Post by Fukushu on Sept 18, 2022 1:34:44 GMT -5
~22 Years Ago~
For three years the Heran Fukushu ran operations for the Yuutsu clan, and those three years were about as good as things got for him. Things started off a little rough though, as the transition from Kutsu and himself didn't go as smoothly as he would have liked. Despite the attempt at a peaceful take over many of the children fled the scene, never to be seen again, which left a massive gap in labor which needed to be filled. Many long hours of recruitment would be put into trying to do just that, though it came more difficult than what Fukushu had anticipated.
He wasn't that great of a people person, and thus the promise of more work for less rewards wasn't carried very well to the potential recruits. This in turn lead Fukushu to following many of the same tactics as his predecessor had, namely fear and intimidation. As long as he kept the older generation on his side, the ones that were older and more powerful than the raw recruits, he knew he wouldn't have any issues going forward. But the numbers wasn't his biggest issue.
Niku, the man who had previously ran things through Kutsu, had refused to hand things over without a fight. Most of the older children decided that they'd rather to stick to the ones they knew, and choose to follow Niku instead of Fukushu. This led to the brutal guerilla war in which Fukushu currently finds himself. Fukushu has made the old blaster manufactory his base of operations, and is of right now the only piece of territory he securely holds.
The Yuutsu clan chief, who eventually revealed his name to be Korosu, came off as friendly enough during their first encounter, but was now extreme in his demands of Fukushu and his petty gang. Niku had been happy enough small time street robberies, but Korosu wanted much more than that. With the weekly demands placed on Fukushu they had to greatly increase the scope of their operations, moving into full on burglaries and extortion. Climb rose massively as a result, which lead to many of the gentler Herans to leave the city, which opened up a new avenue for the gangs to capitalize on.
Korosu was insistent on plummeting the value of property so that he could purchase at an extremely low rate, only to then force his gangs out of the area so that the value would rise and he could re-sell it later. The only problem was that others, like Niku, had caught onto the scheme, and began to send their own men out to rival territory to drive the value back down. The streets became the battleground for this property warfare, and Fukushu was at the center of it.
Or so he should have been. His shoulders weren't cut out for this kind of warfare, and just last week they had lost the last street they controlled, sending them back to the confines of the blaster manufactory. Korosu had made it quite known how he tolerated failure, and thus Fukushu was forced into combat himself. He had thought that the move to management would mean that he would avoid direct combat, but he simply couldn't afford to lose now.
By then he had formed his own squad, the only ones around who he deemed to be worthy of actually protecting him. Their names were Osorea, 14, Itami, 14 and Kuru, 15. They were veterans from before his time, but they had done enough of their own to be trustworthy. Previously they had ran their own squads, but through one means or another had ended up failing in their missions. He didn't blame them though; the boys serving under them hadn't been fit for the job, and Fukushu was at fault for that. Recruiting was more than just collecting numbers, though at the moment he just couldn't afford to be picky.
Instead of giving them new squads to send out in another futile task he instead group them together alongside himself, so that they could take to the streets together. Whenever he went out he left Wakita in charge, who had proven to enjoy the desk work much more than the combat, which was all the better for Fukushu seeing as he didn't ever expect to understand that side of things as well as Wakita seemed to. Despite his age he had quite the mind on him, and he was the only one around that he felt he could fully trust.
The first task he gave himself was taking control of the distillery district, which was where the alcohol of the region was manufactured. Alcohol was a hugely profitable industry on Hera, and recently Niku had moved his gang over to the region and taken control under the guise of 'providing protection' for the workers. It was a risky task as many state officials had their hands in the industry, but Fukushu wanted to strike directly at the heart of Niku.
The old bastard had proven to be a thorn in his side, and so far in terms of the war Fukushu was falling massively behind. Somehow Niku had managed to rebuild and even grow on what he had accomplished before, as though the competition had pushed him ahead. On top of the potential riches that controlling the distilleries provided, it was also very close to the blaster manufactory, which meant that as long as Niku controlled it he could continue to send raids against them.
That night Fukushu drew up his plan which he shared only with Wakita and his three squad mates. He considered it a fairly standard assault mission, though with much higher stakes than what they were used to. "Alright, is everybody prepared for this? We only have one shot at this; if we fail they'll hit us back in force, with more than what we can handle given what we have left. We probably have about 60 soldiers we can leave behind; hopefully that'll be enough to hold things for else while we're gone. I've given charge over to Wakita like always, so he should be able to handle things."
"Explain what exactly it is we're doing again?" That was Kuru, the oldest of the lot. He was the most cautious of the trio; always questioning the instructions of Fukushu. At first he found it quite annoying, though later on after some of his mistakes had become quite clear Fukushu began to respect the questions being asked, and Kuru for having the courage to ask them. They were always valid questions, and questions which Fukushu needed to answer.
"The distillery district produces the highest quality alcohols in the region. It's a highly profitable business, and one that Niku has managed to get a hold of. He's managed to extort them for 'protection' receiving both payments in cash as well as product. On top of that he's also controlling who and where they sell the product so that they can manipulate the supply and demand for goods. He forces sales away from one region to sell his own personally supply at a higher price."
It was a scheme that greatly frustrated his own boss Korosu, who had his own alcohol importing business. Niku would flood certain regions with an excess of supply in order to stop Korosu from making profits, and by the time the old man had figured out where to sell his alcohol Niku which shift things up again. Korosu wanted the distillery taken over, and he wasn't giving Fukushu much more time to accomplish that; this needed to be done right now.
"And they just let him get away with that? What cowards." Itami, the youngest and the most brash of the lot. He'd try and complete the mission himself if Fukushu were to only give the order. It was a tenacity that the Heran respected, though it had also gotten his entire squad killed. It was something that Fukushu was trying to use selectively, in the hopes that he could eventually temper the young man into a wiser warrior, though that process was going slowly.
"They're laborer's and business men, not warriors. And besides, Niku has shifted his focus over to the muscle game now, and has recruited accordingly. We'll be dealing with real soldiers on this one, not boys. Anyone have a problem with that?" Nobody spoke up, though Fukushu could see that aside from Itami there were a few looks of doubt. "Don't worry, I understand your concerns. We don't be dealing with any fighters directly on this one; I plan to take the distillery by guile."
