Suzuhara Kenji drove the coal black Humvee down the empty streets, its engine loud in the silence of the abandoned neighborhoods. He was a man in his mid-40s, beard trimmed neatly around his chin and hair just betraying the first hints of gray. He had a scar across his face, and more scars on his bare, visible arms. He looked every bit the leader of an armed gang of marauders, which, of course, is what he was.
Three of his warriors were sitting in the back seat, all of them armed to the teeth with pistols and machetes and semi-automatic rifles. Their faces were lean and lined and hard. Yet, as Kenji glanced in the rear-view mirror back at them, he saw that their faces were soft. They had unmistakable looks of delight, of excitement.
"Hey," said one of them, glancing out the window, "that streetlight's on."
Kenji turned. The streetlight they had just passed was, indeed, shining, such an unusual sight to see in this new world.
"There's lights on in some of the houses, too," said another of the warriors. "How's the power on here, but not where we are?"
"Considering who's in charge around here, it's not so surprising," said the third marauder. "I mean, I wouldn't put anything past Komuro."
Now the first of the marauders actually grinned, a smile splitting his face. "I can't believe we're actually gonna meet Komuro Takashi. I mean, the guy's a legend."
"I heard that during the Year of the Dead he took out an entire army of those monsters single-handed, with nothing but a shotgun and a flashlight," said the second marauder.
"I heard that he saved an entire shopping mall stuffed with women and children," said the third marauder. "Went in, killed all the walking dead, rescued 'em all. Didn't lose a one."
"I heard he's already dealt with Suzuki's gang," said the second maruader. "I heard he did it without firing a shot. Just went in, met Suzuki, and broke him with a glare. Now Suzuki does whatever he says."
The first marauder then grinned especially broad. "Well I heard that his wife's the most beautiful woman left in Japan. I wouldn't mind a glimpse of her."
"Doesn't he have two wives?" asked the second marauder. "He's a proper daimyo."
"Yeah, I heard something similar," said the first marauder. "But there's one who's a real looker. They say she's..." he held out hands in front of his chest, "big." The marauders shared a chuckle.
"Pipe down back there, okay?" said Kenji. "Don't be writing love poems to the man before you've seen him in person."
This quieted Kenji's soldiers down. He himself looked out the window now. The power was, indeed, on in a number of houses, and some of the houses even seemed to be occupied. And there was plenty of activity outside the houses as well. People were on the sidewalks and on the roofs of the houses: young men, fit and lean, many of them wearing body armor and carrying weapons. He saw so many assault rifles and semi-automatic guns. He even thought he saw a machine gun, here and there.
They turned down another street, and at last they saw the ryokan, whose gates were open wide. Two tanks were parked in the street in front of it, their guns angled upwards. Kenji's eyebrows rose: they were M1A1 Abrams tanks, the main battle tank from the American Army. On top of that, out of the corner of his eye he saw helicopter blades in the distance. He turned to the right, and saw several of them parked quietly, further down the street.
His warriors noticed them as well. "Are those… Black Hawks?" asked the first marauder.
"Damn straight," said the second one. "I was in Okinawa plenty of times, I'd recognize them anywhere."
The third marauder whistled. "Abrams tanks? Black Hawks? What'd Komuro do, raid the base on Okinawa?"
"Come on, man," said the second marauder. "We all know he's impressive, but stealing from a U.S. military base? That'd be insane."
"Is the U.S. military as strong as it used to be?" asked the third marauder. "Is any military as strong as it used to be? The SDF sure as fuck isn't."
"Maybe the SDF's where he got the stuff from," said the first marauder. "Maybe he's already made arrangements with them."
"I said pipe down!" barked Kenji, gripping the steering wheel tighter.
They drove up to the gates of the ryokan, only for a contingent of men in black body armor with black guns to block their path. Kenji rolled the windows down, and was approached by one of the men. "Are you Suzuhara?" the man asked.
"I am."
"All right, good. We'll escort you in. Your men can keep their guns, it's no big deal."
