Interlude 6: Crisis is over, Part 1

  Robin still felt quite fucking overwhelmed, but he had the kids to take care of. Thankfully, now he had the means to take care of them properly!

  It took a while to find an apartment that wasn’t wrecked in some way, but Lila helped and found somewhere to put the family. A nice place on floor twenty-five, in a little section for managers! There were two kid rooms! With proper beds! So much better than the cobbled together three apartments demolished to make one they lived in before.

  The kids’ bedtime had passed a while ago but with all the excitement, the worry, it wouldn’t take too long before they fell asleep on their feet. However, they wanted to wait, because of course they would! Louis was still out there. “Is… is ‘ppa going to be alright?” Rachael asked, a bit shily. That teenager didn’t like showing weakness, like any teenager, which Louis and Robin were working on.

  Robin smiled at his daughter. “Of course he is! Dealing with mercs is closer to what he usually does, but now he has super alien tech and crazy armor!” Rachael sat in front of him around a little kitchen table with benches, all recessed into the wall.

  Alice waited in her room, door closed, out of earshot, probably looking at vids of her papa in action. Altany made sure those were only against aliens, the sweetheart. His youngest daughter shouldn’t see such bloody massacres. Rachael was quieter than usual, though. That worried him.

  “That’s not… I…” She took a moment to gather her thoughts before talking with more

  confidence. “I know ‘ppa doesn’t like killing people. Killing aliens is one thing. They’re evil plants coming to kill us. I saw it on his face. He’s weird about some stuff but I know ‘ppa, you know?” She said, now looking into his eyes.

  “You both don’t want me around the whole enforcer thing, and I get it! I really do! Still… I know ‘ppa likes fighting. It’s obvious once you think about it and you see it. Especially now! I mean, the fights we saw were cool and all, but I can tell. He enjoys it, a lot.” She didn’t seem bothered by it.

  Robin felt a need to defend Louis, but he wouldn’t lie to his daughter. “Your papa… He’s only… exceptional at one thing, sweetheart. That’s not to say he’s stupid or something. If life had been different, if he got the same opportunities we’re trying to get you, shit might have been different. However, for now, he’s just great at this one, horrific, incredibly important thing. It’s not a pretty thing, it’s a horrible thing, but it’s necessary. He uses his talent the best way he’s able for the good of the people around him.” He said, calmly, without any reprimand or judgement in his voice.

  Rachael’s eyes widened. “Oh no, I… I didn’t mean it like that, and I agree! It’s just… I see it. How much it messes him up sometimes. After fights, after he kills people… He doesn’t like killing, and he has to do a lot of it. Plus, a ton of people died! Our people… our friends… I’m… I’m worried about him…” She said, looking to the side, her mouth in a worried line. The beautiful girl looked more concerned about others than sad!

  Robin smiled, then he went around the table and hugged his daughter. “God you’re a good kid Rachael. I’m proud of you.”

  “Hum… Thanks?” The teen said, confused.

  “You’re an amazing, caring young teenager…” He said, with her still in his arms, before planting a kiss on top of her head. She squirmed a bit, but he didn’t let go. Robin didn’t want her to see the tear in his eye.

  “I’m not that young!” That made him chuckle.

  “Your papa’s going to be… messed up for a bit, but he’s suffered before, he can handle it. He’s going to need some peace and quiet, even if he’d never say it. Probably going to be in bed for a day or two. Can you help me take care of everything while he’s… not well?”

  That made Rachael nod more firmly. “Yeah, I can do that.” The beautiful child had a mission, something to do. It’d make her feel so much better, helping. Just like her papa.

  Robin kissed the top of her head again. “Thanks sweety. Never forget, I love you and your papa loves you, more than anything. Your aunt Lila loves you too when we’re too embarrassing.” Robin kept the hug going for longer. He wanted to feel her, to know she was safe.

  God, he’d been so scared when Lila got taken out. She’d shot every bullet from every gun she could find, even tackled and stabbed a lot of those fucking hounds! They were a danger to everyone for a reason though. He couldn’t remember her stopping. That amazing woman just kept stabbing and punching and struggling.

