Chapter 8: Memories of Peace

Roberta was the first to awaken. When she did, all she felt was the unbridled heat of the inferno that now engulfed the Yellowflag, She came unsteadily to her feet, tearing off a strip of her top and holding it over her mouth to block out the smoke. The others were still unconscious, the flames creeping ever closer to them. Roberta dropped the cloth from her mouth and grabbed the collar of Wolf's jacket. Even with one arm, she still had the strength to pick him up and carry him outside, dropping him down on the other side of the street. She headed back in for Revy, who woke herself and uneasily stumbled outside, her arm around Roberta's neck. Next was Shenhua, then Bao. The other residents of the bar had either made their own way out or they had perished already. Roberta strolled over to where she had left the others and took a seat as she tried to compose herself between throaty coughs. The Yellowflag collapsed minutes later. They could feel the heat, even from across the street.

"God-fucking-dammit," Bao croaked as he regained consciousness to witness the total annihilation of his bar. It had been destroyed before, due in no small part to three of the people now present. But this was more final. While Bao usually had the place back up and running after a few days or weeks, this damage might never be repaired. If the Yellowflag was to be reopened, it would take months.

"What the fuck just happened?!" Revy screamed weakly, outraged.

"Fucking jeep was a bomb," Wolf wheezed as he awoke and sat up, holding his head. "That could have gone a lot better."

"Yeah, no fucking shit," Revy growled. "Man, Dutch is gonna be pissed." Considering they had, in his eyes, destroyed his livelihood, Bao insisted on accompanying them back to the apartment. Dutch did not take kindly to the news that the bar had been destroyed. Not because of the fact that it was the Yellowflag, but because Revy, Wolf and Roberta had been reckless. They could all have been killed in the blast. Not to mention the fact that this would draw Kane's attention. In one way, it might help to draw the mercenary out of hiding so they could finally kill him once and for all. Still, today's events had been less than agreeable.

"How did that even happen?" Rock asked, still confused.

"Car bomb," Wolf explained, irritated.

"A car bomb that wouldn't be there if not for you!" Bao yelled. He was always one to assign blame, despite the fact that Kane would probably have made his way to Roanapur at some point even if Wolf had not killed the previous leaders of the Black Marchers.

"I will eat your face," the assassin threatened goofily.

"That's not funny!" Bao insisted, growing angrier by the second.

"I can give you something to laugh about, if you want," Wolf told him, his voice quieter now.

"Enough!" Dutch called, his voice drowning them all out. "We've gotten ourselves into enough shit already. This has gone far enough. We need to talk to Chang and Balalaika about bringing the fight to the Marchers. Kane's been screwing around the city for long enough." That idea appealed to them all. They were sick and tired of letting Kane have his way with Roanapur. Since he had been here, criminal activity and drug trafficking had taken a serious hit. Part of the reason Chang was so furious was because the cartels had been put to a halt and more attention was being put on Roanapur. The sooner Kane was dealt with, the sooner things could begin to go back to normal. Roberta made her way outside that evening. She stood on the balcony, her eyes scanning the city silently. She heard the door behind her, then.

"We'll probably be meeting with Balalaika tomorrow," Dutch told her as he came up beside her and leaned on the railing.

"That's the Russian woman?"

"In charge of Hotel Moscow, yeah. It's probably best if you don't come along. She doesn't exactly like you very much. And if there's one person in this city that I'm more afraid of than you, it's Balalaika." Roberta furrowed her brow before smiling gently. The memory of her first meeting with Lagoon Company sprung into mind.

"You don't have to be afraid of me, you know," she assured him. "We're on the same side."

"Nevertheless, I don't think I'll change anytime soon," he told her. "But, yeah, thanks. Good to have you watching our asses." Roberta nodded. She had had a rocky relationship with almost everyone in the apartment at some point. Lagoon Company were not exactly fans of hers. Suffice it to say that they would not be friends with her anytime soon. Wolf, on the other hand, had been getting along with her better than she had suspected. He was a dark soul, one who reminded her of herself when she had gone on her rampage in pursuit of the American military. At that time, she was an unstoppable beast, an animal that would hunt down her prey and let nobody stand in her way. Wolf was similar, though he certainly had more of his wits about him. He was not so caught up in the mission. In fact, he was much more agreeable than many in his business. Roberta was curious to see where their relationship would lead. He was a formidable ally, one she was glad she had the pleasure of knowing and working with. She just hoped his encounter with Kane would not repeat itself when the two killers met face to face once again.

"Roberta?" Garcia's voice came. The young boy emerged out onto the balcony and joined his maid. "What are you doing out here?"

"Just enjoying the evening," she told him. "Thinking. What troubles you?" The look on his face suggested something had been bothering him.

"I'm worried."

"About Kane?"

"About you," he said, much to her surprise. "I was there the last time you were on a mission. I saw what those soldiers did to you. I'm worried that you might not come out of this okay." Roberta smiled as she bent down and placed her hand on his shoulder.

"It warms my heart to hear you speak that way, Young Master. But do not worry. We have many allies in this mission. We will prevail, I promise you."

"But how can you be sure?" Garcia asked, concerned to the last about Roberta's well-being.

"I can't," she admitted. "But this time will be different. We will do our best to help this city. And when it is done, we can return home and live peacefully together. Like we always planned." She pulled him close and hugged him warmly. She would not let any harm come to him. If she had to die to assure his survival, then so be it.