Reaper returns with long and thick sticks of wood, and discovers that the fire has already disappeared. Eda is blowing at the fire to keep it going, but no results come from it. She notices Reaper coming out of the dark forest. The moonlight shines on Reaper and she sees an evidently feature that shows that he was shot.
While Reaper puts the pile of wooden sticks aside,
"That IS a big scar…" Eda remarks, "From Balalaika, you say?"
Reaper looks down to the scar on his chest and nods, "Yes."
He touches the clothing next to the fireplace, and finds that it is almost-fully dry. Reaper starts to put back on his white business shirt, and Eda watches with her blue radiant eyes.
"You know, I never wanted to come here in the first place." Eda confesses.
"…?"
"I was just ready to become a field agent when my superior called me in, and…he provided me the information about Roanapur." Eda explains, "He told me what my mission is and I got a little, well…quite upset about it. Standing around and act like a nun, and just trade off tagged weaponry while I wait for the right moment when I can get the Triads, and even Hotel Moscow, to finally go down. However, obviously, things got out of hands. My OWN country is not doing anything about what's happening back in the city, and I'm stuck here like a played fool, tied up by the one who started messing up my job."
"…"
"But hey, I knew the risks anyway. I'm just another sheep in the open, waiting until the wolf catches up."
"…If you knew the risks…" Eda notices Reaper's change in tone, and sees Rock returning to his kind self, "…why did you take it?"
"…Hm…" Eda smirks, "I guess it's my way to prove myself. I was the lowest skilled agent in the box of goodies, and I thought this would be an opportunity for me to get some points. Then years pass by, and I started to realize why they really wanted me here. A lookout…I am here to just lookout for the agency and report them about the movement of the criminal organizations. If it comes down to it, I have to be the first one to engage battle with them. I get killed, and the CIA use that reason to get the President off his ass and do something about it. Earlier today, I thought I got the chance."
"…!" Rock remembers the time when he was at the side of the road and Eda comes up behind him, "You were there because you wanted to take on Chang himself…"
"Yeah…" Eda nods and looks back at the dead fire, "After Chang wanted some weapons to fight against Balalaika and said he figured out that I was an agent, I called my boss and told him that the Triads and Hotel Moscow are going at it. He reminded me of what I needed to do…so…around after the fight at the hospital, I called Chang and said that since he knew who I was, I have to act. It was time for us to meet face to face, and the man gave me the time and place."
"…"
"…Then that's how I met you." The blonde woman brings her eyes back to Rock, "You were there, too…and I was surprised. I'm sure you realized, that not only did Chang cowardly went back on his words on both of us, I lost my chance to kill him or be killed myself and get the agency to take action. And this plan of yours…it's gonna cost me a whole lot."
"…" Rock crunches his fists.
It seems he is hurting more people that he thought.
"But…in a sense…I saved your life for the better." Rock firmly states.
"Psh…Saved…?" Eda scoffs, "I am not some pretty blonde you assume to be dumb and careless. This is what I do, cuz' this is what the agency does."
"…Why…?" Rock's eyebrows scrunch, "How can you tell if they really need you to do this?"
Eda shrugs her shoulders, "I'm an American, Rock. We are foolhardy people with egos controlling a system of networks that makes us become media-whores. I'm willing to shoot an Arab with a turban in the face and sing a Bob Dylan song while sitting on it, and the best I could get, is a medal and a handshake. It doesn't matter if they didn't want me to do this…I'm doing this for me."
"…" Rock shifts his legs up and puts his arms on top of his knees, "I worked for a business myself six years ago. It was back in Tokyo, Japan. I was a salary man for an industry called Asahi. All I did was work from the bottom and start climbing my way up. I worked hard and put my efforts into it. But, I, too, was a sheep. The industry was doing a smuggling operation and I, stupidly, participated. In order to cover up the operation, my chief boss had to turn the other way. Just when I thought I could go back to my normal life, I was abandoned. Nobody came looking for me, and no one cared."
"…They didn't come looking for you at all?" Eda questions.
