003: Asakura Hao
Disclaimer: I can has cheezburger?!
A tall, middle-aged man entered his room in a hotel, after dispensing his apparel, he put on bathrobes and washed himself clean at his bathroom, the refreshing cold water putting him awake.
After that, he had a drink of milk from his refrigerator and reclined on a chair, looking over some documents from a side table nearby, sighing over all the work he had to do.
Putting on everyday clothes, the man entered an elevator and prepared to go down to work, he did not realize the sheer amount of trouble he was in.
Suddenly, a pair of thin fiber wires wrapped around his neck, and he was quickly pulled up from the ground, no air would escape his mouth to attempt to scream for help, as the wires would not grant him permission to do so.
After the breath of life was taken from him, the assassin left his body in the elevator, while he returned into the man's room, taking all of his notes, putting them in a bowl, dropping oil and setting the alight.
The assassin also discovered a laptop, wasting no time, he broke the device across his lap, and with the deed finished, he left the room.
As the elevator finally arrived at the ground, everyone shrieked in horror at the corpse waiting within.
But he who had committed the deed simply traveled upwards, to a helicopter apparently awaiting his arrival.
Once inside, the pilot commended him on the act, "Nice job, I'm sure the FBI will have no chance of getting close to us now."
The assassin did not speak, he simply looked away with a disinterested look.
(Cue Intro)
Lyserg Diethel as 003 (aka Himself)
Iron Maiden Jeanne as The Diethel Girl
Hao Asakura as The Criminal Mastermind
Hana Asakura as The Blonde Assassin
Peyote Diaz as The Coyote
Mohamed Tabarsi as The Pharmacologist
Luchist Lasso as The Weapons Broker
Meene Montgomery as Lyserg's Boss
Tao Men as Fenghuang's Sidekick
Opacho/Mama as Hao's Pet
Fenghuang as Himself
Lyserg had been out for a little bit of bird watching that day, so after his little tour of the wilderness, he returned home to take a little nap from a long day of relaxation.
His mobile sounded off, duty called, literally.
"Hello?"
"Lyserg, we have another job that needs your attention, do come to my office on the instant."
"Can it wait for a few minutes?"
"30 minutes, that's all," Meene promptly cut off afterwards.
Ten minutes later…
Lyserg entered Meene's office with a can of cold lemonade. Meene looked a little annoyed, "No drinks in the office, you know the rules, Lyserg."
"Come now, Meene, rules are for academic students. I've grown up from that state of life."
"As you like, but take this job seriously, please."
"Yes, yes, so… what is it this time?"
"You're going to Las Vegas."
"That's a start, and why am I going to Vegas?"
"This time it's the FBI who's wanting our hands in the mud. One of their agents was investigating one Peyote Diaz, a coyote from Mexico."
"Coyote?"
"Slang for guys who smuggle illegal immigrants into America, back to the story, one of their agents were killed in the midst of his investigation, now they've ended up back to square one, everything their man worked on went up in smoke."
"And now they're turning to us for help?"
"Not us, Diethel, you."
"Me? I'm to go alone?"
"Serves you right for being the best man in our agency; that, and your disregard for the rules."
"Stingy today, Montgomery?"
"They promised us a fat paycheck for solving this crisis, but, consider that your reward once you finish this job."
Viva Las Vegas, or so the saying goes…
Lyserg waited outside the airport waiting for someone to meet him, well at least he thought someone would wait for him, Meene was rather sketchy on the details.
"Mister Diethel?"
Lyserg turned to see a middle-aged man with balding hair and two other men dressed in suits approach him.
"Yes?"
"We're FBI" The man flashed his badge at Lyserg, "Please come this way."
After getting inside a car, Lyserg started asking some questions, "So… mind if I get some nuances about this job you've hired me for?"
"As you know, one of our agents was murdered. Died of strangulation in an elevator at a hotel here in Vegas."
"And… why am I being called halfway around the world… for this?"
