AN - Bam another chapter appears! periodical reminder to check out the tumblr hoorayimuseful. tumblr. com for updates and renders related to these works.
"Well, I mean, it is a pretty swanky place."
"I call dibs on the bar." Aranea replied, taking a sip of her drink and giving the server a flirtatious wink. "Not that I am complaining, but that info we were given about this hotel was very… Specific. Are we expecting to walk into a trap?"
Lightning laughed, the tone mildly sarcastic as she swirled her own drink in her hand. "We've found that always expecting traps means we can be pleasantly surprised on the few occasions there isn't one. Who knows who this Naki is, really? He could be an insider, someone out for revenge against the Triads, or even Fang herself. Or, he's someone working directly for the Triads looking to lead us all to our deaths. Time will tell, and unfortunately until we get answers we're going to just have to play along."
Aranea sighed and downed her drink in one shot, standing and walking back over to the bar for a refill. Fang watched her go and nudged her partner. "Not a bad friend to have in these parts. Think we're in with a shot with all this?"
"It depends on a number of factors. One, do we have the numbers and firepower to handle the inevitable retaliation from the Triads?" Lightning began to explain, pausing as Vanille flopped onto the seat next to her with a sigh. The redhead stole Fang's beer out of her hand and finished it off much to the elder Oerban's dismay. The sad expression was short lived when Aranea reappeared with a fresh drink in hand for all of them, including Vanille.
"I like you. I'm keeping you." Fang said as she happily tipped her drink back. Lightning rolled her eyes at the amused glint in Aranea's eyes and continued.
"Two, will we have the ability to pull this off without the same kind network access Vanille had in Eden?"
The data analyst sighed and toyed with her phone. She hated being so cut off from everything and felt blind within a city fraught with danger for all of them. Aranea slid over the other side of the booth and placed a casual arm around Vanille, giving her an easy smile. "Access you say? Is that all? I can probably help with that. How do you feel about working with a cop?" She asked innocently, fluttering her eyelashes at the duo glaring at her from the other corner of the booth.
"Explain before I throw this bottle at you." Fang deadpanned, looking unamused at the joke at their expense.
"There's a couple of beat cops I pay off every now and again to turn a blind eye to our street racing... They're a pack of idiot idealists, like you two are." Aranea quipped, taking a drink before continuing as she leant forward in the booth. "If I organise a meeting, maybe we can explain what you're out to accomplish and get them on board. Get this adorable little cherub the eyes on the city she needs to really make life hell for the Triads. Let me make some calls."
With all the air of royalty she stood and sauntered away, pulling her phone out and placing it against her ear as she paced about. Fang watched her move about the bar until her eyes paused on a familiar face watching them from another booth. She stood slowly and moved over to the figure who was silently gazing out at the floor, the drink he held clunking with the ice as he drank it slowly. Her suspicions were confirmed and she motioned for Lightning and Vanille to hold their position as she approached.
"... Vayne? What are you doing here?" Fang exclaimed, moving forward to clasp his wrist. He placed his drink down and stood slowly, manoeuvring from his booth to greet her. They gave each other a brief hug before separating, the tall, long-haired man giving her a once over.
"Well you're certainly not the scrawny street urchin we picked up in Oerba anymore, are you?" He said with a smile, though his eyes held a sinister edge to his stare. "It is little wonder Bhunivelze wants you dead with the trouble you've caused."
Fang's expression fell and her shoulders sagged. She supposed it was too good to be true, that an old associate could return to give a helping hand, not that he ever would to begin with. Vayne was a man of selfish ambition, and worked ruthlessly to obtain his status within the old gang. "You're with the triads now aren't you?"
"I've come on my own merits, not those of the Turks. I respect you and the work you did for us back in the day when we were running around Oerba as the Port Runners. I'm giving you the opportunity to lay down whatever mad schemes you've got brewing here and walk away. Go back to Eden, shore your defences and maybe Bhunivelze will think twice about making any move on your fair city. Continue down this path and he will stop at nothing to destroy you." He answered with a curt nod and gave a lazy gesture with his hand.
