Tenchi Muyo Fan Fiction ❯ Sanyasi ❯ Playing for Keeps ( Chapter 4 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Disclaimer: Tenchi Muyo and its characters are property of AIC and
Pioneer. The proceeding story, though based on pre-existing characters, is
the property of the author and may not be reprinted without permission.
All original characters found herein are also the property of the author and
may not be used without permission. (Did that sound official? I hope so.)

Playing for Keeps

Chapter 1: Second Life

Kiyone tentatively stood at the doorway to Sanyasi's quarters. She
took a long look at the dimly lit figure on the bed, who did not stir. She
was slightly relieved at the fact that he did not clutch his gun while he
slept. Nevertheless, she very cautiously crept her way into the room. She
was hoping to be able to find some clue as to who the black-haired man
really was. He undeniably had some kind of connection with the Zaibatsu,
but beyond that she knew nothing.
As she slowly slinked around the room, she listened intently to
Sanyasi's breathing, tense to respond to any change, any sign that he might
awaken. Her attention was drawn to a large metal box on the floor. She
tiptoed over to it and gently pressed the latch. It did not budge.
[Locked,] she thought. [This must be where he keeps all of his guns.]
She left the metal locker behind and focused her attention on a small chest
of drawers. The top drawer slid open easily and quietly. She peered inside
and found it largely empty. Shoved over in a back corner was a half empty
box of ammunition. Next to that was a larger box, filled with what
appeared to be tea bags. A few stray pencils and pens completed the
inventory. She moved on to the second drawer. Her attention was
immediately drawn to a bottle that lay on its side. She picked it up and
read the label. [Hair dye?] she wondered. [He's not that old. Why
would he be going gray?] She replaced the bottle and picked up another
item in the drawer, a framed black and white picture. In the photo were
two small boys, sitting on a bench in some garden and smiling wide. One
of them was a couple years older than the other, though neither of them
could have been any older than ten. They both had short, light colored
hair. The younger one had dark eyes, while the older one had much lighter
ones. Aside from that difference, they looked almost identical to one
another. She put the picture back and checked the drawer for other
contents. She found usual toiletries, such as a toothbrush, toothpaste, a
comb, and a package of disposable razors. In front of all that, she noticed
a small bottle that contained no label. She picked up the bottle and opened
it, surprised to find a number of blue and white capsules inside. [They
look like antibiotics. I wonder if he has some kind of illness?] She
screwed the cap back on the pills, and then nearly screeched as she felt the
cold metal of a knife blade pressed against her neck. A voice whispered in
her ear, "I would really appreciate it if you put those back."
Kiyone did as she was told, then slowly turned around. What little
light there was in the room glinted off Sanyasi's black hair as he stared
back at her. Without a word he withdrew his knife and slid it into a
pocket. Kiyone noticed the engraved design of a coiled snake on the
handle in the brief moment the light shimmered off it. Sanyasi sat down
on the bed and lit a cigarette. "What is the universe coming to when a
Galaxy Police officer is caught stealing?" he asked.
"I wasn't stealing," Kiyone insisted. "I was hoping to figure out
who you are. And why you brought us here."
"I told you: you're here because this is the safest place for you to
be right now," said Sanyasi through a thick halo of smoke.
"But why?" Kiyone demanded. "Why is it so important for us to
be here? For you to disable our ship, take my weapon and hold us here
against our will? What good could possibly come of that?"
"You'll stay alive," Sanyasi deadpanned.
"I'm a goddamned Galaxy Police officer!" Kiyone shouted. "I can
look after myself!"
Sanyasi sighed. "Perhaps I do owe you a full explanation," he said
quietly. "I've been very cold to you, and I'm sorry. I'm not used to
dealing with people in this way. Usually I just shoot them, and that's that.
I suppose that my hiatus from society has caused me to lose what little
social skills I had, so please bear with me. What do you want to know?"
"Who are you?" Kiyone asked without hesitation. "And what
business do you have with the Zaibatsu?"
Sanyasi took a long drag of his cigarette before snuffing it out on
the tabletop, where his ashtray used to be. "My real name is Mitchell
Grace," he began, "though that's not really important. No one could
possibly know me by that name. I usually give people whatever false
name comes to mind at the time."
"The man in the bar, Rook, called you Merchant," Kiyone cut in.
"What was that all about?"
"That's who I used to be," Sanyasi continued. "But after my...
falling out with the organization, I abandoned that name and took on the
name Sanyasi. I wanted to put everything that I was into my past,
including my name. Merchant was loyal to the Zaibatsu; that's not who I
am anymore. Merchant was killed two years ago."
"So you were a member of the Zaibatsu," Kiyone stated.
"I was more than a member," Sanyasi said. "I was quickly
becoming the lead candidate to assume control of the organization."
"The head of the Zaibatsu?" Kiyone asked in disbelief.
"Believe it or not, yes. But then a dissident faction within the
organization orchestrated a coup and assumed control. They killed a good
friend of mine, and they tried to kill me. I was laid up in the hospital for a
good while. While I recovered, all I could think about was getting back at
them. They took everything from me. They took things that I can't get
back."
"But why not go to the police?" Kiyone asked. "With your
obvious inside knowledge, you could have brought them down."
"Don't make me laugh!" Sanyasi spat. "You know as well as I do
that the Galaxy Police is just another division of the Zaibatsu. If I had
gone to the police, I would have been dead the second I walked through
the door. I'm willing to put money on your direct superior being on the
Zaibatsu's payroll."
