Marius Basque was in his office. He stood near the window and stared outside; the sunlight seemed to bother him as he glared at it. All the employees inside his building were running around to prepare the event he was throwing for the shareholders. Eleanor Veidt was especially busy; she was constantly on the phone making preparations and yelling at interns and secretaries left and right. Leandro Russ approached Veidt and tapped her shoulder. With the phone still between her shoulder and ear she turned around to face him.
"Hello Eleanor." said Russ with a smile.
"Oh, hey Russ what'd you need? And make it fast I'm really busy." said Eleanor.
"Can you take me up to see Marius?"
"Oh… I don't know he says he doesn't want to be bothered."
"I'm the vice president but I still have to make an appointment to see him."
"Sorry Leandro I don't make his rules for him."
Russ sighed and stood back and waited for Basque to come down. Lee and the Red Dragons had reported back to Leandro that they had found Demetrius Bardon. Lee promised Leandro that Demetrius would testify against Marius Basque but Lee and Demetrius went behind his back and plotted to assassinate Basque instead. Leandro was still unaware that this had been planned. But with the thought that Marius Basque was going to be arrested on this day he decided to say his 'farewell' to Basque.
Basque came out of the elevator onto the ground floor. He walked out and was met by Eleanor. Russ turned around and went to him.
"Hey Marius you got a minute?" asked Leandro.
"No I don't Russ, but I have a second. What is it?" said Basque.
"I just wanted to say good luck tonight. Impress those shareholders." said Leandro with a smile.
"Okay… did you give a presentation yet on those new specs to the list of clients?" said Basque coldly.
"Uh no, but I will get right on it."
"Yeah you do that." Basque then walked out of the building with four guards surrounding him. Leandro stared at Basque with disdain.
Lee stood with his hands behind his back, staring outside a window. He felt no anxiety or uneasiness about his plans for the night. His confidence in himself and his men was assurance enough that he would be running Basque's company soon enough. The phone his pocket began ringing, he sighed and let ring a few times. Finally he slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out the phone and answered it.
"Yes?" said Lee.
Dodge was on the other end; he was surprised and breathed a sigh of relief. "Lee." he said.
"Yes, Dodge. What happened?" asked Lee.
"What happened? Why haven't you checked in with me? I'm losing my mind over here." said Dodge.
"I didn't call you when we landed in Ganymede?"
"No you didn't." said Dodge with a hint of spite.
"Oh, must have slipped my mind."
"Well please focus now; we're being hunted over here."
"By whom?"
"Who do you think? Blue Snake."
"They know we have Kleinman?"
"I sure they're assuming it, he's been missing for a while so they're probably trying all their options."
"No fire from either side?"
"No the situation's been cold, but they're definitely looking for us."
"Don't fight back unless you have to."
"Yeah I think I can hold off on that, but do you have a plan?"
"I have a few."
Dodge happily scoffed and smirked. "I knew you'd have something. Well don't keep me in the dark, what's going on?" he asked.
"I won't go into too much detail, but just know that soon enough we'll be controlling Basque's company and when it does happen Blue Snake's weapons and supplies will be reported as stolen." said Lee.
"Holy crap you're really taking them down; the cops will be looking for them once you do that."
"That's what I'm anticipating. ISSP will handle them and you won't have to lift a finger."
"Well I hope it happens fast, things are cutting it really close on Mars."
It'll happen soon enough, just stay hidden. And please don't get rid of Kleinman, if they find him then they'll definitely come after us, namely you."
"Okay Lee, you got it." said Dodge.
Lee hung up the phone. He then dialed a different number and called it. Andre answered on the other end.
"Yeah?" said Andre.
"Is everything running on schedule?" asked Lee.
"Yeah, nothing to report."
"Okay good, get Bardon down there in a few hours and make sure no police are following you either."
"On it."
Lee hung up the phone and put inside his pocket. He stared out the window again for a moment, and then stiffly walked away from the view.
Faye had a long white box sitting on top of her bed. She enthusiastically opened it to reveal a dress inside. Jet had his beige suit on. He straightened his tie and put on his fedora. The equipment was laid out on the desk. He carefully inserted the earpiece into his ear and put the audio recorder into his jacket pocket. Spike was in the main room with a black suit and white button shirt on. He was clearly unrelaxed and restrained inside it and loosened his tie to get comfortable. Jet stepped out of his quarters and walked toward Spike.
"So the monkey suit still fits huh?" said Jet with a smirk.
Spike scoffed. "Yeah, it must've shrunk. I can barely move in this thing, do I really have to wear it?" asked Spike.
"You don't go to a lot of formal events do you?"
"You get the mail, do you ever see any invitations with my name on it?"
"No, but in any case, yes, you have to wear it. It's part of blending in and that blue leisure suit of yours would make you stick out like a sore thumb."
Spike sighed. "Alright, let's get this over with." he said.
Jet hovered his closed hand over to Spike. Spike reached out his palm. Jet placed the earpiece and the microphone for Marius Basque inside Spike's hand.
"Here, I suggest you put it on now and keep the bug for Basque somewhere safe." said Jet.
