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The day after their meet at Sha-Wujing, Gen and Garonba spent most of the morning recovering from their dinner with Gihei. They also remembered to drink from their Sibonix bottles, sticking to the instructions on the back.

"I'm not feeling any different," Meiji said looking down at himself, "woulda thought for some kinda super-medicine it'd make us feel something, like when we get our flu shots and it hit us hard in the same week? Has there ever been a superhero who just drank stuff and got SUPER jacked, not in a drug way but more like a, okay it IS kind of a drug thing."

He put the bottle down and rubbed his horn.

"I been trying to make lightning come outta this, it'd be real handy if the power went out, and you can just jack me into the box, is that legal? CAN you put lightning in a bottle, I heard a guy in a movie say that once, so someone musta done that for real, what you think Gen-chan? ...Gen?"

The bird was staring at the TV in deathly silence. A show called "Metal Souls" was playing, a band of heroes fighting against a terrible group of robotic warmongers from the stars. Known as Jaegers, the metal fiends planned to take over the earth, and convert it to a steel wasteland.

Garonba sat down beside him, Gen pulling him into a hug much to the beetle's surprise who blushed and gave him a nibble to his cheek. Ganbe was shaking, his eye drifting as the bug put an arm round him.

"I'm here bro," Meiji whispered, "it's okay."

"You...you almost weren't."

"But I am here. Right?"

Gen said nothing, his head drooping as the curved sickle-shape on his scalp shone in the morning gleam. The sound of clashing steel came off the TV as robots wrestled kaiju, fighting across the waters of a distant bay with piercing claws and reckless lasers.

Once the show was over, the bird went to the kitchen sink and started to clean the dishes. He was slow and methodical, dragging out his chore to have less time to think, his face stone-cold into every knife and spoon.

"You want any help?" Meiji asked.

"No."

"I'll just dry 'em for ya, save us some time."

Garonba stood next to him and wiped the cutlery.

"If you were a robot," he began, "what super powers wouldya have? I'd go for superspeed, cuz if you can run superfast, you'd never be late for anything, you could dodge any fight you don't want, you could run away and no one could ever catch you-"

"I can't fucking do this anymore." The bird gripped the side of the sink. "I don't...I don't want to be in the Jinuchu, if it means losing you."

"Um...Gen that's, you shouldn't say that," Meiji patted him, "you got a little scared, it's fine jus-"

"HE FUCKING DROWNED YOU!" Ganbe snapped. "HE MADE ME WATCH, and almost killed you because I didn't have this FUCKING DEED!"

"But we're Jinuchu, we can't just leave it's like medicine! We just gotta swallow it and not complain-"

"IT'S NOT FUCKING MEDICINE, HE'S POISON AND YOU KNOW IT!"

Gen plunged his hands in the water.

"Every day, every FUCKING DAY since Gihei beat the shit out of me in that alley, I wish I wasn't here. I'm not happy here, I hate this fucking city, and everytime I see Gihei's face I-i-i just can't, I CAN'T!"

"Bro, hey calm down it's okay, we'll get through thi-"

"IT'S NOT FUCKING OKAY!"

Pulling out a pot from the sink, Ganbe hurled it against the floor with a deafening clang as he screamed with abject fury. Grabbing a plate he smashed it without thinking, then pulled out the few pans they had from the water and threw them across the apartment. Meiji watched his friend shriek and howl, and sob until the sink was empty, the bird falling on his knees to clutch his face with stuttering tears.

"I CAN'T, F-FUCKING DO THIS ANYMORE! I CAN'T, I CAN'T FUCKING KILL THIS BASTARD, I DON'T WANNA DO IT!"

"I know," Garonba sighed, "but, you got ordes from Gihei, you can't-"

"I KNOW, I FUCKING KNOW I CAN'T! BUT I CAN'T DO IT, AND THEN, THEN GIHEI'S GONNA KILL YOU, BECAUSE I'M A FUCKING COWARD, WHO CAN'T KILL ANYBODY!"

"I...th-that's not true!" The beetle tried to pat him. "I...I know about...that kid, when you were with Gihei."

"You...y-you do?" Gen stared through his fingers.

"I kinda heard stuff, here and there, also sometimes you talk a lot in your sleep and...yeah."

"...n-no."

The bird pulled up his knees and huddled against the wall, a gasping pain from his throat as he balled his fists with a shiver through his back. Meiji sat down beside him and put his hand round him again.

"I don't think you're a bad guy, Gen. I just think you got stuck in a real shitty place and you're trying your best."

"No I'm not," the bird shook his head, "I'm just...I'm just a fucking asshole who wanted to be a big guy and kick creatures around, now I'm a murderer...because Gihei wants me to."

"You don't WANT to do it though, that doesn't make you bad-"

"OH so I'm just following orders huh?!" Gen turned to him. "You know who said that?! The fucking vashers after they dug all those mass graves in the Gobi Desert!"

"Th-that's different, it-"

"NO IT FUCKING ISN'T! I'm a murderer, Meiji, nothing's going to fix that. I'm fucked. I just...I just have to do it again. I've got one week to kill a guy, in a place where everybody's been nice to me, and I have to ruin the one place I was happy in, because I'd rather be a murderer than...than be alone without you."

They sat together in silence, the TV still playing its daytime schedule oblivious to their pain. Hunger brought them outside, with black jacket and blue hoodie as they marched down the streets of Issincho once again. The morning was sour with dismal clouds from the east, beckoning them to darkness.

Finding the cheapest breakfast, a pair of small beef bowls on Iyazaki Road, they took their time in filling their bellies hoping if they ate slowly enough they could trick their stomachs to think it was a larger meal. As they stirred the last pieces of meat, they smelled a rancid chemical burn wafting through the restaurant.

"Morning boys."

They lost their appetite from the loud orange suit beside them, a cockroach tapping two of his four arms to the waiter.

"Medium bowl, extra sauce."

"Morning Tagasuki-san," Meiji bowed, "howsit going?"

"Ohhh welll...pretty fucking shit thanks for asking," the roach sighed leaning back, "pachinko season's gone in November, nobody wants to go out and piss away their tokens. How's your mission going?"

"It's...going fine," the beetle stiffened up, "Gihei-sama put a deadline on us real quick."

