The van hit a bump. Looking out the window of the vehicle at the bridge they were crossing, he spotted a noose hanging from the supports. He smiled, it might be him hanging from those gallows when he was through. He looked down at the mask in his hands, the face that had struck fear into the hearts of his victims. It was such a simple thing, just a gas mask he got from a military surplus store. But it was his face, at least the face he wore on the job. Pulling the straps over his head, he slipped the mask down over his face, letting the filtered air enter his lungs. He readied his rifle, pulling back the bolt.

"You ready, Husky?" He asked, smirking slightly under the mask.

His sniper simply nodded, checking his AWP for the 20th time on their trip from the staging area. "Comms check!" he said. The occupants of the van checked their earpieces.

"Our objective is a shipment coming in at the docks. We are to keep that shipment from reaching its destination. Preferably, keep it from getting off the ship in the first place. Let's try for no casualties on this one, we don't know what we're up against and it's better not to kick the hornet's nest till you have the spray. So, we go in, take out the package, and get out. Engage only if absolutely necessary."

"Sir!" The men under his command responded.

"Is this gonna be worth it, Grouse?" Husky asked him, before pulling down his own balaclava.

"If all my planning pays off, we should be able to make a difference in this sorry world." Grouse said, his voice slightly altered by the mask.

"Sir, we have visual on the target" The driver said, as they pulled up onto the docks. Grouse had seen some things in his day, but a Torpedo boat making deliveries was a new experience for him. He smiled, his eyes going dead as the familiar anticipation started to flow through him. It was going to be a hell of a night.

"What the fuck, Rock?" Revy said, startling her partner.

"What? What's wrong?" Rock asked, scratching the back of his head.

"When Dutch counted the crates there were 25. I only see 24, dumbass."

"I was just moving them. I brought up every crate in the hold. I double checked!"

"Obviously not well enough 'cause there's one missing!"

Dutch looked on as Revy and Rock continued to argue. His sunglasses glinted in the light of the city as he turned to face Benny.

"You gonna tell them you had the valuables crate in your bunk?" Benny asked, a cigarette dangling from his mouth.

"Nah," Dutch said, "It's kinda fun watchin' them argue. Especially now we know she won't have a bullet in his ass at the end of it. It's actually becoming kinda interesting. Especially when she gets to the point where she'd kill anyone else. I wonder if…"

He was interrupted by the gunshot that rang out, silencing both him and the arguing Revy and Rock. A second gunshot rang out, forcing all four members of the Lagoon Company to take cover. Revy smiled, pulling out her cutlasses and making sure they were cocked and ready.

"You see where the shot came from Rocky baby?" Revy said, a wicked look present in her eye that Rock was sure he'd never get used to.

"It came from one of the shipping containers over there. What's your angle?"

"Well, it's a sniper, so I can't do jack shit without hangin' my ass out for him to shoot. I say we hold out, and Dutch'll be firing back with the rifle. We've just gotta sit tight."

"I believe that course of action will be unavailable." Came a voice from behind her. "I've called off my sniper. Why don't you come on out, so we can get properly acquainted?"

Revy growled, standing up to face her opponent. Pointing both Cutlasses at her adversary, she raised a brow at his appearance. He wore a Czech M101 model gas mask, and what appeared to be a black coat over a bulletproof vest.

How the fuck is he not sweating to death? Revy thought to herself. "I'm Two-Hands, asshole. Now you want to explain why you're messin' with our shit?"

"Nice to meet you, Two-Hands. It's unfortunate, but I can't allow you to bring that shipment of drugs to Mr. Chang. Now, I'd rather do this without confrontation, so if you please, hand over your shipment."

"As much as I'd like to avoid getting shot at, we just can't do that. We've got a client, and we ain't about to lose our paycheck." Dutch said.

"I'll assume you're the one in charge. I'm Grouse, and we can exchange further pleasantries later. I assure you you'll be fully compensated for the lost goods. We just can't let them get to Chang." Grouse said.

"That's very generous. I have to ask, why keep the drugs from going to Chang? Why even do this in the first place?"

"Like I said, we'll deal with pleasantries later." Grouse said. "Now, we gonna do this smoothly, or am I going to have to fight a woman?"

Revy growled, bursting out as loud as she could "AND WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH THAT, ASSWIPE?! YOU THINK I'M TOO WEAK FOR YA?!" she yelled, once again pointing her guns at the mysterious man.

"No, I just wasn't looking forward to it. It's a complicated thing. I doubt it'd be a fair fight…"

He was cut off from a barrage of 9mm fire. Several of Revy's bullets hit Grouse's arms and legs, and one hit him in the chest. He sunk to one knee, bringing his arm to his chest.

"Like I said," Grouse complained. "Hardly fair."

