by S A Asthana
“Excellent.” Alice took a seat. “Let’s start.”
The 1.V10’s engines powered on. A vibration rushed under Alice’s boots. The dragon was waking. The merriment in the distance sputtered as each pirate realized what was happening. Wide eyes pierced the sight. Some men pointed, while others shot curses. Their prized possession was being stolen, and right under their noses.
It didn’t take long for many to break into a sprint toward the 1.V10. Alice welcomed their advances. With the press of a button, the vehicle’s laser burst through several spacecraft, sending shards and metal into the air. One exploded in a voluminous plume of smoke. Pirate limbs rained everywhere.
Alice grinned. A second crimson ray took out two more vehicles and even more pirates. The destruction sent the party into chaos with men and women running for cover. The 1.V10 shook into a swift ascent. The pirate camp with its devastation and angry faces shrank to a cluster of sparkling lights against a dark terrain. Soon, the craft would break free of Earth’s atmosphere and the familiar view of space would spread ahead once again.
When the 1.V10 escaped gravity, Alice sent a communication ping to Port Sydney. A few seconds later, General Crone accepted. “This better be good news,” he said, his voice gruff as ever.
“It is. Target secured.” Alice’s chest puffed with pride. She had single-handedly completed the mission — something to be celebrated. A little pride did no harm. “I’m en route to Port Sydney with the 1.V10.”
“No, you are not!” Crone shouted.
Alice blinked in confusion.
“You aren’t coming back until you’ve taken out Marie and Bastien in Nippon One,” Crone said. “Period. Now get back to work.” The communication signal died abruptly.
What a rousing pat on the back. The cockpit remained silent with the exception of the constant mechanical humming coming through its walls. There was nothing she could do to please him. He was beyond logic. Alice drummed her fingers for several breaths as if doing so would assuage the scorching rage inside her chest.
Slapping the dashboard, she yelled at the top of her lungs, her eyes shut tight. Veins jutted on her neck and pulsed wild. The breaking point was inching closer. She could sense it, even taste its bitterness. Crone had already lost his damn mind. The stresses of the job were cracking his hard veneer. He’d take her down the same path with him soon enough.
Unbuckling from her seat, Alice commanded, “Computer, keep craft on track to Port Sydney.”
“Affirmative.”
Alice walked out the cockpit and headed to the secondary vehicle room where a 1.V2 sat in the center. Climbing in, she pressed a sequence of buttons to turn on the vehicle. As lights beeped and blinked to life across the tiny dashboard, Alice plugged in the coordinates to Nippon One by way of a text pad.
She repeated her mantra over and over. “Fuck you, Frank.”
CHAPTER 19: REO
“Fuck you, Frank!” Alice shouted. “You bastard!”
“Umm… Alice?” Reo asked, his face crunched just above the speaker phone. “You alright?”
There was silence.
“R-Reo?” Alice stammered. “You’re on… how did you… I… “
“You called me, Alice,” Reo cut in. “Just now. Did you… accidentally open up your communication line?”
Silence again. Reo swept his palm on his thigh, awaiting a response.
“Yes, I think so,” She answered finally, her voice low with embarrassment. “I… I’m actually headed back to Nippon One. We can chat when I land.”
“Actually, let’s chat now if you don’t mind,” Reo said. “Unless you’d rather go back to… what you were doing.”
“No, no that’s fine, Reo. I can talk now.” Alice cleared her throat. “What’s… umm… what’s up?”
“Well, I’m here in the Rogu Collective’s datacenter. I’ve got the organization and Bastien here with me listening.”
“Hi,” Dr. Bala said with a smirk. Optimistic man. Greg echoed the greeting but with an unsmiling face.
“Okay, so everyone is on?” Alice’s tone was high-pitched. “Great. I guess everyone heard me then.”
Bastien spoke up. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s talk about what Reo has in mind.” He motioned for Reo to start the discussion.
“I think everyone is aware why I’m here. And—”
“Wait,” Hani cut in. She leaned against the wall behind the group, her arms crossed. “I think we, the Rogu Collective, need a guarantee first that Reo is not going to have us arrested after all this is over.”
