Prologue

Days passed as Ame-senpai and I lived our fake double lives. We were Hinotori and Pudding in the day, Erika and Amelon in the night. Then, Detectives Kiara Takanashi and Amelia Watson everywhere in between. This was the balancing act that became our routine. It's kinda scary how we could lie as naturally as we breathed.

The abyss really looks back at you, I guess.

We had no choice but to lie as best as we could. After Ina-senpai's warning about our convertible, Ame-senpai and I had to play our roles perfectly. It didn't matter if the car had a new plate number or a new coat of paint. There was always the chance that the suspected arms dealer, Mumei Nanashi, would remember her old ride.

Ame joked that Chief Enma gave us that car to make sure we collided with Mumei. It was a joke, but a part of me felt like it was entirely possible. We knew we had to get a new car, but we were stuck with it for now.

Thankfully, that extra vigilance made things flow smoothly for our investigation. Our night shifts with the Shrimps went swimmingly well.

Heh. Swimmingly.

But seriously, yeah! We did as we were told and followed Bloop's instructions to the letter, so 'Erika' and 'Amelon' were beyond reproach.

As for our morning shifts with the Deadbeats, we had the honor of having Calliope Mori herself show us the ropes. Death-sensei tagged along, of course, but he mostly kept an eye on me and Ame - on 'Hinotori' and 'Pudding'. Because of him, we couldn't exactly ask Calli about Mumei and the arms deal that went down.

Worse than that, though, I'm starting to suspect that Death-sensei is keeping an eye on Calli herself too. Death-sensei watches Calli too closely - and that look in his eyes isn't exactly admiration.

We're scheduled for our first diplomacy road trip here in the Southern District. Ame-senpai and I had to separate them. I just needed an opening.

Signed - Kiara Takanashi

…

Kiara closed a small, orange notepad and stuffed it into the pockets of her denim shorts. She turned her purple eyes towards her partner Ame, the one who gifted her that pad, and smiled at her. Ame, meanwhile, adjusted her round glasses and gave Kiara a proud thumbs up.

The two undercover detectives were in the garage of the Swingwell compound. There, Calliope and Death-sensei were showing their newest Deadbeat officers a part of the Swingwell fleet of vehicles in all its glory: trucks and delivery vans galore! In that one garage, there were enough vehicles to transport a full company of Marines or two - or three. Maybe even more! That didn't even count the myriad of trains that the Deadbeats could sequester and ride to the North.

If that wasn't impressive enough, Calli said that there were about half a dozen Swingwell garages scattered throughout the South District.

"Mobile warfare…" Ame whispered to Kiara, "I've got a feeling that if a war breaks out, the Deadbeats are gonna want to end things quickly."

"A round-one knockout, huh?" Kiara frowned.

While the two were talking, they had lagged behind the tour group a few paces. Calli turned around and hummed innocently, "Something catch your eye, you two?"

"Ah, it's nothing!" Kiara answered. She and Ame jogged to catch up.

Calli welcomed back her proteges with a smile. Death-sensei, meanwhile, shot them a suspicious glare. Kiara glared back defiantly. Lieutenant turned away and grumbled.

Tiny skirmishes like that happened right under Calli's nose, but the tense peace between them managed to hold.

The tour group turned a corner into one of the quieter parts of the garage. It was there that they found Calliope Mori's personal vehicle - a large, imposing midnight black pickup truck with a large, four-seater cab. It was a pre-war Ford that had been heavily modified to fit Calli's tastes.

The Queenpin leaned against her vehicle, folded her arms and beamed proudly.

"Meet Adam Saddler, my workhorse pickup truck!"

Ame and Kiara froze, wearing complex expressions. They didn't know if they should be afraid of the pickup truck or impressed by it. Calli saw this and pouted.

"I get it. It's not the kind of car you'd expect a mob boss to be rocking." Calli rolled her eyes. She patted the pickup's cargo bed and insisted, "Sorry to disappoint you, but if I'm gonna throw money at something, then I've gotta make it practical - you know!"

"We're not disappointed, Calli." Kiara stepped forward and smiled, "I can only speak for myself, but this pickup truck seems very… you."

Calli paused. She turned away from Kiara and idly played with a lock of her own hair. Her standoffish stance melted away.

"You think so?" Calli asked gingerly.

"Mhm~!" Kiara nodded earnestly, "Adam Saddler looks like a hard worker - just like you! I mean - you've been personally guiding me and Pudding all this time!"