  Robin wasn't a fighter. He couldn’t beat them back! The only thing he could think to do was… being an obstacle. Barely a damn speed bump. He’d pushed Rachael and Alice away but couldn’t throw his son so he’d just curled into a ball! It might’ve been useless, but that was what he could do…

  The pain had been mind numbing, but only Jack had occupied his mind. ‘Don’t hold hard, don’t hurt Jack, don’t let go, don’t hold hard, don’t hurt Jack, don’t let go…’ constantly on loop. He didn’t remember David getting the little shits off of him, or the pain stopping.

  He did remember waking up to Louis, covered in alien blood, and the whole family alive. His love, his fighter, his knight in shining armor, his suicidal moron, his incredible papa bear… Panda had pulled off the impossible, like always, simply because…

  “Sweety.” Robin said, letting his daughter go before looking into her eyes, as serious as he’d ever been. “You know how your papa does it? All that fighting, sacrifice and pain he endures? I know you want to be an enforcer, so you should know.” She looked interested but probably expected the answer. Still, Robin wanted her to know something.

  “He does it for us, for the family, for the people around him. Not just that, but it’s a damn big part. If you do end up a fighter, please, please, always remember: Never fight for money or pride, fight for people. Your papa is a good man because he fights only for people. Can you promise me you’ll remember?”

  Rachael looked into Robin’s eyes and it always fascinated and humbled him to see a girl so young yet this mature and smart. Her eyes shined with determination.

  “I promise.”

  ***

  Lila looked at the mess. It was one hell of a fucking mess!

  Less than it could have been, but way more than they could handle quickly. People would need to sleep, to eat, to… everything! At least that Jackal lady seemed interested in helping.

  She liked her! Knew how to speak street, swore a lot, and had a good heart. The samurai had gotten extremely mad after finding out about the whole situation. Right before storming off, she’d bought a truly massive amount of rations and supplies! Those’d be needed.

  When Johnny called, it sort of surprised her. “Hey sheriff! How’s the hunt?”

  “Going good, but I can’t find ‘em all. Some of the bastards ran faster than me… Any change on the ground? The hive’s still contained? I don’t wanna keep huntin’ if it’ll put our people in danger…”

  Lila smiled. He really was concerned, even said ‘our people’! Such a shame the guy was so gay. “Thanks for the concern, but we got this. Some samurai even came out of the holes on the first floor, a lady named Jackal, said there’s some higher tier samurai down there finishing things up.”

  “Samurai assistance, finally…” Johnny sounded pissed!

  Lila shrugged. “Honestly, I never expected any at this point. Well, except for you and Panda! Still, go, we’ll be ok. Thank you for getting us justice, sheriff. We’re not used to it, but you should know, everyone truly appreciates it, deeply. This is our first time, for most of us, but it feels amazing. Everyone feels happy to finally have some in this messed up world.” That they fucking did! The people responsible were fucking dead or soon would be!

  That never happened! Sometimes Panda could get some revenge, but not much. The people calling the shots? That was way out of their reach!

  Protecting? That he could do, and do well. Everyone who knew what Panda did loved him for it.

  Justice? True justice? No one knew how to handle it. It didn’t really exist this far down. Revenge? Yeah, sure, sometimes, but only on a personal scale.

  Corpos came and wrecked everything? Too bad, suck it the fuck up. A gang decided to take whatever? Only Panda had ever really stopped them, but he couldn’t take on the gang, just the fuckers that came here.

  “Oh, uh… Thanks Lila. I’ll get back to it, see you soon.” That had struck a nerve! She wouldn’t be surprised if he had a tear in his eyes! That made her smile. Panda’s thing about showing appreciation to people worked well.

  She went back to organizing the enforcers and militia. They had a massive area to canvas! On top of that, to check for any remaining gunk. They’d found a few proto-hives, but not too many. No real losses but enforcers always accompanied to be sure any big fuckers could be handled.

