Akira plays some spy games
Chigyo was a bit subdued. He often was after big operations. All week long, the quinques of dead and wounded investigators had been arriving at his lab. A couple of his underlings were sorting through the damaged weapons for those that could be restored and refurbished.
Akira marched into his lab with a bag full of takeout to feed the entire crew—the way to a researcher's heart was through his stomach, after all.
He thanked her profusely as his whole lab pounced on the food like a pack of hyenas. Akira mentioned that a couple of her inherited quinques could use a tune-up—and, by the way, what was the current status of aerosolized RC suppressant research?
He scratched at his chin. "Most of the RC suppressant gas we produce goes straight to Cochlea. It doesn't work well unless it's used in an enclosed space, like the prison, or it's used in huge quantities. Neither condition proved very useful in battle."
"You gave me a couple of grenade prototypes a while ago, and I was pleased with their effects."
He cocked his head to the side, remembering. "Yeah, I read that report. It was in an enclosed space, so it proved effective."
Akira said, as disinterestedly as she could, "I was going through some old files and I wondered if you ever followed up on how the rest of the prototypes panned out for the other people who tried them out."
She had a long history of stopping by to discuss weaponry with Chigyo, so there was nothing strange about her inquiry.
He frowned. "No, the cost per unit was so high that the project was scrapped. I never had time to follow up."
"I liked them. I'm curious if anyone else found them useful—if you can convince the R and D accountants that it's worth mass producing the grenades, the cost will go down significantly, correct?"
Chigyo nodded. "The axe came down from pretty high up—money for the Quinx project had to come from somewhere, so they diverted it away from experimental weapons. I'd need real numbers to get it moving again."
Akira shrugged. "I have business all over the main office this week. I can do the legwork if you'd like."
"Oh, yeah! That'd be great! Let me just print out the spreadsheet."
It took him several moments to track down the file on his overcrowded server, but it did eventually turn up.
And that was how Akira got ahold of her list of leads—and it only took her twenty minutes and the cost of several entrees from a nearby yakisoba joint.
She ate lunch alone at her desk—some takeout she'd saved for herself.
Not spicy at all, she thought. I should grab some curry soon.
Amon had seen Nagachika use several RC suppressant grenade prototypes, since they were being deployed outside where the gas would disperse quickly. That narrowed down the list considerably.
As she read over the list of investigators who'd gotten ahold of them, she mentally crossed names off one by one. Several had died since the project was shut down—two in the Tsukiyama family extermination. Akira had been on site when a couple more had deployed their grenades.
Besides, no one except her took more than one. Dr. Chigyo was clearly hurting for field testers.
That left…a line listed as "Div II Research" with nearly two dozen grenades.
She picked up her phone and called Chigyo's office phone. He picked up quickly.
"What's up?"
"I'm confused by this line for 'division II research.' Where did those go?"
"Oh, the guys from Division II like to see our leftover new tech. If they know how things work, they can implement them into the planning of operations."
"And they need two dozen grenades to see how they work?"
Chigyo laughed on the other line. "Marude didn't ask for two dozen. The last couple of years, he's just had a standing order for us to send him all experimental leftovers. I needed the shelf space back, and that's what was left. It was kind of passive aggressive of me, since I think the gossip at the time was that Marude pulled the plug on a couple of projects I was excited about. Upgrading some standard issue body armor, a better night vision camera for stakeouts…nothing flashy, but stuff that would have been useful."
I was just in Marude's office after the parking garage ambush, and it certainly wasn't full of leftovers from the research labs. Very interesting.
"Makes sense. You know, I'm looking at this list, and aside from that order, I think a lot of these field testers died before they could try out the grenades."
He was quiet on the other line. "I was afraid of that. It was a good idea, though."
"Well, for what it's worth, I liked your grenades. Although…while we're on the topic of weapons-grade RC suppressants, do you have any in liquid form you can spare me? I know Dr. Shiba has all the medical-grade pills, but I want the heavy-duty stuff." Her little chat with Urie had given her an idea.
"For you? Of course! Mind telling me what you're planning on doing with it?"
I'm going to run into Takizawa again someday. It would be nice to take him alive, but there was a part of her that feared the ugly truth—there was no rehabilitating a rabid dog. No matter what, though, she needed to be prepared.
"I've been daydreaming about a nasty surprise for any ghoul that gets past my quinque's defenses. Perhaps in the form of an 18-guage needle made of quinque steel?"
"Oh, I like the way you think. I can make it happen."
They said their goodbyes and hung up.
Akira stood up to pace around as she thought. So Marude's my next lead…how do I press him for information without revealing why?
She took a deep breath and stared out her window out at the city. It was a strange thing to reckon with—after such a bloodbath, the world kept turning. It was a beautiful day out.
No brilliant ideas occurred to her. But Marude was the one who saw something special in Nagachika. He shoehorned the boy into our squad…it makes sense.
Did he really mean it? About watching good men getting sent to their deaths?
For strength, she made herself a cup of hot tea at the little break area on her floor. As she drank, it calmed her nerves. By the time she was done, she had a plan of attack.
