Foreword: I do not own Black Lagoon or some elements of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon and Splinter Cell series. They belong to Rei Hiroe and Ubisoft Entertainment respectively.
Chapter 3: Welcome to Roanapur, Ghost! Part 3
"There is no such thing as bravery; only degrees of fear."
- John Wainwright
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The Black Lagoon, flagship of the Lagoon Trading Company, was currently on a direct course for the Sea of Heaven — the stretch of ocean in the southernmost end of the South-China Sea just before Malaysian-Indonesian waters. And from there it's a straight shot to Belawan.
However, before they could do that, the crew of the Black Lagoon had run into a bit of a problem.
"This isn't good!" Dutch pushed the PT boat as fast as she could go. "In fact, this is really bad!"
There was the problem of an enemy Hind attack helicopter currently chasing them out into the sea. As far as circumstances went, Rock had been in worse during his time with the 'Ghosts' as well as the JSFG.
"He's coming!" Benny reported frantically. "He's on our ass!"
'Thank you for the reminder, Benny!' Rock thought sardonically as he watched the Hind maneuver into a firing line. 'It's not as if we can't see or hear the large, heavily armed fucking tank gunning straight at us!'
He was broken out of his inner thoughts by Revy. "Rock!" she tossed him his FN FAL. "You're gonna need this!"
"Thanks!" Rock caught the rifle easily. Pulling back on the charging handle to check if a round was chambered, he nodded. "As good of a comfort for me to feel the weight of a gun, I don't think this peashooter can do anything to the Hind!"
Revy snorted as she hefted a giant rifle out of the storage area. "I thought you might feel that way!" she replied while loading and cocking her massive rifle, which Rock could now identify as an anti-tank rifle. "But like you said, it's better to die with a gun in your hands than without!"
"I'd rather not get shredded into mincemeat, thank you very much!" Rock exclaimed dryly, earning an amused smirk from the woman.
She set up her rifle on top of the PT boat's armored cabin, deploying the bipod just as the Hind made its move.
It was Rock who called it first. "He's firing!" he yelled. "Rockets! Rockets!"
As the Hind kept firing its rocket pods, none of their payloads ever hit their targets, only impacting harmlessly around the PT boat blowing multiple geysers of seawater into the air and soaking both Rock and Revy who were still on the deck.
As the Hind flew ahead of the boat, Revy growled as she aimed down her sights and cut loose. Her rifle roared as .50 caliber rounds cut through the air at the offending helo.
"We're pretty sure we know it isn't good, Dutch!" Revy replied, firing a few more rounds at the helicopter.
Rock frowned, mind racing with plans and counter plans to take down that beast. Without any sort of heavy weapons, aside from the anti-tank rifle, there was no easy way to take down a Mi-24 Hind as that thing is as armored as a light tank, which can take .50 caliber bullets with no difficulty. He growled under his breath; the only way he knew how to destroy that monster—
—was to shoot a bullet down the engine intake port located right below the rotor. From the front.
Which was easier said than done.
He had no time to dwell more on that thought, however, as Rock spotted the Hind turning back around for another attack run, its nose-mounted gun turret rotating as it did. He charged straight at Revy who was lining up another shot.
"Revy, get the hell down!" Rock tackled her down onto the deck, shielding her body with his.
She had no time to yell at him at the position she was in however as the Hind fired its nose-mounted guns, strafing the boat and leaving large pockmarks from its cannon rounds throughout the armored deck of the Black Lagoon.
As the attack helicopter veered away, Rock finally got to his feet, extending a hand to the gunslinging woman who was looking up at him with a half-shocked, half-angry visage. Revy glared a while longer before grudgingly accepting his hand, having him easily pull her up which honestly shouldn't have surprised her, but it did.
"I didn't need your help…" Revy grumbled.
To her annoyance, Rock only laughed.
"I know," he smiled cheekily. "But we're still partners until we get to Belawan, right? Don't worry, I've got your back."
Revy only huffed irately in response, earning more chuckles from her self-proclaimed 'partner' as he looked at where the Hind had gone, seeing it turning around in a holding pattern.
"Well now that we've established that that attack helo was sent to kill me," he commented lightly as if getting chased by a gunship was an everyday thing for him. For Revy, it served to highlight just what kind of fucked-up scenarios and jobs that he went on before they met on that ship. "And the head of the Materials & Procurement Department won't care if one of his employees gets caught up in his schemes. They just want that disc to disappear — and my life is just an accessory."
Revy hummed in acknowledgment. "Seems that way to me."
"Yeah, I got that vibe as well," Rock agreed. He frowned at the attack helicopter maintaining a holding pattern though. "Is it just me or have they stopped attacking?"
He got a nod from the plum-haired woman.
"No, it's definitely not just you," Revy confirmed frowning as well, gesturing for him to follow her into the cabin.
"Don't you find something odd about this, Benny?" They heard Dutch ask through their earpieces.
Benny made a noise in agreement. "Yeah, something's not right, Dutch." He replied. "They've totally stopped firing at us. They could've easily turned us into Swiss cheese."
