Road to Ruisea

❆ ❆ XLIII. JAE ❆ ❆

Jae's horrified when he hears what the mafia boss announces.

"I feel it's almost a shame we have to give you to Sho..."

"WHAT?!" Kumari's squeaky voice demands.

"Yes... I'd much rather keep you two here as entertainers, or at least deliver you to your parents for the bounty myself. But alas, the deal Sho made with me was just too good..."

"What deal?" Jae snaps.

"Who do you think you are?" The boss hums, then catches sight of... Something about Jae. "Oh. You're the third companion. I was wondering where you were. Wonderful, we can deliver the full set!"

A voice from behind Jae sighs, "And just as Chiro got his lady too. Well, Gin, baby, come on, we gots work to do..."

Jae recognizes that name, so he whirls around to face them, "You! You're Tachihara!"

"That's me. Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta tie you up."

Jae pulls a dagger out from under his shirt and holds it at Tachihara's neck, only to find Gin appearing behind him, she too has a dagger, but at Jae's neck.

"Boy, I wouldn't mess... She could kill ya at any second, and so could I."

"You tricked Chiro into coming here, didn't you?"

"Duh! Oi, you're dense... And d'ya know how hard he was t'find? We scoured the 'ole city for 'im... Gin's older brother demanded it."

"Her wha—?"

"My brother," says a girls' voice, and Jae suddenly realizes that's Gin. She sounds so much more feminine than he imagined... "Sho. He's going to kill you, you know — if I don't first."

Jae realizes there's more clinking of metal as half the people at the party brings out their weapons, and once again the boss speaks...

"Kumari, Chiro, whoever-you-are... If you come quietly and let us give you to Sho, it'd be a lot easier! Instead of making the entire Qilucan mafia your enemies as well."

"Never!" Kumari snarls. "I'll never come quietly!"

"Then you leave me no choice," he makes a loose gesture with his hands. "Take care of them."

And every single mafioso lunges at Kumari and Chiro, many men and women in suits, all armed and dangerous — but before they can capture the two, something bright and blue explodes around them.

Jae knows enough to know that that's not Chiro's magic...

"A party?" Comes a woman's voice. "Were we invited?"

A man answers, "No, but I do love to crash a good one! Sorry we're late, everybody!"

Jae knows those voices...

And so does Kumari.

"Daren!" She cries.

"Hi hi, sweet princess!" He waves from the entrance. "Don't worry about a thing. We detectives will take care of the nasty old mafia for you!"

"Things just got a lot more interesting," the boss coos. "Hello, Daren."

"Hello, father!"

"WHAT?" Jae's so shaken, he forgets Gin's got a knife at his throat, because he shrugs her off with ease, kicks Tachihara in the gut, and runs to Kumari's side.

And that's when the fight finally breaks out.

There's sounds of clanging metal and noisy BANGs and Jae knows what they are — they're guns — but since he's never heard one before he's really very frightened when it's loud and his ears ring after the unfamiliar sound is gone, then another round of bullets starts up...