  Not long after, her comms lit up. An out of breath Panda was coming home! “Hey… Lila, any problem downstairs?” He asked in between panting breaths.

  “Nop! All good– well, not all good but shit’s handled! I’m sending you the place we stashed the family. I made sure the area got canvassed with appropriate paranoia. There’s a sort of break area for managers nearby. We turned it into a rest area for enforcers, there’s a couple there right now. Also got some militia nearby and an HFUG pointing down the corridor that leads to that section, just in case.” Panda chuckled.

  “Thank you, makes me feel a ton better. That is an appropriate amount of paranoia. I’m… done with the mercs around the building. We should be good for now but stay on guard. Altany will be monitoring every building around us… if you don’t mind Altany? Sorry.”

  Thank you for asking, and no, I do not mind. I will alert the appropriate party of any development.

  It was cute how polite Louis acted, even towards an AI! “Alright, what’s the next thing?” She could tell he was asking both herself and Altany.

  “Nothing. Everything’s handled.” He snorted.

  “There’s no way in hell.”

  Lila laughed. “Yeah, but everything’s being handled. There’s nothing you have to do. Altany can take care of things, if we need anything, you can give her permission for supplies and shit from your banks and stuff like that, right Altany?”

  Of course. The supplies left by Jackal are a very good start, but even if more is needed, I can handle such with your permission.

  “Oh, who’s Jackal? Also, yeah, you got permission, of course.” Lila sighed.

  “Samurai that came out from below. Hive’s contained. Said higher tier than her down there will finish the job. When I told her what the fuck’s been happening here, she got super mad! Bought us a ton of food and supplies and stormed off.”

  He snorted. “I like her. Seriously though, there’s got to be something that…”

  Yeah, time to be blunt. “Panda, it’s ‘later’.”

  Louis went completely silent. After a few seconds of controlling himself, he answered, voice profoundly unsteady. “Alright, call me if… anything… see you soon.” He disconnected and Lila frowned. It had been a fucking rough night. Hell, it was morning now!

  There would be so much work, and they’d need Panda. The faster he got to grieving, the faster they’d get him back. She couldn’t begrudge him that. All enforcers had those moments. Every single one of them had learned the ‘fight now, grieve later’ motto and respected it. They usually grieved in shifts to make sure everyone would be okay. Lila would have her turn… Later.

  “Is he gonna be alright, Altany?” The AI might cover for him if not, but she wanted to hear it. She’d say if Louis needed her, right?

  Yes, but he has suffered tremendous losses. It will be a painful time for him. He needs quiet and isolation. You may call it ‘recharging’ time. I know your instincts are to go to him, but I believe it may be harmful in this case. Even Robin will only partially help.

  She didn’t like it, but Lila trusted the AI when it came to Panda’s well being. It was her job after all. “I’m worried about him. We’ve never lost this many before. I’ve also seen the footage. He’s never gone on such a one sided killing spree. I’m very, very glad he did, but he might not be…”

  Louis wasn’t like her. Killing had become a part of life she’d accepted. Might be messed up, but that was the world they lived in. Louis though? Even bad people took a toll, even if just an extremely tiny one. Something he had to do, not wanted to, even if anger said otherwise.

  Louis will bear it better than on past occasions. Software from vanguard Johnny Law showed him degrees of responsibility and guilt. He did not have to kill anyone without the certainty that they deserved it. I believe this made the act much more bearable, even if still somewhat distasteful to him. The lack of uncertainty will be a tremendous help to his mental health.

  It will also help him deal with the joy he receives from fighting, which I suspect made him feel guilty in the past. The act of sparing so many in and of itself will prove very helpful as well. Very few in the ‘yellow’ range of accountability died, and no ‘green’. It should alleviate the weight on his conscience.

  Lila nodded, feeling better. “Thanks. Take care of him, please. It… feels wrong to not do anything…” She said, feeling jittery. Her instincts told her to go! To hug him, do… something!

