I slept for the first time in two days as the storm battered Fort Whiskey and, probably, the rest of Winningson State. It wasn't peaceful, but it was sleep - and I'll take what I can get.

Working in this business for as long as I have, I get a sense of when things aren't in my favor. I'm good at running numbers, you see. Here in Winningson, my odds were already bad and I just picked a fight with the shadowy Queenpin of this damn prison.

But Mumei's odds were probably worse than mine - and she's still out there.

I stuck to my guns because of her.

If Winningson PD's running a manhunt on her, then my birdie didn't betray me. That was enough to give me confidence to not sell my soul to Enma. Now, I have to live with the consequences… or at least try to stay alive.

I have to be strong for Mumei. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to look her in the eye ever again.

With that in mind, I woke up the next morning to oddly clear skies, but I didn't let my guard down. If there's something I learned from robbing merchant marine boats on the high seas, it's that clear, calm skies that can be deceptive.

Just like Enma.

We were in the eye of the storm - and the worst was still to come.

I got up from my bed and looked up to the top bunk, finding it empty.

Damn, I could have used Botan as an ally… or at the very least, a friend. But the lioness got moved to Block C - the den of Enma's lackeys.

Perhaps I was right to doubt her.

Or I'm not seeing the whole picture here.

Right on cue, the metal doors of Block B swung open. That morning's cadre of guards marched in, clanking their batons against the cell bars.

"WAKE UP MAGGOTS! IT'S MINE-CRAFT DAY!" One of the guards yelled.

"We just had Mine-Craft yesterday!" A prisoner protested.

"SHADDAP, MAGGOT!" The guard shouted at the dissenter, "WARDEN'S ORDERS."

There it was again.

'Warden's Orders' they said.

Bullshit.

This is definitely something that Enma's got a hand in. The tail end of the storm was gonna come way sooner than I thought, and Enma made sure to tear off any shelter I'd have.

After all these years, you haven't changed, Enma. You're still a cold, calculating bitch.

It's why we got along back then.

The guards opened up my cell and I walked alone to the mess hall for breakfast. I spent every step I took lowering my expectations to rock bottom.

But then, when I got to the mess hall, the servings there surprised me. Scalloped potatoes that… goodness gracious, smelled and looked like potatoes! There were even sausages available - not a lot, but enough for the entire Block to get at least two.

I took my serving and sat alone at a table.

I ate the food and… I was surprised by the quality. It was decent.

Sure, it was nowhere near the steakhouse-grade City Striploin Steak that Enma made in her prison suite, but it was leagues ahead of the rubbery scrambled eggs and the half-assed spaghetti and meatballs from yesterday.

I was almost tempted to take a second round of food when someone approached my table. Someone small. Someone I wanted to throw over the walls of Fort Whiskey.

Forewoman Bijou Koseki.

She set down her tray and started eating her meal without saying a word at first. Once she had a few forkfuls of grub, she pointed her fork at me and gave me a stone-faced stoic look.

"Miss Enma is a generous mistress." Bijou spoke haughtily, looking down on me even though I was physically looking down on her, "She has granted Block B with a more substantial breakfast for your sake."

"She's not doing this for free, is she?" I deduced.

Bijou scowled at my remark. Seems like I hit the mark. The stony girl cleared her throat, though, and continued her spiel.

"Miss Enma is asking you to reconsider, Kronii Ouro." Bijou insisted. She fixed up her purple bandana and continued, "Nori-cha… I mean, ahem… Warden Nerissa and I are prepared to… look past your transgressions last night and cooperate with you."

"You already know my answer." I said, folding my arms, "I'm not working for Enma ever again."

"This is your last chance, Kronii Ouro." Bijou snorted.

"And I'll reject you as many times as you ask." I answered, "Ask someone more cooperative… 'Biboo'."

Bijou's cheeks puffed. Her face went red.

"You don't get to call me that." Bijou furrowed her brow.