Spike placed the earpiece in his ear. The microphone for Basque was placed in his inner jacket pocket. Faye exited out of her room in her red dress with the green coat, orange wrap, and a flower headpiece. It was the same ensemble she wore when she went to the opera house to capture Mao Yenrai, only to be interrupted by Vicious. Spike and Jet stared at her as she walked in. Spike nervously swallowed and scratched the back of his head.
"Alright what are we standing around for? Let's go." said Faye.
"Well you look… presentable," said Jet, "Do you have the earpiece ready?"
"Way ahead of you." said Faye.
"I guess that's it then. Wait, neither of you has weapons on, right?" asked Jet.
"No, you already told me not to." said Spike.
Faye stared at the ceiling with her lips sealed tight.
"Faye, you wouldn't happen to have your gun on you?" said Jet.
Faye groaned and lifted her dress. She removed the Austria .45 strapped to her thigh. "Why do I need to leave it behind?" asked Faye.
"That's not what we're going there for, nothing's going to happen. So I suggest you leave it here before a guard finds it on you and we're thrown out." said Jet.
"Fine." said Faye. She placed it down on the coffee table and looked at Spike's outfit. "Jeez where do you even keep that laying around?" she said.
Spike mumbled to himself. "C'mon Jet, the faster we go the faster we can leave." said Spike.
"Okay, remember the plan. Stick to your jobs, don't do anything to raise suspicion, and we'll be in the clear. Let's go." said Jet.
As Spike and Jet began walking toward the ship hangar Faye kept her eyes on them. She stayed behind slightly to pick up her Austria .45 off the table. She sneakily strapped it to her thigh and followed suit behind Spike and Jet
Demetrius hovered over a metal-framed bed in a dingy room. The blinds were shut and room was lit with only a light bulb hanging from the ceiling. The yellow hue from the light made the room's atmosphere feel murky and warm. Demetrius had shaved off all of his hair and beard; he looked like a clean-cut soldier. He wore a black cotton long-sleeved shirt, olive drab pants, black combat boots, and black leather suspenders that made an "X" across his back.
Laid out on the bed was the equipment for his mission: an MK23 pistol with a silencer, two smoke grenades, a case with tranquilizer needles, an earpiece, a green cap, and a ski mask. He put the gun in a holster that was wrapped around his leg. The smoke grenades and the tranquilizers were placed on his belt. He put the cap on his head and the earpiece in his left ear. Demetrius put the mask in his back pocket and turned to the coat rack near the door. He grabbed a brown cargo jacket, put it on, and fixed the collar. Demetrius gazed at himself in the mirror next to the coat rack; it'd been a while since he had a job. The outfit was something he wore regularly simply because it was comfortable. He swore this job would be his last. At least he hoped.
Evening came upon Ganymede, the building at which the event was being held was beginning to fill with people dressed in elegant clothing. The building itself was circular; the entrance was made from glass and the top had a dome. In the rim of the round glass dome were concrete walkways, Marius Basque's guards were already patrolling around it. Luxury cars were being taken in by valets in the parking lot off to the side.
Marius Basque arrived. He stepped out of a limousine and waved to everyone with a big smile, creating a cheerful and proper persona. He left the limousine door open and his guards gathered around him to cover all corners. Eleanor Veidt exited out of the same limousine and trailed behind them. The group walked up the steps and into the ballroom.
In the block over from the building Lee, Shiro, and another Red Dragon member sat in a black car parked near the sidewalk. Lee sat in the passenger's seat, checking his watch. Shiro sat in the back seat, staring through his hi-tech binoculars at the building. Lee lifted up his radio and clicked the side button.
"Andre, did Basque get to the event yet?" asked Lee. He listened in for the response over the radio.
"Yeah, he's surrounded by four guards and that lawyer chick." said Andre over the radio.
Lee clicked the radio once again. "Okay once you see no one going in anymore, that's when you take Bardon to the side and get him up the building." he said.
"I got a view on the side ladder, there's two guards standing in front of it." said Shiro.
Andre sat in another black car around the corner of the street where the building was. He was with two other Red Dragon members, dressed in suits exactly like Basque's guards, and Demetrius Bardon in the backseat where the windows were tinted. Andre turned around to face Demetrius.
"Okay man, you know the drill. Once it's clear outside to get up there, we'll go around the side, these two guys will get you up the ladder and they'll keep look out." said Andre.
Demetrius nodded his head in agreement. "Alright, ready when you are." he said.
Jet, Spike, and Faye walked on the sidewalk toward the building. They waited in a line that led up the stairs to the front entrance. Jet crossed his arms and tapped his foot, Spike stared off into space with his hands in his pockets, and Faye rolled her head in boredom. The line was moving at a slow pace and The Bebop crew was growing impatient.
"How long could it possibly take to get in there?" asked Faye.
"They're checking for the invitations and it looks like they're doing an inspection before they get in there, just wait and we'll be inside soon enough." said Jet.
"Inspection?" asked Faye nervously.
"Yeah." said Jet.
"Like with what?"
"I don't know maybe just visual examination or a pat-down."
"Oh I see…"
"What are you worried about?"
"She's got her gun on her." said Spike.
"What?!" shouted Jet in a hushed tone.
"I just brought just in case! You can never be too careful! And Spike, how the hell did you know I had it?" asked Faye.
"Visual examination." said Spike with a raised eyebrow and smirk.
