Rica and his team arrived at the lab at exactly 12:35 am JST. With the bitter, bruised Chiba driving and Sgt. Arina taking shotgun, he was left to his own devices for the majority of the drive.
The silence had suited him just fine. It had given him the opportunity to skim through the job details.
Cecilia Lin. An up and coming archaeologist, but more akin to a celebrity nowadays in regard to her involvement in reality shows and interviews. Her next project, the excavation of a supposedly alien compound on the seabed of the Dragon's Triangle.
It was without a doubt one of the strangest jobs he had been assigned by management.
Chiba parked their rented minivan in a public garage overlooking the chaotic mess known as the Neon Paradise. Why anyone would want their laboratory in such a disreputable ward was beyond him.
"Wait a moment," said the Sergeant. "We'll need these."
The Sergeant passed out small, flesh colored earpieces to the group.
She then handed Rica a Taipan Model Mark 8, otherwise known as the Mark 8 by the general populace. A small, snub-nosed pistol, the Mark 8 was a hit among civilians and soldiers alike looking for a powerful yet discreet sidearm.
"Try not to stand out too much," the Sergeant added.
Chiba unloaded a duffel from the back while the Sergeant called the client to confirm the advance deposit for their job was accounted for.
Moving with efficiency and without waste, they navigated the winding streets of the Neon Paradise, shrugging off the advances of the cabaret girls and the odd hustler now and then. They were even approached by a powder dealer showing off the newest synthetic party drug, but a seething glare from Chiba was all it took to drive him off.
"Two gaijins and a giant, like hell we aren't going to stand out," Rica thought, conscious of the wandering eyes they drew on street level. The three stood out from the crowd like sore thumbs. Tourists, especially foreigners, didn't wander down to the Neon Paradise too often. Their travel guides knew better than to bring gullible gaijins to the powder covered ward.
"The lab should be just round the corner," said Chiba, his eyes glued to the GPS application on his smartphone.
The Sergeant reached for a pack of cigs from her coat pocket. "Interesting place to build a lab," she noted, passing a cig over to Rica.
Rica took up her offer, setting the cig in between his lips. "Much obliged, Sergeant."
"Drop the Sergeant. Call me Arina, no need to be so formal. We're not in the military anymore, Hawk," she said, leaning in close to light his cigarette with a silver butane lighter.
It then dawned on him that Arina still didn't know his given name. "Rica, my name is Rica. Hawk is only a formality."
"Good to know, Rica. It'll be a pleasure working with you."
Chiba cleared his throat. "Done chatting?"
Arina nodded. "Right. Let's get back to the task on hand."
A large commotion from across the street drew their attention.
"Isn't that our girl?" asked Rica, pointing at a pretty young woman being dragged along by a man in a formal suit.
"Shit," Arina cursed. "You two go after them. I'll see if I can cut them off through an alley."
Rica and Chiba broke into a wild sprint after them, while Arina darted into a back alley path. As they slipped and weaved through the crowd, Rica wrapped his fingers around the grip of the pistol strapped under his coat.
Their chase was short and ended at a nondescript office building, similar buildings populated the block. The man nearly burst through the glass sliding doors, with his eyes glued on the shifting pedestrian traffic, he waited by the entrance with Cecilia in tow.
They were looking at someone. Standing apart from the river of pedestrians was a woman in black, form-fitting clothes and a cloth mask that obscured everything below the ridge of her nose. Her hair was buzzed skin tight in a distinct military style cut.
"We have a situation," he said with his palm over the earpiece's activation sensor. "I've got another bogey on Cecilia's tail, do I engage?"
There was a brief moment of silence before his earpiece buzzed on.
"Engage with caution... I'm nearly... there," Arina replied, her words clipped and hurried.
He turned to look at Chiba. "Watch em big guy."
The Japanese giant nodded. "Careful kid... don't want to see you being carried out in a body bag.
Rica wasn't sure if Chiba was showing genuine concern or just making another joke but he still flashed a weak smile before returning his gaze to the woman.
Seeing the woman in black slip into the crowd, Rica uttered a foul curse before chasing after her.
Shoving pedestrians out of the way, he saw her retreating figure slip into an abandoned arcade. He unclipped his pistol, hiding it under his coat, he followed her into the dim arcade.
"Freeze," he barked, bringing his pistol up and leveling it on her back. "Turn around slowly, with your hands up in the air."
The woman came to a grinding halt and slowly turned to face him, her hands held up like he had ordered.
"The mask comes off," Rica ordered, approaching her warily.
She ignored him.
"Now!"
The woman gave him a burning glare before reluctantly pulling down her mask. The first feature Rica noticed was her synthetic jaw. Designed to imitate a real jaw, the plastic was flesh colored and hardly distinguishable from a distance.
"Who sent you?" she asked. "The Academy? Zephyr? Or just another freelancer looking for an easy mark?"
"What are you talking about?" he demanded.
She tilted her head to the side. "You're here for the same reason as us aren't you?"
Rica frowned. "And what reason would that be?"
"What other reason is there? To kill Cecilia Lin of course."