Osorea, the most like himself, spoke up next. "Guile? Well, don't keep us in the dark any longer; what did you have in mind?" As strong as Fukushu was, even with the help of the others he knew that he'd be no match for the kind of warriors that would prowl the distillery yard. A head on attack would result in nothing but death, and so he had devised a plan which he hoped would allow them to take control without any loss of life, should they pull it off.
Fukushu ushered his crew over to a small monitor which has playing a video which appeared to monitor the entrance to the distillery. "You see, I've had a camera placed atop the entrance for some time, trying to figure out the perfect time to strike. Unfortunately the men who guard the distillery are incredibly diligent, as they never actually leave the compound. The eat, drink and sleep all day inside, on the chance that someone may attack. Niku thinks that'll be what protects him against us, and for now it has. I never saw any opportunity to lead an assault with them around, but maybe there's another way."
By now the video has been playing for some time, with the recording indicating that the current footage came from around three in the morning. Fukushu points out the figure that enters through the sole door. "Every night at three or around there this man enters the distillery. He carries a cart with him, and thirty minutes later he leaves. The workers are only at the distillery themselves from nine to five, and the manager leaves an hour later which means this man is delivery his goods to Niku's men who are the only ones left. Now as far as our scouts know this is the only entrance or exit after Niku's men turned the place into a bloody fortress when taking over."
He'd bet his life that there was food and drink being delivered to the men. The distillery themselves only produced alcohol, which might be a favorite among the mercenaries but still not enough for them to live off of. They had to have food and water delivered to them and this must have been it. Surprisingly he never noticed any other guards around this one delivery man which made Fukushu quite nervous about potentially stepping into a trap, but this was the one opening he could possibly think of. Niku's mercenaries had secured every other potential entrance, even placing a dome over top of the yard to stop people from flying in.
"So, the plan is rather simple then. We get a hold of them delivery and we poison the supplies going to the mercenaries. I know we have some poison around here somewhere... even if it isn't the strong stuff, we'll have something that'll weaken them up for us. If they're not dead we can finish them off and take hold of things ourselves." It sounded nice in theory, but there was still one large problem: how were they supposed to hold it against Niku? As soon as he heard what would happen he'd send another force out to take it, and his boys wouldn't be worth much then.
On top of that he knew that they were being watched as well; they couldn't afford to spend too much time away from their own base without letting Niku know that they were gone. At that point his men would lay siege and this whole thing would all come tumbling down on him. No, he needed to use this opportunity as a springboard; whoever was in charge of the troops at the distillery had to know where Niku was. From there they could surprise the old man and finally throw some of the pressure off.
Whatever reservations the boy's might still hold were kept silent as the boys suited up for combat. The combat suits they all had were beginning to wear out, and they didn't have the resources to replace them; just another reason to avoid direct combat. When it came to the offensive side they were much better off, as the blaster factory had all the resources they needed to produce high quality models for another year or so; any longer than that and they'd either be dead or victorious.
Before heading off he spoke to Wakita privately, for what could have been the final time. "Alright, Wakita. You know the plan. You're gonna have to hold the fort down while I'm gone, and when I say that I'm being serious this time. If we aren't back by morning then... well, you can expect company. They'll be in force, and with two or three times the number we have. You'll be able to use the defensive positioning to hold them off for a while, but I fully expect them to overwhelm you eventually." Fukushu handed the young boy a key, and pointed behind him.
"Underneath my desk is a locked trap door. The sewer system beneath is a disgusting maze, but eventually you should be able to find your way out of here. If it all comes to that then I'll likely be dead, so what you choose to do is up to you, though I'd hope that you'd find Niku for me, and properly finish him off. Whether I fall above or below I'll be able to rest happy that the bastard is going with me." The boy looked solemn as always, but Fukushu expected that. With those final words said he formed his squad and took off to the distillery.
Fukushu knew as well as anyone that the streets were Hell at this time of night, and so like any smart street urchin they took to the roof tops, leaping from building to building while trying not to alert anyone below. They were able to avoid trouble until the distillery district itself came into view, where there was a sentry posted on the same building that Fukushu had planted his camera. The man was alone, and Fukushu with his group was able to quickly overpower and silence him, though not before the man destroyed their camera. At least they finished him before he had the chance to warn others.
The distillery district was a rather dubious name, making the region sound much grander than it really was. Upon entering the district you're greeted by an open courtyard that used to be rather lively, though the last that Fukushu had seen of it most of the plants had withered and died. Moving forward you'd come to a small administrative building where the manager and his secretaries worked, handling finance, deliveries and the like. On the right you'd have the main distillery building itself; this one stood two stories high, and it contained a basement which the much smaller administrative building lacked.
To the left of the courtyard was an open space where they stored some raw supplies. It was also used by the staff when on break, and if he had to guess this is probably where the mercenaries had chosen to set up their living quarters. Everything beyond a certain point had to be a guess on a count of the fact that the crazy bastard Niku had decided to protect his investment by building a dome over the whole bloody thing, stopping anybody from flying in quietly. Usually you'd need some sort of permit for that sort of thing, though it didn't look like anybody official really cared to try and stop them.
The only entrance that didn't require ripping a hole in the steel was the front door, which itself was monitored by two guards on both sides at all times. Having studied his recordings many times over, Fukushu had deduced that there were twelve mercenaries in total, and none of them looked friendly. He didn't know the leader's name, but the look made him hard to mistake. He was taller than any Heran that Fukushu had ever seen; the bastard had to practically bow just to fit inside the door. He had the usual scars that marked any Heran, but this one also had his whole jaw missing, replaced with a slab of steel.
He also had a cruel look about him; the kind of look that made Fukushu want to stay away from him. A kind of fear that he had never experienced before, and he knew his boys felt similar. Thankfully for them he wasn't on duty tonight, and based on the few facial expressions that Fukushu could make out on his recordings the man didn't much like duty at all. He was the brawn of the group, but not someone that Fukushu could work with. He hoped that once inside they'd be able to find the brains.
