I really have not had enough time to do much writing lately, in spite of
spring break. (Or perhaps because of it, but I digress.) I do have at least a
partial chapter one, which I'm posting now.  I still know & feel like this bit
needs some minor revisions, (The results of my inquiry about military ranks
still need to be applied, as an example,) but it is good enough for
preliminary perusal. 
	
	As expected, all standard disclaimers regarding the characters apply, as well
as those regarding my lack of permission to use them, etc. etc.

              ----------------------------------------------------	

		First pieces: Moving in from the sides

	I�d just been asked to uncover a bit of dirt on a punk. My prospective
 client, an officer in the Ground Defense Forces, claimed some guy had been 
harassing both him and his girlfriend. He claimed that regulations and 
personal honor �forbade him from delivering the appropriate response to his 
opponent�s impertinence.� Therefore, he had need of information to �dishearten 
the vile fiend from ever troubling her crimson-tressed beauty�s heart� again. 
He sounded quite convincing, his money was good, and I have always been a 
sucker for sob stories and hopeless cases. A few things about him gave me 
pause, however.
	His family�s had a long-standing reputation from their personal feuds, 
as it was not unknown for them to occasionally involve bystanders in their 
(thankfully rare) public outbursts. Of course, I would have to deal with only 
one of them, but even so, there have been too many occasions when their 
erratic behavior had nearly resulted in tragedy, for me to ignore this. To top 
it all off, Tatewaki Kuno had built quite a name for himself as something of a 
dueler and playboy. 
	As a Kendoist, he was genuinely skilled, and quite proud of his 
undefeated status, a fact he delighted on demonstrating to any would-be 
opponent. Anyone foolish enough to challenge him faced a tough fight. But, 
when it comes to matters of the heart, Tatewaki Kuno was renowned throughout 
Nerima for his scrupulous taste and complete obliviousness to rejection. He 
had a knack for finding women who failed to be impressed by his money, his 
status, or his personality, and fixating on them. He seemed to feel that, in 
spite of their constant talk of rejection, if he could only manage to convince 
them of the truth behind his words of love, women would jump whole-heartedly 
onto his open arms.  He had most recently attempted to date a local Kendo 
instructor, <sigh,> but it appeared as though there now was someone else to 
compete with his affections. 
	So, if Kuno really needed my services, it was unlikely to be welcomed 
by the purported beneficiary of this investigation, and yet� This second 
person he had been up against must have been formidable indeed, to have forced 
someone as single-minded as Kuno to pause and change tactics. A new player on 
the ever-volatile Nerima scene was someone worth knowing about, specially 
given my line of work. Given that this individual seemed able to defeat Kuno, 
it was fortunate for me that through the combination of my mastery of disguise 
and cool planning ability, a personal confrontation would be a very unlikely 
possibility. Since Kuno seemed willing to finance my investigation, and the 
result would end up being beneficial to both of us, I agreed to help him, in 
spite of my misgivings about him and his family. 
	Anyway, Kuno claimed that his �pig-tailed goddess� was too frightened 
to talk to him anymore, and since this mystery woman seemed to be the safest 
person to talk to, I mistakenly asked him to tell me more about her. After a 
few minutes of a long-winded, rambling speech about sunshine, purity, beauty 
and the villainous nature of his opponent, I finally managed to interrupt him 
long enough for him to admit that he did not yet know her name, but that he 
seemed to think there was one other person whom may have a way of finding 
�his� beauty. 

              ----------------------------------------------------	

	Anyhow, that is it for this element of chapter 1.  You'll get to see Gos
'confronts' Nabiki at work in the next installment.  Any bets on who ends up
manipulating who? 
-- 
"There is nothing in this world of value...
 Nothing worth risking our lives for...
	 ...except 'erhaps... 
	...what little we can create ourselves."
		Daisuke Ido (Gunnm / Battle Angel)
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