  Ensuring your family is safe and that he does not have to worry about his home is doing something. You removed the load from his shoulders that prevented him from grieving.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Lila smiled. “Thanks again, Altany.”

  Then, Lila thought of something… “I suspect that when he’s ready, it’d be good for him to have some fun… and I’ve been invited! Want to help me make him feel great when he gets better?”

  ***

  Thank the mesh I didn’t forget to clean my armor before I came home. Didn’t clean my face and stuff but I…

  I controlled myself enough to hug my kids without losing my shit before going to bed. I didn’t remove my helmet, didn’t want the kids to see me like that…

  The new bed looked nice, comfy, but I didn’t care much at the moment. Hell, I still wore partial armor, just a slight layer of memory alloy, so I couldn't feel the comfiness that much.

  I just hugged a pillow, my emotions a maelstrom. My helmet stayed on, the dark confinement helping for some reason. “Altany… show… show me a list of… dead enforcers…” The list appeared. Thirty-six. Half of my friends were dead. “I… how’d…”

  I couldn’t string a coherent sentence together.

  Most were found near living and dead civilians, most also died fighting in some way from what I can tell. Three were found in the shelters, killed by Cobra Kai personnel. Only one was found in my search through the mercenary footage archives. She seemed to have been trying to get a column out of the building. Some members of the column survived.

  Yeah, that was them. That’s how they’d die. That’s how they all wanted to die. I started reading the list… “Anna… George… Donna… Shannah… A…”

  I didn’t make it to the fifth before my emotions stabilized. Just grief now. Unlimited sadness. I cried inside my helmet. The tight, dark, perfectly silent confines helped me feel better. My tail wrapped around my stomach twice. I read the whole list out loud, whenever I could talk.

  Louis…

  Then I read it again. I owed them that. I fucking owed them to speak every mother fucking name of that list. I already knew them, I’d remember them no matter what, but I just… I had to… I had to read the list! It was my responsibility! They were my friends…

  Louis…

  The list of kids wasn’t even done. I’d read it too… All of them… I needed to know their names, someone should! Infinite potential destroyed with each and every one… A full person, a galaxy of neurons vanished into the dark…

  I’d read the list of everyone we lost… I had to… I knew I couldn’t have saved them all… I knew that but… I still had to… I could have saved more! So many more! If… A billion ‘if only’s rushed through my mind… I let them…

  People saved: 12, 542!

  Points earned after partner share and distinct threats handled… 14, 546!

  Tokens earned… 5!

  A massive notification flashed in my vision. It shocked me out of my sorrow for a moment.

  Calculating this value became difficult due to saving the same groups multiple times from distinct deadly threats on their lives. You saved a total of 12, 542 people, often from multiple threats.

  These are all residents between floor one and floor twenty eight. I can confirm one thousand six hundred and thirty-four fatalities among the Bear-Yakuza. None would have survived without you however.

  You are the reason Johnny Law came to Peach Trees. You organized the enforcers, militia and civilians. You gave them the equipment which allowed them to fight back. You healed an incredible amount of people with your points, several times more than you had to. You personally battled more antithesis than vanguards of your tier should have been able to survive.

  You did good work.

  I am profoundly sorry for your loss, Louis, but I’m also very proud of you.

  A tiny smile stretched on my face as tears kept flowing. “Thanks Altany.”

  I am truly sorry to disturb you, however this situation requires your attention. A mass of armed people have entered nearby buildings. I believe they are from The Family. They seem to be heading towards Peach-Trees.

  ***

  The crisis was over! Finally! The cleanup took a lot longer but at least the die had been cast. What might have happened had happened, the building wasn’t destroyed, the bad guys had lost!

  Mad Panda would need help for that cleanup though, hence why Laser Jack came to Peach Trees. The Bear-Yakuza were turning into another samurai owned corporation at this point! A samurai-owned militia at the very least! Ensuring good relations would be important for the corporation and hey, Jack liked the kid!