Rock and Revy saw Dutch nod in agreement just as they entered the cockpit via the watertight hatch. "Agreed. Something is not right."
"Dutch! What's going on?" Revy asked, leaving Rock to secure the hatch on his way in. "Where did those bastards go?"
"Benny-boy," Dutch said.
"Right then," Benny reported checking on his radar equipment. "They've retreated to a distance of about 5,000 meters behind and have been following us while keeping that distance."
Rock narrowed his eyes in concentration as he stared out the window of the helm at the distance, where he spotted several small islets and landmasses as well as what looked like mangrove trees.
"What're they after?" he heard Benny ask. "There's got to be a reason for this…"
That's when it hit him.
"Dutch, I know why they're doing this!" Rock exclaimed, getting the other's full attention. "Are there any maps of this area? It's better if I can just show you why."
Dutch nodded, turning to the side to pull a large navigation map out of its hiding place. Unfurling it for them to see, Rock needed only a few seconds to analyze the terrain, topography, the number of landmasses and islets around and all the other information on the map before he sighed. Seeing the other's looks, he just pointed at a particular spot on the map, in relation to the Black Lagoon's current longitude and latitude — a waterway.
Dutch saw it as well. "Damn it!" he exclaimed, kicking himself for not seeing it sooner. "It's this waterway that Rock pointed out."
"That's it!" Benny said. "The waterway!"
Dutch studied the map once more. "The path ahead to Belawan is filled with rocks and mangroves," he explained to Revy who was behind his seat. "As we proceed, the waterway will continue to narrow until—!"
Rock finished for him. "—we won't have room to do evasive maneuvers," He nodded to himself. "I'm impressed that these guys thought of something like this to begin with, which makes them dangerous."
"Agreed — good eye, Rock."
Rock only nodded with a light grin.
Revy frowned at the map before turning to Dutch. "There's no shame in running." She said.
"I agree," Dutch replied. "Hang on!"
With that he throttled the engine and moved the PT boat onto a course that would lead them out of the waterways. However, the mercs on their backs weren't going to let them go that easily. They were just about to change course when rockets and machinegun fire erupted all around them.
Dutch tried his best, but in order to avoid the ordinance being thrown at them, he was forced to be led back onto their original course by the mercs, which led them straight into the waterways, just where the pursuing mercs wanted them to be.
Dutch only hung his head, sighing.
"Don't tell me I suck at this," he began. "Well, I guess I can't redeem myself now even if you told me so."
Revy only closed her eyes. "I wouldn't say that…"
"I had no choice in the matter," Dutch justified. "I had to evade to the right."
"I know that."
As they sailed further and further into the waterway, it seemed to them that their options for escape were becoming more and more limited by the minute. Either continue going until they run out of space to sail a PT boat upriver, or let the helicopter catch up to them and finish their job. Not the best odds in Rock's, but he had worse.
"The enemy's behind us again," Benny reported. "He's looking down on us from behind, 5,000 meters from us."
As they moved further inland, Revy spotted something ahead.
"Well, would you look at that — a sunken ship," Revy commented. "What a bad omen for us to be here with that as a sign."
After they had passed the sunken ship, the PT boat continued onwards for a few minutes more. However, they noted that the sounds of the helicopter's blades are getting quieter and quieter the further they moved along, and they were wondering about that until Benny piped up.
"Dutch, they've stopped by the sunken ship," he reported. "They're not chasing us anymore."
Dutch tsked in annoyance. "It's no longer in their best interests to waste their energy chasing us anymore," he concluded. "That's what it means."
Revy grunted in irritation. "Bastard…"
Rock only closed his eyes in contemplation, taking in all the information they had gathered on the enemy, their tactics, their willingness to bait and torture their prey before finishing them off. If Rock didn't know any better, he'd say that the helicopter pilot was a big-game hunter, or rather, a chivalrous knight hell-bent on one-on-one duels to the death.
He hummed as his mind connected the dots, coming to the same exact conclusion every time to lines connected with the dots. It couldn't be that simple, could it…?
Revy noticed that Rock had his thinking face on. And seeing as how his intelligence and quick wit had gotten them this far without being killed while making things go a lot smoother than she could've thought, she was curious about what he had in mind.
"Yo, Rock," Rock opened his eyes and tilted his head in question at her. She smirked at that habit of his, inwardly finding it rather cute. "Something on your mind? Or are you just sleeping away your last minutes on Earth?"
Rock snorted, flipping her off which caused her to chortle. Neither noticed the eyebrow-raising from Dutch and Benny as a result of their byplay.
"I think I managed to figure that bastard out," Rock announced. "Something about this seemed wrong to me, and I've been connecting the dots in my head and it came back to the same exact conclusion."
Dutch nodded. "What did you figure out about him, Rock?"
"Benny, check your radar and sonar," Rock requested. "There's only a dead end in front of us isn't it?"
A few moments of silence. "Yup."
"It already looks that way from here," Dutch said, already slowing down the boat as he glanced around at the narrower waterway. "If that's the case there's no road ahead of us anymore — we have to turn around and go back, and he'll be right there waiting."