"You creep!" shouted Faye in a hushed tone.
"I specifically told you to leave it behind! Why can't you ever listen?!" said Jet.
"Well sorry I can't be self-assured as you!" said Faye.
"You better turn around and leave it-
Suddenly the three realized they were up next to enter inside the building. Jet and Faye stood up straight as the two guards on both sides of the entrance stared at them curiously. All three of them grinned and nervously chuckled as they walked ahead. Jet was up first; he stopped in front of the guard on the right and took out his invitation.
"Name?" asked the guard as he observed the invitation.
"Jet Black." said Jet.
The guard wrote down the name on the clipboard. The other guard approached Jet and patted down his sides.
"Hey no worries my man!" said Jet trying play it off.
The guard nodded and let Jet inside. Faye came up next to the two guards. She took out her invitation and handed it to the one on the right.
"Hi." she said seductively.
The guard smirked nervously. "Umm… hi, name?" he asked.
"Faye Valentine, awfully nice night for a party, don't you think?" she said.
"Umm well, yeah." said the guard in a shy manner.
"How terrible it must be for you to be stuck out here."
"It's a living."
She placed her fingers on his chest. "Well if you ever do come inside, don't hesitate to approach me." she said with her eyebrow raised.
The blushing guard cleared his throat. "Uh, okay." he said.
Faye entered inside as the two guards gazed at her. The one on the left turned around to face the line. "Wait wasn't there another guy here?" he asked. The guard on the right, still gazing at Faye, responded and unenthusiastically said "What guy?".
Spike had snuck pass the guards. He went around the guard on the left and entered inside the building. He met up with Jet and Faye who were standing off to the left.
"Wow you really led that poor guy on." said Spike.
"I got in didn't I?" said Faye.
"Spike you got pass the check-in okay?" said Jet.
"Uh yeah, no problem." said Spike
"Alright, we're all set then." said Jet.
Spike turned to look at the ballroom. It was truly extravagant; the hall had huge stone pillars that supported a second floor, chandeliers and huge lamps that illuminated the entire place, ceiling to floor windows around the entrance, and even a boastful waterfall that reached the second floor. The guests were either sitting at the white-cloth covered dining tables, dancing on the center wooden floor, or gambling at the table games.
Spike whistled in amazement. "Impressive what billionaires can waste their money and time on." he said.
"Okay when Basque comes out to greet everyone, I want you to get the bug on him." said Jet.
"What will you be doing?" asked Spike.
"Me? Uh… I guess I have to wait until you get it on him." Jet chuckled.
"Well I know what I'm doing." said Faye with her eyes set on the craps table.
"Oh no, Faye-
"What better place to keep lookout than from right in the middle of the place?"
Jet groaned. "Fine it's your money, but don't lose!" he said.
"C'mon Jet, I know my way around a table." said Faye.
"You mean you know how to cheat your way around a table." said Spike.
Faye walked away from the two. "See you boys, I'll be in touch." she said as she waved back to them.
"Our financial security rest on her shoulders… we're gonna starve." said Jet with his palm to his forehead.
A bit of time passed. Some guests were still entering in from outside and Marius Basque decided to greet everyone. There were two walls of people on both sides that created a walkway in the middle for Basque and his guards to pass through. Basque began shaking hands with the crowds of people on both sides. As Basque made his way down the middle Jet spoke into the earpiece. "Okay Spike go." he said. Spike took the opportunity to get in between the crowds of people. He pushed people aside and squirmed his way through to the front where Basque was passing by. Some people grumbled to themselves as they saw Spike as some uncivilized hooligan. Basque began shaking the hands of the people on Spike's side. Spike reached out his hand with the microphone in his palm. Basque shook Spike's hand with a huge grin; Spike slid the microphone down Basque's sleeve. Absolutely no one noticed this and once Basque passed through the walkway Spike made his way out of the crowd. On the outside of the crowd Spike put his fingers to the earpiece.
"Jet, I got it on him. How does is sound?" asked Spike.
Jet leaned against the wall inside the smoking area of the bar. It was a small bar with hardly any people in it. Any of the people that were in there were too busy drinking and flirting to notice Jet. Jet exhaled smoke with a cigarette hanging in his mouth, took out the audio recorder and plugged an earphone into it. He placed the earphone in his other ear and began listening in. He could hear Basque privately talking to his guards amidst the crowds.
"Yeah I can hear him loud and clear." said Jet.
"Where are you?" asked Spike.
"In the bar."
"Alright I'm heading over there with you, I don't think I can stand being around these people another second."
"Yeah I hear you buddy." said Jet with a smirk.
Marius Basque continued up to the second floor through a winding flight of stairs. On the second floor Basque and his guards entered through a double door and closed the door. No one knew where he had gone. Spike suddenly heard clapping and cheering at the gambling tables. He curiously turned his attention to the scene where he saw Faye joyfully throwing her fist in the air. He walked over to the tables and approached Faye. He raised his eyebrow with a confused expression.
"Faye, what are you doing?" asked Spike.
"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm cleaning these suckers out." said Faye with a sly smile. She gathered the die in her hands and began shaking them.
Spike smirked. He shook his head and turned around to walk to the bar. He enjoyed the fact that Faye actually spoke to him; the only way they could ever say anything is if they both were focused on something else.