"My boss eventually did. It was after the operation was over and he came by. He gave me an open door to go back, but…I refused."
"…?"
"That moment was when I finally have a choice on my own path. I can either go back and work like a mindless sheep, or live free as a wolf." Rock stares straight into Eda's gleaming irises, "I think you have a choice right now. When or not your agency is willing to support you is all on you. You can choose to think that they are wasting your talents or you can accept that their methods are what's best for you. Whatever it may be, I just hope you are not throwing your life away for someone who does not care for it."
"…I'm CIA, Rock." Eda restates in a low tone, "My life is no longer in my hands."
"…" Rock's facial lift droops downward, and Reaper returns, "You still have a choice, Eda. You can still choose."
"…"
Eda keeps quiet as Reaper takes a spare strap holder for his Kel-Tec and puts in around his torso. The folded Kel-Tec hooks onto Reaper's side, and can be easily concealed. He checks his Springfield again to ensure that it is still cleaned and loaded. After putting it back in the gun holster behind his belt, he gets up and observes the moon's positioning.
"Let's get moving."
Benny enters the hotel, far from the city of violence, and meets the receptionist behind a glass window of a wall.
"How's it been, my man?" A Haitian man with dreadlocks greets in a positive manner.
"Fine, just fine." Benny signs a sheet of paper on a clipboard that is lying on a small table in front of him.
"Ya, ya." The Haitian man nods, "Woman waiting for you upstairs, yea?"
"Yep. She's probably mad at me being late." Benny hands the sheet to the Haitian man.
"Woman like that, mean woman like you." The Haitian man points and takes the sheet of paper.
"I guess it's that way…" Benny shrugs with hands in his pockets.
"Ah, love a fine thing, my brother." The Haitian man cheerfully admires, "Rare thing in this city, yea?"
"…Yeah. I suppose it is."
"There ya go, my man." The Haitian man hands Benny the key to the rented room, "Get some tonight, yea?"
Benny chuckles at his suggestion. Thanking the Haitian receptionist, he goes up the stairs.
This blonde Jewish hacker is quite a lucky one. Being wanted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and runs for his life, he ends up here in the wicked city of Roanapur. Happiness comes in many forms in a city like this. The most common ones are killing enemies freely and drinking without limits. Love, however, is very bleak. To suddenly meet someone and develop a deep connection with that person around a place such as Roanapur is most unlikely. Benny, on the other hand, lands on that chance. What are the odds?
He opens the door to the rented room.
He sees the blonde brown girl in green trunks and yellow t-shirt looking out of the window while kneeling down on top of a chair.
"I'm back!" Benny calls in an upbeat voice.
"Huh?" Jane looks behind her and immediately smiles, "Hey!"
She quickly jumps on him with a big hug, "What took you so damn long?"
"I had to go oversea. Pirate's job, remember?" Benny holds her shoulders.
"Yeah, but all you needed is to find the stolen item, right? I don't think it takes almost three days to go get something that's about couple hundred miles out in the sea, that is full of other pirates, and military warships, and sharks, and…!" Jane babbles.
"Jane." Benny pinches her cheeks, "I'm back alive. No need to keep thinking that I might be dead."
Jane squeezes her lips together, and pulls back from the hug to look at him in the eyes, "Right. That's…good!"
Benny looks over to the window, "What were you doing anyway?"
"Wh-? Don't tell me you haven't passed through the city?" Jane exclaims.
"I took a shortcut. I let Dutch take my car so he could finish the rest of the job. Didn't wanna walk all the way here, my feet woulda fall off." Benny reasons as he sits on the bed.
"Well, something's goin' on back in the city." Jane returns to look out of the window, seeing darkness coming out of the districts, "It got really quiet over there…"
"Quiet? In Roanapur?" Benny chuckles, "Sweetie, if you spent at least one day and survived here, you know Roanapur's NOT the quiet kind."
"I KNOW that…" Jane whines with her tongue out, "But it really is out there."
"…I…guess I haven't been hearing the gangsters yodeling since I got back…" Benny runs his hand through his hair.
"I've been hearing rumors, too. And they were from the city."
