The Hinomoto Rebellion (48 page)

Coming down the road and parting the throng of gathered spectators was a caravan of black armored cars. They were driving slowly, waiting for people to move out of the way before moving forward. A total of four of the armored trucks rounded the corner and started heading for the capitol.

Deuce cursed. “Laser Heads,” he snarled.

 

“We knew they’d come eventually. Now we just have to figure out how to deal with them.” grumbled 26.

 

The black armored cars closed in on the fighters like an armada of death coming to claim them all.

 

“Wait here, guard the hall.” Yasakuto said as he approached his office. The policemen that were with him obediently stopped and formed a barrier across the hall on either side of the entrance. Yasakuto approached the door and grabbed the handle.

Inside the office, the Shogun stood behind Kanjou, his back against the wall furthest from the door. The brunet was staring at the door and still clutching his wounded arm.
Dammit! Where is everyone!? I can’t fight him with an injury! I can barely move my left arm!
His green eyes narrowed as the doorknob continued turning and the door swung open. With his thoughts concentrated on Kunota’s safety, the Aka Ryuu gritted his teeth and leaped toward the opening door.

“Dammit, he’s already in the office!” cursed Andrea. “What are we going to do now?”

D peered around the corner to take a look at the cadre of police officers standing in the hall. Then he turned back to Andrea. “Alright, I’ll go down the hall first and draw off the cops. You head into the office after I’ve cleared the way, okay?”

Andrea stared at him for a second, then nodded. “Simple enough to work, I suppose.” she muttered.

Without a word, D turned the corner and took off down the hall, letting a war cry escape his throat. Andrea heard a few shots ring out in the hall before she turned and pursued, her katana thumping against her hip as she ran. In front of her, he had slammed through a line of police and was brawling with the second line while the officers he’d knocked down were getting up. Andrea unsheathed her sword as she ran, spinning and slashing through two of the cops’ chests and sending them reeling back to the floor as she passed.

Inside the office, the sounds of the battle out in the hall were barely audible as Kanjou swung at Daimyo Yasakuto. The tall
ronin
had been unable to hit the Daimyo as of yet, and he was beginning to feel weak and light-headed from the blood loss.

As Kanjou pulled back his arm to attempt another punch, Yasakuto swung out with the butt of his gun and smacked Kanjou directly in the ribs. A loud cracking sounded through the room as the brunet staggered back with a howl. He clutched at his side as pain pounded in his head, knowing full well that the pistol had broken several of his ribs. It was all Kanjou could do to keep himself from passing out from the pain as he wobbled backwards away from the Daimyo.

Shogun Kunota was still pressed against the wall, watching in horror as what had already been an unfair fight turned bleaker. Kanjou’s arm was dripping blood more freely now from the physical activity, and he was barely able to stand due to the pain in his ribs.

Yasakuto smiled and raised his gun, pointing it directly at Kanjou. “Now, it’s time to put an end to this so I can get on with ruling my country,” he sneered.

Kanjou shoved the Shogun behind him and stood with his arms out, staring down the barrel of Yasakuto’s pistol. The black void at the end of the barrel seemed like it was trying to take up the
ronin
’s entire field of vision. The brunet was amazed that he felt no fear as he stared at the gun and saw the Daimyo’s finger tightening on the trigger.

I tried...
Kanjou thought as his knees shook with the effort of keeping himself standing,
I tried my best. I’m sorry, everyone.

Just when Kanjou thought it was all over for him and Kunota, there was a loud bang from the other side of the room. The Daimyo turned quickly, his gun still pointing out. Shogun Kunota grabbed Kanjou’s uninjured arm and pulled him across the room, putting some distance and a large, heavy desk between themselves and Yasakuto while the Daimyo was looking the other way.

On the other side of the office, Andrea raced in, her katana in her hand. Blood dripped down the blade as two police crumpled to the carpet in the hall behind her before the door swung shut. She stared at Damiyo Yasakuto with a look that could have frozen mercury.

Yasakuto smiled, forgetting the Shogun and the other
ronin
in the room “Hello, my dear, I’m so glad you could join me.”

“Cut the crap, Ran,” she snapped, using his first name, “I’m here to stop you from killing the Shogun.” She brandished her katana at the Daimyo, slipping into a stance with practiced ease.

Yasakuto looked taken aback for a moment as he stared down the sword at Andrea. “Are we continuing this charade, Andrea?”

“There is no
charade!
I’m not doing this for some sick, twisted game, Ran! I’m serious! I won’t let you harm Shogun Kunota,” Andrea narrowed her eyes, “And I’m going to make you pay for what you did in your little game to make me love you!”

