TANK POLICE
The Great Diamond Heist
written by Ashe
Author's Notes:
I'm not sure if you'll have needed to see Tank Police for this one or not. I think it's pretty self-explanatory, and no, this is not a very serious anime! *grins* Have Fun! I know I did!
Disclaimer: Dominion Tank Police and its characters are trademarked and copyright by Masamune Shirow. This is a work of fiction and is not intended to make money so do not distribute it with that purpose in mind!
Warning:
This story contains violence, swearing, death, explosions, gratuitous semi-naked cyborg cat-girls, and of course the Newport Tank Police Division. You have been warned.
The Great Diamond Heist Part Three
By Ashe
Leona and Al hadn't spoken much since he'd blown up at her over the shrapnel. There hadn't been much cause too. He was sorry he had but he could never believe how insensitive she was at times. She had to know he liked her, but he knew that before any kind of love she could give, her tank would get in the way. He lay underneath it, the battered engine cover off to the side as he worked on getting the shrapnel out of the bottom of the engine and hopefully getting it running. It was looking like a sad situation. Leona was going to be pissed. He rolled out from under Bonaparte and climbed up its side to poke his head in on Leona. A few cars drove by quickly, not quite sure what to make of the tank.
Not many people came to the warehouse district or even drove through unless it was absolutely necessary. It had become the favored place of thugs and illegal transactions by being so close to the docks. Al leaned in to let Leona have the bad news where he found her slumped over the communications panel, cursing loudly.
"I'm never going to get it to work," screamed Leona as she grabbed her wrench and slammed it on the panel multiple times. Just then a burst of static came through, followed by the Lieutenant's boisterous voice.
"-No, Al. This is Britain. I order you to respond right now!"
Al went to grab the mic but Leona snagged it first. "This is Bonaparte. Go ahead Lieutenant."
"Aww.. isn't that sweet," came Britain's voice over the speaker. "After nearly an hour of trying to get a hold of you two you finally respond! You are to return to base immediately! That's an order!"
"We can't do that, Lieutenant," answered Leona coolly.
"Oh really?" questioned Britain sarcastically. "And why the hell not?!? Give me one good reason why I shouldn't have you two brought up on charges or transferred to the Child Welfare Division?"
Leona turned the mic over to Al and then burst into tears. Al could only shake his head as he took it from her. "We're in bad shape Lieutenant. Bonaparte wasn't exactly ready to leave headquarters when we did. We're leaking massive amounts of transmission fluid and when we engaged the Puma sisters they used a highly explosive fragmentation grenade that penetrated the lower hull of the tank. We're gonna need a replacement engine or a tow to get back to base. I don't know how long the radio will last."
"Awww," said Britain cooing. "Did someone break her toy tank?"
Leona snatched the mic from Al; most of her tears gone in her anger. "You listen here Lieutenant and you listen good! I want a replacement engine out to my location in 15 minutes. I want a patch for the transmission and I want some stronger shells for my tank and you're not going to give ma any crap about it or when they tow me back I'm going to make sure that my turret malfunctions and I put a nice shell into the side of your tank! Do you got that?!? Bonaparte out."
***
Britain just stood and stared at his mic, mouth agape. She hadn't just said that to him, had she? Had she threatened to wreck his tank, for the third time? He tossed down the mic and began stalking towards his tank. He was going to deliver something to Leona all right.
"I'm gonna shoot her!" he screamed out as he leapt into his now somewhat running tank.
Specs leapt in after him. "I don't think that'd be a good idea Lieutenant. We may need her against the Puma sisters. She did say that they took out her tank with a grenade."
"It's a toy tank four eyes! Of course they did!"
"But her tank has proven itself more than once. I'd say it's worth reprimanding her later over this one. We can get a new engine and a patch out to her," said Specs calmly, trying to get Britain's hand off the ignition switch. "Besides, she might know the location of the Pumas and then we could get the diamonds back before SWAT and the robbery division get them."
"So afterwards I can send her to Child Welfare Division?" asked Britain, still unsure of Specs' plan.
Specs nodded.
"All right, get another engine packed up with a winch and a patch for that transmission. We're going digging for diamonds!"
***
"I'm sorry, Al," said Leona, looking up at him with red cheeks from her tears a few moments before. "I know you spend a lot of your own time working on my tank to keep it running, and I never seem to appreciate it, but, well I want you to know that I do."
"Don't worry about it, Leona. It's not a big deal."
"Yes it is," she said, turning her gaze. "It is a very big deal. I don't deserve you, as a… driver, mechanic…. Or a.."
The radio interrupted her thought as Britain burst in again.
"Listen up you two! We're on our way with that replacement engine so you had better be ready! If you can't get that thing changed out fast, and I do mean fast, the rest of the division is leaving you out on the highway and then you can find your own way back. Am I understood?" spat the Lieutenant.
Al answered, knowing that Leona was never going to finish her thought. "I'll be ready for you, Lieutenant. I should be transmitting our GPS signal now."
***
"Our other two fellows must've run into bad luck with that toy tank, Anna," said Uni Puma, plopping herself on a wheat bag next to her sister. "It's been a good 25 minutes and no sign of them"
"I know. Isn't it just heart-breaking?" asked Anna sarcastically sifting the diamonds through her hands.
"You bet. It's just a shame," Uni said, laughing at the after thought. "Our ride leaves in 10 minutes so you better be ready."
"So what do we have? You didn't book us on a cargo carrier did you?" asked Anna looking fairly annoyed with her cat ears swept back.
"I had to. It was the only thing that'd take us, and we can't be too choosy right now. Besides, it's a fishing boat that's going right where we want to be."
