Living in the dark – Chapter 4
Hey guys, I'm back again with another chapter of Living in the dark(I just love that title...) Anyways, I was reading a few reviews from , and I'd like to thank them for reviewing, and I noticed someone asked to me to spell check my document. Well, I do ). The last chapter was written and updated at 5-7am I was coming down off my small painkiller high and was quickly running out of steam, I was lucky I even managed to do the first spell check and get it posted, this time around I'm starting a bit earlier so hopefully I won't crash and pass out before I finish, hehe.
Also, normally when taking on a bounty in Cowboy bebop, Spike and Jet confront them personally, but I know for a fact that if someone tried to do that in real life, they would die pretty quick, so I've decided to change their style of hunting into a slightly more practical kind. If that doesn't work for your mind, then here's an 'in character explanation' their target has destroyed four hospitals and came out without a scratch. They realize how dangerous their target is, and are adapting accordingly. Ok well ON WITH THE STORY!
Ranma fiddled with the black trench coat she wore over her new pair of clothes that Jet and Spike had thoughtfully bought her. She had decided to let the pigtail out into a ponytail to go with the black sleeveless Chinese shit, complete with small wooden toggles, she wore a pair of baggy blackout style camo pants, complete with a black belt around her waist and a pair of combat boots.
Ranma had lucked out big time, it seemed almost as though she had come across a store made just for her, everything inside was made with an extremely sturdy type of fabric that expanded and contracted with the body, she grinned again as she looked down at the way the clothes fit her so well, now if only she could figure out how to be a guy again, she would know if they still fit, or if the old, white-haired Chinese lady on the staff behind the register was lying to her.
It had surprised Ranma when she walked into the small clothing store, the sign itself was in Chinese, so she couldn't read what it said, but went in anyway, almost as if drawn to it.
The old woman behind the register seemed startled when the bell rang, signaling a customer. It was odd, she thought. She hadn't had a single customer in the one hundred and fifty-seven years since she had taken over the shop from her own mother.
The woman's eyes widened as she beheld the young red-head browsing her collection, it was all a bit old, thought Ranma, but looked quite sturdy, and the prices were extremely dirt cheap as well.
Ranma walked up to the counter with her selection, her eyes roaming around slightly as she completed the few steps needed to her destination. She finally noticed the old woman staring at her.
"Oy, old lady, how much I owe ya?" Ranma asked, stifling a yawn at the fresh, warm summer day.
With a twinkle in her eye, the old lady replied, "For you my dear, ten woolongs." Ranma's face twisted into one of confusion, and thought for a moment or two. Decided who was he to look a gift horse in the mouth? He handed her the 10 woolongs and went into the other room to change. When she came out, she looked into the mirror. Something about it all seemed off slightly, she stared in annoyance for a few moments before realizing what it was, she smirked and let down the pigtail, instead tieing it into a loose ponytail the fell almost to her lower back. Striking a small post she looked at herself and smirked again, she couldn't wait until she was a guy again to see how she looked in them.
The lady grinned when she saw Ranma step out of the dressing room. She was sure it was he-who-escaped-tradition to her long ago grandmother, Xian pu. She grinned again; she would keep a close eye on this one.
As Ranma started to walk out the front entrance to the store, she heard a withered voice speak from behind her.
"The clothes were made for Jusenkyo victims, it will fit both your forms perfectly, young man." Ranma whirled around, looking for the owner of the voice. After looking around for a few more seconds, she shrugged and walked out of the store, sticking her hands into her trench coat pockets, her pistols flapping against her back and torso, her new ponytail swaying in the slight breeze as she walked to where she would meet her friends and partners.
Ranma finally stopped fiddling with her clothing as she heard footsteps approaching; she was in a rather secluded area just outside the target hospital, so that meant it was either Spike, or some unknown assailant.
Ranma breathed a small sigh of relief as she saw the brown hair, in Spike's style, but then froze as the foliage parted slightly and she noticed a yellow and black bandanna on the currently unknown figure's forehead. Another memory passed through his mind, seeming to pass right behind his eyes.
A memory of a scream of rage as the last thing he saw was the yellow and black bandanna as he prepared himself for the end, he waited for the final blow that would finish it all for him, and all of his problems would finally be over.
A memory of another scream, this time terror, he couldn't be sure but he didn't think it had come from him.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" The voice rang out clearly in his head, and in shock he opened his eyes to behold a sight, that, had he not lost his memories soon after, would have haunted his dreams until the day that he died. As it was, even with his eyes opened, the whole event seemed to pass by in a blur. He saw a white blur in front of him, and a red blur, that couldn't stop in time to save the white blur, all of a sudden things snapped into focus, he saw a red umbrella sticking out from the back of...HER. Blood showered his face and clothes, still in shock he stood there standing, staring at...HER. She was dead, instantly, and without pain, and in doing so, she had saved his miserable excuse for a life. It wasn't fair, it can't be true, it can't be true.
