N/A: IT'S BACK EVERYONE! I want to apologize for being absent for a really long time.
But I'm back! And here's what you've been waiting for! My new version of my Black Lagoon fanfic, and this time with the start that I'm happy with it.
Now, if you have a moment before you start to read it, I want to make things clear. I did read Black Lagoon manga and I'm aware that Rock exists, but I want you guys know that this story sets in 1989. Although this sounds like this would be a prequel, I'd say this is a spin-off with different timeline, and I'm afraid Rock won't appear because, asides that this sets before the original events, I don't know what kind of role he would play for the story.
And if you think I would pair my OC with Revy, let me tell you that it will be less likely. So you Rock x Revy fans can relax because I have another candidate which I think she will be perfect for my OC.
Besides, since I was inspired with the 80's theme like Hotline Miami and GTA Vice City, I thought it would be very interesting to feature that time with Black Lagoon.
Anyways, that's all you need to know, I hope you will enjoy this new version, and I can promise that this is the last time I'm rewriting.
One last thing though, if you're still wondering why I'm taking so long to write my fanfictions, check out my profile, there's a big announcement I made if you didn't know.
Chapter 1: One Ticket to Paradise.
A cargo ship was sailing across the dark wavy of the South China Sea in the time of sunset, with the setting sun reflecting on the surface of the ocean. However, the ship only carried a few containers at the deck, which is not usual a cargo vessel would have a light load. If that's the case, then the sailors have something more than the containers.
Usually, the sunset is the time when the crew can go to their cabins and rest, after doing their daily tasks like making sure the engines works well and checking the their load. But this time, they were walking throughout the corridors like ants, meaning they were preparing for something. One of them, among the crew members, was walking through the aisle of the crew quarters, until he stopped in front of one of the doors, before opening it.
It was a small cabin with a bunk on the right side, and he found a man sleeping on the upper bed. The crew member walked up to the sleeping man, he grabbed the shoulder and shook him to wake him up.
"Hey wake up, pal! Your nap time is over!" He called out.
The man groaned before he slapped the sailor's hand from him. He sat up and took off his navy blue cap. Apparently, he looked around forties because he had crinkles under his eyes and around his mouth, and his face was covered with his bushy beard he let it grow for weeks. He ran his fingers through his thick brown hair, that matches the color of his eyes, and combed back all the way down to his nape,
He was wearing a dark blue denim jacket, with a blackwatch tartan shirt underneath, blue denim jeans fastened with a leather belt, and a pair of nubuck leather shoes.
Clearly, he doesn't look like he's one of the crew members of this ship.
"What do you want?" The man asked as he rubbed his hooded eyes, a little annoyed that someone interrupted his peaceful sleep.
"It's time to gather your stuff. We are getting closer to shore now." The sailor replied.
"Really?" The forty-year old man perked up and asked, receiving a nod from the young man. "Alright, just give me one moment while I get my stuff ready, thanks for letting me know." He jumped down from the bunk, as he arched his back with a yawn.
"When you go out to the deck, go to the anchor so you can see the city, if you're interested. I heard it looks beautiful when the nighttime falls. See you outside, Alex." Then, the crew member retired from the cabin, leaving the passenger alone.
The man by the name of Alex took a look out the porthole, before realizing that it was now sunset, which he couldn't help but wonder in surprise how long he was asleep today. But he dismissed the question from his mind and decided to prepare to leave his room. He picked up his cap from the bunk and put it back on his head, before he lowered a sea bag which was on top of a wardrobe next to him. He swung it to his shoulder and then he walked out of the cabin, but before he was about to make his way up to the deck, he saw a few more people leaving from their cabins, all of them didn't look like members of the crew either. They also were seen carrying their luggage, but most of them are backpacks and handbags.
This could only mean they're not from the Middle class, but from people who decided to leave far from their homeland, even if it's illegally, hoping to find a new life in another country. Undoubtedly, Alex was one of them.
So Alex walked along with the rest of the passengers all the way through the hallway, until they used the staircase which leads to the outside. The moment he stepped out of the opening door, he felt the refreshing wind blowing from the north that made him close his eyes to enjoy that feeling.
He looked up to the sky and saw a small group of seagulls flying around the ship. The sailor was right after all, if he's watching the seagulls, it means they're really getting closer to the shore. Feeling very curious, he decided to go to the bow by walking all over the deck and went up another set of stairs.