Then she marched across the building and knocked on Marude's door.
"What?!"
She took that as an invitation to enter.
He was sitting at a desk that was covered in sheaves of paperwork. "Mado. What do you want?"
Akira quietly shut the door behind her. "Sir. I still feel bad about the incident with your motorcycle."
A stormy look crossed his face. "Yeah, and?"
"There's a café nearby that's fairly popular with investigators. Would you like to meet me there tomorrow evening? I'll buy you a cup as an apology."
He leaned back in his chair and sneered at her. "Do I look like the kind of man who drinks double pump caramel mocha venti espresso pumpkin spice boba with whipped cream and soy milk nonsense?"
"First of all, sir, this is real coffee. The baristas might ban you permanently if you give them that drink order. Second of all, there's some things I'd like to discuss with you. Things that aren't precisely CCG business."
She let that statement sink in, one eyebrow raised. Don't add anything, let him guess what I mean.
The silence hung in the air. Marude was waiting to see if she would break and explain exactly what she was implying, but Akira came prepared to play that game. If she didn't say exactly what she meant, he'd have to assume that she was referring to whatever he least wanted her to be referring to.
Within fifteen seconds, he accepted that he wasn't going to out-stubborn her.
He leaned on his desk, folded his hands, and closed his eyes. "Alright. Let me know when and where to meet. My bike just got back from the shop…we can talk about you paying for some of the scratches you got on her."
"Sounds perfect, sir."
She had to fight to hide a smile as she exited.
She threw open the door to Café :re. She'd been avoiding the ghouls for a while, but it couldn't be put off any longer.
Akira strode up to the bar. "A Viennese, please."
Touka set down the dish she was drying and looked over at the investigator. "Coming right up."
When Akira finally had her drink in front of her, she dove right in. "I need to have a meeting with someone very high up in the CCG tomorrow. It's important that I speak to this man where no one else from the CCG can eavesdrop."
"So you want to meet him here?"
"Yes. All he's heard is that this is a café several investigators frequent. He'll think it's neutral ground. But this is important enough that I want to stack things in my favor, as much as possible. It'll be good if you can eavesdrop, as well. Tell me if you pick up on anything significant I miss."
Things that only ghouls would know, like the fact that the Binge Eater's real name was Rize.
The ghoul stared at her, trying to read her. "Alright. I can make that happen. Will you come here during regular hours, or do you want me to let you in after hours?"
Akira looked over her shoulder at the front windows, thinking. "Outside of busy hours, but no special treatment. He'll be more guarded if there's customers around, or if he smells a setup."
"The place is dead when I close on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. If you come by around then, I'll make a big deal about letting you and your guest stay as long as you need, as a courtesy to a valued customer."
Akira nodded. "That'll do. I almost hate to bring him up again, but please tell me the poor little rich boy isn't still slumming it in your back room."
"Oh, no," Touka rushed to assure her. "I sent him packing immediately. He overstayed his welcome within twenty minutes and I am too cranky to put up with him."
"So, where is he?"
The blue-haired ghoul shook her head. "I don't know. I'm keeping it that way, too, for plausible deniability and for my sanity. He has some money and a phone so we can contact each other in case of emergencies, and I sent him off with Yomo to get a crash course in surviving all on his own for once."
Itori did call Touka an important contact in the ghoul world. I wrote it off at the time, but her and this café are at the epicenter of a little community of ghouls. Best not to forget that.
"For having risked so much to save him, you seem to not like him very much."
"Well, one of his family's shell companies is where I first got the loan to open this place, so now we're even." Touka sighed and came around the counter to sit at one of bar seats, looking weary and rubbing at her lower back with one hand.
"I think I understand better why Yomo defends Itori and Uta so much, even when they're up to no good. Tsukiyama and I will never be friends, but we came from the same places. We grew up at the same time, with the same people. If I let him die, that's another part of my history that's gone forever. When it came down to it…I wasn't ready to let that happen." She blew some hair out of her face, frustrated. "Does that make any sense?"
"Not enough sense to justify killing my colleagues," muttered Akira.
The look Touka gave her was…full of pity.
"What," the blonde deadpanned.
"Of course, you understand. Why else are you breaking all the rules and trying to track down your friend who was taken by Aogiri?"
Akira opened her mouth to respond. Gaped at the ghoul. She couldn't think of anything to retort.
Because we came from the same class, because of what we went through together, because after all that he deserved better than becoming a toy for Aogiri?
After a long pause, she spoke. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I do understand."
Touka had the decency not to gloat.
The investigator stood to leave. "Tomorrow. Near closing time. Be ready for us. For the purposes of this meeting, we don't know each other on a personal basis."
"Got it."
As Akira walked down the sidewalk to her car, the hair on the back of her neck stood up. She looked around to check for anything suspicious around her. Nothing. Just haunted by the thought of all the people who would kill me if they knew what I was up to, maybe.
Even as she thought that to herself, she knew it wasn't true. Someone was watching her for some reason, keeping an eye on her. But only when I'm at the café. Hmm. She tightened her grip on her quinque.
