Ante-Mortem
By: Wildfire Sky
Well this is a nice surprise!! A fan fiction contest!! I sure hope I get nominated for something...anything really...lol...this also inspired me to get moving on my fanfic. Although with school starting and all, I seriously doubt I'd be able to finish it in time to be nominated for Fan Fiction of the Year, but hey, there are plenty of other categories. Oh!! Speaking of which, I'd better get my rear in gear!! Enjoy!!
Ante-Mortem
Chapter Thirteen
Min leaned sloppily against Mumei's shoulders, his eyes glazed over from the alcohol that charged through his system. The young ward simply turned away from his putrid breath, doing his best to ignore both the drunken Min and the scantly clad women that surrounded him. He didn't dare touch anything, or anyone for that matter, frightened of what could happen to him if they took it the wrong way.
As Mumei watched, Min reached out a hand, gently groping a passing waitress and giving her a nice pat on the ass. He let out a low whistle, waggling his eyebrows, as the girl giggled, perking out her body for another grab. Min nearly bowled Mumei over I his haste to get next to the girl.
"Hey sweetness..." he drawled, sake bottle clutched in one hand as he leaned on the other, "What's your name?"
The waitress smiled, looking him up and down, "Isn't it a little early to be drunk?"
Min gaffed, "You kiddin' me? It's only..." he glanced at his bare arm, blinking at it stupidly, "Uh? What the...I've gone and lost my watch!" he grinned, "It's a nice one too...Rolex..."
Min turned to his sober charge, "Mumei...have you seen my watch?"
"No."
There was a pause before Min shrugged, turning back to the girl, "Aw screw it, I'll buy me another one...so how about you and me hook up tonight? Take you to a nice dinner and a movie..."
The waitress rolled her eyes good naturedly, "I don't think you could afford me...I come at a high price."
"You name that price, sweetie," Min growled, his hand inching up the girl's skimpy skirt, "You name it and I'll make sure you get it..."
"I go a hundred a round, pal. My body's worth more than your entire salary."
Mumei chuckled dryly at the ironic truth in this. She probably was worth more than Min's salary...way more. But Min, the poor drunken fool, kept going at her, even when the bartender approached, a frown on his face.
"Hey pal," he snapped, shoving a finger in Min's face, "I think you'd better leave my girls alone and let them do their jobs."
Min sneered back, "Go fix me a drink, buddy, your girl is working...on me that is. I'll give you fifty a round for her."
"Fifty? Hell, I can't get half a round off of that. Make it one hundred and you've got yourself a catch."
"Hey!" the girl complained loudly, "You can't just sell me off like that!"
The bartender waved his rag at her dismissively, "Eh, shut up you little tramp...I already know you're pushing one-fifty out on the streets. You're lucky I don't fire your ass for that."
"Because you need this ass!" the girl shot back, thrusting her hips at the tender seductively, "You need me to bring in the paying customers, unlike this slob."
Mumei's gaze fell back on the collapsed Min whose face as currently on the countertop, a tiny stream of drool escaping from his lips and pooling beneath his forehead. The bartender nudged Mumei, nodding at the unconscious fisherman.
"Your friend's had a little too much, kid. Make sure you take him with you when you leave."
Mumei sighed and nodded, grabbing Min by his shirt collar and hoisting him up. The fisherman's head lolled back, streams of saliva running from his slack mouth. "We'll be leaving now. Thanks for the drinks."
The bartender merely grunted, turning away from the youngster to serve another drinker. Mumei threw Min's arm around his shoulders, lifting his body and dragging the man through the near empty bar. It wasn't surprising that there was so little activity, especially so early in the morning. However, right now Mumei needed to concentrate on working the liquid poison from Min's liver. He leaned Min against an alley wall behind the bar, gently slapping his face.
"Hey...hey, Min, wake up." Mumei whispered, watching the man's face for any movement, "Wake up, Min, we gotta go back to the boat."
Min slowly lifted a limp hand, swatting at Mumei, "Uh...hey, man, quit hitting me...I'm try to sleep here..."
Mumei sighed, leaning back and waiting as Min opened his bloodshot eyes, "I want another drink, Mumei. Wanna go get me one?"
"No." Mumei stood, grabbing Min's arm just under the elbow, "Come on, get up. Time to go home."