Checking the time revealed that it was one in the morning, which gave them plenty of time to scout things out. He had his boys hop out across the rooftops to get their eyes as wide spread as possible. The goal was to find the delivery man and intercept him before he could reach the distillery. He had provided everyone with a map showing how he had tracked the man's movements every night, but the route was always changing, and thus they could never say for sure where he might be.
And so they waited. It took about an hour until finally one of his squamates finally made contact with him. Osorea sent a communication through to his scouter, telling him that he may have found something. Fukushu wasted no time heading over in his direction. The Heran found his lad perched a top one of the many buildings situated near the distillery district, eyes down and focused on the streets below. "Down there; you see what I see?"
Fukushu looked down below and indeed he could see. A small man, who appeared to be the same as the one Fukushu had so diligently watched on his recordings. Though his face was hidden by both a hood and the cover of darkness, he could not mistake the feeble way in which he carried himself; almost certainly a trick Fukushu had decided, in an effort to lure in attackers. The man climbed out of the sewer system, which would explain how he managed to evade them for the most part. The delivery was left as a dead-drop for the man to pick up, his cart left hidden among some piled up garbage which he tore away.
By now his other squamates had figured out where they were and had grouped up behind Fukushu, with Itami especially eager to jump him right away. "Don't let his appearance fool you. The manor in which he carries himself is almost certainly a ruse; he's like to be much more powerful than he lets on. Don't bother with your scouters either; the old man has some way of hiding his fighting ability. We're going to do this carefully, so listen to exactly what I have to say."
They weren't actually all that far from away from the distillery, and an open fight would likely lead to too much noise being made, which would cause the guards to come and investigate. Instead Fukushu ordered Itami and Kuru to lower their power level as low as possible to try and avoid suspicion. From their they'd revert back to their old sob story act, approaching the old man and asking for a handout. It should at the very least stop him in his tracks, and buy them enough time to sneak up behind him.
Kuru and Itami did as they were told, approaching the old man while Osorea stayed on top of the building to act as a lookout while Fukushu snuck up behind the delivery man. "Please sir... we're hungry. We can smell the goods you have in there, and we don't eat a lot!" From where Fukushu was standing he had no way of knowing how he reacted to the child's words. What he did notice though is that Itami and Kuru were frozen in fear once they got closer enough to look upon the man's face.
"So you must be the one who's taken control of my empire. You have any idea how much work I've had to put into rebuilding things?" What? Fuksuhu himself was now frozen as the old man turned and revealed a hideous face. He never found out what Niku's face looked like, but based on what the old man said he figured it must have been him. "As soon as I got word about your little camera I figured that it'd be sooner rather than later that you'd show your own face around here. I had my informant send word of when you were coming, so that I could get a measure of you in person."
Fukushu was still stunned, unsure of what to do or how to respond. His squad mates too remained in place, unable or unwilling to move against their former master. He reckoned that they must have been some of the very few to have seen Niku's face, before he installed Kutsu to run things for him. "Dangerous it was, coming out here alone, but I don't think I have much to fear from this lot; look like they're about ready to cry. You on the other hand... well I have to say you're more than what I was expecting. So much potential, not just in strength but in initiative and leadership too."
Fukushu was trying to examine his surroundings, to see if he could use something near him to his advantage. Something about the old man's foul stench struck fear in Fukushu though, and still he found himself unable to attack. "Let me guess... your plan was to take me down, poison the food, delivery it to my men and then take them out once they're sick? Not bad, had I left my usual man in charge of delivery. He was just a possum though, some old fool who'd make you feel confident enough to strike. Once I heard that you were moving out yourself I took the role myself."
He knew things were too simple. "You would have made a great number two I think. Kutsu was never much of a go-getter if you know what I mean. Good at following orders, but not great when it came to taking advantage of situations; not like you. It's too bad you had to use that against me though... We could have done a lot together you know. You've done a great deal of damage to my organization, but so have I to yours. I find myself in a position of weakness still however, and if we pool our forces together then... well, we might be able to deal with that bastard you call boss now."
It was becoming pretty clear where this was going, but Fukushu wanted no part of it. Korosu had a ruthlessness to him that he knew would be nasty to fight against, and this was as clear an opportunity as he was ever going to get. Fortunately for him it seemed as though Niku has been so enamored with Fukushu that he failed to spot Osorea, who would be his only hope right now. With one quick flick he gave the single and the young boy leapt down from the roof top.
As Fukushu had though, Niku hadn't realized Osorea was up there. He came down on top of the old man with enough force to knock him off his feet, though he knew that it wouldn't last for long. Osorea had some wits to him, and wasn't a bad fighter, but Fukushu still feared what the old man was hiding back. He quickly followed his squad mate into battle, leaping on top of Niku while Osorea held his head down. From there Fukushu proceeded to pummel his head into the pavement.
By now the other two had managed to find control of themselves, which each grabbing a hold of Niku's leg in order to hold him down. Thankfully Fukushu was able to keep the old man's mouth shut, which seemed to help with the noise. Unfortunately he simply wouldn't stay down, no matter how many times Fukushu slammed his head into the sidewalk. Somehow he eventually managed to wriggle free of all their grasps, pulling himself back up to his feet and stepping back a few paces.
His face was a bloody mess; unrecognizable compared to just a few moments ago, yet somehow he still stood tall. The fear inside of Fukushu was just as strong as before, but now his courage was overwhelming. He leapt forward at the old man, refusing to let this opportunity go to waste. He knew that if Niku didn't die by his hands right now then he may never get the opportunity again. Despite the prior beating Niku was still able to defend himself as Fukushu pushed forward, throwing a barrage of strikes of which only a few landed. He ordered his squad to push forward, but none obeyed.
Perhaps they were still afraid, or maybe they simply thought that Niku would come out victorious and they wanted the opportunity to side with the winner? He didn't have time to think about betrayals; he was in a battle of life and death right now. The more he pushed forward the more Niku seemed to throw back, with more of his shots landing than Fukushu's were. By now his own face was beginning to resemble Niku's as the blood and bruises began to cover his face.