"A fair warning for an old friend? Or just waiting for me to turn my back long enough to stick a knife in it?" Fang growled, jaw tightened. Vayne sighed and grabbed his drink, downing it in one fell gulp before placing the glass back on the table with a determined clunk.
"A practical assessment of your current capabilities, and a hope that you will see reason before going on this mad crusade that will undoubtedly tear this city apart, and its citizens will be the ones to ultimately pay the price." He drawled, turning to walk away. He paused, glancing over his shoulder with a smug smile. "Or was Oerba not enough for your own ambitions?"
He left her before she could reply, her nails digging into her palm in anger. Fang spat at the ground before turning back to the two concerned faces in the booth. "Sorry," she offered as she sat back down. "Old… Acquaintance. Telling us to mind our business or watch our backs."
"A professional courtesy, then?" Vanille questioned, though the venom practically dripped from her voice. She didn't need access to network databases to know who her sister was speaking with. She could have picked that egotistical maniac out of a line up from a mile off. After all, he was the one who had gotten into Fang's head and convinced her that a mere application to the Academy in Academia was akin to treason.
"No, I assume he has some greater scheme at play here, and to move us from the city would give him something to take credit for. He is ambitious as ever, but the bastard was always lazy. Don't worry 'Nille, my days of listening to that dickhead are done."
Aranea came back over to join them, a victorious smile on her face. "The boys are keen to meet over some drinks, ladies. So how are we going to take on this hotel?" Lightning hunched over the table, scribbling on a napkin about security feeds, guard formations and opportune times to strike. How to lure the bosses out without harming the civilians, going into great detail as the others listened. Except for Fang of course. She was standing next to the booth, casting a lazy eye over the surroundings until she found what she was looking for. Saying nothing, she slowly got up and meandered away from the table.
"Hey uh, where is your girlfriend going?" Aranea asked, pointing at Fang's retreating form. Lightning glared at the silver-haired woman and pointed her pen at her.
"Wife. She's my wife. And what are you… Oh sweet Etro what is she doing."
The trio at the booth watched in horror as Fang gracefully leapt over the bar and made her way to the back wall, breaking a fire alarm and pulling the switch. A loud siren drowned out any noise from the bar along with Lightning's groans of protest, the pinkette burying her head in her hands. Aranea gave her a sardonic glance and shrugged her shoulders.
"Are you aware that you married a maniac?"
"Frequently."
Fang sauntered over with a cocky swagger, taking her time moving through the rushing, panicked crowd. Lightning tried so hard to be mad at her but when she moved like that and had that look in her eyes she made it... Difficult. When Fang approached with that knowing half-smile that made the Lightning's knees weak, the Pulsian leant down and kissed her on the lips.
"… Ass." Lightning mumbled, knowing that she was always going to be undone by her charismatic partner. "Care to explain why you insisted on pulling the fire alarm?"
"Simple, Darlin'," Fang replied while trailing her fingers down the pinkette's neck, "Quickest way to figure out who are just ignorant guests and who are the Triads. Anyone who clears out isn't a target. Anyone that stays are the gang we need to take out."
The other three stared at her in disbelief, Lightning's jaw opening then closing a couple of times for good measure. "That's… Actually pretty smart." She finally replied, causing Fang to swat her on the rear.
"You can't always be the tactical marvel in this relationship, you know."
Aranea came up alongside them and sighed, tapping Fang on the shoulder. "So what are we doing about weapons?"
"Uh... This is why Lightning is the tactical marvel in this relationship." Fang replied with a wince. They all ran for the bar as a handful of Triad lackeys burst into the room and opened fire. Leaping over the bar, they narrowly avoided the hail of bullets that were shattering all the liquor behind them. Fang pulled Vanille close and shielded her from the falling glass. "Find somewhere safe out the back. Don't be seen."