The drunkard stumbled to his feet, leaning against Mumei and letting out a loud snore. The young red eyed boy shook his head, shifting to hold up his partner's body weight.
"Excuse me sir, you need some help with that guy?"
Mumei looked over at the two uniformed officers standing at the entrance to the alley. He gave them a weary smile, shaking his head, "No, sir, I'm fine. He just had a bit too much excitement."
The men exchanged looks, the first stepping forward, "You do realize that he shouldn't be drinking before five o'clock right? We need to take him in for public intoxication and hold him over night."
"He's just asleep, officer," Mumei lied. It would be a nightmare if Min was thrown in jail and he would have to explain it all to Sotomo. "I'm taking him home right now."
The policeman glanced at Min's clothing, frowning slightly, "You boy's from the docks?"
"Yes, sir."
There was a loud crackle from the officers' radios and the man's partner, lifted his walkie talkie to his ear, listening and replying. The first waited, staring at Mumei skeptically as his partner responded to the call.
"Hey, Adei, we've got a 10-21 downtown." The second officer jerked a thumb over his shoulder, "We need to get going."
The first set Mumei with a hard glare, "You and your friend better move along to the docks. If I come back and you're still here, I'm going to arrest both of you."
Mumei nodded, watching the two men slide into their vehicle and speed away, lights flashing. He let a harsh sigh escape from his lips and turned his attention to the unconscious man in his arms. It would be a long walk back to the ship.
Sotomo stared at the man sitting across from him, his eyes occasionally shifting to the polished weapon on the table. The black-suited man leaned forward against the table, his hands folded in from of his as he glared at the old captain behind his dark glasses.
"I think you know why I'm here, Captain Sotomo...in fact, it should be quite obvious."
Sotomo's eyes hardened, "Why don't you inform me?"
The man smirked evilly, "With pleasure. Tagasuki isn't too pleased with the quality of your shipments. You barely come to port and when you do, your have few, if any catches. On top of that, you're constantly requesting loans to fix up your ship and it still..." he glanced around, "Well; honestly, it still looks like a piece of shit."
Off to the side, Kinto shifted, a ruff grunt escaping his throat. The man ignored him, continuing to stare at Soto, "Tagasuki humbly demands that you either increase the quantity of your catches, or you find yourself another country to live in."
Soto snorted, shaking his head, "The fish come when they want to come, my friend...I can't help it if they're scarce."
"It's to my understanding that you've found a spot where the fish are plentiful. If such a place exists, why are your catches so low?" the man's smirk grew, "Could it be...that's you're holding out on Lord Tagasuki? Such an act of blatant disrespect won't go over well with him."
"We've had some problems lately that's prevented travel to the fishing grounds." Kinto moved from his spot in the shadows, coming up to stand behind Sotomo, "Perhaps if we go actually get a couple of engineers to fix our ship properly, we might actually make it there without breaking down."
The man shrugged, "Maintenance is ultimately your problem, sir. If you can't find a trustworthy engineer, then there's not much I can do."
"An increase in funds would be nice."
The widow's-peak shook his head, "Never. You're barely making quota as it is. What guarantee do we have that you'll perform with more money? As it is, I have very little trust in your abilities."
Kinto bristled, "How dare you insult us on our own ship! You underling bastards think you're so high and mighty because you work for Tagasuki, but you obviously don't realize the fat ass doesn't give a damn about any of you or the authority you think you have."
The man's eyes narrowed, "Don't you presume to lecture me, boy...I rank much higher than the agents that have visited before. You will show respect to me or pay the consequences."
Kinto jerked forward angrily, "Shut your fucking mouth and get off this ship!"
"How dare you!!"
Suddenly, Kinto and the agent found themselves in a deadly stalemate, the large fisherman's hunting knife pressed against the agent's throat while the man pressed his gun against Kinto's temple. Sotomo was on his feet, his eyes wide with shock.
"Kinto!"
"Call off his blade, Captain Sotomo," the man growled, "Tell him to lower his blade or I swear you'll both regret this!"
"Kinto, for the love of God, put down your knife!"
"Forget it, Soto!" Kinto snapped, his eyes locked with the agents, "I'm sick and tired of these assholes barging onto our ship whenever they want and demanding that we do what they say, even if it would be impossible for us to do so! And I'm tired of that jerk, Tagasuki...you can all go to hell!"