"Because, Mister Diethel, this investigation into Diaz's operation has gone absolutely nowhere for two months, our faces are known, Diaz has connections and he's using it to divert the heat on him. But you, you're an unfamiliar face, you can go places we can't, so I suppose that gives us a small advantage, for whatever it's worth."
"Lucky me…"
After getting some lodgings to stay in Las Vegas, Lyserg took some time to relax for a few hours before he got to work.
He reached out for the telephone and ordered for a drink, "I'd like a Bloody Mary, please, shaken, not stirred, and put some ice in it too."
Later…
Lyserg's door gave out a knock, "Mister Diethel? I have some documents here for you?"
Lyserg opened the door, "Ah, thanks, I'll be taking those." He took the documents and gave the deliveryman his tip before closing the door and returning to the study room to view the documents.
"Peyote Diaz, Mexican, most wanted coyote this side of the United States, trafficked over 1500 immigrants within the past year, tsk tsk tsk, he works hard."
Lyserg continued going over the documents, finally, he came upon something of interest: one Mohamed Tabarsi, Middle-easterner, works as a pharmacologist at a mental hospital near Las Vegas, according to the sources, some of the patients in the facility appear to match the people who've been smuggled in by Diaz, but there hasn't been any conclusive evidence.
Lyserg reached for the phone again, "Hello? Can I ask you something?"
"What is it Diethel?"
"Do you think you could get me near this Mohamed Tabarsi? I'd like to check out his facility."
"I'm afraid not Mister Diethel, we can't spare any more help other than provide you with something to start with, as I said before, FBI's too deep in this one, so you're on your own."
Lyserg didn't like the sound of that, "I see…" Lyserg started contemplating his next plan of action, and he suddenly had an idea, "All right, I'll handle everything, you guys just do what you do best at your desks."
Lyserg then called someone else on the phone. After a few seconds of beeping, a familiar voice was heard, "Fenghuang, old friend! It's me, Diethel."
"Lyserg Diethel? How've you been chum? It's been four months since the Tao operation hasn't it?"
"Yes it has, oh by the way, I've called for a little favor from you."
"Anything in my power is at your disposal Diethel, what's the deal?"
Next Day…
Lyserg rode all the way to the hospital in question, wearing a white buttoned shirt and pants, as he neared the parking lot, he was apprehended by a guard.
"Excuse me sir."
Lyserg displayed his forged ID, personally made by Fenghuang, to the guard.
"Ok, you're clean, go ahead."
Lyserg parked his car and proceeded through the facility, entering through the employees' entrance, after passing through the lounge, he came to a guard on his desk, who stopped him, "Hold on sir, you don't look like you're from around here."
"I'm new," Lyserg replied, "Just arrived from Maine."
"Uh-huh, can I have your ID, sir?" Lyserg handed him his ID and took a look at it.
The guard then took his phone and contacted the head of the facility, "Mister Tabarsi, we have a new guy in today, his name's Diethel, Lyserg Diethel, did you get any notification about this?"
"Not that I've heard any, no, can you run the database for him?"
The guard began searching on his computer, looking for Lyserg, surprisingly, there he was, on the list, "He's legit, sir."
"Uh-huh… all right, let him in, I'll contact the office at Maine later."
"You can go in Mister Diethel."
"Thank you."
Lyserg ought to thank Fenghuang and his amazing hacking skills later, he had work to do.
He wandered around the halls of the facility, acting casual to make sure no one takes notice.
Lyserg tapped an orderly nearby, "Excuse me, I'm new, do you know where the isolation rooms are?"
"Through that door over there, you need an access card to get in though."
"Thanks."
The orderly walked away, but not before Lyserg skillfully pick pocketed him for the access card.
Lyserg first passed through a guardhouse before entering inside, but that wasn't the hard part, at any rate.
Once inside the isolation section, he looked around, no one but orderlies and the scent of sterilized air.
The isolation section was divided in two, one in level with the building's ground floor, and another room lower below. One of the rooms' door suddenly opened, and Tabarsi emerged from it. Lyserg kept his distance as he looked at him.