Rock nodded. "That's what I figured," he crossed his arms in front of his chest in thought. "And you can bet that he planned all of this out from the start. The chase, boxing us in in this channel, then taunting us by waiting for us at the sunken ship."
"So that he can finish us off, face-to-face." Dutch agreed.
Rock chuckled, earning looks from his companions. "So… he's that kind of bastard," he threw a knowing look at Dutch. "Rare, stupid ones that think they're gunmen while sitting behind a Hind and taking potshots at his prey before finishing them off mano-o-mano. He's making this a bit too easy for us, even for guys like him."
"What?" "Eh?" "Did you hit your head somewhere?!"
This earned him incredulous looks from the Lagoon Company, causing him to laugh as Rock waved them off. At a glare from Revy though, he calmed down and cleared his throat as he watched Dutch light a cigarette while waiting for him to catch up with his thoughts.
"Our only choice is to go head-to-head with that Hind," Rock explained. Just as Dutch was about to protest, he continued. "We're only left with two options. Option 1 — Dutch, are those torpedo tubes loaded?"
Raising an eyebrow at the line of questioning, Dutch nodded. "They are." He confirmed. "That's why I'm concerned about a frontal assault — one hit to those and we'll be flying to the moon."
Revy huffed. "I told you not to bother with them in the first place!"
"I thought they would've been useful on something."
"Don't worry, they're perfect for Option 1." Rock interrupted a growing argument that he could see forming. "With this boat's speed, the torpedoes, and that sunken ship as a launching platform — we have everything we need."
There was a stunned silence that engulfed the cockpit cabin.
"What the hell do you have in mind?" Dutch asked.
And Rock explained his thought process, and by the end of it, they were shocked.
"No way," Dutch denied. "it's impossible! Can't be done!"
Benny on the other hand who had joined them in the cockpit cabin adjusted his glasses. "In theory, this ship is designed to hydroplane," He held up two fingers to illustrate the water level. "At full speed, we're only in the water by this much."
Although still stunned at the reckless but immensely ballsy plan, Revy smirked. "Dutch, it's not as if we've got an alternate plan. I'm in."
"The plan won't work unless they're right in front of us," Dutch replied, helping Revy light her cigarette with his lighter. "Can we count on that happening, Rock?"
Rock nodded confidently.
"Definitely," he said, mischief bright in his eyes. "They're having too much fun chasing us around despite having all the advantages. What's the reason for them to restart the whole fight now? As I said, he fancies himself a gunman — let's oblige him and invite him for a head-on chicken race. He can't resist."
Dutch contemplated the plan, seeing the utter insanity it took for Rock to even think about it and the utter recklessness it took for them to pull it off. It was plausible, but Rock had said this was Option 1.
"Okay, let's keep Option 1 open for now," Dutch said, earning nods of agreement all around. "What's Option 2?"
Rock nodded. "How steady can you hold your boat at top speed?" he asked. "Option 2 needs a stable firing platform."
"It's useless, remember?" Revy answered. "Not even our anti-tank rifle can so much as scratch that thing, nevermind taking it down."
Rock shrugged modestly. "I've done it before with a Dragunov."
There was a stunned silence, which Rock noted had been happening quite a lot when he was involved.
"Are you fucking with us, Rock?!" Revy snarled, drawing her pistol on him. "Do you think we're as gullible as we look?! How stupid do you think we are?!"
Rock merely looked straight into her eyes, and Revy could see the determination and fire that was present behind his eyes. She knew those eyes of his were going to be a lot tougher to stare into in the future, unless she wanted to be distracted on a job.
"I can, and I will!" Rock said strongly. "Before going into mercenary work, I was on active duty and was my squad's Designated Marksman." Rock's eyes gained a glazed quality to them as he reminisced his time with the 'Ghosts'. "My task in case of emergencies where there is a lack of heavy weapons was to shoot down enemy helos by targeting their weak points with my sniper rifle. I've done it before, and it will be a lot easier using an anti-tank rifle than a Dragunov, that's for sure."
There was a pause as everyone absorbed what the Japanese security contractor had said, and Rock left them to decide whether they were to believe him or not.
Surprisingly, given their initial meeting, it was Revy who made the move first. She holstered her pistols and gave him a very serious look. Rock merely looked back into her eyes without flinching. Seeing the truth in his eyes, Revy believed him.
"Your skills," she began. "Your best wasn't close-quarters combat, pistols or assault rifles was it?"
Rock shook his head. There was a reason he had the callsign "Archer".
"I shoot best with a sniper rifle in my hand," he answered honestly. "I'm good with other weapons as it was required of my training. But give me a sniper rifle any day of the week and I'll be a happy camper."
Revy only sighed loudly. She looked like she wanted to tear her hair out, which also earned her looks from her crewmates.
Revy only facepalmed.
"Do you mean to tell me that me and Dutch," she gestured to herself and the black man. "Are outclassed in hand-to-hand combat and CQC by someone who's best skill was to shoot someone from afar and relocate without anybody knowing?"
'Well, when you thought about like that…' Rock thought inwardly, grimacing at the half-glare, half look of admiration on Revy's face. It was decidedly creepy.
