The cars pass by, driving along the highway. The pickup truck pulled over onto the side, most of the passing drivers ignoring the side-view of a corpse just burning to the side. A common occurrence nowadays to the point of pure desensitization.
Kuroiwa, herself, just blankly stares at the boxes. Almost rid of all its panic, not even bothering to hide or conceal the situation. The tactic to hide Box #45 amidst fodder boxes is now obsolete and irrelevant. It's been shot. There's nothing else to do.
With the corpse, nine people. Two of them securely holding the black haired, red-eyed Kuroiwa - our very own Chouko Ashford - as a blond haired man, the mysteriously "translucent blond" has the woman's gun.
The blond, the lucky idiot holding her gun, he has specifically shot the one box that is to be delivered in mint condition, effectively damaging ALL of the goods in one shot. Unintentionally dropping the value of this entire shipment, rendering the possible fortune from this absolutely depleted to mere pocket change. Successfully fulfilling his goal of screwing over Charon and, subsequently, everyone involved with this job.
Kuroiwa openly, openly does not even bother to pay any attention to these mercenaries in terms of physical appearance. The only remarkable ones are the blond gunman, the green sunglasses short person, and "Back-Stepper". Who she, with a better look now that she was standing, sees as a burly tan gentleman with a thick beard. One of those unkempt ruffian folk and all.
... something seems familiar about him, though. She can't put a finger on it.
"Well, then! Get the boxes out of the car!" Back-Stepper exclaims. "We're burning everything and taking the truck with us!"
"..."
The blond notices Kuroiwa's desperation fade, that narrowed-eyed look on her face. Completely rid of all its panic, an abrupt emotional shift that... deeply unsettles him. It upsets him. Slightly annoys him, even, seeing her act completely different. "... hold it. Steele."
"...?" Back-Stepper... apparently, "Steele", looks to the blond. Crossing his arms with a raised eyebrow. "Hm?"
As the blond stops the other mercenaries... Kuroiwa immediately notices the blond's tense facial expression. His skeptical, confused look. Given the fact she's dealing with complete and utter jokes, she decides to drop the seriousness in her demeanor as she goes: "Oh. Sorry. Let me just," before suddenly panicking again. "P-Please! Please- no! Don't-! O-Oh god, oh, please, have mercy...!"
This pisses the blond off. A hostile look on his face as he takes aim at Kuroiwa, still holding her pistol. "Do you know something we don't?"
"..." Kuroiwa resists the urge to continue her non-seriousness by answering that with a yes, and instead poses a question. "Allow me to ask you something. Your intentions are to make sure Charon earns nothing, correct?" Kuroiwa asks.
"Right. You got your cut, sure," the short man with sunglasses responds, chiming into the conversation. "Have yet to see if you actually did get a thousand, but if we sabotaged this job, then..."
"Right. Right. I see," Kuroiwa responds. "Now, hypothetically, what if I told you that... well, there's a high price to what I'm delivering?" Kuroiwa asks, starting to explain this in a calm manner. Really elaborating, detailing it out.
"Tch-!" the Back-Stepper, the one that previously stepped on her back with his seemingly metal legs, noises out. "Cut the crap! Just sounds like a cheap attempt to get yourself out of this safely!"
"Hear her out. Hear her out, Steele," the blond commands, continuing to point the gun at Kuroiwa. "I'm as skeptical as you are, but... you know Charon. Full of surprises..."
"... alright, woman," the blond speaks to Kuroiwa, staring at her and waving the gun lightly to regain her attention. "Go on. Explain. What is it about the price?"
Kuroiwa nods, taking a deep sigh. There was no use hiding it, now. Damage has been done.
"I was paid a thousand dollars... to deliver a shipment worth millions of dollars. Maybe tens, hundreds of millions, even."
"..."
A complete silence amidst the nine surviving people, the sounds of passing traffic and the burning remains of an officer's face.
"... hot damn, we hit the jackpot!"