"I'll call you whatever I want." I scoffed. Then, I stood up to take away my tray, "Now if you'll excuse me."

"NO! I won't excuse you." Bijou raised her voice, drawing the attention of everyone else in the mess hall, "Stay right here, Kronii Ouro!"

Eyes started turning our way before Bijou scowled at them. The other Block B inmates started mining their own business again.

"Miss Enma is gracious even to those who defy her." Bijou hissed, "There are some of your blockmates that I'd like to introduce you to. My lieutenants."

Before I could answer, Bijou turned to the table beside ours and gestured to the ladies seated there. Three dog girls - the same dog girls who were giving me the stink eyes yesterday. Two, one blonde and one brunette, with bouncy assets. One blonde with… a very flat personality.

A real life Cerberus.

The three dog girls surrounded me, blocking off my exit. So, I had no choice but to sit down and stay put. When I did, the brunette dog girl sat beside Bijou and the twin blond dog girls flanked me, giving me no space whatsoever.

"So this is the one, Biboo?" The brunette doggo mused, eyeing me from head to toe, "Awfully pretty. This one. Miss Enma sure knows how to pick em."

The blonde doggo twins nodded in agreement too. They both leaned towards me too, just like… well, dogs.

"Why thank you." I said to Korone.

I said that, but I noticed each of the dog girls eyeing me with strange fixation. The twins licked their lips while looking menacingly at me - almost like I was a big lump of meat. The brunette, however, was fixated on my hands.

"What the hell are you looking at?" I asked the brunette.

"Nothing much. I was just thinking that your fingers would look nice in my collection." The brunette promptly added. I shuddered where I sat, "You're not gonna need them when I'm done with you."

Ah shit, she's a psycho. Why are most of the brunettes I know psychos!?

"Kronii Ouro, meet Korone Inugami." Bijou gestured to the brunette, "She's my enforcer here in Block B."

Korone grinned deviously at me and spoke with a singsong voice, "I take a very… hands on approach, Ouro-san. I get everyone in Block B in line cause they know what I can do. You'll see soon enough. Mm. Yes."

Looking at Korone, I saw her powerful, musclebound arms that betrayed her figure - and made my own decently toned arms seem like wet noodles. Only someone like Botan would have matched her physique, but even she would have second thoughts about taking on a girl this ripped.

Bijou cleared her throat and gestured to the twin blonde doggos next.

"Meet the Abyssgard twins." Bijou introduced with pride, "They're Korone's left and right hand respectively."

"I'm Mococo, the younger sister!" The flat one yapped aggressively, baring her teeth.

"And I'm Fuwawa." The bouncy one added calmly but mischievously.

The two sisters then spoke in tandem, "We're gonna have a loooooot of fun playing with you, Miss Ouro!"

"We like to play very rough though." Fuwawa the elder warned, "Think you can handle it?"

"Yeah! Especially with very pretty girls!" Mococo concurred, whipping her tail behind her, "We're gonna mess you up soooo good!"

"Bau, bau!" Fuwawa and Mococo barked in tandem.

The two of them would have been cute if they weren't trying to kill me like a goddamn chew toy! What a shame.

Mococo and Fuwawa both turned to Korone in tandem and asked, "We'll play rough today right, Korone-senpai?"

Korone nodded, swishing her tail behind her. The brunette doggo turned to me and smirked.

"Eat as much potato as you want, Miss Ouro. You're gonna need the energy. Cause, after today…" Korone traced a line through the air over her own throat and grinned, "You'll die forever."

I shriveled up where I sat. I could tell that Bijou was enjoying watching me squirm.

"You like your playmates, Miss Ouro?" Bijou asked.

"You mean my executioners?" I countered.

"Normally, Miss Enma doesn't let her victims know what's coming for them." Bijou explained with a smirk, "But you're an exception. You get special treatment. Isn't that nice?"

"We could have been allies, Miss Ouro." Korone added, "But you chose your path."

"And we chose ours!" Fuwawa and Mococo said together.