Tabarsi was simply rubbing any dirt that might have been on his coat, and proceeded to walk away. Lyserg became rather curious about what was in that room, so he personally decided to check it out.
Once inside, all he found was a rather shaken guy, wearing nothing but an A-shirt and trousers, he appeared to be shivering uncontrollably, but because of the cold.
"Who are you?" Lyserg asked.
"Es… Es horrible"
"What?"
The man just said the same thing, Lyserg looked at him and then started examining his eyes, looking for some kind of sign of drug problems, and he found it, "Not a good sign..."
Later...
Lyserg was on his laptop as he was chatting with Fenghuang.
"Fenghuang, you are a really good friend to have."
"I have resources deeper than Mother Earth's bowel."
"So I've noticed, anyway, I have another favor to ask."
"There's no limit to any favors you can ask from me chum."
"Right, I need you to ID someone for me."
"Who?"
Lyserg uploaded a photo of the man he encountered earlier, "I need you to look up this guy's medical history."
"For what, exactly?"
"Anything that would warrant him to be in an isolation room before he was put there. And I also want to know his nationality too."
"You got it, but it might take me a while."
"Take as long as you need."
"What are you going to do in the meantime?"
"Leisure"
Later...
Lyserg cruised around the streets of Las Vegas, looking for a suitable place to spend some downtime on. After about an hour, he came upon one such location, a tall monolith of monastic black and neon red called "Dante's Casino and Hotel," with a large golden statue of Cerberus displayed on the fountain near the entrance. The devilishly-designed facade of the place piqued his interest, so he decided to check it out, and other than that, he for some reason felt like it was beckoning for him to see what it had to offer.
Inside, he found all sorts of rich people wandering around the casino, with plenty of cash to burn, and wealthy bachelors hob-knobbing a few nice broads walking around. Wanting to test his luck, he decided to try out one of the machines to see if he could gain something. Plopping his change into the slot, he pulled the big red lever, and looked at the little images flashing on the machine, all of them stopping at the image of a gold coin.
The machine rang with lights and sounds emerging, "Looks like I won something."
All that came out was a gold coin with some weird design on it, "Huh, wonder what this thing is?"
Lyserg traveled to the reception desk to inquire about his prize, "Excuse me, what is this?"
The reception lady took a look and then looked back at Lyserg, "Oh this is quite a find sir, you see, anyone who has these gold coins are privileged to a seat for tonight's dance number by our showgirl."
"Really?"
"Free choice of drinks too."
"Well, that's lovely, any drinks?"
"Anything, just show it to the guys near the balcony doors and they'll let you in."
"Why these gold coins, though?"
"This showgirl is the newest addition to our little establishment, but believe you me, she's quite talented, very much so."
"All right, it's in a couple of minutes?"
"Yes sir, 20 minutes to be exact."
Later...
After setting himself down near one of the tables near the dancefloor, Lyserg sipped a little Bloody Mary that he ordered for a drink, waiting for the performance.
Suddenly, all the lights blackened save for a few that focused on the wide open space in the middle of the room.
"Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for the show, for we're announcing the latest, and if I may say, loveliest addition to our casino, Iron Maiden Jeanne!"
Suddenly, a large iron maiden contraption emerged amidst smoke and multi-colored lights, suddenly, the object swung open it's lid, and out emerged a charming lady with ruby-red eyes and flowing hair of silvery sheen. But this woman was no stranger to Lyserg, it was Jeanne, after all these months, this is where she's been?
Jeanne danced with vigor and precision, earning the interested look of all patrons around, but Lyserg was particularly interested in her more than them, for he knew her quite a bit more than anyone else.
After the performance, Jeanne curtsied before the ovation of the crowd, and wistfully walked away from the area.
Lyserg continued looking at her as she walked away, only finally moving out of his little trance when she left his sight.
Lyserg stopped a nearby waitress, "Excuse me, do you know where that lovely showgirl stays around here? Since she seems so famous, I'd think you would know."
"Oh, she's a live-in worker around here, the owner lets her stay in her own room in the hotel."