Kenji arched an eyebrow. "That's awfully permissive."
"Well, the way we figure, we've got you solidly outnumbered and you're in our territory. You know it's suicide to start anything. So if keeping hold of your guns makes you more comfortable, that's fine."
Kenji nodded. "All right. Do we park here?"
"Sure."
The engine cut out, and Kenji and his marauders exited the Humvee. They were immediately surrounded by the gunmen. Kenji noticed that all of them had white armbands with the red sun of Japan on them. Looking up, he saw the Japanese flag flying high over the ryokan's roof.
The four of them were escorted to the front entrance of the ryokan. There, they were met by a husky teenager in black body armor, his shoulder pads decorated with gold ornaments. "Suzuhara Kenji?" he asked, the evening light glinting on his glasses. Kenji nodded. The husky teenager nodded as well. "All right, very good. We're ready for you. If you'll follow me." He turned, and they followed him through the doors into the front lobby of the ryokan, its lights shining brightly.
"You..." said Kenji.
The teenager glanced over his shoulder. "Yeah?"
"I know you. I've heard of you, too. Hirano Kohta, right?"
"Yep."
"Yes, I know you. Komuro's majordomo." He smiled fiercely. "Are you even eighteen yet?"
"Just had my birthday last week."
Kenji shook his head. "So it's all true… all the crazy rumors are true. You're all just teenagers."
"That going to be a problem?" asked Kohta, whose eyes flickered over the armed escorts. Kenji saw their hands tighten their grips on their rifles.
"No… no, not at all," said Kenji. "It's just… funny. That was one of the rumors I didn't expect to be true."
"Rumors are funny like that," said Kohta, turning and continuing to walk into the ryokan's depths.
"Dude, is it true you can kill a man from a kilometer away without a dot sight?" asked one of the marauders.
"Well," said Kohta, smirking, "I do wear glasses."
"Zip it," snarled Kenji over his shoulder.
Kohta led them down numerous twists and turns of the halls, all done up in the traditional Japanese style. Kenji thought about how appropriate it seemed to be, for a leader like Komuro to have a place like this as his base. It was both traditional and modern; it was a classic ryokan, but it had so many amenities. Komuro couldn't have picked a more fitting headquarters if he'd done it on purpose.
"Here's the tea room," said Kohta, pausing by a door as their escorts pried it open. The door revealed a proper Japanese sitting room, complete with cushions and a low table in the center. There was one cushion with its back to the door and two cushions with their backs to the wall.
Kenji turned and glared at Kohta. "I guess I sit where the single cushion is?"
"That's the idea," said Kohta.
"So I sit with my back to the door."
"Do you expect Komuro-san to turn his back to the door?"
"Just doesn't seem… very welcoming."
"We invited you here. You accepted our invitation. You'll meet on our terms," said Kohta, brown eyes flickering in the dim mood lighting of the ryokan's hall.
"Ha, I guess I did," said Kenji. "Maybe that was my first mistake."
"You can all pile in," said Kohta, sweeping his arm wide in an invitation. "And of course, keep your hands on your guns. We've let you keep them this far."
Kenji nodded. "Come on," he said, glancing over his shoulder at the three marauders. They began to move into the tea room.
Kohta tapped the third marauder on the arm. "Dude," said Kohta, "is that an M-16A4? A real one?"
"Hell yes," said the third marauder, grinning at him and hefting his rifle. "I pulled it off an American solider who turned into one of the monsters. Killed him when he was undead, and took his gun. I have to scrounge for ammo for it, but I'll never give it up."
"Badass," said Kohta, grinning right back.
"Get in here!" barked Kenji.
They entered the tea room. Kenji knelt and sat on the cushion that belonged to him. His three marauders splayed out around the room. There were no other chairs or cushions, so they just fidgeted around where they stood. The door closed behind them.