  From afar, the militia he could see appeared pretty well equipped. Well, for normy gangers. They’d probably upgrade soon. However, those emplaced crew served weapons looked damn good!

  Also, socially, he had an in, might as well use it. “Hey there! Nice to see you again Johnny Law! Seems you’ve grown!” There was a welcoming party, good sign! It implied diplomacy.

  “You must be Robin Rice, Mad Panda’s husband! Sorry if it’s a bit forward, but doing research is part of my job. I’ve heard great things about your community organization skills!” Showing that his past was irrelevant in the present for him, that he’d be treated seriously. Solid start.

  There were a few more people with them. Those were very well equipped for normies! The enforcers he’d heard so much about. They didn’t have standard equipment though, aside from the helmets, interesting. He’d have to look more into it.

  “Ah! Nice to see you in person, Mad Panda!” The whole welcoming party seemed tense, but that was pretty normal with a massive amount of armed people around. Mad Panda though… Laser Jack couldn’t read him.

  His body language seemed… different? A bit off? His social warfare tools were based on human understandings of such, which didn’t include tails. The guy also had his full helmet on without the eyes, as well as his gun across his chest.

  That… okay, not a great sign but still, reasonable given the circumstance! It could be… “Are you here to cash in on my bounty?”

  Okay, that was a bad sign. Still, this could be salvageable! “Ah, yes, well, I’m sorry about that. That particular employee…” He paused just a little bit too long since, truly, he didn’t know what to do with him.

  “Still alive I’m guessing? Probably not planning on firing him either, right?”

  “The company is still deliberating on how to properly handle…” Laser Jack said, spinning bullshit in all honesty.

  ‘Why can’t my software read him?’

  I believe he is neurodivergent in a way that affects interpersonal interactions. Your software is based on average human body language, such variations make it unreliable. I do not know which type, as my sister AI has refused to share the information. It seems she believes it would be detrimental to her vanguard in some way.

  That… that was very much not good…

  Mad interrupted him mid-bullshit.

  “That’s what I thought. So, if you’re not here to try and kill me, what the fuck brought this on?” Mad Panda asked, just a bit too calm. Now his instincts shouted at him, instead of his useless software throwing errors all over the damn place!

  Still, this might be… salvageable. Yes, salvageable! He came here with help, could be a peace offering, a show of good faith! “I’m here to help! I brought equipment and…”

  “Fuck off.” Silence fell over the assembled group.

  Mad Panda still stood in the doorway, not that far but still at a distance. “I’m sorry?”

  “Thank you, now fuck off.”

  That was bad. Very bad.

  “No no, I mean, hum… Do you not want my help?” The animated eyes weren’t present, leaving him nothing but a helmet to deduce his state of mind.

  “No, I don’t. Now fuck off. I’m not sure I can be clearer.”

  Robin put his hand on his husband’s shoulder. Laser Jack could read his body language at least! Along with his facial expressions. Well concealed for a normie, but still plenty readable.

  The man seemed… conflicted? Love for his husband and a wish to support him on one side, the other probably not wanting to piss off a big corp. He could tell the poor man didn’t disagree, just didn’t want the fallout.

  The samurai’s tail came and… wrapped tenderly over his hand? Tail body language weirded him out. The appendage had fur, which made the gesture a little bit less weird.

  The man clearly loved his husband dearly. The extra limb very gently raised the man’s hand off and followed it to his side. Mad Panda… caressed his husband’s back with his tail? It was both obvious and purely alien to him, which meant he couldn’t rely on it. Whatever.

  The new samurai moved forward, getting a bit closer, hand on his weapon. Laser Jack did not want to escalate for fuck’s sake! Why were people so damn aggressive today!? Jackal and now this crap?

  He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. It probably wasn’t the best move but he felt so damn tired... “May I ask why?”

  Panda’s emotionless helmet looked him straight in the eyes without eyes, the chill transferring very well. “Is killing half my friends and murdering over a hundred children not enough of a reason?”

  Laser Jack’s eyes flew wide “I did not…!”

