Paper Tigers

Author:  wickedtigerlily

Disclaimer:  Cowboy Bebop is the property of Sunrise Inc.  No copyright infringement intended.  

 

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 Chapter 1
 

Spike pulled on the old fingerless gloves with an ease that came with countless repetition.  He idly pondered the soft brown leather that had been stretched and worn into a comfortable mold of his hand.  Some of the seams were coming apart, and there was a small, frayed hole in the palm of one; yet, these flaws didn’t bother him.  They were kind of like battle scars, serving to make them distinguished in some strange way.  Spike didn’t really give it any deeper consideration than that, since there was no real reason to.  He liked these gloves, and he would probably keep them until they were useless tatters of cloth.   

                He pursed his lips, and began to whistle a nameless, melancholy tune.  His hands tightened their grips on the throttles of his ship, and he fidgeted a little trying to settle himself in his seat.  Feeling the familiar handles in his clutch, Spike allowed himself a slight smile.  Everything about the Swordfish appealed to him.  The widths of the handles were perfect for him, the responsiveness of the controls was unmatched, the incredible speed and maneuverability stroked his ego.  Plus, it just looks so damned cool, Spike thought with a smirk.

                The hangar door opened with a little difficulty and the old ship, Bebop, hummed and creaked with the effort.  A few stray papers were sucked out into the vacuum of space, but Spike hardly noticed.  He gazed out at the immense expanse of stars and felt a familiar flutter in his stomach.  From here, it seemed like there was no limit to where he could fly in the universe, and that feeling of absolute freedom was intoxicating.  If he just let himself go and flowed with his instincts, he could escape his waking nightmare for a little while.  Julia’s beautiful blue eyes, Vicious’ mocking voice, the Syndicate’s wide-reaching grasp, none of these things could haunt him when he was caught up in the rush of flying at impossible speeds past the slower ships, dodging between holographic billboards, whether he was pursuing or being pursued.  

                He took a leisurely drag from the cigarette dangling at the corner of his mouth, before pressing out the butt on a nearby console.  Leaning slightly forward, he readied himself to launch the ship, when all of a sudden, a small round ship whizzed past him.  It was Faye’s Redtail.  Spike cursed and quickly followed.

                “I don’t know what you’re doing just sitting there, but we’ll never catch that bounty with you daydreaming.  Get off your slow ass and help, or are you going to make me do everything like usual?” her staticky voice came barking over the radio.

                “Damn it, I was not daydreaming, Faye!  And like hell, you usually do everything!!!  Get out of my way, and leave the bounty hunting to real bounty hunters,” Spike growled in response.  

                “What’s that supposed to mean, fluffy?  I’m better than you’ll ever be!”

                “Hah!  You wish!  Just stop kidding yourself, and move aside.  This bounty’s mine!”

                “In your dreams, Spike!”

                Jet watched out the port as the two crafts wove dangerously around each other, no doubt trying to cut the other off from the bounty that was flying desperately away.  He listened to his two crew members’ bickering and sighed, leaning his head against his cybernetic hand.  Looking down at Ein who was whining and nudging Jet’s boots with his wet nose, Jet grunted and bent over to pet the data dog behind the ears.

                “I know, boy, I know.  Looks like its beef with bell peppers again tonight,” he muttered as he stood to see on the vid screen the wanted ship escape the two bounty hunters’ ranges.  

 

 

 

 

                Spike and Faye returned to the Bebop empty-handed.  Jet entered the hangar as soon as normal gas pressure had been reestablished.  Crossing his arms, looking much like the skeptical father he played to the people who’d made his ship a home, he awaited their excuses and explanations as to why they had failed to catch such a seemingly simple bounty.  Spike hopped nimbly out of the cockpit of his Swordfish and walked to a nearby wall, leaning on it as he took out a cigarette and lit it.  Faye merely sat against the side of the Redtail, idly examining her nails.  It was clear that neither of the bounty hunters wanted to talk.  Jet sighed in frustration as the seconds ticked on.

                “We needed that bounty, guys.  We don’t have much money left and food is running low.  As it is, we don’t even have cup noodles anymore.  It’s back to bell peppers if you don’t get Baxter.”