In not very much time, however, the door opened again. A young girl with red hair and brown eyes came in, bearing a traditional Japanese tea set on an elaborate wooden tray. She was wearing a kimono made for young people. "Hello!" she said brightly. "Here, compliments of Komuro-san. I believe there's four of you, yes?" There were six cups on the tray, surrounding the tea pot.
"Oh, yes," said Kenji. "My men don't need anything, though."
The young girl flickered her brown eyes at him. "Komuro-san wants them to know they're welcome here. Is that so bad?"
Kenji's eyes flashed over his men. They were all staring at him. He shrugged. "They can have some tea, I guess."
"Sweet," said one of the marauders.
The young red-haired girl set the tea tray down. She passed a cup to Kenji, and then went around and dutifully handed a cup to each of his marauders. "If you'll come close, the pot is heavy," she said. The three marauders all came around the table, and one by one, the young red-haired girl poured tea into the cups of the three of them, and then into Kenji's cup, and finally into the two remaining cups. Then she smiled, and bowed, and left the room, closing the door behind her.
"Good tea," said one of the marauders, sipping from his cup.
"Quiet," said Kenji.
Not too long after, the door opened, and their business was at hand. Four of the armed guards, all of them bearing semi-automatic rifles, filtered into the room. After them came a young woman wearing a green Western-style dress, one that was very elaborate with patterns and a lace trim. Her hair was pink, and it was done up into braids on her head. She wore glasses that glinted in the light.
And after that, there he was. He wore simpler clothes than Kenji had expected, just pants and a long-sleeve shirt. However, on top of these he wore an elaborate robe, black silk with gold embroidery, in patterns of trees and birds and dragons. He knelt down on the cushion directly in front of Kenji; the pink-haired girl with the glasses knelt down right next to him. He nodded his head. "So, you're Suzuhara Kenji."
"I am," he said. "And, I suppose, you're Komuro Takashi."
"Well, that's the rumor," said Takashi, shoulders rocking with a loud chuckle. Kenji was immediately put on edge by how low-key Komuro was; for someone who wielded such power, he seemed extremely down to earth. It made Kenji reflect uncomfortably on how often he tried to act like he was above his own gang members.
"You're very young," said Kenji, trying to open the discussions on a stronger note.
"We all are, for the most part," said Takashi. "At least, those of us running things. The oldest one among us isn't even thirty yet, and even she's the only one of us older than twenty."
"Ah, that would be the legendary Marikawa-san," said Kenji. All three of the marauders perked up at this. "Will she be joining us?"
"She doesn't partake in business meetings," said Takashi. "My wives like to stay at a distance."
"Fine," said Kenji, though he felt the tension from his marauders behind him. He raised his tea cup. "So, to business! You've asked for a talk, even after you've killed a few of my raiders."
"I had them killed because they were disturbing some settlements that have been built up for months here in and around Tokonosu. They were going around to farmers planting crops, harassing them for food and supplies."
"My gang's hungry, Komuro. We need to eat to survive. We used to survive by foraging, but that's becoming less tenable."
"You don't take that as a sign?" asked Takashi. "That's why I called you in for a meeting, Suzuhara. The world changed once, and it's changing again." As Takashi said this, the pink-haired woman with the glasses leaned in close and whispered in his ear.
"The world belongs to those who are strong enough to take it," said Kenji. "Everything that was old has gone away. The old world was swept away in the biting jaws of the living dead."
"Yes, the old world's dead," said Takashi. "But the new world doesn't just have to be… chaos." He made a pensive face, brown eyes glinting dangerously. "Those were families, farmers, homesteads that your gang attacked. I know you've been doing this for more than a year now. But I'm trying to put a stop to such things, at least where I can."
"That sounds like something the SDF would like to hear," said Kenji. Takashi's eyes twitched at this, and the pink-haired girl next to him narrowed her own eyes. "They've met with me, you know. Their lieutenants have been around to my camp, and they've had a chat with me. Have they met with you?"
"What if they have?" asked Takashi. He sipped at his tea. "Why would that matter?"