  “You do realize helping to cover it up is aiding and abetting, right?”

  That…! Fuck, okay, it kind of was but…

  “Also, you do understand that, so far, The Family has done nothing but help to organize the mass murder of the people in this building? Got in the way of samurais helping too. Not only that, you guys put a bounty on my head for trying to stop said mass murder.” The heat was rising in this situation, he had to cool things down.

  “Look, some executives have…”

  “That you’re sheltering.” It… okay from a certain point… “You choose to be a corpo rat, yet you won’t accept responsibility for your company’s actions? Or, no, you obviously rebelled against the actions of your out of control execs, right? I mean, obviously, you wouldn’t let some corruption like that stand, would you? How’s that exec doing by the way? Pretty sure you’re the only reason Johnny hasn’t gotten to them.”

  Laser Jack had heard of Johnny’s actions in the past few hours. He didn’t mind, honestly, but right now this was… hurtfully accurate… “Look, I did what I…”

  “No you didn’t. You did what was convenient to protect the corporation. That includes, let’s not forget, your corporation’s actions. You did what would protect your corp from a scandal. Am I wrong?”

  Laser Jack’s mouth opened and closed a few times. Not having his social warfare able to do anything clearly threw him off his game!

  “You had a limited number of samurai to send, since I’m guessing you didn’t want to sound the general alarm, for fear of a scandal. You had many ways to get to the hive, and you chose the one that would avoid conflict and be far, far away from cameras. Also far, far away from the dying civilians begging for your help.” He had nothing to say to that…

  “Look, the only reason I didn’t shoot you is that you sent Johnny Law my way. He’s a true, incredible gift and he saved many, many people. Hell, I believe he’ll be a true gift to the community for years to come. That’s why I didn’t fire a ridiculous amount of explosives at this sky bridge.”

  “Now, if you don’t mind, my people were busy sifting through torn apart bodies for identifying marks. Actually, you know what, look at this!” Now the new samurai’s tone rose, just a bit. He pointed at the char on the wall from the incendiary grenades those PMC executioners had thrown.

  “You know what those are? Those are, in part, the ashes of Angel Crawford, along with her father. Her mother died before they could make it to the tunnel. Fifteen years old, tough past. Her first mom was schizophrenic, no treatment since they didn’t have the money. Dad died of alcohol abuse. Got adopted by some great parents. Huge zombie fan, movies, games, books, all of that. That girl loved those smoothies with chunks we could get sometimes. You know, the ones with fake pieces of fruit? Blond, terrible bleach job. Scrawny, but quite the scrapper. I’m pretty sure my daughter had a crush on her with how she talked about her. That girl died an hour after you got our message.” Mad Panda turned back to him.

  “You decided her life wasn’t worth a scandal. You elected not to send any of the wonderful troops you have here or any samurai to stop the murdering of innocent people. Her death is on your hands. You’ve decided who’s side you’re on. You decided to help child murderers. Mass child murderers at that. Now, if you would kindly fuck off so I can get back to trying to find the corpses of my friends, I’d appreciate it.”

  Laser Jack knew the sound of that voice, the cold of someone with boundless rage and pain that usually channeled that into killing. The newbie samurai turned around and started walking off.

  He… Laser Jack couldn’t pinpoint exactly where Mad was wrong but… He wasn’t a bad person! He’d just… The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself… “You… you have to understand…” That was too much apparently. When Mad Panda turned around, his helmet had retracted.

  “NO I FUCKING DON’T!” His face was covered in blood and tears, eyes red and a bit puffy. He’d clearly cried a lot. The expression etched on his face clearly communicated boundless pain and guilt, incredible grief, indignant fury and unholy wrath!

  “I don’t have to fucking listen to your horse cocksucking bullshit corpo justification you tell yourself to justify being an uncaring fucking bastard! I will not absolve you by telling you I understand whatever the fuck convoluted corpo bullshit you spin about the greater whatever the fuck! You’re assisting the people who are the reason I’m digging through the corpses of parents to retrieve the torn apart bodies of their children!”

