A Savage Place Part 1 is the twelfth chapter of the Black Lagoon spinoff series Eda Initial Stage. It was originally released on March 17, 2023.
Plot[]
Somewhere in the Deep South,[1] putting on her coat, Eda accompanies Amber and enters their Jeep's driver seat. Noticing her drive rather fast, Amber advises her to slow down, worrying that a police officer will pull them over. Eda retorts that she does not care, but Amber in turn responds that she does not want any trouble. Annoyed, the blond agent remarks that she does not want to have a guardian like her overseeing her during her first vacation in a long time. Frustrated, Amber reminds her that she has not had a vacation in a while either but still invited her, clarifying that she does not want to spend her vacation watching her tear down the nation. Smirking, Eda asks if their bosses forced her to come with her, causing Amber to ask when their bosses placed so much importance on her. Continuing to speed ahead, Eda remembers the Bosnian mother's comment about the United States being a dream country. Irked, she wonders if the U.S. is even a dream country, but she also wonders why she feels so angry about the mother and daughter's murders despite knowing that she has no sympathy for them.
Seeing Eda's irate face, Amber remembers her earlier conversation with Ravencroft back at the CIA headquarters. Sitting on a couch in the latter's office, she told him that Eda's chaotic behavior was because he put her under Tobias's command. Replying that it was too late to point fingers, Ravencroft remarked that he only acquired his own job with Chesterton's influence. Smiling, Amber rhetorically asked if they did anything wrong, reminding him that they had been successful in all of their previous missions. He reminded her in turn that she and Eda left scorched paths behind them, joking that it was mainly why he found it hard to make a decision. Sighing, he declared that he would give them a short time to allow himself to think about his final decision. Hearing that she would be assigned as Eda's caretaker, Amber joked that she liked the idea, asking if she would receive a bonus. He jokingly commented that she was getting greedy, but she clarified that she needed money to pay for child support in order to see her child. Ravencroft recalled that the CIA would become just another government agency if they did not make a move soon, reminding himself that the Soviet Union no longer existed.
Back in the present, Eda claims that she has found her prey, focusing on the Mercedes-Benz in front of her. Sighing, Amber holds onto the grab handle as Eda grins and speeds past the car, with the latter showing them the middle finger and yelling at them to stop showing off. In the Benz, a black-suited man, Needham, expresses his offense at the behavior, stating that the women do not appear to know what happens to those who mess with them on their territory. He suggests that the driver, J.J., teach them a lesson, to which J.J. enthusiastically agrees, proudly shouting that he will be glad to use his car with a tuned, 370 cid V8-380 engine. Turning her head, Amber notices the Benz speeding toward them, and the Benz rear-ends them, knocking the two women forward. With pride, J.J. rhetorically and angrily asks the women what they think they are doing in front of the Enos family's number one driver.
He rear-ends their car again a couple of times, making Amber realize that his Benz's engine is tuned. Managing to slightly push the women's car off the ground, J.J. plans on flipping them over, but Eda loudly warns them not to mess with her. Swerving her car off the road, Eda drives down the adjacent slope and drives up the opposite hill, smugly commenting that the Benz can accelerate but will not handle hilly terrain with its suspension. To his shock, J.J. drives right into the angled hill, crashing the car. Laughing as she drives away, Eda insults their arrogance. Needham asks J.J. if he saw what the women looked like, and he responds that there was one blond and one dark-haired woman. Yelling that he will not let the women exit the state alive, he orders J.J. to mobilize all of their men in order to protect the Enos family's reputation.
Soon, Eda and Amber stop at a diner, with the latter berating the former for her irate behavior. The blond agent rebuffs the notion that it was her fault, but Amber retorts that she started it and had even told her to stop. In a sour mood, Eda tells her to be quiet, muttering that she wishes she never took on Amber's offer and insults the town that they are in. She also grumbles about regretting not going to Las Vegas, again insulting Amber's suggestion to vacation in Lakeside. Annoyed by her irate attitude, Amber reminds her that she invited her because she thought that Eda wanted to get over her awry mission. She adds that nature is the perfect place to calm one's mind, saying that she worked hard to find a good place for their vacation. Interrupting her, Eda angrily denies being emotionally hurt and asks her who told her that nature calmed people. Smirking, Amber in turn asks her why she did not turn down the vacation in the first place, pointing out that she is clearly not over her wounds because she keeps talking about her mission.
Eda becomes silent but angry at her comment, and to their surprise, several men block their path and ask if the Jeep outside is theirs. Glaring at Eda, one man informs her that he and his friends are from the Mercedes-Benz that she made fun of. Ordering her to get up, he threatens that he will make her pay for insulting the Enos family. Immediately, Eda throws hot coffee in his face and insults him as a wannabe gangster, warning the other men that she is willing to fight all of them. In response, another man grabs her by the shirt, but she elbows him in the face. As Eda continues punching them, Amber tries to dissuade her but lazily decides not to interfere. A blond man grabs Amber, sternly telling her that they have business with her too. She pepper sprays him in the face, getting up and insulting his bad breath. Outside, Eda kicks the first attacker to the ground and sarcastically asks him if he is still going to give her payback. Looking up, she is dismayed to see several men with guns, and leading them, Needham declares that she is done messing with his group. Amber comes out and tries to help her, but she is immediately restrained by another man.
Eda turns around and worries about her, but one of the men kicks her in the head for looking away, disorienting her. Looking at her body, the man threatens to rape her and asks Needham if he can do so, but his boss orders him to wait until they return to their office. Suddenly, a Ford Fairlane convertible barges through and rams into the thug, barely missing Eda since she moves her legs out of the way in time. Standing on top of his car with a gun in each hand, a burly man, Gummer, insults the Enos family and asks them if they are messing with a young woman again. Noting that he saw them commit sins, he proclaims that he will stop them. Annoyed, Needham tells him to leave because the fight is none of his business, but Gummer retorts that he cannot be told what to do and shoots at them, prompting the gangsters to fire back. When the men hear him run out of bullets, they prepare to kill him, but Gummer pulls out an M60E3 machine gun and begins unloading on them, forcing them to take cover. During the commotion, Eda attempts to take advantage of the distraction to crawl away. In front of her, the burly man jumps down and orders her to quickly get in the vehicle. Although she tries to question him, he leans forward and squints at her face. To his shock, Gummer believes that she is Angela and is amazed that she is still alive. Exiting the diner, Amber walks out with a taser in hand after knocking out the thug behind her. As Gummer drives away, Eda screams from the car for her help, shocking Amber as the car speeds away.
References[]
- ↑ Tweet from Hajime Yamamura, June 2023.