"Oh yeah?" the cockroach rubbed his chin. "How long you got?"

"One week." Gen stared into his bowl with vapid eye. "One week...until we're fucked."

"Hmmm better get a move on, you have been there a while."

"I...I'm trying, Tagasuki-san."

The roach leaned over seeing a tear trickle out of his subordinate. Tagasuki smirked with a wide grin on his mandibles as his beef bowl arrived and he started slurping away.

"Mmmph, well, better try harder then. You fixing to go today?"

"Tomorrow." Gen sighed. "Next match is tomorrow."

"So why you going for small bowls today, lost your appetite all a sudden?"

"We spent money on meds," Garonba rubbed his chin, "you ever heard of this stuff called Sibonix?"

"Nah, what is that?" the roach sneered.

"So, it's this stuff in a bottle that, if you drink it over a whole week, you won't get a cold, you won't get ouchies, no aches or pains, the guy said it cures everything!"

"...how much you pay it for?"

"Twelve-thousand a bottle. It was real steep but, to not get sick ever again-"

"Hey, hey...look at me."

The cockroach brought their heads close before slapping them hard into the counter.

"I knew you were fucking morons, but not THIS fucking stupid."

"Wh-what, what was that for?!"

"You got fucking scammed you dipshits, he hoisted your ass!"

"Wha-...n-no, the guy was so nice," whimpered Garonba rubbing his hands, "he gave a really good talk about, electrolytes and it made sense-"

"Oh are you a biologist?" Tagasuki kept eating his bowl. "You don't know shit about fuck, other than your damn forge and I can't have you jackoffs collapsing in the street cuz you can't eat. WAITER!"

Their patriarch snapped his fingers to the crab serving them.

"Two medium bowls for these sad idiots."

"W-wow...really?" Meiji gasped clutching his chest. "Damn, thank you so much Tagasuki-san, that's real nice of you-"

"In return, I need a favour." The cockroach gripped Meiji's arm. "I got something to talk with you about, alone."

"Wait, what?" Gen sat up turning his head. "Why not me?"

"Because it's about the pachinko parlour, and I'd rather not deal with you sobbing in the bathroom everytime another ball clinks in the machine, you fucking drama queen."

"...r-right."

Ganbe slumped in his chair and they ate their food, the smell of the beef bowl too strong to ignore even with Tagasuki's cigar poisoning the air with its bitter stench. With bellies full and noses clenched, they finished off their second bowls, and Meiji went off with their patriarch.

Gen waved him off with a sad look, like a boy going to war as the beetle gave him a fistpump of hope and a gentle hug before they parted. The bird walked east into Chinatown hoping there was some miscreant to find and beat up to take his mind off of things.

After half-an hour discussing his duties, Garonba would leave the pachinko parlour with a heavy sigh and furrowed brow, looking down the street for any sign of his friend. The sun passed its zenith into a cold afternoon as he called up Gen on his phone. It went straight to voicemail.

"Hey, I'm not here right now, leave a message and if I give a shit about you, I'll get back to you."

"Hey, bro? It's Meiji, I uh finished talking with Tagasuki-san, you wanna meet up someplace? I'm just walking around, call me soon as you can alright? I'm here for you dude."

He pocketed his phone with a worried look, staring at his twin-clawed toes as he tried to imagine he was Gen. With a hand over one eye, he stared down the road and walked south into the Red Light District. In the daytime the district looked much sadder without its sultry lights, the curtain pulled back as the magical queens and kings of the night, were now in their regular jackets and jeans.

Some of them waved to Meiji and he smiled back, asking around for the one-eyed avian. Heading west towards the Commercial District, he stopped outside his forge with a hopeful gleam that perhaps Gen was waiting inside. No such luck, and with no response from Gen on his phone, Garonba sighed and looked over his business. The furnace kept burning, the anvil was still dented, and the lathe was just as sharp as ever.

"Welp," he cracked his knuckles, "time to do some special work, at least for what Tagasuki-san wants me to do."

His smile was fiendish with twisting mandibles and glimmering eyes of gold, as he grabbed one of the metal poles and laid it out on the table. From his office he brought a blueprint of a folding-spear-club, resembling a child's drawing with random words only he understood.

From a drawer he pulled out a small fulcrum, a pivot and a wheel, snapping them together with a tight chain that ran through the pole to the other end where he could pull it. He then brought out an old large drill head and tried to attach it to the fulcrum-pivot. But the weight was too much, and the cable inside the pole struggled to pull as Meiji disassembled it and tapped his cheek.

"Damn it's too heavy...but I really want a drill-spear kinda thing...wait, what was it Maung-san said? Once it's fixed to the hilt I can't spin it fast enough...haaah."

He slumped gripping his head with elbows on the table.

"Can't even find a good motor for this to sit on the pole...maybe if I had some of that microlattice stuff Maung's knife was made of I could, but...only place I could get that is from an airplane...and they're light enough already cuz they're all hollow inside full of-...hollow."

Garonba snapped his fingers.

"Oh...SHIT, yes!"

Hurrying into the back of his storage that sat behind his office, he dug through various pieces of scrap he had hoarded over the years from old refuse. From the midst of all this was an old metal briefcase that once contained something very illegal, but it barely had any dents as a testament to its sturdiness.

"Yes, YES, the swingy-things, oh SHIT this could work, this could totally work!"

Using the power lathe, he sheared the long suitcase into the shape of a drill, alternating between cuts to either shear off the corners, or add grooves to make it resemble a curved insect coccoon with rippling scales.

"Shock-absorbent means it won't open unless I want it to, the swingy-things make a perfect catch for the pivot! Now I just gotta make them snap open when I want."

Once he had shorn the suitcase into the perfect shape, he hurried to the pole and snapped it altogether. The long staff with its curved drill-like club now looked like a blunt hammer in its resting position. With one pull of the cable at the base, the drill snapped forwards transforming the club into a spear, with a comfortable lighter weight.

"Hohohhhh...ohhhh yeah." He tested with a few swings that whooshed across the air. "Awhawhawhawwww fuckin' YEAH, awww Gen-chan's gonna LOVE the look of this! Alright...part two, it's got the long-range going on, but I need to add some close-range tech, gotta do something about the-"

"UnHAND ME you filthy oik!"

