WD Spy rule two sixty five is entitled 'Saving the princess is the hero's job and his friend's responsibility'.

Previous rule two sixty four: A flame of passion simultaneously burns all and nothing.

Next rule two sixty six: The peace during the eye of the storm is second to none....

Summary page

-Short summary-

Lukas's hired help comes in to assist the team in rescuing Ruka, as the leader of sector seven himself muses on how he wouldn't have gotten this far without the excellent back up his partners provide.

-Long summary-

A red headed man speaks into a communicator to someone named 'Salvo' informing them that the Sector seven 'Bombergirl' would live through the mission, sans her right arm, and the member of the Vestige Experience known as 'Titus' has departed.

Salvo seems mildly annoyed but otherwise enthusiastic with these results. At least it was Lukas's teammate that had survived. He would probably ask for some of the down payment because of the 'damaged goods', but to be completely fair, the other 'compensation' their group had received is so valuable that Salvo would have done the job for free. Thanks to Lukas Diethel's authority, the group of assassins now had immunity. No matter who they kill, no matter the damage to property, they wouldn't have to deal with law enforcement or messy courtroom drama. It would all be swept under the rug, leaving them free to take jobs. Once Salvo had heard that Jax had handed the reins to the group over to Lukas, he was like a shark on the scent of blood in the water. He had to get Lukas to see the advantages of having assassins in his pocket, all for that immunity.

Salvo calls the man he's speaking to on the communicator 'Izaac', and thanks him for his report. Izaac shrugs it off, and comments on how happy Salvo sounds. He's about Lukas's age, yet he acts like a business man who's been dealing death for more than twice of his lifetime. The girl thinks that a happy Salvo is cute, and that she likes it when both of her little brothers are happy. Izaac points out to the girl whom he refers to as Ruzena that he's actually older than her, to which she scoffs. She then muses that it was less than half a year ago that they were hired by the mafia to kill Meifa, so that they'd have the market cornered on the world destruction theorem. With Meifa walking around free, anyone could snatch her up and mass produce an antidote. The mission had been a failure, mainly because Luciano got impatient and decided to have his own enforcers do the hit. Salvo had decided to salvage this however, and approached Lukas about future job opportunities. Ruzena is amazed that Salvo actually got Lukas to agree, and the younger brother smirks and replies that being an assassin isn't always who can shoot fastest....more conflicts can be settled with words than bullets after all.

Izaac hears a small nearby and turns to find out what it is. Ruzena volunteers to check it out, and after checking her rifle for any problems goes to look for the source of the sound. Izaac asks Salvo how Jitka took the news when he informed her she couldn't come along with them. Salvo admits that their little sister had pouted, but considering she refuses to talk, it would have been a pain to communicate with her. She cheered up after big brother had promised her a new Uzi though. Izaac boredly makes a comment about girls and their guns, and then asks where his little brother is now. Salvo replies that he's giving Lukas a hand, and once he's done there, he'll be joining them in the basement.

Izaac hears another sound and turns to see his old--younger sister being held down by one Mizuki Asahara. She says in a sing song voice that she's found something to brighten her bad mood. She'll kill the two assassins, and then take her revenge on the dark prince. Apparently she had fallen into the basement after Lukas's explosive show,  and had been wandering around until she heard the explosion from Titus's last stand. She's still stewing in anger over her comeuppance, and figuring correctly that this has something to do with Sector seven, she came to see what is going on. The older assassin passively assesses the situation, and then tells Salvo 'something has come up', and promises to contact him later.  At the same moment, Salvo hears a beep on his communicator indicating someone else is calling him, so he doesn't question Izaac any further. He ends the call with his brother and then addresses the new caller with the air of almost phony courtesy only invoked by car insurance salesmen, and asks how Mr. Diethel is doing?

Lukas cuts right to the chase and asks Salvo about the corpse in front of a door in the hallway he's currently in. Salvo confirms that this was his handy work, and that the gentleman that just took an all expenses paid trip to the afterlife was getting dangerously close to the room that one Ruka Deguchi is currently residing in. He only  took the proper protocol to ensure her safety, as their mission is now the mission of he and his family. Lukas starts to object, but Salvo points out that he really isn't in a position to. That guy is a Mafia agent, and therefore has no reason to keep Ruka alive. Besides, Lukas didn't hire them to clean the place did they? He brought them on knowing full well what their job skill set was.

