Black Lagoon Book 2

"Hey nazi... I've come for you" - Dutch

Back with more adventures with The Black Lagoon company, a team of couriers and mercenaries who operate out of a fictious Thai city called Roanapur and sail the South China Sea in an old World War 2 era torpedo boat set sometime in the mid 1990's.  The crew is made up of Dutch, the leader and a Vietnam vet.  Benny, the tech support on the run from the FBI and the Mob.  Revy "Two Hand" a woman with a hair trigger temper and knowledge of a huge variety of guns and finally Rock, an ex-Japanese salaryman who joined the crew in Book 1.  They work closely with the Russian Mafia operating in Roanapur. "Hotel Moscow" is led by a scarred woman called Balalaika and her men are all veterans of the Russian Afghanistan campaign and fanactically devoted to her. The writing and art on this series is by mangaka Rei Hiroe. This collection includes the story  "Die Rückkehr des Adlers" [aka Return of the Eagle] in which a salvage mission turn into all out war against a gang of neo-Nazis.  The two part "Calm Down Two Men" which sees issues around Revy's temper come to the fore and then the start of the story "Bloodsport Fairy Tale" in which two unlikely assassins come to Roanapur and cause havoc for Hotel Moscow, a story that will continue and conclude in volume three.  So without further ado, lets dive into the next lot of adventures with the crew of the Black Lagoon.

[Note:  This manga is "unflipped" so must be read from right to left]

DIE RUCKKEHR DES ADLERS: We start aboard a German U-boat during the final days of World War 2, off the Nicobar Island, northwest of Sumatra, Dutch East Indies. They are crippled by American depth charges and end up sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

Glumly the captain has to inform his loyal crew that this is the end for them, "I thank you for your resilience and bravery you've shown in so many lonely battles, I hereby releive you of duty".  He tells them the oxygen supply will exhaust in two hours so they may choose how they die.  He tell them that it has been a honour serving with them.

Now the captain has to inform the SS-officer with them who is clutching a painting to his body.  He seems to be in denial when the Captain tells him that the only place left for them to go is heaven. The SS-officer say the painting is the cornerstone upon which the Reich will "revive her waning fortunes and rule over Europe once more".

The painting.

The captain says it doesn't look that special to him. He is told it's called "The Twelves Knights Guided By Brunnhilde".  He was told to keep the painting safe until the day they rise again. no capitalists or bolsheviks will ever be able to break their noble souls.

The captain asks him if he has a family.  The SS-officer says he has a wife and child.  The captain tells him that he is proud to have fought for his country, and though he is now doomed to a watery grave he has no regrets.  But if he does have one it's sharing a coffin with an asshole like the SS-officer, "a man who doesn't give a damn about his family when he is about to die".

The SS-officer says family is nothing against the nation's cause and demands the captain retract his words.  The captain doubles down by saying it is an empty cause.  Putting up with the fantasies of the Nazis' has lead the nation to a miserable end, "if sinking here and now will spare my children from ever having to see another swastika again... I'd say that was a fair bargain".  This flashback ends with the SS-officer murdering the captain.

Fifty years later in the same spot the Black Lagoon has arrived.  Rock is sitting groaning about how he's going to have to don scuba gear along with Revy to locate the painting they have been contracted to recover. Benny fills them in on the backstory. The captain was called Wenzel H. Ahbe, a hero who recieved the Knight's Cross.  He was given a mission as the Fatherland was falling they escorted a Japanese Naval Officer all the way to Batavia.  A long voyage and almost made it but for patrolling US naval forces who sank it.

But there was an undocumented side to their journey, before they left Kiel, an SS officer boarded carrying a painting.  Benny brings it up on the display.  It's a piece by a no-name artist called August Jank he goes on.  Both Rock and Revy seem unimpressed by it too.  The client is an antique dealer from Spain who says he has a thing for Nazi art.  When the U-boat was found last year by a French telecom company laying cables and it's still water-tight. And in disputed territorial waters, which is where they come in "fifty thousand dollars plus expenses - pretty sweet for a cakewalk" says Dutch.