Heads turned towards the tall beauty. “We have the Chief of Police in our hideout,” she continued with one eyebrow raised. “Isn’t anyone else uncomfortable?”
Dr. Bala nodded in confirmation, his head down. Greg stared at Reo from the corner of his eyes.
Nox said, “I didn’t want to say anything at first, but Hani is right. I’m a bit nervous about the whole thing.”
“And to add, it’s not just the Nipponese Chief of Police who now knows our location,” Hani continued. “The weirdo chick who talks nonsense on the phone and happens to be Lieutenant General of the Martian armed forces knows our location too.”
“Weirdo chick?” Alice’s voice cracked over the speaker phone. “Who… who said that?”
“Look, all I’m saying is we need some assurances before we all get in bed together. I need to know who I’m sleeping with.”
Heads nodded in agreement.
“I too would like to know who I’m sleeping with.” Dr. Bala said, his white hair in disarray like an ancient teddy bear.
“Good callout,” Bastien said, his eyes searing Reo’s. “I need to know these guys will be safe after I’m done with the task.”
Reo acknowledged, “They’ll be safe.”
“How about me?” Bastien leaned forward on the conference table. “How do I know I’ll be safe?”
“You need to trust me, okay? Look, I’m just as nervous as any of you guys. You think I would not be arrested if it became publicly known I, the head of Nipponese police forces, was fraternizing with thieves, gaijins and fugitives?” His heart raced. Their concerns were understandable, but they needed to appreciate his position, no matter how complacent he might seem.
“Okay, say we trust you,” Hani said with hands on her waist and eyebrows raised. “But what about the weird and mentally ill one on the phone?”
“Hey, I don’t appreciate the attacks,” Alice shouted. “Seriously, who said that?”
“I can vouch for her,” Bastien said of Alice. “She won’t turn on us.”
“Oh, so we’re supposed to just take your word for it?”
“Yes!” Bastien slapped the table. “I’ve worked with her. She wouldn’t turn on us, I assure you.”
“Absolutely not.” Alice’s confirmation was cut off by static.
“Oh, well it’s all settled then, isn’t it?” Hani threw her arms into the air. “We’ve got one Martian soldier vouching for the other Martian soldier. Nothing to see here. It’s not like Martians are known to break agreements on a whim.”
Reo stood up. “Guys!” There was an edge of desperation in his voice. “We cannot bicker when so much is at stake. Come on, please focus. If we don’t take care of Marie quickly, the current trade wars will seem like child’s play compared to an actual war.”
His words iced the hot tempers. Logic had a way of doing so. Emboldened by the silence, he continued with a better handle on his tone. “Cooler heads prevail. Always.” He took a seat. “Let me share my plan. I welcome any feedback.”
Glances were shared and then all eyes fixed on the royal.
“I have changed tonight’s security schedule for our penthouse. The aircraft guarding the building’s east side will be moved to accompany their peers on the west end. Similarly, those security guards monitoring the harem wing will be shifting to the penthouse’s front lobby. This creates a lapse in security in several parts of the penthouse for fifteen minutes.”
“Starting when?” Bastien asked.
“8:15.” Reo leaned back in his chair. “So you’ll have fifteen minutes to get in, get the job done and get out.”
“Since your security will be removed from the eastern end of the building, I’m assuming I will be sneaking in through an entrance on that side?”
Reo nodded. “The penthouse has four balconies, one facing every direction. The one on the east side leads directly into the harem.”
“What floor?” Bastien leaned back as well.
“140.”
Silence engulfed the datacenter once more, punctured only by deep breaths. The balcony’s height was an obvious concern.
“We’ll have to use Akira,” Hani said.
“What’s that?”
“It’s my personal aircraft. A Nissan bird — it’s a modified model but it does the trick. I can fly Bas up to the balcony.”
The group mulled over the proposal for several breaths. Stares locked onto the floor.
“Won’t it attract attention?” Bastien asked.