Outside the building Andre began looking to make sure the coast was clear. He sat in the car with binoculars faced at the building. He moved his sight upward where he saw the guards patrolling the top around the glass dome. Andre put the binoculars down on his lap. "Alright, let's move." he said. Andre shifted the gear of the car into drive and sped up slightly. The car moved at a moderate speed to the side of the building. Andre parked the car and motioned his hand so everyone would get out. The two Red Dragon men and Demetrius exited out of the car; Demetrius removed his brown cargo jacket and cap to place in his seat. They shut the car doors and sprinted to wall. Andre drove away, back to the safe spot. As the three men moved up to the building Demetrius put on his ski mask.
The three pressed up against the concrete wall. They moved and made it to the corner. Demetrius was first in the line; he turned his head around the corner and saw two guards smoking by the ladder. He turned back around to the two Red Dragon men. "There's two of them, take care of it." he said. They nodded and nonchalantly walked forward around the corner. The guards were a bit startled to see someone approaching. They looked closely at the Red Dragon members. They hesitated to interrogate them since they had the same attire on.
"Who are you guys?" asked the guard.
"We were told to rotate positions with you two." said the Red Dragon.
"Are you sure? I didn't hear anything about it over the comms link."
"Basque told us personally. He said he wants you inside with him."
"For what?"
"Hell if I know, he doesn't tell give me details. But I suggest you get over there it, seems important."
The two guards looked at each other. They shrugged and let the Red Dragon men in their position. The guards walked away and went around the corner where Demetrius was. Demetrius knelt down with his back pressed against the wall. Once the guards went around the corner Demetrius grabbed them from their collars. He threw both of them on the grass and quickly extracted two tranquilizers from the case. He held them between his fingers and threw them at the guards. The tranquilizers directly hit them in the neck and the sedative kicked in. The guards struggled and then they began to relax while their breathing slowed down. They passed out on the grass. Demetrius picked both of them up over his shoulders. He went around the corner where the Red Dragon men held down the guards' positions. "Help me with this." said Demetrius. The men grabbed a dumpster pressed against the wall near an exit. Demetrius dumped the sleeping guards into the dumpster. One of the Red Dragon men then closed the lid and locked the dumpster.
"Alright, make sure no on notices the dumpster." said Demetrius.
"How long are they gonna be out?" asked one of the men.
"At least forty-five minutes, but I'm not going to take that long."
Demetrius climbed up the ladder to the circular walkway. He crept down and moved slowly to get to the guards. He pressed up against the glass dome and peeked around the bend. Demetrius saw one of the guards standing still and gazing at the city. With the guard's back turned Demetrius crept up and grappled him from behind. Demetrius knelt on the ground bringing the guard down with him. Demetrius put him in a chokehold and held a tranquilizer to his throat.
"Is there a stairway up here to get into the building?" asked Demetrius.
The guard winced and was struggling. "Yeah just around the corner to the left." said the guard.
"How many more of you are up here?"
"Just me and two other ones."
"How many guards are patrolling the hallways?
"At least five guards."
Suddenly one of the other guards came around the corner and saw Demetrius holding down the guard that was giving him information. The guard gasped at the sight and was about to lift up his handgun to shoot him. Everything slowed down for Demetrius. Once the guard gasped Demetrius locked his sight on him. When the guard lifted up his gun and was about to shout out to the other guard, Demetrius threw the tranquilizer straight at him. The tranquilizer penetrated the guard in the chest causing him to fall backward on the floor. The guard struggled for a moment and then passed out from the sedative. The guard in Demetrius's chokehold then tried to break free. Demetrius wrapped harder around his neck and shoved the guard forward into the concrete wall. The guard immediately passed out and Demetrius left him on the floor. Demetrius walked to the stairwell and saw the last guard there. The guard was startled and Demetrius grabbed him and slammed his head into the concrete wall. The guard slumped down onto the ground and laid there unconsciously. Demetrius opened the door the stairwell. Then another guard came around the corner on the dome walkway. Demetrius threw a tranquilizer at him and the guard fell down unconscious. "The bastard lied." said Demetrius to himself. He continued into the stairwell and shut the door behind him.
Spike sat on a stool with a glass of scotch on the bar counter. The haze of smoke filled the dimly lit room, but it was no bother to him; if there was anything Spike was used to it was smoke, scotch, and the dark. Jet was still pressed against the wall, standing next to Spike. He was listening on Basque, but nothing he had said was important enough to grab his attention.
Spike lifted the glass and gulped down the scotch. He sighed. "I know the drinks are free but they couldn't have with a better brand?" he said.
"Beggars can't be choosers, right?" said Jet.
"Even beggars have taste buds." said Spike.
"Nobody's forcing you to drink it Spike." said Jet.
"Yeah, alright." said Spike. Without Jet looking Spike then grabbed the bottle of scotch on the counter. He poured the scotch inside an empty bottle that was inside his jacket. He put the now empty scotch bottle back on the counter. Spike knocked on the table and motioned toward the bartender. The bartender grabbed the empty scotch bottle and put it on the shelf under the counter. The bartender then took out a full bottle of scotch, opened it and poured some in Spike's glass. Spike lifted the glass and nodded at the bartender. He turned his head to look at the main hall of the building. He saw all the people dressed glamorously, enjoying themselves as if they didn't have a care in the universe. Spike then saw Faye still at the table and collecting her winnings; this time she surrounded by men trying to vie for her attention. She was enjoying it. Spike glared and spoke into the earpiece.