"N-NO WAIT, LISTEN TO ME!"

"Ehh?!"

Putting down his drill-spear, Meiji headed out the Forge at the sounds of an argument, the voice of two ladies bickering in an old parking lot that could barely fit six cars.

"It's alright uh, Karasami-san-"

"NO, I will wait for my father, he'll come pick me up!"

"Mother-UH, m-ma'am, please!"

"Stop bothering me you brat!"

Standing in front of a large pile of refuse, the young crow Nevar was trying to pull an older raven with feeble feathers. Her body was more pale to a paltry grey, trembling in a petticoat of sultry bronze with her daughter in a soft puffy blouse.

"Ellis-san told me to get you!" cried Nevar.

"I don't know any Ellis-san," shouted the mother, now LEAVE me alone!"

"Karasami-sama hired him! Please, you can't stay here!"

"We were SUPPOSED to meet Garonba-san, father purchased some...s-some, ohhh bloody hell what's the word for it, the stuff you eat with!"

"You mean, cutlery?"

"DON'T correct me you petulant child, I'm not feeble-minded!"

The mother tore her hand away from Nevar who gripped her head with frustration. Then she turned to find the beetle and suddenly pointed.

"OH, THERE YOU ARE!"

"Uhhh, y-yeah?!" Meiji stammered.

"Where in GODS' name have you been!?" the adult stumbled in a jerking walk to him. "Have you seen my father!?"

"I-i...what?"

"Don't WHAT me you sweaty little oik, Karasami-sama! He was here to commission you new cutlery!"

"Mother, please!" Nevar took her hand. "Don't be so rude!"

"Wha-BEGONE you little thief!" she pushed the girl back. "Bloody children around here always trying to pilfer me!"

"I...I'm not!" her daughter cried. "I-i, K-karasami-sama said-"

"Oh like YOU know who he is, skulking around here trying to pick my pockets!"

"I'M NOT A THIEF, I-I'M KONO-CHAN!"

"Uh...ma'am?" Garonba leaned in close. "Isn't this...your daughter?"

"Of course she's not!" the mother snapped. "Wherever would you get that idea Garonba-san, I know you're a friend of my father but that's no reason to supposition!"

"Your...father?"

"Y-YES!" Nevar gripped Meiji's hand. "You were meeting her father, Karasami-sama, and I'm...I-i'm...your assistant, right Garonba-san?!"

"Uhhhh...I am?" the beetle scritched his horn.

"Yes, rememberrrr? I was bringing mothe-um, Karasami-san here to meet her father, who was going to meet you!"

The look in the child's eyes was a desperate plea as Meiji nodded slowly. He twitched his mandibles and turned towards the older Karasami who scowled with her armwings crossed, the feathers wilting from distinct lack of care.

"Yeaaah, that's uh, yeah, sorry," the beetle rubbed his neck, "it's been uh, been a heck of a week, Karasami-san but yeah this is my assistant, Nevar!"

"Hmph, no wonder she's so sooty," the mother rolled her eyes, "I suppose it can't be helped working in a forge."

"Oh yeah yeah, she's a great worker, couldn't get anything done without her!"

"Don't you have a grandson, or is he a shiftless layabout?"

"WHA-NO I'M NOT!" Meiji snapped before flinching. "Uhh, that is, don't disrespect my family, my grand...son, he's a damn good kid!"

"So why is he not here helping you?" Karasami cocked her head.

"He is! He's just uh-"

"Doing orders!" Nevar cried. "He's delivering things to customers, right Garonba-san?"

"Y-yeah yeah, you're right, that's uh good thinking my li'l assistant!"

He patted the girl's head as Karasami sighed with a shrug of her wings.

"Well, I am certainly going to have to tell the council about this awful layout, I was certain my father's business was here!"

"Yeaaaah, uh," the beetle rubbed his chin, "would you like to wait in my forge 'til he arrives?"

"I most certainly will not! Stain my coat with all that nonsense in there, how dare you!"

"Wow jeez calm down, I'll put out a carpet if you want-"

"I honestly don't know why my father chooses you to craft our metals."

"Because I own the Forge?" Meiji pointed to the warehouse. "Not like anyone else can do it round here."

"Father could hire someone in Tokyo with his money," the mother sniffed shaking her head, "but no, he insists on local business, something about improving the district, but I suppose he knows what he's doing."

"Would you like to wait somewhere?" Nevar bowed to her, "there's an office nearby that can let you sit down-"

"Well of course they would, my father owns half of Issincho."

They walked together up the street towards the Hello Work building, a job centre for locals where Meiji had found several clients who needed metalwork. The inside was a very standard office, almost blindingly vapid of imagination with its long pale cubicles and an ocean of desks.

"Excuse me," Nevar approached a centipede, "I'm...sorry to bother you, but...my mother has dementia, and she needs a place to sit down."

"O-oh...I see," he stiffened looking at the shaking crow, "does she need a doctor?"

"No, she just needs somewhere to sit, is it okay if she stays here until my house can pick her up?"

"Of course dear," the centipede nodded, "that's very sweet of you, my husband's father's actually the same way."

"Oh no, I'm so sorry!"

"It's alright dear." He pointed to Meiji. "Is that your father?"

"OH, no he's a friend of my mother's."

"Ahhh alright, well she's welcome to stay here so long as she doesn't cause a disruption."

"Thank you sir...um, c-can you call my house, so someone can-"

"Absolutely, what's your number?"

As Nevar spoke with the clerk, Garonba sat beside Karasami who tightened her coat.

"Well now this is more like it," she sighed twitching her head, "draughty though, they should close more windows here."

"I never really been here myself," said Meiji looking around, "kinda have a job already, you know, through the family."

"Indeed, a good business runs in the family, just as my own."

"What sorta stuff your family do?"

"How do you not know?!" she gasped. "Did my father not speak with you?"

"Well, he didn't tell me much," Meiji shrugged, "just 'hey I need some cutlery', I didn't wanna uhhh...waste his time?"

"Hm, indeed, well, the Karasami estate largely acts as a benefactor to several groups in the region, specialising in the arts and music."

"Oh that's pretty cool, that why your daughter learns the piano?"

"My what?! I don't have a daughter!"