  “You’re the reason I have to tell my daughter her crush is fucking dead! You’re the reason my fucking friend died a few minutes before I could get to him! You’re the reason he shot his family rather than see them die in agony! You’re the reason I had to go on a murder spree to find some kind of peace for my people!”

  “YOU’RE THE REASON TWENTY PEOPLE HAD TO BE TORTURED LONGER TO KEEP CHILDREN SAFE BEFORE I COULD GET TO THE FUCKING SHELTER! YOU’RE CURRENTLY HELPING THE PEOPLE WHO MURDERED THE INFANTS I HAVE TO SIFT THROUGH THE DISMEMBERED BODIES OF, THE PEOPLE WHO KILLED HALF MY FUCKING FRIENDS AND TRIED TO KILL MY GOD DAMN FAMILY!”

  Mad Panda breathed erratically and no one dared approach him. His facial expression promised unstoppable violence, eyes locked firmly on him. Laser Jack didn’t speak. He didn’t dare. Even with his escape gadgets and protections, that kind of wrath was… terrifying, on a primal level.

  It took the better part of a minute for Panda’s breathing to calm down. It took longer before the helmet reformed on his face. “Now, let me be clear. First, fuck off. Second, if any of those guys come closer, I’ll kill them. I honestly won’t feel bad about it. Third, here’s all the horrors you unleashed, the corpses of the people you could have saved, the people you’ve forced to suffer and all the children whose murder you’re covering up.” Mad Panda made a gesture in the air and a massive file came Laser Jack’s way.

  He accepted. It… would have felt wrong not to.

  “Finally, as far as this building is concerned, you’re an accessory to the mass murder of innocent people. Unless you come back here with quite a few severed heads, knowing the name of all my friends who’s killing you’re trying to justify and those of the children you chose not to save, the next welcoming party will arrive at hypersonic speed. Now, Fuck. Off.” He turned around again.

  It… Laser Jack couldn’t think… he… he hadn’t… That wasn’t what… He didn’t want to… He had to… what? He just had to!

  The moment Jack opened his mouth and took a step forward, unholy booms filled the corridor and he recoiled! Between them, the ground reduced to rubble! It created shrapnel that his automatic shield barely registered.

  Johnny Law was pressing down with all his weight on Mad Panda’s shotgun as it unloaded into the ground. The weapon drilled a damn tunnel all the way through the concrete and into open air. The animated eyes were back, manic, twitching and filled with rage. They looked straight at him!

  The man didn’t stop firing, just kept staring while emptying his magazine.

  He didn’t try very hard to raise the gun, but he did try. When the mag finally dried up, Laser Jack realized Johnny had been talking to Mad, trying to calm him down. The animated eyes never left him. When he spoke however, the only thing left in that voice was… sorrow.

  “Before you arrived, I was crying for all the people I couldn’t save… All the people I wasn’t enough to protect. I wish, with every bone in my body, that I’d been just a bit faster, that I’d chosen better, that I’d been just a hair stronger, tougher or smarter! However, unlike you, I fucking tried! I… I mother fucking tried! I bled, fought and almost died for them and I… I… I wasn’t enough… but I… I fuck… I fucking tried… and that… that keeps me sane. They still need me... You? You… didn’t even fucking try… ‘samurai’…”

  ‘Samurai’ was said with such contempt and disgust, it broke something inside Laser Jack…

  The weeping man just walked off, one of his enforcers hugging his shaking armoured shoulders. The man’s tail wrapped around her at the waist. His augs picked up quiet reassurances. It felt invasive but it was automatic. Mad Panda hugged his shotgun like a damn teddy bear. It was heart wrenching to watch.

  Johnny didn’t even look at him, but he still saw the… disappointment. Jack stood frozen on the spot. He didn’t know what to do or say. He had a pain deep in his chest…

  It took Mad Panda’s husband to break him out of that state. “Shall we talk in the food court over there?” He said, pointing away from Peach Trees with a small, tight smile on his face.