Korone's grin grew wider, "Now deal with it. Okay?"

Point of no return, huh.

I hope I'm doing the right thing.

"You guys are getting along. That's good." Bijou hummed, "The four of you are gonna be in a chain gang today in the quarry. Don't make too much of a mess today, okay?"

"Yes, Bijou-senpai~!" Korone, Mococo and Fuwawa all said at once.

With those words, my canine executioners prepared to seal my fate.

Thunder rumbled in the heavens too. The tail end of the storm was here.

Was I ready?

There was only one way to find out.

…

The guards came to the mess hall just as the rain started to fall. Bijou and her doggo lieutenants started handing out raincoats and rain boots out to the inmates of Block B.

Except for me.

"We ran out." Bijou shrugged, barely hiding her mischievous grin, "You won't need it anyways. Not where you're going."

Bullshit.

Not that I was about to complain.

I dug my hands in my pockets and walked out of the mess hall under the pouring rain. It didn't take long before my black-and-white stripe uniform was drenched. With every step I took, the ground beneath my feet grew muddier and muddier. My regular work boots started to squelch with water and grew heavy with caking mud.

All the while, Bijou, Korone and the twins and all the other inmates were snug and dry. A chilly gust blew through the yard and I shivered.

On our way to the quarry, my Block passed by the posse of baldie girls who wanted to shave my head the moment I got into Fort Whiskey. Bijou broke from the formation to talk with them. The guards accompanying us let her, of course. They probably respected her as much as Warden Nerissa, after all.

After a short chat, I saw that the baldies started making the same weird hand gestures that the megachurch pastor Hakka Banzoin was making. So, the Vanguard Syndicate has feelers in Fort Whiskey too, huh? I should have figured.

Were these cultists saying prayers for a dead woman walking?

Or maybe they were hoping Bijou would let them shave my head after the doggos tear me to shreds.

Heh. Even if I die, I won't catch a break.

One more reason to stay alive, then.

…

We reached the marble quarry soon enough. Even the shallow pit that had been dug started to fill with water, turning the ground there into a muddy hell on earth. The guards entered the tool shed and returned with the ankle chains as usual, but they didn't hand out pickaxes. Block B wasn't mining marble today after all.

The guards slapped shackles to my ankles and bound me to Korone, Mococo and Fuwawa. A short length of chain, slightly longer than just arm's length separated me from the twins who flanked me. Korone, bound to Fuwawa, got a much longer chain to work with.

The brunette top dog cracked her knuckles audibly, even in the rain.

Bijou and the rest of the Block B inmates, meanwhile, watched on.

"Any last words, Kronii Ouro?" Bijou hollered, competing with the rain and the winds for her voice to be heard.

"I have some." I answered.

"Let's hear it." Bijou snorted.

I looked Bijou straight in the eyes and hissed, "I'm gonna pick you up one day and throw you in a trash can, rock girl!"

Bijou gritted her teeth. Then she scoffed. "Defiant to the end, huh? Let us begin!"

The moment that Bijou said this, all but a handful of the guards that had accompanied us turned away and left the quarry grounds. Even the sentries with the Tommy Guns on the watchtowers turned their backs to us.

Let me guess. 'Warden's orders', huh?

I didn't get the chance to say that out loud.

Korone, Mococo and Fuwawa surrounded me. The chains binding our ankles rattled and clanked, muffled by the muddy ground. Their gazes pierced through my drenched self and my tired soul.

Then, Korone took off her raincoat, raised up her fists like a prize fight boxer and smiled at me. She was inviting me to do the same, so I obliged.

As soon as I did, Korone lunged at me. She threw left and right jabs one after another and I blocked them.

"Oho…" Korone hummed, amused by my moves, "You have confidence. Let's see how long that lasts."

At that moment, though, Korone pulled back and threw a powerful punch. A haymayker. I saw her fist sailing through the air, smashing through droplets of rain. I pulled my head away and stepped back, but the chains snagged my ankle.