"Rumors, eh? Ya know what they say about rumors…they're only rumors." Benny takes his shoes and socks off.
"Yeah, but these rumors are not the type to be ignored either." Jane sits on the chair while keeping her watch out outside the window, "It started around early this morning, then as the day pass by, the word on the street got quite ridiculous. But it was so ridiculous, that such a thing could be happening."
"…Hm…All right, let's hear it." Benny pushes his glasses upward, "What do the rumors say?"
Jane puts her attention back on Benny.
"Okay, well…" Jane pushes her glasses up too, "From what I heard…it all began in the morning like I said. Witnesses stated that six Triads members were shot and possibly killed by one man."
"Triads…?"
"Yes. There are also some people that claimed that they saw the man who shot them, but couldn't get a look on his face. They referred him as the 'man in black' because he was wearing black clothing. After the six Triads were shot, the leader became furious. He then armed himself and the remaining Triads to start a battle with the Russians of Hotel Moscow."
"Hotel Mos-? Why would they be involved?" Benny starts becoming interested.
"No one really knows for sure. Many people thought that the 'man in black' was someone who is working for Hotel Moscow. That's the only reasonable explanation. However, there was a leak of information. A man from the Triads actually stated that the 'man in black' informed the Triads that for the last four years, Hotel Moscow had been targeting Triads members and killed almost half of their numbers secretly. The 'man in black' apparently saved the six Triads from the Russians and got the leader of the Triads' attention. From that point, the 'man in black' became the leader's informant."
"…"
"And later after, the fight between the Triads and Hotel Moscow broke out at the Central Hospital. Everyone fled and went hiding in their homes, so that they wouldn't end up in the crossfire. Since then, the 'man in black' is called the bringer of death since he finally initiated the war between the two rival organizations and having them kill each other." Jane closes her eyes and takes a deep breath from her clarification.
"…"
"The 'man in black' became known as…" Jane reopens her eyes to Benny, "…the Reaper."
"Reaper…" Benny mumbles.
"Reaper has started the war in the city and the rumors say that during the battle, he fought against both leaders of the Triads and Hotel Moscow at the same time. But, none of them had killed each other. Reaper survived and is seen nowhere again. However, the battle with the Chinese and Russian mafia is still going. They are probably getting ready for the second onslaught, and that's why it's so quiet in the city right now." Jane clenches her green shorts.
"…" Benny deeply, but silently, exhales and takes off his glasses, "That…sounds hard to believe. After all, the Triads and Hotel Moscow try to avoid getting into a fight with each other. And from that, you saying that it only took one guy to start that kind of mess?"
"Mm-hmm…as you said…they are ONLY rumors." Jane moves and sits next to Benny on the bed.
"…"
They sat there in stillness as the creaking of the spinning fan on the ceiling takes over.
"Whatever happens then, it won't get to us." Benny wraps his arm around Jane, "As long we don't try and get involved, we should be safe."
"…" Jane holds his hand on her shoulder, "I hope you're right."
"Hey, wait a minute, I'm a computer genius; my brain's more than capable of being right."
Jane giggles at his comment, "Oh yeah, I forgot about that."
The both of them laugh and relieve the stress off. Their worries are beginning to disappear and they have nothing but each other.
"Hey, I don't want to be in the mix of things, but…remember that Japanese man in your crew…"
"…" Benny's smile lessens but still stays on his face, "Yeah, uh…he's been gone for four years now."
"I know, but, I just wanna know you and the others are feeling?"
"I'm doing okay, I suppose. Been kinda hard not to have anyone to talk to the same way as Rock. Dutch's pretty hardcore, he doesn't crack easily, but he's still taking it tough." Benny puts his hands onto his lap.
"And…that other Chinese woman?"
"Revy? She's…" Benny tries to come up with the most definite answer, "…I don't know."
"Were she and him…"
"…?"
"You know…"
"What…?"
"Like how you and me are right now." Jane holds Benny's hand on his lap, "But with her and the Japanese man."
