Chapter Thirty-Eight: Roadblock
People like to say that money is power, and for a large part, this is true. But your money will not save you from an angry Samurai after you made their little sister cry.
Samurai are unpredictable powerhouses on who money has no effect, so money does not hold power. That is information. If you know who is connected to a Samurai, you can do your best to avoid them so your body does not become a permanent fixture in the wall.
-- Ad for Samurai Daily an online news site focusing on anything Samurai.
“Big brother?” He backs away from me. “What is going on?”
“Don’t smile like that, It’s giving ‘I’m going to eat you’ vibes, not ‘Hey, I am here to help vibe’. " Evelin helpfully informs me.
I do as she says, adjusting my smile to be more welcoming. “Right, sorry. We have never met, but you were friends with my brother, Jacob.”
“Wait, what? Really? You’re Vivi, Jacob’s sister. I thought you would be cuter.”
“Hey, I am cute. Wait, no, never mind, I am kind of. It’s complicated.” I wave my hand in a so-so gesture. “I am like Evelin’s twin sister. You can call me Maniac or Melody. Dealers choice,” I say with a smile.
He nods slowly. “I didn't know that you were twins. Can I ask where Evelin is?”
“In here,” I say, pointing at my head. “She says hi, by the way.”
“Ah well, that makes sense. So, what now?” he asks, looking behind me.
“Now we are getting the fuck out of here. I am not waiting for reinforcements to show up.” I say, turning to the door as well. I really want to get this over with quickly so I can go home and snuggle into a bed, preferably with both my girls.
“Right smart, yeah, we should go, but you know I am not alone in here. What about Tucker and Angela?
I quickly open my map app and cross-referenced the location of the different vehicles. “Tucker is already out of Rome, waiting at the meeting point. Angela is in our getaway car a few streets away, so we’ll meet up with her soon.”
He lets out a deep breath. “That's good. It seems our luck is finally turning around.”
I nod and head out the door before pausing and looking back at him. “How good are you with blood?”
He blinks, then raises his arm. “Just make it quick.”
“Sorry, what?” I say, backing off slightly.
“I can handle some blood, but not pain, so make it quick, please.” He says, raising his arm again.
I laugh. “No, not whatever you are thinking of. I meant that on the way here, I repainted the walls in red. Can you handle that, or want me to blindfold you or something?”
Lamar slowly nods at me before asking, “How bad is it?”
“I've had worse fights, but the walls are white, so it looks a lot like one of those ancient horror movies in there.”
“You fight a lot then?” he asks, curious, with no judgment.
“More than I like,” I say, putting my mask back on my face. "You ready to go?”
Once he nods, I open the door wider and step out into the chaos I''ve created.
Crow’s swords are still flying around the building, making sure that there are no hidden dangers lying in wait. Once Lemar exits the cell, he pauses to look around, then whistles.
“Damn, sister, you don't go easy on people, do you?”
“I guess not. It’s kind of hard to go easy when your weapons cut straight through armour.” I say, holding up my sword in the air.
“What about stun batons or pepper spray?”
I pause to look at him, then nod. “I didn't think of that. Maybe next time.”
“Well, it is just a thought, but I doubt anyone is going to lose any sleep over these people being gone, so you shouldn't worry about it too much.” He says, putting a hand on my shoulder and squeezing it.”
“Thank you, that means a lot.” I say with a smile.
We walk the halls in silence for a while, Crow scanning all around but not finding anything of note.
“So, can I ask where we are going after all of this?” Lemar finally says.
“Right, sorry. Forgot about the important part. We are going to Germany. I have a company there. You can settle in there for a while, before we think of the next steps.” I quickly explain.
“Next steps?” he asks, confused.
“Yeah, like we wouldn't mind having you all stay forever, but if, for whatever reason, you feel like living by yourself or finding a job or something, we would be more than willing to help with that.”
“I don’t really know what I want.” He says, a bit unsure.
I shrug. “That is not an issue. We can figure it out. There is really no rush or anything.”
He stays quiet for a bit, then he snaps his fingers. "Firefighter, as a kid, I wanted to be a firefighter.”
I burst out laughing at that, only quieting down when I notice the disappointed look on Lemar’s face. “Sorry I was not laughing at you,” I say, correcting my smile again. “My girlfriend drives a fire truck. I just thought it was funny, that is all.”
“You’re dating a firefighter?” Lemar asks, sounding curious.
“Not really. I am pretty sure she can put out a fire, but her truck is filled with chemicals of all kinds, so she might just make the problem worse if she throws them at the fire.” I make a big explosion gesture with my hand.
“Uhm, then, what is your girlfriend's occupation?” Lemar is giving me a look like I have grown a second head.
“She is a student,” I simply say.
Lemar just grins, “So let me get this straight, your girlfriend, who is a student, drives around a fire truck filled with dangerous chemicals.”
I nod “I wouldn't call it straight, but that sounds about right.”