"OH, s-sorry I meant, don't you have someone who plays piano in your family?"

"And how would you presume that?" she leaned in with shivering sneer.

"Uhhhhh-"

"The piano you ordered, remember?"

Nevar stepped up with a courteous bow.

"We helped you find one for your manor, Karasami-san."

"Do...do we have a piano?" the mother gasped shaking her head. "I...I-i don't remember, has it come through yet?"

"Um...perhaps it has not arrived yet, but it was ordered."

"Ahh...yes, that...that is good, thank you dear."

The raven stroked her head with a sudden burning pain through the front. Her eyes turned dim and a soft moan trembled from her beak, the sound of keyboards filling the room.

"You alright, ma'am?" Meiji asked.

"Yes I...th-thank you dear, um...forgive me but I am having a bit of a foggy day, I'm sure I recognise you."

"Oh, I'm Garonba-san, I run the Forge."

"The-...yes, the Forge, yes my...my father purchased our cutlery from there. Such wondrous craftwork, hmhmhmhm, Hinoyama was exceptionally jealous, the little spoilsport."

"Um...Karasami-san?" Nevar gently patted her leg. "Do you rememb-"

"Oh, hello dear!" her eyes twinkled as she petted her daughter. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to bring you home, Ellis-san is on his way with the car."

"Ellis-san? Is he new?"

"He...yes. He's very dependable, father recommended him."

"Well that's very good...I'm...gosh I am so sorry little dear but, I've seen you around the house and I just cannot remember your name."

"It...Nevar." She forced a brave smile. "My friends call me...Nevar."

"Hmhmhm, what a strange name," Karasami smiled petting her head, "you know...gosh I feel like another name could suit you, it's picking the back of my brain."

Meiji frowned at this as they waited for the car to arrive, the mother calming down with an odd distant look as she tapped her knees and hummed a little song. Nevar sat up beside her, trying to keep her smile as the beetle left them briefly to get a drink.

"I'm uh, going to the vending machine, either of you want anything?"

"OH, yes," Karasami raised her hand, "hot chocolate please."

"Orange juice for me!" said Nevar.

He regretted asking this question on realising what little money he had. The taste of Sibonix flickered on his tongue as he walked out the front door of the office to where two vending machines stood on the stairs. Getting down on all fours, Garonba pulled out a small magnet he had tied to a stick in his pocket, digging around underneath the machines.

"Come oooon, here money money! Heeeere money money money-AH, yes, I got the-awww, twelve yen are you kidding me!? Come oooon at least gimme two-forty!"

Scrabbling hard, Meiji gathered all the money he could with jabbing digs of his magnet, and just barely managed to get enough cash for all three drinks. With a coffee can for himself, he returned with hot chocolate and an orange juice.

"Sorry for the wait."

"What?" Karasami scoffed up at him. "Is my limousine here yet?"

"No, uh, you asked me for hot chocolate."

"I most certainly did not!" she slapped him away. "A lady such as myself would NEVER partake in a canned beverage like some...hooligan!"

"Mother-UH, Karasami-san," Nevar added, "he was talking to me, that's my...hot chocolate."

"Oh." She sneered down at her. "Fine fine, I suppose there's no good tea around here in this...office."

"There isn't, sorry."

The girl took both cans with apologetic look, Meiji nodding as he drank his coffee beside the now-haughty raven. Eventually there came a voice from the front door, and Meiji suddenly balked at the newcomer.

"Madame Karasami."

The voice of a hairy slug in a suit came from the door.

"Your limousine is wai-...what is HE doing here?"

"UM, E-Ellis-san!" Nevar rushed over to him. "Karasami-san was just visiting Garonba-san, because she wanted to ask, about father's cutlery, rememberrrrr?"

"Ah...yes." The slug nodded. "Apologies, Garonba-san, I did not recognise you."

"You're not the only one," Meiji muttered standing up, "can I help you with-"

"No, thank you. Karasami-san, your father is waiting for you at home, if you'll please come with me."

"I suppose I must," she heaved herself up, "what a terrible waste of a day, and here I thought he would meet me here."

"My sincerest apologies madame," the slug bowed deeper, "there was a mishap in communication, I shall see to it whoever responsible is punished."

"Good. Now, Kono-chan, you-...w-wait."

She looked to her daughter and rubbed her own head.

"Kono, is...is that your name?"

"Y-yes," the crow nodded with a little tear, "that is my name um...Karasami-san."

"...would you come with me, if you please? I feel as if...I, remembered something you need to tell me."

"Yes, I had business with your estate...let me just confirm with Garonba-san before we leave."

"Very well, dear."

A smile crept on the mother's beak from a memory trickling through. Nevar hurried over to Meiji and suddenly hugged him.

"Thank you," she whispered up to him, "I'm sorry for bothering-"

"Hey no, it's cool," he patted her head, "you're a good daughter...any mom would be proud to have you."

"I hope so. If...if I need anymore help from...Garonba-san, could you?"

"You can count on me," Meiji grinned, "anytime your family need business, or cutlery, right?"

"Heehee...right. You're a good creature, Marbul."

The beetle blushed and waved her off, as she went with her mother down the stairs whilst the slug bowed stiffly towards him, with a noticeable look of gratitude in his eyes.

"Damn..." Meiji rubbed his hands, "can't imagine a girl having to look after her mom, that must be super rough. Guess there are some things even rich kaiju have to deal with like everyone else."

Heading out of Hello Work, Garonba pulled out his phone to see Gen had still not called back. He tried again to find it was still his voicemail, his look turning worse with concern.

"Come ooon Gen-chan what're you doing? Maybe I should find Maung-san, he's good at finding folks-"

Suddenly a crash alerted him, the sound of screeching tires coming from the northwest avenue as he raced towards a small arcade just off the main road. A white van was blocking the front, and much to Garonba's surprise, three creatures in hoods came barging in with screams from inside.

"ALRIGHT, THIS IS A HOLD-UP, NOBODY MOVE AND NOBODY DIES!"

"OH, SH-SHIT, D-DON'T HURT ME PLEASE!"

"OPEN EVERY CABINET IN THIS PLACE, AND EMPTY ALL THE MONEY INTO THIS BAG! NOW!"