Revy and Rock prepare to dive.

Revy and Rock will enter via the torpedo tubes and once they have their prize, open up a hole and flood the place, it doesn't matter once they have the painting.  As they put on their wetsuits Dutch tells them they'll track them via their beacons.  He also hand Revy a gift from Balalaika, an underwater gun that Revy is pleased to discover can fire full-auto.

Revy and Rock drop into the water and start swimming down, quickly locating the sunken U-boat.   Up on the Black Lagoon Benny spots that they have company - another boat has appeared.  And as they aren't on any shipping lanes there it's somewhat suspicious.   Dutch tell Benny to hoist the navy flag, he doesn't like the look of them.  He then radios the boat saying they are with the Thai navy and they should tell them the nature of their voyage.

The ship radios back that Dutch's boat is acting alone, where is the reat of them?  Dutch says that's classified. The other ship ends the call. Dutch says to keep an eye on them, "if push comes to shove, we'll waste those guys and pick up our people".

On board the other ship it is revealed to be crewed by men in full Nazi regalia. The have realised the Black Lagoon is not navy and that it's likely intent on"desecrating the sacred resting place of our brothers". The commander orders the Black Lagoon destroyed and fires wire-guided missiles at them.  The boat avoids them, but they have to pull back for now.

Down below, Revy and Rock have made it past the bulkheads to the non-flooded part which still has breathable air. The place is full of skeletons which freaks Rock out.

Revy: "Rock, what we have here... is a forgotten catacomb.  It's what's left of a crew damned to face a grim reaper they didn't want to met. No flowers.  No memorial candles... and no visitors 'cause no one remembers 'em."

She says that it reeks of old putrefaction and staying too long will make your lungs rot.   Rock asks her what she thinks might have been going through their minds as they faced death.  Revy says he is being too gloomy and thinking about it won't do him any good.

On board the sub.

Then they find where the captain was shot by the SS-officer and it appears the crew retaliated and shredded him with bullets. Revu says a ship's crew is like a family, "only outsiders start trouble at time like that". then Rock clears away some dust and discovers the painting.  Revy tells him to get it packed up, she's going to take care of the rest.  When he queries that she says "a little extra loot will make this trip worthwhile".  And she goes off to do some corpse looting while Rock tell the skeleton he doesn't think it's right either.

On board the Nazi ship the commander gives a pep talk about ressurecting a great world order which had been lost to zionists and communists and they must perform heroic actions to restore racial hierarchy as the norm in society.  All the usual neo-nazi stuff as they weep with happiness regarding carrying their own mission to recover the painting.

Dutch and Benny are watching them through binoculars with some amusement.  Dutch says that dipshits like them always fetishise the military.

Dutch: "Take any white trash loser who ignores his own incompetance, but is fixated on living the good life... and you get a goose-stepping asshole in no time.  No matter where you go, that's a universal law".

Preach it Dutch.  He asks what Benny think, being a white man and all. Benny says he's Jewish "in my family we call 'em 'fuckin' nazis'"  As Rock and Revy are still in the wreck all they can do is talk politics notes Dutch. Benny spots them lowering a submersible, Dutch says they can't do anything if Rock and Revy are still underwater.

Dutch and Benny assess the neo-nazis.

Inside Revy returns with lots of stuff nazi memorabilia collectors will go ape shit for.  Rock asks her to leave them behind, "I don't think we hae the right to take them".  The crew left their families to die here, what are trinkets to him and Revu are priceless memories to the dead.

Revy sits down and holds up a skull and an Iron Cross.  She says they are both things, just things.  You measure a things worth not by nostalgia and memories, "value is detirmined by a universally accepted unit. Money"  A lesson she learned when she was a snot-nosed kid crawling in the gutter.  She would waste her time crying and asking God for help that never came, but stopped after the cops nearly killed her for a crime she didn't commit.

