The Vercetti Chronicles - Volume 1, Issue 1

Tommy Vercetti wakes up, another early day in the beautiful south Florida metropolis of Vice. He throws the blanket off of him, and sits up on the couch in his office he was sleeping on. He grabs his aqua-blue hawaiian shirt off the floor and puts it on, buttoning it up. He walks over to a large window, and looks out, stretching, surveying his city.

"Well, I better get to work," Tommy quietly says to himself.

He walks out the door of his office and down the stairs of his large, sweeping estate on the edge of Vice City harbour. He walks into a side room, where some soldiers are talking and having drinks.

"Hey, boys. Everything cool?"

"Yeah, Tommy. Everything's real cool. We run this town!"

Tommy smiles and gives a small chuckle, at the fact that he really does run Vice City, it's underground at least. He was sent down here by his former boss, Sonny Forelli, so that the Forelli family wouldn't have to deal with an ex-con walking around. He was sent down to make some money for the Forelli's. But Tommy had different plans.

Tommy grabs a Python 6-Shooter pistol from the coffee table in the lounge and exits. He walks out the doors of his mansion and down to a white sports car parked by his garage. it's an Infernus, one of the fastest, most capable sports cars on the road. He climbs in and speeds off.

As he drives, he thinks back on what has happened in the past half year. He's made friends, he's lost friends. Hell, he's killed some of his friends himself, namely Lance Vance, his one-time partner in crime. He thinks of how Lance betrayed him, selling him out to Sonny and his gang of thugs. He thinks how he pumped Lance's body full of lead with an M4 assault rifle, and how good it felt to have that burden off his shoulders. His mind started to wander, as he almost swirves over into the other lane, hitting a young, attractive woman driving an electric blue Sentinel.

He pulls up to a large Yellow building. This is the Print Works, Tommy's printing factory, which is a front for his counterfeit money business. He opens a large steel door and walks inside. He's greeted by a short, elderly man wearing a pair of brown industrial coveralls and thick glasses. This is Earnest Kelly, the operator and second in command of the Print Works.

"Tommy, my boy. Nice to see ya. Things are going great. We got that $50,000 all printed up for you to take car of that drug deal later."

"Good work, Earnest. No way that pack of street scum are gonna get $50,000 out of my pocket," Tommy says grimly, as Earnest nods in agreement.

"Damn straight. Come into the office, I'll get the money for you."

The two men walk into a small office, Earnest limping, due to a beating a month or to earlier at the hands of Sonny Forelli's thugs.. There's a desk, a filing cabinet, with a coffee machine on top. On the desk are assorted papers, a coffee mug, some fake $100 bills and Colt .22 pistol.

"Earnest, why are you packin' heat?"

"Tommy, after that beating Sonny's lowlife shit-heads handed out to me, I'm not takin' any chances."

"The threat is gone. Forelli's family are fucking struggling to get their shit together after I pumped half of them full of hot lead from the barrell of my shotgun. No one, and I mean NO ONE, fucks with a member of the Vercetti Crime Family."

Earnest smiles and nods. He reaches into the bottom drawer of the large filing cabinet and hauls out a normal-looking black suitcase. He lays it on the desk and slides it over to Tommy, who's sitting in a chair on the other side. Tommy grabs the briefcase and lays it on his lap. He clicks the lock open and lifts the cover up. Inside are stacks and stacks of crisp $100 bills.

"It's all in here?"

"Sure is."

"Alright, good. I've gotta go take care of some more things. I'll stop by in a couple of days, we should have another deal set-up by then."

"Alright, my boy. Talk to you later."

"See you later, Earnest."

The two shake hands and Tommy walks out of the building. He climbs in his car and throws the briefcase in the back seat. He starts up his car and pulls out of the parking lot.