Are shadows, not substantial things;
There is no armour against fate;
Death lays his icy hand on kings.
Sceptre and crown
Must tumble down
And in dust be equal made
With the poor crooked scythe and spade.
Some men with sword may reap the field
And plant fresh laurels where they kill,
But their strong nerves at last must yield;
They tame but one another still.
Early or late
They stoop to fate
And must give up their murmuring breath,
When they, pale captives, creep to death.
The garlands wither on your brow,
Then boast no more your mighty deeds;
Upon death's purple altar now
See where the victor-victim bleeds.
Your heads must come
To the cold tomb;
Only the actions of the just
Smell sweet and blossom in their dust.
James Shirley (1596-1666)
Bubble Gum Crisis
An Alternate Story of the Knight Sabers
2034 Year of the Tiger
Neo No Armour Against Fate (Section 5 of 5)
No Armour Against Fate (1 of 10)
by Shawn Hagen(2000;2005)
Based on situations and characters created by Suzuki Toshimichi.
Wednesday, March 29th, 11:43am, MegaTokyo
The officers in the ADP did not like funeral parades. The funeral services were bad enough, but the parades were only held when the death toll was high. The ADP were not the only ones who had lost officers. The other police services, brought in as they had been, had also suffered casualties.
There was a stoic pride in that. All the officers felt it. They had lost friends and comrades, but as a result few citizens had been harmed. When they marched down the road they held themselves with a quiet dignity. The people of the city who lined the road, watching them, saw that, and were proud of their police.
It was a wet day, the rain had tapered off just before the parade started, but the road was still slick. Spring was in the air, but the day still had the grey of winter. As the officers marched, keeping time with the band's drums, their footwear often splashed in the puddles, the water soaking the cuffs of their trousers.
On reaching the monument the squads of officers wheeled about, moving into their proper places before halting. While none of the police officers had the crisp precision of a military drill team, they did do their best. None of the spectators found fault in the performance.
There were speakers though, there to praise the fallen officers. A number of members of the Diet and of Tokyo's city government had come. That some of them had, not so long ago, expressed an anti-police sentiment was not lost on the officers.
There were prayers by a group of Buddhist monks, for the speedy travel of the spirits of the fallen.
And when it was over the officers were dismissed. Some remained near the monument for a time, looking at one of the newly added names, others left right away, as if they had no desire to remain close to the area and what it represented.
The ceremony over, all those involved headed back to their posts. They all knew there was still work to be done, future battles to prepare for, if those battles could not be prevented. The ADP knew that best of all, but the other branches of Tokyo's police services were beginning to learn it as well.
On returning to the ADP building a number of officers made their way down to the weapons lockup. Rumour had it that a new shipment of weapons had come in.
When Leon came down he found a group of mostly junior command officers demanding to be let in. The two guards in front of the door to the lockup were in a very unenviable position.
"All right," Leon called out as he began to push through the crowd, "let's remember that today we are supposed to be mourning the loss of a number of fine officers."
His arrival and his words quieted the crowd down. "Now, you'll all get a complete report on any new equipment we have been sent, as well as how that equipment will be distributed. Get back to where you are supposed to be and let these people down here finish their work."
Leon watched as everyone turned and left, most looking a little ashamed. He could not blame them for their excitement, he had heard the rumours as well.
"Thank you sir," one of the door guards said. "Roberson-keibu told us that she did not want to be disturbed."
Leon nodded. "Open the door."
"Sir?"
"Open the door."
"But Lieutenant Roberson..."
"Will make an exception for me. Right?" Leon asked as he leaned in close to the man.
"Yes sir," the guard said, then quickly opened the door for Leon.
Leon entered then pulled the door closed behind him, hearing the click as it locked. He turned and looked about. There were a lot of crates in the main room of the weapons lockup, and a number of the doors to the weapons vaults were opened. A moment later Shiroko came out of one of the vaults, a clipboard in her hand. "So they let you in," she said.
"I have a way with people," Leon told her as he walked towards her. "What do we got?"
"Well, so far," she said, looking at her clipboard, "I've unpacked thirty of the two hundred assault rifles we were sent, two of the twenty light machine-guns, five of the thirty battle rifles and a number of odds and ends including a large amount of ammunition and an EMP gun."
"EMP gun?" Leon asked.
"It's a rather questionable piece of kit. From the documentation I've read it will be a real resource sink. One minute of combat time requires about three to four hours of maintenance work."
"We'll have to save it for special cases." Leon said. "Where did the assault rifles come from?"
"The SDF sent us them. They are all FN weapons, the FNC 2's. Bullpup configuration, fires a 5.56 round."
"The SDF is phasing them out. What sort of condition are they in?"
"Mint. Never been out of their cases before as far as I can tell. We're going to have to clean all the protective gun grease out of them, but that can be done later. The battle rifles are the new ones through. Very nice."
"Anything else of interest?"
"Lots. We got ten of those nifty sights that were on those GW 14s, and somewhere in there are twenty Barrett light fifties."
"Not quite up to the GW 14s I suppose, but we can use them."
Shiroko nodded. "The guy in charge of dropping them off told me not to get too attached to any of it. There are still a lot of people who want to take this away from us."
Leon grabbed a crowbar and used it to pry the lid off one of the cases. "We'll just have to hope our friends at Genom want us wolves to keep our teeth, right?"
"Rest up on that metaphor," Shiroko said as she took an assault rifle from another crate. "The last thing I want is someone comparing me to a big dog."