He realized he was not the only one who was interested to know what lies ahead, he saw some of the immigrants and the sailors were standing near the rails, like they wanted to look how close they were getting to the other country from the other side of the world.
Alex pushed them gently while asking them politely to move aside so he could join the show. When he was in the front row, he noticed they are already within a gulf of a bay, with the cliffs covered by grass and tropical trees, also he spotted a couple of fishing boats floating on the water as the cargo ship passed through them. However, when he looked directly to the North, he finally saw the coastal city, and couldn't help but feel amazed when he stared at the lights sparkling all over a mountain like velvet diamonds.
Cleary, he didn't know anything about Thailand and its cities, but he never expected this one in particular would look pretty like he's actually going to Florida. However, the buildings were not the same as Miami, but they kinda reminded him with Cuba. It was such a strange combination, he thought.
"Hey, look over there!" One of the passengers, who were a teenager, shouted with his finger pointing to the northwest.
Everyone, including Alex, turned their heads to that direction and they saw a giant pointed rock, whose size was almost the same as an iceberg. But inside the rock, literally, there was a giant sculpture of a man with big ears wearing robes, with the right hand raised.
"Is that a Buddha statue?" One of the sailors asked in amazement, watching the huge statue with his mouth agape.
"It looks like it." Alex replied, slightly impressed. "I wonder how they did it in the middle of the ocean."
"Hey, is it me or do you guys noticed the face looks pretty blurred?" Another immigrant asked.
When the cargo ship was about to pass through the statue, they looked closely to the Buddha, before they realized that the upper part of the face was completely blurred, but the only thing they have the attention on it was a crack running across the half. It appears whatever happened, the Buddha statue was damaged and the ones who repaired it didn't even bother to finish with the last details.
"Yeah, you're right. Do you think that was on purpose?" Alex asked.
"Who knows," An old crew member replied with a shrug. "It's hard to understand what these people from this country do."
Alex glanced at the old man in puzzle, wondering what he meant by that. Then, he looked back at the blurred face of the statue, still confused about how someone would leave it just like that. Nevertheless, when the Buddha statue was now far behind from his eyes, he just dismissed his question and just waited for his arrival at the city of Roanapur.
After the cargo ship docked at the main port, the gangway ladder was set down to the surface and the passengers climbed off the ship. Alex stopped halfway through to take a brief moment to look around the sparkling city one more time, before he continued his way until he set his foot on the concrete.
He began to say goodbyes to his travelling partners when they were now going to separate to their own way, but before he was about to find a way to exit the docks, he found a beige Volkswagen Dasher parked at ten meters in front of him.
He couldn't see distinctly who was inside in the car without the sun, but he thought whoever is must be waiting for someone or something like that.
"Alex!" The silhouette called out with a wave.
He went taken aback when he heard the very familiar voice, before the silhouette stepped out of the car. It was an Asian man, pretty younger than Alex, with his dark hair slicked back, a thin mustache with a patch of hair on his chin, and protruding cheekbones. And he wore a dark tank top and dark green cargo pants.
"Dang!" Alex walked up to the young man in long strides, before he dropped his sea bag and they met each other in a bone-crushing hug for an entire minute while laughing.
"You don't have any idea how happy I am to see you again!" Dang exclaimed joyfully as he pat Alex's back.
"Me too, man. How long it's been? Like twenty years?" Alex asked.
"Yeah, pretty much so." The Asian man answered, before he gazed at his long-time friend. "Well look at you, you grew awfully older than I imagined!" He said jokingly, though shocked how much Alex changed after so many years.
Alex chuckled and stared at Dang. "And I don't see a single wrinkle on your face. You still look like you have twenties! I envy you!" He replied, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Hey, don't feel bad, at least I can't grow a beard like you have." Dang replied.
They both shared a few laughs. After that, they remained silent for a moment.
"Anyways, we should go now, how about I take you to my house so I can show you where you're going to sleep?" Dang suggested as he walked back to his car.
"Sounds good to me." Alex agreed, before he picked up his sea bag and followed Dang.
"Alright then, it's not too far from here. But don't have high expectations once you see it." Dang said as he opened the trunk so Alex could leave his luggage.
"I wasn't expecting too much after all." Alex replied as he kept his sea bag on the trunk.
Dang closed the trunk and went into the driver's seat, while Alex sat on the passenger's. Alex noticed the seats were pretty ripped, the carpet looked in a very bad shape and the radio seemed outdated for about ten years ago. He just realized Dang must purchased a used car, probably way cheaper.
