Let's hope you enjoyed the comedy last time, because from here on in, things are going to get SERIOUS! And to hammer it home, I'll be bringing in a few characters long-time YUA fans may be familiar with...
"So what's the update on the reinforcements?" Tom asked as he walked back into the office.
"Well, the phone lines went down." Hisako mentioned. "Did you guys have anything to do with it?" She asked to Natsumi and Miyuki as they walked in.
"Saw nothing!" Natsumi shouted jokingly, putting her hands up.
"Anyway, a few hours before that, we put a call into NPA Headquarters and they agreed to send some more officers to bolster the defensive lines. They know as much as we do that this is our last chance."
"Right." Tom replied as he sat down at his old spot. "Any word on who they are?"
"Officers from other precincts mainly, and an SAT team consisting of eight men."
"SATs. Huge help." Tom flashed a little thumbs up. "Hopefully they're enough to counter the mercenaries' firepower."
"Hopefully."
"Any word on ETA?"
"The call was put in a few hours ago. They should already be on their way."
"Alright." Tom got up to leave. "And don't ask what happened to Yoriko's forehead."
Outside the precinct, Tom sat in his parked Camaro ZL1. He was waiting for the first officers to arrive. Right on cue, a female on a police motorbike powered in and came to a stop in front of the garages. This was Tom's cue to get out of the Chevrolet and walk over. He studied the short brunette remove her helmet and dismount the bike.
"You one of the officers sent in to catch Fujima?" Tom asked.
"Yes sir!" The female saluted. "Hey, aren't you the legendary Tom Fortnell?"
"Yep." Tom saluted back. "And you are?"
"Officer Reiko Sakai."
"So then Reiko." Tom motioned for her to follow as he walked to the door. "Do you know any of the officers here?"
"Yes, I do." Reiko explained, "When Natsumi Tsujimoto transferred to the White Bike Troopers, I was assigned to help her out. We were escorting a marathon when there was a tanker fire and Natsumi rushed off to help her partner."
"Hey, I remember that!" Tom remembered using the power of his '97 Camaro Z28 police car to help stop the runaway tanker.
"I've heard a lot about your service." Reiko continued. "You're a legend in the police. And I am really lucky to get to meet you. Everyone thought you were dead!"
"Not lucky, just united in a common goal. Just ask someone for directions to the traffic department office."
"Yes sir!"
As Tom watched the female bike trooper march off, he walked back outside towards his Camaro. As he did so, a Porsche 911 pulled in from the street and parked next to the muscle car. Tom instantly knew who Headquarters had dispatched next.
Chie Sagamiono.
Chie climbed out of her sports car and almost immediately noticed Tom. "Fortnell..." She started.
"I know." Tom responded.
"Back from the dead?"
"Never dead in the first place."
"Great!" Chie patted Tom on the shoulder just to make sure she wasn't speaking to a ghost.
"Well. I'm back. Let's get Fujima this time."
"OK." As Chie started to walk away, Tom placed his hand on her shoulder, and she turned her head to look at the tall American again.
"Now look. It's been two years but I know you've got something to prove. Now you may try to deny it, but ever since Yoriko lucked out and beat you at the academy you've had something to prove. I've seen it on the battlefields of Afghanistan. Having something to prove out there can get you killed."
"You think I can't take care of myself?" Chie asked.
"I'd say yeah, you can take care of yourself. But when the mercs arrive and bullets start flying, don't put yourself in danger just to prove you're better than Yoriko." Tom patted Chie on her shoulder. "Have a nice day."
A few minutes later, another patrol car pulled in. Tom studied the two occupants as they exited the vehicle. One male, 5'7, black hair, the other female, 5'4, brown hair. Both had the look in their eyes. The thousand yard stare. Tom knew they'd seen some serious action before.
"What are your names?" Tom asked.
The male took a second to react. "Keiji Nakamura."
"And who's she?"
"Rena Mitsubishi." The female answered.
"You guys look shaken. Seen action recently?" Tom asked.
"As a matter of fact, yes." Keiji nodded. "We were at Roadblock 3 near Osaka when they came through. We were the only survivors."
"Oh man... I thought I saw the thousand yard stare."
"Thousand yard stare sir?" Rena wondered.
"Yeah." Tom nodded. "I saw it all the time in Afghanistan. You'd get soldiers who'd seen combat, they'd come back and they'd have this scared look, this stare, this... It was like they were looking out for a sniper or a guy with an RPG. They looked like they were scanning the horizon for combatants. Why it was called the thousand yard stare. It often seemed like they were staring right through you."
"Must've been terrifying." Keiji stated.
"Damn right. We were just like you guys. We were just there, we were just doing our jobs, many of us were scared and the only reason they called us heroes... Was because we didn't run away."
"Let's just hope we stay strong enough to catch that Fujima."
"Yeah..." Tom finished as he returned to watching the entrance.
Several minutes and a few more officers later, the SATs finally arrived in a truck. One such officer dismounted and marched over.
"Tom?"
"Yep." Tom replied. "It's me Toukairin. How you doing?"
"Good!" Shouji replied. "Glad to see you're not really dead!"
"I know, I know... So you've already been briefed on the situation?" Tom asked.