"B-BUT, I DON'T HAVE, A-AAAARGH!"

A blasting flame came shooting out the door as Meiji braced himself. He still had his drink cans with him, but he searched nonetheless for other weapons as he crept closer to the entrance. A spiked reptilian of steel sharded body, a warty crocodilian with a hoof-snaped snout, and a slimy green octopus all surrounded the kappa who owned the arcade.

It was a charming little place, with six cabinets of old fighting games and a few crane machines at the side to which the kappa was forced to empty. A tentacle held him hostage with a brimming electrical charge, the croc snarling flames from his maw whilst their leader the steel saurian, shot a hard streak of plasma energy across the roof.

"You better make this quick!" he shouted. "Unless you want the choice of being fried or burned to death!"

"N-NO, NO PLEASE!" the owner cried staring at the floor. "I-i'll get your money, just let me open this!"

"Shit," Meiji muttered from the door, "if I had Gen-chan here I could figure a plan but three against one is...hmmm, alright, I'm gonna need a bucket of water, some string and about thirty miniature-"

" THROUGH FIRE, JUSTICE IS SERVED!"

Something landed on the roof of the van before kicking open the arcade doors. Meiji gasped and stumbled back seeing the red-and-yellow steel, a man of action with shining gloves of blue, and a cone-shaped head with dark eyes and a rictus grin.

"Wha-WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?!" shouted the croc.

" To punish evil forces!" cried the metal man. " I have been charged!"

"Oh you've got to be kidding," snorted the octopus, "a fucking wannabe hero?!"

" A hero, in shining armour is called! I, am JET JAGUAR!"

"And I, am FUCKING KILLING YOU!"

The steel lizard blasted a beam of energy, Jaguar flashing his eyes like brilliant lights to blind his opponent who turned his head causing the laser to trail across the ceiling. The croc lunged in fast with a searing flame from his throat, but the hero made a sliding kick and knocked him down with a boot to the knee.

"F-FUCK, DARON DO SOMETHING!"

The octopus when called swung out one of his free tentacles with a rippling spark, lightning charged behind as the metal suit ducked and rolled with a small projectile shooting out his wrist. The squid roared from being blasted in the face, releasing the kappa who hurried back to the counter and fled through the staff room door.

The iron-saur charged the hero, grabbing Jaguar's arms and hurling him against the wall before shooting his explosive beam as Jet blasted himself away in time, using a burst of propulsion from his boots to evade the tearing blast. He spun in mid-air with a diving kick crunching the lizard's head, jumping off his skull to land on the octopus with a hefty slam of both knees to knock him to the floor.

"ALRIGHT C'MERE YOU PIECE OF SHIT!"

With a pounding charge the crocodile grabbed Jaguar's head and slammed him against a fighting cabinet, cracking the screen with the metal head before rearing back to deliver a deadly flame. Out of nowhere, a can of orange juice suddenly lodged in his mouth and trapped his jaws, his flame melting the can and pouring the now-molten juice down his stomach to cause a coughing fit.

"KHRR, ECH-EHHKH, AAARGH!"

"HEY ROBOT GUY!" Meiji cried from the entrance with a can still in hand. "YOU NEED SOME HELP-WOAH JEEZ!"

"GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE YOU SHIT!"

Barely dodging a vile beam, Garonba ducked into the room and went for the steel lizard, the dinosaur grabbing Meiji's throat before the beetle slammed his can of hot chocolate into the kaiju's eye, and pelted him with scorching hot liquid. A snarling shriek filled the air as Garonba punched the robber's gut, tripping him down with a leg sweep before a tentacle wrapped round his head.

"HEY BUG-BOY, HOW 'BOUT I SQUISH YER FUCKING HEAD?!"

"NNNGH, NAH, HOW ABOUT SOME CHANGE!?"

A coin appeared in his hand as he flicked it with startling accuracy, blinding Daron's eye to relax his grip as Meiji pulled free to deliver a flying kick. The octopus crunched against the claw machine, his hand slipping inside by accident and reaching up amongst the toys as the beetle quickly slammed a coin in and plucked the tentacle with the crane.

"Eyes on the prize BABY!"

"A-AAAARGH, SHIT O-OWWW YOU BIIIITCH!"

In his panic from the pinching grip of the crane, Daron burst an electrical jolt that frazzled the machine as it suddenly beeped into overdrive. The crane went psychotic, zigzagging fast to rip the tentacled arm inside causing Daron to shriek even harder. Soon the crane started ramming against the window, a crack forming a spider's web before it burst free the moment Meiji jumped back to avoid the crash.

With his arm trapped in a loop and a showering of plushy birds on his head, the octopus was trapped as Meiji turned towards Jet Jaguar still wrestling with the crocodile. Trying to dodge the blasting flames of his snout, the man of steel clonked him with an elbow then cracked his jaw back with an uppercut.

"GAAAAGH, FUCKING PISS, ARGO-SAN!"

"STOP WHINING GERA, I'LL MELT HIS FACE!"

Sensing the presence of Argo coming from the side, the iron lizard charging up his powerful beam, Jet Jaguar fired a missile from his wrist that popped with a tiny explosion, causing the dinosaur to clench his eyes with a fearsome roar. It wasn't enough to stop him blasting his deadly beam, but Garonba's intervention did.

Grabbing a Bun-chan plushie from the crane, a naughty-looking bird with an eyepatch and a knife in its wing, Garonba slammed it into Argo's mouth as it popped like a balloon from the plasma beam. The bursting fluff turned to a thick melting charr that slithered down Argo's throat, causing him to retch and stumble against the cabinets with a halting blast of short beams across the floor.

The mighty Jet Jaguar overcame the crocodile at last, bashing his head before dropkicking hard with such force that it sent Gera toppling head over heels across the counter. Three robbers laid out on the floor, the heroic man of steel turning towards Meiji and giving a thumbs up.

"Uh, th-thanks?!" He gave a thumbs back. "But, hold up, I gotta ask-"

"A-ARE THEY GONE?!"

Garonba turned to the staff door seeing the kappa peek out.

"D-did they leave?!"

"Uhhh, not yet," he stared around at the bodies, "but they're super out of it, I-"

"OH, THANK YOU SO MUCH!" The soft-beaked kaiju bowed with water sloshing in his scooped hat. "I-i don't know how you did it, fighting three at once, that was terribly reckless!"