                Spike and Faye looked at each other warily, but came to some sort of understood truce; Jet’s bell peppers were good enough incentive to put aside their pride for the sake of their stomachs.  

                “Well, I think he’s headed for Jupiter.  It’d be simple for him to get lost there,” Faye noted, hooking her arms behind her head.

                “That ship he was flying probably doesn’t have enough fuel to make it to Venus.  The best place to stop for refueling and restocking is going to be Earth, since the ISSP don’t have as many offices on that planet as on Mars,” the younger man remarked.

                Spike tipped some ashes of his cigarette onto the metal floors, as Jet watched with a disgruntled look.  

                “You think he’s good enough to avoid the asteroids?” Jet wondered out loud, “He was flying kind of wildly back there.”  Is he an idiot or a genius?

                “Who cares, he’s wanted dead or alive.  If a rock gets to him first, that just makes things easier for us,” Faye declared with an irritated sigh.

                “No, Baxter looks like a rookie pilot.  It’ll be better if we catch him in space, than if we have to look for him on a planet.”

“Whatever.  You boys decide.  I’m going to take a shower,” Faye muttered petulantly as she strolled out of the hangar.

“We might as well plot a course for Earth.  Spike, tell Ed to start keeping tabs on the media and ISSP data streams to watch out for the bounty,” Jet ordered as he went back to cooking his bell peppers.  

 “Why am I always stuck with the kid?” Spike grumbled to himself as he made his way to the common room.

 

 

 

                Ed searched the ISSP database gleefully until she happened to come across a peculiar looking file.  This doesn’t look like it belongs here, she thought with a triumphant grin.  Opening a new window, she browsed the contents briefly before whooping in delight.  Spike opened an eye from his spot on the couch to look at the young hacker as she waved her laptop in his face.  I’ve only been asleep for six hours, he lamented silently.  

                “Lookie, lookie, Spike-person!  Tomato found a clue!!!” she sang loudly.

                Spike sighed and snatched the laptop out of Ed’s hands, tired of her antics.  He skimmed the files one by one.  Corbin Baxter.  Wanted on four different planets for a total of thirty-eight charges ranging from petty theft to counterfeiting to assault and battery.  Bounty increased from four million to ten million woolongs for the added charges of six counts of first degree murder and two counts accessory to murder.

                “So what?  That’s the bounty,” he said with clear aggravation.  

                “Look closer!  Closer,” she cooed like some deranged fortune teller.  

               He relented and started reading the information presented in the different windows.  Corbin Baxter, born as Gerard Durande to father and mother, Michel and Nadine Durande.  One sister, Andrea Durande.  Mother and father were killed in a fire later found to be the result of arson that may be connected to Corbin Baxter.  Sister has been missing since the case was dropped by the ISSP office on Venus.  Sighting of wanted man, Corbin Baxter, on Mars this evening.  Outgoing ships have been detained at all major ports.  Damn it, he made it that far already?  Spike frowned and impatiently flipped through the rest of the files.  A few pictures came up along with the reports: the Durandes’ wedding picture, Baxter as a child, and last, the most recent picture of Baxter’s sister.  Shit.  

                Spike threw the laptop into Ed’s waiting arms.  

                “So are we going to Mars to get the bounty head?”

                “Yeah, kid, we are.  Print out a copy of that last picture, Ed,” Spike said as he walked away to tell Jet of the new course heading.               

                “Aye aye, Spike-person!”

 

 

 

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Note:   I know that chapter was short, but the next few are longer.  Bear with me.  

 

Author’s Note:  I had some inspiration from John Douglass’ novel, Mindhunters, which was an account of the early days in FBI profiling for the Violent Crimes Unit.  I recommend this book, but be warned that the contents are incredibly graphic.  In the exploration of Vicious’ character, it was my full intention to flesh out his existing personality with some background and speculation.  I understand that none of this is found in canon Cowboy Bebop, but I was tired of seeing Vicious portrayed as either a simple killer with no emotional depth, or as an ordinary man who was suddenly changed into a demented murderer by virtue of a single act of betrayal.  I tend to believe that such things are not as simple as they appear, and this story is an extension of that belief.