He'd never thought that an old man would be able to push him like this; push him like he's never been pushed before. He'd been in fights before, but nothing were he actually felt like he could lose, at least not in a one on one situation. A misstep by Fukushu allowed Niku to pick the boy up and throw him into a nearby wall, mostly thanks to his own momentum. He didn't have time to dust himself off though as the veteran showed an unusual speed in getting over to him, laying forth a barrage of quick strikes which Fukushu could only limply defend against.
As hard as it was for him to admit it, Fukushu was losing this fight. He could feel his limbs beginning to tire, with every blocked effort becoming reducing less and less of the impact. Sooner or later he knew he was going to fad; the only question now was when. "You disappointment me, boy. Even as I lay weakened you failed to stop me, and now I beat you so easily? Perhaps I was wrong about your potential. Maybe one of these whelps will be better served as my second in command, assuming I don't execute them for betraying me in the first place."
Another hard slam into a building wall brought Fukushu back down to his stomach, though not for long as Niku dragged him right back up and slammed him again into the brick and mortar. "You and your little pack of rats have caused me so much trouble. I can't wait to fully drive your lot out of town. That fool Korosu should learn to mind his own business and stay in his own territory. We had a good thing going here, and he had to ruin in!"
Grabbing Fukushu by the collar now, Niku again slammed Fukushu in the building, and again and again and again until the wall finally gave way and the two tumbled inside. In the dark of night the boy was unable to determine what the building housed, though he didn't give much thought to it as Niku approached. "I suppose I do owe you some amount of thanks. You showed me flaws in my system; not enough effort placed into the muscle side of things. Thankfully I've learnt the error of my ways; next time Korosu won't find storming my holds so easy. You've already learnt as much with the distillery."
A swift shot to the gut retched Fukushu over, but Niku grabbed a hold of his hair in order to keep him on his feet. "I think I've had my fun with you. It's not often I get to mix business with pleasure, but I must admit I have enjoyed this outing. So often the dirty work is left up to someone else; being able to partake in it myself is something I have long since missed. I'm afraid that you can't offer me much more than you already have though. Once I take care of you I'll be taking back my property, starting with the three runts outside. Seems they didn't prove as much in a fight as you'd hoped?"
You could say that again. They were young though, and not hardened like Fukushu was. They had a system and others to rely on, and maybe a bit too much of it. Not that he wasn't upset, but he was more upset at his own effort. Beaten down like an old man, without any sort of reply? Perhaps he deserved to lose. If he were die then at least he'd go out in a fight; that's how any good Heran should hope to go out. At least he'd die a warrior.
"One last thing though, boy. Where is your master? My scouts haven't been able to locate him. Tell me where he is and I'll promise I'll make this quick and pai-AH" In an instant the man's grip around Fukushu's hair was released. When he found the courage to look up he saw a hole where Niku's stomach used to be. Without any more words the old man tumbled down, with Fukushu scuttling away. Was he saved by some sort of guardian angel?
No, just Wakita. For some reason the young lad had left his post, taking one of the finest blaster along with him. Fukushu was left speechless, even as the young lad ran over and helped him up. It took him a few moments to process the situation before finally being able to ask the obvious question. "Just what the Hell are you doing? Didn't I ask you to hold down the fort?" Wakita had the same solemn look on his face as always. "I thought you might need some help is all; was I wrong."
He almost hit him for that, but he couldn't deny that the boy had saved his life with that stunt, and considering that their main rival was dead he expected that they wouldn't be any sort of coordinated attack coming at them any time soon. "Well, I can't really argue with that. I suppose you didn't save my life and all; just hope you didn't leave any old idiot in charge while you were gone." With Niku dead it made his life a whole lot simpler, but they still had the matter of the distillery to take care of.
"Alright then. Wakita: you head back to the fort. I think that with the new situation we'll be able to handle things ourselves now. Osorea and Kuru: you two grab a hold of the wagon and get ready to push it to the distillery. Itami: you'll stay in here with me; we have some... messy work to take care of." Fukushu gestured Itami over to the body of Niku while the other three did as they were told. "Hold him down; I'll need to be precise for this."
A few moments later and the two exited the building and regrouped with Osorea and Kuru. "What were you doing in there?" Itami didn't say a word. "Don't worry; you'll see soon enough. For now I want you to worry about pushing the wagon without anything falling off; we're late and I don't want them to be any more pissed off." The four squad mates walked over to the entrance of the distillery, where a very confused looking guard stopped them. "What's you lot want?"
Fukushu gestured over to the cart. "What's it look like?" The guard walked over to the cart and gave it a quick examination before responding. "You's not the usual guy. Where's he at?" Fukushu let out a sigh. "You want our goods or not? And I'll be needing a word with your leader; the ugly one." The guard laughed before opening the door. "Sure, but don't call him that to his face else you'll lose that pretty little smirk you got."
The group entered and pushed the cart over to the left side of the courtyard where a few tents had been set up. Just as Fukushu had thought, that's where the mercenaries had set up their living quarters. About five minutes of waiting later and the big ugly one showed up looking pissed as Hell and ready to kill. "You best have a good reason for this. Me and my men don't like surprises; we don't get paid enough for bullshit like that. We like open fights, not setting up camp; best tell your boss that too. How long are we going to be waiting out here for anyway? Not once have we had to deal with any assaults."
Fukushu removed his hood and smiled. "That's because you're good at your job. You intimidate people, and they know that you can kill them quite easily. It's a valuable skill for a mercenary, and one that my employer would like to take advantage of." He looked visibly confused for a moment, before the realization that he was not talking to one of Niku's boys eventually came to him. "Just who the Hell are you exactly, boy? And don't give me an answer I won't like."
Fukushu responded by throwing down a severed head in front of the man's feet. One look down and he knew exactly who he was looking at. "Niku. The old bastard. Someone finally did him in then? Never thought it'd be a kid that took him down; even I knew better than to try and tussle with him. So, that mean we're finally free to go? My men been looking for a fight for quite some time now, and it's clear we won't be having it today."