"Oh I see, do you mind if I paid her a visit? I'm an old friend of hers."
"I'm not sure, this is so sudden, and I barely even know you, sir."
Lyserg quickly forked over some 500 dollars, "Will a token of generosity change your mind?"
"Oh, well, in that case, I think I could arrange for something of that level."
"Thank you."
Later...
After Jeanne returned to her room, she locked the door behind her and began to undress while turning the lights on, but just as she did, a voice from behind suddenly spoke.
"Good evening Jeanne."
Jeanne spun around, startled by the voice of someone in her room, but was even more surprised to see that it was Lyserg.
"Lyserg? Oh my god! What are you doing here?"
"On a case, actually, but I should be asking you that." Lyserg stood up and approached her.
"Well, things haven't really gone well for me after you dealt with my late husband's business, so, I've been making my living here in Vegas, it pays to be an eye-hook for men, it seems."
"So I've noticed," Lyserg started caressing her long silvery locks of hair.
"Lyserg... you really shouldn't be here."
"Well, you know that I can't really be not attracted to you."
"No Lyserg, I mean... about us."
"Oh... that again?"
Jeanne nodded, before heading towards her dresser and changing behind her dressing screen.
"Jeanne?"
"Yes?"
"You wouldn't mind if I spent the night here, would you?"
Jeanne thought about that for a moment, and soon something in her chord struck for some reason she would not know, "You may stay here, Lyserg. But only for tonight."
"Very well."
Later...
Lyserg settled comfortably on Jeanne's bed, waiting for her arrival.
Not a moment too soon, Jeanne came in, wearing a purple see-through negligee, with white underwear beneath.
"Oh my, it looks good on you."
Jeanne blushed at his comment, "I find wearing less for sleeping to be very comforting."
"I have no objections about that."
Jeanne turned off the lights, walked towards the bed, and laid down comfortably beside Lyserg.
"Lyserg?"
"Yes, Jeanne?"
"Do you still love me?"
"I haven't forgotten about us, if that's what you're asking."
"Is that so?"
After the whole Tao deal four months ago, Jeanne couldn't help but feel guilty, she did leave her late spouse and the man she loved to fight against each other, she knows Ren told her to have no regrets, but she couldn't help it, she didn't have the strength of her late husband or Lyserg, and after coming to an intimate relationship with the latter, she wanted to be left alone to her own "soul-searching." Now, here she is, once again in his arms, she looked up at Lyserg, who had now fallen asleep, she smiled a small smile, Lyserg wasn't just her greatest pleasure, it was her guiltiest pleasure.
Elsewhere...
Darkness enshrouded the room, with the only light being shone upon three charming ladies, one blonde, one redhead, and one blue-haired, all of them wearing scant arabic harem clothes, dancing to foreign music, swaying their arms and shaking their hips to entertain their audience, a man with brown hair that extended past his shoulders, and with a tiny white animal resting upon his lap.
After the ladies' presentation, they moved towards the man, and started to intimately caress and dote upon him, however, a monitor suddenly flashed on, interrupting his pleasure.
"Excuse me, boss."
"What are you doing contacting me at this time, Lasso?"
"Forgive my intrusion sir, but it looks like the FBI have given up the search for us."
"Of course they are, after what my nephew did to them."
"Well, sir, it's just, I'm a little concerned that they haven't been investigating us lately, and I did some looking around."
"And?"
"I believe I've found someone who matches the description of Lyserg Diethel."
"Diethel? The EXIT agent who killed my associate Tao Ren?"
"Yes sir."
"Ho ho, this is interesting news," the man turned towards the blue-haired woman, "Kanna, my dear, mix me my martini, please." He turned back towards Lasso.
"What do you want us to do sir?"
"Find this man and, if it is indeed Lyserg Diethel, watch him carefully, VERY carefully, and keep me informed after confirmation."
He took the martini from Kanna, and took a little sip...
End of Chapter
A/N: Okay, not exactly the most exciting way to start a sequel, I had some ideas, but I wasn't feeling motivated, sorry about that people.