Chapter 16: Day Of The Dead

The Lagoon was docked by a pier near the eastern side of the city. It was quiet here, the pier being an uncommon choice for the criminals of Roanapur unless they really didn't want to be seen. While it may have seen more use since the arrival of the Task Force, there wasn't a soul to be seen today. Save for Lagoon Company, of course. While Benny was with his computers and Dutch was in the command centre, Rock sat below in the cargo hold by himself. Chang had insisted Rock accompany them for the job they had been hired for. What was more, he had also offered to pay whatever Dutch asked to cover the risk involved. He amusingly dubbed any additional fees on top of Lagoon's usual rate 'hazard pay'. Revy, arms leaning against the torpedo tube and cigarette in hand, looked out across the ocean. The sun was still high in the sky, but it was approaching evening time. When it was dark, they would move and the job would be underway. It was highly unusual, especially for Chang, but they all knew how serious this must have been for the bigger players in Roanapur. If this negotiation went to plan, the Task Force would back down and leave the city. And if not, Revy's Cutlasses would need to do the rest. No amount of 'hazard pay' could account for the danger she would be put in. She was unbothered, though, that was her MO. The threat of death was something that hadn't worried her in a long time. She was not about to start concerning herself with those thoughts now. What did seem to distress her was the fact that Rock had come along with minimal convincing. It all felt very cloak and dagger, and Revy suspected Chang also had something to do with that. Rock had been totally disinterested in Lagoon's previous jobs and had only joined them when something required his attention or talents. Otherwise, he was content to stand by while the others got on with business. Given that the meeting with the 216 was meant to be a negotiation, however, implied that Rock's conversational skills would be very much needed. That wasn't really what had Revy on edge. It was everything else, the constant stream of anguish and emotional torture she had put herself through for so long on Rock's account only to end up here, their relationship destroyed and her feeling like she had been left by the wayside. After making so much progress and getting to a place where they were almost inseparable, it had all come undone and Revy didn't know where her place in the world was anymore. It was like she was walking aimlessly along the shoreline with the waves lapping against her feet as she neared the darkness that would eventually consume her and keep her soul for itself.

There was a time when she felt as if she might actually be walking towards the light and a sense of freedom from this life, which deep down inside her she secretly despised, was within reach. And then Rock went and pulled her strings like the puppeteer he was, dragging her in a different direction. She had once been a complicated person without any capacity for self-reflection. Now, though, she was cursed with the ability to look inside herself and see what she really was; a lost soul without hope or purpose. Any hope she might have had died when the old Rock did, but she wasn't quite sure why. She was conscientious enough to understand her bond with Rock went beyond pure platonomy, but neither was it a traditional romantic attraction. Such an idea was farcical in this world, a fairytale that had no place with the walking dead. Revy spent much of her time questioning what it was about Rock that she found so alluring when he first became a member of Lagoon Company. Balalaika had once assessed it, though Revy had been reluctant to hear it. But perhaps Hotel Moscow's leader was right after all.

I don't know what's going on in that head of yours, but it will only bring you disappointment if you hope to have a life like his.

Revy knew then that Balalaika had been close to the truth, but she buried those feelings where even she couldn't get to them as soon as that conversation was over. Now, she saw her relationship with Rock for what it had truly been. She knew that he had been a link to the outside, to normality, and that was why it was so hard to accept the sudden change he had gone through. She had lost the hope of having anything other than this life, some fulfilling existence away from the death and darkness of this city. But that, too, was a fairytale.

She heard footsteps behind her and she flicked the cigarette into the ocean, anticipating a conversation with Rock that was likely to end in violence. To her relief, it was only Dutch.

"Thought I might find you up here," he told her. "Wasn't sure if you might want to get some shut-eye before we head out. It's going to be a long night."

"How do you figure that?"

"I don't know about you," Dutch began, "but I sure won't be holding my breath for this to go well. If Chang wasn't paying us so much, I would have turned him down on the spot."

"You never know," Revy said with hyperbolised optimism. "What with that silver-tongued little shit down there." Dutch hesitated before replying, sensing the tension as the conversation inevitably ended up with Rock as the focus. Dutch was almost used to it at this point.

"I've seen his handiwork up close. And I still have a hard time believing he'll be able to talk these assholes down. They're a different breed."

"What did that dipshit say his name was the other day?"

"Jones. A real cowboy, that one. Had an edge to him like a razorblade, though."