"Faye, stop socializing and make sure no one is catching on to us." said Spike.
Faye heard Spike over the earpiece. Faye smiled and chuckled lightly to the man she was talking. "Would you excuse me for a minute?" she said with a big grin. Faye walked away from the crowd and inconspicuously went behind one of the huge pillars. She leaned over and spoke into the earpiece. "What do you want Spike?" she said.
"To do your job." said Spike.
"I am!" said Faye.
"Doesn't look like that from here."
"I already checked in with you guys a few minutes ago. Get off my case Spike, I already have Jet for that."
"You know I can I hear both of you." said Jet over the communications.
"Look both of you just leave me alone. Stop acting like there's some level of urgency, it's just a party." said Faye.
Suddenly one of Basque's guards came up behind Faye. She noticed the shadow cast over her and said "Huh?" Faye quickly turned around to face the guard.
"Miss, you are acting strange is there anything wrong?" asked the guard.
Faye chuckled lightly. "No everything's fine, must've had a little too much to drink!" she said with a huge smile.
Demetrius continued down the stairwell. The stairs dwindled down side by side in a huge structure of concrete. Demetrius would hop over the railings to get to the next flight of stairs. When he reached the bottom there was a guard standing in front of the exit. He was smoking a cigarette with his back turned. Demetrius stepped down the stairs slowly while crouched. He had his eyes set on the guard. The guard blew out smoke and then Demetrius grappled him. He put the guard in a chokehold and the cigarette rolled onto the floor. The guard's arm was flailing in the air as Demetrius squeezed his neck tighter. The guard slowly lost consciousness and then he passed out. Demetrius stood up and dragged the guard and placed him under the stairs. He walked up to the door and stomped out the cigarette that had rolled onto the floor.
Demetrius slowly opened the door and poked his head to look at the hallway. He slipped through the doorway and pressed up against the wall in the hallway. He could hear the sound of the party downstairs. Demetrius stared at the same double doors that Basque walked in through. He went to the corner that led to the next hallway. There were two guards patrolling. Demetrius tried to back up lightly on the carpet floor. He put his back to the wall and turned his eyes to the direction of the hallway. Taking on Basque's guards was like target practice for Demetrius. It reminded him of how he was hired on as a guard at first, but was too overqualified so Basque gave a different occupation: assassin. The plan would come to an end at the end of that hallway. The few obstacles standing in his way would lead him to the revenge that he so desired. It would lead to Marius Basque's fate.
Demetrius lightly pounded his fist against the wall. The guard closest to the corner was taken by surprise and then had a confused look on his face. "Huh?" said the guard as went to go investigate the sound. The guard turned the corner where Demetrius waited to attack. In a flash Demetrius took the guard down like he had done so many times before.
Jet remained inside the bar while Spike smoked a cigarette on the outside porch that was on the side of the building. He looked up the night sky and blew a cloud of smoke. Jet was listening in on Basque. On the bug that Spike placed all he heard was Basque talking to a shareholder. It bored Jet into yawning. But then something began to change. Jet heard static; something was interfering with the communcations link. Jet knew it couldn't be the guards' communications link because then he would've heard the static already. Jet realized someone else was near; someone with another communications link and they weren't with Basque.
All the guards in the second floor hallways were lying unconsciously on the floor. Demetrius had reached the office where Basque was. Demetrius took a deep breath through his nose as he stood in front of the door. He put his hand on the door knob and turned it. Basque was inside the office sitting behind his desk across from a shareholder. Basque looked up to see Demetrius in the ski mask. Basque gasped and the shareholder turned to see what was so shocking. Demetrius quickly grabbed the shareholder and squeezed his arm around his neck. Basque took out a silver revolver from his desk and pointed it at Demetrius. Demetrius quickly cocked and pointed his MK23 at Basque as he held the shareholder as a human shield.
"Who the hell are you?!" asked Basque.
"Shh Marius, don't be so loud you'll startle me and my finger might accidentally pull the trigger." said Demetrius with a smirk. The shareholder began to panic. Demetrius unsheathed a tranquilizer from his fingers and stuck in the man's neck. The shareholder slowly calmed down and passed out in Demetrius's hold. Demetrius continued to hold him up as a shield.
Marius squinted his eyes as he began to recognize who he was facing. "D… Demetrius?" said Basque.
"Yeah… I bet you thought the last time you'd see me was in a body bag." said Demetrius.
"You're more of a danger to yourself I thought I wouldn't have to be the one to finish you off."
"Where did things go wrong Basque? What, was it because I wouldn't take that hit on the senator? You were running me dry."
"You perform your duties as your job title specifies. And you didn't fall through with it so I had to fire you."
"You did a hell of a lot more than fire me, you tried to kill me!"
"We both know this isn't the average line of work. You weren't going to perform your duty that means you were a loose end that needed to be tied."
"Yeah I figured as much that's why I tried to leave."