"Hey, no wait I-i didn't beat all of them up!"

"But there's no one else here!"

"Yes there is, look!"

But there was no one beside him. Not a trace of Jet Jaguar could be found in the arcade, with all three of the would-be robbers passed out as Meiji stammered.

"No, hey come on, you saw him right?!"

"Saw who?!" asked the kappa.

"Th-the guy, Jet Jaguar!"

"That wasn't you?! I heard someone shout that, but I assumed it was-"

"NO, that ain't me, it was a guy in a red-and-yellow suit, he kicked all their asses!"

"I didn't see anyone like that, I was staring at the floor I just heard someone shout about fire and justice and when the fighting started, I ran to the backroom!"

"But...there was a guy, he, he was right THERE, how the fuck'd he get away?!"

He went down to the floor and started peeking under the cabinets.

"Maybe he shrunk down...yeah, that's like a superhero move right?!"

"Alright, look, sir?" The clerk waved his hands. "I just had a very stressful afternoon, so I'm just going to call the police, and we'll just say that you saved me, alright?"

"Uh...s-sure," Meiji looked up, "lemme just, check all these cabinets first for that little jaguar guy, cuz I want answers!"

"If you say so," the kappa sighed rubbing his head, "gods I hate Yokohama, my mother was right about this place."

Whilst Meiji was busy at the parlour with Tagasuki, Gen found himself in Chinatown with a dismal look across the fluttering banners, the tourists wandering between restaurants desperately selling their wares. He didn't even care enough to avoid Gihei's tower, strolling past without even a look to the guarding tiger who stared back at him. At the arcade on the far-east side of the district, he found Dogu Orama, the pale jellyfish wearing a hi-vis jacket and worker's clothes.

"Uh...Orama-san?"

"Oh!" The squid turned to him. "Hey there, what's up Ganbe?"

"Ahhh, just...looking around, seeing anyone needs stuff."

"Not with your pal?"

"He's busy with my patriarch," Gen sighed, "what you up to?"

"Juuust a little work," the squid showed a ladder and a toolbox, "going incognito for a bit with my usual gear."

"Your usual...gear?" Ganbe looked at the box.

"I got some things that need recovering...actually, maybe you can help, I was figuring how to do this on my own but if I got a partner that makes it easier."

"Are you...are you like a thief or something?"

"Nope," Dogu wagged his tentacle, "I'm just a regular city worker doing my job, as far as everyone knows."

They walked to the parking garage beside the arcade, the grand concrete edifice looming over the street as the squid gave him a pair of gloves.

"Alright, so," he began, "there's an electric box over on Floor B, near the seventh spot. You need to go in there and turn off the red lever."

"What is all this for anyways?" Gen looked back down the road. "What's inside there?"

"An old governor's treasure trove," said Dogu, "she was a...diamond enthusiast, and so am I."

"Wha-d-diamonds?! You telling me some jackoff hid DIAMO-"

"SHHH!" the squid clapped his beak. "You want the whole town to hear?! There's a box inside that's guarded by a bunch of electrical wires through. Around thirty years ago, a governor of Yokohama bequeathed her entire fortune to the R.O.S.E. institute, who managed to save her son's life using revolutionary techniques for the time."

"Wait, I thought they were a lab, not a hospital."

"They do all sorts, whole new advancements in chemistry, biology and physics, now, most of her fortune was accounted for...but there were three items that were never found in her collection after she died. The Sun Tiara, the Moon Bracelet, and the Ocean Ring."

"And you think...that's here?" Gen looked around.

"Yep," Dogu pointed, "right over there."

The cephalopod turned towards the blue gate at the north end of Chinatown, a gorgeous imperial facade that stood with shining pillars of golden scales beneath its luscious azure.

"I've been searching for these babies the past ten years," he said, "that's why I got stung real hard before you found me, cuz the security at her estate caught me out on the balcony, when I was scouring through her library for clues."

"How...h-how much is this worth?"

"At a guess? I'd say about ninety-million yen."

"N-NINE, N-N-NUH...NAHNIIII?!"

Gen clapped his beak with a shuddering cough as he crumpled against the wall.

"H-hohhhh f-fuck...that's...that's a lot. I could start a new life with that!"

"Mmhmm." The squid crossed his arms. "Since you helped me out, and also saved my life, I'll give you half of that, scout's honour."

"That...yeah...that's...holy shit that's enough to buy a house, that's enough to...I can take Mei-chan with me, we'll run away, fuck we can leave the Jinuchu!"

"Yeah?" Dogu smiled with his creasing eyes. "Where you wanna go?"

"Anywhere, I don't care, someplace Gihei can't find us. Please." Ganbe stood up gripping Dogu's chest. "P-please, you promise I can half of that?!"

"Yeah yeah, I promise," the octopus nodded, "I don't care about the money too much, just want the thrill of finding them."

"Ffffuck...oh my dude," Gen hugged him tight, "I will do ANYTHING you want if this shit comes true."

"Well let's hope it is." Dogu pointed at the parking garage. "Alright, floor B, bay seven. Find the electric box, inside is a red lever. Turn it off, then give me a signal when you've done it."

"Got it," Gen nodded fast, "ohhh damn I can't believe there's that much f-fucking money inside that gate holy shit!"

"Alright, keep your cool. Play it like the circuit, just keep your head and don't count your victory 'til the last bell."

"Right...got it."

Heading up inside the garage, Gen put on the thick gloves Dogu had given him and swaggered through the empty lots. A few cars and rickshaws were parked, the bird making his way up to the fourth floor as his footsteps echoed through the wide space. Sometimes a door shut off in the distance, a car ignition turned on and someone would drive out. At one point a patrolling guard stopped him.

"Hey!" the kappa pointed. "Where you going without a car?"

"Looking for perps." Gen turned with a crane of his neck. "You seen any guys dealing drugs here?"

"No, but I can tell you're not police."

"Oh, you think so? Lemme show you my badge."

The bird puffed out his Jinuchu pin from his leather jacket, causing the kappa to reel back with a start.

"OH, sh-shit I-i-i'm so sorry, sir!"