"Nice ride." Alex spoke, but with a lack of impression on his voice.
"Don't worry, at least it runs like a new one." Dang turned on the engines and the headlights, before he turned the car around and drove all the way across the dockyard to the exit.
"So how was your journey?" Dang asked, without turning his eyes away from the road.
"It was okay, I guess." Alex replied, as he glanced through the window the streets. "One month and a half wasn't such a long time. Though I couldn't stand the smell inside the ship, it was like someone hid a dead body anywhere and I had to spend every day outside in the deck. Then again, I didn't have any trouble at all."
"That's good to know, I was kinda worry you might bump into a Coast Guard." Dang said as he crossed an intersection.
"Oh no, we bumped into them!" Alex replied. "The Philippine Coast Guard stopped us and boarded our ship. We were pretty freak out because we didn't want to get caught, but the crew took us to the only place we could hide, where the Coast Guard would never find us. In the engine room."
"Dude, for real?" Dang exclaimed, but he didn't get distracted before he turned the wheel to the left, crossing an alley before he turned to the right, driving through another street.
"No kidding. Just imagine how fucking hot was in there, I couldn't stop sweating! Even we had to take some of our clothes off until we were half naked, but we were still dying of heat! We spent about an hour in that hell, before one of the crew came back and told us that we're finally off the hook, but at the moment he opened the door we bolted out, almost crushing him in the process, and we looked desperately for something to cool down our bodies. Since then, we got lucky we didn't bump another Coast Guard to go to that place again."
Dang couldn't help but laugh at Alex's story. "At least something interested happened on your journey." He stepped on the break in front of a red light. "Hey, would you like to listen' some music?"
Alex raised his eyebrow. "I don't know, man. Hearing Spanish rock music is one thing, but I'm not sure if I would enjoy them with that language which is hard to understand."
"Oh no, my friend. I can assure you this is so much better than that."
Dang turned on the radio and spun the knob to find a channel, and after brief static noises, Alex suddenly recognized the riffs on an electric guitar and the drums smashing, before the singer sang the first lyrics of the song.
I was born in a cross-fire hurricane. And I howled at the morning driving rain.
But it's all right now, in fact, it's a gas! But it's all right. I'm Jumpin' Jack Flash It's a gas, gas, gas!
"No way, is that the Rolling Stone's song?!" Alex reacted in surprise. "They broadcast our favorite songs?"
"Apparently they love the Western music culture, especially in the US." Dang said as he continued to drive, when the red light turned green. "The channel we're listening right now is from RCR, Roanapur Classic Rock. They feature the best songs from the 50's to 70's. And this is not the only radio station by the way, there´s more channels which broadcast songs from other genres, including from this decade."
"You're serious?" Alex replied in disbelief.
"I'm not done," Dang responded. "In this city, you don't have to need to exchange your cash for Thailand money. You can purchase anything and even paying a taxi driver with dollars, just like that."
"Okay, seriously, did Thailand become influenced by America or something?" Alex asked, still finding himself hard to believe what he just heard.
"Beats me." Dang replied with a shrug. "Probably, maybe. But that doesn't mean you will find people waving the US flags. Maybe because since this country has the highest poverty rate, they find the US dollar as an easy economy."
"Right, tell them about the Reagan´s recession." Alex said with a scoff, before he remained silent with no further questions.
"Alright, we're here." Dang slowed down before he parked in front of a small light blue house in a neighborhood.
Alex just noticed the painting was gradually faded, which gave him the idea that this house was old and lack of maintenance. He mentally crossed his fingers, hoping once he sees the inside of the house it wouldn't be a shithole.
After Dang turned off the vehicle, they stepped out of the car and while Alex picked his luggage out of the back trunk, Dang unlocked the main door with his key and opened the door; he let Alex be the first to get in. Dang was next to entering the house and shut the door behind him, before he turned on a switch. The lights from a ceiling lamp blinked a couple of times until they got fully lit.
Alex looked around the living room, with cream colored walls and the rug carpet covered all over the floor. In front of a dark brown polyester couch and a plaid armchair, there was a small coffee table with some magazines, and a stand with a Goldstar TV on top of it. Next to the living room, a square table with two chairs and on the left side there was an entrance which surely leads to the kitchen. Alex noticed a small picture of a bouquet of flowers hanged onto a wall, he wondered why Dang bought something like that, but he thought he needed some decoration to make the house a little bit colorful.
"Follow me, I'll show you the room." Dang said as he went upstairs.
