Chapter One: Just Another Job

The light of the enteral moon that hung over the city's sky filtered through the closed blinds of the darkened office. Smoke danced through the moonbeams as they lightly billowed from the nostrils of the person who had been puffing his now third cigarette of the hour. With one last drag, he inhaled the last dying embers of the cigarette before putting out in the already overflowing ashtray, making the smoking man make another mental reminder to dump it tomorrow. Tomorrow, now that was a funny thing to think of. There was not a single trace of sunlight that came upon this city, because there was no sun at all. This city, this rundown, festering wound of a city, was constantly covered in darkness. While that may make most of the city's occupants happy by that, the smoking man wasn't to thrilled by, for his reptilian biology craved heat.

His name was Toffee, and here in the kingdom of vice and sin, he was the one who walked a dangerous tightrope among it's people. This city was...unique, to say the least, for this was no ordinary city, this was, in fact, a prison. True, Villain City looked like a rundown version of a modernized landscape, but that's all it was, just a city surrounded by water and draped in never-ending night. Toffee had arrived here only six months ago and he still had no idea as to how he arrived in such a place, nor did the other inmates who also lived within the city. They, like Toffee, were going about their business when a sudden bright flash of blinding light engulfed them. The next thing they knew, they were here in this empty city. Of course, you don't just capture random people from across the multiverse and not expect them to take it lying down.

From casting spells, to enchantments to just shooting at the sky, the inmates of the city tried everything to escape this place, even trying to swim to some another landmass only to end up back at this godforsaken place, nothing worked. It wasn't before long that a voice, introducing himself only as The Warden, informed the new inmates that he had been observing their cruel and villainous actions from across the multiverse and decided that rather than let their evil run wild, he created a pocket universe to trap and hold them until their dying days, telling them that they were free to carry out their acts of evil within the confines of this make-shift city. Many of the villains protested and tried to fight back against the mysterious Warden, only to be be beaten back by the Warden's robotic guardsmen of his city-wide penitentiary: The Sentries.

So, after realizing that escape was all but impossible, the villains resigned themselves to living here in this prison. It wasn't before long that lords of the city arose and with them came the gangs who carved up territory within the city like a slaughtered animal. As one would imagine, these gangs constantly vied for control over the city and what little resources they could get their hands on, but it never turned into full blown war our of fear of mutually assured destruction. This was where Toffee came in. Ever since he Septarian arrived in the prison city, he quickly understood the rules of how this placed worked, but rather than try to fight it out for control for a piece of the city to rule over, the former general knew that there were other ways to surviving in a situation like this.

Toffee became something of a maverick for the various gangs that ruled Villain City. From detective, to bodyguard, to thief, to enforcer, to even hitman, the man-lizard did whatever odd-job that was asked of him. He had set up shop in one of the many rundown apartments on the lower west side of the city. This office/home wasn't much to look at, just a desk where he discussed jobs with clients, a kitchen with what little provisions that he get from the daily food drops before other inmates could take them and a bed. While his building had electricity, Toffee only kept a small lamp at his desk, not needing a lot of light. He also kept a corded phone on his desk as well to get touch with his clients or they could speak within him in turn. However, this new world also brought new vices along with it. In recent months, Toffee had taken on the habit of smoking to cope with the constant tasks he was hired to do. Thankfully, cancer was something he had no fear of, since his healing factor healed his lungs of any damage the nicotine might do to his insides. Still, just because he couldn't be killed by the cigarettes didn't mean that wasn't resistant to their addictive properties.

Toffee reached into his shirt pocket and drew his carton of cigarettes and opened it to find that he only had one stick of nicotine left. The man-lizard swore under his breath at the sight, knowing that it wasn't exactly easy to come by smokes in the city, since only a few packages of them were brought into the cities only once a month during a supply drop, making them quite valuable.

"Waste not, want not, I suppose..." he muttered under his breath as he took out the cigarette out of the carton before lighting it

Despite sitting at his desk, Toffee wasn't busy at the moment. Business had been painfully slow these past two nights, and while the Septarin was used to biding his time, he was starting to feel boredom creep its way into his mind like a parasite. It felt a little odd to him, normally, he would be getting calls or in-person meetings for jobs at least twice a day, but things had been unnaturally quit these past two days, or what counted as days here in Villain City anyway. As he took his first puff of his final cigarette, a sudden knock his door caught his attention. From the tinted glass in the front door Toffee could see shapes standing on the other side of the door, and while he couldn't make out who they were, he could hear at least three muffed voices talking among themselves, though Toffee could only see one figure in the window.

Acting on survival instincts alone, Toffee reached for his desk drawer and pulled out his pistol and cocked it. Firearms weren't something that the monster was accustomed to using in terms of weaponry since he lived in a world of sword of sorcery, but after being shot several times by those who knew how to handle guns quite well, Toffee made it his personal mission to learn how to use these weapons. It took three weeks to learn how to aim, shoot, reload and know how to properly clean and repair the handgun he had stolen from the Hunter's Guild, but like all things, he mastered finally it and became all the more deadlier for it. It was unknown as to how guns and ammunition were being brought into the prison city. All that was known, however, was that the guns ranging to pistols, shotguns and hunting rifles were being brought into the city, weather that was by someone smuggling them in or that it was The Warden who was having them brought in so the inmates could kill each other faster no one knew for certain. Despite these advanced weapons, there were some gangs who refused to use them, depending more on their magic over something they saw as uncivilized.