"He's got balls, too," Revy added. "Wonder what his beef was with you, anyway. He didn't say anything?" Dutch became uncomfortable all of a sudden, but he hid it well.

"Nothing specific, really," he lied. "Asked about us, that's all. Figure he's just scouting the city, figuring out where everyone is before he cracks the whip."

"You think Sis will try and have him taken out?"

"She'd be stupid if she did," Dutch told her. "She must know there's no easy way out of this. Otherwise, she would have sent a death squad to take them out by now. Why do you think Chang wants us to negotiate with them?"

Revy looked back out onto the water as she thought on the situation they found themselves in. By now, the whole city must have heard the word 'Interpol' spoken in hushed tones. It made sense that the ruling factions were hesitant to turn this into a combat situation. The last thing they needed was Interpol sniffing around to find out why the 216 never reported in.

"That's why Rock came along," Revy deduced. "He must have some kind of a plan for dealing with them, why else would Chang risk so much? The rest of us sure won't be wasting our fucking breath trying to talk to these assholes."

"I figure you're right about that. Chang always has an endgame in sight. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if he and Rock were both in on the plan." Revy was quiet after that for a while, gazing out at the waves instead and listening to the seagulls overhead. She never shied away from a fight, and she was suited to the life she lead incredibly well, but lately it felt a lot more like she was resigning herself to this instead of enjoying it like she used to. She sighed and did her best to expel these exhausting thoughts from her head. If things did turn sour later, she needed to be at the top of her game.

"I take it you two haven't spoken since he came aboard," Dutch said presumptuously. He, too, must have been sick of tiptoeing around this topic of conversation. It was high time they bite the bullet and discard any reservations they had about getting into the details of what was happening.

"Got nothing to say to him," Revy said, as dismissive as ever. She was more predictable than the waves.

"I'd think you'd have quite a few things to say, actually." Revy scoffed.

"Where ya going with this, Dutchy?"

"Come on, Revy. I feel like we've gone around in these circles a hundred times before. I'm not gonna ask why Rock was so important to you. Frankly, that shit is none of my business. But I'm not blind to it. You're not invincible, even if you like to think so."

"Jesus, you're a shrink now, too?! You're awful interested in this for someone who usually doesn't give a shit." As soon as the words left her mouth, Revy regretted saying them. She knew that was uncalled for, and Dutch did not deserve that. Furthermore, it simply wasn't true. Dutch cared a great deal about his companions, even if he liked to wrap that compassion up in the guise of a concerned employer worrying about the welfare of his employees. He did not react much to what she said, but he did look in the other direction.

"I'm not going to push you on this, alright? Just thought I'd call a spade a spade."

Revy closed her eyes and groaned. She supposed there was no avoiding it anymore, she had gotten away with doing so for too long. Perhaps it was time to just be honest about it all.

You know what you look like? Like a skeleton, dancing at the festival of the dead.

"That fucking mini-maid," she said under her breath. "I can't tell you what I saw in him, Dutch. That out-of-his-depth Japanese businessman who didn't know up from down. He wasn't cut out for this shit. Until he was. And that…" Dutch wasn't sure how to respond, so he just let her talk, even if it took her a while to formulate her thoughts into words. "It was like seeing a light at the end of a shitty fucking tunnel. You're knee-deep in it and all you have to keep you going is that light. But then it just fucking disappeared."

"I understand. You saw something in him that was different from the usual day-to-day. We all know how rough it can be here. Rock was everything about the outside world that could have been. And then, he went and threw you aside." Revy did not reply. She had already revealed too much, resulting in some very heavy feelings of embarrassment and vulnerability that were crushing down on her. She would have preferred if the ground opened up and swallowed her. But Dutch had been clever enough to put it all together. He understood their relationship at last and he knew why recent events had been so harrowing for Revy.

"Dutch, I-"

"Dutch!" the voice of Benny came from the big man's earpiece. "I'm seeing something on the radar, here. Looks like a small vessel headed our way from the west."

"That's just great," Dutch groaned.

"What is it?" Revy asked.

"Got someone on the radar coming towards us."

"So what? Doesn't mean shit. Could be one of the cartels making a drop-off."

"Not likely," Dutch disagreed.

He looked out towards the water where a boat had just appeared, turning the corner near the coast and moving towards the pier that the Black Lagoon was docked at. At first, it was just the speed they were moving at that set off alarm bells for Dutch and Revy, but it wasn't long before that was the least of their worries. They heard the turret on top of the vessel let off multiple shots and they were both forced to duck behind the torpedo tube as the bullets barrelled into the metal with resounding force.