Calli scratched the back of her head and shied away. She answered with barely a whisper, "I'm just doing my job…"

Calli and Kiara stole glances at each other for a spell. However, Death-sensei stepped forward and intervened.

"With all due respect, boss. Daylight's burning." Death-sensei interrupted, speaking with a rhythmic beat, "If we're going to hit up all of the points on our itinerary, then we've got to book it like they do in the library."

Calli's eyes narrowed.

"First off - rude." Calli berated her Lieutenant. Then, she sighed, "But Death-sensei's right. We've gotta move."

On that note, Calli brought out her keys and welcomed the group into Adam Saddler's cab. Calli was going to drive, so Kiara tried to slither into the front passenger's seat. However, Death-sensei cut her off and took that seat for himself.

"Know your place." Death-sensei scoffed.

Kiara bit her lip but held her tongue. Ame patted her shoulder and gently pulled her into the back of the pickup cab. Once everyone was inside, Calli started the engine and they drove out of the Swingwell compound.

…

Calli's midnight black pickup truck traversed steadily through the cracked pavement of Industrial Way. Potholes that were left behind by the fleet of trucks and heavy vehicles plying the artery road were scattered all over, but Adam Saddler's suspension was strong enough to withstand them - for the most part. Ame and Kiara still very nearly hit their heads on the roof of the cab at least twice.

"This side of Industrial Way - south of the Swingwell compound? It used to be Owl Pals territory." Calli spoke, stealing glances at her passengers through the rearview mirror, "They hated it. The potholes wrecked their fancy convertibles' suspensions. They were so used to driving on the smooth roads near Ocean Street up north - and Parliament Way in Central. Mechanic shops made a killing from them! As long as the Owl Pals didn't shoot them up, that is." She snickered, "So take care when you're driving that convertible of yours, Hinotori. Pudding. A V8 engine can only do so much against gravity, you know!"

Adam Saddler's own V8 engine purred mellowly. It was almost like Calli's own pickup was agreeing with her.

Hearing about the Owl Pals and their 'borrowed' convertible in the same train of thought made Ame and Kiara shudder. Kiara cleared her voice and only managed a passive, "Is that so…?"

Moments later, the bells of a railroad crossing rang. Crossing barriers fell and Adam Saddler came to a halt. A long freight train came rumbling through, bound for the Swingwell compound that they left behind.

Now that the pickup was stopped, Calli looked over her shoulder and turned to her two passengers.

"Alright, you two. Listen up - here's how things are gonna go down today." Calli explained with her businesslike tone, "We're gonna go around to meet with community leaders throughout the South - as many as we can get to. Our goal is to talk with them and urge them to stay out of the war. We'll cut deals with them if we have to."

Ame and Kiara nodded obediently. Death-sensei, on the other hand, stayed quiet and leaned back into his seat.

"It used to be just me and Death-sensei who went around doing this." Calli continued. Then, her pink eyes shimmered with delight, "But with the two of you, things might go even more smoothly!"

The two undercover detectives turned to each other. Then, Ame raised up her hand.

"Yes, Pudding?" Calli called on her.

"Uhm, Miss Mori. We just have to meet with the community leaders, right?" Ame clarified dutifully, "If we split up into teams of two, we might be able to double-time this and cover more ground!"

"Ooh, bright idea!" Calli happily praised, "That's actually sick, not gonna lie."

"Ehehe~" Ame smiled back and adjusted her glasses, channeling her inner Ina'nis Ninomae. If Ame had ear-like hair flaps like Ina's, they would be wiggling at that very moment.

"How about this?" Kiara chimed in this time. She joined her hands and grinned, "Pudding can go with Death-sensei and I can go with you, Boss! That way, the two of us can still learn the ropes!"

"Huh…!?" Death-sensei protested, "But I…"

"Quiet, you." Calli scolded her Lieutenant.

Death-sensei frowned and seethed in silence. Ame and Kiara, meanwhile, fought hard to hide their delight.

"We'll do that plan." Calli spoke with finality. She smiled at her proteges, "I knew taking the two of you on was the right thing to do! I see a bright future ahead for the Deadbeats - and for the City too!"

"We hope so too, Boss." Kiara answered with hope welling in her heart, "We hope so too."

…

Queenpins

Hi-Ho Saddler, Away!

…

To Be Continued