Revy: "Their only reason was that I was living in the slums. Whats a little Chink bitch with no power and no God gonna turn to?  Money and guns - that's what.  When you got both it's smooth sailing"

Rock says he's sorry he brought the subject up. She says that if she wanted sympathy she would have spiced it up some more.  She wants him to know what it's like in life's meat-grinder.  And she doesn't want the people she works with "start treatin' me like some whore."  If Rock starts mouthing off about doing things nice and proper, "you're no longer on my side.  And that's when I take out my gun... and kill you."

Battle on the sub.

Rock starts to say he gets it when a loud clanging sound starts up.   Grinning Revy hefts the gun she was given and gets ready to mow down the newcomers.  A gun battle commences and Revy, realising they are outnumbered yells at Rock to get their diving gear.  They have to quickly fall back and the painting gets left behind and falls into the nazi's hands. Suited up, Rock and Revy escape the wreck.

Dutch and Benny pick up their beacons but Revy is swimming towards the nazi ship. They say that she is completely out-gunned, she'll be cut to shreds as soon as she surfaces.  Dutch says it's too soon to move the boat, he just hopes Revy won't get her brains blown out.  She meanwhile has taken out several nazis who followed them out of the wreck. She and Rock surface and then quickly dive back under as the gun on the ship fires on them.

The nazis mock them then set sail.  Dutch finally authorises going after Rock and Revy who they fish out of the water unharmed but with no painting.   Dutch fills them in and Revy is pissed "some skinheads pulled a fast one on us".  Dutch says they won't stay ahead of them, he and Revy are going to get that painting back.

Revy: "Let's do it Dutch.  The only party those nazi's belong to is the one where they drown in their own blood."

Dutch says he has some bitter medicine for fanatics who think they are on a holy quest, "and we're the prescription". They'll raid the ship when the moon rises, "we'll pound the war drums and hit 'em hard and fast. Just like the navajos. Fuck Wagner."

On board the nazi ship they admire the painting. The commander says it "radiates a splendid magnificience".  One of the goons asks why they are expending such resources on this, exceptional as it is.  The commander says it's simple, it will be "the philosophical foundation upon which we will firmly establish National Socialism". His Excellency Herr Alfredo and his will of blood and iron will guide them.  He is funding them on the condition they succeed with this mission.  They may be a small party in the U.S. now but now they will make great strides.  The painting won't be handed over in person to Herr Alfredo, they are going to deliver it to a middleman in Madrid who will conduct the verification process.

On the Black Lagoon Dutch and Revy tool up for the raid.  Dutch tells her to go through as much lead as she wants, "I'm buying". He tells Benny to kill the lights and get them fifty-feet off their bow nice and slow.  As Revy leaves she flicks Rock in the face saying "catch you later".  Dutch asks if their is something going on between them but Revy denies this.

Raiding the nazi ship.

They climb aboard and one of the nazis just has time to shout "Intruders!" before Revy blows his brains out.  Her and Dutch start methodically making their way through the ship, bullets flying everywhere as Revy unloads relentlessly.   After the intial surprise is over, the nazis start fighting back but Dutch and Revy are more than a match for them, "fucking amateurs" says Dutch, "can't you fight half as well as you dress?"

Revy is faced with some crew who put their hands up saying they are just "hired hands" they won't resist, they aren't involved with the nazis.  Revy says she doesn't give a shit and mows them all down.  Dutch appears and asks what the fuck she thinks she's doing?  She says "I'm just having a good time is all."

Dutch grabs her and says that gunmen shoot people for a living, "but killing people for kicks is what a trigger-happy psycho does."  He says he doesn't give a rat's ass about her being pissed off but when she fucks up, he dies.  She has to stay cool and if she can't do that, "then go up a bell tower and start shooting kids."  Then more nazis attack and they shoot them dead before both saying they thought the other was going to shoot them.

Nazi massacre!

