So much for the benefit of the doubt. Hands tightening on the wheel of the car, Naoko spoke another incantation, her eyes becoming bloodshot as veins bulged out from her temples. Not a flattering look, but she had no time to waste on appearances now. As the world slowed around her, her thoughts accelerating beyond human norms, the back of the truck lifted up from Sophie’s artillery strike, her own stomach lurching with it. A meaty thunk sounded as the unconscious guard slammed into a wall, while a metallic one confirmed that the Winter Palace had just lost its rear bumper. Her spine felt the impact of the truck returning onto its four wheels again, and Naoko’s foot immediately slammed the accelerator, pistons pumping like mad as the wheels bit into the ruptured ground. For one breathstealing moment, the back wheels simply churned against loose dirt. And then in another, it shot off, rubber burning on tarmac. A cold draft seeped in moments later, the back doors having been busted open by Sophie’s reckless method of securing a temporary escape. Naoko could only watch in horror as expensive cooking gadgets and spices, already jostled loose from her rash driving, tumbled out, scattering and breaking against the road. Logic told her that these were replaceable, but sentiment made her grimace regardless. Another backwards check. Guard? Ok. Box? Ok. At this point, she definitely wasn’t going to give his shiny shit back for free. What a fucking dickweed. Bet he beats his wife as well and then uses his money to hush things up. Narrowing her eyes, she continued to accelerate, eyes frenetically flickering in every direction as her hands grew numb against the rumbling of the steering wheel. Guard, box, front, back, don’t forget to breathe, go faster! [i]Don’t tell him anything, Sophie! He might not even be Hapsburg’s to begin with![/i] A pause, and, throughout all the pin-point turns, Naoko grinned, teeth exposed, resilient in the face of supernatural bullshit. [i]And remember, the safe word is ‘#MAGA2021’~[/i]