Fukushu smiled again; he had them. "You'll be getting a fight alright, but not for Niku. You'll work for Korosu now. Go these coordinates and let him know the new arrangement. I think you'll find him a much better employer than Niku ever was. This place can be held by own men; ones who don't mind a little be of quiet time." Fukushu turned to Osorea. "Head back to the fort and tell Wakita to gather everything we need for operations. Let him know that we have a new fort moving forward."
WC: 5,911
He wasn't that great of a people person, and thus the promise of more work for less rewards wasn't carried very well to the potential recruits. This in turn lead Fukushu to following many of the same tactics as his predecessor had, namely fear and intimidation. As long as he kept the older generation on his side, the ones that were older and more powerful than the raw recruits, he knew he wouldn't have any issues going forward. But the numbers wasn't his biggest issue.
Niku, the man who had previously ran things through Kutsu, had refused to hand things over without a fight. Most of the older children decided that they'd rather to stick to the ones they knew, and choose to follow Niku instead of Fukushu. This led to the brutal guerilla war in which Fukushu currently finds himself. Fukushu has made the old blaster manufactory his base of operations, and is of right now the only piece of territory he securely holds.
The Yuutsu clan chief, who eventually revealed his name to be Korosu, came off as friendly enough during their first encounter, but was now extreme in his demands of Fukushu and his petty gang. Niku had been happy enough small time street robberies, but Korosu wanted much more than that. With the weekly demands placed on Fukushu they had to greatly increase the scope of their operations, moving into full on burglaries and extortion. Climb rose massively as a result, which lead to many of the gentler Herans to leave the city, which opened up a new avenue for the gangs to capitalize on.
Korosu was insistent on plummeting the value of property so that he could purchase at an extremely low rate, only to then force his gangs out of the area so that the value would rise and he could re-sell it later. The only problem was that others, like Niku, had caught onto the scheme, and began to send their own men out to rival territory to drive the value back down. The streets became the battleground for this property warfare, and Fukushu was at the center of it.
Or so he should have been. His shoulders weren't cut out for this kind of warfare, and just last week they had lost the last street they controlled, sending them back to the confines of the blaster manufactory. Korosu had made it quite known how he tolerated failure, and thus Fukushu was forced into combat himself. He had thought that the move to management would mean that he would avoid direct combat, but he simply couldn't afford to lose now.
By then he had formed his own squad, the only ones around who he deemed to be worthy of actually protecting him. Their names were Osorea, 14, Itami, 14 and Kuru, 15. They were veterans from before his time, but they had done enough of their own to be trustworthy. Previously they had ran their own squads, but through one means or another had ended up failing in their missions. He didn't blame them though; the boys serving under them hadn't been fit for the job, and Fukushu was at fault for that. Recruiting was more than just collecting numbers, though at the moment he just couldn't afford to be picky.
Instead of giving them new squads to send out in another futile task he instead group them together alongside himself, so that they could take to the streets together. Whenever he went out he left Wakita in charge, who had proven to enjoy the desk work much more than the combat, which was all the better for Fukushu seeing as he didn't ever expect to understand that side of things as well as Wakita seemed to. Despite his age he had quite the mind on him, and he was the only one around that he felt he could fully trust.
The first task he gave himself was taking control of the distillery district, which was where the alcohol of the region was manufactured. Alcohol was a hugely profitable industry on Hera, and recently Niku had moved his gang over to the region and taken control under the guise of 'providing protection' for the workers. It was a risky task as many state officials had their hands in the industry, but Fukushu wanted to strike directly at the heart of Niku.
The old bastard had proven to be a thorn in his side, and so far in terms of the war Fukushu was falling massively behind. Somehow Niku had managed to rebuild and even grow on what he had accomplished before, as though the competition had pushed him ahead. On top of the potential riches that controlling the distilleries provided, it was also very close to the blaster manufactory, which meant that as long as Niku controlled it he could continue to send raids against them.
That night Fukushu drew up his plan which he shared only with Wakita and his three squad mates. He considered it a fairly standard assault mission, though with much higher stakes than what they were used to. "Alright, is everybody prepared for this? We only have one shot at this; if we fail they'll hit us back in force, with more than what we can handle given what we have left. We probably have about 60 soldiers we can leave behind; hopefully that'll be enough to hold things for else while we're gone. I've given charge over to Wakita like always, so he should be able to handle things."
"Explain what exactly it is we're doing again?" That was Kuru, the oldest of the lot. He was the most cautious of the trio; always questioning the instructions of Fukushu. At first he found it quite annoying, though later on after some of his mistakes had become quite clear Fukushu began to respect the questions being asked, and Kuru for having the courage to ask them. They were always valid questions, and questions which Fukushu needed to answer.
"The distillery district produces the highest quality alcohols in the region. It's a highly profitable business, and one that Niku has managed to get a hold of. He's managed to extort them for 'protection' receiving both payments in cash as well as product. On top of that he's also controlling who and where they sell the product so that they can manipulate the supply and demand for goods. He forces sales away from one region to sell his own personally supply at a higher price."
It was a scheme that greatly frustrated his own boss Korosu, who had his own alcohol importing business. Niku would flood certain regions with an excess of supply in order to stop Korosu from making profits, and by the time the old man had figured out where to sell his alcohol Niku which shift things up again. Korosu wanted the distillery taken over, and he wasn't giving Fukushu much more time to accomplish that; this needed to be done right now.
"And they just let him get away with that? What cowards." Itami, the youngest and the most brash of the lot. He'd try and complete the mission himself if Fukushu were to only give the order. It was a tenacity that the Heran respected, though it had also gotten his entire squad killed. It was something that Fukushu was trying to use selectively, in the hopes that he could eventually temper the young man into a wiser warrior, though that process was going slowly.
"They're laborer's and business men, not warriors. And besides, Niku has shifted his focus over to the muscle game now, and has recruited accordingly. We'll be dealing with real soldiers on this one, not boys. Anyone have a problem with that?" Nobody spoke up, though Fukushu could see that aside from Itami there were a few looks of doubt. "Don't worry, I understand your concerns. We don't be dealing with any fighters directly on this one; I plan to take the distillery by guile."