Dutch says they need to find their commander.  He's on the phone to His Excellency  Alfredo saying the grave robbers are being dealt with.  The man on the other end of the phone calls the commander "Rachmann".  He tells Rachmann has an overly optimistic view and is being disengenuous. And when Rachmann tries to apologise, Alfredo says he doesn't want apologies he wants the painting.

Revy and Dutch walk down the now deserted corridors of the ship. He asks if she's cooled down now.  She seems to go psycho whenever someone new signs on, she was the same when Benny joined.  He asks what Rock said to her to make her mad.  She says she thought they kept out of each other's business. So he leaves it alone for now.

They run into a huge nazi called Blitz Stanford.  He rants he can make Revy pay for the death of his comrades and starts describing his special gun that only he is strong enough to wield.  Revy calmly listens to his spiel about it as she reloads her pistol, then shoots him in the chest downing him.  She crouches over him and says, "I'll share a tip with you buddy.  Only one thing matters with guns.  You shoot and hit what you aim for."  And she blows his head off.

Revy is not impressed.

That leaves just Rachmann alive as His Excellency Alfredo tells him he's lost.  Dutch walks in and tells Rachmann he can finish his call.   But Alfredo laughs and asks for Dutch to be put on the phone to him.  Dutch tells him he's been defeated and his henchmen were pretty lame.  He asks him about the painting, he figures it's not the actual painting they wanted, it's something hidden inside it.   And his other hunch is that Alfredo has Dutch's office phone number doesn't he?

Alfredo says yes he is the man from Madrid who gave him the job.  His confrontation with Rachmann was something he desired from the beginning.  Not just to test their aptitude, but to ensure an optimal back-up plan with amusement potential.

The painting itself contains lists of accounts, they hid the information in four paintings and escaped Berlin.  The painting Dutch has now is the final one, "I compliment you on you astute intellect, my good jungle bunny."  Dutch tells him to watch it saying he has no qualms about throwing it back in the sea.   Alfredo says it is of no consequence, he has plenty of other resources at his disposal, this was really a bonus.  But a rash action like that might hurt Dutch's reputation.

Dutch says it sickens him but he's right.  Alfredo says it's a pity he isn't white.  Dutch says he'll take that as a compliment and he can go back to his conversation with Rachmann.  Alfredo says Rachmann's usefulness to him is at an end.  Rachmann takes this badly, but Alfredo tells him to shut up.

Alfredo: "You and the black man were offered identical conditions in this game.  And yet, you failed miserably against a man of a supposedly inferior race did you not?"

He tells Dutch if he was Aryan he'd award him the Iron Cross.  Dutch says he just wants the money he was promised, "you Gestapo asshole."

Alfredo appreciates the candor and looks forward to the time "you tenacious inferior races are wiped of the face of the Earth".  Dutch says he hopes Alfredo burns in hell. Dutch ends the call. 

Rachmann is still alive, Revy tosses him a gun telling him to do the right thing.  Rachmann holds it to his head, then points it at Revy and pulls the trigger, but it is empty. And Revy and Dutch both fire upon him.  As they head back to The Black Lagoon Dutch said this job had too many close calls and unexpected variables from without and within.

Revy and Dutch bring things to a close.

Revy tells him to fuck off, but Dutch says he has to worry about a lot of different things.  He can't get rid of the bad vibes, it's got to do with the way Revy is. "Lettin' off steam will only get you so far with those feelings of yours" he tells her.  Revy says it's Rock, he's too different from the rest of them, he's from another world "and I just can't stand how he gives that off sometimes".

Revy: "It's not that I don't like him... but there's no way round it, Dutch.  I... I can't work with him".

And that brings this arc to a close.

CALM DOWN TWO MEN:  We begin with Revy and Rock driving around Roanapur on what Revy angrily calls a "goddamned milk run".  She swears and rages while Rock tells jokes. We jump back in time to earlier that day. Dutch tells Rock to take Revy along with him as there are things the two of them need to work out between them.

