Tales from Roanapur
Part OMAKE
Welcome to Roanapur! Hope you survive!
"Welcome to Roanapur!" the attractive Indian woman beamed.
Roanapur is a coastal town in Thailand, and a hub of local commerce. Sadly most of that commerce is illegal, including drug running, smuggling, weapons and so on. In general if you want it, the town can get it for you.
Roanapur is controlled by several criminal organizations. While it officially has a mayor, police chief, etc etc if one of the criminal leaders asked 'Jump' they would go 'How high?'
There are a lot of factions fighting over control of the city, so I'll just cover the big ones:
Hotel Moscow: the local branch of the Russian Mob. Lead by Balalaika, a skilled former military leader. Tall, blonde, gorgeous even with her scars, and probably the most dangerous woman in the city. She brought her former unit with her, and it's commonly thought they could fight World War Three themselves.
The Triads: Often allied with Hotel Moscow, the Triads are also probably the second most powerful faction. Their leader is Mr Chang, who looks JUST like the star of a John Woo movie. And like such a character, he's an incredible shot with pistols in both hands.
The Ripoff Church: While not a 'faction' exactly, they're a major player. Lead by Sister Yolanda, a old coot that can fire a Desert Eagle pistol one handed, they are the biggest gun runners in town. If you need a weapon, they can get it. Sister Eda is the one you'll see in town most, a gorgeous blonde who hides dangerous secrets and, like Yolanda, can kill very easily.
Other factions: Bellow them is a constant swirling mess of gangs, some of whom become players, some of whom just fade away or die. The Columbian Cartel was largely destroyed by killer maids.
Not kidding. Killer maids.
The Italian guys.. oh wait, they like being called the Sicilian Mafia. Anyway, they were dumb enough to hire the Vampire Twin assassins, who proceeded to go out of control, killed random victims then turned on them too. It got hugely messy.
Anyway... that's the group you might run into. People? You want that too? A briefing on them is an extra ten bucks.
Ca-CHING.
Okay!
The folks you'll want to remember most are The Lagoon Company. They're pirates, basically, but they also serve as extraction specialists. If things go to hell for you in town, they can hopefully get you out alive.
Dutch: The leader of the group, and somewhat badass. Captain of a former patrol boat, he takes on the jobs, negotiates with clients and generally handles stuff.
Revy: Also known as 'Two Hands' she's the team's gunslinger. She fights with a gun in each hand and is probably the best in town, other than Mr Chang.
Benny: The computer and radar expert for the Lagoon Company. And can I say he's just the CUTEST!
Yes, I know him, Why?
Rock: Rockuro, actually, a really buttoned up former Japanese businessman. He was ordered to courier something for his bosses that ended up being illegal. He was kidnapped by the Lagoon Company, so his bosses decided to cut their losses and hire mercenaries to kill him. Dutch and Co saved his life, Rock figured out how to take out a attack helicopter with a patrol boat, and in the end Dutch hired him.
Ok, moving on...
The Yellow Flag is THE bar to hit in Roanapur. Well, if you're criminal scum, a merc or just really want a drink. Ran by Bao, it's theoretically neutral ground for the various factions. He'll also tell you the latest mews, if kind of sullenly.
You won't deal with mercenaries much, but there is the 'Idiot Trio.' That's what their called by most people anyway...
Lotten the Wizard: YES, he actually calls himself that. He's a fairly average gunfighter, but he has more common sense than most. He wears a bulletproof vest, unlike some.
Shen hua: She's a asian knife fighter, and is frighteningly deadly at closer range. She's not hugely good at English, but don't underestimate her intelligence.
Sawyer the Cleaner: A professional cleaner of crime scenes and human remains. She will also dispose of bodies... sometimes even living ones. She is a mute who speaks via a artificial voice box. She also is fond of Gothic Lolita clothing, and wears it on her off hours. As a mercenary, her primary weapon is a huge chainsaw.
Not kidding.
"ARGH! Enough!" the weirdly named guest yelped. Bleeding Blade looked frustrated.
"What?" her guide asked.
"I'm just here looking for Tanya and Visha!" she complained, then rushed off down the street.