“You’d rather scale 140 floors by hand?”
“There won’t be any security to attract attention,” Reo confirmed.
“Yeah, but what about random bystanders?” Bastien pressed. “You’re telling me no one would notice a civilian craft soaring to the Emperor’s penthouse? Nipponese airspace is exclusive to the police and military vehicles — we’d stand out.”
The concern was understandable, but Reo could see there was no better option. “Look, having you come up the building by way of elevators is not feasible. I would have to move around too many guards. It would be noticed.” He shook his head. “I just can’t do that.”
“Perhaps a disguise on my part wouldn’t require you to remove security,” Bastien offered.
“The building is tiered into three sections with the bottom floors holding government offices, the middle section being government official residences, and the top floors belonging to my family. Each floor requires different badges and passwords to clear. It is impossible to circumvent all of those security checks.” Turning to Hani, he said, “I like her option. Fly directly to the balcony.”
She nodded. Bastien released a long frustrated breath.
“Once atop the balcony, you’ll have to work quickly,” Reo continued. “Glass double doors will lead you into a large hall. There are a lot of statues and old-world artifacts stored there. It’s usually where the geishas gather for festivities, but at that point, it will be empty. Geishas are expected to retire to their quarters around 7:30.”
“So Marie will be in her bedroom as well?” Bastien asked.
“Correct. It’s accessible by the only hallway on the left. Her door is at the end.”
“Can I access her room directly? Through a window, perhaps?”
“No windows.” Reo shook his head. “The only way in is her door. Still up for this?”
“I think it’s too late to ask.” Bastien’s gaze fell. “Hell, if I don’t survive, at least I’d have died trying to make things right.”
Dr. Bala reached over and patted Bastien’s forearm. “Have faith. The Great Buddha will watch over you.” His smile was gentle.
Bastien scoffed. “Gods don’t watch over assassins.”
“Maybe,” Reo said, “but they don’t watch over murderous psychopaths like Marie, either.” Bastien didn’t seem comforted. His eyes remained on the table.
Hani spoke up from the corner. “Where will you be when all this going down, Reo?”
“In the dining room with my family. Father expects his sons promptly for dinner at 8. It is our nightly ritual in the communal section of the penthouse before we all retire to our respective quarters. As a result, I will not be plugged into the mission’s proceedings by way of an earpiece or anything else.” He pointed to Bastien. “As I mentioned back at your apartment, if you are unsuccessful and discovered, I cannot help you.”
Hani chuckled. “With friends like this, who needs enemies?”
She clearly didn’t understand his position. No matter, for she was a trivial element of the entire operation. “I realize… this isn’t optimal,” Reo said. “But… this is truly the best shot we’ve got at assassinating Marie.”
More silence. Everyone seemed to be awash in thought.
“Questions?” Reo pressed.
“Tentacles,” Bastien said. “Does she still have her tentacles?”
“No,” Reo assured. “I had them turned off on day one. She has no tentacles.” Looking around the room, he asked, “Any other questions?”
Bastien shook his head, as did Hani and the rest of the Rogu Collective.
“Alice?” Reo said.
“Yes, I have a question,” she started. “Does she still have her tentacles?”
Reo took a deep breath as if to compose his irritation. Snickers ran wild through the room.
“Yes, I too have a question,” Hani interrupted. “Does she, in fact, or quite possibly, still have her tentacles?”
Nox and Raul let out a hearty laugh. Even Greg smiled.
“What’s so funny?” Alice sounded vexed.
“Nothing,” Reo said. “No tentacles.”
There was a crackle on the speaker phone. Alice said, “I’m ha…ing a hard t..me hearin… can… you…and…—”
Reo pressed a button and ended the call. He requested, “Can you fill her in later, please?” Bastien nodded. Reo stood ready to depart. The datacenter’s faces and servers were pale under the bright lights. “Good luck,” he said and left abruptly.
The plan had to pan out. There would be no failing Etsuji. After Marie was dead, attention could pivot to the Titan colony. And mother.