As the stranger at the door knocked again, Toffee was forced to put out his cigarette as he slowly got up from his chair and slowly crept over to the side of the door, all the while keeping his pistol trained on the door in case his 'guests' decided to try anything other than knocking. Toffee's jobs made him less than popular among the gangs since he had no fidelity to anyone but himself. One night he'd be working for one gang then trying to kill them the next night. This made him something of a necessary evil among the lords of the city. So, for all Toffee knew, these men had been sent to kill him under false pretense to hire him for a job - despite knowing that Toffee wasn't the easiest to slay. Once he was against the wall on the other side of the door, he spoke.

"The door's unlocked" he said "come in"

The door slowly opened to allow the stranger and his two accomplices to enter the room. With the open door giving him cover, Toffee was concealed from the strangers as they walked further into his room. While the darkness concealed their faces, Toffee's reptilian eyes allowed him to see perfectly in the dark. Moving slowly again, he snuck up behind the person who had been knocking on his door and pressed the barrel of his gun against the back of the newcomers head.

"Hello, Grimes" he greeted in his usual sardonic tone of voice "What brings you here?"

The one called Grimes slowly raised his arms as a sign of no hostility toward the man-lizard. His companions, however, did not share his sentiment and began to growl and snap at him. The reason being for such a gesture was because they were not human, they weren't even humanoid. They were hyenas, servants of one of the many lords of Villain City. Even Grimes himself wasn't human. Before he was ripped from his home to serve his life-sentence here in the city, he was a captain of toad warriors who suppressed the peaceful frogs for their world. Now he served a new master, as was evident of the metal shoulder pad that had three purple claw marks painted onto it, the insignia of the gang he was no apart of. Grimes shot a look at the hyenas to silence them, to which they did.

"There's no need for violence, Toffee" he assured "we came to see you about a job"

Toffee silently mulled over his words, mentally judging if Grimes was telling the truth. Though the captain did serve as a chief enforcer for one of the most deceitful bosses in the city, Grimes seemed like a man of honor. Like Toffee, Grimes was a solider who made his name on the battlefield with sword and bloodshed. He almost respected the toad...almost. Finally, after thinking it over, Toffee lowered his weapon, making Grimes sigh in relief in doing so.

"What kind of job is it?" the man-lizard inquired

"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you anything further here" the toad replied "I've been instructed to bring you to our headquarters. My boss will tell you what is required of you"

"That's not happening" Toffee denied "if your boss wan't to having a meeting with me, have the lamb set up a meeting between us here"

"Man, I told you that he wasn't gonna come along willingly!" one of the Hyenas shouted "let's just drag his lizard ass back to the zoo!"

The hyena, who was named Banzai, like most of his special species, had the ability to speak, which, considering how much of a loud mouth he was, was perhaps something that he should do less often. The other hyena, who was named Ed, laughed in mad hysterics as a way of agreeing with Banzai's statement. It was strange to Toffee to see the two hyenas without their third member and leader of the trio, Shenzi, here with them.

"You can try, Banzai" Toffee offered with a cold glare "but you'll find that I'm not so easily moved"

Banzai gulped and instantly backed down, to which Ed snickered at. With the two scavengers silenced, Grimes spoke up once again.

"We will not force you to come with us" he began "but we can tell you that our boss with make it worth your while in terms of payment"

Grimes then reached into his pocket, prompting Toffee to retrain his gun back at him. Grimes raised his free hand as a sigh that he wasn't trying to pull a weapon on him. He slowly revealed a pack of cigarettes to the man-lizard before tossing them to him which Toffee caught with one hand while keeping his gun aimed Grimes's head.

"Consider that payment up front" the toad warrior offered "so, will you come with us?"

Toffee was again silent for a few seconds before giving his answer.

"Fine, but I'm bringing the gun" he answered "and your staying in front of me the entire trip there"

"Very well" Grimes accepted "shall we, then?"

Toffee nodded in agreement before going over to his coat-rack. Gone was his business suit, though he kept the white under shirt, tie and black dress shows. the Septarian's new attire was a dark brown teachcoat and black pants. After throwing on his coat, Toffee turned his attention back to his guests.

"Lead the way" he said

...

The home of Grimes's boss was an abandoned zoo, or at least, that's what the Warden created it to look like. Rusted cages and weathered statues of animals adorned the landscape, but despite the zoo's deserted appearance, Toffee was well aware that this place was occurred, knowing that he was being watched from the shadows. This prison city still made little sense to Toffee in terms of layout. Why would the Warden create a seemingly rundown looking city, but give it power? why leave them cars? Toffee was a clever person, but even this had little logic to him. As the man-lizard had demanded, Grimes and the Hyenas stayed in front of him the entire trip back to the zoo, all the while kept his hand close to his gun, still not trusting any of this.