Anna perked up at the mention of fish, her little android cat belly aching for some of that. The two preened over each other's success so much that they failed to notice a lone figure sneak in with a handgun drawn. It ran across the warehouse and took up position near the pair's motorcycles. No less than two minutes later four tanks rolled in through the main entrances and moved to surround the Puma Twins. The two froze and stood in shock.
"This is the Tank Police," came Lieutenant Britain's voice over the loudspeaker. "You are surrounded. Drop the diamonds and put your hands up."
"Forget Him!" shouted Uni Puma, dropping a gas grenade to cloud their escape. The pair ran for their bikes. It was there they met up with the person they least expected to see, Leona Ozaki.
"I believe the term we like to use," said Leona aiming her pistol at them, "is freeze!"
"Go Anna!" shouted Uni tossing her bag of diamonds at Leona as they made a break for one of the bikes. It hit Leona square in the face, knocking her off her feet and over one of the waiting motorcycles. The sisters leapt onto the other bike, their one bag of diamonds between the two of them. They raced for one of the open doors, big enough for a bike, but the tanks would have to go around if they wanted to fit through.
Once again, the sisters had under-estimated the tank police.
The four tanks gave chase through the wall of the warehouse after the pumas, and shortly afterwards Leona shot out riding the cycle she had fallen over. It was good for Leona as well as the wall of the warehouse gave way and crashed in on itself. Leona pushed the motorcycle faster, knowing full well that she could catch up with the two cat-sisters easily. She had been in the motorcycle division before coming to the Tank Police and if there was one thing other than a tank she was comfortable with, it was a motorcycle.
She sped around the four marauding tanks led by her friends and closed in on the bike ahead. Leona activated her comm. unit in her helmet and sent out a brief message, then hit the accelerator to move along the side of the Pumas as they headed out to the dock area.
"Man, don't they ever give up?" asked Anna Puma as they rounded yet another corner and headed just that much further from their ride out of Newport City.
"No way! We're gonna have to lose them soon, too! Especially that crazy girl who drives the toy tank," said Uni clutching the diamond bag and her sister.
"I know I'm trying my best! It's not easy with another rider! Hey, wait just a second, that girl is riding a motorcycle. Where is her toy tank anyway?"
"Look out!" screamed Uni as Bonaparte moved out from behind the last warehouse by the docks, blocking their escape route. Anna banked hard, taking the bike out onto the cement docks. Leona followed at a safe distance.
"Let them have it, Al," ordered Leona over her comm. unit.
"You betcha Leona," said Al. "Let's make those bitches pay!" Al lined up Bonaparte's cannon and fired off a smaller shell that landed two feet from the Pumas' motorcycle. The explosion knocked the Pumas from their bike and into the air, the sac with the diamonds and the motorcycle going in opposite directions. Leona sped up and caught the second bag, turning her handlebars so she'd come to a controlled stop without hitting the out of control cycle as it landed.
Leona heard two splashes out over the water and heard the Pumas swimming and whining. Walking over non-chalantly, she lowered her pistol and aimed at the two felons.
"I guess someone's going to have some fun drying out, downtown," said Leona, motioning the Pumas over to the ladder.
"Why you after us? We never did nothin' to you," said Uni, shivering as she scaled the ladder.
"Yeah, it's not like they were your diamonds or anything. Sheesh! You think the police were the Red Commandos or something," added Anna Puma.
Leona could only shake her head as she led them down the dock, the two bags of diamonds slung over her shoulder, her hardly running tank and a smiling Al before them.
***
Leona and Al sat tired and exhausted next to the newly restored Bonaparte nearly a week after the Pumas apprehension and Leona's near transfer to Chile Welfare.
"So Leona," asked Al, "how'd you convince the Lieutenant not to transfer you to Child Welfare?"
"Oh it was nothing, Al," began Leona. "After the chief began balling the Lieutenant and I out for damage claims against the police from the warehouse owners, and not only the destruction and crippling of several tanks and our hangar, I simply put in an offer."
"An offer? What offer?"
"I knew there was going to be several of these claims, and well I figured that one or two, or fifteen diamonds missing wouldn't be too much to miss after they'd changed hands so many times, and so I offered what I thought would take care of everything on the condition that I got to stay with the Tank Police," said Leona simply.
"You stole the…!" started Al. Leona quickly shut him up with a hand over his mouth.
"I wouldn't say too much, Al!" She shot him a dangerous look. "I know it's not right, but it took care of the problems. And well I felt bad, so I uh… bought you something too." Leona shuffled through one of her totes and produced a brand new Sony VAIO from it and handed it over. "I know you love to hack just about everything under the sun and this was the only way I could afford it. You deserve it, Al, after all the hell I've put you through over my tank."
Leona hugged Al tightly and he felt himself swoon in her arms. It just felt so good. He knew the diamond people would be insured in the first place, so what was a few diamonds here or there. That's when the news on a nearby monitor caught their attention.
"This just in," began the reporter. "The Great Diamond Heist case is still up for grabs. It appears that the diamonds that were stolen last week by the Puma Sisters were also already stolen and were hot merchandise. They were being filtered through a local diamond distributor by the mob. This has not gone unnoticed by the mayor and she is expected to double patrols in that area to keep on the lookout for any suspicious activity."
Leona looked shocked, her mouth agape. "I stole dirty diamonds! I knew they were up to no good!"
"Another note in on this case, the Puma Sisters have apparently broken out of their jail cells and have made it out onto the streets. Their guards are being questioned, but from the look of it, it was feminine wiles that led to the escape."
Leona snapped off the monitor and grabbed Al by the arm, dragging him towards Bonaparte. "Come on, Al! We've got android cat-girls to skin!"
"But.. but.." Al tried to get out his thoughts by motioning to his new laptop.
"Oh you'll have time to play with that later! We've got work to do! Now get in there!"
END