"Is that why you kidnapped us?" Kiyone asked. "Were you afraid
that either Mihoshi or myself were on the take?"
"There's that, and the fact that you would have reported back to the
GP about me, anyway," Sanyasi said. "Either way, the Zaibatsu would
have been all over me in no time. Also, I was afraid that the Zaibatsu
might try to use you to get to me. I figured that, as long as you're where I
can keep an eye on you, there's no way they can get at you."
"Even so, you don't really expect that you'll be able to take down
the Zaibatsu on your own, do you?" Kiyone asked.
"I don't plan on taking out the whole thing," Sanyasi replied. "All
I want is the man who was behind the coup. Whatever the Zaibatsu does
after that is of no concern to me."
Kiyone nodded. "I see, so you are just some vigilante. You're
putting yourself and others in danger because of some selfish vendetta.
You should have stuck to organized crime, pal."
"I'd like to see you just walk away," Sanyasi shot back. "I had
everything taken from me. I can't go anywhere. I can't see anyone. I
have no past and no future. Like I said, Merchant died two years ago."
"Well, Mihoshi and I do have a future," Kiyone said evenly. "And
I hope you come to your senses and let us get back to it soon."
"You will," Sanyasi said. He pulled another cigarette from his
pocket and lit it.
"You know, those things'll kill you," Kiyone said dryly.
Sanyasi took a long puff. "I don't plan on living long enough to let
cigarettes do me in," he said.
Kiyone stood in silence as she watched Sanyasi nurse the cigarette.
She wondered how a man who smoked like a chimney could be so agile.
"The photograph I saw in the drawer," she said, changing the subject.
"Who are they?"
"That's a picture of me with my brother when I was a kid," he said.
"But, both the kids in the picture have light hair. How could..."
Kiyone cut herself off when she recalled the hair dye. He wasn't going
gray; he was disguising his hair color.
"That picture was taken a long time ago," Sanyasi said. "People
change."
"So, why haven't you gone back for your brother?" Kiyone asked.
"Did the Zaibatsu...?"
Sanyasi took a deep breath. "Yeah, I lost him to the Zaibatsu," he
said.
Despite all that he had put her through, and all the things that he
had forced upon her, she suddenly felt sorry for Sanyasi. She had never
even stopped to think that he was an actual person; that he was
somebody's son. That he was somebody's brother. "I'm sorry," Kiyone
said.
"Not your fault," Sanyasi replied with another puff of his cigarette.
"What was his name?" she asked.
Sanyasi exhaled the smoke. "His name was Ian. My older
brother."
"Ian," Kiyone echoed.
"You have any family?" Sanyasi asked suddenly.
Kiyone was a little taken aback at the personal question, or more
specifically at the asker. "Well, just my parents," she replied. "And
there's someone back on Earth. In fact, we were on our way to visit him
when you interrupted us."
"Earth, huh?" Sanyasi asked. "I guess that'll work."
"What do you mean?" asked Kiyone, a puzzled look on her face.
"Well, I had no intention of dragging you into my fight in the first
place," Sanyasi revealed. "I'll drop you off first, and then I'll return to my
business. With your ship immobilized, I don't think you'll be following
me any time soon, anyway. Besides, you should be on vacation, not
worrying about what some gun-wielding maniac is going to do with you."
"Are you... serious?" Kiyone asked.
"Yes," Sanyasi responded as he snuffed his cigarette out. "In fact,
I'll lay in a course for Earth right now."
"Er... um... thank you," Kiyone stammered, scarcely believing that,
just like that, she had convinced him to release Mihoshi and her.
Suddenly, the familiar twinge of pain began to rise in Sanyasi's
stomach. He was not wearing his sunglasses, so he was exposed to the full
brunt of Kiyone's blue eyes, despite the low light of the room. "Could you
do me a favor?" he asked. "Could you go to the drawer and get those pills
you found earlier?"
Kiyone procured the pills and handed the bottle to Sanyasi. He
quickly swallowed two pills, and washed them down with a swig from a
bottle of iced tea from the small refrigerator at the foot of his bed.
"What are those for?" Kiyone asked. "Are you sick?"
"Kind of," Sanyasi said. "It's a long story. Right now let's start
thinking about getting you to Earth."
Sanyasi got up to leave, but was halted when Mihoshi stood in the
doorway. Her hair was wet. "Thanks for letting me use your shower!" she
said cheerily. "I feel so much better now."
"Let me guess," Sanyasi said with an exasperated sigh, "Iggy said
you could use it, right?"
"Yeah, he did," Mihoshi confirmed. "He was real nice. He gave
me a fresh bar of soap and everything. He said that I could take as long as
I wanted."
"Really..." Sanyasi trailed off. "Kiyone, meet me in the control
room. I have something I need to check out." He glided out of the room
past Mihoshi and down the hall. Just as he suspected, he found Iggy in his
room, at his terminal.
Hearing him enter, Iggy hurriedly switched off the monitor and
turned around. "What's up?" he asked.
"You told Mihoshi she could shower, right?" Sanyasi asked.
"Er, yeah," Iggy said slowly.
"I knew this would happen," Sanyasi sighed. "So, what did you
do? You hid in the bathroom and watched her, didn't you?"
"No! I was right here the whole time!" Iggy insisted.
"Then, you probably stole her underwear or something, right?"
Sanyasi accused. "Where are you hiding it?"
"I didn't steal anything!" Iggy said, his voice high and squeaky.