"Okay, that settles it then," Revy finally said, looking towards Dutch. "Dutch, I approve of both options. Both are equally insane, but it's all we've got."
Benny piped up. "If I may, I can amend the plans slightly," he said. "We can combine both options in one plan. We'll go with Option 2 first, and when that doesn't work, we'll use Option 1 as a backup plan. Sound good to you guys?"
Revy and Rock nodded while Dutch tapped his fingers on the dashboard in deep thought.
"This guy we picked up is completely out of his mind," Dutch began. "He's gotta be insane — but this is exciting." They could see Dutch grinning maniacally as he spoke. "And being excited is an important thing in my books, Rock. Let's do it!"
Rock nodded as he followed Revy back onto the deck just as Dutch gunned the engine and turned the boat around. Following behind her, he stopped when the sexy woman turned around with the rifle in hand, along with a bandolier of magazines as well.
Revy smirked at him. "I'm betting my life on your skills, Rock." She handed the rifle and ammo over to him. "Don't make me regret it and come back and haunt you for eternity. That gun's expensive as fuck — don't lose it!"
Rock only grinned as he loaded the rifle, pulling back on the charging handle as he did. "Wouldn't dream of it, Revy!" he said. "Still gotta kick your ass when I train you in assisted pistol cocking!"
"Kiss my ass, Rock!"
Rock winked at her. "I would love to if you don't shoot my balls off!"
Her tomato red blush was definitely worth her cussing the hell out of him in Rock's opinion.
As they came up to where the sunken ship was located, Rock tossed Revy his appropriated FN FAL, who caught it with a nod of thanks.
"Alright boys and girls, you know what to do!" Dutch called out. "Revy, once that bastard fires heat seeking missiles, shoot your flare away from the boat to draw them away!"
"Gotcha!" Revy replied with a smirk, cocking the assault rifle as she did.
"Once that's done, do your thing Rock!" Dutch continued. "Don't mess this up!"
Rock laughed lightly. "That's what the backup plan is for!"
As the Hind came into visual range, Dutch gunned the engine all the way forward while aiming for the sunken ship as planned. Rock's Option 1 depended on the speed of the boat as well as the idiocy of the pilot to commit into a chicken race with them. The sunken ship would be a perfect launching platform for the boat to launch its torpedoes at the helicopter —
— if Option 2 fails, which Rock had already set up at where Revy had done almost an hour ago. Adjusting his sights for minimum zoom due to the decreasing range, he aimed down his sights as he entered a now familiar Zen-like state of mind. Everything else became background noise as he carefully aimed at the Hind's most obvious weak points — the cockpit or the intake fans right below the rotor blades.
Quickly calculating the factors that would affect his shot — wind speed, the boat's speed, and weight of the weapon and the guesswork downwind of the rotor blades. All were calculated within a few seconds in Rock's well-honed mind and instincts as he prepared for the trickiest shot he had ever attempted since 'Ghosts' training.
He heard Dutch's voice over the radio. "I see the idiot." he called. "Revy! It's a chicken race! Send them an invitation!'
Revy aimed with the assault rifle, toggled to semi-auto and cut loose. Though not as accurate as the anti-tank rifle, all her shots were on target as they heard the distinctive 'ping' sounds of bullets bouncing off the armor plating.
They got their wish when the Hind pilot took the bait, lowered his altitude and accelerated at them head on. Hook, line and sinker.
And the race started when the Hind fired off its heat-seekers.
"Revy!" Rock yelled.
"Got it!"
The woman in question drew her infrared flare gun, took aim and fired it into the air. The heat from the flare fooled the infrared sensors of the heat-seekers and both missiles veered right for it, exploding in a brilliant ball of fire away from the PT boat.
"We're on an alpine course unless Rock can take him down!" Benny said. "Revy, you better get in here!"
"No way, Benny!" Revy shook her head with a smirk. "If we die, we all die fucking standing!"
All of the banter was ignored by Rock who took a calm breath, letting it out as he steadied the rifle. Sighting his first target, Rock took aim as his fingers depressed slightly on the trigger, and he breathed in and out, in… and out…
He pulled the trigger, the giant rifle kicking back into his shoulder as the .50 caliber round streaked towards its target. It took him another split second to resight his second target and pull the trigger, and the rifle jumped again as a second round followed closely to the first.
At first, it looked like he had missed both shots.
But then Revy noticed a flash of light near the engine intake fan right beneath the main rotor before it exploded and started smoldering, much to her shock and awe. The crazy bastard actually did it! That was some of the best shooting she had ever seen in her entire life!
She had seen plenty of amazing gun skills, but Rock was just something else with that rifle of his!
As the helicopter turned and rotated to its right to try and compensate for the damage, the second round that Rock had fired struck another important component; the tail rotor, which sputtered and started belching black smoke as the Hind started going into a death spiral as its propulsion systems were severely damaged.
Rock nodded to himself as he stood back up with the rifle in hand, ejecting the magazine as well as the newly chambered round as he looked up at his handiwork. He had no smirk or smile on his face, but a satisfied look that said, 'job well done'.