Yasakuto blinked a few times, unable to think of something to say. Then he smiled, and the look in his eyes chilled Andrea’s stomach and turned her intestines into a knotted mess. There was the madness she’d expected to see earlier. “I see what’s going on here,” he cooed, “You want me to assert my dominance over you in a battle... Alright then, my dear, I’ll do whatever you want in order to have you as my own.”

“You don’t seem to understand something, Ran. We were
friends
. I’m not in love with you! This isn’t some game I made up to make you prove yourself to me! You’re a murdering coward and I don’t ever want to be with you!”

Daimyo Yasakuto stared at Andrea for a moment, his dark eyes wide. Had Andrea physically crossed the room and slapped him across his face he wouldn’t have looked more surprised. Then he grinned and laughed madly. “We’ll play it your way, Tiger.”

Andrea pulled the handle of the sword back to her hip, dropping into a defensive stance. Yasakuto raised the gun and pointed it at her, his finger on the trigger as they stared at each other for what seemed like forever.

Suddenly, Andrea was halfway across the distance between herself and Yasakuto, the sword coming down at his head. He quickly stepped in to Andrea’s swing, raising the gun so that it intercepted her blow. Sparks flew off the sword and the gun as they clanged together just before Yasakuto reached out and slammed his fist into Andrea’s gut, sending her stumbling back a few steps. She clutched at her stomach and coughed a few times, not realizing until then just how tender that area was from the fights she’d already been in.

The Tiger looked up at Yasakuto after she had finished coughing. “I see I’m not the only one that’s been training,” she growled.

“Well, you know what they say,” Yasakuto assumed a martial arts stance, still holding the gun, “The environment a child grows up in will effect every facet of their life.” He smirked at her.

Andrea looked back, her eyes cold. “I just think it’s funny that a Daimyo who is so open about hatred of the
ochiudo
is not only in love with one, but
is one
.”

“I would say something deep and philosophical about knowing your enemy, but I think we should cut the chit-chat and end this.”

“Best idea I’ve heard all day!” Andrea screamed the last word as she leaped across the empty space between her and her foe, the katana pulled back.

Andrea let the sword fly in a wide swing that would’ve decapitated the Daimyo had he not gotten his gun up just in time to block the slash. The sound of metal hitting metal rang through the room and was still reverberating when Andrea drew back and slashed again. Yasakuto jumped backwards, the tip of the sword slashing through his black jacket.

She let the blow follow all the way through, spinning her threehundred and sixty-degrees with the sword still leveled at Yasakuto’s neck. The Daimyo quickly raised the gun to block her slice, sparks flying off of the katana as it hit the pistol. The force of the strike was nearly enough to take Andrea off her feet.

As Andrea stumbled back half a step, Yasakuto moved in and punched Andrea in the stomach. She stumbled back further as Yasakuto leaped forward, the butt of the gun heading for the Tiger’s face. Thankfully for Andrea her reactions were still fast and she managed to get the blade up to block the blow. The flat side of the katana got slammed into by the barrel of the pistol, the Daimyo’s fingers protected only by the trigger guard.

The politician and the
ronin
stared each other down, their weapons grating against each other as each tried to gain the upper hand in the fight. The two metallic objects groaned as the combatants shoved them together, each straining against the other.

Yasakuto grinned. “You realize this is useless, right?”

“I fail to see how,” snarled Andrea, the muscles in her arms tight as she tried to break through Yasakuto’s defense and keep from being smacked with the hunk of metal.

“While you have the advantage in melee, I have several advantages, including this one,” Yasakuto’s grin widened and his fingers tightened on the trigger.

The
ronin
had been forced to retreat to the lobby of the capitol building, Many of their number lay dead or dying out on the steps, the laser burns still smoking as the scent of burned fur and flesh permeated the air. Inside, the scene was much the same as some of the fighters fell to their wounds on the marble floor while others hunkered down behind the doors and tried to keep low. Every once in awhile a laser blast would zap its way through the door, filling the air with smoke and the scent of burning wood and scorched brick.

Deuce and 26 were lying on the floor with their backs to the double doors, wincing each time a blast went over their heads. They both glanced around at the
Kemono
and
ronin
that were huddling on either side, looking to them for guidance.

“Well, Aka Ryuu, what now?” sneered Deuce as splinters of wood rained down into his red-brown mane.

26’s mind raced.
There’s no way we can take on a TK Squad without weapons. We’ll all be slaughtered,
she looked around. There were possibly forty
Kemono
left, and maybe fifty or sixty
ronin
. The rest of their force was either dead out on the road and steps, dead or dying in the lobby, or too injured to be of any use.
What can we do? Short of completely surprising them-
An idea suddenly flashed into her head.