Ranma was about to start panicking, when he heard a bunch garbled words from in front of...HER. He couldn't understand them, and as soon as his eyes left the gaping hole in...HER... chest, things went out of focus again.
He trembled with rage, tears threatening to spill onto his cheeks, however, as his anger continued to go, so did the large red, burning aura that surrounded him. The small, unspilled tears in his eyes were evaporated nearly instantly as he looked upon the new bane of his existence, he still couldn't figure out exactly who the blurred figure in front of him was, who ever it was, would pay. Yes, they would pay very dearly indeed for what they had just done to him.
Ranma let out a roar that shattered the windows on each side of the narrow street they were standing on, causing his bane of existence to drop to his knees, covering its ears. That was when Ranma decided to strike; he jumped at it with every ounce of strength he possessed, prepared to destroy the thing that had caused him so much grief.
"Hey kid! Not again... WAKE UP DAMNIT!" Spike slapped the frozen form of Ranma-chan a few times, before she finally snapped out of it.
Ranma blinked a few times before focusing on Spike, and noticing the bandanna he wore around his forehead.
"Spike, where did you get that?" Ranma asked.
"Get what?" Spike raised an eyebrow lazily.
"That." Ranma pointed at his forehead.
"This? I bought it at some little shop downtown on my way here. Nice threads by the way." Spike took a step back and looked Ranma up and down, and walked around her.
"Defiantly looks better on you then my old suite." Spike nodded to himself.
"Thanks, so, what next?" Following Spike's lead, she proceeded to chamber check her pistols to make sure there was indeed a round ready to be fired.
"Now kid, we wait." Spike took a seat on a rock, luckily they were on a slightly raised hill, which gave them a perfect view of the hospital, the trees and tall grass would hide them from view to anyone who was looking.
Spike handed Ranma a small headset. Ranma took Spike's lead once again; she put it in her ear and pressed the small switch on the side to 'on'.
"Yo, Jet you all set?" Spike called into the small transceiver.
Ranma heard a snort into the receiver, " Cocked, locked, and ready to rock, I was born set for this stuff Spike.", She couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the answer, before realizing something.
"Hey Spike, where's Jet and Faye at, anyway? I don't see 'em anywhere's." Ranma asked Spike, leaning her back against a large boulder, and crossing her arms under her breasts.
"Jets on top of the roof with his M25, he's gunna give us cover in case this thing goes sour, a guy who destroys four hospitals all by himself, and not one scratch, gotta be pretty dangerous fella to do something like that. And Fayes flyin air cover, if things get REALLY messy, we call her in and she covers our escape." Spike answered without turning his eyes from the hospital entrance.
"Oh." Was all Ranma said, after all, if even the easy-going Spike was this tense about this job, then she would defiantly have to watch herself when they went up against this guy. She patted the outside of her trench coat, making sure her pistols were still in the right place, satisfied, she turned her eyes back to the targeted hospital.
"Guys, I think I got somethin." Jet's voice came over the headset. Ranma narrowed her eyes at the news, Spike simply lit up a cigarette, he turned and handed one to Ranma, before taking a long drag and jumped agily from rock to rock to the bottom of the hill.
Ranma followed behind Spike into a small crowded café, leaping over the small gate that lead to the hill behind them. A waiter turned in surprise at the man and woman who had appeared in front of him, and stumbled, sending the contents of his platter at the young woman.
Ranma blinked as he felt himself flinch after feeling a slight burning sensation as the hot tea hit now masculine face, he looked to confirm his suspicions.
"Hey cool, I'm a guy again!" Spike turned quickly at Ranma's shout, as the waiter's eyes rolled back into his head and he fell over.
"What happened?" Spike asked.
"I dunno, the guy over there tripped and I got hit with…" He licked his lips, "Hot tea, and now I'm a guy again!" Ranma grinned.
"Well, we'll have to look into it later on." Spike replied turning around and navigating his way though the small but shocked crowd.
"Ok Jet, talk to me." Spike spoke into his headset.
"Target located, about three hundred feet to your left, wait, someone else is approaching him." Jet replied.
"What are they doing now?" Spike asked.
"They're just talking, I'm not sure but from the looks of it they know each other, I'd recommend moving in from both sides and try not to clue them in on your presence until you have to, and Spike? Jet said.