As Dutch slowed down the boat and turned it away from the sunken ship, they all watched as the E.O. Company attack helicopter spin a few more times before it disappeared behind the sunken ship and exploded in a huge fireball.
Rock smiled to himself at that, so he was unprepared for the headlock and noogie that Revy subjected him to, causing him to squawk indignantly as Revy laughed in his ear. Benny and Dutch were already exiting the cabin with smiles on their faces coming to congratulate him on a job well done.
"That was the craziest shit I have ever done so far in my life!" Revy guffawed while still giving him a noogie as he struggled to get out of her strong grip. "But by Fucking Christ those were the best shots I've ever seen in my entire life. Holy fucking shit, Rock!"
Benny laughed as well, glad to be alive.
"And we didn't even resort to Option 1 either," he noted with a grin. "Just thinking about the equipment being busted from that jump is making my heart ache. Thank God your shooting saved us, man!"
Rock laughed lightly, grunting from effort as he tried to escape the headlock. "Y-You're welcome, g-glad I could help out!" he managed to reply. "Those weren't my toughest shots — the idiot made it easier for me just charging right in. It certainly made my job easier."
He was glad he hadn't tangled with Revy long enough to experience this the first time they met, or he would've been in trouble. This woman was stupidly strong!
Dutch adjusted his sunglasses, grinning as he gave Rock a thumbs up. "All I can say is amen, hallelujah, peanut butter."
Rock only laughed at that, with Revy finally releasing him from her headlock allowing him to breathe properly once more. As the Lagoon Company prepped to continue their journey to Belawan, Rock could've sworn someone was watching him, but every time he turned around he saw nobody there. So, he decided to put it out of his mind for now.
They continued the rest of the journey unmolested, with Rock even managing to get some shuteye in as well. All in all, a very productive day in his opinion.
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The Black Lagoon pulled into Belawan Port when the sun was starting to set, limping into dock where a host of people were waiting for it.
Upon stepping off their boat, the four of them were greeted by a woman in a red business skirt suit covered by a Soviet-era military coat draped over her shoulders. She had bright blue eyes and very long blonde hair which was pulled up into a high ponytail that made the bunched-up hair look braided. She also had on silky black leggings and black high heels.
However, the most notable feature were the scars that crisscrossed on one side of her face, her neck and Rock could safely assume it also covered the rest of her body. Nevertheless, that deformity did nothing to hide the fact that she was a very beautiful woman.
A very powerful woman as well for Rock could see it in her eyes, the wealth of experience, hardships, tragedy and sorrow that shaped the woman before him. He could also see the authority that she held within those icy blues, as well as a hint of madness and apathy as well.
As expected, given that she was the mob boss of the most powerful Russian Mafia on this side of the Pacific.
"Good work," the woman — Balalaika — said to Dutch in Russian-accented English. Holding up a hand, she received the disc from the leader of the Lagoon Company. "I love smart work, Dutch. But I've got to tell you, you guys look terrible."
Rock thought they didn't look that terrible, considering they just fought off the E.O. Mercenary Company (he did a fact check on his private networks, and those guys had top-of-the-line gear by merc standards.) and came out with only some bruises and a battered PT boat, he thought they looked fine.
Only then did Rock note the number of bodyguards surrounding Balalaika, ten in total, and looked as though they could take on an army and win handily. Rock recognized some of those faces from his time in the military as ex-Russian and Ukrainian Spetsnaz.
"We're not going to a formal party," Dutch grumbled, joining the others in looking worse for wear. "We'll dress however we want."
Balalaika smiled lightly at the group, with Rock noticing her gaze lingering slightly longer on him for a split second before she turned to the other group waiting by a limo.
Rock wasn't even surprised to see Kageyama and his former supervisor there.
"Now then, Mr. Kageyama," Balalaika began, holding up the disc for the man to see. "We, from Hotel Moscow, have a code of honor."
That obviously brought the Asahi group up short. "Oh?" Kageyama asked stiffly, obviously stalling for time. "I thought you were from the Bougainvillea Trade Company?"
'Bougainvillea Trade Company?' Rock wondered, thinking back on several off-the-books operations for when he had seen that name before. He was pretty sure the company was on the CIA watchlist for illegal smuggling of weapons and exotic goods but seen as not much of a threat. By the looks of things here, perhaps they should've raised their threat level a bit higher.
"We followed through in our own way," Balalaika replied, walking towards the Asahi Industries group in a slow, almost seductive saunter. She held out the disc for Kageyama to take. "I believe there shouldn't be any grudges."
Kageyama hid his reaction, but Rock could see the slight twitching of his right hand as he reached out and took the disc from the beautiful Russian mob boss. Kageyama was not happy, but no one other than those trained in body languages could recognize the tell.
Kageyama pocketed the disc under his business suit. "The world is full of things that cannot be helped." He finally said, straightening his suit to save what's left of his dignity.
If Rock could see that, so could Balalaika and judging by her widening smile, she noticed. "Now it's your turn to follow through in your own way," she continued. "We'll go over the details at the hotel."