"Oh!" Benny widens his eyes, "Those two? No way! Not ever. Revy and Rock? The world's gotta be exploding before that ever happens."
"…hm…"
"…"
"So, now that we're alone finally." Jane takes off her glasses and positions her shoulders seductively, "Wanna relax a bit?"
Benny's smiles comes back in full, "That's why I came back, right?"
Reaper tosses Eda's priest clothes in front of her.
"Put your clothes on." Reaper demands.
"And how exactly am I going to do that with my hands tied up like this?" Eda queries, "This jacket can't come off on its own."
"…"
Reaper traverses over behind Eda and begins to untie the blue tie that is binding her wrists together. The tie comes off and Eda brings her hands in front of her to start rubbing her wrists. She stands up and tries to smooth the pain.
"Damn…" Eda hisses, "Doesn't hurt that much if it was rope…"
"…"
Reaper situates himself behind Eda and put his hands on her shoulders to take back his leather jacket. Eda takes the opportunity at once. She elbows Reaper right in the stomach, causing him to grimace from the impact. She spins around and steals the Springfield Armory 1911 TRP pistol out from his gun holster behind him. She pulls the hammer back and aims it directly at Reaper's head.
"…!"
"Oops…you got careless." Eda smirks.
"…" Reaper mentally curses with annoyance.
"Don't forget you just got yourself in a heap of trouble, a trouble that I have to deal with. I really have no time for diversions. My deal is with Chang and his organization. If you really want to get in my way again, I might as well kill you right now and get it over with." Eda threatens.
"…You still want to go through this…?" Reaper eyes at her.
"This is my job. Sorry to have your heart broken, but I'm gonna have to ask you to drop that Kel-Tec of yours and get on the ground."
"…"
"Didn't hear me?" Eda walks up and places the barrel to Reaper's forehead, "I said drop the-!"
Reaper, swiftly, turns and grabs her arm and neck, and uses a throwing technique on her, Harai Makikomi. A sweep wraparound movement that slams Eda down onto the pile of wooden sticks, and Reaper falls down with her in the process. The collision has Eda release the Springfield and Reaper grabs it. Eda is on her back on top of the broken sticks and Reaper gets onto his feet. Maintaining a distance away from her, Reaper aims at Eda with his pistol.
"If you want to use a gun, at least do it without getting so close." Reaper warns.
"…ugh…fuck…" Eda wriggles from the pain of her back.
Reaper grabs her priest clothes again, "Now, I'm going to ask you one more time, put your clothes on."
He throws the clothes on her while Eda growls with frustration.
She reluctantly removes the leather jacket and flings it to Reaper.
Eda dresses herself with her usual get-up she's been wearing for years.
Dutch knocks on the door of a house that is close to the beach on the other side of the island. It is a house of white wood and fined to high quality. The man, who hired the Lagoon Company to pursue the stolen item, is an Italian. Luckily, he is not connected to the mafia in any way…in hopeful thoughts.
The door opens and a white skin, sleek-hair blonde man, with braces on his teeth, in a tan suit exits. He looks at Dutch with a glance and passes by him without a word. Dutch persists on watching him walk toward his own car with tinted windows and drives off. There was no doubt about it.
That man is the new head of the Italian mafia organization of Roanapur.
He is Ronny "The Jaws."
Then, the hirer comes up to the door and spots Dutch standing on his porch. He is also a blonde wearing a suit, but with a white vest and pants, and an orange dress shirt inside. The hirer notices the shotgun in Dutch's hand and elicits a slender sense of panic.
"Ah, you have returned." The Italian man greets, "With the item, I presume?"
"Of course, Mr. Ferrari." Dutch hands him the bag containing the item.
The hirer takes the bag and looks inside to confirm. He has a satisfied look on his face.
"Well done, sir." Mr. Ferrari smiles, "Would you like to come in while I collect your payment?"
"Got any beer?" Dutch asks.
"Why yes. Do you enjoy Birra Moretti?"
"Never heard of that."
"Well, I insist on trying it." Mr. Ferrari makes way for Dutch to enter.