It wasn't before long that the man-lizard's escort brought him to the heart of the gang's base of operations: the lion's pen. There Toffee was greeted by not only hyenas, but an assortment of both animal and anthropomorphic creatures ranging from dog people to toads like Grimes. Lionesses and Hyenas stood at attention like soldiers waiting for their orders. Bones, both human and otherwise, littered the ground of those whom the gang of beasts had consumed for both food and as a way of putting fear into those who would dare challenge them. And there, perched on the tallest peak of a large man-made rock formation, was the leader of the gang of animals: Scar.

Scar was among the first wave of inmates to be brought to Villain City by the Warden. Before his incarceration, Scar was once a member of a royal family of lions, but as the second born, he was denied what he believed to be rightfully his by his elder brother and the birth of his nephew, Simba. After being brought to the prison city, Scar quickly established his own clan that ruled with an iron fist, as was par the course of all the major leaders here. The lion wasn't exactly a fighter per say, but he was quite the devious intellectual, using his silver tongue to bring many of the animals and animal-like beings to his side by saying that they would not be treated like second-class citizens under his leadership.

Scar wasn't the only person who used his fear and intimidation skills to bring the other inmates to bow to him, for every gang leader used the same type of tactic to recruit newcomers into their folds. There was the mad Queen of Hearts, who ruled the park and had knack for decapitating anyone whom she disagreed with. Captain Hook and fellow pirates ruled the docks while Ursula ran her gang from a cove on the side of the city. On the lower west side of the city the woman known as the Queen and her gang called home. The Oogie Boogie gang ruled their turf from a rundown casino while Jafar's band of thieves and dark wizards had made a museum their base and Frollo controlled the city's cathedral. But among the many gang leaders, Maleficent was by far the most powerful among them. The mistress of evil and her followers ruled over their territory from a massive tower in the center of the city called the the Spire.

Upon seeing Toffee, Scare stood up from his perch and jumped from rock to rock before landing on the ground. He wasn't alone as he approached the man-lizard, for flanking each side of the lion were his top two lieutenants. The first was a lioness named Zira, Scar's lover and leader of the other lionesses who defeated from Simba's pride. Zira claimed that she had three children, but none were brought to the city like she and Scar were. As for Scar's other top lieutenant, she wasn't a lion, or a carnivore of any kind. Her name was Bellweather, a lamb from a world were anthropomorphic animals coexisted. Bellweather may not look like much of a threat, but what she lacked in strength she mind up for in a dangerous mind, one that was on par with Scar's. Studying the Septarian from his dead tree from across the den was Kaa, a python who acted as Scar's chief interrogator, getting what the lion wanted by either hypnotizing his victims or crushing the life out of them.

"Ah, Toffee, I'm delighted to see that you came" the lion began in his fringe polite tone "we have so much to discuss"

"I'm sure we do" the man-lizard answered "Grimes said that the job you wanted me for had to be face to face"

"That it is" Scar confirmed "you see, it seems that one of my top lieutenants has gone missing"

"Shenzi, right?" Toffee assumed

Scar and his posse looked surprised by Toffee's assumption, a clear sign that he was right.

"How did you-" Zira tried to say

"Banzai and Ed being without their leader was a dead giveaway" Toffee answered "So, what happen to her?"

"We...don't know" Bellweather admitted timidly

"I thought you kept a close eye on your subordinates, Scar" the fixer said

The lion let low growl rumble in his throat at that remark.

"We haven't heard from her in three nights" Zira explained "we sent out search parties, but have found nothing-"

"Before we go any further we need to discuss payment" the man-lizard cut the lioness off "what do you have to offer me this time?"

Money was non-existent in Villain City, so the gangs had to get creative in terms of currency. In the place of dollars and gold, there were spells and potions that could be bartered and traded for. Among other things were food and ammunition, as well as what most of the villains considered to be the most valuable: knowledge. Toffee deteasted magic, and thus only accepted payment in the form of food or other provisions he needed.

"We've been stockpiling the food we've claimed from the air drops for several weeks" Scar answered "we have no use for it since we are quite capable of finding out own food"

Scar casually kicked a skull over to Toffee's feet to get his point across.

"Clearly" the man-lizard noted dryly

"So, how does six weeks worth of food sound in terms of payment sound?" the gang leader inquired

Toffee didn't show it on his face, but he was starting to grow hungry from the lack of food at his home, and six weeks worth of meals sounded like a fair trade to him in terms of finding what he was certain was a dead hyena.

"Done" he simply agreed before asking "now, where was the last place anyone saw her?"

"From what we can gather, she was last seen at the Inferno Club" the lion replied

"The Inferno Club?" Toffee repeated "why was she there?"

"Why indeed?" Scar said in a low tone "after she left, she simply vanished"

"You think it was a kidnapping?" the Separtain surmised before adding "or something...else?"

"We don't know for sure" the gang leader answered "either way, I want her brought back alive. Shenzi has information that can't afford to be leaked to the other lords. And if she's dead, find out what happened to her and silence anyone who she might have been forced to speak to"

"And if she did talk someone willingly?" Toffee asked

Scar didn't even hesitate for a second.

"Kill her."