Amazing the onlookers, Grouse stood, grabbing a pair of Berretta 93R machine pistols from under his tattered coat.

"Well then, let's see how you like a taste of these!" Grouse yelled as he opened fire back on Revy. She took cover behind the crates once more, swapping out her mags and grunting under her breath.

"Full-body armor. Fuckin' ridiculous." When she came up to fire again, Grouse was gone. She turned her head, only having a split second before his punch connected.

Knocked to the ground and stunned by the sudden attack, Revy stood, facing her attacker.

"Thought you didn't fight women." She spat at him.

"Nah. I just don't like doing it." Grouse said, reloading his guns. "Not as much satisfaction, knowing that one of us is going to have the upper hand, no matter what. I prefer the uncertain possibility of being evenly matched. With women, you know that you'll either beat them, or they'll beat you. Simple as that."

Grouse finished his explanation with another bout of gunfire, prompting Revy to do the same, running to the right to dodge his fire. Even more bullets hit his body, but the assailant didn't move, simply wincing once his magazines were empty.

I've gotta end this quickly… He thought. He noticed that his opponent's back was up against the wall. Smiling under his mask. Quickly replacing his mags, he tested his legs. He could still run. Good. He thought. I'm gonna give this bitch a piece of my mind.

Grouse broke into a full sprint, growling loudly as he raised his arms, firing his pistols wildly at his enemy. Revy brought her arms close to avoid being hit by his wild spray. She was confused by his foolhardy tactic. So much that she couldn't move even with him barreling at her like a train. When his mags were empty he simply threw the guns aside and kept running. This snapped her out of it, and she returned fire, a little too late.

His shoulder plowed into her ribcage, knocking the wind out of her lungs and the Cutlasses out of her hands. She was too shocked to even react. She still had that smug look on her face as she fell to her knees, clutching her sides. Grouse panted, his hands on his knees.

"The fuck are you?" Revy breathed. "Some kinda fuckin' rhinoceros?"

Revy stood back up, fists at the ready. She felt a rush of air go by her head as the blade pierced the shipping container. It had come out of nowhere, and she was pretty sure he didn't have a sheath that long under the coat. Out of breath and shocked, Revy put her hands down.

"Are we done here?" Grouse asked, removing his blade from the metal and slumping against the container next to his opponent. He began to pick the bullets out of his armor, small amounts of blood leaking out of the holes.

"Revy!" Rock yelled, running towards the two combatants. Upon reaching his partner, the businessman was quickly shaken off as the gunslinger rose to her feet.

"I'm fine dumbass. Just knocked the wind out of me." Revy said. "You should see the other guy…"

"For once that's not an exaggeration." Grouse said, getting to his feet. Bringing his hand to his ear, he spoke calmly into his earpiece. "Hey, get the kit ready. I need a patch job."

The voice that responded did not belong to any of his men, nor anyone he had ever met. It was a very quiet, soothing, woman's voice, and by the faint accent he could tell exactly who it was.

"I'm terribly sorry to report that your men are not able to come to your aid right now." The voice said. "You will simply have to tough out your injuries for the time being."

"Fair enough. Ms. Balalaika, I presume?" Grouse responded.

"Dah. The very fact that you know my name and still had the guts to attack one of my friends intrigues me. That is the only reason you and your men are still alive. What are you doing in our little town?"

"Well to be honest I had no idea I'd attract your attention so quickly, otherwise I'd have attacked something bigger than a drug shipment. I apologize for causing your friends trouble. If we can talk, I will not bother them and they are free to complete their job."

"What would we be talking about?" Balalaika asked, curiosity in her tone.

"War." Grouse said, waiting for her response. "Have I piqued your interest?"

While Grouse spoke to Balalaika, Rock and Revy sized up their mysterious foe, who was paying little mind to them now.

"Who is this guy?" Rock asked.

"Hell if I know," Revy said. "But he's got some fucking balls, I'll tell you that much. I gotta work on my defense. That ain't something I want happening again. I don't think I've ever seen someone that can just shrug off getting shot. I'm not even sure if this fucker's human."

She winced in pain, bringing a hand to her stomach. Rock was immediately there to support her, only to be shrugged off again.

"I'm fine, Jesus. I think he might've bruised something." She said, picking up her guns and placing them back in their holsters. "Come on, no matter what, we've got a shipment to make. This guy tries anything, I bet sis'll have his head blown off in seconds."

Rock just nodded, looking back at the mysterious armored man once more. This time, he found that Grouse was off the comm, and waving to them.

"Sorry for the trouble! Catch me later and the first round is on me!" He shouted.

Revy stuck her arm up and uncurled her middle finger in response.

Grouse shook his head, returning to his camp where the Kapitan was waiting.