"Jeez, what's with the third degree all of a sudden? I thought she might
appreciate a shower, so I let her use it. I'm trying to be polite."
"Wait a minute..." Sanyasi trailed off as he approached closer.
"What were you watching?"
"Watching?" Iggy asked tightly. "Um, er, nothing! I was just... er,
working on something!"
Sanyasi pushed him aside and turned on the monitor. Though the
picture was black and white and slightly grainy, the image was
unmistakable; a security camera image of Mihoshi, in the shower, naked as
the day she was born. "Don't tell me..." Sanyasi trailed off.
"Gee, um... how did that get there?" Iggy asked, in a vain attempt
to cover up his lechery.
Sanyasi looked at him sternly. "Give me the disk," he said.
Iggy sighed, and dejectedly opened his CD drive, and handed the
disk within it to Sanyasi.
Sanyasi squinted. "You don't expect me to believe that that's the
only copy, do you?" he asked.
"Aw, man!" Iggy lamented. He opened his desk drawer and pulled
out half a dozen disks and handed them to Sanyasi. He shot Iggy a final
piercing look as he exited the room.
Iggy reclined in his seat and snickered. He pulled from his shirt
pocket another copy of the disk, and held it up triumphantly to let the light
play off the reflective surface. Suddenly it was wrenched from his hand as
a silvery projectile whizzed past his face. He looked to see the disk pinned
to the wall by a throwing knife, a clean split running down the middle. He
swiveled his head and saw Sanyasi in the doorway, his arm still extended
from the throw. He casually walked around Iggy and pried his knife from
the wall, the two pieces of the disk clattering to the floor. "Do not hide
things from me," he said. With that, he made his exit.
Iggy snorted. "Killjoy," he grumbled.

Chapter 2: Setup

"This is rather interesting," Poltergeist mused as he watched the
path of the tracker belonging to the Yagami.
"What is it?" Opal asked. Poltergeist had rendezvoused with the
Griffin an hour previous, and since then had been intently observing the
flight path of the ship he was chasing, while Opal filled him in on the
details of the assignment. Poltergeist was pleased with the straightforward
nature of his mission, as well as the payday that would come of it.
"Look at the pattern of movement," he said. "It almost doesn't
look like they're going anywhere at all, does it?"
Opal inspected the tracking screen. "He does seem to be drifting.
Engine problems?"
"I doubt it," Poltergeist said as he ran a hand through his thick head
of short gray hair. "If he has an old prison transport ship like you said, the
engines are built for longevity. It wouldn't do to break down in the middle
of nowhere hauling a bunch of dangerous criminals, would it? Besides, if
his ship did break down, I suspect he would have just ditched it and taken
the Yagami."
"So, then, he's just sitting there for shits and giggles?" Opal
inquired.
"Definitely not," Poltergeist replied. "He must have known that
the Yagami had a tracer on it. My guess is that he stopped somewhere,
took it out, then ditched it."
"So we would follow it and be thrown off," Opal concluded.
"Exactly," Poltergeist confirmed. "Can you get a history of where
the tracer has been in the past twenty four hours?"
"Our contacts at the Galaxy Police can't transfer any archived
information into our database," Opal revealed. "We've only got what's
shown up since we started tracking them."
Poltergeist nodded and studied the flight pattern closely. "It looks
like it's creating a wide spiral, almost. If that's true, it means that there's a
gravitational pull affecting it. What's the planet closest to where the tracer
is now?"
"That would be Varaya," Opal said.
"Varaya..." Poltergeist echoed. "Yeah, he was there. I'm sure of
it."
"How can you tell?" asked Opal. "He could just be trying to throw
us off again."
"There's an old contact I used to have on Varaya," Poltergeist
explained. "Ex-military. Deals in illegal weapons. I'm sure Merchant's
using him."
"If he's a contact of ours, then why didn't he tell us?" Opal asked.
"He probably doesn't know," said Poltergeist. "Obviously,
Merchant didn't walk in and say, 'Hey, get me some guns so I can fight the
Zaibatsu.' Then again, that probably wouldn't have mattered anyway. If
you have money, this guy will sell you anything you want. He's much
more unscrupulous than you or I."
"So, what's the plan?" asked Opal. "Are you headed to Varaya,
then?"
"Well, it's the only place I know he's been, so yeah," Poltergeist
replied. "I'll pay a visit to our old friend; I'm sure I can use him to lure
Merchant out. Once I do, my men and I will take care of him."
"How many men do you want from our end?" Opal asked.
"You needn't concern yourself," said Poltergeist with a wave of his
hand. "I have more than enough manpower already."
"Don't take this so lightly," Opal instructed. "Merchant has
already killed more than half a dozen operatives. No matter what we've
thrown at him so far, he's eluded us. He's much more dangerous than
even I could have given him credit for."
"Well, I'm awfully glad to hear that," Poltergeist said with a
chuckle. "After all, I taught him everything he knows."
"One more thing," Opal said quickly as Poltergeist turned to leave.
"Merchant still has one of the knives. I'm sure Messiah would greatly
appreciate it if you retrieved it for him."
"So he managed to get one of them?" Poltergeist asked curiously.
"How did he manage?"
Opal looked down at the floor and scowled. "That's not
important," she growled.
After a few seconds of thought, Poltergeist realized the answer to
his question. Despite his professionalism, he began to laugh. Opal's
scowl deepened as she glared at him with her one good eye. "Sorry for
bringing it up," Poltergeist chortled. "I'll get it for him, don't worry."
