Parts 1-3 are available off my homepage (in my sig). Go directly to my
writing page with http://www.rit.edu/~bmk7411/writing/index.html
This is a resend, as I still haven't received this post back from the ML
(even though the original was sent 2 days ago).
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Dragon Path by Ben Kosse
part 3: The Contract
The Contract
"You're Dragon?" The captain replied, shaken. There
was no way this little bitch was Dragon. The oaken door decided
to swing shut at this moment, to further emphasize his surprise.
"Yes, Mr. Johnson. I took the name from a literal
translation of my last name. Mesa-ryu means, in Japanese, 'female
dragon'. Now, surely you understand that I can't call myself
'Mesa-ryu' or 'Dragoness', after all, who would hire a 'little
bitch', as one of your guards downstairs put it." She paused to
let the implications sink in. "Yes, that was me who laid out the
first guard, Robert got the second.
"Now, I'm sure you will find these terms agreeable.
Number one, the cost is 7.5 million new ren, half now, half upon
the return of proof that Slider is destroyed. Number two, I get
access to all your files regarding Slider. Number three, you do
not tell anyone I am a woman." She turned away from his desk, to
let him consider the offer.
It didn't take long. "No fucking way, bitch. There's
nothing you can do about Slider. He's way out of our elite
force's league, not to mention a girl like yourself." He grasped
a pistol from under his desk, and began to draw it out, slowly.
She turned to face him, and saw his hand moving.
When his hand was right at the edge of his desk, he quickly moved
the gun into firing position.
He didn't quite make it. The sound of a gun being
chambered stopped his motion about half the way from getting the
laser pistol into position. His mind slowly pieced together the
events which led to the two gun barrels dead-aimed at his face.
First, Akisha had drawn the .44 magnum with her right hand. Then,
with her left hand, as it moved to grasp the laser pistol, she
cocked the magnum. Finally, having drawn the laser pistol, she
pointed both of them at his face.
Her voice was enough to freeze his blood cold, as
were her words. "I'm ALAW class E, and I can, and will, kill you
where you sit, if you try to point that gun at me or Robert. Drop
the fucking laser and stand up."
ALAW! Above the LAW, a license given only to select
bounty hunters, and, in his state, illegal to give to females. A
fact that Johnson was glad to know. "Sorry, dear, but you're not
legally allowed to be ALAW in this state. You're a woman."
She didn't flinch, and Johnson was unnerved.. "You
don't know your state law very well, do you Captain. California
only limited ALAW classes A through C. As I'm sure you're aware,
class E ALAW means, first and formost, if myself or a teammate is
threatened, I can deal with the situation any way I see fit."
Again, another long pause. "Now, I won't force you into hiring
me, that would be a violation of my ALAW status. But, I will tell
you that Slider is more than capable of forcing your department
to pay well over my fee of 7.5 million new ren in settlements,
and so on. Do you really want that to happen, or will you accept
my fee?"
Johnson smiled, smugly, because he knew that four of
his best officers were coming up the elevator right now. They'd
show this little whore a thing or two.
The door, crashed open again, four officers armed
with laser rifles could be seen. Their deep blue police uniforms
were reinforced to stop small arms fire, and their helmets
contained a sighting scope.
Reflexively, Akisha's magnum swung across her chest
to line up with the entryway. Robert spun around, incredibly fast
for someone so large, and drew both his pistols before speaking.
"Hmm, three of you covered, and one unable to get in the room. To
begin, you've committed a tactical error by putting the shortest
person in back: he can't fire. Next, none of you have projectile
weapons. That means none of you can push us out of firing
position, another tactile error. Also, you're all out of aim. But
that's forgivable since you just entered the room. Finally, you
all underestimated what the threat might be. Of course,
underestimating myself is one of the stupidest things you ever
could do. Even more idiotic is to underestimate her."
"Welcome, officers," Akisha started, "as I'm sure
your captain is aware, by now, I'll tell you that I'm ALAW-E,
which applies in this situation. So is Robert. Yes, you could try
to shoot us, but considering that your weapons aren't aimed at
us, moving them anywhere but to the ground will get you shot. If
you don't believe me, ask your Captain here." Her eyes were fixed
halfway between the door and the captain, allowing her to watch
both with her peripheral vision.