"There's no leaving, Demetrius."
"I am leaving. But not without getting you out of the way."
Jet was on edge. His eyes were fully open and he had a surprised expression on his face. He had been listening in on the conversation between Demetrius and Basque. The static was interrupting some of the message but Jet was quickly trying to figure it out.
"What… going to do… I'm gone?" said Basque with the static interrupting him.
"I have… new friends… company… won't need… anymore." said Demetrius.
The term "new friends" worried Jet. He was sure Demetrius was in the room but he didn't expect him to show up when planning this mission. He was unprepared but it was probably going to be the only chance he had to catch Demetrius. Jet took his back off the wall of the bar. He spoke into earpiece. "I'm going to the second floor, he's up there." said Jet in a hushed tone as he began power walking through the ballroom.
Spike had finished his cigarette outside. He suddenly heard Jet on the earpiece. "Jet what's wrong?" asked Spike.
"He's up there, I gotta get up there." said Jet.
"Who's up there, Basque?"
"No not him."
"Who?"
"The bounty."
"You mean?"
"Yes."
"Hold on, I'm coming Jet." Spike quickly ran back inside the building.
Faye had removed her earpiece and placed it in her clutch purse. She saw Jet hurriedly making his way through the ballroom and to the stairs. She was confused as to why Jet looked so tense. Then she saw Spike walking by. She grabbed him by the arm and pulled him toward her.
"Spike, what's happening? Where's Jet going?" asked Faye.
"Faye, stay here something came up." said Spike. Spike then continued to follow Jet's trail.
"What? What do you mean? Spike? Spike?!" she shouted in a hushed tone as she watched him walk away.
Jet went through the double doors. Fortunately no one had noticed him. He looked on the floor and saw all the unconscious guards lying on the carpet.
"This guy's good." said Jet.
Demetrius and Basque remained in their stand-off. Demetrius curled his fingers around the gun handle. Basque had sweat rolling down his head and steadied his feet nervously.
"Well what are you waiting for?" asked Basque.
"You know better than anyone else I have the guts to do it." said Demetrius.
"Do it," said Basque with rage in his eyes, "I hope this ends up biting you in the ass."
Demetrius pulled the trigger. It was a direct hit, the gun hardly made a sound. Basque flew backward into the wall and slumped down onto the floor. He was dead and Demetrius had finished his job. Demetrius threw the unconscious shareholder onto floor.
But Jet had been standing there. The only thing he saw was Demetrius shooting Basque. He began to back up but Demetrius turned around. Demetrius was surprised and impulsively raised his gun and pointed it at Jet. Jet quickly rushed Demetrius and grappled the arm that was holding the gun. They began struggling; Demetrius then ran Jet against the wall. Jet was slammed harshly against the wall and fell onto the floor. Demetrius backed up and aimed the gun at Jet.
Then Spike swooped in with a kick to Demetrius's side. Demetrius stumbled, Spike ran toward him with his fist readied. Demetrius swiftly stood up straight and pointed his gun at Spike. Spike dodged out of the way and Demetrius fired multiple times. Spike gave Demetrius an uppercut to his chin and thrust his palm into his abdomen, making Demetrius lose his gun. Demetrius countered with two punches to Spike's face. Spike was taken aback and then threw a high kick at Demetrius. Demetrius blocked the kick with his elbows. Spike shifted and then threw a roundhouse kick with his other leg. That time it hit Demetrius on the side of the head. Once he regained his footing Demetrius grappled Spike. He put his arm around his neck and turned him around. Spike tried escaping the lock to no avail. Demetrius threw Spike headfirst into the wall. Spike fell down and lost consciousness for a second.
Demetrius turned his attention back to Jet who was barely starting to get up. He grabbed his MK23 off the floor and pointed it at Jet.
Then Faye, standing at the end of the hallway, pointed her gun at Demetrius. "What the hell are you doing?!" she shouted.
Demetrius looked at Faye and pointed his gun at her. Faye quickly shot before Demetrius could finish aiming. The bullet hit Demetrius's hand and the gun flew out of his bloodied palm. The blast was loud but the guests downstairs could hardly hear it.
Jet then faced Demetrius and threw two punches at him. Demetrius then angrily kneed Jet in his stomach. Jet fell back onto the floor. Faye was going to shoot again but in a flash Demetrius threw a tranquilizer at her hand that was holding the gun. Faye dropped the gun the gun and gasped. She knelt down on the floor as the tranquilizer began to take effect. Demetrius picked up his gun once again and pointed it at Faye. Spike then furiously shoved Demetrius into the wall at the end of the hallway where Faye was at. Demetrius spun around and hit Spike across the face with the gun. Spike stumbled onto the ground. Demetrius backed up into the next hallway and pointed his gun once again at Faye. Spike saw this and sprang into action. "Faye!" he shouted as he pushed her out of the way. Demetrius shot twice but missed as Spike had pushed Faye and himself behind the corner wall. Demetrius took the opportunity to run back to the stairwell.
Spike was lying on top Faye as he shielded her with his body. He lifted his head to listen for Demetrius. He looked at Faye. "Faye? Faye! Are you okay?!" asked Spike.
"Yeah… he… hit me with a… tranquilizer." said Faye drowsily.