"Whatever's in here is worth that much?!"
The blond narrows his eyes. "Are you serious? Did Charon really assign you to do this for a thousand dollars?!"
"Charon has no information on the true value, admittedly," Kuroiwa responds. "But yes. He did assign the job. The items are already paid for by the buyer. The payout is huge... if all the boxes are undamaged on delivery."
"Yeah! So what's a single box, eh?!" Steele shouts, grinning widely. "We can make it big! Between the eight of us - a ninth to the client - we'd earn about- a million! Maybe ten millions, each! Hell, if we were nice, you'd get a good cut of it too, girl!"
"W... Wow. That's-" the blond speaks up, the gun lowering slightly... before he continues to aim at Kuroiwa, narrowing his eyes at her. "... you- what reason do you have to tell us this? Are you planning on sharing the cut with the rest of us?"
...
Kuroiwa lets out a sigh, answering. "I neglected to tell you this because you all are threats. But there's no harm in telling you now. No point in keeping it hidden and all. If I'm still able to get money from this, there is a possibility that I can split the rewards with all of you for my life."
"What- what proof do you-"
"Call the number. I have a slip of paper. The client is available if you want to talk to him."
"A-Alright, Griffin! I'll disable the signal blocker and get to calling...!" the sunglasses wearing man shouts, taking Kuroiwa's phone and running to the van.
... Griffin.
Griffin?
...
1897. H. G. Wells. The name of the protagonist in The Invisible Man.
That translucent trick of the blond's... blatantly designed for invisibility. Kuroiwa knows the trick now. The technology isn't publicly released, but this... Griffin... has something that changes his optical density. The material layer over his skin generating some sort of camouflage to blend into his surroundings.
So there's Steele and Griffin.
"Right. If the boxes are undamaged," Kuroiwa repeats.
A mass uproar of cheers, most of the mercenaries present riddled with joy and excitement. Collective celebration, even from the two mercenaries securing Kuroiwa in place. Their voices raised to pure excitement, drowned out by the passing sounds of cars and the deceased officer's burning remains.
Steele just lets out a haughty laugh, almost- pounding his chest a little. "We hit the jackpot! Man, with a million, there's no telling what we could do! This country's OURS, baby! Wooooo!"
"Hold on. Hold on one moment," the blond interrupts his celebrating companions, glaring at Kuroiwa. Finger on the trigger, a hostile look on his face... seeing the. "I don't like the way you're saying that. We're getting rich, right?"
"..." Kuroiwa lifts a hand to her face and sighs. Rolling her eyes at their pathetic display. Now it was time to take away their anticipation, pull the metaphorical carpet of wealth out from under their feet. "You wanted full honesty. You get full honesty. 'Taking a bit of your cut', you say, a cut you would have received... well, except for one tiny issue."
"Which is?!" Steele shouts, glaring at the woman. "We got the boxes! We got the rest of it! What's the goddamn-?!"
"The buyer," Kuroiwa interrupts, a hostile groan in her voice as she glares at the pathetic Back-Stepper. "The buyer is only going to pay for it. If. The. Boxes. Are. Undamaged. Do you see where I'm going with this?"
"..." The blond blinks. "Wa... Wait. You're suggesting-"
"Shipment's worth nothing," Kuroiwa explains, eyes looking to the bullet hole in Box #45. "Mission accomplished, mercenaries. Charon gets nothing from this job, and the blond here has shot away your riches."
The surrounding men stare at Kuroiwa in disbelief.
"... you're- YOU'RE LYING!" Steele shouts, leaning forward with a tense growl. "You can't possibly-"
Interrupting Steele and the others for a moment, the short sunglasses wearing man returns with a phone, dialed to the number Kuroiwa had readily available. Calling that number on the paper given to Kuroiwa, having Eugene pick up on the other end. Receiving the call much earlier than expected.
"Uh- hello? Is this Ai?" he asks, using that makeshift name to cover for Kuroiwa.