"We have a lot of minor charges that we can slap on Genom, but they are hardly going to notice," Jeena told Daily and Asako.
The three of them had met after the funeral parade to discuss the nature of their investigations. Neither Jeena nor Daily shared Asako's strong opinions on Genom, but both knew that she was their leading expert on the darker side of the corporation.
"Then we are going to have to look harder," Asako said.
"Perhaps," Daily said, "but right now I am more interested in Adam Schwarz and what his part in all this was."
"Why?" Asako demanded.
"Because he may be able to tell us things we need to know to protect this city."
Asako pursed her lips, a look of anger forming on her face, then she relaxed. "All right. He's being held by the USSD right now. We know that Genom turned him over to them, and we know that the department of immigration has ordered his deportation."
Daily nodded. "The USSD wants him kept quiet, Genom as well, but it is the USSD that is the most interested in keeping him from talking."
"Official press release claims he hacked into a number of communication satellites, held them for ransom," Jeena told him. "It doesn't wash."
"No," Asako said. "Genom said that the events with the satellites, and Prometheus Bound and the recent events are all related. Seems likely that Schwarz was messing with the particle beam satellites."
"Then we are going to have to speak to Schwarz-san aren't we," Jeena said.
"As long as he is on USSD property we can't touch him," Daily told them. "And once they get him out of the country..."
"They are going to have to transfer him between their offices to the airport eventually," Jeena said. "We'll have to step on a few toes of course."
"We do that, any information we uncover will be inadmissible," Asako told them.
"At least we will know what is happening. That will help us do our job," Daily said. He did not want to provoke Asako if he could avoid it, but he would if he had to.
Asako nodded. "Agreed."
"We'll put a team on the USSD offices, and have some people standing by to intercept, when the time comes," Jeena said.
"This sounds like something McNichol should handle." Asako smiled slightly. "He can get our misfits to do it."
"True enough," Daily said. "I'm sure he'll be happy to do so."
"And once we have the information we'll have a better idea of how to handle things," Jeena told them.
Thursday, March 30th, 10:51am
Priss eased her cobra into the parking spot, using the side mirror to make sure that she did not rub her tires against the curb. While she would have preferred to be on her bike, her doctor had advised her to stay off bikes for a while. Something about dropping the bike having the potential to rip open her wound. Priss had decided to take his advice on that one, she had ignored most of the other things he had said.
She put the car into neutral then shut the engine off. She set the parking brake, pulled her keys from the steering column and then undid her seat belt. She opened the door and then climbed form her car. After she closed the door she used the remote on her key chain to set the car's alarm.
As she walked towards the entrance of Miako's building she wondered if the photographer had noticed that she was not around. There had not been any messages from her. For all Priss knew Miako might have been killed in the fighting the previous Saturday.
Not long afterwards she stood in front of Miako's door. She reached out and thumped her fist against it a few times.
"Come in," she heard Miako's muffled voice.
Priss pushed the door open and stepped in. She could see Miako moving about in the studio at the far end of the hall. She kicked her shoes off and stepped up into the apartment. She was almost in the studio when Miako finally looked to see whom her guest was. "Ah, Priss-san," she said. "Been busy?"
"Sort of," Priss said, looking about. On the room's main table were hundreds of photographs, a number of them had been cut up. On the wall near the table was a large sheet of thick paper. Bits of the photographs had been pasted on it. "Looks like you've been working as well."
Miako looked at the paper. "A project," she said, smiling.
Priss canted her head to the side. "What is it?"
"Well, once it is done it will be the image of one of those huge boomers that was causing trouble last Saturday."
Priss moved closer to the paper to get a better look. Yes, the shape was there, but still undefined. She moved closer still, seeing how the cut up photographs made up the larger image. In those bits of pictures she saw boomers, ADP officers, lit by the muzzle flash of their weapons, pain, death, it was all in there.
Priss turned to look at Miako. "You were out there?"
"Lots of good pictures to get in that sort of fighting."
"Looks like you came out of it all right."
"Mostly," she said as she slid back the loose shirtsleeve, revealing the bandages around her right arm. "Got some other small cuts and bruises, nothing all that bad. How about you? Run into any trouble Saturday night?"
"Hurt my side a little," Priss said, placing her hand against her side. "Nothing all that bad."
Miako nodded as she reached into a jumble of things on the table, then drew forth what looked like an asthma inhaler. She gave it a few shakes then put it to her lips and depressed the cartridge, breathing in at the same time.
"I take it that is not for asthma," Priss said.
"THC(tetra hydro cannabinol)," Miako told her. "It's a lot easier on the lungs in this form, and is very nice." She smiled dreamily. "Here." Miako tossed the inhaler to Priss.
Priss grabbed it from the air and looked at the unmarked inhaler. She had, in her time, smoked marijuana, and had liked it. It had been a few years since she had last partook. She gave the inhaler a few shakes then placed it to her lips. Depressing the cylinder released a burst of vapor. She inhaled it, noting that it went down very smooth. Nothing like smoking.
A few seconds later the familiar feeling washed through her as the THC hit her. The pain in her side faded. She could not help smiling.
"Hits real fast doesn't it," Miako said.
Priss nodded. "Very." She looked at the inhaler in her hand then tossed to back to Miako.
Miako caught it and placed it back on the table. "The doctor who treated me gave me some standard pain killers, but I prefer my own pharmacy."
"So, where did you get that stuff?"