"Very well," Kageyama waited for the other man in a suit to open the door for him. Before stepping in the car, however, he turned to look at Rock. "Thanks for the good work, Okajima-kun. Come along, then."
Rock's former supervisor, Fujiwara, turned pleadingly to Rock. "Okajima-kun, what are you doing?!" he hissed nervously. "Come on, we're going to be late!"
Feeling the eyes of his new friends — yes, they were friends. Fancy that. — on him, Rock nonchalantly walked forward before standing straight at attention.
"Boss, don't you remember?" He began, loosening his teal tie. This had the unintentional effect of making him look more intimidating than usual, despite his neutral visage. "I'm already dead. You told me so a few hours ago. My name… is Rock."
Kageyama had the gall to look remotely amused by that, judging by the slight twitching of his usually flat lips and cold face. "Is that so?" he closed his eyes and turned away in dismissal. "Then do as you wish. Fujiwara, let's get going."
"Y-Yes sir."
And with that, the Asahi Industries group boarded their limousine and drove off into the city, heading to where Rock would assume to be a branch of Hotel Moscow.
As he watched them go, inwardly smirking at them being unaware of Archer's data-mine a few months ago, the soft clacking of heels got his attention as he turned to look at Balalaika who was approaching him with a few bodyguards a step or two behind.
"Rock," she said, her Russian-accented English making sound oddly alluring. "Sorry for making you talk with those idiots. But I'd consider it a great waste for a tough guy like you stay Japonski."
She then looked at him through half-lidded eyes. "But then again… you're not your typical Japonski, am I right?"
Rock raised an eyebrow at her. He noticed that the curious gleam in her eyes had a tinge of irritation in them, which was reflected slightly by her body language. He figured that she must have been frustrated with her organization's continued failed attempts at cracking his personal history and service records.
'Heh, good luck cracking the Ghost's encryption!' Rock thought to himself, promising to send his old unit something exotic in his next care package.
Looking at Balalaika who was still waiting for his response, Rock merely smiled and bowed slightly to her in deference. "I might be," he conceded. "But I'm just your typical Japonski shanghai-ed onto the Lagoon Trading Company with a particular set of skills, nothing more Ma'am."
Balalaika laughed softly at that, nodding at him as a car pulled up alongside her as her bodyguard opened the door for her. She stepped into the car and her bodyguard closed the door for her before she rolled down the windows and looked at him.
"I like that attitude of yours," she said with a small smile. A dangerous smile, one which held promises. "I see that you are content with working alongside Dutch and his crew. We'll be seeing each other again very soon. Until that time, please know that you can come to us anytime if you ever need help."
She closed her eyes and smiled pleasantly at him. "Goodbye for now, Rock."
Rock bowed as the car drove away, only standing back up until the car was out of sight. The intelligence reports on her were all wrong — Balalaika wasn't just dangerous: she's the most dangerous and most powerful woman that Rock had ever met. He only hoped that he, or anyone else for that matter, wouldn't get on her bad side.
The world might just implode if Rock were to face off against Balalaika in open conflict, considering the support that both sides had on their speed dials.
"So, Rock." He heard Dutch ask as Rock walked back to the Lagoon Company trio. "What will you do now? Besides heading back to Roanapur of course."
"I'm technically no longer a hostage," Rock shrugged, smiling as he did. "And until my next big security contract job, I've got nowhere else to be at the moment."
With the light of the sunset haloed around her, Revy looked as beautiful as she was deadly when she looked to the side with a beautiful smirk on her face.
"Hey, there's this crew I've heard of that could use a good sailor," Revy commented offhandedly, smirking wider when she caught Rock's own smirk as well. "Do you think you would be interested? It's a small delivery company—"
"—who sometimes break the rules to put food on the table," Rock finished for her as he stood in front of them, smiling cheerfully. "Am I right?"
Revy just scoffed playfully, causing Rock to laugh.
"You know what, I might just do that," Rock said with a laugh. "It will be fun to see my colleagues faces in the security contract work when I tell them I do semi-piracy on the side. I think they'd die of choking on their own egos!"
All four of them chuckled at that, well-used to the fact that private military contracting agency contractors have egos the size of an island, with no skill to back them up. That was why most clients tend to go full-blown mercenary rather than go through security contractors — they perform better, and they're oftentimes cheaper to hire. That was why the three of them were surprised by Rock's job title, as he had no overinflated ego and a wicked sense of humor to match his fighting skills.
As the Lagoon Company plus their new crewmember settled into the Black Lagoon for the voyage back to Roanapur, they settled into a comfortable silence as they minded their own business, with Dutch helming the boat, Benny checking his computer equipment and Revy cleaning her two pistols.
Rock on the other hand was contemplating revealing his origins to his new colleagues, of course with most of his service history redacted due to their covert natures. He also, under no circumstances, reveal that he was and still part of the infamous 'the Ghosts' of the United States Army, despite his Japanese citizenship.
That was information that Rock would take to his grave if need be.
"Hey, Rock," Revy's voice pulled Rock out of his musings. "What's got you so wound up? You're making that thinking face again, and it's pissing me off because you can't share."
"Private thoughts are private for a reason, Revy." Rock's reply was perfectly dry.