Their first stop is the nightclub that is Rowan "Jackpot" Pigeon's place.  He greats them effusively and calls Revy "Rebecca" and asks if she wants to take up his offer of a BDSM show?  She tells him to knock it off.  They have the liquor order he wanted, it's stored at a warehouse at the port authority. She introduces Rock as a stray they took in and Rowan tells him if he needs help anything don't hesitate to call.

Then they head to Hotel Moscow and Balalaika who is unhappily watching porn films for some undeclared reason. She asks why they came in person to tell her about the delivery they have for her, Revy says Dutch ordered them to. Balalaika also mentions there is a meeting tonight about someone who is selling drugs without their permission.  If they find out anything about it, please let her know.  And then Revy and Rock depart.

The final stop is the "Rip Off Church" where they are to take delivery of firearms and munitions.  They arrive and Revy demands to be let in, nearby linens are being stored in a shed outside.  Sister Eda comes out and tells them to come around the back way where they meet with Sister Yolanda.

She does have the items they ordered except for one, the Arwen 32 (a revolver style grenade launcher).  This annoys Revy, they place the order for heavy weapons especially for their next gig.   Yolanda says that they have the item in stock but another client put in a rush order, so perhaps they can add something different on top or give a future discount.

Revy wants what the ordered and she and Eda end up pulling guns on each other.  Rock then interrupts by complimenting Yolanda on the tea. And he and Yolanda have a short discussion on what makes a delicious brew. Rock compars the company who make the tea with hers, having long historys and well deserved reputations.  Yolanda isn't quite sure what he's getting at, so he asks if she is aware drugs are being circulated in the city outside the usual syndicated routes.

At the Rip Off Church.

He goes on to say that they have missed the fact religions institutions can easily cross national borders and why would they be storing bags full of linen outside...?  Yolanda says it almost sounds like he is insinuating they are the source of th drugs and disrupting the market. Rock says there is also the discrepancy between the number of guns coming in versus going out.

Rock: "If you stop and think about it, it doesn't take long to realise that those little things say a lot... A lot of dangerous things".

He then goes on to say that although the Lagoon Traders and Hotel Moscow enjoy a cordiall relationship, it doesn't mean they cooperate all the time.

Yolanda calls him quite the charmer and orders Eda to add the grenade launcher to the list saying that Dutch knows his stuff hiring Rock.  She leaves to perform a service but invites him for a cup of tea sometime in the future.  As she leaves she tells Revy she could learn a thing or two from Rock.  Waving a gun around doesn't always help, "there are other ways to take care of business, my dear"  Revy just scowls.

They go for a meal at an outdoor eatery.   Revy is sulking and asks for the car keys so she can head back alone and Rock can walk.  Rock says no.  She tells him to go back to Japan, he's not cut out for this life.  Rock says she offered him the job.  She says she "fucked up big time."

Rock says if it wasn't for him it would have been a bloodbath at the church.  Sometimes weapons don't solve your problems.  Revy tells him to watch his mouth  Rock says shes been acting this way since the incident on the sub.  She tells him to fuck off and not bring it up again.  Rock stands up and says:

Rock: "I didn't do anything wrong. There's no need for me to apologise to you".

Revy pulls her pistol out and points it at him.  She says she feels sorry for him and asks him what he wants written on his tombstone?  He says "Violent Thugs Will Never Learn" and Revy fires.

Revy has compelling arguments.

Rock is fine and has grabbed ahold of her gunhand saying "there are things guns can't solve" and pulls it out of her hand and tosses it away.  She calls him a "fucker" he says "I'm not some fucker.  I'm Rock."  Holding her shirt he says he's had it up to here with her.

Rock: "I thought I was through with sucking up to my boss... but what do I find myself doing next?  Kissing up to some girl at the ass-end of the Earth instead."

He accuses her of being obssessed with money, "don't you have... any pride in you at all?"  She explodes back at him telling him to get of his high horse, he doesn't know anything about her.  He says that's right he doesn't know about her, but what does she know about him?