Osorea, the most like himself, spoke up next. "Guile? Well, don't keep us in the dark any longer; what did you have in mind?" As strong as Fukushu was, even with the help of the others he knew that he'd be no match for the kind of warriors that would prowl the distillery yard. A head on attack would result in nothing but death, and so he had devised a plan which he hoped would allow them to take control without any loss of life, should they pull it off.
Fukushu ushered his crew over to a small monitor which has playing a video which appeared to monitor the entrance to the distillery. "You see, I've had a camera placed atop the entrance for some time, trying to figure out the perfect time to strike. Unfortunately the men who guard the distillery are incredibly diligent, as they never actually leave the compound. The eat, drink and sleep all day inside, on the chance that someone may attack. Niku thinks that'll be what protects him against us, and for now it has. I never saw any opportunity to lead an assault with them around, but maybe there's another way."
By now the video has been playing for some time, with the recording indicating that the current footage came from around three in the morning. Fukushu points out the figure that enters through the sole door. "Every night at three or around there this man enters the distillery. He carries a cart with him, and thirty minutes later he leaves. The workers are only at the distillery themselves from nine to five, and the manager leaves an hour later which means this man is delivery his goods to Niku's men who are the only ones left. Now as far as our scouts know this is the only entrance or exit after Niku's men turned the place into a bloody fortress when taking over."
He'd bet his life that there was food and drink being delivered to the men. The distillery themselves only produced alcohol, which might be a favorite among the mercenaries but still not enough for them to live off of. They had to have food and water delivered to them and this must have been it. Surprisingly he never noticed any other guards around this one delivery man which made Fukushu quite nervous about potentially stepping into a trap, but this was the one opening he could possibly think of. Niku's mercenaries had secured every other potential entrance, even placing a dome over top of the yard to stop people from flying in.
"So, the plan is rather simple then. We get a hold of them delivery and we poison the supplies going to the mercenaries. I know we have some poison around here somewhere... even if it isn't the strong stuff, we'll have something that'll weaken them up for us. If they're not dead we can finish them off and take hold of things ourselves." It sounded nice in theory, but there was still one large problem: how were they supposed to hold it against Niku? As soon as he heard what would happen he'd send another force out to take it, and his boys wouldn't be worth much then.
On top of that he knew that they were being watched as well; they couldn't afford to spend too much time away from their own base without letting Niku know that they were gone. At that point his men would lay siege and this whole thing would all come tumbling down on him. No, he needed to use this opportunity as a springboard; whoever was in charge of the troops at the distillery had to know where Niku was. From there they could surprise the old man and finally throw some of the pressure off.
Whatever reservations the boy's might still hold were kept silent as the boys suited up for combat. The combat suits they all had were beginning to wear out, and they didn't have the resources to replace them; just another reason to avoid direct combat. When it came to the offensive side they were much better off, as the blaster factory had all the resources they needed to produce high quality models for another year or so; any longer than that and they'd either be dead or victorious.
Before heading off he spoke to Wakita privately, for what could have been the final time. "Alright, Wakita. You know the plan. You're gonna have to hold the fort down while I'm gone, and when I say that I'm being serious this time. If we aren't back by morning then... well, you can expect company. They'll be in force, and with two or three times the number we have. You'll be able to use the defensive positioning to hold them off for a while, but I fully expect them to overwhelm you eventually." Fukushu handed the young boy a key, and pointed behind him.
"Underneath my desk is a locked trap door. The sewer system beneath is a disgusting maze, but eventually you should be able to find your way out of here. If it all comes to that then I'll likely be dead, so what you choose to do is up to you, though I'd hope that you'd find Niku for me, and properly finish him off. Whether I fall above or below I'll be able to rest happy that the bastard is going with me." The boy looked solemn as always, but Fukushu expected that. With those final words said he formed his squad and took off to the distillery.
Fukushu knew as well as anyone that the streets were Hell at this time of night, and so like any smart street urchin they took to the roof tops, leaping from building to building while trying not to alert anyone below. They were able to avoid trouble until the distillery district itself came into view, where there was a sentry posted on the same building that Fukushu had planted his camera. The man was alone, and Fukushu with his group was able to quickly overpower and silence him, though not before the man destroyed their camera. At least they finished him before he had the chance to warn others.
The distillery district was a rather dubious name, making the region sound much grander than it really was. Upon entering the district you're greeted by an open courtyard that used to be rather lively, though the last that Fukushu had seen of it most of the plants had withered and died. Moving forward you'd come to a small administrative building where the manager and his secretaries worked, handling finance, deliveries and the like. On the right you'd have the main distillery building itself; this one stood two stories high, and it contained a basement which the much smaller administrative building lacked.
To the left of the courtyard was an open space where they stored some raw supplies. It was also used by the staff when on break, and if he had to guess this is probably where the mercenaries had chosen to set up their living quarters. Everything beyond a certain point had to be a guess on a count of the fact that the crazy bastard Niku had decided to protect his investment by building a dome over the whole bloody thing, stopping anybody from flying in quietly. Usually you'd need some sort of permit for that sort of thing, though it didn't look like anybody official really cared to try and stop them.
The only entrance that didn't require ripping a hole in the steel was the front door, which itself was monitored by two guards on both sides at all times. Having studied his recordings many times over, Fukushu had deduced that there were twelve mercenaries in total, and none of them looked friendly. He didn't know the leader's name, but the look made him hard to mistake. He was taller than any Heran that Fukushu had ever seen; the bastard had to practically bow just to fit inside the door. He had the usual scars that marked any Heran, but this one also had his whole jaw missing, replaced with a slab of steel.
He also had a cruel look about him; the kind of look that made Fukushu want to stay away from him. A kind of fear that he had never experienced before, and he knew his boys felt similar. Thankfully for them he wasn't on duty tonight, and based on the few facial expressions that Fukushu could make out on his recordings the man didn't much like duty at all. He was the brawn of the group, but not someone that Fukushu could work with. He hoped that once inside they'd be able to find the brains.
Checking the time revealed that it was one in the morning, which gave them plenty of time to scout things out. He had his boys hop out across the rooftops to get their eyes as wide spread as possible. The goal was to find the delivery man and intercept him before he could reach the distillery. He had provided everyone with a map showing how he had tracked the man's movements every night, but the route was always changing, and thus they could never say for sure where he might be.