CHAPTER 20: MARIE
Marie took another pull of euphoria from the pipe and the rush dilated her pupils. The fantasy of nebulas grew in an interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen, helium and other ionized gases. A burning odor of hydrocarbons ballooned as supernovas exploded in blinding flashes of light. She smiled broadly and her eyes rolled back. Then the red comet, the familiar solar system body she’d seen so many times before, raced ahead with its tail of gases in its wake. It swerved right and left and around colorful planets. She reached for it but grabbed nothing except a handful of warm particles. It had been this way forever — the comet was always just within reach, but not quite. She chased it, loved it, and was a victim of her own creation.
One of the planets, Jupiter, turned on its axis to reveal a massive face within its gaseous atmosphere. A large grin showed through white, red and brown stripes. When Marie listed to the right, her fingers brushing against the goosebumps covering her thighs, she said, “Hi, Yuki.”
“Hi, gorgeous,” Yukito said as Jupiter’s Great Red Spot swirled and stormed across his forehead, manipulating his pale flesh.
“Why aren’t you chasing the comet with me, baby?”
“Oh, I was, but now I think I’m going to relax here on Jupiter a bit.” Yukito blinked a couple of times. His gaze transfixed on a galaxy far away. After a pause, he noted, “Your tentacles… they’re so beautiful.”
She giggled playfully. “Oh, these old things?” Her metal limbs curled and coiled about her head like snakes guarding their goddess. They intertwined with her black locks, moving across her neck tenderly. A Parisian Medusa. “My children are back, and I couldn’t be happier.” He had done so much for her. “You have made me very happy.” Her words stretched into the vast expanse of space. “I never thought I’d feel such a strong connection with someone.” Her father and Akiyama had betrayed her, but still, she was willing to put her trust in yet another man.
“I long to be with you forever,” Jupiter said to her. The planet enlarged, its mass subduing everything about it. The cold, windy clouds of ammonia and water spinning wildly within its atmosphere of hydrogen and helium engulfed her. An icy rush compressed her as the couple kissed, their naked limbs entangled. Her tentacles roamed Yukito’s body, their tips nipping him here and there to satisfy her penchant for blood
during love. While her previous lovers hadn’t enjoyed the perversion, Yukito seemed to welcome it. With each slit made, he took her repeatedly, as if he enjoyed the pain. The tentacles helped him last longer, to her delight.
“I- I need to tell you something,” he sputtered.
“No,” she moaned. “Just keep going.”
He stopped thrusting. “The assassin will come for you tonight.”
The rush waned. The cooling winds gave way to heat. So much for an orgasm. She pushed him away and sat upright. “Are you sure?”
He nodded, his black hair askew.
“When?” Her locked eyes with him. “Who?”
Yukito stretched his limbs over the foot of the bed. “8:15. I don’t know who, though.”
She mulled over the response. Was that a lump in her throat? Come on, pull yourself together. Goddesses don’t fear mortals.
“What about security, Yuki?”
He snickered. “Ah, but there won’t any from 8:15 to 8:30.” He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling, still reeling from the high. “The little samurai thought it a good idea to put security on hold in the Emperor’s penthouse.”
“Bastard.” Her eyes seared the crumpled bedsheet. Something clicked in her mind. Gears turned hard enough she swore they were grazing the sides of her skull. “Perhaps we make him regret this decision?”
“Agreed,” Yukito said, staring at the ceiling. “I handed him over to the Yakuza on a fucking platter and they couldn’t kill the shrimp. Now, another chance presents itself.” He sat upright and stared at Marie. “Those fifteen minutes will be his own undoing.”
Her eyes widened. “What about your father and Etsuji?” The royal family’s end was so close she could taste their blood. Dry and jagged, the skin of her deceit moved under her fingertips. Every bit of it delighted her.
“They will all be at dinner from 8 to 9 — as always.” He stroked his hair, lost deep in wickedness. “With no security around, the family will be easy targets. We could take them out with ease during those fifteen minutes. Then with me as the only royal remaining, I will become Emperor.”