Kuroiwa blinks as the phone's held up to her, the phone on speaker. A calm look on her face as she looks to the short man, looking back at him.
"..." A thumbs up from Kuroiwa, before she speaks. "Yes. Hello..." she repeats. "It's Ai. I'm calling just to let you know that... well. There's been a little bit of a mix-up."
Griffin walks up to Kuroiwa's side, putting the gun to the side of her head. Glaring violently at her, ready to pull the trigger. ".........."
"O... Oh? What's up? Is something the matter?"
"Y... Yes. See," Kuroiwa begins to explain, sighing as she looks to Griffin. Mouthing the words: 'let me speak' to the man.
Griffin squints his eyes as he steps back. Gun still aimed at Kuroiwa, listening attentively.
"Y-Yes? W-What is it?"
"... Box #45 has been destroyed by an officer," Kuroiwa half-lies, blaming the damages on the officer instead. "I was pulled over by the police, and they accused the car of being stolen. Some complications arose, and... well, the box has bullet holes in it."
A silent air between Kuroiwa and Eugene, the mercenaries listening actively.
"... Ai... you... h... how could you-"
Kuroiwa grits her teeth, glaring at the phone. "It was out of my control. The box is damaged. Your trick's useless now. What do I do, client? What exactly do I do?"
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
"..."
A sigh...
... before the man calmly answers. "Nothing."
Kuroiwa solemnly stares at the phone, hearing... Eugene... answer. "So. The job's unsalvageable. #45's worth, gone...? About-?"
"Three hundred million dollars."
The mercenaries surrounding Kuroiwa widen their eyes at this. When Kuroiwa estimated that wealth, they were cheering. Now they felt absolute dread, hearing this. Knowing the wealth that Griffin, inherently, shot away.
The exact value now revealed to Kuroiwa, whose response to this is... despair. Desolate despair, staring at the phone. "Right." Kuroiwa sighs. "Right... do what you must. You know the channels to report a failure. I'm sorry it ended up this way, client."
With that, E leaves with one more remark:
"... don't ever come back here. You're no longer welcome here."
Then, E hangs up. A quiet, uncomfortable air between the mercenaries as Kuroiwa's phone is lowered, the call ended.
With that, Kuroiwa's quest is over. The overarching objective she's held onto for years, gone, with this failure. Her blunder, her mistake a stain that brings her to complete worthlessness. A box worth three hundred million dollars severely outweighs everything she is. The moment this gets to the Underworld, the moment Charon catches wind of this... her life is over, and her hunt for the real Kuroiwa is over.
Her value gone, alongside the loss of #45's value.
The other mercenaries look at each other, just... just... processing this. Three. Hundred. Million. All of it down the drain, all because of circumstance. Because of Griffin.
The sunglasses wearing man, the apparent tech specialist, gripping the phone tightly as he glares... offended at this. Representing the responses coming from the other unremarkable mercenaries, the ones that Kuroiwa doesn't care about, this man just looks to Griffin with judgmental looks of disdain.
Steele, included, just- uncomfortably looks to Griffin. A look of pure despair on his face, horrified at what they've done. Three... three hundred million dollars. Gone.
Griffin has his teeth clenched, shaking as he was the one responsible for this unexpected blunder, thinking to himself: it wasn't his fault, he didn't know! ... now trying to figure out what to do now.
"... well? Go on. Open the box," Kuroiwa suggests, an irritated tone to her voice as she just... gave up. Inviting these men, these mercenaries to finish what they inherently started. "You damaged the box. Go on. Look at it. Look at what you shot. You have verbal confirmation that I've been telling the truth. Nothing else to do but to check on what you just wasted away."
...
Griffin... sighs, pocketing Kuroiwa's gun. "Steele... Steele. Get that box out. Now."
"B... But-"
"I said, now..." Griffin seriously responds.
The buff, metal-legged Steele walks to the truck and takes Box #45 out of the back. Hoisting it out, placing it flat and upright on the ground.
