First off, sorry for the long wait. The all-new 7th Generation Chevrolet Corvette will be unveiled today on January 13th, so I thought I would push this chapter out for this occasion. I have also been struggling with ideas and motivation. Anyway, enjoy the new C7 Vette, and spare a thought for everyone's least favorite fugitive currently making a run for it in his own Corvette!

Also, while I was taking time off, I discovered the existence of a real person named Daisuke Sato. I would like to state that when naming the characters, I was unaware of the real Sato-san. I will add that any similarities between characters in this story and real-life people are coincidental and completely unintended.

Let's get on with the story now, shall we?

Now, the traffic department office was buzzing. What seemed a lifeless place was now alive with activity, as officers made phonecalls, typed on computers and processed the captured vehicles and weapons.

"Hisako." One officer called to his female colleague. "Says here there was a Smith & Wesson 500 in one of the vehicles."

"You're right. Says it isn't here. Where could it be Kozue?" She replied to her male counterpart.

"Not a clue." He then looked over at Seiko. "Have you got an idea?"

"Nope." Seiko shook her head. "We kept those vehicles under lock and key, so I don't think they've been stolen. How about we ask Yoriko?" She then looked around the room, the familiar glasses-wearing policewoman nowhere in sight. "Where is she anyway?"

"Ken said she headed down to the firing range with Aoi." Fumiko replied.

"Probably where the 500 is then."

All of a sudden, Tom appeared in the door. "Any of you guys have an idea where Yoriko..."

"Firing range." Everyone in the room replied at once.

"Uhh... OK." And the big American was out the door as fast as he appeared.

Down at the firing range, Tom found Yoriko and Aoi loading up a few rounds in the chamber of a Smith & Wesson Model 500 revolver.

"Hold on... Mind asking where you got that?" Tom asked as he walked into the room.

"Oh, hey Tom." Yoriko turned around and waved, the massive revolver in her left hand. "Got this from one of the vehicles."

"Hmm. Let's get testing." Tom motioned for her to set up at one of the stations. They grabbed safety goggles and ear protectors, and Yoriko aimed the big revolver at the target sitting downrange at 25 meters.

"OK bud, just remember, two hands on the grip." Yoriko gripped the revolver tightly with both hands as Tom instructed. "Aim down your sights." She closed one eye and lined up the other with the sights on the gun. "And you might want to watch the recoil. That thing's got a hell of a kick, so I wouldn't hold it that close..." Yoriko fired, the massive revolver, whacking a .500 round straight into the target. However, she was holding the revolver very close to her face, and so the massive recoil shoved the gun straight into her forehead. She yelped in pain and released one hand to press against her forehead.

"Thought so." Tom said to Yoriko.

"Just like you said, lots of recoil." Yoriko laughed sheepishly as she realigned her glasses. "What do you want me to do?"

Tom thought for a little bit. "Give me that damn thing!" He yanked the hand cannon out of Yoriko's hand. He then gripped the gun, aimed down the sights and held it as far as his arms could stretch. He then fired again, sending the bullet straight into the target's head. "That's how you do it."

Outside, Miyuki met Tom. "So I've been thinking."

"And?" Tom replied.

"And I was looking at how they made their way through the roadblocks. The mercenaries cut down the police with alarming ease. We need a way to let ourselves know when they're coming through."

"How do you suppose we do that?"

Miyuki held up a security camera. "I should be able to wire this up to provide a clear image of the streets. Get a network of these, and we can consolidate manpower at the most likely avenue of approach."

"That's great, but I sense a but coming."

"But we need to get high to do it."

"...By that I hope to your deity of choice you mean we gotta find a high place."

"Yep."

"So let's go."

Within thirty minutes, Tom, Natsumi and Miyuki were looking at a tall wooden telegraph pole. "So our plan is to get that camera set up there?" Natsumi asked, pointing to the top of the pole.

"Yes." Miyuki replied. "Tom, any word on the elevated work platforms?"

"Negative." Tom responded. "They're busy at other poles. That's gonna make it hard to get that camera mounted."

"How do we want to do this?" Natsumi questioned.

"If I remember..." Tom thought a little. "You guys probably used to carry some bungee rope in the back of your car for those situations... Nah. Dismiss that, that's a stupid idea." He looked over at Miyuki. "You've got that look on your face..."

Fast forward a few minutes, and Miyuki had climbed up the pole, the bungee rope around her waist in case she fell. She was now at the top, setting up the camera on a mount. At the bottom, Tom was keeping an eye on things.

"You know Tom..." Natsumi started the conversation. "We have some catching up to do."

"You're right." Tom looked at the brunette policewoman.

"What have you been doing lately?"

"Mostly import work. Bringing American cars into this country."

"So that's where you got that car from?" Natsumi looked at Tom's red Camaro ZL1.

"Yeah." Tom nodded. "I've always been a fan of American cars. Besides, I WAS working at an import company."

"I guess so." Natsumi leaned against the pole.

"Hey, haven't you still got your super strength?"

"Yep." Natsumi smiled. "Who would I be if I wasn't strong?"

"'Cause I wouldn't lean that hard..."

Natsumi leaned a little too hard, snapping the pole and sending it falling down. Miyuki's terrified high pitched scream, usually reserved for monsters, ghost stories and naked ladies in tunnels shrieked through the air as she fell with the pole. Luckily, Miyuki landed in a truck full of mattresses while the unfinished camera smacked against the ground along with the pole.

Natsumi was at a loss for words. Tom simply stated, "Roadblocks it is then."

"Sir. We are experiencing something strange." One of the dispatchers back at the precinct reported.

"What is it?" Kachou asked.

"We just had an emergency call concerning a woman screaming and falling from a pole into a mattress truck."

Meanwhile, in Nagoya, Fujima marched in angrily. "I was on the phone to our sleeper cells in Tokyo. I want to know why I was cut off."

The merc on the computer exhaled, and replied, "Well sir, it appears that the phone-lines in the area have just gone down."

Fujima slammed his fist down on the table. "DAMMIT!"

Thought I'd inject a little comedy into this chapter, and I can tell you that the next chapter will be coming soon!