The agent leapt back, spitting in Kinto's face, "You little piece of shit! You'll wish you'd never said those words!" the narrow eyed man smirked, "Tagasuki will enjoy hearing your opinion of him and his agency...I'll be sure not to leave anything out..."
Kinto started forward again, "Why you little..."
"Kinto! Enough!" Sotomo grabbed the first mate's arm holding him back, "He has a gun you fool! Do you want to get us all shot?"
The man chuckled, "Oh yes, Captain Sotomo, you know I could shoot you both at anytime. Besides, none of your men could run this ship without you, especially not that drunken idiot, Min."
Kinto tried to jerk his arm away from his captain, "Let me go, Soto! I'll teach this jerk a lesson or two!"
"Kinto...!!"
There was a sudden pounding on the door, jerking everyone's attention from the situation at hand. The door exploded inwards, allowing entrance to two very built men, both of which held heavy wrenches. The first, sporting an enormous tattoo across his bare chest stepped forward, tapping the wrench against his shoulder with a brutish smirk. He laid a hand on his waist casually, staring at Sotomo.
"Hey ya, Cap'n," he said, his deep voice booming in the small room, "We heard raised voices and came to investigate...any problems?"
The agent took a step away from the doorway, his once narrow eyes huge with fright. The second man, who wore an old patch over one eye, grinned down at the smaller man. "I think I found the source right here."
The tattooed man, known as Bajito, leaned forward, shoving his face in the agents, "Just who the hell are you? And why are you yelling at Captain Sotomo?"
The agent brought his gun to level, "I suggest you back off before I put another hole in your head."
Bajito blinked, shifting his gaze to the gun clutched in the agent's clammy hands. His friend, Baretto, looked at Soto skeptically, "Is this bozo serious, Soto?"
"I think his is..."
Bajito chuckled, reaching out a hand and wrapping it around the gunman's hand, "Humph....don't make me laugh, you little son of a bitch." With a tiny squeeze, his crushed the agent's hand. The agent collapsed to the floor with a ragged scream, clutching his bloody, pulpy wrist in agony.
The Baretto grinned, stepping forward, "Let me play with him a little bit before we toss him off, please?"
Sotomo frowned, holding up a hand, "Baretto...Bajito...don't kill him. He doesn't deserve such an easy parting."
Kinto snorted, "Like hell he doesn't. Go ahead and kill him Bajito! Send him to hell where he belongs!"
The agent whimpered pitifully, "No, please God, don't!!"
"Kill him off! He threatened to denounce us to Tagasuki...he was going to kill the captain and me...kill him!!"
Baretto glared at the agent, "Oh you were, were you? Lucky for you, Sotomo's in charge around here. If it was just Kinto, you'd be dead by now."
"But we're still pissed that you insulted the captain like that," Bajito said, jerking the agent up by his collar, "I think you'd better apologize to Captain Sotomo and quick."
Tears of fear and pain began to spill from the man's eyes, "P – Please, Sotomo! Call them off! I swear I – I won't say a word to Tagasuki...he'll never find out about any of this!"
The two fishermen were enjoying themselves, poking the terrified agent with their wrenches and laughing at his fearful squeals. Sotomo could barely keep himself from laughing as well at the site of this once vicious agent reduced to childlike tears. However, if he allowed himself the enjoyment the others were taking part in, the poor agent's life would truly be in danger.
He needed to stop this, "Bajito. Put him down."
"Aw captain..."
"Bajito..."
Reluctantly, the powerful man dropped the agent to the floor in an undignified heap, aiming a shallow kick at him. Sotomo slowly approached, offering the stunned man a towel. "Here, wrap this around your wrist to stem the blood."
"Hey!! What the hell do you think you're do—aaaaahhh!"
The men jerked towards the hallway leading into Sotomo's bunk. The sounds of fighting intensified, floating down the passageway. Suddenly a man was flung back, slamming on to the floor in front of the doorway. Bajito gapped in shock rushing out into the hall, and quickly followed by Baretto.