Alex followed him until they're in the second floor, which was only a short hallway with two doors. Dang led Alex to the second door on the right and opened the door to let his friend take a look at his new room. It was pretty small, with light blue walls and a window overlooking the street. There was a single bed, supported with four cinder blocks each corner, a night stand with a lamp on top next to the bed, and in the right corner a dresser with three drawers in the right corner.
"Here's it is. Before you told me you decided to come here, it used to be just a junk room before. It took me a lot of time to clean all that mess and I had to fix the cracks on the walls. Hope you'll feel comfortable." Dang said, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed.
Alex dropped his duffel bag next to the night stand and sat on the bed.
"Where did you get this bed?" He asked, bouncing up and down to feel if the mattress was in good condition.
"From a flea market in a coastal street, about ten miles from here. Found a stand selling mattresses with low prices. I was lucky to find this one which wasn't worn out like the others."
"Well, you did a good job." Alex complimented, very pleased to know he won't get any trouble to sleep.
Alex stood up out of the bed and they walked out of the bedroom and went back to the living room.
"So what do you think?" Dang asked.
Alex looked around to his new house once more, and after a short moment of thinking, he answered.
"You know, I thought this would be like in the ghettos, but I'm glad I was wrong. I wonder though, how did you manage to survive in a place like this?" Alex asked as he took off his cap and slumped down in the couch.
Dang took his seat on the armchair. "It wasn't easy, to be honest. I've been working as a janitor for five years while I was living in an apartment. Since then, not only I managed to buy a house, also I was able to open my own business."
"Really? What do you do?" Alex asked in surprise.
"I own a small noodle shop in a market downtown. It's not like I get so many customers, but at least I earn some money to buy some food." Dang replied.
"Hang on, you never told me you can make noodles." Alex responded with a raised eyebrow.
"Actually, I didn't know how to do that before. But I knew many people always love that kind of food, especially in this continent. So I decided to learn how to make it. Tell you what, one of these days I'll take you there so you can taste my cooking. How's that sound?" Dang said with a smile.
"Of course. Only if you don't serve bugs and rats." Alex replied with a chuckle.
Dang flinched at his friend's response, before he picked up one of the magazines from the coffee table and threw it to Alex. The forty-year-old man blocked the magazine with his arm and laughed loudly.
"You never can take a joke!" Alex said as he recovered his breath.
Dang let out a sigh as he shook his head. "I can tolerate, but you better not to say something like that to the other people around here. I warn you, they will skin your ass." He replied with no humor on his voice.
Alex leaned back against the couch and closed his eyes to take a moment to rest, after the long tiring trip; since then, the silence invaded the environment. However, Dang's face grew in deep thought, trying to think what to do next after he already showed his friend where he's going to sleep. Suddenly, he seemed to realize there was a small detail he wanted to know from Alex.
"Hey, there's something I've been meaning to ask you… How do you feel after you left the US?" Dang finished the question softly, very unsure if Alex would be willing to answer.
Alex widened his eyes before he turned his gaze at Dang in surprise, clearly not expecting that kind of question. He leaned forward with his hands clenched together, staring directly to the floor without answering. Dang noticed Alex seemed to ponder, like he was having trouble how to respond, but Dang knew he would react that way because that was not an easy question.
"I don't know… I thought I'd be glad after all the shit I've been through for so long. But…" Alex sighed and shook his head. "Like I said, I don't know. Why do you ask?" He said.
"I was wondering if you feel at least a little bit of nostalgia. I mean, being far away from your homeland, I don't see you're happy with it."
Alex nodded in understanding. "I get it. Well, I do miss a few things back in California. The heat in the beaches, the roller-skaters in bikinis, even that diner where it was the only place I could eat in peace." His lips curled into a slight smile when he remembered the only good memories he had, but then his smile disappeared and shook his head. "But I was sick tired how the people were looking down at me, so I don't regret. Although, sometimes I think things would be different if I go with you when we parted."
"I don't think so." Dang replied plainly, as he crossed his legs. "I didn't have a good time when I set on foot in this city either. When I was mopping the floors, my boss and some people in the office were total assholes with me. And the reason I moved out from my old apartment was because it was stinky as hell and there was no hot water, can you believe that?"
"Why does that kind of stuff happen to us… It seems like the world is really against us, isn't it?" Alex said, still with his downcast eyes.
"You could say that." Dang admitted. He stood up and approached Alex, before he gave a comforting pat on his friend's shoulder. "But hey, now that we're together again, we can move forward no matter what kind of deep shit awaits us."
