Forcibly United
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Chapter 12
Uh, so... Apparently I've written four chapters in rapid succession. Start all the way back at Chapter 9 if you haven't read the story in the last day or so.
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Consciousness was slow to return to Ryouga Hibiki. He sat up in an unfamiliar bunk, rubbing his head as he looked around. What had happened? The last thing he remembered was a helicopter speeding towards them, far too fast to be healthy. Then Ranma had convinced him that punching the damned thing was a good idea.
As he got up, he felt the various aches and pains in his body, though the most prominent was the sharp stinging in the knuckles of the hand he'd punched the Hind-D with. With a groan, he got up and slung the redhead over his shoulder, then walked out of the small room.
Armory. Bathroom, where he did Ranma a small favour and changed her back to a him. Armory again. The engine room, then Ryouga finally found the ladder which led up to the cabin.
"Glad you two are awake," Dutch noted, not turning around.
"Uh, only I'm awake. Ranma's still being a lazy jerk and sleeping," Ryouga grunted, dropping the pigtailed boy with a loud thud on the floor. He didn't wake up. "So, how much longer do we have until we arrive at port to deliver the cargo?"
"Already done," Dutch said simply, picking up an envelope from the top of his console, handing it to Ryouga. "By the way, here's your pay for the job. Balalaika was pretty impressed that we managed to safeguard the cargo despite the slight problem, and the pay reflects that."
"Slight problem, he says..." Ryouga grumbled, opening the envelope and pulling the cash out. He started counting the hundreds, then realized he'd reached twenty thousand dollars roughly halfway through the stack. "She quadrupled our pay!?"
"Nope. That's all yours. I've got an envelope for your friend when he wakes up. Forty-three thousand dollars each, kid," Dutch said, turning his head to flash the boy a grin. "She doubled your pay for the job because of the amount of boats coming after us, and the asshole piloting the Hind-D had a bounty on his head which you, your friend, and Revy got to split three ways."
"Eighty-six thousand dollars!?" Ryouga choked, astonished. At this rate, they'd be free of the bracers in just a few weeks!
"Hey, welcome to the big leagues, kid. Don't get too excited, though. Not all your jobs are going to be so lucrative. And don't forget that you're going to be spending money in Roanapur when you get back," Dutch advised.
"On what? It's not like Ranma or I need to stock up on weapons and ammo," Ryouga noted.
"True... But don't tell me you don't have anything you've always wanted," Dutch said pointedly. "New clothes, expensive food, a nice apartment... Pretty much whatever you want, you can now afford to buy."
"I suppose I could use a few new shirts or something..." Ryouga admitted, before shaking his head. "No! Ranma and I have to rid ourselves of this curse we suffer from! As soon as we can!"
"Curse?" Dutch asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Maybe it's best I show you. Do you think you could call everyone to the back of the boat?" Ryouga wondered.
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Ranma was sleeping contentedly. This all changed with a slight noise which seemed to be whispering in his ear. Thanks to years of practice at ignoring his old man's snoring, he shrugged off the noise as inconsquential.
"Wake up, Ranma!" Ryouga yelled, barely penetrating. Then Ranma learned that Ryouga attempting to wake him did, in fact, have consequences if ignored. He felt himself hurled sharply through the air, his arm jolting out behind him as he hit the distance limit which bound him to his rival.
Then Ranma plunged into the ocean, his curse changing him into a redhead while she swam to the surface, sputtering.
"Well, that explains a few things," Ranma heard Dutch comment to the yellow-clad boy, nodding in Ranma's direction.
"What the hell did you do that for, pork butt?" Ranma demanded, swimming back to the boat.
"Hey, I needed to explain the bracers, show them a Jusenkyo curse, and wake you the hell up," Ryouga said calmly, then grinned. "Throwing you in the water was just an added bonus."
"So the change is because he fell into a fucking pool of water?" Revy exclaimed, eyes widening a bit. "If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes..."
"Ryouga... Ranma makes a lot of comments about you and pork. I take it you have a Jusenkyo curse as well?" Rock asked, sipping some tea. Ryouga's grimace was answer enough. "So how does that work with those bracers? I don't imagine they fit a pig's stubby arm quite as easily."
"The curse don't work for him while he's got the bracer on. It's a total gyp. He gets to go swimming and stand in the rain without fear, while I'm still stuck turning into a girl," Ranma complained, pulling off her shirt and squeezing out the excess water. She did the same with her pants, then opted to simply hang both items over a railing. She held out a hand to Rock. "Do you mind?"
"Huh?" Rock asked, before Ranma sighed and indicated his tea cup. "Oh, sure."
"Hot water boy, cold water girl, very tragic story." The pigtailed girl sighed in relief as she splashed herself with the tea, reverting to her true gender.
"Ranma, Ryouga... Revy mentioned something about glowing?" Rock prompted, earning interested looks from Benny and Dutch as well. "Things were so hectic during the fight, I didn't really see what you two were doing. Do you think you could show us?"
"You feeling up for a Shi Shi Hokodan, Ryouga?" Ranma asked, sort of tired himself. The other boy shook his head.