"Friend in Canada sent me some. Nihon is still woefully behind when it comes to using marijuana as a pharmaceutical." She picked up a knife and looked through some photographs. "On the plus side most police look at the inhaler and figure it is for asthma."
"You wouldn't actually use that in public?"
"I might," Miako said as she began cutting up one of the photographs.
Priss moved in close to watch as Miako cut segments out of the photographs and then put them aside. Once she had a small pile of the fragments she took them to the large sheet and began to stick them onto it.
It was a rather impressive piece of work, and it was not even finished. Priss was certain that once it was complete that Miako would have a truly amazing piece of artwork. "Are you going to make a print of that?" Priss finally asked.
Miako, who had gone back to cutting up the photos, looked up at Priss. "I had not really given it much thought." She looked over her shoulder at piece. "Maybe. Why?" She looked back at Priss.
"If you make prints then I would want one."
Miako nodded. "Maybe I'll put out a limited run. Ten is a good number. If I make them you'll have one."
Priss wondered if Miako was serious about only making ten prints. If so then they would be very valuable due to rarity. Well, if Miako would give her one she'd take it. "Thanks," she said.
"No problem," Miako told her, all her attention on her work.
Priss waited a few seconds but could see that Miako was absorbed in her art. "I'll see you later then."
"Yeah, whatever."
For a moment Priss thought to ask her why she had not shown up for the party, but decided that she did not want to let Miako know that it mattered to her. That would be admitting a weakness. "Later," Priss said, then turned and walked towards the genkan.
Normally Linna would have been sitting with the other dancers, discussing their roles and progress over lunch. Instead Linna had brought to work her piling up correspondence. She sat by herself, not too far from the others, looking through her mail.
Reika had sent her a letter, telling her about how things were going with the preparations for her tour. She also, between the lines as it were, told Linna that she still wanted to be friends, even if they were not going to work together. Linna set the letter aside. She would write a reply as soon as she got home that night.
She also had a letter from Tomomi Yokama, her old friend who had let her know that Kikuchi-sensei was looking for new dancers. It was another letter she was going to reply to. She had not even written to thank Tomomi for the information, so a letter was long overdue.
Most of the other letters were of little importance, things she could ignore for the most part. The last letter, she had been saving it, was from Devon. It was a simple and elegant thank you note for her accompanying him to the ceremony the previous Saturday. Nothing at all in the letter that hinted at what happened later, but Linna was not surprised about that. It would not have been Devon's style to mention such a thing.
She sighed as she put the letter aside. She would not have to respond to that one. That was fortunate, as she was not sure what she would say.
She just did not think she could deal with a relationship that had no long-term possibilities and no real commitment. She had thought she could, but now she was no longer certain. Maybe if she was older, but as it was she still had much of her life in front of her. She wanted a relationship with a commitment. And yet Devon was the sort of person she was looking for.
It was a very annoying situation to be in.
"Linna-san, what is keeping you busy?" Mako asked her.
"Just some letters that have been piling up," Linna told her as she gathered everything up and pushed it all into her gym bag. "Sorry if you think I've been ignoring you."
"No," Mako said, shaking her head. "Just curious."
"How long till rehearsal starts again?"
"A few minutes."
Linna stood up. "Let's get Miki and work out the scene with Izanagi."
"Hai," Mako said.
"Anything yet?" Leon asked.
Nene did not look up from her computer screen. "Nothing."
"So far so good then."
"I suppose," Nene said, not sure if Leon's conclusion that no news was good news was correct.
Nene was currently hooked into the security system of Nabune Recycling, making sure that they were not aware of the operation being launched against them. While Leon had told her it was just a standard operation, she had seen how well he had armed his people for the operation. He had a number of their newly assigned weapons out there and was obviously ready for a fight.
That did not surprise Nene, they were going after a Yakuza operation after all, one that was cobbling together combat boomers from various parts that came their way.
"I need you to mask the team in the tunnels in a few seconds," Leon told her.
"Hai," Nene said, fingers tapping across the keys as she did what he wanted done. Nabune had a good computer system, but Nene was better.
"Think you can get into the USSD system?" Leon asked her.
"Not a problem," Nene told him. She had already been brought in on the plan to temporarily detain Adam Schwarz. She had also already hacked the USSD computers on a number of past occasions. The USSD programmers were not nearly as hot as they liked to believe. She had not told Leon that.
Leon said nothing for a few seconds. "You are pretty good at all this you know."
Nene looked up from her screen. "I hope you are not suggesting that I might be up to anything illegal officer." She smiled innocently at him.
Leon shook his head. "No, I'd never suggest that."
"Good," Nene said, looking back to her computer screen. "Kawasaki-keibu looks like he is moving into position. Still no sign that anyone is aware of that yet."
"Good." Leon picked up his headset com and put it on. "Tetsuya, ready to go yet? Over."
"Give me sixty seconds, repeat, six zero seconds, over."
"Got you. Standby. Out." Leon switched frequencies. "Teams A and B, this is Alpha Prime, status report, over."
"Team A, in position, ready to go, over."
"Team B, ready to go, over."
"Hold positions. Alpha Prime out. Team C, this is Alpha Prime, status report, over."
"We're still moving all units into position. We'll need another minute or two before we are ready, over."
"Make it faster. Report in when you are ready. Out." Leon shut off the transmitter.
"What is team C doing?" Nene asked.
"I have them outfitted with the Light Fifties and the battle rifles. They are the sniper team."
Nene nodded, then asked, "What's a light fifty?"