"Yeah… I guess you're right." Alex replied drawly, but he didn't raise his head.
Dang realized Alex didn't look convinced at his optimism, and that concerned him because it would mean Alex was losing his will to live after the experiences he doesn't want to remember or talk about. After they miraculously survived in a conflict which they were forced to be part with, they both knew their lives turned more complicated when they strived to have a new life. But Alex had it worse and that was the reason he had to leave from his country and find help.
Dang was the only one who never bothered to help Alex anything he needed, without even asking for something in return. The only thing he needed is Alex's wellness and nothing else. And right now, he needs help.
Dang thought he should take him somewhere to cheer him up. Fortunately, he knew only one place where Alex would enjoy so he could wear the frown off his face. He checked his Casio watch; it was quarter after 8 PM, still early to think it could be the right time to go outside for a while.
"Hey, I have an idea! How about I take you to a bar to celebrate our reunion?" Dang suggested with a grin.
Dang noticed Alex perked up at his offer. He grew thoughtfully silent, but then he looked now convinced before he nodded with his head.
"Sounds a great idea. I guess the bar you're gonna take me is good, right?" He asked.
"Of course, and I can assure you their drinks don't taste like rat piss." Dang replied.
Alex let out a chuckle. "Alright, then I'm in." He stood up from the couch.
They both walked out of the house and went into the car and Dang drove off while listening more of Roanapur Classic Rock, much to their delight.
After ten minutes of driving through the city, Dang parked on a sidewalk in the middle of a coastal street, right in front of a three-story building, with nine large windows each floor, plus four in the corners, with a neon sign above the entrance which says 'Yellow Flag'. Alex and Dang got out of the car and crossed the street, on their way towards to the building.
Alex was undoubtedly surprised the bar could be larger than he imagined, though he raised his eyebrow when he read the sign, but not because he thinks it's a bad name.
Just when they were near to the large wooden double-doors, they saw a young woman coming out of the building. With dark purplish hair tied in ponytail, and wore a short dark tank top, Daisy Duke short jeans, partially undone but held by a military web-belt and dark green combat boots. Even she had a tribal tattoo on her right upper arm to her shoulder.
Alex stared at the woman, puzzled by her look, but when he noticed she was walking forward, he stepped aside to not bump her. He flinched when the young woman gave him a cold glare for some reason, but she said nothing as she passed by. Alex was about to continue his way, but then he realized something that he turned back to the woman. He saw she was wearing shoulder holsters, but what shocked him was she was carrying a pair of pistols.
In conclusion, she was overtly armed. And if she was inside the bar, why no one has called the police?
"Alex, are you come in or what?"
The middle-aged man snapped out, before he turned around and saw Dang holding the door open, waiting for him to get inside first. Alex turned back to the young woman as she was now far away from him. After staring at her for a few seconds, still Alex decided to continue his way and went through the establishment, as Dang followed him.
Alex took the moment to look around the enormous room, with fifteen round tables of four chairs each, four precast concrete columns and eight pendant lights on the ceiling.
The place was almost packed, as Alex heard the laughs from the customers, even the blues rock music from a rock-ola beside him was fulfilling the environment; some other people were playing poker with real money or chatting with some women. Alex almost bumped into an old man who got drunk after taking too many shots as he stumbled out the building.
There was a huge bar ahead with fifteen stools and there was the barman who was cleaning the beer mugs, just as any barman's routine.
Alex and Dang walked towards the bar to order the bartender for their drinks. But then Alex noticed that some people were staring at him as he was walking by, maybe because he's new in this bar, but he realized they're not giving him a some kind of welcome. He couldn't help but think that this was like one of the western movies, when a stranger just came in and for some reason everyone stared directly at him. Alex felt now uncomfortable by being watched in that way, but he decided to just ignore the eyes around him.
When they reached the bar, Alex got the closer look to the owner of the establishment. The barman an Asian, olive skinned, but he doesn't seem to be a Thai. He's around the same age as Alex, with short dark hair and thin mustache. And he's dressed with a dark brown sleeveless vest on top of his white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and black pants.
"Do you need something?" The barkeeper asked in English to the foreigner.
"A bottle of Heinkel." Dang was the first one to order his drink.
"For me the same, please." Alex said, holding his index finger up.
The bartender nodded and went towards to the shelf and grabbed a couple of glass bottles, and then he uncapped them with a bottle opener before he gave the beers to them.