"Yeah, you will be." Gen clucked his beak. "So, you seen any guys dealing round here? Cuz I'll take 'em off your hands and uh...fix them."

"N-NO, no no no, nobody round here, a-as you were!"

With a drag of his long-clawed feet, Ganbe headed up to Floor B and found the correct spot where, just as Orama said, an electrical box was on the wall next to it. Staring out the window, he saw Dogu at the top of the ladder, opening the fuse box for the blue gate.

"Fuck is this really happening?" The bird started panting. "If...i-if...ohh thank gods I get a fucking break, Mei-chan we're gonna be free, we're gonna be free!"

Ganbe opened the panel to find several switches, including a red lever, a green one and a blue one as he thunked down the red with a heavy clang. He gave a thumbs up to Orama, who saluted him and dug his hand in the gate's circuits. Then he violently spasmed, tentacles gyrating frantically as he suddenly reared backwards to fall into some bushes.

"OH, SHIT!"

The bird almost raced back down the ramps of the lot, before realising the fin-like wings on his back. Desperation took him as he climbed out the window and launched himself through the air, the wind catching his arms and causing his scaled wings to stretch out in yellow flaps.

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck FUCK FUCK FUCK!"

Grabbing the side of the blue gate, Gen fumbled out of the sky like a poorly-made kite and gripped the ladder, sliding himself down to where Dogu Orama laid on his back.

"Hey, HEY, you alright?!"

" Uuuuuugh."

The squid rolled his four eyes with a sizzling crackle through his body.

"Gods...damn, now I know what calamari feels like."

"Cala-who?"

"You never had Italian food?" He scoffed stretching his arms. "Is it fucked up I like eating little squids?"

"N-never mind, didya get the stuff?!"

"Yep."

Dogu pulled himself up with the bird's help, clasping a small metal box tightly to his chest.

"Holy fuck it really is!" squealed Gen.

"Not here," the jellyfish waved his tentacle, "let's find a quiet place up north."

"R-right."

"The fuck happened anyway," Dogu limped up the street, "I told you to hit the red lever."

"I did!" Gen cried. "I pulled the red!"

"You did? ...wait, when you looked inside, was it the one on the right?"

"No, it was...left of me."

"...shit." The squid clapped his head. "I meant the green one."

"Wh-what?!"

"I always knew my colour blindness would kill me one day."

"Are you...are you for real?!" the bird gasped grabbing his shoulder.

"Yeaaah it kinda makes my job a little hard, it's why I appreciate having a partner. I used to have a gang, most of the time I just did surveillance but...oh well, least it didn't kill me, yet!"

Struggling to contain his joy, Ganbe walked with Dogu towards a small nook between buildings just opposite of Hannyakita Park. Once they were out of sight in a narrow alley, the octopus leaned back against the wall to take a deep breath.

"Fuck my hearts are racing...hoo."

"You sure you're alright?" Gen looked him over. "You did get fucking zapped."

"Nah it's fine, now if it was a wasp stinging me I'd be in real trouble."

"Alright sure you gonna open the box?!"

"Yeah yeah hold your panties, I got it."

"H-h-h-hohhhhh damn, please, PLEASE let this be something, I never wanted anything more in my life right now!"

With feverish excitement, Ganbe watched Dogu open the box. Dust slithered off its top, their eyes wide open until they looked inside. Their faces dropped. There was nothing but a small paper note that read thus.

In a child's book

A map of your seaside home

Shall begin your quest

"...fuck." Gen pushed back against the wall. "F-fuck...fuck, no, no don't tell me that's it."

"Heeey hey don't be like that," Dogu patted him, "we're not beat yet jus-"

"A-AAAGH FUCK!" the bird yelped from a static shock. "JUST...F-FUCK OFF ALRIGHT?! You fucking bitch, you got my hopes up!"

"Hey-ey, my source was legit, we got a clue here we just gotta figure it ou-"

"NO! No. I'm fucking done." The bird slumped down to sit in the alley. "Why did I think...anything, would ever go right for me?"

"Kid, come on." Orama spread his arms. "It's not the end of the world-"

"In a week it will be." Gen stared ahead. "I'm just...I'm just waiting for it now. Every time there's some chance I'm gonna be happy...it's fucking taken from me."

A tear trickled down his cheek, a sigh of exhaustion filling his lungs as the octopus tried to reach over and pat him. But he thought better against and took a step back.

"Hey, listen, I'll follow up on this and...if I find anything, I'll send a letter to your place."

"Whatever." The bird shrugged. "S'probably fake, not real anyway."

"We'll see. But...thanks for the help, Ganbe, sorry for getting your hopes up."

"Yeah."

Orama took his leave as Gen pulled up his knees. Without Meiji to distract him, the darkness took hold of his thoughts and slowly pulled him to the depths with awakening despair, at the long dark road ahead of him. He looked up above to see the buildings blot out the sky, the alleyway having the faintest flicker of light from the sun between the clouds. Blink. Blink. The taste of blood filled up his beak again.

"...no. No, I can't...I can't do this." He clutched his face. "I can't go through this again. What...what the fuck do I do? If I don't...if I don't do this Meiji'll...he might be a fucking dumbass, but he's MY f-fucking dumbass...no."

He looked up to the towering buildings once again. He remembered the panic he felt from his brief flight, the fall as he tumbled when a dark glimmer came to his eye.

"I can't let him get hurt. Gihei's not gonna do it if...if he's got nobody to torture over it. Where'd be the fun in that?"

He dragged his feet towards a white-walled cafe, a corner side of steps leading up to it from the road. With its charming wooden tables and a shielded counter full of treats, Gen only felt the hollowness of his wallet, and his heart, become even greater when he stepped behind two creatures in a queue.

"This place has the best muffins," said a soft effeminate voice.

"I haven't had muffins often," said a deeper customer.

"Oh really? Would've thought a beef cake like you would need-"

"I told you to stop with the food talk, I'm hungry enough as it is."

"Awww but you're so cute when you blush! I bet your boyfriend loves it too."

Gen barely listened, the dark kaiju in a white suit shuffling ahead whilst a gold kitsune in a blue suit picked out some choice muffins. Whilst they were choosing, the bird stepped up to ask the tiger serving.