"Don't play dumb, Komuro," said Kenji, leaning forward. "I know the SDF's looking to make deals. They've got hold of Japan, for the most part, but their grip is weak. They're so undermanned, they can't even field their full fighter jet compliment. And they don't have enough living soldiers to go into the islands, the towns, the neighborhoods, and ensure order. Too many of their grunts died in the Year of the Dead. So now they need help, and they're out to seek it." Kenji arched an eyebrow. "Will you do a deal with them, Komuro? Accept the authority they're ready to give you?"
Takashi glanced to the side. The pink-haired girl with the glasses again leaned over and whispered into his hear.
"That's a nice robe, by the way," said Kenji, trying to make things a little more lighthearted.
"Do you like it?" asked Takashi, smiling. "My wives said I should wear it. They don't always agree on everything, but they both agreed on this."
"It looks good on you," said Kenji.
"My wives both have a flair for the dramatic," he said, and grinned. "And they both believe in the power of intimidation and fear. I need to thank them; if it weren't for them, I'd just come into all of these meetings in my old school uniform."
"A highschooler," said Kenji. "It's impressive, all that you've done."
"Don't patronize me, Suzuhara," snarled Takashi, and the pink-haired girl smiled next to him, showing a fang. "I'm the one who has the advantage over you. I didn't agree to this meeting for us to part on equal terms. I agreed to it because I want to offer you a deal."
"Deal?" said Kenji. He bared his teeth. "Deal?"
"You marauder gangs keep getting squeezed out, by the ones with established power bases," said Takashi. "By people like me, or by people like Ayanami up north, closer to Sendai. You all thought you wouldn't need to settle down because there wouldn't be any more settlements." Takashi's brown eyes flickered. "Not a bad thing to think, if you survived the Year of the Dead. But the dead have receded, and there's signs that civilization is rising again. It's just not the same civilization as before. The old world really is dead, but the new world doesn't have to be a wasteland."
"So this deal…" growled Kenji. "Is it like the one you offered Suzuki?"
"I want your strength," said Takashi. "You wield a lot of men, with a lot of weapons and a lot of armored stuff. You could do a lot of damage. I want to win you as a friend, instead."
"You mean a servant," said Kenji, scowling. "You want me to work for you."
"I want to offer you a place as a lieutenant," said Takashi. The pink-haired girl leaned over and whispered in his ear again, and he paused before continuing. "I want to offer you the chance to stop moving around and raiding and earning the hatred of all the people trying to make new lives." Takashi's eyes twitched, and Kenji knew he was looking over Kenji's shoulder at his men. All three of them were more than capable of hearing the conversation. "The world's new, and different. Things have changed and they're never changing back. But I think there can still be peace in the new world. Stability. We don't have to live like… what's that old movie? Mad… something?"
"Mad Max," said Kenji. "Before your time."
"I never set out to be a leader of anything," said Takashi. "I didn't even expect to lead the people who survived with me, in the end. They just followed me and I did my best to keep them alive. I didn't fully succeed," and Kenji saw pain flash across his face. "But… I did all right. And I guess I have a talent for leading. Maybe I'm grateful to the Year of the Dead, in some way, because without it I wouldn't have discovered that talent."
"And you wouldn't have a chunk of Japan under your control," said Kenji with a grin.
"Power has its perks, I'll admit that," said Takashi with a chuckle. "But the point of power is to use it well. And if I do have a talent for leadership… and acquiring power… then I want to use it to make the lives of the people who've survived better. Letting people survive. Letting families survive. Letting a community grow again." Takashi smiled. "I could do that for you, couldn't I? You and your men. What if you all decided to settle down, a little? Do any of your men have families? It must be tough to keep a wife and children when you're in a mobile camp."
Now all of Kenji's men were staring intently at Takashi. And Kenji knew it. "Enough!" said Kenji, angrily rising to his feet. "I know you're trying to sweet talk me, Komuro. But I see through it. You do indeed have a talent for acquiring power, and you want more. You've learned the rule of the new world: if you want something, you do what you have to to take it! You're no different from me, in that regard. So I'm going to turn you down! I'm not going to be one more piece of your puzzle."