"No, Ranma... I pulled off two Perfects in the last fight, plus a regular. I'm going to be drained for a few days, I think," Ryouga admitted. He then jabbed the other boy in the shoulder, grinning. "Besides, I showed them the bracers. Your turn to do a demonstration."
"Fine, fine... We both know I'm the best, anyway," Ranma muttered, closing his eyes. His chi was weak, depleted after the battle, but it was there. Enough for a small demonstration, anyway. He cupped his hands in front of himself. "Mouko Takabisha!"
He opened his eyes to find the entire crew of the Black Lagoon staring at his hands, and he grinned before launching it at the water. It struck the ocean and detonated with the force of a rocket-propelled grenade, sending a geyser of water shooting into the air.
"Holy shit," Dutch muttered, watching the brief rainbow that filtered through the air as the mist settled back into the ocean.
"How does it work?" Benny wondered, waving his hand toward the boys. "I mean, that's like something out of a fighting game. I didn't think even for a second that it people could actually do stuff like this."
"Those games are completely unrealistic," Ryouga complained, crossing his arms.
"Yeah, no way anyone can just keep throwing chi blasts over and over again like that," Ranma explained, sitting down on the railing. "My Mouko Takabisha works based on my confidence-"
"Arrogance, more like," Ryouga snorted. Ranma ignored him.
"-and pig-boy's Shi Shi Hokodan works based on his depression. Of course, merely being confident or depressed ain't enough for us to keep using them. We can exhaust ourselves using the attacks, just like punching or kicking will eventually exhaust someone," Ranma continued, then paused as Revy pointed a finger at Ranma, then Ryouga.
"So let me get this straight. You can blow shit up because you're a fucking arrogant prick, and your buddy here and do the same shit because he's a walking advertisement for Prozac?" Revy sputtered, trying to contain her laughter.
"Laugh it up, tomboy," Ranma snorted, crossing his arms. He rolled his eyes, focusing his attention on the trio still paying attention. "We can do some other stuff with our chi that doesn't need us to be confident or depressed. I can punch really fast, Ryouga can blow up stone and other stuff like that with his finger, Ryouga can turn cloth as hard as steel, I can make small tornadoes under the right circumstances... Tricks like that."
"Why bother with stuff like that when you can just blow shit up whenever you feel like it?" Revy asked curiously.
"Why do you carry around pistols when you can just lug around a grenade launcher?" Ryouga countered, inspiring a thoughtful look as the woman finished her beer and headed to the front of the boat. "It's a lot easier. I can only throw a few chi blasts before I'm tired out by the whole thing. I can chuck my bandannas pretty much all day, even in the state I'm in now."
"Still, that's pretty useful," Benny admitted, grinning.
"Yep," Ranma agreed. He glanced around, realizing for the first time that the boat wasn't moving. "So, isn't that Russian chick going to be pissed if we're late delivering the cargo?"
"We've already done it," Dutch said, slapping a thick envelope against the boy's bare chest. "Speaking of which, here's your pay."
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Revy was just entering the cabin when she heard Ranma yell, "Forty-three thousand dollars?"
She grinned as she fished a pair of beers out of the case. She didn't plan on being entirely sober when she arrived back in Roanapur, and she'd be damned if she did it alone. After a second, she fished another two beers out of the thing.
It'd be rude if she didn't try to get those boys drinking either, she thought. They looked they hadn't before, and she was sure she could at least cajole Ranma into trying to drink her under the table. Not that he even had a fucking chance of doing so.
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Rock glanced at Balalaika's limo as it waited near the Black Lagoon's dock with more than a bit of apprehension. He knew that Balalaika wouldn't have asked him to 'make himself available' if she didn't have something pretty serious to talk about. He was thankful that he'd managed to both avoid drinking too much and convince Revy to excessively consume.
She couldn't help him, and he didn't want her getting involved if the whole thing went bad. He was going to be walking into a rather dangerous trap anyway, and Revy's instinct of going for her gun first was not going to help him here.
Shenhua was there to pick Ranma and Ryouga up, he noted. He nodded to her politely as she watched Ryouga carry a comatose Ranma down the boarding ramp. The poor boy had made the bad decision to try to outdrink Revy when she'd questioned his manhood. Ryouga, at least, had the good sense to abstain.
"Aiyah, he try to out-drink Twinkie?" He heard her exclaim as Ryouga slung the unconscious teenager into the back seat of her car. "He really fucking dumb. He better not puke or I clean car with his face."
Then he was at the door to the limo. Rock smiled politely as the window rolled down and Balalaika glanced up at him.
"Well, Balalaika. Shall we discuss whatever it is you feel the need to discuss?" Rock asked lightly. He took it as a bad sign that she didn't really return the smile.
"Get in, Rock." Interesting. She wasn't even trying to suggest that it was an invitation instead of an order.
He got in.
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Balalaika glanced stonily across the limo to where Rock calmly sipped a soda he'd taken from her mini-fridge. She was surprised he took her up on the offer of refreshment. Then again, he could probably detect the scarcely-concealed anger boiling underneath her relatively placid surface.
He raised one eyebrow, tilting his head.