The redhead nodded and vanished through a doorway behind the bar. Fang watched her leave and grabbed a bottle of tequila, tucking it away on a lower shelf for safe keeping. She spied a shotgun and pistol strapped to the underside of the counter and smiled broadly. "Lady Luck strikes again," she murmured to herself, pulling them down and handing them to the other two.
"What about you?" Lightning hissed, her eyes wide and caught somewhere between concern and outrage. Fang pulled her forward and kissed her, delighting in the small gasp of surprise from her partner. There was a small sound of a groan coming from Aranea at their antics,
"Take them out, I'll grab their weapons as you go."
Reaching for the first thing she could find, her fingers closed around a broom. With a shrug, Fang stood and brandished it like a lance which managed to bring the closest Triads thug to a halt in front of her with a laugh.
"You're fuckin' kidding me, right? What are you going to do, sweep me to death?"
Fang grinned maliciously, pushing the broom between his legs and bringing it up in a sharp motion. She then hooked it behind his feet and reefed the broom backwards, sending him crashing to the ground. Once he was prone, she took the thug out with a swift kick to the head.
"Something like that, sure." Fang quipped with a twitch of her eyebrow, grabbing his pistol and arming herself with it. She turned with a wink at her wife, who was staring at her with equal parts disbelief and something else that would be reserved for later when they were alone. "Don't mind me Sunshine, just sweeping up the trash."
Lightning groaned at the terrible joke and shook her head. "For Etro's sake, you're as bad as Snow." She took a few of the Triads out with precise shots and watched Aranea do the same with the shotgun. There was a hiss as a bottle was thrown at Lightning, the glass smashing close behind her. Shards cut at her skin, which only served to make her angrier. The two women found themselves pinned back behind the bar while Fang was running interference between the booths.
"Running low on ammo here, Lightning," Aranea warned, glaring at the Triads advancing on the Pulsian, "and they're messing up my future bar. If we survive this, you really need to have words with your wife about forward planning."
"No kidding."
Lightning found a small knife that she presumed was to cut the lemons for the drinks and grabbed it, pelting it at an advancing brute. It caught him square in the chest and she hoped it was deep enough to take him down. He staggered forward and grabbed at her, lifting her up by the throat.
Scrambling for air, Lightning punched at the knife handle, embedding it deeper into the man. His cries of pain were drowned out by the gunfire around them, and he fell to his knees, his grip loosening enough for Lightning to escape. She put him out of his misery with the few bullets she had left, gasping for breath.
There was a screech of tyres out the front which made her stomach flip, knowing they were already out-matched to begin with. Backup just made it worse. Lightning wiped the blood off her arm from the glass cuts and grimaced. At least one of them was going to need stitches, and she had long since had enough of scarring.
"Alright girls, light this place up!" A familiar voice burst through the doors with a swift kick as Rikku entered and opened fire on the group of Triads in the bar. Fang breathed a sigh of relief and gave her friend a lazy salute as the members of her gang poured into the hotel and started making their way upstairs to clean house.
"Always a sight to behold, Rikku." Fang drawled, giving her a quick hug. Rikku returned it while still keeping alert for any further enemies. "How'd you know we were here?"
"My doing." Vanille answered for the blonde, appearing next to them now that the immediate danger was out. "We go out as a group, they're on standby. In case something like this happens, or if you're the cause of it."
"How am I the cause-" Fang's protest was immediately silenced by far too many glares in her direction and she sighed. "Fine. But you can't argue that it was an effective method of getting the job done."
It took a few hours to clear out the hotel, many of the Triads that were left being smart enough to surrender and allow themselves to be stripped of all weapons and led off the premises. Fang watched them all leave from the balcony of one of the rooms as Lightning was drying her hair behind her.
"Thought you would have been happy to see the back of them." Lightning observed, hanging the towel on the nearby rack. She sat on the bed with the med kit they'd found in the kitchen and began to patch herself up, applying surgical tape where she needed to. With little complaint she took out the equipment to stitch herself up and got to work while waiting for Fang to surface from her deep contemplation.
