One Loose End

It was morning. Vince woke up from a…rather eventful day. It was a just a normal day in the weekend. People were out doing things at a park, until suddenly some military group with such advanced technology made their presence known by attacking gangs in Steelport. He, along with Oleg and the DeWynter twins were the primary targets, despite the gangs also targeting the Deckers, the Luchadores, and whatever was left of the Morningstar.

That didn't stop him from getting out a bit when night fell. Though the rest of his Saints stayed in for safety, some of the others went to try to gain some info on this new group known as the Special Tactical Anti-Gang Unit, better known as STAG. When hours had passed after the initial attack, it appeared that things had cooled down.

One puzzling thing that he heard on a newscast was a direct quote from Commander Cyrus Temple. He had heard him mention a Jessica Parish and went into detail about what had happened a few years prior. How did Cyrus Temple know about that? Was he connected to her in some way? He was bound to find out eventually.

He went to Zimos to check on him. Zimos told Vince that he and the ladies were okay. There were fellow Saints in the New Colvin area keeping watch on any activity. Zimos informed him that there were some parts of New Colvin that needed to be taken over. The airport, Camano Place, and the fact that Andre, an old rival of Zimos's and the new head of the Morningstar's prostitution business, was still breathing, Vince realized that his business with the Morningstar was not over, at least not yet.

Zimos had told Vince that in order to draw out Andre, he needed to take out any of workers that were still roaming the streets. He gave Vince the areas where they were, so that he wouldn't get them mixed up with Z's girls. So he did the job and caused more issues with the Morningstar. Andre came out, strapped, along with the trio from Safeword.

It wasn't really much of anything to him. All he did was throw a grenade the moment Andre and the three women came out and BOOM! The job was done.

But there was only one person left on the list of the Morningstar. He had received a message from a mysterious source, talking about how he had done some jobs for a man named "Rasputin." Vince was informed that the man's name was Barry Danko, whose name he had heard when the DeWynter sisters told him and the others about. Both Viola and Kiki told Vince about this man, about all the hell he put the twins through.

Here, it was said that Barry had put a contract out on Vince. It didn't say why, whether it was because he outlived his usefulness or just another form of betrayal. If someone issued a contract out on him, he figured that he would be doing the twins a favor, as well as typing up one loose end before shifting his focus on the rest of the Syndicate, as well as STAG.

The message he received said that Barry was expecting a helicopter and to meet him at a particular building. He was given the address. It was now on. He was ready to put an end to the Morningstar.

He headed out to the helipad, dressed like a professional, with his dark gray suit and purple shirt and the vest having the Saints symbol as buttons. He brought a couple of Kobra pistols and holstered him in his jacket and brought a couple of D4TH Blossoms, all of which had suppressors on them.

"Wait," a female voice said as Vince approached the door to the patio area. Vince turned around and saw that it was Viola, who had stayed at the penthouse, along with Kiki.

"Oh, Viola, hey," Vince said.

"Listen, I want to go with you on this," Viola said. "I have more of a reason to take out Barry than you do. I want to make him suffer for what he did to me, did to Kiki, everything."

"I don't know about this," Vince said.

"Look, that guy forced me to watch Kiki get brutally tortured," Viola said. "I know she is doing better now, but I can't stop thinking that that piece of shit is still breathing the same air as me and her."

It was clear to Vince that Viola wanted revenge, especially after all what she and her sister went through.

"Listen, I get where you're coming from," Vince said. "And I know that you and Kiki can hold your own after what I saw out there, but this is something that I need to do on my own. I got this."

Viola sighed, looked down, and looked to her left.

"Look, we got the rest of the Syndicate to take out," Vince said. "You can give us more information soon. Besides, this is just a job. I'll be back soon."

Viola sighed once again, "Okay, Boss."

"You and your sister can call me Vince if you want," he said.

"Okay…Vince," Viola said.

Vince nodded and went to the helipad and got in and started the Oppressor helicopter. He started getting used to being called by his real name. He felt it was time to let others address him as such.

Once he started up the chopper, the radio came on with a news report.