"Now, let me guess... You're wondering why I didn't tell you about the weapons smuggling of the Church of Violence. They've been flooding the market with more weapons, endangering your people by arming even the most tactless of thugs. Am I right?" Rock asked, leaning forward.
"You have a remarkable grasp of the complexities of the situation. Care to tell me why I shouldn't just shoot you right now?" Balalaika demanded, drawing her pistol, but leaving it resting in her lap. She quirked one eye at him. "Remember, the best way to convince me to keep you alive is by keeping it interesting. And you know I'm not interested in your apologies or pleading."
"I wasn't aware I had anything to apologize for," Rock said simply, putting the can of Pepsi in the cup holder at his side and leaning forward to bridge his hands in front of his face.
"You'd better have an explanation for that, Rock. And make it quick," Balalaika hissed. The gun twitched where it lay in her lap.
"Of course," Rock said. He held out one hand. "Alright, from your perspective it does look bad. I'm all but aiding and abetting the Ripoff Church in flooding Roanapur with weapons, weapons which might just be used against your forces. Obviously you aren't happy about that.
"On the other hand," he said, raising his other hand. "I'm saving the lives of your men by what I'm doing."
"You'll have to explain that one," Balalaika said, raising the gun to aim it at a spot right between Rock's eyes. "And like I said, I'm getting impatient."
"No wonder Revy's so quick to violence if she looks up to you," Rock muttered, not quietly enough to escape the Russian teenager's ears. Yet he didn't flinch as she clicked the safety off of her gun. In fact, he grinned. "That's a nice gun, Balalaika. I imagine it's hard to find, am I right?"
"Rock. Get to the fucking point. If my arm starts to get tired, I will pull the trigger on the 'nice gun' pointed at your face," Balalaika pointed out icily.
"You're a strong woman, Balalaika. I think I've got a little time left," Rock pointed out evenly. He did have that right, the woman admitted to herself. "Balalaika, I spoke with the Church and pointed out that what they were doing was a necessary evil. Whether or not they were the ones importing the firearms, guns not controlled by Hotel Moscow, the Triads, the Sicilians, or the Columbians are going to find their way here.
"I simply pointed out to Sister Yolanda that is was in her best interests to import low quality items. After all, everyone knows that her place of business is called the Church of Violence for a reason. They go to her when they need a weapon quick," Rock said, grinning as the gun pointed at his face wavered. "So instead of trying to control the quantity of unwanted guns coming in to Roanapur, a factor impossible to control, I instead influenced the general quality of the weapons.
"Sister Yolanda and Sister Eda don't sell AP rounds, hollow points, or other more potent rounds to the thugs trying to make a name for themselves. They don't sell advanced military carbines or weapons with integrated laser-sights to the people who might clash with your men, or the Triads, or the Columbians, or the Sicilians," Rock continued, his grin growing as Balalaika finally lowered her gun. "Yolanda is making a profit by ensuring that the men who come up against your troops can't even pierce their body armour, that is if their weapons even shoot straight enough to hit them in the first place.
"Your men are going to come up against people who can kill them. I can't control that. Nobody can. If someone wants to really try to fight you, they're going to come at you with the best gear they can find," Rock said, picking up his soda and draining it. He crunched the empty can, concluding, "I'm just making sure that finding that gear is a bigger pain in the ass than it needs to be."
"Interesting points," Balalaika admitted, clicking the safety on her gun once more. She clicked the button which lowered the bulletproof divider separating her from Boris, driving in the front. "Sergeant, stop the car. Rock, we're only a block away from Lagoon Company's office. Thank you for your time."
"As always, I'm happy to work with Hotel Moscow regarding any inquiries it has about my conduct or the conduct of the Lagoon Company," Rock said, getting out of the car.
"He did it again!" Balalaika growled, slamming the butt of her gun against the side of the limo. She glared at her Sergeant as he glanced back at her in the rear-view mirror. "You'd better not be smiling, Boris."
"Of course not, Capitan," the tall Russian man said, doing an admirable job of hiding the amusement in his voice. After a moment, he spoke up. "Shall I drive us to the gun range?"
"Yes," Balalaika said sharply, holstering her gun. "I feel the urge to shoot something. Repeatedly."
"Of course," Boris said, accelerating. Glancing out the back of the window, the blond Russian teenager noted that Rock was grinning as he glanced at the back of the limo.
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Author's Notes:
And with this chapter, the story as you know it comes to a close.
The next chapter will be the beginning of a new story arc. Unlike the previous chapters, which have more or less focused on the entire cast, the upcoming arcs are going to focus specifically on a subsection of the cast. So with these arcs come labeling for the chapters, so that when this beast starts to really get moving, navigating to read your favourite will be easier. Thus, the next arc will be labeled Comes the Hotblooded Dragon in the chapter list. You'll see why the title is appropriate when the arc is underway.
Oh, and random fact: With this chapter, Forcibly United becomes my longest-running story, despite the fact I started it eighteen days ago. I amaze me sometimes. I also annoy those who live with me, what with the fact I'm tapping my keyboard at all hours of the day sometimes.