Alex thanked the bartender before he and his friend went to look for a free spot, until they found it in the far left side, as they took their seats.
"My friend, from now on, we work together to find a better future. For our survival." Dang raised his bottle to Alex.
He smiled before they clinked their bottles and took a long sip. Since then, they started to tell some funny stories and remembering some good experiences they had together, while listening "Rough Boy" by ZZ Top from the junkbox.
He thought that could ease his bad vibes, but somehow he felt that something was not right around this place. One of the reasons was he just realized that most of these people have guns keeping on their holsters or exposing on top of the tables.
Alex gripped his bottle, his instinct suddenly warned that he should be careful, but he didn't feel ready to be part in an imminent shootout here. However, he noticed that nobody were glaring at each other, even though they don't have friendly faces. They were just enjoying their drinks and nothing more. Then why they had to bring guns, he wondered. Maybe it's legal in this city, probably for protection or something.
"Dude, you're okay?" Alex snapped out when Dang talked to him, with a frown of concern. "You look very distracted."
"I'm okay… It's just…" Alex leaned closer to Dang. "Have you noticed that everyone here has a gun?" He replied with a whisper so nobody would hear that question that could bring attention.
The question made Dang look around until he realized Alex was right. However, Alex noticed he was not even surprise.
"Yeah… I can see that. I know how you feel, but you have to stay cool." Dang replied with a suggestion.
"Wait, how can you be so calm about this?" Alex demanded with a frown, perplexed at the lack of nervousness from his friend.
Dang sighed and answered. "Listen, I know you never expect this would be like you've seen the commercials about beautiful islands on TV, but you should have know Roanapur isn't a city with tolerant people. But to answer to your question, there will be always someone looking for trouble for many but stupid reasons, so what you're seeing right now is because they're trying to look themselves tough, but take a look at this guy." He pointed to the skinny man, trying to impress a couple of his friends by spinning his pistol with his finger. "He doesn't look like he fired a gun before, and his gun appears to be lighter, it must be unloaded."
"Yeah, I can see why." Alex replied after he noticed the skinny man's gun hasn't a magazine detached.
"The point is, the reason I have no trouble with these people is because I'm not worth of attention. They don't see me carrying a gun, they think I'm just a wimp. They don't see you carrying a gun, they think you're just a tired old man, no offense. And trust me, is better this way."
"I suppose you're right." Alex replied after he let out a sigh. "As long as I stay out of trouble, everything will be okay."
But before he was about to sit back and enjoy his drink, he heard the main entrance being opened, he turned to the right and saw a group of new customers entering the bar. All of them were dressed in suits, Alex could only thought they only must be business people. He watched them walking to the bar counter, before it turned out they were surrounding a loner person, dressed only with a dark green shirt and brown bermuda shorts. He was drinking a whole bottle of whiskey with no glass and he seems stressed out. Alex could tell that man had a bad day to drink like that.
One of them, a blond guy dressed on grey suit, sat down beside of the lonely one, as the others were still standing behind.
"Hey there, pal. You doin' okay?" The blond guy asked with a friendly tone.
The young man stared at the blond guy and the other men in shock. "H-How did you know I was here?!" He stammered, it appears that he didn't want to be found by those men for some reason.
"Actually I had the feeling you'd be here after the recent… incident." The blond guy finished the sentence coldly.
The young man's hands began to tremble that he couldn't stop shaking the bottle he was holding.
"I know you weren't there, but I'm pretty sure you must have heard what happened. We all know there's no way our little compound was compromised by accident after a while; in fact, we believe that someone has told them about it." The blond guy said as his tone turned dead serious. However, he was already aware at the young man's nervousness. "You doin' okay? You look very agitated."
"I-It's not a big deal. I… I-I'm just concern about this situation, t-that's all." The young man took a long drink of his bottle, as he avoided the eye contact with the blond man. Unfortunately for him, it turned out to be a terrible excuse.
"Concerned? That's strange from you since you never acted like that before, and now you're sounding like you feel guilty." The blond guy replied, without looking at the young man in his eyes.
The young man let out a nervous chuckle. "W-Wait, don't tell me you're thinking that I did something wrong?"
"I don't… But I know." He answered, before the young man went petrified. "We managed to catch one of the attackers and get some information out of him. He said that someone of our own was the one who compromised our operation, but he didn't know the name. However, since we didn't hear any word from you and you didn't show up at the meeting, we got the idea that might be you."