"It's a fifty caliber sniper rifle. They call them light because they don't weight as much as a fifty cal. machine-gun. It will take an average boomer down very nicely."
"Oh," Nene said.
"Doesn't mean anything to you, right?"
Nene shook her head.
Leon shrugged his shoulders. "They are a nice weapon system for us."
"Then it's good we have them."
"This is team C," came over Leon's headset, "we are in position."
Leon switched his transmitter back on. "This is Alpha Prime to all stations, time check. It will be thirteen hundred hours and twelve minutes in twenty-six seconds." Leon silently counted off the seconds. "Twenty." Leon paused. "Fifteen." He paused again. "Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, and mark. All units will move at thirteen hundred hours and fourteen minutes. All units, confirm, over."
"Understood, go at 1:14. Alpha second out," Tetsuya sent.
"Understood, go at thirteen hundred and fourteen. Team A out."
"Understood, go at thirteen hundred and fourteen. Team B out."
"Understood, go at thirteen hundred and fourteen. Team C out."
"Good. See you all on the inside. Alpha Prime out." Leon turned the transmitter off and then looked towards Nene. "You ready?"
"I shut off their power at one fourteen."
"Good," Leon said as he reached behind himself and pulled a .454 combat magnum from the small of his back. "Stay here and monitor." He grabbed a newspaper from the monitor console; he would use the paper to cover his weapon.
"Hai," Nene said.
Leon opened the door of the unmarked van and jumped out. A moment later he slid the door closed, leaving Nene alone. Nene watched the timer at the corner of her screen move towards one fourteen. Things were going to get interesting soon.
"Usui-san, please, think about this," Katherine said calmly to the man sitting in front of her.
David Usui was a man, nearing middle age, good looking, and when it came to true power within the Tower, he was a no one.
"I'll go to jail," David said, swallowing to moisten his throat.
"With good counsel, and you will have the best, you will do four years maximum in a minimum security prison. Now I will not lie and say it will be easy. The prisons in our country are not the country clubs that one finds in America or other countries, but it will not be bad."
"But the murders..."
"Usui-san," her voice took on a slightly harder edge. "You will admit to hiring those people, but only for some extortion. That they committed more violent crimes is on their heads. You will not be charged as an accomplice."
"But they will say they were hired to kill peop..."
"Usui-san," Katherine cut him off with a sharp tone. "No one in Genom has ever done such a thing, they have lost control of situations, but that is it. Remember that."
"Yes Madigan-sama," he said, shrinking down in his chair.
"Now, you have no family to be disgraced by this. Your position in Genom, forgive me for saying, is as high as it will ever get. It is one of the reasons it will be believed that you took a chance like this. If you confess to these crimes you will serve some time in jail. Afterwards you will leave the country and be hired by one of Genom's unofficial affiliates. You will spend a few years in a very high position, and then you will retire with a pension large enough to live anywhere in the world you want quite comfortably. That is the deal. Now, are you willing to help Genom?"
"This seems chancy," he said.
"All those people on trial have already cut deals to testify against Genom. We know this, the fact that a group of murderers will get off easier for their testimony will ensure that you get off. Once your lawyers reveal that fact to the court you will be fine."
"If I don't."
"Usui-san, if you don't, you don't. You forget this conversation ever happened and go back to your job. A job that will go nowhere, but a safe one. It is your choice."
He was silent for a time, staring at his feet. He finally looked up. "Okay, I'll do it."
"Good," Katherine said as she reached for her phone and then tapped in a number. "Hello, this is Madigan. I would like to speak to Abe-san." She waited for a moment then said, "Yes, Usui-san will be down to your office soon." She listened for a moment. "Yes, make sure he is aware of all the facts of the case. I want no one doubting that he is the one. He will be there shortly." She hung up the phone. "Usui-san, Abe-san is waiting for you."
"Thank you Madigan-sama." He got to his feet and bowed.
Katherine dipped her head slightly to acknowledge him, then watched him go. Once he had left her office she got up from her chair, went over the small bar in the room's corner and filled a glass with ice water.
The work she had just been involved in, while ultimately boring, was important to Genom. Every now and then the Company had to throw a sacrifice to the lions, as it were. It was all part of doing business. Mid-level executives, and sometimes even high ones, admitted to crimes, totally exonerating Genom of any culpability. It kept Genom's name clean and made sure cases were closed.
There were going to have to be a few more sacrifices soon to deal with the problems Genom had caused in using combat boomers for the defense of the city. Fortunately that would be easier than her recent work with David Usui. Those who took the blame for releasing those boomers would be seen as something like heroes.
She wondered if Kaneda-san might soon die from lung cancer. They needed a real player to take the blame for a number of crimes that would likely come to light soon. The last real player to die had been Mason. After his death Genom had manufactured evidence linking a number of crimes to him, some which he had actually been guilty of. A rogue player in Genom, the corporation had not been at fault.
After his death over thirty cases had been closed. A number of embarrassing questions were never asked. Genom had paid a number of fines over it, but it was only money and while the public may have cringed at the thought of those fines, the truth was they hardly amounted to any real loss for Genom.
It was a lesson for all the true power brokers in Genom. Even in death you could serve.
Her intercom buzzed, breaking her out of her thoughts.
Katherine reached into her pocket and pressed a button on a beeper like device, "Yes."
"Odotte-san is here to see you," one of her secretaries said.
"Let her in," she said.
Katherine managed not to show any surprise when Domino walked into her office wearing a dark blue, winter style kimono. It was certainly an odd choice of clothing but as Domino was not looking concerned about it so Katherine decided not to make any mention of it.