"I'm gonna go get him." said Spike. He stood up and ran after Demetrius in the hallway.
As Demetrius walked in front of the stairwell door a guard came in through the double-door entrance and was gasped once he saw Demetrius. Without saying a word Demetrius aimed and shot the guard three times. The guard flew back into the door and fell lifelessly onto the floor. "Shit." said Demetrius to himself. The MK 23 was out of ammunition. He put the weapon back into the holster.
Spike came around the corner and ran at Demetrius with a fierce growl. Spike punched Demetrius in the face twice. Demetrius came back with a kick to Spike's abdomen. Spike pushed Demetrius's leg and horizontally elbowed him in the head. Demetrius rapidly punched Spike three times in the ribs. The last hit broke the bottle of scotch in Spike's jacket. The glass cut Spike and the scotch dripped down his suit. They grappled each other by the arms and glared at each other. Neither of them moved their position.
"You're not one of Basque's guards, huh?" asked Demetrius.
"No Demetrius, guess again." said Spike clenching his teeth.
"Oh I wait I see, you're a cowboy huh? One of those bounty hunters after the 25 million over my head."
"Good guess." said Spike with a smirk.
Demetrius head butted Spike causing him to stumble backward into the double-door. Jet then came around the corner of the hallway, supporting Faye with his arm around her and the Austria .45 in the other hand. He saw Demetrius and aimed the gun. "Hey wait!" shouted Jet.
Demetrius quickly grabbed the two smoke grenades from his belt and pulled the pins. He tackled Spike and used his body as a ram to open the door. Demetrius and Spike busted open the double-doors out onto the second floor platform. Everyone downstairs began to notice the commotion. The smoke from the grenades released and soon the second floor was covered in a gray cloud. The guests began to slowly get everything together. Jet leaned Faye against the wall as she was beginning to lose consciousness. He ran into the cloud of smoke with the gun aimed in the air. Spike stood up off the floor groaning in pain and rubbed his head. Immediately he focused on finding Demetrius.
The roar of the man-made waterfall next to the second floor platform made it hard to concentrate. Faye drowsily walked into the smoke and looked around. Demetrius accidentally bumped into her as he was trying to make his way out of the smoke. Spike ran to the sound and tackled Demetrius from behind. Demetrius had Faye in a choke hold as Spike tried grappling him down. Demetrius used his weight to back up himself and the two toward the railing next to the waterfall. Demetrius slammed Spike into the railing spun around with Faye and threw her into the railing as well. Demetrius grabbed Spike by his throat and forced his head into the waterfall. Demetrius began choking Spike under the water. Faye stood up, the water splashing everywhere, and tried pulling Demetrius's hands off Spike. Demetrius angrily growled and pushed Faye down. Jet then found them and pointed the gun at Demetrius. "Hold it Demetrius!" shouted Jet. Demetrius let go of Spike and let him slump down onto the floor. Demetrius quickly grabbed Jet by his arms, spun around with him, and threw him into the railing.
Demetrius spoke over the earpiece. "Location change, go around to the south exit." he said. Demetrius ran to the railing and jumped down onto the first floor. Everybody panicked as they saw him roll onto the ground. People began running away to the entrance as Demetrius ran through the emergency exit. Basque's guards on the first floor then began chasing him. The two Red Dragon members that got Demetrius up the ladder were there to meet him with Andre quickly pulling up the car. The three of them piled inside in the car and Andre quickly drove away. Basque's guards busted through the emergency exit but only saw the lights of the car driving in the distance.
Up on the second floor Jet stood up with his palm to his head, groaning in pain. He looked down at Spike sitting against the railing and Faye lying on the floor.
"Spike! Faye!" exclaimed Jet.
Spike looked up at Jet. "Jet, get us out of here." he said.
Lee called in on Andre. "Andre did Demetrius do it? Is he with you?" he asked.
"Sir he did it, we're on our way out." said Andre.
Lee motioned his hand at the driver. The driver turned on the car and shifted the gear. They drove off. "Alright make it back to the safe house in one piece." said Lee.
"Sir… someone found out he was there." said Andre.
Lee began fuming. "WHAT?!" he shouted.
"Some bounty hunters showed up, they dragged him out to the ballroom."
"Did anyone see his face?!"
"No he kept on the mask the whole time."
"Did the bounty hunters know who he was?!"
"Yeah."
"Did he kill them?!"
"He says no."
"Son of a bitch," said Lee as he pounded the car door with his fist, "SON OF A BITCH!"
"He knocked them out, but they're the only ones who knew who he was. No one else is going to able to identify him."
"He better hope that they're not working with the police because if they identify him we're screwed."
ISSP had arrived to the building. The guests were being evacuated out by the police as the detectives went inside to investigate the crime scene. The detectives took photos of the dead guard and Marius Basque for evidence. The guards that were knocked out were woken up and questioned by the police near the squad cars that were flashing their sirens. None of them could really remember anything just being knocked out immediately. The guard that Demetrius interrogated on the dome walkway couldn't identify him and barely remembered what he sounded like.
In a police car off to side of the building, away from the entrance, sat Donna and Bob. They kept their eyes on the police at the entrance. Then Jet approached the car and opened the back door. He sat down in the backseat and closed the door. Donna and Bob turned to look at Jet. He had a bandage on his left cheek and his forehead was slightly swollen.