"..." The blond... stands in front of the box. Seeing the life-sized nature of it, just a few inches taller than whatever this is. As Steele opens the box and takes the packaging out, the... the glimpse of... pink is seen.
Kuroiwa doesn't bother to look, truthfully. Looking down at the ground, unaware of these mercenaries' reaction to the product in question. All she can hear is the box in question being opened up further, an uncomfortably awkward silence amidst the group.
... and it's broken up by:
"Hello! I'm Shortcake! It's nice to meet you all!"
Shortcake.
One of the Sweet Bot models, as E stated. A limited edition in the package in question. Now that the box is damaged, there's no telling what value the thing has now.
A cute, petite android that's noticeably short. Stylistically in a frilly pink and black dress, its snow white- slightly pink-tinted hair going down to the back of her knees. A pink ribbon around its collar, standing politely with hands folded in front of it.
The android smiles cheerfully and brightly as she's activated. Designed to be exceptionally friendly, to be welcoming and energetic upon opening. Her eyes blinking actively as the plastic eyes are unveiled to the world, fake eyelids fluttering actively as she looks around.
Usually, the instructions state that the box be open and the android be given time to adjust to her surroundings. The time limit starts at the first bit of oxygen, and the android is welcomed into the world. An activated companion ready to be a friend, a buddy, a pal, and so on. So, the android smiles at her new family, seeing all of them staring at her with anticipation.
Oh, the fun they're going to have! Shortcake's processors active, now concocting something that they could do! Giving them all some time before-
"Tch-! What the hell is this?!"
"Hm? Pardon?" Shortcake innocently asks, tilting her head as she looks back at the large man behind her-
Promptly, the android is pushed against the ground, her body smacking against the dirt. Rather than being welcomed, a forceful hand - a hand belonging to Steele - pushes her against the ground as if she were nothing more than a punching bag.
"This is a fucking ANDROID," Steele shouts, violently enraged at the sight. Glaring down at the thing, shoving its face into the dirt. "THIS is what the 300 million dollars are going into?! What a FUCKING JOKE!"
A reaction that Steele has, that riled up the other mercenaries to join in on his anger. Griffin having the blame shifted off of him, as their collective hatred of androids - a common stereotype, being that they were cybernetic mercenaries inherently associating these androids as mortal enemies - banded them together once again.
However, Kuroiwa looks up as she hears Steele shout, watching this occur alongside the group's collective anger. Watching the metal-legged man shove Shortcake into the ground, seeing his drastic methods... immediately brought to shouting. "W-What are you doing to her?!"
"We all heard the phone call. This thing's now completely worthless!" Griffin shouts, violently livid as he glares at this thing. Walking up to it while Steele has it secured, glaring down. "Damn it! Tch- speak up louder the next time you're delivering some 'high grade' piece of shit product! Maybe then, I wouldn't have to do THIS-!" A hard kick to the side of the android.
In that moment, the android's eyes glow brightly, flickering yellow as she lets out a faint alarm. "O-Ow...! I- I'm sorry, b-but-" it tries to speak against the ground, processing these words with-
"SHUT UP!" the glasses-wearing tech specialist shouts, running over to deliver another hard kick to the android. His foot slamming into it.
The android's eyes widen as she registers this sensory data, registering this as... pain. As her material being attacked, as physical harm being inflicted onto her.
"S-Stop that!" Kuroiwa shouts, struggling against the two mercenaries continuing to restrain her. "L-Let her go!"
"Why?! Whatever we do to this thing doesn't matter, bitch. I could scrap this thing, burn it to ash and dust, and it'd still be worth nothing!" Steele shouts, lifting Shortcake's head upward... before slamming it down against the ground again. Dirt and mud splattering out from underneath her, staining her clothing as the bits of ground get into her hair.
Griffin, Steele, and that sunglasses wearing mercenary holding Kuroiwa's phone. All three of them absolutely gang up on this android, unleashing their pure hatred and disdain for this thing, while the other five mercenaries cheer on this abuse.