With that, Poltergeist took his leave of the observation deck, his laughter
echoing up and down the stairwell.

"So, tell me about this friend of yours on Earth," Sanyasi said as he
sat back in the captain's chair, lighting up once again.
Kiyone raised an eyebrow. She couldn't help but wonder just why
Sanyasi was trying to make so much small talk with her, especially
considering how icily he acted before. In her previous experiences with
such people--most of them criminals--she surmised that he probably
wanted something from her. Under the current situation, she decided to
humor him. "Mihoshi and I used to be stationed on Earth. We lived with
a guy in Okayama, Japan. We were using our vacation time to go visit
him."
Sanyasi blinked heavily; he was completely ignorant of the
geography of Earth. "This guy have a name?" he asked.
"Tenchi. Tenchi Masaki."
"And you lived with this guy? Cozy."
"It wasn't like that," Kiyone insisted. "In fact, he's married."
"Wouldn't stop me," Sanyasi said as he looked away.
"He's not like you," Kiyone said dryly. "He's a kind, wonderful,
sensitive man."
Sanyasi took a long inhale of his cigarette, then snuffed it out.
"You're right; he's not like me." Kiyone snorted and shook her head.
The mood was instantly lightened upon the arrival of Fred, who
stood expectantly at Kiyone's feet. She could not help but smile at the
animal as it hopped upon her lap. Fred began to purr as Kiyone ran her
hand down its back. "Your cat is nice," she said.
"He's friendly," Sanyasi replied. "He even seems to like me a
little."
"At least someone's friendly around here," Kiyone grumbled,
shooting Sanyasi a sideways glance.
"You don't think Iggy's friendly?" asked Sanyasi.
Kiyone laughed dryly. "Being friendly and being oversexed are
two different things entirely," she said.
Sanyasi then did something that Kiyone never expected she'd see
him do: a smile spread across his face and he began to cackle hysterically.
His laugh was loud and very abrupt, as if he was somehow out of practice.
Despite herself, Kiyone could not help but join in, and the metal walls of
the control room resonated with their guffaws. After several moments,
Sanyasi was able to speak again, at which point he said, "That's about the
best way to put it. He's not very subtle, is he?"
"About as subtle as a freight train," Kiyone said, still smiling.
"You'll have to forgive him," Sanyasi said. "He's pubescent.
Still, he's a tremendous help to have around. I don't think I would have
been able to come as far as I have if not for him."
"So, how did you get him to come with you, anyway?" asked
Kiyone.
Sanyasi lit another cigarette. "I promised him that we would get
the guy who killed his dad."
"Is it a member of the Zaibatsu?" Kiyone inquired.
"Not anymore," Sanyasi said. "But he is closely related to them.
We'll be able to get him."
Kiyone sighed. Apparently, even Iggy had his own little battle to
fight. For the moment, the only solace she could find was the cat that lay
quietly in her lap. She again stroked its back.
"But, you don't really have to worry about that," said Sanyasi.
"Soon you'll be finishing up your vacation in the company of Tenchi, and
you'll never need to deal with me again."
"Sounds good," Kiyone replied. Sanyasi glanced at her sideways,
and Kiyone gave him a sardonic smile. Sanyasi snorted and turned away.
"Hey, Sanyasi!" someone shouted. Iggy had just walked into the
control room. He noticed Kiyone sitting across from his partner. "Oh,
sorry, am I interrupting something?"
"No," Sanyasi replied flatly.
"Oh, well, anyway, I just wanted to know where we were headed to
next, is all."
"Earth."
"Earth?!" Iggy spat. "What the hell are we going there for? That's
way out of our way!"
"We're going there," Sanyasi said as he extinguished his cigarette,
"to drop off our guests."
"Hmm," Iggy said. "We a taxi service now?"
"Now, now, the lease we could do for these young ladies is give
them a lift, considering all the unnecessary trouble we put them through."
Iggy was shocked. Never had he heard anything so decent and
generous escape from the mouth of his icy partner. He wondered if the
devil could see his breath at the moment. "So, now you actually... want to
help them?" he asked dumbfoundedly.
"No reason not to," Sanyasi said with a shrug. This caused Iggy's
jaw to hang even further down to the floor.
The awkwardness was broken up by an unfamiliar beep coming
from the console. Sanyasi wrinkled his brow. "That's funny. Who could
possibly be trying to contact us?" He pressed the com button to receive
the transmission.
"Spike, is that you?" a voice asked. Sanyasi immediately
recognized Bradley.
"Bradley? What's up?"
"Listen, I got my hands on some new weapons that I think are just
what you're looking for," Bradley said.
"Is that so?" Sanyasi asked. "What about them?"
"I can't give you the details right now," Bradley replied. "Stop by
my shop and we'll talk."
"When do you want me there?" asked Sanyasi.
"As soon as possible. I've got other buyers, but I'm giving you
first dibs because you always pay in cash."
"You sure it can't wait?" Sanyasi asked. "I'm a little predisposed
at the moment."
"Trust me, you don't want to miss out on this," Bradley insisted.
"Get here on the double."
Sanyasi scratched his chin. "Well, I suppose so," he said. "I'll be
there soon, I guess."
"I knew I could count on you," Bradley said. "See you soon,
Spike." The transmission then cut off. Sanyasi leaned back in his seat.
"What are you doing?" Kiyone asked hotly. "Are you blowing us
off for some sleazy arms deal?"