"I'm sorry I'm late," Domino said.
"It's not a problem," she said. "Please, have a seat."
"Domo," Domino said as she sat in the chair that David had so recently occupied. She arranged her kimono as she sat. "You have traced the materials?"
"Most," she said. "Someone had set up a factory in one of the old American space stations."
"The two they are trying to sell?"
"Yes. They were doing zero G work."
"I see," Domino said. "That would be where they made the Abotex."
"Yes."
"Have your investigations turned up anything?" Domino asked.
"Nothing as of yet, unfortunately."
"I'd like a copy of all the data you have, if possible," Domino said.
"Of course, I'll have it sent to you."
"Thank you."
Katherine nodded, then looked at Domino. "Odotte-san?" she said after a moment
"Yes?"
"Why are you dressed like that?" Katherine asked, her curiosity finally coming to the fore.
"The chairman has asked me to serve tea today," Domino said, for a moment one of her rare, as far as Katherine was concerned, amused smiles crossing her face. It made her look like she was sixteen.
"Why?"
"I didn't ask. The Chairman has his reasons. He always does."
"Of course," Katherine said.
"Speaking of which, Quincy-shachou has asked me to give you a complete briefing on everything I have learned."
Katherine nodded as she pulled the remote from her pocket and pressed another of the buttons on it. "We have complete privacy," she told Domino. She had been waiting for a complete report for several days now, certain that Domino knew more than she had told the rest of the board.
"This all starts with Brian Mason," Domino began.
The Tornado was hung up in a repair cradle. The motoslave was almost completely repaired, though there were a few things that still needed to be worked on, including replacing its leg. Sylia looked over the screen of her palmtop computer, noting that she was going to have to wait several days before some of the parts she needed were available.
"They took a beating this time," Raven said as he wiped his hands clean with a rag.
"It was a good test for all the units. How they function when the entire team is together will be interesting to see," Sylia said, not looking up from her computer.
"If you ever get the chance." Raven tossed the rag onto a nearby workbench.
"Pardon?" Sylia looked away from the computer and towards Raven.
"Incidents of rogue boomers have gone down steadily over the last few months, and the ADP have been rearmed."
"I suppose," Sylia said, not quite sure if Raven was just making conversation or if he was making a point. Either way she was not really interested so she decided to change the subject. "When the Hurricanes are all repaired I think we should store them here, with the first hardsuits."
"I have space in the vaults."
"Good, because I'm running out of it."
"How is the rest of the team?"
"Priss left the hospital last night, she should be combat ready in a week, two at the most. Linna and Nene are fine, though they could use a little rest. Mackie is probably rethinking his desire to be part of the combat side of operations."
"And you?"
Sylia smiled slightly. "I'm fine. The tribute dinner has been making me think though."
"Boomer work?"
"Among other things."
"Maybe it is time to move on," Raven suggested, keeping his tone as neutral as possible.
Sylia was silent for a few seconds, then shook her head. "Things are far from over." She looked back to the screen of her palmtop computer. "How long until those magnetic coils come in?"
"Priss-san, you can't do this sort of thing," Kano told her. "At Hot Legs you could afford to blow off your commitments, but not here."
"Hey, I was hurt," Priss told him, smiling. "I can get you a doctor's note and everything."
The two of them were sitting in one of the booths in the Hard Rock Café. Around them the staff moved about, getting things ready for the evening.
"I don't doubt you were hurt. A lot of people were. You've blown off gigs when you were not hurt though, right?"
"Not here."
"Not yet."
"Listen, I'll be here tonight. I'll blow the roof off the place. Everyone will have a great time."
"Of that I have no doubt."
"Then what is the problem?"
"The problem is that if you disappoint people too many times it will not matter how good you are. Maybe it is time you started leaning that."
"Are you lecturing me?" Priss was not quite sure she believed it.
"Yes I am. You're good, but sometimes I wonder if you take this all seriously."
"Of course I take it seriously," Priss said, her voice hard.
"Then why did you miss all those nights at Hot Legs?"
"I take a lot of things seriously. Sometimes they conflict."
"That's not a good situation to be in Priss-san."
"What would you know about it? You've spent your whole life playing things safe. That does not work for some of us."
Kano sighed. "Fine. Just so you know it though, I can't afford to disappoint my patrons too much. You flake out on me like you did with Hot Legs and I won't hire you."
"Fair enough," Priss said in a bored tone.
Kano shook his head. "You hear anything from David lately?"
"Just that he and his partner are looking for backers for the recording. He seems to think that things will work out."
"Do you think they will?"
"David was not much for making promises he could not keep," Priss said. "If he thinks that things will work out then they probably will, but you never know."
"He was a fairly decent guy. Got in trouble a little too often."
"He's learned to be more careful since then. I guess once he left the country he realized that I would not be around to take care of him."
Kano laughed softly at that. "We always thought you were in love with him because of the chances you kept taking to keep him out of trouble."
"No, never in love," Priss said as she shook her head. "He just always looked a little out of his league back then. I guess it was nice seeing someone more messed up than I," Priss said with a laugh.
"Who you could help," Kano added, knowing that there were always people in worse situations than Priss.
"Who I could help," Priss agreed.
"Well, hopefully he can help you now."
"It would be fair," Priss said very softly.
"I want you to speak with this one," Domino said, handing a file over to Rei. She had come to appreciate the brown, cardboard file folders that Quincy made use of. It was useful to have something to hold in her hands.