“Okay, but why does she have the dangerous chemicals?”
“Oh, I think it's either for her studies in chemistry or because she is a samurai. At least I am pretty sure it is for one of those two reasons.”
“Your life must be fun,” he says in wonderment.
“It definitely has its moments, that's for sure, but it also includes wading through a lot of corpses for some reason.”
Lemar nods. “Interesting would be a better word to describe it then.”
I just nod as we cross another corner and pause. I think I hear some noise, but it is hard to tell. Just when I am about to walk closer, I get a ping from Eva on our coms.
“We might have a problem,” she says as soon as I open the channel
“Problem? What kind of problem?”
“Well, a lot of police cruisers are converging on your location, and they are starting to surround the building. Might be nothing, but be careful.”
“Thank you. Make sure you stay out of range. I’ll give you a ping if we need a pickup.” I say as I mute the channel.
“Any issues?” Lemar asks, looking a bit nervous.
I shrug. “Maybe. I'm not sure yet. The cops are here.”
Lemar looks around. “Is this the point where you tell me the things these people own are way too expensive, meaning that they are either highly successful or on somebody's payroll? Meaning that they most likely have the cops on their side too.”
“You catch on quick.”
“So, what's the plan? Because I am behind you if we want to fight the police, but I am not sure how well that would end.” He says, bending down and grabbing a gun off the floor.
“I appreciate the gesture, but I think it is better if I go in alone while you wait here with Crow.”
Lemar looks around. "Who is Crow?”
I point at the flying swords. "That is Crow.”
“Ah, I thought you were doing that, but someone else is. That's sick.” he waves at a sword. “Hey Crow, your swords are awesome.”
One of the swords stops in midair and does a waving motion.
Lemar looks at me, then at the sword with a big grin. “Okay, this is so cool. What can you do besides the sword thing?” he says, gesturing at the black sword in my hand.
“Teleport.”
Lemar blinks, “No fucking way.”
“Yes way, that's why I will be going in alon, since I can get out of there if something happens.”
“That makes sense, but what about after that?” Lemar asks.
“Guess I get a little patch with cop killer on it. And sew it on my hoodie.”
“Well, if they get paid, shouldn't you just show them it is more expensive to mess with you than to just let you go?”
I guess he has a point there.
“And how do I do that?”
“Maybe blow up one of their cars as a warning. ‘Mess with me and you lose them all’ kind of idea.”
I start to giggle, “You know what? I think we will get along just fine.”
After we have agreed on a basic plan of action, I leave Lemar behind somewhere safe and start to head outside at a casual pace. As soon as I exit the front door, several guns snap up to me.
“We received a call of violence here. Identify yourself.”
I giggle, then do a little bow. “I am Maniac. Samurai and professional asshole, nice to meet you.”
“You’re supposed to be dead,” one of the officers says.
“News of my death was greatly exaggerated. It was only a halfway lethal injury.” I start laughing “Sorry always wanted to say that, but no, not dead, just missing for a while. Got stuck some 20 meters underground for a while.”
The cops stay silent for a while before the officer speaks again. "Okay Maniac, what are you doing here?”
“I was picking up my brother,” I say gesturing back at the building.
“And where is this, brother?” The same guy asks, so I assume that he is in charge.
“Inside, where there aren't a million guns aimed at him. So put those toys down or I am going to show you exactly what my toys are capable of.”
“Are you threatening an officer of the law?" The man asks.
“I feel like I should say something clever like 'I am making a promise not a threat' or something, but it’s been a long month so fuck i. Yes I am threatening you. Get the fuck out of here, you can loot the place later.” I say, summoning one of the javelins.
“In that case, you are under arrest for threatening an officer. Drop your weapon and put your hands behind your head.”
‘Lyss, which car is empty’ I subvocalise.
Some of the cars light up in on my AUG. I look at the easiest mark, then throw the javelin at full power. As soon as I loose the attack, I teleport. Appearing behind the officer in charge and putting my sword on his shoulder just as the explosion of the cop car going up in flames can be heard.
“So, what will it be officer? The next one will be aimed at your head.” I grin.
“Everyone, stand down. We are moving out.” His voice trembles as he speaks.
I back off, crossing my arms as I watch the cops slowly pack up their stuff and leave. I wait a few more minutes just in case, then I ping Eva as I get back inside to get Lemar.
“You were right,” I say with a smile as I find Lemar just where I left him.
“Right about what?”
“Blowing up the cop car made them back off just fine”
Lemar shakes his head. “Yeah, that tracks, So, we are ready to go?”
“Yeah, the ambulance is about to pull in outside.”
"Ambulance?"
“Yeah, I own an ambulance now,” I say as I walk out.
Two tearful reunions later, one in the ambulance and one a few minutes out of Rome and we are on our way back home. I let Eva drive the ambulance the rest of the way and decide to catch some sleep after I send Glowstick my ETA.