"I don't think that's what's going on, here," Sanyasi said
thoughtfully.
"What is going on, then?" Iggy asked.
"I think Bradley is in serious trouble," Sanyasi said plainly.
"Trouble?" Iggy echoed. "How can you tell?"
"For one thing," Sanyasi began, "how did he know to contact this
ship? It's not registered with the police anymore."
"Well, he might have seen the name on the side when he dropped
off the cargo last time," Iggy suggested. "He could have tracked the
registration."
"Bradley's not the type to go investigating," Sanyasi said.
"Besides, if he has other buyers, he wouldn't go out of his way just for me.
Think about where those weapons came from; he can't afford to hang onto
them for too long."
"So, what do we do?" Iggy asked.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Sanyasi said. "I think we should
get down there now."
"But, if he's in trouble, you could be walking into a setup," Iggy
said.
Sanyasi smiled at him. "You talk as if that actually matters to me."
"But why take that chance anyway?" Iggy asked.
"Hey, I can't leave the poor guy hanging," Sanyasi said as he stood
up. "Besides, where else will I get my ammo?" He strode quietly out of
the room.
Iggy watched with wide eyes as Sanyasi walked down the hall.
Twice in one day he had seen Sanyasi come to the aid of others.
Normally, those were totals for months in which Sanyasi was feeling
charitable. He smiled nervously at Kiyone. "He's... normally not like
this," he said tightly.

Chapter 3: Teacher

Eight hours after the communication from Bradley was received,
the Certiorari made planetfall on Varaya. Kiyone and Mihoshi were
invited to retrieve anything they needed from the Yagami as Sanyasi took
care of the business at hand. As he climbed into his black coat, he looked
sideways at Iggy, who began following him out the door. "What are you
doing?" Sanyasi asked evenly.
"Going with you," Iggy replied.
"Not a chance," Sanyasi spat back. "It's too dangerous. I need you
to stay behind."
"What if you need my help?" Iggy asked.
"I won't need help," Sanyasi answered.
"You never know," Iggy returned. "Besides, Bradley might be
hurt. I can help him if he is."
Sanyasi scratched his chin; he hadn't thought of that. "Alright,
fine, you can come. But the second the shit hits the fan you get out of
there, got me?"
"Sure thing," Iggy said with a smile.
"I mean it, Iggy!" Sanyasi insisted. "You get the hell out of there!"
"Hey, you don't have to tell me twice," Iggy said defensively. "I'll
leave the getting shot at part to you."
Sanyasi seemed satisfied with the answer, and hailed a cab to head
down to Bradley's shop.
Sanyasi rapped sharply on the metal door. "Now remember, he
calls me Spike," he reminded Iggy.
"Yeah, I remember," Iggy said. "Does that mean I can call you
Fido?"
"Quit it with the dog jokes, would you?" Sanyasi asked. "I told
you before, it's the first name that came to mind at the time."
"Should have thought a couple more seconds," Iggy said as Sanyasi
knocked again on the door. "Keep that up, and pretty soon you'll tell
people that your name is Fluffy."
Sanyasi did not react to the joke as he continued to stare sternly at
the door. "If he's expecting us," he said, "it shouldn't take him that long
to get to the door." He reached down and turned the knob. "It's unlocked.
Bad sign. Stay behind me." He quietly swung the door open while
simultaneously drawing one of his pistols. He crept cautiously into the
workshop, Iggy following several steps behind. Sanyasi checked behind
every possible ambush point on the floor on his way in, but found no sign
of others. Amidst a small junk pile near the back of the shop, he saw a
form laying in a heap. He cautiously approached it, before recognizing the
slim build and gray hair. "Bradley." Iggy increased his gate, and the two
knelt next to the motionless arms dealer at the same time.
"What happened?" Iggy asked obliquely.
"He's dead," Sanyasi replied. "His throat's been cut. Been this
way for hours." A wide pool of cold crimson surrounded Bradley's body
on the floor, contrasting sharply with the clammy, ashen skin of the
deceased.
Before Iggy could lament about not being able to offer medical
treatment, he saw a red dot of light materialize on Sanyasi's upper back.
Despite never seeing a laser sight before, he instinctually knew what it was
immediately. "Watch out!" he yelled as he leapt up and jumped in the
path of the light. Before Sanyasi was completely turned around to
respond, the sharp crack of a rifle resonated through the expansive
workshop. Iggy grunted in pain as he fell to the floor amidst a spatter of
blood. Wasting no time, Sanyasi took off running and drew his other
pistol, firing a few random shots in the direction he heard the shot from.
He cursed himself for not considering the possibility of an ambush coming
from the rafters.
Sanyasi took refuge behind a secluded scrap heap to observe the
situation. He saw Iggy on the ground, writhing in pain, though his wound
was not life-threatening. His first priority was to take out the gunmen in
the rafters, some of which had already hopped down onto the floor. Two
began to swiftly close in on Iggy, but were cut down by a volley of shots
from the Duquettes. From the corner of his eye Sanyasi caught sight of a
vague shadow above his head and instinctually snapped off two quick
shots at it. The shadow yelped and fell down to the floor, revealing that
Sanyasi's instincts again did not fail him. He sprinted in between rubbish
piles, studying the fire flashes from above intently as bullets whizzed past
him, hoping to establish a pattern of movement. He fired blindly upwards
at first, then began to see just how the gunmen were moving. He obscured
himself behind a small hill of scrap metal and reloaded both of his pistols.