Lukas grumbles a bit but otherwise stays silent. Salvo sighs and changes the subject, asking if it's really okay to trust Ruka? She's the daughter of Chizuo Asahara after all, no telling if he's corrupted her to a point of no return, and that this isn't just some ploy to destroy Sector seven and the govt from the inside out. Lukas remembers how frightened she looked when Xunshi had come and 'collected', and replies that things would have been different if that were the case. He makes a wry comment about what he's heard about her Dad, and in retrospect most of the dads he knows. Between his being a capo in the mob, Meifa's being a mad scientist out to destroy the world, and Ruka's being a blood thirsty monster, things are looking bad in Dad-land. He asks himself out loud if there are any decent Dads left anywhere?

Salvos courteous demeanor drops, and he snarls at Lukas that his father isn't like that. He's a man of the utmost caliber and will be respected. As soon as he realizes what he has said, Salvo quickly apologizes, but Lukas replies that he's the one who said too much. He turns to the ceiling where Salvo is and thanks him for being there as backup. The teenage assassin is taken aback by Lukas's sudden gratitude, and replies in kind. He then apologizes for having to depart suddenly, but Izaac's 'something' that came up nags at him. He warns Lukas to stay vigilant, since their immunity means nothing if he doesn't survive this mission. Lukas smirks and tells Salvo that he doesn't intend on dying, so he should just focus on doing what he was hired to do.  Salvo smirks back and departs, the sound of him running through the ceiling echoing in the hallway. Lukas turns to the door and gazing upon the dead mafia agent thinks of how that could have been him if it weren't for his partners.

They could have easily turned down this mission, and he would have no recourse. Sure he is their boss, but such a thing is really just a fancy title for official documents. More or less, everyone at Sector seven does whatever they want. That is probably the synergy that keeps them closer than a rigid hierarchy of checks and balances. He knows full well that they all had their individual reasons for coming, and that Ruka is just a bonus, but that doesn't stop him from appreciating their help. Several times he had thought of calling in to see how they're doing, but in a weird way, that felt like it would be an insult.

Meifa, Mugen and Penbur face each other down, waiting for the other to make a move.

Jia, his brother lies face down in some rubble, Xunshi no where to be seen.

Heike, Mo and their new buddy Carlo engage in a gunfight against some Corpse walkers.

Izaac hoists Ricca on his back while trying to figure out a way to save his sister from Mizuki.

Nolan, Jax and the rest of Ruka's team waits patiently in a helicopter that circles the building.

It was this that gives Lukas the courage to continue through these fiercely uneven odds. Thats why he doesn't bother to contact everyone and ask for a status report....they all made a decision to come, and more importantly a decision not to die. If he spends too much time worrying about them, the true mission will be lost. 

Straightening himself, Lukas moves the corpse aside and opens the door into Ruka's current location. He sees her immediately, staring out a window whispering a silent prayer....if she could see him one more time, to see everyone she wouldn't need anything else. She just wants everyone; especially the man she loves to come out of this conflict safe. She feels someone's eyes on her and turns around to see Lukas standing in the doorway, surprised at her sudden focus on him. Lukas points out that he heard what she said, and that she has to keep her promise. That means understanding he has a girlfriend, and respecting his wishes for boundaries and personal space. He's about to say something else, but Ruka nearly teleports across the room and wraps her arms around him. She berates him, saying that she had already said she wouldn't cry any more, and now he's gone and ruined that. No longer able to keep it in, she sobs out loud as Lukas groans replying that she should understand HIS feelings. He had to special order this trench coat and outfit that she's getting tears and snot all over, not to mention it wasn't like he just strolled up here leisurely, and...

Lukas sighs and holds her close. He comforts her, saying that he wanted to see her again too, and that everything will be fine now. With a small embrace he proclaims the nightmare over, and gently says that she can stop crying.