Dutch goes inside the house with his shotgun, and is astonished how small the inside actually is. The walls are close enough to make a narrow hallway and the stairs that leads upstairs are literally behind one of the walls. The living room is in the same room as the kitchen, and the restroom is across from the side to where the staircases begin. Dutch is also astounded at the number of paintings hanging on the walls.
Mr. Ferrari notices him studying each painting he passes by.
"Do you like paintings?" Mr. Ferrari puts the small bag with the item in his pocket.
"Not much have a taste for them. Last time I took interest in paintings, believe it or not, Nazis were involved, and things got pretty ugly from there." Dutch answers with the shotgun up on his shoulder.
"I see."
Dutch stops at one peculiar painting.
The art appears as a woman in a dress of gold that has eye-looking symbols, standing in a background filled with also golden colors.
"That painting has a history with Nazis as well." Mr. Ferrari stands besides Dutch.
"Hmm…is that right?"
"Quite so. The woman in the painting is the wife of a wealthy industrialist who had a keen interest with the one who created this. The artist's name is Gustav Klimt. The woman's name is Adele Bloch-Bauer. She passed away with an unfortunate death of meningitis, and her husband, the industrialist, was to take care of the painting. However, when the Nazis began to dominate Austria in 1938, the husband had to flee, leaving behind the beautiful painting of his wife. The Nazis took it in and now it must stay in the Austrian museum." Mr. Ferrari tells the painting's history.
"Why is it here, then?" Dutch asks.
"This painting is meant to go to the rightful owner, who is the niece of the widowed husband named Maria Altmann. I was to momentarily hold onto this painting so that she could see it personally. She wishes to argue against the Austrian government to take back her uncle's painting. "
"Now that's dangerous to hold onto a property of Germans' and getting yourself caught between a standoff."
"Ah, it is. That's what makes it so fascinating!" Mr. Ferrari smirks, "A piece of art like this, being the source of rightful ownership, and starting a mist of battle with the owners. Extraordinary, don't you think?"
"…"
Mr. Ferrari holds his hands behind his back and awes at the painting, "The things people die for. For war…or for art…it's all so…abstruse."
"…" Dutch lowers his shotgun and hangs it by his side, "I think I'll have that beer, now."
"Ah, yes!" Mr. Ferrari snaps out of his trance, "Come along."
The both of them enter the living room. Dutch sits on one of the chairs that is closest to the main window, so he can see the outside front door. Mr. Ferrari goes inside the adjacent kitchen to fetch the beers and Dutch's payment. He returns to the living room with both.
"There you go." Mr. Ferrari gives Dutch a briefcase and places an opened beer bottle on the table for him.
Mr. Ferrari sits on a chair while Dutch checks the payment inside of the briefcase.
"No problems here." Dutch states as he closes the briefcase, and he drinks the beer with a relaxed mind.
"I appreciate your work, Mr. Dutch. Is this what you do here in Roanapur?" Mr. Ferrari drinks his own bottle of the Birra Moretti beer.
"Pretty much. After fighting the war in Vietnam, I couldn't help but find myself more comfortable here in the city." Dutch sets the shotgun standing next to the chair's edge on the floor.
"Hmm…a city of violence, comfortable? That's rather intriguing." Mr. Ferrari crosses his legs.
"And you, Mr. Ferrari? You a collector?"
"In that sort of terms, yes I am."
"Is it that fun to you? I mean, you just had an item stolen by a bunch of pirates and you hired other pirates to get it back. I'm sure you know what pirates can easily do?"
"Oh, yes…I am fully aware of what evils people with guns can do. It's just I have to find the right ones, no?"
"…" Dutch gulps another sip of beer, "…So…it is fun to you."
"Hmm…" Mr. Ferrari swirls the beer in his bottle, "I…am a man who values items. Are you familiar with that kind of value?"
"Kinda self-explanatory."
"Well, it all started when I was young child of ten. My father gave me a present on my birthday celebration. It was in a box wrapped in black and blue stripes. I tore off the wrapping paper and the bow tie. I opened the box and I saw an object of strange."
"…?"