She says he has his head stuck up his ass, "Roanapur isn't some dreamland you fantasize about after watching the dollar matinee."  There is no pride or honour here, the place is built on blood and bullshit and Robin Hood's out of town. Rock says she can be a Robin Hood or she can spend the rest of her life whining and feeling sorry for herself.

Revy tells him to shut up, he says go on and keep running in circles like a dog.  She cries out "fuck you! This is the only way... I know how to live my life, damn it!"  She punches him in the face which he just stands and takes.  He removes her fist and reminds her he was left here by his bosses, "just to protect the hand that feeds them and save a little money".

When she first made the offer to join them, something inside him snapped, "something changed completely".  He suddenly did not want to live the life of a salaryman anymore.  Revy was the one who pulled him out of that ratrace. The reason he's hung up like this is that he can't stand to see the person who taught him so much "spouting the same kind of bullshit that I used to hear from the scum I left behind."  He won't stand for it.

Revy pulls away with a "hmph".  She tells him he's a real pain in the ass and he'll get himself killed if he keeps acting like a stubborn fool.  He says she just as much of a fool as he is. They start arguing again when a cop comes up, his name is Chief Watsap.  He says he was called to reports of trouble at the market. 

Revy says he collect those envelopes from them to keep a lid on things.  Watsap says he doesn't mind what they do, just where they do it.  And regulations says he has to take the both of them in.  Revy and Rock get in the back of the patrol car.  Rock has his cigarette lit by one of the cops up front.  

But Rock can more than hold his own.

Revy asks him where he stands, which side does he want to be on.  Rock says, "I stand my own ground... and nowhere else."  She the asks for a light from Rock and he presses his cigarette to hers and they declare this a "shitty day" and just want to go home to bed.  Which brings this two-part arc to a close.

BLOODSPORT FAIRY TALE:   A note to start with, this arc involves two child assassins which we find out are nicknamed "Hansel and Gretal" later in the story.  I'll be calling them that from the start to avoid some inelegant terminology.  It begins with darkness and Gretal asks who was it who said the "ultimate for of love is cannibalism?" Not Edgar Allen Poe, perhaps it was Richard Matheson. They speak of the aroma of life steaming out, "the very scent of life's very last moments.." Gretal says they have killed five now and some not in the plan, "everyone will come to kill us" says Hansel.  And it will be "magnificent".

Hansel and Gretal.

Back at Lagoon Traders, Hotel Moscow call off a meeting with them.  Dutch agrees with Revy that some people sure know how to make trouble. Murders have been going on, not unusual in Roanapur but they are when aimed at Hotel Moscow.  Revy says someone is trying hard to start a fireworks show, "a lot of blood might end up being spilled before things settle down."

Balalaika is at a meeting with the leaders of the other mobs based in Roanapur.  They want to keep things at the equilibrium they achieved with blood and bullets.  Balalaika tells Chang she isn't looking to coexist with anyone. After some threats thrown back and forth the Italian mob leader Verrochio says they have deep greivances with each other but should cooperate for their mutual benefit.

Chang then says they lost one of their own, a member of the triad and one of his direct lieutenants.   It was identical to how Balalaika's men were killed.  Someone is attempting to tip the scales.  After more threats they decide the murders must be from an outsider and the network will cooperate to hunt down the perpetrator.  They'll issue a joint statement to avoid bloodshed from misunderstandings.

Balalaika thinks that's nothing more than a charade, but Chang says he thinks it's not her intention to allow this to take the city apart.   Balalaika says she didn't realise he was starting a social club, will they play cards next time?   She says she came for one reason, "Hotel Moscow will give no quarter to anyone who gets in our way".  They'll hunt down who is responsible, exterminate them and if need be, their parents, children and dog too.  And she leaves.

Balalaika is pissed.