"Good luck!" Janet 'Greenback Jane' Bhai waved. Jane frowned thoughtfully as she wondered, "Was she even armed?"
...
"Not my problem! I gotta go find Benny, let loverboy know I'm back in town," Jane decided cheerfully, heading off.
To be continued...
Notes: a short out of continuity thing, to hopefully say 'who's who and what's that' for anyone who wandered in here from the Tanya the Evil fandom.
I THINK there's enough info in chapter 3 to cover the Master of Martial Hearts crossover.
Part 10
"They tried to kidnap Erya?!" Visha growled out angrily, her and Tanya rousted out of bed once the emergency team got back.
"I'm fine!" Erya reassured her friend.
"STILL!" Visha yelled.
Tanya raised a hand, stilling the sudden meeting. "Do we know who it was that tried it?" she asked them, but mostly looking at Erya.
"No," Erya scowled. She did NOT like being caught by surprise by this sort of thing. It was a disgrace for a spymaster!
"We WILL find out," Visha said flatly.
"Who rescued you?" Tanya changed the subject a bit.
"Aya Iseshima, an enforcer for Hotel Moscow," Erya said. She frowned as she admitted, "I don't know what her agenda is."
"She may not have an agenda," Visha pointed out.
Erya gave Visha a wry look, "I sometimes find myself surprised at how innocent you remain. Everyone has an agenda."
"Either way, we owe her a debt," Tanya mused.
"Sorry," Erya said to Tanya, "I should have been more on guard."
Tanya just ignored that, "We'll find out who did tis. Then they'll pay."
Visha yawned, then Tanya followed, both looking sheepish.
Erya looked amused, "It's late. I'll see you in the morning, ma'am?"
"Right," Tanya agreed.
As they were going Erya added impishly, "Nice nightie, Visha. And nice boxers, ma'am."
A now fiercely blushing Visha hustled Tanya and her out of the room.
Erya felt a bit bad at interrupting their fun. Still, she hadn't been the one to barge in on them. Poor Grantz was in the dog house...
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
The attempted kidnapping was news all over Roanaput by morning.
"I am not happy," Balalaika noted flatly, sitting in her office puffing on a cigar.
"Ma'am," Boris stood at attention.
"If someone attempted to kidnap one of our troops, I would burn this town down finding them," Balalaika mused, "and I'm certain Degurechaff would do the same. And that kind of chaos is just bad for business." Balalaika smoked her cigar, brooding a bit.
Boris cleared his throat, "We have people looking into this, but apparently other than Miss Aya, there were few witnesses."
"Aya gave us a good description?" Balalaika asked.
"Yes, but they were generic foot soldiers. Street trash, with no real identifying marks," Boris admitted.
Balalaika grunted softly. "And I suspect they'll be floating in the bay in a few days," she added, "dead men tell no tales. Especially since they failed."
"Hmm," Boris agreed.
"Order our people to look into it," Balalaika ordered, "I want to know who ordered it. Ideally before the Germans decide to rampage."
"Yes ma'am," Boris saluted and left.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
"BENNY!" Greenback Jane cried as she practically jumped the man.
"Aw fuck she's back again," Revy muttered.
Greenback Jane was a computer hacker and money forger, as well as Benny's girlfriend. They had first met her when she was on the run from a small army of hired killers. After THAT mess, they got tangled up again when Jane framed a fellow hacker, Peking Duck. Rock and Revy ended up hired to help protect Duck, and they successfully reversed the frame onto Jane herself. Hence her being away for awhile.
"YOU," Jane glared at Rock as she walked over to him.
'Ah, shit,' Rock braced himself.
"Nicely played," Jane clapped him on the shoulder, "well done. No hard feelings."
Rock blinked, "What."
"Oh, I was pissed off at first," Jane admitted, "but I'm a pro. And that was a nice piece of work you and Duck pulled off."
"Thanks. I think," Rock said, bemused.
"Now that I'm back after a few months... I WANNA GET LAID!" Jane cheered as she went back to Benny.
"Jane!" Benny blushed furiously.