He knew that his pursuers would be hesitant to move if he was completely
out of sight. With the patterns of movement recognized, he promptly
stood up and began firing not where the gunmen had just been previously,
but where they would have stopped in their tracks as they waited for
Sanyasi to make a move. His shots were greeted with four showers of
blood and just as many bodies dropping from the ceiling. He quickly
ducked behind another pile of scrap, not knowing just how many gunmen
were involved. He looked up, but could not see any more forms in the
rafters. He relaxed a little and stood up, only to see a group of men burst
from the back room with various weapons trained on him. He fired a few
shots before they could aim at him, and succeeded in taking out a pair
before he was forced to retreat behind another scrap heap. Bullets from
shotguns, carbines, and pistols alike all clanged noisily into the metal he
hid behind. Knowing that he had to work quickly before he became
surrounded, he grabbed a manageable sheet of metal he intended to use as
a shield. He shot it three times in the same place, weakening the metal
enough to create a small hole. He reloaded his pistol, placed the barrel of
it in line with the hole, and came up shooting.
Almost completely protected by the makeshift shield, Sanyasi
stood fast as he fired through the hole, the enemy weaponry unable to
penetrate the metal. Like dominoes they fell, the vast majority falling
where they stood. Two were able to retreat behind a large ship fuselage
and take cover. Sanyasi's heart dropped when he saw one of the men
emerge with a grenade in his hand. It was heaved at him, the pin having
clearly been removed. Trying not to panic, Sanyasi leveled his pistol at the
grenade as it flew through the air, on a kamikaze mission. At the moment
the grenade reached the highpoint in the arc of the throw, Sanyasi fired.
The bullet hit squarely, sending the explosive in an almost perfect reverse
direction from where it had come. Sanyasi hurriedly dove behind a scrap
pile for cover, making it just in time as the grenade landed a scant few feet
from the men who conspired to use it. It exploded noisily, sending some
of the metal from the fuselage skidding across the floor and through the
air. When the clatter had quieted down, Sanyasi slowly stood up, both
pistols poised. No more shots came. He stepped into the open and looked
around. All told, some fifteen men were involved in the ambush, the
entirety of which lay dying, dead, or incinerated. Sanyasi took a deep
breath. "Now that's what I call threading the goddamned needle," he said.
His celebration was cut short when he remembered that Iggy had
been wounded. His eyes raced around the shop to find him. Iggy appeared
to be standing in a corner of the room, but it soon became apparent that
someone was holding him up from behind. One of Sanyasi's pistols came
up as he approached. From behind Iggy, who grimaced in pain, was a very
familiar face. Sanyasi's eyes narrowed at the recognition. He slowed his
approach.
"Very good," the man said from behind Iggy. He was holding a
gun to his head. "I taught you well."
"How are you these days, Poltergeist?" Sanyasi asked, his pistol in
turn pointed at him.
"Retired," Poltergeist announced. "But I made a special exception
in your case. Two hundred million jurai is quite a payday."
"Is that the price you put on all these jerks who shot at me?"
Sanyasi asked.
"They were mere cannon fodder," Poltergesit announced. "Just to
see if you were still up to speed. In my heart, I knew it would come down
to you and me."
"Be careful what you wish for," Sanyasi growled. "You okay,
Iggy?"
"Not really," he replied through gritted teeth.
"There's one thing I want you to do before you die," Poltergeist
said coolly. "I want you to give up the knife."
"You looking for a souvenir?" asked Sanyasi. "I ain't no fucking
gift shop."
"I think you know who it's for," Poltergeist returned.
"If he wants it so bad, he can come and get it himself," Sanyasi
answered icily.
"Well, now," Poltergeist said in a haughty air, "if you won't
cooperate, then I guess I'll have to pick it off your corpse." The sights of
his gun moved from Iggy to Sanyasi. Sanyasi didn't have a clear shot to
any vitals, forcing him to wait for an opening with time he did not have.
And Poltergeist was not one to make mistakes.
Upon seeing his partner in danger, Iggy's hand dove into his
pocket and came up with a screwdriver that he kept handy at all times.
With a swing of his hand, he plunged the tool deep into the thigh of
Poltergeist. The assassin screamed in pain, giving Sanyasi the exact
opportunity he was looking for. He fired, and heard the ricochet as the
bullet hit Poltergeist's gun and tore it from his grasp. Iggy and Poltergeist
both crumpled to the floor. Sanyasi wasted no time and fired four shots at
his former teacher and ally, one in each knee and one in each elbow.
Completely immobilized, Poltergeist howled in pain, now at the mercy of
the man he created.
Sanyasi slowly strode up to him, the footfalls of his knee-high
boots echoing off the concrete floor. "Iggy, drag yourself to a phone and
call for a taxi," he said. Iggy complied, as he stumbled away to get help
for his wound. Bleeding and defeated, Poltergeist looked up at Sanyasi,
who now stood over him menacingly. He knelt down and grabbed the
collar of his enemy. "You should have stayed retired, old man."
"Don't," Poltergeist said quietly. "Not like this. Where's the
honor in killing one who can't fight back?"
"Sorry," Sanyasi sneered, "I don't do honor. And I need you to
send a message to Messiah."
"Yes, I will," Poltergeist conceded. "I'll tell him anything you
want."
Sanyasi smiled evilly. "Who says I'll need you to say anything?"
he asked. He drew his knife from up his sleeve and held the point mere
inches from Poltergeist's face. Poltergeist's eyes grew wide and fearful.