"Tai!" Bajito cried, kneeling next to Min's younger brother. Blood seeped from a laceration in the back of his skull, pooling on the floor. Baretto looked up, his fists balled as he glared at his opponents. The agent's two bodyguard blocked the entire hallway with their bodies, glaring at the equally large men. Both held broken pipes in their hands, their guns left holstered.
Baretto lifted his wrench in front of him, sliding his feet apart and crouching, "You bastards...picking fights on this ship and having the gall not to apologize."
The two ape like men continued to glare from behind their shades, their faces identical masks of neutrality. Baretto bristled moving forward a step, "I suggest you back off, I already fucked up your friend. Needless to say he'll never hold a gun again..."
The men shifted only slightly, moving behind the other. Bajito finally stood over Tai's body, staring the men down. "You guys really think you can take both of us?"
Suddenly the agent bolted from Sotomo's room, scrambling in front of the two bodyguards, "Screw this place, we're leaving right now!"
Sotomo walked out, leveling a stare at the shaking man, "What's the hurry?"
"Shut up!" the agent snapped, turning a hateful glare at the group, "You and your men are all fucked, you hear me? Fucked!! Sotomo's going to find out about everything, every little piece of information! By the time I'm through, you'll be the most hunted man on earth." He laughed cruelly, "I'm going to enjoy watching Lord Tagasuki rip you limb from limb!"
Baretto smirked, "Maybe if he can get off his fat lazy ass without a crane!"
The agent fumbled for a response, turning sharply and squeezing through his men, storming up the stairs in an angry huff. The apes snorted before following their leader. Sotomo waited until he heard their feet connect to the pier boards before turning to examine Tai. He gently dabbed the back of his skull, wincing at the depth of the wound.
"We'd better get him to a hospital so a doctor can take a look."
Kinto stepped out, frowned, "Are you sure about that? Once Tagasuki gets wind of all this, his boys will be out for blood."
"Well that could have been prevented if you'd kept your temper, Kinto."
Kinto's lip twitched up in a harsh scowl, "The son of a bitch had it coming, Soto. Besides," his grin grew, "Don't you deny that you enjoyed watching that bastard get the snot beat out of him."
Sotomo sighed, nodded at Bajito and Baretto to move Tai's body to the infirmary. He waited until they disappeared into the dim room before swiveling towards Kinto. He strode over, eyes blazing with suppressed fury. His hand lashed out, gathering the front of Kinto's shirt.
"Damn it all, Kinto, don't be so smug! Don't you realize the position you've put us in?"
The first mate blinked, then looked away, "Yea...I know what I did. I heard the little shit too." He smiled, winking at Soto, "But doesn't it feel good that we're no longer ruled by that fat slob? Now we can fish wherever we want and port at any dock. Tagasuki doesn't have any leverage over us."
Sotomo sighed, releasing his best friend, "I am a little glad, Kinto, truly I am...however, this still puts us in a bad position. With Tai sustaining such a bad injury, we must either find a doctor or place him in a hospital."
"Right into the jaws of Tagasuki, shit. I'm sorry, Soto, I just couldn't help it. He was pushing us into a corner and I had to do something to get him to back off. Please forgive me."
Sotomo smiled, shaking his head with a sigh, "What's done is done...however, next time, hold your tongue."
Kinto chuckled lightly, moving towards the stairs, "Like I said...he had it comin'. Anyways, I better call Min and tell him to get his drunken ass back here."
"Do what you want, but get them here quick."
The duo is question was currently at a stand off between another, more shocked duo. The young Japanese man was still supporting the heavy Min, so there wasn't much he could do to protect himself against attack short of dropping Min to the cement sidewalk. If he did that the man might never wake up.
Mean while, the two confronters were struggling with this newest development. GB stood there, his mouth dropped in shock, eyes wide.
"Th – There's no way in hell!! I mean absolutely no way!!"
Chang was equally as shocked, his jaw was moving but no words came out. He shook his head, stepping away from the apparent ghost. His pudgy body began shaking with fear, his beady eyes blinking rapidly.
"009?!?" he cried, "Is that really you??"
Mumei fell back into the shadows of the alley, pressing himself against the slimy wall. He felt venerable...afraid of these strangers who apparently knew him. There was no place to run...no where to hide without them seeing. He started to panic
"P – Please...don't hurt us!" he whimpered, wishing Min was awake, "We don't have any money on us so please just go!"