"Too much information," Dutch noted, the tall man looking amused. He addressed Revy and Rock, "Why don't we hit the Yellow Flag and give these lovebirds some alone time?"
"Thanks, Dutch," Jane smiled warmly.
As they walked off Rock noticed Jane giving Revy a lingering look, who then looked away, blushing slightly.
"What was that about?" Rock asked Revy later, both of them drinking rum.
"Nothing," Revy said firmly.
Rock tossed back his drink, putting the glass down as he noted, "Oh, there was something. She actually looked kind of flirty."
Revy tossed back her own drink, then refilled her cup. "Well,,,." she sighed.
"Yeah?" Rock refilled his own drink.
"You remember the last time that Jane was here, and she went out with Benny on the boat?" Revy reminded him.
"Uh huh," Rock nodded.
"Well, she told me she wanted to invite you along too, for... well, you can guess," Revy said. She drank again, "I pretty much threatened her that is she tried that, I'd fuck her myself. So well that she'd never be satisfied with a guy again."
Rock looked at her blankly a moment as various mental images ran through his head. "That's kinda hot," he admitted.
Revy punched him in the shoulder.
"Sorry," Rock smiled wryly. He continued, "So... you think she wants to take you up on that?"
"Damn if I know...," Revy admitted.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Next morning, as predicted, several bodies were found floating in the bay.
"I think someone tried to weigh the bodies down, but fucked up," Chief Watsup muttered. Someone had cut their throats, but in a crude looking way.
A minion was sent, and not long after Erya and Aya were brought there.
"These the guys that tried to grab you?" he asked Erya.
"Other than being drowned, yes," Erya said dryly.
"That's them," Aya agreed.
"Did you two off 'em?" the Chief asked briskly.
"No!" Aya yelped.
"You're just asking us that?" Erya scowled at him. The Chief just shrugged. "No, we did not," Erya said.
"All right," Watsup continued, "we'll try to get them identified. Once we do, we'll let you know."
"Thank you," Erya sighed.
"I'll expect the usual payment for quick service from Degurechaff," the Chief added as he walked off.
"I forgot, everyone pays off the cops here," Erya muttered.
"It surprised me too, when I first arrived," Aya agreed.
Erya smiled at the younger asian woman, "Thank you, again. I hope your saving me didn't cause trouble for you."
"I got scolded, but I think Balalaika didn't actually mind," Aya said.
Erya made a mental note that the girl actually interacted with the head of Hotel Moscow. Interesting. Part of her was tempted to try pumping the girl for information, but... there was a wariness in her eyes. And a feel of betrayal. Best not to try that.
"I need to get back to work," Aya said, excusing herself.
"I would like to take you to dinner or something," Erya improvised quickly, "to thank you."
Aya gave her a thoughtful look, "We'll see."
To be continued...
Notes: Yes, Erya being in trouble interrupted Tanya/Visha sexy-times.
It is actually CANON in the manga that Revy is bi, AND basically threatened to fuck Jane into submission. Not kidding. Might do that as a side bit on Archive Of Our Own.
That is the ACTUAL Police Chief's name. I think it was meant as a joke, but...
Part Eleven
Lotton lead Shenhua and Sawyer around the building, the trenchcoat clad man moving quietly. They were hunting the survivors of a Chinese gang, one that had been operating in the city without Triad permission. Worse, they had been stupid enough to target Revy. The men were lucky they weren't dead already.
One of Lotten's contacts had said the men were camping out in an recently abandoned home on the edge of town. Of course it could be a trap, which was why they cased out the place first. However everything had been quiet, so they headed in.
"So, idiots here?" Shenhua asked, the tall, bosomy black haired beauty following Lotten closely.
"Looks like they bailed," Sawyer noted, taking in the apparently empty rooms. The gothic lolita clad woman was hefting a chainsaw...
"Shit," Lotten sighed, "they must have been spooked by something."
Without prompting they searched the rooms. Not much was in the bedrooms, but the mess was truly awful. If Sawyer was hired to clean the place, it'd be her premium rate. However, they did find papers left in the kitchen.
"Huh." Shenhua paused as she looked at something on one of the papers. She wasn't that well read, but it LOOKED interesting. "Hey, Lotton, come look at this."