In the Yellow Flag bar Rock and Revy are having a drink.   They discuss who the killer might be, Rock think it'll be someone like The Punisher.  Revy says the city is like a pan full of popcorn, the kernels are heated and they are ready to pop.  The barman tells Revy there is a fifty-thousand bounty on the killer, Revy wonders if she should take the gig.  She asks the barman is he has any leads, he says no but if the killers are outsiders it shouldn't be too hard to find them.

Revy thinks that someone is giving them shelter but no one knows who, which is why everyone is paranoid.  Suddenly Eda from the Rip Off Church arrives in the bar loudly greeting Revy as she reaches her.  Eda hits on Rock, but Revy tells her to get lost.  Eda tells Rock he thinks Revy's period is permanently screwed up.  Revy wants to take this outside but Eda says she is not here to start a fight.   She has some hot leads on a money making proposition regarding the manhunt.

The aftermath of a Hansel and Gretal hit.

She tells them everyone in the mob is on the prowl and now the freelancers are flocking here, it's like a "contract killer circus was in town". One of them ordered and Elephant Gun.  She says to ignore them all and hustle before someone else nabs that ifty-grand bounty.  Does she have anymore tips asks Rock?

That morning the Carribean Bar got trashed and Hotel Moscow is on high alert. "I hear fry face was about to blow her stack."  We then get a flashback to Balalaika at the scene of devastation. One waiter survived though at death' door.  Via him chief Watsap tells them the twins arrived just before dawn, they were identical and freaky looking like they were going to a funeral.

They said they were supposed to find customers at places Ms. Balalaika operates.  They were told to go to the back of the bar.   The bartender was reluctant to call Balalaika about them in the middle of the night, sealing his fate. Some Hotel Moscow men come in and Hansel and Gretal attack them with axes and a ridiculously huge gun.  There is a gun battle which leaves all but one Hotel Moscow man alive so they take him with them, "let's play with him until our next job".  And they carry him away from the scene of carnage.

They stuffed him into a parked car and opened fire on the front of the bar until no one was left moving.  The car was a black Japanese sedan.  They were Caucasian but not speaking English.  They called each other "sora mai mare" and "frate mai". Watsap asks if the bounty applies to cops as well?

Back in her car Balalaika is angry, she thought her men would be safe in two-man groups. They must have thought "how could children be assassin?"  She tells the sergeant to think back to Panjshir, half the enemy forces were children there.

Balalaika: "Anyone's soul can become fat and lazy.  We're no exception".

The sergeant says he'll straighten the men out at once.   She tells him to put together search parties using personel direct from Moscow.  She says they have eight men K.I.A and she'll never get used to losing one.  She will not allow anymore of her men to die at their hands.  They will pay with their blood, "we will show them the fury of our vengeance".

The pair are irredemable sadists.

Hansel and Gretal are back where they are being hidden.  The Hotel Moscow man is sat dead in a chair behind them.  They drove nails into his head and he even jerked around after he died.  Turns out it's the Sicilian mafia behind hiring them  The two men who go to check up on them are appalled and one of them yells at them that they are supposed to be going after Balalaika not turning her minions into pin cushions.  They leave and twins decide they don't like being shouted at and they'll kill the Italians later.

Back at the Lagoon Trader's office, Dutch says Balalaika is getting ready to call in the Vysotniki. Revy asks if she is planning to turn the city upside down again.  Revy explains to Rock that they are her hand-picked underlings who have been with her since she joined Hotel Moscow.   She's ex-military herself although most of what is known about her including her real name is hearsay.

She served in Afghanistan as somekind of officer. The men under her are veterans of that war and the barren hell of that country turned them into efficient killing machines, with Balalaika as the nerve centre.  Revy says Rock should have seen the carnage in Roanapur when she was setting up shop there.  Dutch says you don't want to be anywhere near her when she's mad.

Rock wonders if the killers know what they are up against.  Dutch says people like that go on an indiscriminate rampage then self destruct.  But every once in a while some survive leaving misery and destruction in their wake.  They are filled with hate.  Revy goes on to say that hate makes them lose track of what it is they are after and in the end they go ape-shit and take everyone down with them.  Then Benny hands Rock the phone, it's Balalaika.