"Worthless fucking machine!"
"Go back to where you fucking belong!"
Kuroiwa stares at this happening, her red eyes staring to gaze at the android... actively staring at it, her eyes widening. Watching the android as she... she...
...
"... ugh... so, what's the plan now?" Steele asks, grumbling as he stands up from Shortcake. Having let out all of his rage towards this machine- well, actually, doing one more kick before he's completely done. "We've done what we accomplished."
"Well... no point in sticking around... let's go dump the android somewhere," Griffin begins to instruct. "Then we've got to do something about Charon's merc here. Clearly, her name's tarnished and all after that travesty. Seems like we really ruined the reputation of-"
"Kuroiwa."
"Yes, Kuroiwa, and-"
... Griffin blinks as he looks to Kuroiwa. Staring at Kuroiwa, narrowing his eyes.
"What?"
"Kuroiwa," Kuroiwa repeats. It's already over. No point in continuing further. Kuroiwa contently name-drops herself, knowing full well she's going to die by these people's hands. "You're dealing with Charon's newest brat... Kuroiwa."
"... you are NOT Kuroiwa," Griffin responds, a strong certainty behind his voice as he glares at Kuroiwa. As he stares at this woman, this impostor.
... and Kuroiwa thinks to herself: Really, now? Kuroiwa doubles down on this, hearing how... sure... Griffin was, that she isn't Kuroiwa. "I am... I am Kuroiwa... that's my name... the android can attest to it. The android is proof to this."
"W-What?! What the FUCK are you on about?!" Steele shouts. "There's no way you're-!"
"That is my name... Griffin. Steele. The rest. Listen up," Kuroiwa speaks up, looking around at the others. "I am Kuroiwa. Or at least- the one sent to deliver his android, there."
Absolute shock goes through the mercenaries at Kuroiwa insisting this, as she salvages whatever she can from this situation. Ready for her inevitable demise, having nothing else to do now that it was all over. Distracting herself from the pain and cruelty to come from having not fulfilled her goal.
... but, shortly after this, a full truck is seen pulling up to the side. An entire large moving truck, the driver rolling down the window and looking to the others. For reasons initially unknown, this truck driver appears to be pulling over... and Kuroiwa deduces by the mercenaries' inaction that this truck is one of their allies.
Kuroiwa chuckles for a moment, sighing as she looks to this truck. A confident smirk on her face as she looks at...
"Alright- what's going on, everyone? Why are you all still here? We need to get on moving."
...
... it's.. it's- it's...
... him...
... it's him.
"Hey-! You're not going to believe this, sir!" Steele shouts. "This girl, this woman- she's claiming to be Kuroiwa!"
"Kuroiwa? Pff... absolutely not. Kuroiwa's not some bitch."
Chouko's eyes widen, staring at the person pulling up in the truck. Staring at the driver's body, seeing someone unforgettable.
One of the people she's been looking for all this time.
"Simple. Kuroiwa sends his regards."
Matching voice. Almost matching appearance.
"It's very possible that she's gone mad," Griffin idly comments. "Should we do something about her?"
"I don't see why not. If she's somehow knowledgeable about Kuroiwa, nothing to do but to put her down and-" the driver begins to speak as he walks closer, looking down at this "Kuroiwa" impostor. Looking down at her in the darkness of the Indiana night sky, staring at her as his amusement fades.
Chouko's eyes stare back at this man, completely wide-eyed as she stares at his face, seeing the person before her. A hollowing feeling overtakes her body, a cold and uneasy feeling spreading in massive waves. For the first time in years, Chouko's eyes have come across one of the most important people she's been going after.
Why? ... because it was him. It's him. It's... it's the murderer. It's the mercenary. The thug, the person who pulled the trigger. Someone Chouko immediately recognizes.
And this mercenary recognizes her as well. Staring at the black haired woman, seeing the supposed Chouko Ashford before him. The daughter of one of his kills, the heir to a target of his. Staring at her with a look of realization, of astonishment and amazement.