Rei took it and opened it up. "Gillian," she read aloud. "She was involved with Seiroku-san in Brazil."
"A first generation 33-S. like yourself, also taken from the same storage facility. We captured her at the same time we found Seiroku's son and wife. She was protecting them," Domino said with a speculative tone. "Did you know her?"
Rei shook her head. "I only met few of the others while with Douglas."
"Well, I'm sure that you'll have a lot to talk about."
"How do you want me to handle this? Should I make her the same offer you made me?"
"No. In fact make sure she does not know you are a 33-S for now. Frighten her, but not too much."
"Frighten her?"
"It should not be too difficult for you to do so."
"How?" Rei asked.
"Tell her what would frighten you."
After a moment Rei nodded. "I understand, but I am not sure that I like it."
"Perfectly understandable, but sometimes we all have to do things we do not like."
Rei opened her mouth to reply when Domino's NAVI buzzed.
Domino reached down and tapped the accept button on her open NAVI. The screen flickered, showing Haruko. "Odotte-san, Misawa-san wishes to speak with you."
Domino looked up from the NAVI to Rei. She pointed towards the door of her bathroom. Rei nodded, got to her feet, and moved quickly towards the door. "Tell her to come in," Domino said pleasantly, returning her eyes to the NAVI.
"Hai," Haruko said as she cut the connection.
Rei entered the bathroom and closed the door behind her a few seconds before the door to Domino's office opened and Marino Misawa walked in. She was all business as she came in, then turned and closed the door behind her.
When she turned back to face Domino that confidence had faded. She dropped her eyes, her hands clasped in front of her. "Mistress, I have brought you those files you requested."
"Bring them here," Domino said, making it an order.
Marino quickly crossed the room to stand before Domino's desk. She held out an MMSD in both hands towards Domino, her head bowed low. Domino took it from her and slid it into her computer.
Marino took a few steps back, then knelt on the floor.
Domino kept herself from sighing as she watched that, then she turned her attention to the computer screen. She had asked Marino to handle the 'dirty tricks' Domino might need in several acquisitions she was working on. It was, after all, the woman's job within Genom.
In the past Domino had handled that sort of thing herself, but seeing as she and Marino had come to an understanding, she saw no reason not to make use of the woman's office.
After a few minutes Domino got to her feet and walked over to where Marino still knelt. She reached down and put her hand on the other woman's head. "Your work is very good," Domino told her.
"Thank you Mistress," Marino said. Her cheeks were flushed.
"Now, let's see if you followed your orders," Domino said softly.
The red on Marino's face deepened as she reached down and pulled the hem of her skirt up, slow drawing it up her legs, revealing stocking tops and the garter clasps, then farther up until her red, lace panties came into view.
"Very good," Domino said, sounding somewhat bored. She turned and walked back to her desk. "You may go."
"Hai Mistress," Marino said, sounding a little breathless. She stood, brushing her skirt back down. She bowed deeply, then turned and walked to the door. She stood there for a moment, composing herself, then opened it and walked from the office, once again looking completely the part of a Genom executive. She did not close the door behind her.
Haruko stepped forward and looked in. "Please close the door Tetsu-kun," Domino said to her, giving her a slight smile.
"Hai Odotte-san," Haruko said as she closed the door.
"You can come out now," Domino called once the door was closed.
Rei came out of the bathroom, looking a bit confused. "Domino-sama," she said a little hesitantly.
"Yes?" Domino said.
"The relationship between you and Misawa-san..."
Domino smiled. "She wishes to be dominated. I do so."
"Why?" Rei asked as she returned to the desk.
"I suspect she needs some way to relieve the stress of her position. Instead of smoking or drinking she wants to be told what to do. I take the time to help her because it ensures that she supports me within Genom. It is something to remember."
"What?" Rei asked as she sat.
"Misawa-san showed me what she wanted, without even knowing it. I want you to remember that when you talk to Gillian. Watch for what she shows you, and show her nothing in return."
Rei nodded after several seconds. "I'll do my best."
"Good."
"Why did she show you her undergarments?"
"I have ordered her to wear certain colours and types each day. She sits on uncomfortable lace and is happy." Domino shook her head. "That is another thing to remember. Know how far you can push someone. Too much and Misawa-san will rebel, she is, after all, a Genom executive. Too little, and she will grow bored. She is rather high maintenance, as it were. And, it is important to remember, the submissive partner is the one with the power, the one who gets to say 'stop'."
"Is she worth the work?" Rei asked.
"Support you can trust, as much one can trust here, is always worth it," Domino told her. "Now, I think it is time for your first meeting with Gillian."
"Hai Domino-sama," Rei said as she got to her feet.
"Trace this," Leon said as he tossed a laser cannon onto Nene's desk.
"It's late Leon-san," Nene said as she picked up the laser. Standard boomer armament, though it was in bad shapeperhaps two salvaged units made into one?
"It's not that late, and I'm loosing you in a few days. I need to get as much out of you as possible."
"No kidding," Nene said softly as she turned the cannon over, looking for the serial numbers. Not surprisingly they had been removed. She would have to open it up and pull the numbers from the power regulating system. More work.
"So how is the hero of the day?" Tylor Yamanaka said cheerfully as he entered the office.
"Busy," Leon said, looking between a pile of paperwork and his own computer.
"Well, here's some good news."
"What?" Leon took his hanko and stamped one of the reports.
"Nabune Recycling has launched a lawsuit in order to have all their property returned to them." Tylor's voice was still cheery.