"It was… a rock."
"Rock…?" Dutch cocks an eyebrow.
"That is correct, a rock." Mr. Ferrari smirks and sips his beer again, "A rock that I have no interest in whatsoever. My father explained to me that this rock bears a special trait that I should treasure because it was out of this world. A simple rock. Why would I need to treasure a rock? It was an insignificant rock to me. There was nothing special about it to my eyes. It looked just like any other rocks I see on the streets. I was ten at the time, so I was naïve. It was until when I turned seventeen, that I discovered the true identity of the rock. All those years I thought the rock was but a piece of the Earth that has been crumbled. Then, I found out that it wasn't a piece of Earth. It was a piece…of Mars."
"…Mars…?"
"A rock from Mars…Now THAT'S something I don't see on the streets every day." Mr. Ferrari laughs, "My father did say it was out of this world, but I didn't know anything farther than the Earth!"
"What happened to it?" Dutch sips his beer.
"Oh, I threw it in a pond the very next day."
"…sucks, huh?"
"You have no idea." Mr. Ferrari shakes his head with a smile, "That was when I finally learned something."
"…?"
"Even something as plain as a rock, can have meaning to it. We see things every day, and think to ourselves that we know everything about it. However, there's more to it than how it meets to our perspectives." Mr. Ferrari leans forward and puts his arms on his knees, "Like that painting you saw on the wall…"
"…"
"What did you see when you first looked at it?"
"A woman in gold." Dutch straightforwardly replies.
"Exactly. It's just a woman in gold. But, of course, if you think gold, you think rich and powerful, am I correct?"
"Yeah…"
"And you never would have think that gold also means faith?"
"…Never woulda occur to me."
Mr. Ferrari grins, "Plus…if you DID know everything there is to know about the painting, you still wouldn't probably know the history of it, unless otherwise, someone told you."
"That's likely the case." Dutch finishes the rest of his beer.
"That is the kind of thing I strive for, Mr. Dutch. I collect things because not simply because I want to have it. But, because, I would like to see how it affects me in any way possible. Like how the Nazis and the painter's niece are struggling for the painting of gold…I wish to see why is it that people can change all under an object that looks to have no meaning, but it truly does, whatsoever." Mr. Ferrari explains.
"Hmm…sounds ambitious coming from you, Mr. Ferrari." Dutch places the empty bottle on the table.
"As I said, I'm a man who values items, even a rock from Mars." Mr. Ferrari brings out the small fabric bag from his pocket and shakes it side to side.
Dutch smirks and nods as an understanding.
"Well, it's a pleasure talking with you. I better be out of your way." Dutch stands.
Mr. Ferrari stays in his chair and leans back.
"If you need anything else, give us a call again sometime." Dutch picks up the briefcase and his shotgun.
"Sure thing. Thank you for your help, Mr. Dutch." Mr. Ferrari gulps the rest of his beer.
As Dutch prepares to leave, he remembers Ronny "The Jaws" exiting when he knocked on the door.
"One question, Mr. Ferrari." Dutch turns back towards the Italian collector.
"Do ask." Mr. Ferrari puts the beer bottle on the table.
"I saw another man leaving when I got here. You wouldn't happen to have any relation to him do you?" Dutch grips his shotgun with a slight force.
"You mean, Ronny? Oh, he is a long distant cousin of mine. We hardly talk at all. Since I got here, he thought of paying me a visit and telling me about the disaster that's happening in the city right now."
"Disaster? What kind?" Dutch didn't know that something is happening in Roanapur.
"Hm…I believe havoc is transpiring between the Chinese and Russian mafia. Some 'man in black' named Reaper is responsible. Rumor has it; that it was he who struck up the battle between the two. The two organizations are still fighting, I rather hope not. Everyone is avoiding being killed by staying indoors and letting the Chinese and Russians duke it out."
"…"
"You best be careful, Mr. Dutch. I hear that the Reaper is nowhere to be seen and can kill anyone."
"Thanks for that." Dutch nods and heads out of Mr. Ferrari's house.
Reaper and Eda come out of the forest and onto the beach.