"Shit!" I cursed and struggled to regain my balance. But then…

BAM!

Korone's fist smashed into my face.

"Urk…!" I croaked and fell back-first into the mud, "... gah!"

My face ached. I felt like I got hit by a freight train.

Mococo and Fuwawa chuckled, rattling the chains that bound my ankle to theirs. Korone, on the other hand, loomed over me and shook her head.

"No confidence after all." Korone grinned, "I've given you my courtesy. Now…"

The twin doggo's eyes started to shine, "It's playtime…!?"

Korone nodded, "It's playtime."

When Korone said this, Mococo and Fuwawa sprung towards me and started kicking me on the ground. They weren't anywhere near as strong as Korone, but they kicked over and over and over.

THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!

Still, I scrambled up, kneeled down on the ground and swept the older Fuwawa off her feet. Then, just as Mococo tried to kick me, I rolled out of the way and grabbed the younger doggo's leg.

"What the…!?" Mococo yelped.

I shifted my weight and threw Mococo into her downed sister.

WHAM!

The twins groaned and wallowed in the mud, entangled in each other's chains. I returned the favor and kicked the twins into submission.

THUD! THUD! THUD!

I got up on my feet, wiped the mud off my face and turned to Korone.

A smirk formed on Korone's face, taunting me.

I charged past the downed twins and started swinging at Korone. The brunette dog girl dodged my punches and kept her distance from me, but I couldn't even hit her! No matter how hard I tried, Korone darted and weaved.

Frustration started to grip at me. Korone's face, on the other hand, shimmered with keen excitement.

"I can see why you got special treatment." Korone beamed, "Your fate is sealed, but you're not giving up!"

"I just don't want to end up in the papers as a bloody mess tomorrow, that's all." I hissed at her.

I lunged forward at Korone and threw a right hook. This time, Korone didn't dodge. She took my punch square in the face.

And yet…

Korone didn't stop grinning.

"That's not up to you to decide!" Korone roared.

She grabbed me by the collar and slammed her fist into my stomach.

"Oof…!" I coughed and fell down to the mud on my knees. I tasted blood in my mouth. Every fiber of my being was shaking.

I heard my ankle chains rattling again. Then, the twin sisters picked themselves up from the mud. They each took one of my arms and held me in place to face Korone. I couldn't quite look the boxer dog straight in the eye, but I could tell that she was looking intently down at me.

"It was nice knowing you, Kronii Ouro. Even for a little while." Korone spoke like she was giving a eulogy. Then, she turned to the audience and cried, "Biboo! It's time!"

Bijou nodded and approached us, the now bloody chain gang. One of the guards came by and handed the forewoman a pickaxe. Bijou wielded the pickaxe and raised its sharp head as high as her petite frame could.

"I wish it didn't have to come to this, but you know too much." Bijou said, "Warden Nerissa and Miss Enma send their regards…!"

Bijou swung her pickaxe. I closed my eyes and braced myself.

And yet, the blow never came. Only the downpour of rain continued to foal on my head.

I opened my eyes and raised my head. Then, I saw a sight for weary eyes.

Bijou's pickaxe was being held back by a powerful hand.

Botan's hand.

The lioness stood there in the quarry field without a raincoat, completely unfazed by the pouring rain.

…

"Shishiro…!?" Bijou protested, "What the hell are you doing here!?"

"I saw the commotion and wondered what was going on." Botan spoke nonchalantly, slicking her ashen hair back with her free hand, "Turns out you were having fun without me."

She said this and didn't let go of Bijou's pickaxe.

"You're not supposed to be here today!" Bijou insisted, "We already paid you!"

"It's not about the money, Biboo." Botan snickered, "It's about principle!"

With that, Botan yanked the pickaxe out of Bijou's hand and tossed it away into the mud. Then, she grabbed the forewoman and lifted her up high.

"Yoi-sho~!" Botan heaved.

