Disclaimer-I don't own Victorious
Chapter One
Jade West walked down the streets of New Washington. She chuckled. Her readings in the library had taught her that Washington had been the capital of the old United States before the bombs had flown. New Washington, on the other hand, was a ghost town. She was sure that The Council of the Las Vegas Protectorate hadn't planned on it being that way. From what she could tell, it was supposed to have overshadowed Las Vegas proper and become the new capital. But it was the first city they had tried to build after consolidating their power, and things hadn't worked out well. Now it was empty, abandoned after the Great Riots of 1984 to serve as an example of The Council's power. This made it perfect for what she had in mind.
"Is everyone here?" She asked Andre, walking into the remains of a hotel.
"Yeah, everybody's here." He told her, turning around. "All fifteen of them. I must admit, I'm impressed. I didn't think everyone would show up." Jade smirked.
"After all this time, I think people know that they should listen to what I have to say." She told him. Jade turned to face the assembled people and took a deep breath before speaking. "I've come up with a way to make us all the richest, most powerful people in Las Vegas." She said, getting straight to the point.
"Don't tell me you want us to go to California to scavenge the old cities." Cat said, sounding scared. Jade shuddered.
"No, no, no." She said quickly. "I'm not stupid." Several groups had gone out to get 'treasures' out of the wrecked cities of California. The few people that returned from those groups all died from radiation poisoning soon after. The radioactivity was still too high for humans to go there safely. "No, I've got a different plan. We're inventing a new way to get rich. Or rather, reinventing it."
"Stop beating around the bush and tell us your plan." Tori said, rolling her eyes.
"We're going to start a gang." Jade said simply.
"A what?" Cat asked, frowning.
"A gang."
"We heard that part." Tori said impatiently. "But what's a gang?" Jade sighed. She sometimes forgot that most people didn't spend a bunch of time reading old books.
"Okay, you remember how our history classes taught that in the days before the Great Riots of 1984 people used to rob banks and shoot each other?" She asked. Most of them nodded. The crime and lawlessness of the years before the Riots and the resulting crackdown of The Council had been hammered into them to try and get them to love The Council for creating peace. "Have you ever wondered how one person robbed a bank?" A few of them nodded again. "The answer is simple. They didn't. Criminals used to belong to groups called gangs. This allowed them to pull off multiple crimes at once and thereby get more money, while also giving them the benefit of numbers."
"And you want us to start one of these gangs…why?" Andre asked, frowning. "If I remember correctly, The Council back then didn't do nice things to the criminals they caught. I doubt this Council will be any nicer."
"But that's the thing." Jade said. "There haven't been any gangs since the Great Riots. The only crime there's been since the riots have been protests and dissensions. Nobody in the government knows how to deal with the kind of crimes a gang creates! All of the enforcers in Vegas are used to putting down protestors armed with makeshift weapons or nothing; they won't know how to react to people shooting back."
"You still haven't answered Andre's question." Tori said. "Why should we start a gang?"
"How many of you are happy with where you are in life?" Jade asked. Nobody raised their hands. "How many of you think that you have a good chance of improving your status in life by following the laws of The Council?" Once again, nobody raised their hands. "That's why. With a gang, we can change our lives. We can get all the money we ever wanted, all the power and respect we ever craved!" The others all looked at each other, nodding. That sounded pretty good.
"What do we do?" Cat asked curiously.
"We start with a bang." Jade said, smiling. "We rob a bank, take everything in it."
"How?" Tori demanded. "The enforcers might not have any weapons, but we can't fight worth crap."
"Simple." Jade said with a smile. "We get guns."
"Where?" Tori demanded. "The only guns in the Protectorate are controlled by the military."
"We can probably buy some guns from Deseret." Andre mused. "I know they let civilians buy shotguns, rifles, and pistols."
"Won't the Council have guards set up on the border to keep rebels from getting guns?" Cat asked, frowning.
"Nah, all their efforts are focused on the Hoover Dam. They mainly rely on the fence to keep people out. Besides, rebels are going to war with them. They can't win a fight with the military with what they get from Deseret." Andre said calmly. "Shotguns vs. Ak's, Ak's win."
"Guns cost money though." Cat pointed out. "How are we going to pay for them?" Jade reached into her pocket and pulled out a wad of money, tossing it to Cat.
"Here you go, eight hundred dollars. Could you and Andre go to Deseret and get the guns?" She asked. They both looked at each other, and then nodded.
"We'll go now." Andre said, standing up and pulling out the keys to his SUV and gesturing for Cat to follow him.
"The rest of you wait until next Wednesday, and then come back." Jade said, turning to face the others. "Except you Tori." She said, stopping her.
"What do you need?" She asked.
"Come with me." She said, beckoning him into the manager's office. She shut the door behind them, the turned to face Tori. "I want you to be my lieutenant." She said simply. Tori stared at her.
"What? Why me?" She asked, startled. "We disagree all the time."
"That's precisely why I want you to be my lieutenant." Jade told her. "We're opposites in almost every way."
"But that's exactly why I shouldn't be your lieutenant." Tori protested. "We have completely different ways of thinking."