Sanyasi looked around and saw the rope and winch hanging off on one
side of the room. He then moved his knife down and cut away
Poltergeist's shirt. He forcibly rolled him onto his stomach. "This might
sting a little," Sanyasi said. "If you're lucky, you'll pass out before I
finish."

Chapter 4: Regroup

"So, how long do I have?" Iggy asked, lying on his stomach while
Sanyasi tended to the wound. "Tell me the truth. I can take it."
"What are you talking about?" asked Sanyasi. "You got shot in the
ass. You'll be fine. Though, you won't be sitting down for a while."
"Jeez, I don't know how you can stand to put up with this," Iggy
marveled through teeth clenched in pain. "How come you never flinch
when you get shot?"
"I've had a bit more practice," Sanyasi replied with a small smile.
"Even then, it still hurts like a bitch."
"That's an understatement," Iggy said under his breath. He
shrieked in pain as Sanyasi slipped forceps into the wound.
"Don't faint just yet," Sanyasi chided. "I haven't even gotten the
bullet out yet."
"Yeah, well, could you hurry it up?" Iggy asked impatiently.
"I've gotta find the little bugger first," Sanyasi said. He moved the
forceps around to locate the chunk of lead, much to Iggy's displeasure.
"There it is!" he said triumphantly after a few moments that seemed to
Iggy like several hours. He clamped onto the bullet and, with a quick tug,
yanked it out. Iggy again screamed in pain, beads of cold sweat cascading
down his face.
"Motherfucker, that hurts!"
Sanyasi laughed dryly. "Welcome to my world," he said
knowingly. He held the bullet in front of Iggy's face. "Here you go, a
little souvenir of your first gunshot wound. You've finally become a
man."
"If that's the benchmark of attaining manhood, you must be a fossil
by now," Iggy returned snidely.
"You were lucky," Sanyasi said, this time seriously. "They were
using small calibers. Anything larger probably would have shattered your
hip."
"Lucky me," Iggy mumbled.
"Um, excuse me, Mitch," a voice said behind them. Sanyasi
turned around to see Mihoshi standing in the doorway. She let out with a
muffled "Oh!" when she caught sight of Iggy's uncovered rear end.
Iggy's face turned bright red. "You know what? I changed my
mind. Could you just let me die now?"
"Why, Iggy!" Sanyasi said sarcastically. "How could you even
think of throwing away such an opportunity? In fact, I'm going to leave
the room so you two can talk things over." With a final sly grin Sanyasi
exited the room, leaving Iggy to his immeasurable embarrassment.
"That fucking guy..." Iggy trailed off under his breath.
"I just wanted to see if you were okay," Mihoshi said timidly.
"All things considered, I could be worse," Iggy said. "I appreciate
your concern."
"Well, it's just that... since I know what it's like to get shot and
all..." Mihoshi said.
"Not much fun, is it?" Iggy asked rhetorically. "Say, speaking of
which, how's your shoulder?"
"I can barely move it," Mihoshi reported. "It's so stiff and sore."
"I expected as much," Iggy said. "I think you ought to get some ice
for it." Then, Iggy got an idea. "Also, maybe a massage would help to
loosen the muscles."
"You think so?" Mihoshi asked innocently.
"Absolutely," Iggy replied behind a polite grin that masked his true
desires.
"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt," Mihoshi said. With her good arm
she proceeded to bring her sweater over her head.
"Mihoshi, what are you..." Iggy stammered.
"Oh," Mihoshi blurted. "Well, when you said that I needed a
massage, I assumed that you would do it. If you don't want to, I guess I
could ask Kiyone."
"No, no, no, no that's fine!" Iggy hurriedly replied. "I'd be more
than happy to."
"Okay. Thank you!" Mihoshi said jauntily as she dropped her
sweater to the floor. She knelt down with her back facing Iggy, who was
in awe of her well-tanned skin. He could scarcely believe that his
awkward come-on worked, and that only Mihoshi's white bra separated
him from an absolutely perfect moment. He gently placed his hands on
her slightly swollen shoulder, which felt like softest silk beneath his
fingers, and began to knead gently.
"Mmmmh, that feels so much better," Mihoshi said after a few
moments. "Thank you so much, Iggy."
"No," he returned, "thank you." He shut his eyes to savor the
moment as he thought, [I don't care if I did just get shot; this is the
greatest day of my life.]

Sanyasi sat hunched over on his bed, motionless, the cigarette in
his hand already burnt down to the filter. He cursed himself for not having
known better than to let Iggy come along. He had suspected a setup from
the start. He knew things would get hot. He couldn't forgive himself for
putting Iggy in that kind of danger. Still, if Iggy hadn't been there, his
head would just now be being served to Messiah on a silver platter. He
felt it annoying that lose-lose situations were too often unavoidable.
Sanyasi was snapped out of his musings when Kiyone's form filled
the doorway. She had seemed uncharacteristically sympathetic to him
when he supported a severely limping Iggy back on board the ship. In fact,
she had even volunteered to launch the Certiorari while Sanyasi tended to
the wound. Her eyes were softer than normal when she stared at him.
"How's Iggy?" she asked flatly.
Sanyasi finally snuffed out the remains of his cigarette. "He'll be
fine," he answered just as flatly.
"You knew it was a setup, right?" Kiyone asked. "Why did you
bring him?"
"He was worried about Bradley," Sanyasi replied. "I guess I was,
too. It was too late to help him, though."
"I still don't like it," Kiyone said harshly. "He's just a kid."