She asks him about the phrases the twins said knowing his previous line of work might have brought him in contact with them.  He thinks he heard them from the European branch and he racks his brains trying to remember.  Revy is arguing with Benny and brandishes a magazine with Dracula on the front.  This finally jogs Rock's memory.

Balalaika puts the phone down saying "Romanian.  The twins are Romanian".  She has an idea that they are not professional contract killers, they were trained for someone's amusement. She calls for Rowan, he might have the clues they are looking for.

Meanwhile the twins are packing up, they won't be returning to this place.  Then they swap wigs and clothes because "brother dearest... it's time to become sister dearest". They get all their guns and tickets and passports and get on their way.

Balalaika and Chang meet at the docks.  She says she has found out who the twins are.   She identified them from a video in Rowan's collection.  She asked for anything featuring Romanian twins, kiddie porn, snuff, whatever and out of 250 tapes she found them.

Balalaika: "They were kids sold into the black market when the orphanages were shut down after the overthrow of the Romanian government.  Ceausecu's bastard children".
They were destined to live out their short lives as play things for hardcore sex freaks, but something happened.  They were made to particpate in morbid sex acts and frantically learned to kill so they could entertain the sick perverts with each passing night.

How to make a sociopath.

And in time "they drew it all in". Choosing to become trained animals working for the bastard running the video market.  Chang says that's quite a sad fate, when he hears stories like that he feels like "I'm walking on a huge mountain of shit".

The twins are circus animals, they killed who they killed because they were in the way.  He asks what Balalaika wants and she says why don't they change the towns colours a little.  He says does she want another war, she says "think of it as a well orchestrated low-intensity conflict".  She asks if he'll join her and he agrees.  He leaves telling her to drop him a line when she gets started.  Balalaika makes a call saying the triad will be their allies, now.

She speaks to her sergeant to have the men stand by for action at 1805 hours.   They are going to abduct a high profile target and the field will be chaotic, "one hell of a carnival is going to break out in Roanapur" he says.  Balalaika says she looks foward to it, "this is the only kind of war we have left. Cherish it."

Back with the Sicilian mafia, the boss is freaking out over Hansel and Gretal's actions.  For not killing Balalaika but reenacting "the fucking killing fields here!!"  One of the goons suggest they could kill the twins and take credit for dealing with the psychos creating havoc in Roanapur.

The Boss beats his face bloody screaming the Dons back in Palermo are worried about how thet are doing in this rat-hole of a town.  He tells them all to get out there and "bring me that bitches balls, got it?!"  Suddenly the twins walk in.

Gretal:  We've talked it over. We've decided to save the borscht for the main dish... we'll have the macaroni as the appetiser".

The pair turn on their employers.

And that is a cliffhanger which will be resolved in the next volume.  Lots of interesting stuff going on in this book. The battle against the neo-nazis and Dutch's assessment of them seems more relevant in this day of the "alt-right" exploiting aggrieved masculinity than it was when it was first written and drawn in the early noughties.  It's cool seeing Dutch front and centre to that arc and being a bro with Benny.  The otherwise excellent anime adaptation tended to sideline those two characters and focused on Rock and Revy.  It's not all mindless action either, we get a very satisfying two-parter where Rock proves his worth to the team simply by sipping tea and making inspired inferences.  It also works to allow Rock and Revy to deal with the issues they have had with each other and their relationship starts to evolve from outright antagonism to belligerent sexual tension from now on.  The Rip Off Church will also play a larger role in forthcoming arcs with Eda a woman as skilled as Revy with guns and just as hot tempered.  The first parts of the last arc give us more insight into Balalaika and Hotel Moscow and the devotion they have to each other.  The twins are sociopaths who only know beauty in death with heavy necrophiliac and incest overtones to them.  It's a grim history they have, will that be enough to see them offered a second chance at life?  Find out in a few days time with the conclusion.