Episode 8: "The Outcome of the Dramatic Escape"

Tsuruko Semba
"Phew, that was a close one..."

Koishi Kohinata
"No kidding. That elevator had perfect timing."

Though they all exhaled sighs of relief, they knew they still had to contend with the main issue at hand.

Yo Kuronaka
"Where can we even go from here?
He'll definitely corner us if we stay in the hotel..."

Q
"We can get off at the tenth floor.
From there, we can make our way outside using an access bridge."

Yo had thought that the front entrance would be the only means of escape.
He hadn't realized that there was an access bridge on the tenth floor they'd be able to use as an alternative.

Roku Saigo
"That would be the best course of action, however..."

Enoki Yukigaya
"So, are these buttons busted or something? I'm pressing the one for the tenth floor, but it's not lighting up."

Yo Kuronaka
"What? What floor are we going to, then?!"

Tsuki Iroha
"Whooooa! We're flying past every floor!"

The group's key cards had only let them travel between the lobby and the tenth floor, but the floor indicator quickly shot beyond that number.
Twenty... Thirty... As the number went up, the sounds coming from the elevator's motor seemed to grow ever louder.

Kazuki Aoyama
"Damn! If this keeps up, then we'll end up—"

The elevator showed no signs of slowing down. It blew past the fortieth floor—the last floor guests were permitted.

(DING!)

With a final sway, the elevator finally came to a stop.
They were met with a chilly breeze when the doors finally opened, their hair and clothes fluttering from the cool air.

Their final destination was the roof.

The breathtaking visual of Shinagawa's evening cityscape stretched out before them.
For a short-lived moment, they found themselves rendered speechless by the scene. It didn't take long for them to recall their situation, however.

After all, once they dropped their gazes...

Zero
"I bid you welcome to the rooftop!
Heehee... Isn't the view from here just to die for? What a wonderful sight, to be able to see all of Shinagawa from here!"

Zero and his drones had been awaiting their arrival, despite the fact that he should've still been at the hotel's entrance.

Miu Jujo
"This is bad. Our only escape route at this point would be to jump..."

Jio Takinogawa
"Something so cute shouldn't have such an awful personality.
There isn't much that's worse than giving us false hopes like that."

Even if they wanted to go back the way they came, it was impossible. The drones had already surrounded the elevator.

There was nowhere left for them to turn.
Yo took a moment to brace himself for whatever was to come before he fixed his gaze on Zero.

Yo Kuronaka
"Why did you lead us all the way up to the roof?
You can't seriously tell me you wanted to enjoy the nighttime view together."

Zero
"I came to explain XG to you, but there are just too many of you Trash Tribe people.
So... I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to thin out the herd a bit."

Zero's explanation was accompanied with a smile, as if his cruel suggestions were anything but.

Yo Kuronaka
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?!"

Yo raised his voice in response, but Zero did little more than look over all the Trash Tribe members before him.
Then, after a moment, he offered a satisfied nod before he spoke.

Zero
"All right! Eliminations have been decided!
If you hear your name, you're out! Kazuki, Roku, Enoki... Koishi, Miu and Jio!
Drone Army! Please collect the six people I've named."

Immediately after he gave the order, the drones rushed over to the Trash Tribe members that he had called out.

Of course, they didn't intend on going down without a fight.
They did their best to swat away the rotors and squirmed to escape their grip. Their frantic resistance continued on for quite a while.

It was futile, however, as they were greatly outnumbered.
Using a combination of their arms and wire as restraints, the drones soon captured all six members of the team. With that task done, they were then lifted into the air.

Koishi Kohinata
"E-Eeek! This again?!"

Enoki Yukigaya
"Oh, it's those fun flying things again, yeah?
Lucky us, we get to go on another ride!"

Jio Takinogawa
"I-It's no use... These things are too damn strong..."

Roku Saigo
"It would seem surrender is our only option.
The only path to destroying them now would also mean self-sacrifice."

Miu Jujo
"I let my guard down...
If only I'd realized that it was Zero sooner..."

Q
"Kazuki!!"

Q gasped as he reached out desperately to get Kazuki back.

Kazuki Aoyama
"Hey, don't go making faces like that. I'm sure he's just trying to separate us."

Kazuki had already accepted the outcome of the situation.
That was why he steeled himself and addressed Q in a more gentle tone, as if to pacify a stubborn younger brother.

Kazuki Aoyama
"The most important thing right now is to keep an eye on Yo and the others.
Do your best to guide them in my stead—"

Zero
"Okay, okay, that's enough of the sappy goodbyes. Catch you on the flip side, everyone!"

Once Zero finished speaking, the six who had been captured were carried away into the night sky."

Eiji Todoroki
"How could this have happened? We lost half of our team in the blink of an eye."

Zero
Heehee. We've got the number of people here juuuust right. How satisfying, getting such a big mess cleaned up so neatly.
Anyhow, it's quite windy up here, isn't it? It's high time we return to the lobby to finish our discussion."

Yo Kuronaka
"Ugh, fine. It's not like we've got any choice right now, anyway."

With half of their team dispersed, Yo was aware that they didn't stand a chance of defeating Zero head on at the moment.
At the drones' urging, they had resigned themselves to their fate and boarded the elevator once more.