"Yeah Jet?" Spike asked.
"Try not to kill him this time ok? We could use the money a lot." Spike could feel Jet's grin through the headset.
"Heh, no promises buddy." Spike replied.
Ranma, who had remained quiet throughout the conversation, could feel the adrenalin pumping through his veins in preparation of the upcoming fight.
"Alright kid," Ranma's head jerked up, his musings interrupted by Spike's voice.
"I want you to go in from the left, I'll come in from the right, I want you to hang back for now, if I need your help, I'll call for ya, ok? Spike turned to Ranma.
"Sure thing Spike." Ranma replied, jogging off to where Spike had motioned Ranma to wait.
"Alright people, here we go." Spike said, moving determinedly to where the target was sitting with another boy, who looked to be about the same age.
"'Scuse me fellas." Spike interrupted their conversation as he put his hands in his pockets and tilted his head to look at the two.
"You want somethin?" The target looked up and said in a deep gruff voice, followed quickly by his friend's, focusing on Spike.
"Actually I do, I just need ya to stand up, and place your hands over your head real quiet like, so I don't have to disturb the other people around here by killing you." Spike said with a grin.
The target looked confused for a moment before a look of understanding came over his face, finally settling into a sneer.
"Oh, just another weak little bounty hunter eh? HA, why don't you run off somewhere, before I have to bash your face in eh?" The boy kept his sneer while casually rising from his seat across from the other boy, the first motioned to the second that he had it under control, before cracking his neck in preparation of the fight.
"I'm afraid I can't do that, sorry, but you understand, bills to pay and stuff like that, after all." Spike's knuckles cracked as well.
Rather than answering the boy rushed Spike with an uppercut that could have easily lifted Spike off his feet if he had been any slower. Luckily, Spike saw it coming and danced away from the fist before bringing up his guard and dancing lightly on the balls of his feet.
The boy snorted as Spike sent a few quick jabs, all where blocked, as was the retaliatory right punch from the teen, Spike realized his error in doing so when the punch almost broke his guard, and upgraded the boy's threat level.
Spike danced into the younger boy's guard, throwing a round house, followed by a crescent kick. Both connected and the boy shrugged them off just as quickly, quickly kicking into Spike's currently undefended right side, sending spittle from Spike's mouth as he was knocked a few feet to the left before regaining his balance.
"That was your last warning bounty hunter, now get lost." The young man stated, not having brought his leg down yet from its extended position.
Spike grinned and charged him again, throwing using his momentum to spin, launching a powerful kick at his opponent's head, it connected, distracting the boy long enough for Spike to punch knee him in the gut, before Spike grabbed the boy's head and brought it down into another knee, sending the boy reeling.
Taking advantage of the situation, Spike dropped to the ground, effectively sweeping the boy's feet out from under him. The boy proved himself to be no slouch however, as he caught himself on the way down by performing a back handspring into a standing position, his guard up and a stern look on his face.
The boy ran to Spike who had a smug expression on his face as he dodged the opening punch to his chest, and redirected the kick meant to strike the same part of his ribcage as before, but he missed the back handed fist to his temple, sending him flying to the ground and spots to fill his vision.
Out of the corner of his vision, Spike saw Ranma begin to step forward to take over from where he had hidden himself among the ring of spectators, Spike groaned, and shook his head at Ranma, before speaking into the headset.
"Jet lets get out of here, there's nothing short of lethal force that'll stop this guy." Spike knew when he was outclassed, he thought Ranma might have a chance against him, but as the boy was still regaining his memories, he didn't want to risk Ranma taking to much damage.
"WHAT! You wanna give up? Who are you and where is Spike?" Spike winced at Jets yell, and look to see the target looking at him, waiting for him to get up and continue the fight.
Finally Spike stood up and looked at the boy, "We'll be seeing each other again soon, I promise you that." Spike stated sticking his hands in his pockets and limping away into the crowd.
The boy looked confused for a second before shrugging and sitting back at the table his companion still occupied, looking none the worse for ware.
A/N:BUWAHAHAHHAHAH betcha didn't expect me to end it there didja? Huh? DIDJA!
Anyways, the reason I ended it there will be explained in the next chapter…. So will Spike's OOCness at simply giving up a fight, and why he wouldn't let Ranma intervene.
All in all, I think it was a good chapter, though I admit that it sure as hell did take me a long time to write it out huh? Why? Hell if I know, I just didn't feel like writing for the last…. Year or so. is screwing with my e-mail addy, so check previous chapters if you'd like to email me with your C&C and flames.