"Wait... these idiots are also connected to the attempted attack on the Germans? What?" Lotten blinked, reading intently.
"What now?" Sawyer asked.
"We go sell the information to the Germans, of course," Lotten said cheerfully.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Tanya Degurechaff was used to dealing with professionals. Even after leaving the military, she usually dealt with pros. These three? Not pros. One was dressed in a slinky gown that showed every curve, and the other was in fancy gothic lolita wear!
"We let you in our headquarters because we've worked with Miss Sawyer," Tanya noted dryly, "explain yourselves."
"While working another job, we came across information you might be interested in," Lotten explained.
"I would like my intelligence officer to look at it," Tanya said firmly, "we'll pay fairly if the information is worth it."
Lotten looked at the others, who nodded. "Of course," he agreed.
Erya Roth was called in, and the documents were passed to her. She flipped through the pages then paused. "Well, shit..." she muttered.
"What?" Visha asked, the other woman as usual by Tanya's side.
"If this is right the kidnapping attempt was personal," Erya admitted, "it was payback for the Brazil mission when we hunted Neo-Nazis,"
Tanya looked interested, "But can we confirm that?"
"I'll need to look into it," Erya admitted. "But I do think the intelligence is worth paying for."
The three mercs visibly relaxed, and Tanya had to hide her amusement.
"Visha?" Erya looked over at her, knowing the woman helped handle the budget.
"I think this would be reasonable," Visha named a figure based on what they paid informants back home.
"We'll take it," Lotten very quickly agreed, then the three left before their hosts could change their minds.
"I think that amount was high," an amused Tanya observed once they left.
Erya shrugged, "Paying informants well is usually a good idea anyway. Though obviously we'll not tolerate being scammed."
"Sawyer, at least, has a good reputation in this town," Visha observed.
"I'll start digging into this," Erya waved the documents around, "call a few of my old contacts. It'll take a few days to get solid info."
"Understood," Tanya agreed.
"We have a meeting with Erich this afternoon. Security for the shipments, I understand," Visha noted after Erya left.
"He's not going to be happy," Tanya admitted. "Short of a squad escorting every run, we can't promise full security."
"I'm sure Erich will understand," Visha answered.
"You DO remember how often command expected me to solve impossible situations?" Tanya deadpanned.
"Point," Visha conceded.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
"Well, Germans targeted by Neo-Nazis? How droll," Balalaika noted.
Hotel Moscow did NOT have a source inside the German operation. But Erya had to reveal at least some information to her contacts, and that eventually got back to them.
"So, do you think the information is valid?" Balalaika asked.
Eda squirmed uncomfortably. The 'nun' in the Church of Violence was also a CIA agent, thought that was supposed to be a secret. However, Balalaika knew and was quite willing to use her as an information source.
"Could be," Eda said evasively.
"Oh come on. I'm certain you got the files on Degurechaff's unit," Balalaika scoffed.
"Yes, I can confirm they assisted in a op against Brazilian Neo-Nazis," Eda conceded, "and intelligence suggests there were survivors. I can't say if they were the ones behind the attempted kidnapping, though."
"There's limits on US reach?" Balalaika teased.
Eda gave her a look. "No, they're too small change to really notice," she said dryly.
"Ha!" Balalaika smiled. "All right, fair enough."
Eda changed the subject, "I'm officially here because the Mother Superior sent me. There may be a delay in the next weapons order."
Balalaika frowned slightly at that. "Oh?" she drawled.
"One of our shipments was hit, ironically," Eda admitted flatly. "We're organizing a trip to... deal with the situation."
Balalaika had the amusing mental image of Eda and her crew attacking the bandits in full religious garb. It would certainly give them a psychological edge...
"What are you smiling at?" Eda asked.
"Oh, nothing," Balalaika chuckled.
"Hmph," Eda grunted.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Most of Aya Iseshima's job involved being scary and sort of looming behind whatever Hotel Moscow member she was working with. Sometimes, however, it still got hairy.
"Alexi, you dumb ass!" Aya shouted uncharateristicly.