Johnson replied while rising from his chair, "She's
right. Drop the guns, I don't want to lose you guys too." When
the men hesitated, he shouted, "Yes, she's that fucking fast,
drop your guns!" He then threw his gun behind Akisha.
When the men had all complied, Akisha moved the
laser pistol in line with the first rifle, and shot. Her magnum
destroyed a second, while Robert finished off the other two.
Robert sheathed his pistols, while Akisha's laser destroyed the
Captain's gun. She sheathed her weapons, snapping the holsters in
a gesture of good will, and stepped away from the desk. "Are we
ready to talk now, Captain?"
He nodded, and started to move around the desk, away
from the large, open window behind his chair. Once around his
desk, he jumped at Akisha. At the same time, the four guards
charged into the room, the first two charging Akisha, while the
last two charged Robert.
Robert wrestled the largest of his assailants to the
ground in very prompt manner, while the second tried to work his
way to a blind spot.
Akisha spun and ducked under Johnson's grasp, and
caught his stray right arm, swinging him to the ground with no
small amount of force. She brought her knee into his ribs,
stunning him for the time it took her to stand up and get into a
fighting stance. The largest of the officers stopped short,
trying to draw her off guard. When he swung at her face, she spun
inside with her elbow contacting his solar plexus, knocking the
wind from the guard. Johnson had gotten to his feet by this time.
Then, holding onto the officer's outstretched hand,
she shoved her hips into his. His balance lost, she was able to
throw him over her back and onto the ground. Her right leg swung
up in the same motion, and caught the back of the captain's knee,
sending him tumbling again, and allowing her to face her last
assailant.
Robert landed three punches to the man's face before
knocking the large guard unconscious. The smaller man was
terribly strong, but no match for Robert, who, upon being bear
hugged from behind simply spun around and returned the favor. It
wasn't long before the smaller man relinquished his hold on his
opponent. Likewise, the larger man released his hold and the
officer dropped to the ground, panting for breath. Robert turned
to see Akisha moving warily around the last guard. Apparently,
this man is quite well trained in hand-to-hand combat, Robert
mused. Akisha never wastes time when she doesn't have to.
She continued circling, keeping a watchful eye on
the captain and the other guard. The captain was getting to his
feet, and the other man was starting to recover his breath.
Akisha decided it was time to finish the fight. She raised her
hands in a circular motion, intended to trick her opponent into
attacking.
Fortunately, he thought she was leaving herself an
opening, and brought his rear leg up, cocking it at his side to
deliver a powerful sideways kick. Akisha watched his movements,
and when his leg moved, hers did as well. Her foot hooked the
back of his knee, and by pulling forward slightly, she upset his
balance for a brief instant. Then, her arms swung into his which
pulled him forward even more. This allowed her to wrap her right
hand around his head and pull him to her chest, this last move
while she was spinning to her left.
The man tried to jerk backward, only to catch a
glimmer of an arm streak towards his neck. The next thing he
realized was that he was on the ground and that the Captain was
back in his chair. Akisha was seated in front of the desk and the
other guards had left.
Akisha looked at him and said, flatly, "Go away.
What we have to discuss doesn't concern you." The guard was only
too happy to comply with the nod of his superior. He slunk out
the door, and darted to the elevator when he saw Robert, who was
talking to the Captain's now wide-eyed secretary. He noticed
Robert reading the nameplate on the secretary's desk.
After a long moment of silence, Johnson finally
spoke. "All right, Dragon. 7 million new ren, the files, and no
one knows you're a woman."
--
Ben Kosse bmk7411@cs.rit.edu
BGC Otaku and worshipper of the Red-Eyed Goddess. Member of ShAS.
Anime, RPG's, computers, poetry (read/write), music (listen/compose).
Author of the Bubblegum Crisis theme pack (see the homepage below).
Homepage with anime and other interests. (http://www.rit.edu/~bmk7411)