"What are you doing!?" Bijou wailed, thrashing in Botan's hands, "Miss Enma will hear of this."

Botan paid her no heed. Instead, she turned to me and said, "Kronii. Duck."

I grinned, slipped out of Mococo's and Fuwawa's grasps and dropped down to the mud. Then, Botan threw Bijou into the twins and knocked them down like bowling pins!

WHAM!

Korone faced the newcomer and smirked.

"Botan-tan~ you're here." Korone mused, eyeing the lioness with delight, "I was just looking for a tougher challenge."

The boxer dog slipped out of her rain boots and her ankle chains and squared up with Botan.

"Funny, I was sorta thinking the same thing, Koro-san." Botan grinned back. She then turned to me and gave me a thumbs up, "Think of this as my way of saying sorry, friend."

"I appreciate it." I croaked and picked myself up from the mud.

Around me, Mococo, Fuwawa and Bijou started getting up too. Botan half-turned towards us, but Korone shook her head.

"I'm your opponent, Botan-tan." Korone reminded, clenching her fists, "Face me. Just like in Sunfish Hill."

Botan snorted and obliged, "Gladly!"

At the drop of a hat, Botan and the barefoot Korone charged at each other and started brawling in the mud and rain. It was a vicious dance of dodges, blows and the fanciest footwork I've seen in my life. Botan and Korone gave and took and gave and took like heavyweight boxers without pausing for even a moment.

I didn't have time to admire their handiwork, though.

The blonde twins pounced at me from behind and tried to hold me down once more. I shook them off and started to fight with them.

They threw punches at me from both sides, but they weren't that strong. I weathered their assault and paid them back twofold! I struck them over and over again and made the twins wince and shudder.

Without Korone, the twins weren't a match for me! What I hit - I destroyed!

Bijou, now covered head to toe in mind, dropped her jaw. Her fortunes were reversing before her eyes and she couldn't believe it! She turned to the other inmates of Block B and hollered at them.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU ALL DOING!? TAKE OUT OURO AND SHISIRO!"

The inmates looked at each other with hesitation, but Bijou glared at them. Soon enough, inmates started approaching me and Botan, surrounding us with hostile bodies.

There was no way that Botan and I could take them all on, and the inmates knew this. They just had to swarm us, and then they would win.

Before any of them could get close to us, though, two gunshots rang through the air.

BANG! BANG!

Everyone - both inmates and prison guards - all turned to the noise, bewildered. Standing there in the rain was a familiar figure wearing a raincoat and police uniform. She stood shorter than Warden Nerissa, but the smoking gun - a sleek Browning Hi-Power pistol - in her hands and the steadfast expression on her face made her presence seem so much larger.

"Alright, everyone. Break it up!" The figure spoke with a commanding voice that betrayed her small frame, "Break it up or I'm gonna start sending folks to Maximum Security!"

The inmates looked at her dumbdounded for a moment, wondering if some guard didn't get the 'memo' of that morning's execution. However, three more raincoat-clad figures appeared beside the peacemaker. All of them had pistols drawn.

The other prison guards clicked their tongues and started dispersing the inmates of Block B, making them return to their cells. They took off our ankle chains and marched Korone, Bijou, Mococo and Fuwawa out of the quarry. That left me alone with Botan in the mud.

Botan let me rest my arm on her shoulder and she propped me up while the figure and her companions approached. At the same time, the rain and the winds started to let up.

The figure took down the hood of her raincoat, freeing her head of purple hair with squishy orange bangs. Her three companions followed suit, revealing blonde hair, orange hair with green streaks and short black hair - all familiar faces too.

Faces I never thought I'd ever see again.

"Long time no see, Detective Ouro." The purple-haired figure smiled at me, "Happy to see us?"

"You wouldn't know how much." I smiled back, showing the figure my bloody teeth. "It's good to see you again, Chief Ina'nis Ninomae."

…

Queenpins 2: The Big Brass Ballad of Kronii Ouro

Mudskipper

…

To Be Continued