"Excuse me, uh-"

"Hello there!" she smiled with a bow. "What can I do for you?"

"Um, can you access the roof from here? I was hoping to find some great views of the city."

"Oh sure, you can take the elevator, tourists love the sight of the bay."

"Thanks," Gen smiled, "you got something to write on? I need to leave a message."

"No problem!" she offered a pen and paper from her notebook. "Here ya go."

"Thank you."

Sitting down at a table, Ganbe took a few moments to compose his words before writing.

Give this to Meiji Garonba, who lives in the Bar District

I'm sorry Mei-chan

I deserve this more than you

Dragging himself off the table, he put the note in his pocket, and handed back the pen to the tiger who smiled a little worried as the bird went to one of the lifts. Two minutes of the longest silence passed him by, the rumbling shudder of pneumatics almost soothing him as the lights drifted past the door. He had never been to this rooftop, having assumed it was not accessible to the common public.

It was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen of Issincho. A wide empty roof with tall green bannisters and binoculars set up in two directions. His heart softened, seeing the park spread out before him, tiny creatures scattered about playing sports, musicians strumming beneath a cloudy sky, and the grand sight of the Cosmic Clock ferris wheel shining off across the sea.

His black jacket gleamed in the greying sun, as he took his first steps towards the edge of the roof and climbed onto the railing. His mind briefly realised his wings would cause him to glide, as he pulled off his jacket and wrapped it tightly round himself to stifle the wings. Gen took a deep breath, closed his eye and spread his arms towards the abyss.

"Excuse me."

He stopped hearing a deep voice behind him.

"Do you need help?"

"...are you security?"

"No. I'm a customer at the cafe. Please don't do this."

"Why not? I'll be dead in a week."

"Why?"

Gen heard his footsteps approach.

"Are you sick?"

"No, I...I got a lot of problems."

"I see. But this isn't the answer."

"It's the only one I got left." Ganbe sighed staring across the park. "If I don't do this, my...my best friend's gonna get murdered because of me."

"Your friend? Why?"

"Cuz I fucked up, alright?!" Gen slammed his hands. "I...I fucked up on a job, and my boss is punishing me, I gotta do some bullshit I don't wanna do, and if I don't do it in a week, he's gonna kill my best friend!"

"Are you...yakuza?" asked the stranger.

"Yeah I'm fucking yakuza, what does it matter?!"

"Because I am too."

Gen turned his head keeping his grip on the bannister. A dark-scaled saurian with pale shoes and off-white suit, his strong flinted eyes turning soft towards him, almost pleading from his stone-faced snout.

"I...I-i don't recognise you," Ganbe muttered.

"I'm from out of town," said the stranger, "on business here."

"You...a-are you Jinuchu?"

"No. Are you?"

"Y-...yeah."

"Do you want to talk?" The white suit offered his hand. "Maybe I can help you."

"N-no," Gen whispered, "you can't help me."

"Why not?"

"I can't...I can't do this anymore-"

"Can't do what?"

"I....I-i can't...I can't kill someone again."

The stranger watched Gen well up with tears. His eye tightened with a shivering sob, his hands gripped the railing as the white suit approached him.

"You don't want to kill?" he asked. "Who's forcing you?"

"It...my boss. He...h-he promised I wouldn't have to do it again, but he lied. H-he lied to me! A-and if I don;t, he's gonna kill Mei-chan, b-because, I don't wanna kill nobody anymore!"

"I understand. No one should be forced to kill, it's a terrible thing."

"THEN WHYSIT HAPPENING TO ME AGAIN?!" the bird screamed as the wind picked up. "I thought he wouldn't make me again, I thought I was done, I thought I proved myself! But now it's happening again, IT'S HAPPENING AGAIN, JUST LIKE THAT KID, AND THAT FUCKING REPORTER!"

"Wait, reporter?" the stranger shook his head. "When was this?"

"F-fucking two months back, some fucking mantis, they made me do it! I didn't want to, but Gihei made me kill some guy, who had a son, h-he told me his son loved soccer and they played all the time, and now, HE DOESN'T HAVE A DADDY ANYMORE, _BECAUSE OF MEEEE! _"

The wind stopped briefly, a deathly silence before the autumn breeze whistled through the spikes of his bronze belly. The stranger came closer, his hand still reaching out despite all of Ganbe's sins.

"I think...we can help each other," said the saurian with a hopeful smile. "What if I told you...you never have to kill anyone again?"

"A-are you...n-no," Gen whimpered clutching the rail, "you...you can't promise me that."

"I never said I promised. I said I can help you."

"HOW?! H-how the fuck can you help me?!"

"Because I want to stop Gihei." The white suit came closer. "I know he's dangerous, I know he's vile, and I've seen first-hand what he's capable of."

"You...you have?" Ganbe whispered. "Have you met him?"

"Yes. I have to stop him, and if I have to...I'll destroy his business."

"C-can you do that? You can't, you're just some guy!"

"I stopped him before." The stranger grinned. "What matters is, I'm on your side, and I will do everything to help you. Even if I have to break Gihei's face in half."

The strength of his words made Gen feel a strange flicker in his chest. A soft gentle warmth that made him smile with hope at such power, such assurance from this stranger. He reached out for the saurian, who slowly pulled him off the ledge.

The bird suddenly grabbed him in a deep embrace. He couldn't stop himself from the tears that came, sobbing into the white suit as Ganbe broke down completely. Sputtering sobs filled his ears as the newcomer hugged him, watching Gen fall to his knees and grip his leg until the bird cried himself to exhaustion. A few minutes would pass before he stopped, the stranger saying nothing until Gen finally spoke.

"Hey...what's your name?"

"Kiryu." The saurian pulled him up. "Gojirama Kiryu. Toho Clan."

"Heh...Gen Ganbe." He shook his hand. "Nice to meetcha."

"Why don't we sit down and talk someplace?" Kiryu put an arm round his shoulders. "The cafe downstairs has some really good muffins."

"Yeah, that...that sounds nice." Gen smiled. "I could do with some muffins right now."

They walked back to the lift, heading down as Gen checked his phone to find two missed calls and a sudden guilt clench his gut. He decided there and then, that he would make amends for this day, by getting a pair of extra muffins for his good friend Meiji.