Revy glared at him. "I know that, dumbass!"
Rock chuckled. "I know, I know, calm down." He put his hands up in surrender. "I was thinking of letting you guys see some of my service records before I went private, but if you don't want that—!"
"Do it! Do it, you dipshit!" Revy practically jumped over her workstation to pull at his collar, shaking him as she did. "Don't make me put a bullet in you, Rock! Now, spill!"
The commotion caught Dutch and Benny's attention, and hearing the reason for Revy's outburst, they were interested as well. Benny especially was all but salivating at knowing what kind of cybersecurity was in place to hide Rock's identity and was just as excited as everyone else. Dutch, being a war veteran himself, recognized another war veteran when he saw one and was curious to know which conflict he had been involved in before going into the world of private security contracting.
Once he was able to convince Revy to stop shaking him, the four of them found themselves in Benny's workspace, with the resident tech specialist taking a backseat as he allowed Rock access to his systems. Revy and Dutch were overlooking the Japanese man's shoulders and at the screen where Rock had just finished keying in his security overrides and identity authorization which included a fingerprint and retinal scan which he had connected via his phone.
With a flourish, Rock pressed the enter key and lo and behold, his service records and personal details were shown on the screen, minus the redacted ones of course.
Revy whistled as she scanned over the information shown on the screen, with Dutch doing the same while Benny was just flabbergasted. His service record was impressive, for lack of a better word.
"Fucking hell, Rock," Revy scanned over the number of operations and engagements he had participated both before and after dropping out of the military. "How the fuck are you still alive after fighting through all of these?"
"Beats me," Rock shrugged. "My former CO says that I was blessed or something, as I was never hit by enemy fire unless I wanted to be hit."
Revy snorted. "I can believe that," she looked at his combat record again. "No way anyone normal can dodge my shots, and I'm the best shot in Roanapur!"
"Well, you obviously still need some work." Rock shot back.
"I swear Rock, I'm going to fucking murder you!"
Dutch frowned. "You've been through some pretty heavy stuff, Rock." he pointed out the list. "Enlisted in late '03, finished basic training at the top of your class. Initiated combat operations in Iraq as part of a United Nations Peacekeeping Force stationed there, getting commendations and rising quickly through the ranks by showing initiative and creative thinking on the battlefield. Stayed for a 2-year tour before you were transferred back to Japan where you were fast-tracked and transferred to Japan's 1st Airborne Brigade, and from there you achieved your Ranger qualification and held your highest rank as a Master Sergeant."
The black man leaned forward at the next information. "And here comes the interesting part," he pointed at the screen. "It also says here as one of the most experienced and decorated NCOs of the brigade, you were scouted out for Japan's Special Forces Group, or the "S" Group."
This information slightly shocked Revy and Benny. Rock had been special forces? When they thought about it, it made an eerie amount of sense considering how skilled Rock was in the art of gunplay, CQC and keeping a level head in high-stress combat situations, which was par the course for Roanapur's daily life.
"After that, the rest of your service record is redacted — understandable," Dutch nodded, lighting a smoke and taking a puff from it. "It makes sense that you were once part of the special forces. You had to learn your skills from somewhere after all. But here's the question: you spent a total of 9 years in the Self-Defense Force, serving with distinction before you decided to retire and go private. Why?"
There was a moment of silence as everyone looked at Rock who was staring up the ceiling in thought. Why had he, a decorated soldier in the Japanese Special Forces, had chosen to suddenly retire and go in private mercenary work? There had to be a reason for his choice, and they were curious as to the reason why.
"I'm sorry," Rock apologized softly, a haunted quality coming to his brown eyes. The same kind that Revy had seen back in Yellow Flags which was so like her own whenever she looked in the mirror. The look of self-hate and infinite regret. "I don't think I can share my reasons for right now, as even I hadn't even come to terms with it yet. All I can say is that, me and bigger picture politics? We don't mesh well, at all. And that's a big no-no while serving your country's special forces."
There was a long, tense silence as the other three quietly absorbed what Rock had said. It sounded there was something that caused his eventual leaving of the army, and as he had said, it had something to do with politics. If Dutch were a betting man, and he is, he'd say that either Rock was betrayed by his country, or his country's decisions went against everything he stood for and ultimately forced him to resign his commission.
If that were the case, Dutch knew that feeling all too well. He had been a 'Nam veteran after all, and that was America's thankless war that they ultimately lost due to politics.
"I understand Rock," Dutch hesitated before he reached out and softly patted Rock on the shoulder. "When you're ready, we'll be here."
Benny merely nodded while Revy uncharacteristically nodded with a serious look on her face, her amber eyes looking haunted and far away where she was remembering the times when she was just a child, trying to survive on the streets and not get killed by any gangbangers or random junkies. She had lost her innocence practically since the moment she was born.
Revy couldn't decide whether she wanted to know more about Rock's story or stay immensely angry at him for making her relive those thoughts. She finally chose the latter — it was easier for her to feel anger and hatred while squashing the insidious voice whispering that she was just running away from her problems yet again.