Takashi sighed. "Sorry to hear that."
He was so damned calm and firm. Kenji hated it. "In fact," he growled, leaning forward, "I think I'm going to keep raiding the area around Tokonosu. I think I may start attacking more of your forces as well!"
The armed guards under Takashi's control tightened the grips on their rifles. Kenji's own men were less quick to grow tense; instead, they glanced with worry at their leader. Takashi sighed again. "Look," he said, rising from his seat, "don't be too hasty. Tell you what: hang out here for a bit. An hour, maybe two. You can wander around the ryokan if you like. Mull my offer over. I don't blame you for not wanting to accept it instantly. But think about it, at least, will you?"
Kenji curled his lip. "An hour. That's it. I have a watch, I'll keep track."
"Thanks," said Takashi with a smile. The pink-haired woman whispered in his ear again. Kenji scowled at her, and then she narrowed her eyes at him.
Kenji and his three marauders mulled around the ryokan, wandering its halls and areas. Kenji, if he were honest with himself, found Takashi's offer tempting. Takashi had spoken more truth than he knew: there were, indeed, men among the ranks of Kenji's gang who were getting tired of raiding and pillaging. There were indeed some who had started to talk about giving that life up and trying to settle down. He knew the three men he'd brought with him would bring everything Takashi had said back to his camp. He knew the rumors and the backtalk would start, no matter how much he tried to stop it.
"Which, of course, is probably why my men were allowed to come with me inside in the first place," growled Kenji. He was standing around one of the Western-style conference rooms of the ryokan, with a wood floor and a long table around which chairs were placed. Kenji scowled. "I should have come in alone. Not doing so was my first mistake."
A door opened to his right. He turned. Blue eyes glanced gently at him as they entered the room. "Ah, you must be Suzuhara Kenji, yes?"
"I suppose I am," said Kenji. He looked the woman over. She had black hair done up in an elaborate braid, and she wore a beautiful kimono in a soft yellow color. She carried a sword in her hand, a katana currently sitting in its beautiful scabbard. Those blue eyes gleamed coldly as they surveyed him. Kenji suddenly jolted backwards. "Wait, I know you! You're another one of them. You're Busujima Saeko, aren't you?"
Saeko smiled. "I am."
"Yes, I know about you. You're Komuro's other wife. His warrior wench." He chuckled. "They say you killed an army of the dead single-handed, too, with nothing but your sword."
"I hear you've been saying things like that this entire time," said Saeko. She smiled daintily. "Do we all have rumors attached to our names? Are there legends about all of us now?"
"They've spread pretty far and pretty fast," said Kenji. "I bet they've reached from one end of Japan to the other by now. Everyone's heard the stories, the stories of the crazy highschoolers who survived the end of the world." Kenji arched an eyebrow. "Of course, Komuro emerging as a player in the new Japan has certainly helped those stories spread."
"Not surprising, I suppose," said Saeko. She kept hold of the sword in one hand. The other hand gently rested on her massive stomach. Saeko was heavily pregnant; in fact, she was in her seventh month. She smiled. "Komuro-san wants to build something good. He's a fine leader."
"And he's certainly ambitious, isn't he?" snarled Kenji. "He wants all of it, doesn't he?"
"I'm sure I don't know what you mean," said Saeko.
"Don't play dumb with me, woman," snarled Kenji. "Komuro tried it, too, but I see through you both. You're not the only ones with lots of sources and spies!" He crossed his arms over his chest. "You've been playing nice with the SDF. You've been taking their meetings and complying with their demands… in public. But in the background you're making moves. I've heard about you absorbing and winning the allegiance of other marauder gangs. I've heard about you working to destabilize some of the other warlords. And I've heard about you acquiring more arms and tech, either from theft or dealmaking." Kenji curled his lip. "Komuro's made the SDF think he'll be content to be a regional leader, a new daimyo in the new feudal Japan. But in private, you all are acting like you want to expand."