The young man seemed to be overwhelmed by the pressure, before he put his elbows on the counter with his hands on the head, as he was having trouble to control his breathing. The blond haired man turned to him, without anything to say or how to react after he realized that his assumption proved to be right. Meanwhile, Alex and Dang were watching the scene, both of them pretty tensed; they couldn't hear what they were saying, but the only thing there were so sure is that it doesn't look like a good sign by watching how a person is getting cornered by a bunch of suited men.
"P-Please, listen to me. I am really sorry for what I have done, but I swear I didn't mean to do that!" He implored for mercy, now distressed because of the fear of suffering the imminent pain he's going to receive. "They took me as a hostage and threatened to torture me if I wouldn't give them what they wanted! I was scared and-" He trailed off when the blond haired man patted his back.
"Hey, hey, take it easy, son. We didn't come here to do something that anyone would do to a snitch. I know this is not your fault because you would never do such a thing to your pals, but you had no choice."
"You… You mean it?" The young man asked in a mix of surprise and hope.
"Of course, and you don't have to worry about our boss, he's not pissed as you think. He just asked us to find you and bring you with him so you can talk over, that's all. Now I'm not sure if that means you're in a big trouble, but maybe you and him can work this out, and I'll be there for you." The blond man gave him a reassured smile.
In that moment, the young man's worries began to disappear and become finally relaxed, even though a little, after being stressed out.
"I… I didn't know that, but I'm really glad to hear it! S-So I guess we shouldn't make him wait and let's go!" But before he was about to stand up from the stool, the blond haired guy held up his hand
"Wait, before we leave, our boss asked us to do this before we take you out."
He glanced at the man in a brown suit who was smoking a cigarette, before gave him a nod.
The brown suited man approached, and before the young man realized, he gripped his hair and yanked him back to make him stare at the roof. He took the cigarette out from his lips between his fingers and then pressed into the forehead, making the snitcher howl in agony when he felt his skin burning. The scream brought the attention to all the people as they turned their heads directly to that scene. Only Alex and Dang were shocked what they just witnessed.
"I'm sorry how this is going my friend, but you swore the oath and you always knew what consequences you'd face if you broke it. But you did it and it's something that the boss would never allow and forgive."
Suddenly, the blond haired man heard a sound of a gun cocking, turned out that the bartender took out a shotgun under the counter and was aiming towards him.
"If you guys are gonna blow a brain all over my fucking bar, do it outside!" The bartender barked with the urge of pulling the trigger.
In response, the rest of the men in suit pulled their guns out of their jackets and pointed towards to the barman. However, that didn't force the barman to lower his weapon, even though he knew he was outnumbered. Alex and Dang were frozen because they just noticed that some of the customers had their hands on their handguns, ready to unleash the classic shootout in the bar, only which it's something much worse than what the people watch in the movie theaters.
"Lower your guns, boys!" The blond haired man shouted as he scowled at his men.
They looked at each other in hesitation, but they decided to comply as they lowered their guns slowly and kept them back into their jackets. However, the barman had his shotgun still up.
"I am very sorry about that, I should have known this was such an inappropriate moment to let my partner do something like that in your establishment. You see, this man has caused a lot of trouble and we're just here to take care of him." He pointed to the young man, who had his face covered with his hands as he didn't stop whimpering.
"I don't give a shit what's your fucking business, just take your friend's ass and yours the hell out of here before I'll spend my shells on the tip of your goddamn brains!" The bartender spat.
The blond haired man didn't answer, but a slight nod was enough to let the bartender know he got the message. "Get him out of here guys, and make sure he won't try to get away."
The brown suited one and one of his partners grabbed the young man by the shoulders and dragged him all the way towards the exit. He was crying for help as he was trying to break free, but nobody paid attention to him. The moment when he and the supposed business men crossed the door, not even a person spoke to suggest doing something about it like calling the cops. They just continued their drinks, as the barman kept the shotgun and minded his own business. Alex and Dang were the only ones who were still completely stunned after what they have seen, even perplexed that no one seemed concerned at the shocking event. Alex had the thought of go out and save that guy, but after he saw those men in suit with guns, he realized not only it would be suicide, but also dumb.
"Let's get the fuck outta here." Alex spoke in a low tone, now feeling alarmed to stay in the bar.
Dang nodded with his head with a disturbed expression. "Yeah, I know." He left a bill on the table as a tip, before he and Alex stood up from the table and made their way to the door, while trying to ignore some stares. After they got out, they hastily crossed the road before they got into the car and then Dang drove off.