They stayed like that in respectful silence during the final leg of the journey back to Roanapur.
\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/
After they had arrived back in Roanapur, the four of them drove to the office where the Lagoon Company used as a headquarters and meeting place to get some drinks after a long day. They stayed up late into the night, talking, bullshitting and getting to know one another better as they polished off the alcohol stockpiled in the fridge.
After a few more drinks, Rock announced that he was heading out to get some affairs in order before he would go house hunting the next day. Dutch flat out stated that Rock could use the office as a place for him to crash until he had gotten a home for himself, with Revy snarking that he shouldn't slack off and mooch from company funds by being lazy. After all, he was a part of the company now, and he had to pull his own weight.
Rock only managed to resist a cheeky remark but thought better of it. No need to put himself in hot water by poking the dragon.
And here he was, walking into a bistro and bar that wasn't Yellow Flags seeing as it was thrashed. He took a seat, ordered a few drinks for himself while casually pulling out his phone. He then typed out a quick message and sent it off. Once his drink arrived, Rock took leisurely sips of it as he took in the bistro's atmosphere, aware of the seedier people of the city and had brought his pistol with him just in case.
As he finished his drink, his phone vibrated with an incoming message. Picking it up, he checked the message before he stood up, leaving a tip for the waiter before heading back out onto Roanapur's streets.
Double-checking his fanny pack and the contents within, Rock casually walked along the sidewalks, a single face among many despite the late hour. Although known for its moniker of "City of the Dead", it is also sometimes known as the "City that Never Sleeps" due to most of its businesses and services operate better and more discretely at night which was easier to hide any 'discrepancies'.
Looking up at a battered neon sign reading "Fortune Etchings" and the shop which the sign advertised for having long since run out of business, Rock took a turn into its back alleyway before stopping at a graffiti art which depicted an eagle with its claws outstretched ready to bear down on its prey. To anyone else, the graffiti was nothing more than a reasonably-painted street art.
For Rock however, it symbolized a different meaning.
Reaching forward, he found a small opening in the wall where the claws of the eagle were drawn before removing the piece of concrete covering it. Fishing out the two flash drives in his fanny pack, Rock carefully inserted them into the opening in the wall, covered it back up with the small piece of concrete before he walked off and blended himself back amongst the crowds.
Everything was quiet in the dark alley, and for more than half an hour it stayed that way.
A dark figure with three glowing green 'eyes' dropped down from its hiding place on the roof and scanned around for intruders, its 'eyes' cycling through multiple vision settings before the figure turned towards the eagle graffiti and removed the flash drives embedded within the eagle claw. Nodding to itself, the figure then quietly moved into a shadowed corner and promptly disappeared as if he was never there, leaving the alley in silence once more.
On his way back to the Lagoon Company office, Rock received a notification on his phone as he pulled it out. Reading the message, he just smiled before slipping it back into his pocket, whistling a merry tune as he did.
Over the next few months, Asahi Heavy Industries would suddenly come under heavy political and legal pressure as the National Diet started its investigation into the company's violations of international law and several other charges that were left pending.
On being asked why they were being investigated, the National Diet would state that they had received information from an anonymous source that implicated the company in multiple offenses and violation which, when convicted, would see the entirety of Asahi's Board of Directors jailed and company assets seized by the government.
After a prolonged legal battle with the government, with Asahi Industries throwing every lawyer and judge it had on its payroll at the case, it only delayed the inevitable as the information provided by the government revealed the depth of Asahi Heavy Industries' illegal dealings to the world. Asahi Industries' final death knell was sounded when details of their dealings to provide plans to a war-torn country to build their own nuclear weapons were submitted as proof by the National Diet, the courts finally made its decision and declared Asahi Heavy Industries to be guilty on all counts.
Asahi Industries declared bankruptcy a month after the guilty verdict, its Directors convicted and imprisoned, and the company's liquid assets dissolved and absorbed by either the government or by rival companies. And true to Rock's prediction, in the wake of Asahi Industries' dissolution, its employees were absorbed into their rival company's workforce almost overnight, proving that Mr. Kageyama's threat to Rock was just a bluff all along.
Of course, that would only happen in the next several months, but for now, Rock was content at having played his part in the demise of Asahi Heavy Industries.
\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/
And done! Chapter 3 is finished!
Hopefully, you guys liked this chapter where we learn more about Rock's past in the special forces, and his reasoning which led to his leaving the military for the private sector. Before saying that the 'shooting down the Hind with a rifle' thing is unrealistic, need I remind you that it is an ANTI-TANK RIFLE, aimed at the intake fans of the helicopter which would most certainly cause damage. If anything, this stunt is MORE realistic than half the shit done in Black Lagoon, which will be brought to you in glorious black and white by yours truly!
And I left an Easter egg at the end there! Anyone can figure out who that mysterious figure was? And the part about Asahi Heavy Industries' demise was one I had in mind when reading the manga and watching the anime. Some people really needed to have comeuppance served to them on a silver platter, and here is my take on it. Do you guys like it?
Anyway, that's all from me this time. Have a good one, everyone and stay safe!
This is HEIROFROHAN signing off,
PEACE!