"Yes sir." Shouji confirmed. "We're talking about a dozen or so armed hostiles. Fast moving, shoot-to-kill. Special ops maybe?"
"I'd recruit spec ops if I was assembling a team of mercenaries."
"What about the car? I heard it's a Corvette."
Tom pointed to his red Camaro ZL1. "Let me worry about that."
"Sure thing." Shouji then shook Tom's hand. "Good to have you back Fortnell."
"You too Shouji. Now get up there. If I'm correct, there's a certain brunette strongwoman who is gonna flip when she sees you!"
"Don't tempt me!" Shouji laughed as he jogged towards the precinct. The other SAT operatives had got out of the truck and were now staring in awe at the presumed-dead officer now standing in front of them. Murmurs of "Holy crap!" and "That's Fortnell-san!" could be heard.
"Welcome to Bokuto." Tom simply said. "We hope you enjoy your stay."
Inside, the officers were getting acquainted with their colleagues. Tom walked in, and the chatter died down. Tom knew that they wanted him to give a speech.
"Alright. As designated leader of this operation..." He spoke. "Ah crap, I didn't even have a speech prepared." A few chuckles which quickly died down. "Let's try that again." He cleared his throat. "Apart from the fact that I'm still here, I'm pretty sure none of this surprises you. Isn't it ironic that we have all these things meant to improve your lives in some way, and even in this age of police budget cuts and re-tasking, there's still a threat that they could fall into the wrong hands?
"Think about it. The big guns for you to protect yourself and your families. The high ranking officials in the NPA to help keep you safe. The powerful supercars capable of ridiculous speeds engineered to give you the ultimate thrill. And no-one ever seems to ask... What happens when the enemy steals the keys? What happens when the very things that are meant to improve our lives are turned against us?
"Right now, we have a fugitive on the loose. He has the NPA official, Lt. Kaoruko Kinoshita, held hostage. He has a whole mercenary army with all the big guns. He is making his escape in the Corvette ZR1, with ridiculous speeds previously the domain of race car drivers. And right now, he's gearing up for an all-out assault. That's when they'll realize... They still need people like us. They will always need people like us. Men and women willing to do what others cannot." A big cheer rose up from the officers in the room. "But we cannot afford to rest.
"Right now, Fujima is gearing up for all-out war. This is our last chance to catch him before he gets on a boat and escapes Japan forever, and knows it. Fujima is going to come through here with everything he's got. Make sure you know how to fight. Because if there's anything we know about the mercenaries, it's this: They had heavy firepower when they were busting through the roadblocks. Now, they're going to get Fujima through to the docks and they don't care how many die along the way. I've seen enough blood and death, and I know they're not going out without a lot of either. I know what's coming.
"It's approaching the evening. Go home and get some rest. We'll need 200% from every one of you when he comes through. But you should always be on standby, because we never know when he's going to make a move. That's the unpredictability of police work. I could serve another 30 years. I could die tomorrow. I know you never signed up for anything like this, but if we work together and stay strong, we can protect the community of the Sumida Ward, and secure a future for them and ourselves. That is all. Thank you for listening." Tom finally finished, to a huge applause from the assembled officers.
Kachou stood next to Tom. "Good speech." He stated.
"Thanks." Tom replied. "I raise my game when I have to."
"So the star duo has finally got their back-up again."
"I guess so..." He looked at Miyuki and Natsumi, and remembered all the times that he'd helped them out of tricky situations.
"It's good to have you back Tom." Kachou patted Tom on the back. "Let's show those guys you don't mess with Bokuto's best." With that, he joined the remaining officers in going out and back to their homes for the night, leaving Tom alone in the room.
"I know it's not going to be that easy." Tom walked to a desk and sat down on a chair. Finally alone, he could think.
"Tom?" Miyuki called from the doorway. "Are you coming?"
"Not this time Miyuki." Tom answered. "I'm going to stay here and think up of a way to catch this joker."
"OK." Before Miyuki left, she said, "But please, be careful out there. I'm not losing you again." The black-haired policewoman left, leaving Tom in peace.
"If only I didn't try to fake my death that day..." Tom muttered. "What the hell is wrong with me?"
In Nagoya, the mercs had finally set up communications with their fellow men awaiting orders in Tokyo.
"Sir." One mercenary saluted Daisuke as he walked in. "The phone lines went down but we managed to set up a webcam link with our sleeper cell in Tokyo."
"OK." Daisuke sat down in front of the computer. The face of the leader of the sleeper cell in Tokyo was on the screen. "Can you hear me?" He spoke into the microphone.
"Yes sir." The merc replied.
"What is your current status?"
"Sixteen men, four vehicles. Automatic rifles for everyone, one recoilless rifle. Currently on standby and awaiting orders sir."
"Proceed with the plan. Time your operation to coincide with our operation."
"Yes sir."
Daisuke got up and inspected the many vehicles and troops in the warehouse. "Boss."
"Yes?" Fujima walked over from the Corvette ZR1.
"We have our sleeper cell on the move."
"OK. Have seventy of our men move out. Leave thirty to defend this warehouse."
"Yes sir." Daisuke then turned to his men.
"What are our orders sir?" One merc asked.
A short pause. "Give them something to remember."
Hope you liked this chapter! If so, please remember to review so I know what to improve on!