"Oh man, Jet are you okay?" asked Donna.
"I'll live, it could've been a lot worse." said Jet.
"Yeah mine's still healing. Demetrius is a hard guy to catch." said Bob.
"It's like trying to corner a wild animal." said Jet.
"You got the audio on you?" asked Bob.
"Yeah." said Jet as he rummaged around in his jacket pocket. He took out the audio recorder and held it up in the middle of the car. He clicked the play button and the audio began playing. Donna and Bob could barely hear the conversation between Demetrius and Basque through the static but they got the gist of it. The heard the muffled gunshot that killed Basque and Jet paused the audio.
"Okay this is good. It'll be even better if we can lift a voice ID off the audio, hopefully the static won't mask it." said Donna.
"What do you think he meant by 'new friends'?" asked Bob.
"It means he's not working alone." said Donna.
Jet took out a disc from the recorder and handed it to Bob. "Make sure not to tell anyone how you got it, turn it in as anonymous." said Jet.
"Yeah, yeah I know the drill." said Bob.
"We better get this over to Sergeant Durant at HQ soon." said Donna.
"Okay I'll leave you two to work. I'm gonna head back to my ship." said Jet.
"Alright Jet, rest up." said Donna.
"Thanks. I'll be in touch." said Jet. He opened the car door and exited out to return back to The Bebop.
Spike's suit was hang-drying in the laundry room with water dripping down from it. Spike stood in the main room of The Bebop. He was clenching his teeth as he wrapped a bandage around his fractured ribs and cuts. The beating that Demetrius gave him left Spike sore all over. There was already a square bandage across his cheek and a band-aid above his eyebrow. Spike examined his shoulders for any bruising. He stretched while wincing in pain and sat down on the couch. He laid his head back and felt humiliated. Demetrius was able to take him down and it made Spike feel weak. It'd been the first time since his coma that he went up against a skilled opponent; and he lost. Even with Jet and Faye as back up Spike still lost. Although he was feeling humiliated he wasn't quite sure if he ever wanted to face him again. Spike had always been prideful, but now he was more concerned with self-preservation. But what did he want to preserve? Spike felt that there wasn't any real reason for living. The fact that Spike was concerned for his life that has no meaning made him feel like a coward.
Faye exited out of the bathroom. She was in her sleepwear with a towel around her neck. She walked into the main room and sat in the seat across from Spike. "You feeling okay?" she asked him.
Spike sighed. "Not really. But I'm used to this," he said, "What about you?"
"Oh me, I'm fine. I'm just feeling a little nauseous. Whatever was in that tranquilizer is making me feel really sick." said Faye.
"I picked it up."
"The tranquilizer?"
"Yeah, I'm going to use it in the scanner, see if I pick up anything off it."
"Maybe you can find me a remedy so I won't feel so sick."
"There's a cold compress in the fridge."
"Yeah I think I'll use that."
Spike stayed silent. Faye didn't really say anything either. Then they both just sat there in an uncomfortable silence, one in which a pin drop could be heard. Of course it had to do with the conflict between them, but neither of them decided to say anything. Faye sighed and decided to go her room. She put the towel around her neck on the table, stood up, and walked pass Spike sitting on the couch. She suddenly stopped behind him. She sealed her lips from saying anything, but gave in and spoke.
"Umm… thanks by the way." said Faye.
Spike sat up and turned around to face her. "For what?" he asked.
"You pushed me out of the way before he could shoot me… you saved me." said Faye without looking at him.
Spike nodded his head. "It's nothing really… I would've done the same for Jet. We're comrades, remember?" he said with a smirk.
Faye looked down at the floor and smiled slightly. "Yeah… he's lucky I brought my gun after all." she said.
"Can't argue with you there."
"Goodnight Spike." said Faye. She began walking to the steps when Spike stood up off the couch. "Faye wait." he said as he took her by the arm and turned her around. She looked up and faced him. Spike began breathing nervously and swallowed. He put his arms around Faye's lower back and brought her closer.
Faye turned her face away from him. "Spike, don't do this if you're not really going through with it." she said.
"I… want you. But you said it best… I'm a closed-off asshole." said Spike.
"Are you doing this because you had another brush with death or what?"
"Maybe… but I've been thinking about things that matter... things that matter in the long run."
Faye looked up at him again. "What are you saying?" she asked.
Spike sighed. He gently lifted her chin and brought his lips closer to her. Faye closed her eyes and began bringing herself closer to him. Their lips were centimeters away. Faye brought her hands up and put them behind Spike's head. Spike moved his hands up her back. They both leaned in and finally kissed. They sighed deeply and passionately embraced each other with their lips still together. The night on Ganymede was still, with the singing sea pulling back and forth. Ganymede was about to stir up however. With the Red Dragons pulling strings Ganymede police and The Bebop crew were in for a rude awakening.
A/N: That was definitely my longest chapter so far and I think maybe the best (so far)? A lot of action in this one and of course the moment most of you have been waiting for, the Spike x Faye kiss. I decided it was time, I didn't know how long I could have pulled off the awkward tension between them before it started getting dry. As always I hope you enjoyed! Please review!