Saeko smiled. "You've certainly done your research. I'm impressed."
"Is it not enough for Komuro to be a daimyo? Does he want to be a shogun, instead?"
"Well, as my fellow wife likes to say, someone has to be the leader of the new world. Why can't it be us?" As she said this, her eyes flickered briefly over Kenji's shoulder; but he didn't notice.
Instead, Kenji chuckled. "You're all awfully ambitious."
"We've had to be. You have to be ambitious in the new world if you want to survive."
"Heh, I've certainly learned that," said Kenji. His eyes narrowed. "But there's ambition and there's foolishness. You have to know that if you expand your authority too aggressively, the SDF will move to stop you. They're not as strong as they used to be, but they're strong enough to put down a local warlord, even one as popular as Komuro's become."
Saeko's brows rose. "That's very true. So, I suppose, the next step is for Komuro to become more than just a local warlord."
Kenji's eyes widened. "What, are you going to take on the SDF?"
Saeko tilted her head to the side.
"You crazy kids. This isn't me, my gang of marauders with our Humvees and assault rifles! The SDF's weakened but they're still an actual military! And they still have the backing of the Americans, or what's left of them." Saeko did not react to this, which sent a chill up Kenji's spine. "Seriously! Take some advice from an adult who's older and wiser. You can't go toe to toe with the SDF. You've been stealing tanks and helicopters, which is all well and good. But you want to fight the SDF? You'd need to start stealing..." he waved an arm around, "strategic bombers, aircraft carriers, nuclear submarines!"
Saeko smiled. "Well, I do have it on good authority that the USS Wyoming is currently sitting empty and rusting in the naval port at Sasebo, safe from the EMP, with its reactor and all of its ballistic missiles fully intact." Kenji's eyes grew huge. Saeko giggled. "Not even the SDF knows about that."
"Then… how..."
"My friend Takagi has many eyes and ears." Saeko shrugged. "All these governments and militaries from the old world… when they went away, they left their toys on the playground. Someone's got to pick them up."
"Takagi…" muttered Kenji. "Oh, the girl with the pink hair and the glasses! I saw her in the room with Komuro. Takagi Saya. She's Komuro's right hand. The daughter of that old right-wing gang leader."
"Correct. She's been analyzing your gang, too."
"I'm sure." He gritted his teeth. "So I've met all of you, by now, except for Marikawa Shizuka. Pity, I would have liked a glimpse of her and her beauty."
"Hmm," said Saeko. Then she abruptly drew her sword; the katana's bright steel flashed and gleamed in the light of the conference room. "This has been fun, but I think I've humored you enough."
Kenji abruptly drew his pistol and pointed it at Saeko. "What the hell is this?"
"As I mentioned, my friend Takagi has been analyzing your gang. You're very impressive, in a number of ways. But she believes you are weak in a number of ways, as well." Saeko twitched her sword a bit in the air. "In particular, she believes your gang's stability is overly reliant on your own personal charisma. She believes there's not a stable chain of command or system of authority among your marauders. As a result, she believes that if you were to die, your gang would break apart."
Kenji leveled his pistol at Saeko. "Is that so?"
"Yes. Saya believes that there are numerous other marauder gangs with similar weaknesses, and eliminating their leadership will disarm them as threats to Komuro." Saeko smiled. "She believes, even, that without this leadership, numerous members of these gangs will defect to us. So we'll grow stronger, and eliminate competition, all in one move."
"Clever," said Kenji. He barked a laugh. "But this is kind of pathetic, isn't it? I mean, look at you. You look like you could have that baby today. You're in no shape to actually kill me, not right now. I've got the advantage over you, and now I'm going to get my men and leave, and your plans will be ruined." He laughed again. "Thanks for the news about the sub, though, I'll put it to good use."
Saeko gave her katana a twirl.
"This is stupid, put that away, woman! Besides, even if you weren't pregnant, a sword versus a gun? It's no contest."