"Don't you get it?" Jade asked, frustrated. "That's what makes you the perfect choice. We think differently, which means that you're going to see what I don't, come up with ideas that I'd never come up with. And, most importantly, you're not scared of me. I can trust you to speak your mind if you disagree. So please. Just take the job." Tori looked at her, considering, then nodded.
"Alright, so what's the plan?" She asked, curious.
"Well first off, we need something to hide most of our faces." Jade said, walking over to the desk. "While we're getting started we don't want the enforcers to find us."
"What do you have in mind, Halloween masks?" Tori asked curiously, sitting down in one of the chairs in front of the desk. Jade rolled her eyes.
"Not exactly." She said, pulling out a green bandana and tying it around her face like a bandit from the old Western movies. "What do you think?" She asked. Tori raised an eyebrow.
"Well, it certainly gets the job done, and it's better than a mask." She admitted. "Less visibility issues." Jade nodded and removed it.
"That's what I was thinking." She said, removing the bandanna. "Now then, what do you think about the people I invited? Anybody who shouldn't be included?" Tori thought about it for a moment.
"Nah, they're all good, solid people. Besides, if they wouldn't work, so what? It's too late to do anything about it."
"Not necessarily." Jade said calmly. "People are relatively simple problems to fix." Tori stared at her for a moment.
"You go all out when you make up your mind, don't you?" She said, not sure whether she should be impressed or horrified. Jade nodded.
"I can't afford not to. The other option would be letting them go to talk to the enforcers, and I don't think any of us wants that." Tori nodded.
"Anything else?" She asked.
"Yeah, I need you to get twelve duffel bags." Jade told him.
"Why?" Tori asked, frowning in confusion.
"It's for the money. One bag for everyone who's not driving a getaway vehicle."
"Ah. Yeah, I can do that, no problem."
"Excellent. See you in a week." Tori nodded and walked out.
One week later
"Alright, everyone clear on the plan?" Jade asked as Andre handed out bandannas. "Once we arrive, everyone goes into the bank except for the drivers. Don't take off the bandannas for any reason, and don't shoot someone unless they attack you. Unless of course it's an enforcer. If you see that blue uniform, shoot 'em. After we get all the money we can take, get in the car you came in. We'll split up, then meet back here." They all nodded. "Okay then, let's go." She said, walking out to where the three SUVs they'd stolen yesterday had been parked. All three cars had been stripped of their license plates and anything that made them stand out. This first job needed to be as stealthy as possible until after they reached the bank.
The drive to the bank they'd chosen was uneventful, as expected. After all, there was no reason for anybody to be suspicious of them. "Alright, let's do this." Jade said when they arrived, jumping out, duffel bag in one hand and pistol in the other. She walked into the bank, the others close behind her, and fired a single shot into the air. "Everybody, on the ground, now!" She yelled, walking forward into the bank. The two security guards rushed at her, but Tori and Andre knocked them to the ground, using their shotguns like clubs. The remaining people slowly got to their knees, curling up on the floor. Jade walked over to the nearest teller, a small mousey man. "Who here can open the vault?" She asked softly, shoving the pistol in his face.
"Th…That would be the manager." He stammered, terrified.
"And who would that be?" Jade asked, raising her voice.
"Me." A middle aged man said, standing up. Jade smiled behind her bandanna and walked over to him.
"Open the vault." She ordered him. He obeyed nervously, visibly shaking. When he was done, Jade forced him back on his knees, and then turned to face her gang. "Okay guys, five at a time. Only take what can fit in your duffel bag. The rest of you, keep your eyes open, we don't want to be surprised." The rest of the heist went perfectly. Nobody tried to be a hero, the enforcers never showed up, and they managed to make it back to New Washington without being followed.
Six hours later
"A bank robbery?" The Chairman of The Council said softly.
"Yes sir." One of the Councilmembers said, pushing forward a folder of paper. "They stole eight million dollars from the Second General Bank of Las Vegas. Unfortunately, they were all wearing bandannas, so we can't identify them."
"A bank robbery?" The Chairman repeated. "There is a constantly growing rebel presence to the North, the Union of Arixo is in a position to take over the Hoover Dam, and you come to me with news of a bank robbery?" The other Councilmembers looked at each other. On the one hand, he had a point. The Hoover Dam provided a major source of power for the Las Vegas Protectorate, but it could also power areas of the Native American controlled Union of Arixo. As a result, it had been a major source of conflict for the two countries. On the other hand though…
"Sir, would we not appear weak if we allowed this to go unpunished?" A Councilmember asked slowly.
"How? They stole a small amount, from a small amount of people." The Chairman said contemptuously. "Don't give them any media coverage. Don't mention it in the papers, don't mention it in the news broadcasts, do you understand?" The Council nodded. "Good, now then, let's get back to important matters."
Author's Notes
Just so you guys know, Jade, Tori, Andre, and Cat are all twenty-one in this story. Beck will be twenty-three and Robbie will be twenty-one too when they shows up.(Please don't ask why they weren't here or what their role will be, it's a fairly important plot twist.) The story itself takes place in the year 2050, and the bombs flew in 1965.
As for Jade choosing green and not black, well, Jade's allowed to like colors that aren't black. Besides, green is the second most common color that she wears, it's the most common color for her hair highlights and, well, her name is Jade which is a shade of green. I wanted to get creative with the color use, okay?
Thanks for reading guys! See you next time!