"Excuse me, but that kid has a better head on his shoulders than
most adults I've met, present company not excluded," Sanyasi shot back.
"Truth is, I need him."
"Yeah, well he sure as hell didn't need you," said Kiyone coldly.
"I didn't force him to come along," Sanyasi said. "He wanted to
help me."
"That's because you dangled the poor kid's dead father in front of
his face like a worm on a hook!" Kiyone said. "What did you expect him
to do after what he went through?"
"I wouldn't have asked him to come if I didn't think he could
handle himself," Sanyasi insisted.
"Funny you should say that," Kiyone retorted, "with him lying on a
cot with a bullet wound in him."
"I couldn't have done anything about that," Sanyasi said.
"You could have left well enough alone and kept you stupid
vendetta to yourself," Kiyone said. "Instead you got some poor kid shot!"
"I didn't let him get shot!" Sanyasi shouted. "He took the bullet
for me!"
Kiyone's eyes went wide. "What?"
"He jumped in the path of a bullet that was meant for me. He
saved my life. There, are you happy now?"
Kiyone could scarcely believe what she had just heard. She
remained speechless for several moments. "He... took a bullet for you?"
she asked in disbelief.
"See?" Sanyasi said. "His choice. Nothing I could have done."
Kiyone was visibly amazed. "But... why?"
Sanyasi lit another cigarette. "Beats me," he said through the
smoke. "I guess, maybe there's more here than just some stupid vendetta,
huh?" Sanyasi stood up and began to make his way to the control room.
"But you needn't concern yourself with that. After all, you're on
vacation."

Because of the thick concrete walls of Bradley's shop, no one
outside heard anything out of the ordinary at the time of the shootout.
Passers-by were able to dismiss it as the normal tumult of power tools. As
a result, no one bothered to notify the police of any disturbance, and the
dozen-and-a-half corpses had remained undiscovered and undisturbed
until the arrival of the organization responsible for the body count.
Messiah stepped gingerly over the bodies, surveying the damage,
trying hard not to get any blood on his well-polished brown wingtips. He
was followed closely by Opal, whose mouth was agape at the scene. A
dozen other enforcers had spread themselves out within the warehouse. "I
told that fool he needed more manpower," Opal hissed. "I mean, if Rook
and his men weren't able to take him out..."
"Hindsight is twenty-twenty," Messiah said calmly. "Besides, this
way I won't have to pay him the rest of that two hundred million jurai."
"But Merchant is still alive," Opal said.
"True," Messiah admitted, "but I like to find the good in the bad."
"Sir, you'd better take a look at this!" one of the enforcers shouted
from the far corner of the shop. Messiah quickened his pace and came
upon his subordinate, who stood next to a body hung upside down by a
winch. He could tell by the gray hair that the man suspended was
Poltergeist. Blood dripped down onto the floor from the myriad of cuts on
his exposed back. Upon closer inspection, he discerned a message written
by the cuts. Blurred by dried blood, he could barely make out the three
words, "IAN IS DEAD."
Messiah's face crumpled into a sneer. Opal eagerly looked over
his shoulder at the message scrawled by knife blade. "Jesus Christ," she
marveled. "This guy's fucking sick!"
"Cut him down," Messiah growled. The enforcer made to comply,
but suddenly halted with a gasp.
"He's still alive!" he reported.
Messiah rushed up and knelt down to Poltergeist's eye level.
Indeed, the assassin gave a tired blink and a barely audible groan.
"Poltergeist," Messiah said, trying to get his attention. "What happened
here?"
"He... killed them... all," he struggled to say, his voice quiet and
shaky. "They're all dead... He can't be... can't be... human..."
Messiah sighed and shook his head. He thought for sure that
Poltergeist, the man who taught his target, would be the last person to
underestimate Merchant. "He's just full of surprises, isn't he?" he asked
to himself with disgust in his voice.
"Messiah," Poltergeist pleaded, "help me... please..."
Messiah's scowl deepened, and his teeth bared as he flicked his
wrist to withdraw his throwing knife. With a quick swipe, he drew the
razor-sharp blade across Poltergeist's neck, blood spurting to escape the
wound. Poltergeist tensed and gave a sickening gargle before finally
laying still, the rhythmic dripping of blood the only sound breaking the
silence.
"Consider that your severance," Messiah said to the still warm
body. He looked squarely into the eyes of the enforcer. "Have the men
move all these bodies out of here. We'll have a truck waiting to take them
back to the space port."
"Y-y-yes, sir!" the enforcer stammered, scarcely believing what he
had just witnessed. Messiah casually wheeled around and began the walk
out of the shop.
Opal quickly caught up with him. "What did you do that for?" she
asked.
"He failed me," Messiah replied evenly.
"But he was your teacher, too," Opal reminded him.
"Cheap sentimentality has no place in matters of business,"
Messiah responded. "He was an old horse who broke his leg."
The pair walked in silence for a few moments. Once outside the
building, Opal asked, "So, what now?"
"Now that we have Merchant's undivided attention," Messiah
began, "I think the time has come for us to end it."
"What did you have in mind?" Opal inquired.
"We go at him with everything."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Opal asked. "There are some in
the organization that would still be loyal to him."
"That is not a concern," Messiah said confidently. "For all they
know, Merchant is dead. We'll just tell them we're going after someone
else."
"It will take a long time to organize a task force of that
magnitude," Opal said.
"Don't worry," Messiah said calmly. "I know just what to do."