Saeko smiled gently at him. "If I were in my normal shape, I could easily cross the distance to you and cut your head off before you could pull that trigger." Then, to Kenji's surprise, she sheathed the katana. "But you're right about my being pregnant. I'm simply not in a condition to threaten you. So I'm not going to kill you."
Kenji relaxed a little, and lowered his gun. "Smart girl."
Saeko's eyes drifted past Kenji's face and looked over his shoulder. "I'm not going to kill you," Saeko said. "She is."
"Wha-"
Kenji was sharply pulled backward into immense, warm softness. The biggest pair of breasts he'd ever seen surrounded and overflowed his shoulders. They were a sharp, immediate contrast with the cold, hard steel that was drawn in a flash across his neck.
"Grk," gurgled Kenji as his throat was slit. Blood erupted everywhere as he collapsed to the ground, writhing and clutching at his severed arteries. It was a clean, neat kill, all things considered; it was fast as well, and Kenji was dead within five minutes, the eyes of his corpse staring vacantly to the side.
Shizuka smiled down at the body. She was wearing a beautiful black cheongsam; it had a cleavage window, offering an inviting view of her breasts. She flicked her knife down at the corpse. "Well, that was simple."
"Nicely done," said Saeko, walking closer to her fellow wife, doing her best to avoid all the blood. "You really have gotten very good at being quiet."
"Well, I've had a good teacher," said Shizuka with a smile. "It's been handy to put your lessons to good use."
"Good teachers are nothing without good students," said Saeko. Her head tilted to the side. "How's your morning sickness been?"
"Ugh, awful," said Shizuka. Shizuka was pregnant as well; however, she was only in her first month, so she had not yet truly begun to show. "I've spent at least an hour in front of the toilet every day for the last week."
"Well, sorry to say it won't get better for at least another two months," Saeko said. "And then you'll have to deal with the swelling and the bloating. It's not been fun for me." She rubbed her belly again. "But it's all worth it, in the end."
"I was a nurse, remember? I know all about this stuff. I'll be able to help deliver the baby, when yours comes."
"I'll see if I can return the favor," said Saeko. "Of course, by the time you're ready, I'll be nursing, so I'll still have things to do." Saeko chuckled, and playfully tapped Shizuka's big left breast. "And eventually you'll be nursing, too. God, I can't even imagine how huge these things are going to get when they swell up with milk."
"Don't remind me," groaned Shizuka. "I'm already dreading it. Good grief, they're going to snap my back in two!"
"It's pretty impressive how you carry them around even now," said Saeko. "What's your secret? I've always been curious."
"Chest stretches," said Shizuka. "And high-quality bras."
"I'll have to keep that in mind. Mine are going to get bigger too, of course." Saeko smiled at Shizuka again. The two women had really become quite close. "Have you talked to Takashi yet about baby names?"
"Not yet. I want to have a few in mind myself before I ask him. The trouble, of course, is that we haven't gotten our hands on a good ultrasound machine, so I have no idea just what the baby's going to be. So I'll need both boy names and girl names."
"This one is a boy," said Saeko, tenderly touching her belly. "I can tell by the way he kicks. He's ferocious and determined, like his father."
Shizuka smiled. She stepped a little to the side, and there was a splash of the blood on the floor. She looked down and grimaced. "I sure hope someone comes in here soon and cleans this up. It's a good thing this room doesn't have any carpeting."
"Well, that's why I wanted him to come in here," said Saeko. "It will make the cleanup easier."
"At least the job itself was easy," said Shizuka. "Better than that time you had to take out that Takahashi guy."
"Oh, don't remind me," groaned Saeko. She curled her lip in disgust. "I can't believe what a mess I made of that one. I missed his throat, and, God, he screamed..." she shook her head. "Not one of my cleaner kills."
"Well, as you like to always remind me, Saeko-chan, there's always next time."
"True." Both women shared happy looks. Both of them giggled a little to each other, as the blood oozed and pooled around their feet.
END
(Thanks for reading!)