She sat at a table to the side, reading through files and notes with a sandwich that would have to suffice for dinner.
Touka was correct, the place was empty. The barista in question was quietly cleaning up for the night, ignoring her last customer as per instructions. She'd turned the overhead music up enough to fill the silence.
Akira noted a distant rumbling that slowly grew louder and louder. Marude pulled up in front of the café and parked his very loud bike.
He threw open the door, jangling the bell, and loosened his tie as he looked around for Akira.
Touka smiled brightly at her customer. "Hello, what can I get you?"
He waved her off. "Americano. No sugar, no cream, no oat milk," he bit out.
The ghoul raised an eyebrow and frowned at his rudeness. For a moment, Akira was worried that Touka would snap and the whole operation would go up in flames.
She was a professional, though, and instead smiled a little less warmly at him. "Coming right up."
He ambled over to the seat across from Akira and sat down heavily. "Alright, I'm here. What did you want?"
She held up a finger to silence him and turned to put in her own order. "Could I please have a café au lait?"
Touka nodded and put a second cup on the counter, then got to work on making her orders.
Akira grabbed her sandwich and took another bite. While she was chewing, she pulled out the printout of everyone Chigyo had given RC suppressant grenades to, with the line for "Div II Research" highlighted.
She let him read it in silence while she finished eating.
He blustered, "What's the meaning of this?"
"I'm interested in the fate of these grenades."
He harrumphed. "Sitting in a box in my office. It's none of your business, anyways."
Touka walked their drinks over and set them down. "Here you go!"
Marude glanced at her as she left the table. Pointing a thumb at her, he laughed, "Man, looks like someone needs to lay off the junk food."
Akira could see Touka stiffen from across the room, but she kept tidying up.
"She's clearly pregnant, you jackass." Then as an afterthought, she added, "Sir."
He held up his hands and laughed. "Sorry, sorry!"
"Don't try to distract me with tasteless comments. The grenades. What happened to them?"
He shook his head and took a sip of his drink. "Nothing."
She pushed her own drink out of the way to lean across the table. "Let me ask in a different way. How did Nagachika get ahold of those grenades?"
He froze, glancing over at the barista blithely cleaning tables. "What are you talking about?"
"Don't play games with me. Just tell me the truth."
He dropped the act of the crass, burnt-out superior officer. "You're asking some dangerous questions."
"Why do you think I'm asking them outside of the office?" Akira sat back and took a calm drink of her café au lait.
Marude sighed. "Your father wouldn't approve of you sticking your nose where it doesn't belong."
Oh, I'm sure he stopped approving of me long ago.
"He's not here right now, is he?" Akira was starting to get awfully sick of spy games. "Get back to Nagachika."
"And of course you have to go right for the jugular."
She shook her head. "I would never go for the jugular. It's a vein. The carotid artery bleeds out much faster. Quit stalling."
"You're a coldblooded woman." The older investigator glowered intensely at her. "He's been missing, presumed dead, for years now."
"So, I assume there's a good reason he hasn't shown his face since then."
Marude barked out a laugh. "Yeah, a couple of reasons." He grew serious. "He doesn't want to meet with me more than necessary. He contacts me when he needs something or when he has information, that's it. Best I can do is let him know you're looking for him next time he calls."
"What is he up to?"
"That…I don't know the whole picture, and I'm not sharing what I do know. Not with you, at least."
"I've been asking those dangerous questions for a while now, I think I deserve some dangerous answers." Akira closed her eyes, frustrated. "But that will have to do for now, I suppose."
The older investigator nodded and slammed down the rest of his coffee. He hurried out and was riding off into the night within sixty seconds.
"I'll stay and settle the bill," Akira shouted sarcastically after him.
Touka stopped sweeping and walked over to the door to flip the sign to "Closed."
"What a charmer."
"He's my link to Nagachika, who I suspect knows many things he shouldn't."
Touka walked over to the table and sat where Marude had just been. "Akira. When you get the call, let me know. I want to at least shadow you and make sure you stay safe. You're getting into deep water."
"And you're pregnant. How much longer are you going to put yourself at risk?"
"I'll hang back and watch, just in case it's a trap. I told you before—I have a lot riding on you staying alive and safe, so I want to at least make sure you aren't walking into a set-up."
Of course Amon would be preferable, but he's busy chasing Doctor Kano right now. Akira sipped the last of her drink and thought. She does have the ability to fire RC crystals from a distance. It would be safe enough for her to monitor the meeting from a distance, and I could use the backup.
"Besides," continued Touka. "Hide's a small part of my history, too. It'd be nice to see him if he's still alive."
"Fine," groused Akira. "But—and I can't believe I'm saying this—eat a good meal beforehand. I remember how you almost passed out the last time you used your kagune at my apartment. I can't afford that nonsense on a mission."
Touka smiled at her. "Done! Now get out. I need to lock the place up."
I'm a little fuzzy on some details of the CCG's organizational structure, so be nice if I make a silly mistake :)
Raise your hand if your standard coffee order would horrify everyone at Café :re *raises hand*
Next week: Akira gets to try out that Krav Maga