The ride turned out to be very quiet, even the radio was off because they were not in the mood to listen some rock music. Alex was staring out the window, tapping his knee with his finger as he was biting his lower lip, while Dang was focusing on the road, but he didn't stop gripping the wheel that his knuckles turned white.
They couldn't get the images of the recent events couldn't get out of their minds. However, Alex was very intrigued to understand how something like that could've happen back there. He wanted to just remember what Dang told him to stay out of trouble, but now he's starting to think that it won't be that easy after he almost got involved in a gun standoff between the bartender and those guys in suit.
"Alright, what the fuck was that?" He decided to speak up.
"I… I don't know. I don't come around there very often, but sometimes a brawl happens and that's pretty normal for everyone, even the bartender. But this… This is new… I didn't even realize the barman had a shotgun." Dang replied bluntly.
"And who the hell were those guys? For someone who wears one of those suits to keep a goddamn gun inside, they look like they're from a mafia or some shit." Alex turned back to the window, but suddenly he grew thoughtful, before he turned back to Dang. "Are they?"
Suddenly, Dang showed a little hesitated to answer that, but he knew he couldn't stay quiet to leave his friend tensed. In fact, he already saw a couple of many things what makes the city very dangerous, maybe he won't have a chance to survive unless he learns the truth. But before Dang was about to answer, a black van appeared out of the corner before turning to the same road he was driving, but in the opposite direction.
Dang turned the wheel abruptly as the van passed them before they were about to crash, before stopping the car as the wheels screeched.
"Watch where you're going, asshole!" Alex shouted with his head sticking out to the window, as he gave the middle finger to whoever was driving.
"Calm down! Be glad we're still alive!" Dang retorted at his outburst as he dragged him back inside.
"That dumbass just drove right in front of us! How the fuck am I supposed to calm down?!" Alex yelled, breathing frantically as he almost saw his life flashing before his eyes.
"Look, just take it easy, I'm sure the driver will be in so much trouble once a police car pulls him over, alright?" Dang patted on his shoulder to at least calm his nerves.
Alex sighed exasperatedly as he decided to follow his advice and taking a moment to relax. However, when he looked out through the window, he saw a small crowd gathered in front of a building. Some of them had the horror look on their faces, which it didn't take too long for him to assume what's going on.
"I'll be right back." Alex stated and got out of the car, tripping towards to the crowd.
"Wait, where you're going?!" Dang cursed before he stepped out of the car to follow him.
When Alex was now facing towards the scene the multitude was watching, he got the same reaction as the other people, as he felt his stomach turning.
Inside the small building was a barber shop, or at least what it used to be because the windows were shattered and the establishment was practically destroyed. The walls were filled with holes and some furniture was completely destroyed. But the most disturbing detail is that there were corpses of the barbers and the customers, with their bodies riddled and the floor was stained with pools of blood.
"Jesus Christ…" Alex muttered, covering his mouth with his hand like he's about to throw up.
"Huh, first time you see something like this?" Someone spoke with an Asian accent.
Alex turned to the old man standing beside him, standing with arms folded and wearing a frown. Unlike the witnesses, he doesn't seem horrified at this bloody sight.
"What do you mean?" Alex inquired in confusion.
"This is not the first time this happens, last time I witnessed was a shootout in a market, and before that I saw a man shooting another." The old man grumbled as he shook his head. "Nothing has changed at all, but I guess I got used to it." He turned to the foreigner. "If you have a chance to go back to your country, do it. If you can't, well, I suggest you to learn how to carry a gun."
Alex watched him walking away in bewilderment, but before he would ponder, he heard the sirens coming closer. Suddenly Dang came up to him and dragged him away from the crime scene.
"Alex, come on, let's get the hell outta here!"
Alex decided to listen to him before they went back into the vehicle and Dang drove away. However, the moment when Alex glanced at Dang, a thought come to his mind that for the first time, he's having trust issues with his friend.
One thing he was very sure though, is that he's going to have a serious discussion with him.
N/A: Just want to tell you a detail about this fanfic that I think you might be interested to know.
The title of the story is based off a song by an Argentinian band, Soda Stereo. The name of the song in Spanish is Ciudad de la Furia; love that song by the way. I recommend you to hear that song, I know it's in Spanish but I'm sure you will find it with English subtitles.
And I want to thank BigCountry75 for doing the book cover for my fanfiction. Thank you so much man.
One more thing, I want to ask you again to go to my profile to see my big announcement, it's really important.