"What!" Leon demanded.
"Just came through to me. All part of Nabune's attempt to sue you, well, us, for illegal search and seizure."
"I had a warrant. You gave it to me."
"Yes you did. Nabune is claiming that there was no need for you to have that warrant. It's a rather convoluted and complicated argument, but basically they are claiming that at some point we did something wrong and therefore we had no reason or right to search their premises."
"That's ridiculous! They can't make that work!"
"Of course they can't," Tylor said. "That is why I am not upset. Oh, they'll make a big noise about it, and they'll try to get their way, but I've already launched several counter-suits that will tie this up for weeks, if not months, during which time you'll be able to complete your investigation."
Leon took a moment to calm down, then nodded. "Okay, so why even tell me?"
"I thought you would like to know, and this is the Yakuza we are dealing with. When they find out this won't work they may try something stupid."
"If they do, I'll be ready."
"Good to hear. I'll talk to you later McNichol-kichou," Tylor said before turning to leave.
"Thanks," Leon said to the man's back.
"Why does this sort of thing always happen with you?" Nene asked.
"Because I get results maybe?"
"I think it's just bad karma," Nene told him as she cracked the cannon's casing.
Domino drove through the nearly deserted streets near Ueno Zoo. The trains had stopped running a few hours before, there was almost no one about. The white, four-door sedan she drove was one of the few cars on the streets. The car was ubiquitous; no one would ever look at it twice. She found it rather funny that she was in the area of the Zoo. Maybe someone was trying to send her a message.
Normally she would have taken her limousine, she preferred it to driving actually, but that was not practical that night.
She pulled to the side of the road and shut off her car. She was not really parked legally, but at that late hour she knew she did not have to worry about being ticketed. As she got out of the car she activated the alarms with her key chain control. She pushed the door closed, hearing the click of the door locks engaging.
Turning, she looked across the street at the darkness around Ueno Park. She had a meeting in there. It was a trap. That was fine. She needed to know who had set it and the only way was to enter the trap.
Domino knew what was happening in the park, she had sent four Genom surveillance pods ahead of her. They were feeding real time scans directly into her brain on wide bandwidth, highly secure channels. In the last hour a piece of paper had not moved in the park that she did not know of. Useful, but it was giving an over-stimulation headache.
She took a deep breath, ran through a mental checklist then walked into the park, soon lost from view of the street under the deep shadows of the trees.
Once she was within the park she cut the power of the surveillance pod's transmissions so they would go no farther than the park. She had already pulled the recording gear from them to ensure there would be no record of what was to happen.
He was waiting for her in the middle of the park, under the skeletal branches of a cherry tree. He was a tall man, wearing a heavy coat that obscured most of his figure. She could make out little herself but the pods were letting her see everything as if it was day. Even better actually.
"Odotte-san?" he called out in nearly perfect Japanese. He had a slight accentAustralian she guessed.
"Yes," Domino said. "You have some information for me?" she asked. The trap had just been triggered.
"Yes," he reached into his coat with is right hand.
Domino did not give him a chance to pull the weapon free.
He had not expected anyone to move as fast as she did. No one human at least.
Ducking slightly as she exploded forward, her right shoulder slammed into the right side of his chest. He had given her a clear space by reaching into his jacket, raising his arm. She thought she felt ribs give.
The force of the impact sent him turning in the same direction as Domino's pass.
As Domino passed him she reached into her jacket with her right hand, grasping a small .22 revolver. She drew it free, with the same motion slamming her elbow into the right side of his face, flattening his nose. Her left hand slid down to the waistband of her pants, gripping the 9mm pistol there.
She continued her spin, at that point having turned 180 degrees. Still turning she shot the man three times. The rounds had very little powder in them; there was almost no noise. She stopped firing once she had spun 360 degrees. At that point the 9mm was free.
Using the remaining momentum she turned around again, facing the way she had come.
She walked forward calmly, slowly. The remaining two assassins would only just be clueing in on what had happened. The pods gave her their exact locations.
Firing three times she killed the first. Her shooting was dead on. One chest, one neck and one head shot. The rounds were sub-sonic and the 9mm also had a silencer-a tiny electric motor worked the action. There was little noise. Behind her she heard the sound of the first man hitting the ground.
Firing again, another three shots, took out the last man.
She stood there, alone, but for the wounded man behind her.
Domino turned around and walked back to the man she had first shot. He was trying to get up, already on his hands and knees. With a broken nose, the cracked ribs and the three gunshot wounds in his right shoulder he was not getting much farther.
She kicked him in the ribs, close to the cracked ones, careful not to do too much damage. He flipped over onto his back, trying to get away from her. Domino put her foot down on his shoulder, pushing down, grinding her foot over the wounds there. She was pleased to note that the bones had not been broken. Even with the low powder rounds there was always a chance of increased damage. Shattered bones always increased the possibility of death.
He screamed before Domino dropped her knee onto his chest and put her hand over his mouth.
"I'm going to kill you," Domino told him. "Understand that, there is nothing that could save your life, but I want information from you." She kept her voice calm and soft. "You can die quick, and clean and with dignity or I can take you up to the Tower and you will die a broken thing that no one will believe had once been a man."
He stared up to her, his eyes wide, his breathing fast. The very things that made a 33-S so desirable could also make them one of the most terrifying interrogators that had ever existed. She let him feel his heart beat speed up as the pheromones she produced reached his brain. She watched as he attributed that to fear. It was with clinical detachment that she noted he had lost control of his bladder.
