a certain local troublemaker. The girl did not disappoint, earning her place by All-Kill’s side after her first mission. Not a tear was shed the day he learned of Gangak’s end.

This is how All-Kill’s life was. He built his branch of the Congregation like his fellow bosses did, but his people weren’t like them. They trusted each other, believed in each other. They were a family. A family with power, wealth and purpose.

Everything he could want, he had.

This page is genuinely so raw. In Galuna it’s Gray getting beaten up, in Phantom it’s Levy, but here we actually see all of them, at the same time, so one-sidedly destroyed. It’s really the setup for what was supposed to be the highest point of the show at this point of time, and it’s firmly punctuated by this one frame of Gray with an actual stake through his chest. 

Sure most of these happened offscreen and it turns out to be fakeouts, but it’s still visceral in a very serious way. 

Ran: Right. Let's say the culprit was Professor Agasa.

Shinichi: I would reveal him.

Ran: Huh ? You would ?

Shinichi: Yeah. I would state plainly that he is the criminal.

Ran: Oh, so you'd show off and try to look cool.