007 gapped in surprise, "Hurt you? 009 we're your friends; we'd never do anything to hurt you!"
"Don't you remember us, 009?" Chang piped in, "Remember the Dolphin and 002 and 003? And what about Dr. Gilmore, don't you remember him?"
Mumei shook his head, "I have no idea what you're talking about? What dolphin? And what's with the numbers??"
GB scratched his head, "He's lost it!! I mean totally gone bonkers!"
"Shut up 007!"
"Well it's true!"
Mumei slowly back away from the arguing duo, preparing himself with fight or flight. Suddenly, a piercing ring cut through the air, drawing everyone's attention to the object of the noise. Min's body was letting out a high pitched ring...Mumei's eyes jerked up to see the two strangers staring back.
A phone...Min's cell phone!!
Mumei made a quick grab from his friend's shirt pocket. Searching for the tiny black object. His fingers brushed over the antenna, his heart soaring with relief. He snatched the tiny phone out and flipped it open.
"Min!! Goddamn you...are you still out drinking?!?"
"Kinto!!" Mumei glared at the imposters, "You gotta come and get us!"
"Get you? Is this Mumei?? Mumei...what the hell happened? Are Tagasuki's men there?"
Mumei glanced over GB and Chang, "I –I don't know what they look like...I'm mean there's some men here, but they look like ordinary tourists...please, just come find us."
There was a pause, "Have they threatened you? Do they have guns?"
"No...they're just standing here...they look surprised to see me."
"Surprised to see you? Do you...know them?"
"No."
"And they haven't threatened or attacked you?"
"No..."
There was another long pause, "Listen, Mumei...I can't...I can't leave the ship right now. It'd be too dangerous for me to wander around on the streets. I have a feeling that a couple of guys might be looking for me."
Mumei's eyes lowered slightly, his voice dropping to a whisper, "But Kinto...what do I do about these guys? Should I run?"
"Where the hell is that idiot, Min?? Wasn't he with you?"
The young fisherman sighed, "Yea he's still with me..."
"He's out cold isn't he..."Kinto sighed, "Listen, it doesn't sound to me like these guys are much of a threat. Just...you and Min get back here as quickly as you can. And...if possible...bring a doctor..."
Mumei blinked, "A doctor? What's wrong, is someone hurt?"
"Just don't worry about that. I don't think they know where you are...or what you really look like. Go to the pier clinic and find one of the doctors there. They'll know what to do."
"O-OK..."
The phone line went dead, and Mumei was once again alone with Min. His heart thudded in his chest, eyes sweeping the passerby's on the sidewalk. Please, God, let a police officer come...
"Did you say you needed a doctor?"
Mumei's snapped back to the face of Chang. "What?"
"You said that you needed a doctor, right?" the Chinese cook grinned, "I know an excellent doctor that can help you."
The fearful youth could feel his fears slowly seeping away at the sight of Chang's homely smile. Kinto was right...so far, these men hadn't done a thing that was harmful or threatening in any way...and since they knew a doctor, he could use them for that. Besides, the dock was a short walk away, and then he'd be in the protection of the fishermen.
"How can I reach this doctor?"
GB reached into his pocket, pulling out a small red box, "I can call him up right now. What pier are you at?"
Mumei shifted Min's weight to his other shoulder, pointing off in the direction of the docks. "We're at the fish market, pier 18..."
GB nodded, pressing the black button on the side of his radio, "007 to the Dolphin...Dolphin come in..."
The quick reply of a woman came blasting through the speakers, the static distorting her voice. "This is the Dolphin...go ahead 007..."
GB snickered, "Hey hey!! Just the woman I wanted to talk to..." he cast Mumei a sly wink, "You'll never guess who I'm looking at right now..."
Apologizes for the lack of updates, but I've been too busy...namely finding a goddamn job and taking care of my SATs. I have an exam October 9, so don't expect an update until then. Hopefully, I will post the week after, if Fate is kind to me...
I'm certainly enjoying this fic, but alas, it must eventually come to an end, right? Oh, but don't worry!! We've still got sometime before I write "THE END" at the bottom. However, some ideas for an ending would be nice, obviously not too cliché, but you know, something original that goes along with the fic...but something others might not have seen too much.
I CHALLENGE YOU!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