With her housekeeping computer keeping tight reign on her emotions she felt nothing for him and she was certain he could sense that.
When Domino took her hand from his mouth he began to talk.
Shoji Manabe sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the darkness around him. He fumbled for a pack of cigarettes and freed one from the pack. The flame of the lighter illuminated the cheap hotel room, showed him in the mirror. He was a scared looking man. The lighter winked out and he was plunged into darkness except for the glowing ember of his cigarette.
It would be over by now, he thought; everything would soon be all right. He and Maiko would have to leave the city, the country in fact, but she had promised to protect both of them. He had to believe her: he had no choice after all.
He got up from the bed and stumbled over to the honour bar. Pulling it open cast light once more into the dark room. The fridge was nearly empty, he had drank most of the alcohol in it. He pulled one of the last beers free and cracked it open.
The cold liquid eased his throat slightly and made him feel a little more relaxed. He left the fridge door open for the light and returned to the bed. He put the cigarette out in the ashtray then lit up another, noting the pack was almost empty.
Two cigarettes later he heard a knock on his door. Two short, one long, three short. He got to his feet, running to the door. He freed the locking latch, unlocked the dead bolt and pulled the door open. Domino Odotte stood outside his door. "Hello Manabe-san," she said pleasantly.
He tried to slam the door but she hit it, forcing it open.
Shoji fell to the floor. He flipped over and began to crawl towards the bed, to his luggage. There was a gun in one of his bags. He should have had it out, should have been carrying it.
The room was flooded with light as Domino flipped on the light-switch. She closed the door, locked it and put the locking latch back into place.
Shoji reached his bags and began to open them.
Domino walked towards him, moving at an easy pace.
He began to pull his clothes free of the bag, looking for the weapon. His fingers closed on the cold steel of the revolver, his finger slipping into the trigger guard. He pulled it free, bringing it around to point at Domino. His hand was suddenly stopped by Domino's grip. One hand wrapped around his wrist with a vise-like grip, her other hand held the hammer back as she pulled the weapon from his hands. Shoji went limp.
"Manabe-san, you set me up," Domino told him. She took a handkerchief from her pocket and used it to wipe the pistol clean.
"Odotte-sama, I didn't, I swear I didn't," he told her, pushing himself back towards the wall.
"You expect me to believe this?" Domino flipped the cylinder open and let the shells fall to the floor.
"I'd never set you up. I'm loyal to Genom." He was near tears.
"Shoji," she tossed the empty revolver onto to the bed, "do you remember what Mason said to you that Autumn night?"
Shoji shook his head, staring up at her.
"He told you that your wife would be a problem. You love your wife don't you? Would do anything to protect her wouldn't you? No matter how stupid or dangerous?"
He was silent for a moment then said, "Yes, but you have to understand..."
"I have to understand a weakness?" Domino asked him as she pulled a bug scanner from her pocket and wandered about the room. "They threatened to kill her didn't they?"
"I had to," he told her. "I had no choice."
"You could have come to Genom," she said, placing the bug scanner near the TV and activating the jamming field. "You could have come to me. Instead you set me up."
"They told me they would kill her if I did anything like that," he began to cry softly.
"Shoji-kun, you have to decide where your true loyalty lies." She took a small motor unit from another pocket and stuck it onto the room's only widow. It would set up random vibrations in the glass to foil laser microphones.
"I'm sorry," he said.
"Who did this?"
"I don't know."
"Please don't lie to me." Domino grabbed the room's one chair and swung it about, then took a seat so she was looking down at Shoji. "Who did this?"
He swallowed to moisten his throat. "Amy Saunders," he said after a moment. "She wanted revenge for what you did to her with the Gendyne Bionentics shares."
"Amy Saunders?"
"Yes."
Domino began to laugh, then shook her head. "Shoji-kun, Amanda Saunders is not good enough to do this. Neither she nor her people would have known enough to turn you. You are lying."
"No, I'm..."
Domino slapped him, one of her fingernails cutting him across his cheek. He put his hand to his cheek, then took it away, looking at the blood there.
"Who is behind this?" Domino asked, her voice cold.
"Michelle Danielson," he said softly.
"That wasn't so hard was it," Domino said as she got to her feet. "You are terminated from your employment with Genom and myself. I want you out of the city by the time the first trains start running. You will of course forget everything you know about Genom."
"Yes," he told her. "I just have to get Maiko."
"I wouldn't bother," Domino said.
"What?"
"You betrayed Genom Shoji-kun. We can't let that go unpunished. Killing you would have been too kind." She walked to the window. "You would not have suffered enough." She pulled the motor free.
"What do you mean?" he demanded.
Domino said nothing as she picked up the bug scanner.
"You killed her didn't you." He began to cry. "You bitch, you killed her! Why? She never did anything to anyone." He threw himself onto the bed and grabbed the revolver then rolled onto the floor and began to search for the shells.
"Good-bye Shoji-kun," she said, the lights suddenly went out and he heard the door opening.
His frantic search finally revealed two of the bullets. He pushed them into the chambers and got to his feet, running for the door. He leapt out into the hall, looking up and down it for any sign of Domino. She was gone.
He collapsed to the floor, putting his face into his hands, still holding the revolver and began to cry. He was lost. Everything that had mattered to him was gone. Genom had destroyed it all. Domino had destroyed it all.
"Money is a thing that will be there when asked for. A good man is not so easily found"
- Yamamoto Jin'emon