"... there's- no way. You're-" the man speaks, looking at Chouko, a tensely serioius look on his face-
Chouko lunges herself forward, trying to break out of the men's grasps. Forcing her body forward, prying herself away from the restraining men. A violent glare of death as she struggles with all her might, growling visciously.
"W-Woah! Lively, aren't you? What's gotten into ya? Afraid of our-?" Steele asks, an amused look on his face.
"I WILL EVISCERATE YOU AND RIP ALL OF YOUR ORGANS OUT, BIT BY BIT!" the girl shouts, violently staring at this man.
Her voice trembling and shaking as the mercenaries all witness this. Promptly, Griffin takes aim with the pistol, ready to put Kuroiwa down.
Charles's murderer, however- holds a hand up, shaking his head. Staring at Chouko as she's brought to a violent rage. "... you really think you can d-?"
"WITH MY BARE HANDS!" Kuroiwa shouts at the top of her lungs, interrupting him and ranting. All rationality abandoned as she speaks with pure derangement, struggling further to break free. "TEARING YOU INTO NOTHING MORE THAN PURE FERTILIZER NOT EVEN THE MOST DESPERATE OF FARMERS WILL USE."
The murderer rolls his eyes, leaning forward to stare at Chouko. "... hm. I'd like to see you try, brat. Been looking for you for ages... and here you are. Outnumbered."
Kuroiwa growls angrily at the man. "YOU ARE A DEAD MAN. YOUR ESSENCE WILL BE NOTHING MORE THAN A ROTTING DECAY OF CLOSET SPACE-! DRAGGED DOWN TO THE DEPTHS OF HELL AFTER A MILLENIA OF SUFFERING. WHATEVER IT TAKES, BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY, I WILL DRAG YOU DOWN WITH ME!"
"Right, right..." The killer looks to the other mercenaries, just sighing and gesturing them off. "All of you. Keep her restrained. Take every belonging you can from this woman. Strip her of her weapons and all, make sure she's defenseless and helpless. Conscious, yet no longer a threat. We're getting her and the..." Squinting at the Shortcake on the ground. "... the android in the back of the truck."
Following this man's orders- all eight of the men start to take everything away from Kuroiwa. Her baton and knife now confiscated, phone and gun grouped up along her belongings. Even going so far as to take her boots off.
Kuroiwa is now defenseless. Fighting the best she can, to no avail- overwhelmed by these numbers, unable to get past two of them... let alone eight. While her physical body incapable, her rage remained ever unyielding, the mercenaries having to be careful as she struggles with a burning fury.
"Damn it- you sure she has to be conscious?!"
"Yes. Don't knock her out."
And with that, Kuroiwa - as well as Shortcake - are thrown into the back of the truck. Literally thrown, Steele being the one to hurl the two of them into the truck with the care and grace of a stampeding bull. Door locked securely, unable to be opened from the inside, the mercenaries ready to drive off to their base.
The man in question, the apparent leader that's organizing a kidnapping right now, gets into the truck as the other mercenaries prepare to get into the van. Ready to leave the pickup truck, the police car, and the dead police officer behind.
"S... So, sir-" Steele speaks up, looking to the killer mercenary with an unsettled look after that whole- speech. "Why are we bringing those two with us? Wouldn't it be easier to dispose of them...?"
The man sighs... shaking his head as he addresses all of the mercenaries. "The android's whatever. She'll be a useful toy... but, the black haired girl? We'll be Kuroiwa's top mercenaries when we bring her in."
"R... Really?" Steele asks.
"Yes. Consider her worth equal to... billions of dollars in value nowadays."
...
With that information tucked away into their mind, the mercenaries start their departure. Griffin, Steele, and all, following after the truck and heading down the highway to their next destination, ready to do anything to make up for their prior mistake.
If, by chance, this girl ends up worth that amount to them... then...