"As if Steelport was an enemy nation, military vehicles rolled into the streets while troops deployed all over the city. This invasion of armed forces, known as the STAG Initiative, vows to end the death and destruction that has plagued our streets. Upon their arrival, a raid was conducted on a popular night club, where the head of one such criminal organization was said to be hiding. Several people were shot and killed in the ensuing firefight while property damage is estimated in the hundreds... of thousands. This is Jane Valderamma with your Steelport Safety Update."

The attack from the previous day really left an impact in Steelport.

The skyline of Steelport was clear as Vince flew through it to take down his target. He looked on his GPS to see where the target was located. He found a building somewhere in Loren Square. It wasn't long until he found one with a helipad on it. Below, he saw a group of men in black and red. It had to be the Morningstar.

On the helipad, a man who looked Eastern European with sunglasses stood with a couple of other men with the same colors. The man had the same description from the photo he saw in the message.

That's got to be the guy. Vince thought. He slowly descended onto the helipad.

On the helipad, Barry stood there with Gus and Victor talking.

"…I just have to see what Phillipe wants to do about this new problem in the city," Barry said. "I think he might figure out something."

He looked over at the helicopter. "Well, men, it's time to meet with the boss at the airport."

Right when the chopper landed, Vince exited and got out his Kobras and walked towards the tail end with the tail rotor spinning. Vince peeked under the tail and saw the three men approaching the chopper. He ducked a bit and pointed the Kobra right towards Gus and squeezed the trigger. One shot took the man down as the bullet pierced a hole right into the man's forehead. Blood squirted right out of the man's head and the man dropped dead right on the helipad.

Victor got out a .45 Shepherd. Barry got out a TEK-Z10. Both men saw Vince right behind the tail of the helicopter. Both Morningstar members fired away towards Vince, but he hid right behind the back of the chopper adjacent to the tail. He dropped to his back and looked to his right. He pointed his Kobra right to a leg of one of them. It didn't matter who it was, he was going to finish the job anyway.

He pulled the trigger, causing a scream that could be heard despite the rotors spinning. He saw that Victor was shot in his left calf as he saw that his leg was a bloody mess. It was time to shift focus on the other guy.

The sound of gunfire and glass shattering, as well as shards flying grabbed Vince's attention. He got up and looked through the windows and Barry was slowly walking towards the nose of the chopper. Vince slowly crawled right towards the door to the passenger seats and slowly opened the door, grabbing his D4Th Blossom. He knew that Barry was packing some serious hardware, so he felt the need to even the ante.

He quickly snatched his SMG and got back to his feet. Barry was seen through the windshield. Vince took a deep breath and fired six shots right to the front of the cockpit. Barry jumped at that sight.

BANG! Vince heard another gunshot from behind but it was lower. He saw that Victor picked up his Shepherd and tried the same strategy Vince used on him, as the bullet went through the opening between the landing skids. Vince looked up and Barry had his SMG pointed right at Vince, causing him to open fire as he laid six shots right to Barry's chest and watched as he fell to the ground.

Now to finish the other guy. Vince thought as he saw Barry laid out in front of him.

He walked away and saw that Victor had one foot on the pad. He slowly struggled to get to his feet as blood smeared on the pad. He had his .45 Shepherd drawn and fired three shots, barely missing Vince, though the third bullet grazed him a bit.

In a way, he was impressed by this man's spirit. He couldn't stand right, but he wasn't going to give up trying to take out Vince. But he wasn't going to let him walk. He was going to finish the job. Vince pointed his D4TH Blossom and pumped a good amount of lead right into the man's chest, causing blood to spray out from front and back. It was safe to say that he was completely done.

Now my work is done. Vince thought and took a deep breath, until he felt an arm go around his neck and chest area and saw a sharp blade through his right peripheral. The blade got close to his neck and even felt the sharp alloy touch his skin a bit. He wasn't about to either get stabbed or slashed, at least not today. He jumped from his feet and dropped backwards and heard the clatter of the knife thudding on the helipad.

Vince got up and saw that it was Barry.

"What the fuck?" Vince said. "How are you not dead?"

Barry got up. "Call it the miracle of Kevlar."

Vince scoffed, "No shit."

Barry swung the knife once again. He picked it up when he was getting to his feet. Vince quickly dodged the attack and delivered a hard right hand to Barry's gut. But Barry didn't give up, as he continued grip the knife and brandished it in a stabbing position.