Alexi flinched visibly, "I'm sorry, Miss Aya."
Aya especially didn't normally do rescue missions. But Alexi was a cousin of one of Balalaika's troops, and despite also having been in the military he was very innocent. So when they heard he was kidnapped out of a gambling den, a rescue was organized.
A five man team busted into the place, mayhem followed and Aya grabbed the kid and got him out. As planned. However the fire team got tangled up with the kidnappers, leaving Aya alone dragging the young man away...
"ugh," Alexi nearly tripped and Aya realized the kid had been drugged too.
"Fuck," Aya swore softly.
They got out of the alley and hit a main street. Well, main for Roanapur anyway. Men and women saw a young woman hauling a seemingly drunk guy, and quickly hurried on.
"Bastards," Aya muttered as she helped keep Alexi standing. She looked around, knowing she'd have a hard time dragging him back on her own.
The man looked military, and had that stiffness of just coming into town. He also looked vaguely familiar...
Grantz, a member of the recently arrived German faction, recognized her. "Miss Aya? Is your friend unwell?"
"Someone slipped him a mickey," Aya admitted, "I could use a hand getting him home."
"Of course," Grantz jumped to volunteer, to her surprise.
They hauled the young man along for a minute before Aya had to ask, "Why?"
"I was the youngest in my unit," Grantz shrugged, "I can sympathise. " He added, "Besides, we owe you for Elya."
"I don't really consider that a debt...," Aya shrugged.
"Which makes you very unusual for this town," Grantz grinned.
"Ha," Aya smiled faintly.
They made it back to Hotel Moscow before the strike team, surprisingly. She thanked Grantz, who just waved cheerfully as he left, then Aya hauled the young man inside.
"Next time someone else does the rescuing," Aya muttered.
To be continued...
Notes: Yeah, not as exciting. I'll try to ramp it up next chapter.
Part Twelve
"Wait... the same bandits hit us both?" Erich blinked.
The Mother Superior of the Church of Violence Sister Yolanda sipped her cup of tea. "Indeed," she agreed.
Erich had been asked to come to the Church, and while they were (sort of) rivals, he decided to do so. Now he was glad he had come. "I suppose it makes sense," Erich admitted after a moment, "we both use the same lightly patrolled border crossing."
"I suspect our teams have nodded to each other in passing," Sister Yolanda noted as she sipped her tea, ignoring the man's bodyguard. Sister Irene lurked behind her, serving a similar purpose,
"Ha," Erich smiled wryly a moment.
"We are sending a team to meet with the raiders," Yolanda noted. Of course, by 'meet' she meant destroy...
Erich nodded, "As are we." He studied her thoughtfully, "I don't trust you... but we have aligned interests."
"I'm hurt," Yolanda smiled wryly. The old wooman nodded, "I think we should cooperate in this, yes."
"You do have more experience in the region," Erich conceded. "The head of your team will need to meet with mine."
"Of course," Yolanda agreed. "More tea?"
"Thank you," Erich smiled. He dr\nk too as he asked, "May I ask who you'll be sending?"
"Eda. I will ask her to play nice...," Yolanda said mildly.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
"WE DON'T NEED YOU DAMN KRAUTS TO HELP US," Eda complained loudly.
"Eda!" Revy scolded.
"Sorry," Rico the machine gunner with the Church apologized. He jabbed Eda with a elbow, scowling at her.
"Sorry," Eda subsided a bit.
Miranda, the other nun, looked amused as she casually cleaned a wicked looking knife. Irene casually held her pump action shotgun at her side.
"So, we're being assisted by the Church and local mercs?" Tanya clarified.
"Yeah. We're a small order," Rico said wryly.
"But VERY well armed," Miranda casually flipped her knife and caught it.
"So the plan is to go out to the region where both our shipments were hit, find the gang that did it and massacre them," Eda mused.
"It could have been a legal border patrol," Tanya noted mildly.
There was a beat of silence as everyone looked at her.
"It IS possible," Tanya added.
"Assuming it is...?" Rico had to ask.
"Well, we need to find out one way or another. Which means NOT going in guns blazing," Tanya noted.