And so they waited. It took about an hour until finally one of his squamates finally made contact with him. Osorea sent a communication through to his scouter, telling him that he may have found something. Fukushu wasted no time heading over in his direction. The Heran found his lad perched a top one of the many buildings situated near the distillery district, eyes down and focused on the streets below. "Down there; you see what I see?"
Fukushu looked down below and indeed he could see. A small man, who appeared to be the same as the one Fukushu had so diligently watched on his recordings. Though his face was hidden by both a hood and the cover of darkness, he could not mistake the feeble way in which he carried himself; almost certainly a trick Fukushu had decided, in an effort to lure in attackers. The man climbed out of the sewer system, which would explain how he managed to evade them for the most part. The delivery was left as a dead-drop for the man to pick up, his cart left hidden among some piled up garbage which he tore away.
By now his other squamates had figured out where they were and had grouped up behind Fukushu, with Itami especially eager to jump him right away. "Don't let his appearance fool you. The manor in which he carries himself is almost certainly a ruse; he's like to be much more powerful than he lets on. Don't bother with your scouters either; the old man has some way of hiding his fighting ability. We're going to do this carefully, so listen to exactly what I have to say."
They weren't actually all that far from away from the distillery, and an open fight would likely lead to too much noise being made, which would cause the guards to come and investigate. Instead Fukushu ordered Itami and Kuru to lower their power level as low as possible to try and avoid suspicion. From their they'd revert back to their old sob story act, approaching the old man and asking for a handout. It should at the very least stop him in his tracks, and buy them enough time to sneak up behind him.
Kuru and Itami did as they were told, approaching the old man while Osorea stayed on top of the building to act as a lookout while Fukushu snuck up behind the delivery man. "Please sir... we're hungry. We can smell the goods you have in there, and we don't eat a lot!" From where Fukushu was standing he had no way of knowing how he reacted to the child's words. What he did notice though is that Itami and Kuru were frozen in fear once they got closer enough to look upon the man's face.
"So you must be the one who's taken control of my empire. You have any idea how much work I've had to put into rebuilding things?" What? Fuksuhu himself was now frozen as the old man turned and revealed a hideous face. He never found out what Niku's face looked like, but based on what the old man said he figured it must have been him. "As soon as I got word about your little camera I figured that it'd be sooner rather than later that you'd show your own face around here. I had my informant send word of when you were coming, so that I could get a measure of you in person."
Fukushu was still stunned, unsure of what to do or how to respond. His squad mates too remained in place, unable or unwilling to move against their former master. He reckoned that they must have been some of the very few to have seen Niku's face, before he installed Kutsu to run things for him. "Dangerous it was, coming out here alone, but I don't think I have much to fear from this lot; look like they're about ready to cry. You on the other hand... well I have to say you're more than what I was expecting. So much potential, not just in strength but in initiative and leadership too."
Fukushu was trying to examine his surroundings, to see if he could use something near him to his advantage. Something about the old man's foul stench struck fear in Fukushu though, and still he found himself unable to attack. "Let me guess... your plan was to take me down, poison the food, delivery it to my men and then take them out once they're sick? Not bad, had I left my usual man in charge of delivery. He was just a possum though, some old fool who'd make you feel confident enough to strike. Once I heard that you were moving out yourself I took the role myself."
He knew things were too simple. "You would have made a great number two I think. Kutsu was never much of a go-getter if you know what I mean. Good at following orders, but not great when it came to taking advantage of situations; not like you. It's too bad you had to use that against me though... We could have done a lot together you know. You've done a great deal of damage to my organization, but so have I to yours. I find myself in a position of weakness still however, and if we pool our forces together then... well, we might be able to deal with that bastard you call boss now."
It was becoming pretty clear where this was going, but Fukushu wanted no part of it. Korosu had a ruthlessness to him that he knew would be nasty to fight against, and this was as clear an opportunity as he was ever going to get. Fortunately for him it seemed as though Niku has been so enamored with Fukushu that he failed to spot Osorea, who would be his only hope right now. With one quick flick he gave the single and the young boy leapt down from the roof top.
As Fukushu had though, Niku hadn't realized Osorea was up there. He came down on top of the old man with enough force to knock him off his feet, though he knew that it wouldn't last for long. Osorea had some wits to him, and wasn't a bad fighter, but Fukushu still feared what the old man was hiding back. He quickly followed his squad mate into battle, leaping on top of Niku while Osorea held his head down. From there Fukushu proceeded to pummel his head into the pavement.
By now the other two had managed to find control of themselves, which each grabbing a hold of Niku's leg in order to hold him down. Thankfully Fukushu was able to keep the old man's mouth shut, which seemed to help with the noise. Unfortunately he simply wouldn't stay down, no matter how many times Fukushu slammed his head into the sidewalk. Somehow he eventually managed to wriggle free of all their grasps, pulling himself back up to his feet and stepping back a few paces.
His face was a bloody mess; unrecognizable compared to just a few moments ago, yet somehow he still stood tall. The fear inside of Fukushu was just as strong as before, but now his courage was overwhelming. He leapt forward at the old man, refusing to let this opportunity go to waste. He knew that if Niku didn't die by his hands right now then he may never get the opportunity again. Despite the prior beating Niku was still able to defend himself as Fukushu pushed forward, throwing a barrage of strikes of which only a few landed. He ordered his squad to push forward, but none obeyed.
Perhaps they were still afraid, or maybe they simply thought that Niku would come out victorious and they wanted the opportunity to side with the winner? He didn't have time to think about betrayals; he was in a battle of life and death right now. The more he pushed forward the more Niku seemed to throw back, with more of his shots landing than Fukushu's were. By now his own face was beginning to resemble Niku's as the blood and bruises began to cover his face.
He'd never thought that an old man would be able to push him like this; push him like he's never been pushed before. He'd been in fights before, but nothing were he actually felt like he could lose, at least not in a one on one situation. A misstep by Fukushu allowed Niku to pick the boy up and throw him into a nearby wall, mostly thanks to his own momentum. He didn't have time to dust himself off though as the veteran showed an unusual speed in getting over to him, laying forth a barrage of quick strikes which Fukushu could only limply defend against.