Vince grabbed the man's hand and charged right towards him, guiding him right to the tail of the helicopter. But once again, Barry picked up his knife. However, Vince had other ideas. Barry attempted to stab Vince again. Vince blocked the attack and guided Barry's right hand right to the tail rotor. Blood splattered. Barry's right hand was no more.

"I got to hand it you," Vince said and laughed.

"Fuck you!" Barry yelled.

"No, but seriously, you had me take out some fellow Morningstar members, a garbage man, and a 'nice' brute," Vince said. "I did some of your dirty work. Who was next? The DeWynter sisters?"

Barry looked at him like he was dumbfounded that the Saints leader was onto him.

"Well, now we meet face to face, Rasputin, or should I say Barry?" Vince said.

Barry glared and gritted his teeth when he heard Vince say that.

Vince grabbed him and walked him off the helipad and to the ledge of the building.

"I got one question, though," Vince said as he continued to hold onto him. "Can you fly, Barry?"

Vince lifted him and threw him from the top of the building and watched as he plunged all the way down until he hit the pavement below as traffic went to a screeching halt. Some bystanders even crowded around the bloodied corpse.

It was now time to leave. Vince knew that he was completely done. The Morningstar was finished.

BANG! Vince jumped as he heard and felt the gunshot. It didn't hit him but he saw the bullet hole right behind him. It was barely to his left. He looked up and around. It was clearly from a sniper, but where and whom? He had heard that Barry issued a contract on him now, but really, how could he pay the person he hired now? He was dead. Someone must be around.

Vince quickly ran to the helicopter and flew out of there and back to the Saints HQ.

Right from above, a brunette woman knelt on top of roof. It was on one of the towers with those gigantic screens on the ends. This woman was pretty. She had green eyes, her hair in a ponytail and bangs that slanted from her right down to the left. She wore a full body cat-suit with some orange on it and had an armor chest-plate with an Ultor insignia on it.

The woman moved away from the scope and heard a ring through her earpiece, which went to her left cheek.

"Cypher here," the woman said.

"Did you get him?" a male voice said.

"No, he took out Danko," Cypher said. "But he got away."

"What happened? You usually are good with your targets," the man said, who turned out to be Dex.

"Mr. Jackson, you don't have to tell me that," Cypher said. "But like with my other targets, even with those evade me, I will always find my mark and take care of them."

"Don't fail me next time," Dex said.

"I never fail," Cypher said. "I'll be in touch."

She continued to look through her scope and saw the man fly away. Though she could try to shoot him, she felt that she'll get him another day. Unbeknownst to her boss, she was rather impressed by the ability of the Saints leader. It seemed that she had met her match.

She put her McManus rifle on her back and mounted what looked like a bike of some sort. She started it up and it ascended right from the roof and she started flying away.

WESLEY CUTTER INTERNATIONAL

A private jet had landed. Phillipe Loren had gotten off with some personal bodyguards he had with him. He met with Killbane and Matt Miller, whom awaited him by a Status Quo limousine.

Phillipe stood before his associates as he lit a cigarette. He was wearing a suit similar to what he was known for, except it was mostly red, but his scarf, tie, and vest were black. He still had the same eye-patch, though.

"Mr. Killbane, Mr. Miller," Phillipe said. "What a pleasure it is to see you."

"Hello, Mr. Loren," Matt said.

"Phillipe," Killbane said. "I need to tell you something. Steelport is going through some problems right now."

"Explain it to me on the way," Phillipe said. "We'll talk more about it at your casino."

"Yes, sir," Killbane said.

The three Syndicate leaders all rode in the limo. Phillipe looked around and saw that Steelport was now being occupied by some military group. He even wondered what led to this. This was all unfamiliar to him. Sooner or later, he was going to learn more about this military group.

Author's note: Yes, Loren's back in Steelport. There will be more with the Syndicate, along with STAG, as well as the subplot involving Cypher.

This was the first assassination mission I did as a chapter. I could do others, but I'll have to see what I can do with them. This was different because Barry deserved to go out like that.

Next up, the Saints try to find a way to mess with STAG. Stay tuned.