"Just thinking," the brunette finally answered, her arms folded as she stood in the doorway from outside. "A victory is a victory, but how long will it last? How long before the Triads return to raze it to the ground? We've got a bus full of our Ragnarok girls now, but it isn't enough."
"So what are you thinking?" Lightning asked, not looking up from her task of stitching a wound closed on her arm. Fang hummed and watched her work, fascinated by the needle piercing the skin.
"I'm thinking... Of extending a hand to the Strahl. And to the Viera."
That certainly gave Lightning pause, looking up at Fang from her stitches. "Not the other Pulsians from the alienage?"
Fang shook her head. It would be one thing to give them safe haven, and that was something she wanted to work towards. But this place was far from that goal, with the Triads breathing down their necks. "No. We need able and capable people that are willing to join the cause. A mutual arrangement. Getting my former villagers in here would just prove many of them right. I'm not willing to get them caught in the crossfire again."
Lightning looked thoughtful before finishing up the stitches and placing a bandage over the wound. "I see. So we get them to help us, they get to keep everything when we're finished and are ready to go home."
"Exactly. I'm perfectly happy in Eden. I don't need any further excitement in my life at this point."
"Could have fooled me..." Lightning muttered, earning a smack from the Pulsian. She smiled and pulled Fang into bed with her, to catch a few hours sleep before it was back to work.
The next morning the leaders of the Viera and the Strahl were invited to the still smouldering hotel to meet with Ragnarok in their new locale. Rikku guided them into a large boardroom where Aranea and Cindy were sat, sipping on steaming coffees. They were ushered to their seats to begin the meeting, Paine placing fresh cups down for the two. To say that Balthier was wary of the offer was an understatement. He sat across from Fang and Lightning, looking incredulous. He turned to Fran and twitched an eyebrow.
"Well? What's your take on this?" He asked. Fran eyed her nails and shrugged.
"I believe she speaks the truth. And the honesty is... Welcomed. It is no simple request, and for any of us to move here would be a very open broadcast of defiance against the Triads. This place would be targeted."
Lightning placed some files on the desk and slid them across. "We understand that it isn't a small thing that we're asking of either of you, Balthier. But I've seen your records and what you've been through. Isn't it time to stop living in fear of the Lucavi? The Turks? The Fiends of Chaos? It's time for Bhunivelze's rule to be dismantled."
"And what of after? Who is to say we're not replacing one despot for another?"
"Because this city is yours." Fang answered succinctly, leaning forward and pressing her finger against the desk. "This place is your home, not ours. We have no interest in global domination, just looking after our own and..." She paused, a wide grin appearing across her face, calculating and excitable. "It's time we fight the Triads, with the Triads. I'm proposing an alliance of our groups, gangs and territories. We topple Bhunivelze and you have access to resources. The kind of assistance that gave the lost folk of the Warrens free healthcare and education. Affordable housing. Freedom from Fal'Cie."
Balthier looked at Fran with a wide gaze. The Viera, as always, gave nothing away. But giving a calculated glance towards Fang, she narrowed her eyes. "So we must fight a war their way, to win the war. I would not force my people. They would have to make the choice themselves."
"Not would we ask you to force them. That goes for you as well, Balthier." Lightning replied turning to him and gesturing to the window outside. "It's a numbers game at this point. If you want our help to get the Triads out, we need more than just a handful of strippers with guns. No offense to your girls, Rikku."
"They handle guns just fine, Light."
"So come on, Bunansa. What say you?" Fang asked with a twitch of her eyebrow. "You want that real tasting coffee on tap, with a roof over your head and enough backup to cover if the Triads want to mess with you again?"
"The coffee is nice." Fran offered with a small smile. "It would be good to feel useful again, Balthier."
The Strahl's caregiver sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Guess it is time then isn't it? I will go make the preparations. It's time to bring back Monoculus."