As hard as it was for him to admit it, Fukushu was losing this fight. He could feel his limbs beginning to tire, with every blocked effort becoming reducing less and less of the impact. Sooner or later he knew he was going to fad; the only question now was when. "You disappointment me, boy. Even as I lay weakened you failed to stop me, and now I beat you so easily? Perhaps I was wrong about your potential. Maybe one of these whelps will be better served as my second in command, assuming I don't execute them for betraying me in the first place."
Another hard slam into a building wall brought Fukushu back down to his stomach, though not for long as Niku dragged him right back up and slammed him again into the brick and mortar. "You and your little pack of rats have caused me so much trouble. I can't wait to fully drive your lot out of town. That fool Korosu should learn to mind his own business and stay in his own territory. We had a good thing going here, and he had to ruin in!"
Grabbing Fukushu by the collar now, Niku again slammed Fukushu in the building, and again and again and again until the wall finally gave way and the two tumbled inside. In the dark of night the boy was unable to determine what the building housed, though he didn't give much thought to it as Niku approached. "I suppose I do owe you some amount of thanks. You showed me flaws in my system; not enough effort placed into the muscle side of things. Thankfully I've learnt the error of my ways; next time Korosu won't find storming my holds so easy. You've already learnt as much with the distillery."
A swift shot to the gut retched Fukushu over, but Niku grabbed a hold of his hair in order to keep him on his feet. "I think I've had my fun with you. It's not often I get to mix business with pleasure, but I must admit I have enjoyed this outing. So often the dirty work is left up to someone else; being able to partake in it myself is something I have long since missed. I'm afraid that you can't offer me much more than you already have though. Once I take care of you I'll be taking back my property, starting with the three runts outside. Seems they didn't prove as much in a fight as you'd hoped?"
You could say that again. They were young though, and not hardened like Fukushu was. They had a system and others to rely on, and maybe a bit too much of it. Not that he wasn't upset, but he was more upset at his own effort. Beaten down like an old man, without any sort of reply? Perhaps he deserved to lose. If he were die then at least he'd go out in a fight; that's how any good Heran should hope to go out. At least he'd die a warrior.
"One last thing though, boy. Where is your master? My scouts haven't been able to locate him. Tell me where he is and I'll promise I'll make this quick and pai-AH" In an instant the man's grip around Fukushu's hair was released. When he found the courage to look up he saw a hole where Niku's stomach used to be. Without any more words the old man tumbled down, with Fukushu scuttling away. Was he saved by some sort of guardian angel?
No, just Wakita. For some reason the young lad had left his post, taking one of the finest blaster along with him. Fukushu was left speechless, even as the young lad ran over and helped him up. It took him a few moments to process the situation before finally being able to ask the obvious question. "Just what the Hell are you doing? Didn't I ask you to hold down the fort?" Wakita had the same solemn look on his face as always. "I thought you might need some help is all; was I wrong."
He almost hit him for that, but he couldn't deny that the boy had saved his life with that stunt, and considering that their main rival was dead he expected that they wouldn't be any sort of coordinated attack coming at them any time soon. "Well, I can't really argue with that. I suppose you didn't save my life and all; just hope you didn't leave any old idiot in charge while you were gone." With Niku dead it made his life a whole lot simpler, but they still had the matter of the distillery to take care of.
"Alright then. Wakita: you head back to the fort. I think that with the new situation we'll be able to handle things ourselves now. Osorea and Kuru: you two grab a hold of the wagon and get ready to push it to the distillery. Itami: you'll stay in here with me; we have some... messy work to take care of." Fukushu gestured Itami over to the body of Niku while the other three did as they were told. "Hold him down; I'll need to be precise for this."
A few moments later and the two exited the building and regrouped with Osorea and Kuru. "What were you doing in there?" Itami didn't say a word. "Don't worry; you'll see soon enough. For now I want you to worry about pushing the wagon without anything falling off; we're late and I don't want them to be any more pissed off." The four squad mates walked over to the entrance of the distillery, where a very confused looking guard stopped them. "What's you lot want?"
Fukushu gestured over to the cart. "What's it look like?" The guard walked over to the cart and gave it a quick examination before responding. "You's not the usual guy. Where's he at?" Fukushu let out a sigh. "You want our goods or not? And I'll be needing a word with your leader; the ugly one." The guard laughed before opening the door. "Sure, but don't call him that to his face else you'll lose that pretty little smirk you got."
The group entered and pushed the cart over to the left side of the courtyard where a few tents had been set up. Just as Fukushu had thought, that's where the mercenaries had set up their living quarters. About five minutes of waiting later and the big ugly one showed up looking pissed as Hell and ready to kill. "You best have a good reason for this. Me and my men don't like surprises; we don't get paid enough for bullshit like that. We like open fights, not setting up camp; best tell your boss that too. How long are we going to be waiting out here for anyway? Not once have we had to deal with any assaults."
Fukushu removed his hood and smiled. "That's because you're good at your job. You intimidate people, and they know that you can kill them quite easily. It's a valuable skill for a mercenary, and one that my employer would like to take advantage of." He looked visibly confused for a moment, before the realization that he was not talking to one of Niku's boys eventually came to him. "Just who the Hell are you exactly, boy? And don't give me an answer I won't like."
Fukushu responded by throwing down a severed head in front of the man's feet. One look down and he knew exactly who he was looking at. "Niku. The old bastard. Someone finally did him in then? Never thought it'd be a kid that took him down; even I knew better than to try and tussle with him. So, that mean we're finally free to go? My men been looking for a fight for quite some time now, and it's clear we won't be having it today."
Fukushu smiled again; he had them. "You'll be getting a fight alright, but not for Niku. You'll work for Korosu now. Go these coordinates and let him know the new arrangement. I think you'll find him a much better employer than Niku ever was. This place can be held by own men; ones who don't mind a little be of quiet time." Fukushu turned to Osorea. "Head back to the fort and tell Wakita to gather everything we need for operations. Let him know that we have a new fort moving forward."
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