"If I hear an 'I told you so', I'll rip your fucking tongue out!" Revy screamed.

"Try and hold them off," Dutch ordered her, handing her the earpiece and staying low as he made his way back towards the entrance to the Lagoon's interior so he could get them moving. Revy inserted the earpiece and took her Cutlasses in hand before she peered over the torpedo tube while the firing was stopped. They were in a PCF, a type of swift boat that had often been employed in the past by the United States military, particularly during the Vietnam War. Most pirates in the area used similar vessels, namely a man caled Luak who had been an acquaintance of Lagoon Company in the past, only to meet his end at Revy's hands. There was an M242 Bushmaster chain gun mounted on the top, also, that was currently being operated by a burly man wearing a sleeveless yellow shirt. He was accompanied by two others, a large, heavily muscled man who was steering the vessel and a woman who wielded a comically large revolver with which she was firing at the Lagoon. Revy remained low, but the PCF was getting closer and soon enough it would be upon them.

"Hold onto something," Dutch's voice came through the earpiece. The Lagoon moved off from the pier and sped out to open water while the PCF gave chase. Revy began firing at them more in defence than anything. Even with her skills, she was unlikely to hit anything with the speed they were going and the evasive manoeuvres of the other boat. They continued to fire, as well, with much the same result.

"These the assholes we were meant to be meeting later?" Revy asked.

"I'd bet my finest scotch on it," Dutch answered. "You get a good look at any of them?"

"Guy on the turret looks like he came straight out of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Sleeveless yellow shirt, shitty beard, the works."

"That's him, alright. I guess they decided negotiation was above them."

"Chang is gonna be over-fucking-joyed." The pursuit continued, with Revy landing one or two hits on the PCF but missing any of the Task Force members. Jones managed to get the man who was steering to move to the side and straighten up at the last second so he could let off some shots that almost hit Revy. She dodged just in time, but they were too close for comfort.

"I'm going to have to move closer to the coast," Dutch advised. "We're sitting ducks out here. If we keep this up, he's going to tear the Lagoon to shreds."

"Why not let them catch up to us? I can jump across and finish this my way."

"Like I said, the Lagoon wouldn't survive it. And I get the feeling Chang isn't going to be too happy if we just wipe them out."

"They shot first, Dutch," Revy reminded him. "Fuckers are asking for it."

"Just try to hold out for now. We need to figure something out."

The Lagoon changed course and they moved away from the open water. As soon as the coast came into view, Dutch hugged the shoreline and tried to use the trees of the jungle as cover, but he was taking a big risk by being so close to land. If there were any rocks or upward slopes beneath the waterline, they could end up capsized. Still, if anybody could manoeuvre these waters, it was Dutch and hopefully the PCF would end up coming to harm instead. Unfortunately, the size and weight of the Lagoon proved to be a disadvantage as they attempted to turn a sort of corner while remaining close to land. The PCF was much lighter and managed to speed up and approach from the starboard side. Then, the Task Force rammed the Lagoon and forced it to run aground. Revy was thrown against the torpedo tube from the impact and fell face down on the floor. It took her a few moments to recover, after which she holstered her Cutlasses and leapt over the side of the Lagoon, coming to her feet in the sand. They were in a sort of miniature oasis, with the trees of the jungle all around. Revy placed one hand to the earpiece.

"Dutch! You still there? We gotta move before they start shooting again!"

"I'm here," Dutch's voice came after a tantalising few seconds. "Damn, they hit us hard for a fucking swift boat. You better take cover. I'll be out in a minute." Revy hesitated for a few seconds before mustering the courage to say her next words.

"The others alright?" she asked. "Benny? And Rock?"

"All good, last I checked," Dutch told her. "But we don't have time for idle chatter. Watch your ass, Revy."

Lagoon's gunslinger did as she was told and ran further inland where the trees were thicker and denser so Jones wouldn't be able to hit her as easily. Strangely, though, the shooting seemed to have stopped altogether and the PCF pulled in by the shore only a few metres back from the Lagoon. It seemed as though they would be stepping foot on land as well. Dutch appeared from inside the Lagoon and hopped down to ground level, running over to Revy with his Magnum in hand and at the ready. He took cover behind a tree beside her and they anticipated the encounter to come as Jones and his two companions began to come ashore.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Change of plan, Fridays and Saturdays will be upload days from now on. The rest of Act 1 will go up over the next couple of weeks and then there'll be a break before Act 2 starts going up.