Eda is back in her priest clothes and tied up again with Reaper's blue tie. Reaper holds Eda in front of him with his Springfield aiming at her spine as they walk. To the left, in the distance, they spot a port full of brightly colored containers. The two make their way in that direction.
"So what are you going to do now?" Eda inquires, "Chang and Balalaika are hunting you down. How are you-?"
"It's nothing you need to know. Just as long you don't try and do anything stupid." Reaper quickens the pace.
"Heh, you know me. I can do all kinds of shit." Eda smirks, "But for the record, it's not going to end the way you think it will be."
"I got a plan for it. I know what I'm doing."
"Your plan is not going to work! This is the Triads and Hotel Moscow you are up against. They got the firepower and you're just one man. How the hell are you going to stop this mess on your own?"
"I won't be alone." Reaper states, "Someone I know will be helping me."
"…really…? Good luck with that then."
Reaper and Eda arrive at the port.
They are surrounded by numerous containers. They continue walking until they get to the entrance of the port for an exit and pathway.
"Even if you did succeed…do you know how it's gonna affect me?" Eda inquires again.
"…"
"You finish up with Chang and Balalaika, chances are unlikely, and I have to report to the agency about everything that's happened. I'm gonna be screwed as hell…!"
"…Don't worry, Eda…I can save you from that." Reaper affirms her.
"…! Yeah? How?"
Suddenly, Reaper stops in his tracks. He listens for something and hears it.
"Shh…" Reaper whispers in Eda's ear.
Quickly and quietly, he scurries behind a container and kneels down along with Eda.
"What's going on?" Eda whispers.
"Stay here. If it comes down to it, just run." Reaper orders.
"Wh-? Rock…!" Eda watches him run off, "Rock…!"
Reaper switches his Springfield pistol with his Kel-Tec Sub 2000 prototype. He walks down the port and scans around him. He heard a noise of footsteps and he cautiously tracks it down. As he listens for the noise with his Kel-Tec unfolded and loaded, he stops in his place.
Another noise bounces off the containers.
The sound is a slide of a gun cocking a bullet in place.
Reaper rapidly turns around and shoots his Kel-Tec. The bullets fly and hit a container that has a shadowy person shooting back. The unknown person runs across from container to container, shooting with two guns. Reaper is kneeling on the ground and firing at the silhouette with his semi-automatic rifle. He chases after the attacker by going a different route. Between containers, they fire at each other and only flinching from the bullet impacts on the metal. As the attacker continues running, Reaper runs to the attacker's side of the container. He looks out from the corner and sees the attacker sprinting. He spots barrel drums with flammable symbols on them in front of the attacker.
Reaper comes out of the corner, aims at the barrel drums, waits until the attacker gets close to them, and shoots his last bullet.
The barrel drums ignite and explode with dynamic outward force. The unknown silhouette flies sideways and rolls across the ground. The person is writhing and paralyzed for a short time. Reaper has no more ammo for his Kel-Tec and cannot use the weapon anymore. He throws it down and brings out his Springfield pistol.
He walks over to the attacker with his gun up and stands far enough to see the attacker's face.
"Who are you?" Reaper interrogates.
The attacker flips around and aims one of the guns at Reaper.
The flames from the exploded barrel drums emit a light strong enough to reveal the face.
Reaper sees a tan Chinese woman with magenta hair and a visible tattoo on her right shoulder, pulling the trigger of a Beretta 92FS pistol with a familiar pissed-off face.
"Revy…?" Rock is shocked to see her.
The Beretta pistol fires the bullet and hits Rock in the umbilical region.
A/N: Please leave a review for this chapter!
Most of this chapter has a lot more of Benny and Dutch. Just so you know, this is the last time you will see them until the arrival of the final chapter.
Also, the next chapter will show Revy's side of this chapter, meaning what has happened before she faced Reaper (Rock). Chang and Balalaika will have their reappearance in the next chapter as well.
If you liked something from this chapter, please tell me in your review. I would appreciate it very much.
Next chapter is coming sooner…or later. XD