"Who are you, and what did you do with the real Tanya?" Visha teased.
"I can be reasonable. Really," Tanya pouted.
"It IS a point though," Miranda conceded thoughtfully, "did we get any official notice about our guns being seized?"
"Not that I know of," Eda scowled, "Sister Yolanda didn't say."
"Erich hasn't either," Visha pointed out.
"So it's fine, right?" Revy asked.
Tanya shook her head, "We all know how disorganized governments are out here. We need to investigate first, or this could blow up in our faces."
"Or in our boss' faces. Do any of you want to tell Sister Yolanda that we've been expelled from the country?" Miranda said.
"Fuck," Eda sighed.
"You're taking ALL the fun out of this, ma'am," Rico added.
Tanya shrugged eloquently.
"Can you ask your intelligence person to look into it?" Irene asked mildly.
"Will do," Visha agreed.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Weiss and Koening yelped as bullets dinged against the wall nearby. "Duck!" Weiss yelped.
"Who?" Koening asked.
"No idea. But whoever they are, they're firing from behind those cars," Weiss added.
"Should we...?" Koening asked as he used the building for cover and returned fire.
"I sent someone," Weiss also fired, keeping the attackers focused on them.
Neumann and another soldier were arcing around the buildings to get behind the attackers. "Don't kill them all," he noted, "we want one for questioning."
"Spoil sport," the woman noted.
They moved up slowly, seeing four men firing. "Now," he whispered.
Neumann shot one guy, punching through his chest in a nearly instantly lethal shot.
"Shit!" one soldier yelped.
The woman took her shotgun and blew one guy's head off, then another while showering the last guy in blood and brains.
"I REALLY would suggest surrendering. You do not want to piss her off," Neumann told him, and the last soldier threw down his gun.
"Oh, poo," Mary Sue pouted, putting her shotgun against her shoulder casually.
"Nicely done," Neumann added.
"I'd rather have shot him." Mary admitted.
They took the survivor back to base, where he quickly confessed to being with the Columbian faction. "What do you think we should do?" Weiss asked.
"This is the second time they've tried?" Mary said. "Too bad they didn't get Tanya," Mary noted, the young woman having hatted the colonel for years. Long story.
Visha nodded, "I think it's time we took steps."
"Oh, good," Mary grinned dangerously.
Weiss ignored the bloodthirsty tone, "What would you suggest, ma'am?"
"They don't have many soldiers, and we know where they're based. We hit them, and wipe them out," Visha said calmly.
"All right," Mary grinned.
They went to see Tanya, who nodded thoughtfully at Visha's plan: Draw them out, hit the headquarters, mop up. "We do need to leave soon on that other thing," she noted.
"I think we can do it in a day," Visha offered.
"Go ahead," Tanya nodded, then in a much less business-like tone added, "Be careful, please."
"Will do," Visha smiled back warmly.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
The Columbians were a faded power in Roanapur. Well, they had never been a major player anyway, but then the killer maid Roberta hit town. Then her junior, Fabiola. The two had blown hell out of their operations.
"WHO decided to take pot shots at the Germans?!" Carlos demanded.
"It was revenge," Manuel protested. "They rousted out our dealers."
"Ah fuck. They weren't supposed to be there," another man muttered.
"Shut up," Manuel yelled at him.
"Did our guys make it back?" Carlos demanded.
"No," Manuel admitted just as a sniper shot came through the window and splattered his brains.
"FUCK!" Diego yelled.
"Escape through the back," Carlos yelled. "Call out our soldiers!"
"What's left of them," one guy muttered as they fled out the back of the building. They raced down the alley, then...
"Hi," Visha smiled cheerfully, then the machine gunners cut the leaders down.
"I'm always glad when we scout out enemy territory," Weiss noted.
"All right," Visha ordered briskly, "mop up their soldiers. We have the names and faces, so do that efficiently."
"Are we going to seize their territory too?" Neumann asked.
"That'll be up to Tanya and Erich," Visha shrugged.
To be continued...
Notes: It occurred to me later that as the Germans and Church of Violence are smugglers, they should ask if it was legal forces that stopped their shipments.