AN: Alright folks first of all this is very, very AU. Some characters will appear slightly out of character, but I'm trying to stick to the very basic ideals of each character. Second, this series is going to have some dark points all of which I can't name now. Don't like dark stories? You'll probably want to hit the back button now. Third, there will be extreme violence and death. Lastly, this will contain mucho slash. Don't like slash? You probably don't want to read anything I write.
Summary: Ryan Wolfe goes undercover as a fighter in the extreme and deadly Underground Fighting League. His mission is to uncover all the major players in the drug trade and gather evidence against them all. But when he joins the Raging Dragons, one of the most successful teams in the League, he finds himself a part of a dysfunctional family that accepts him into their midst and slowly become the family he never had. He struggles to stay true to his mission as he gets drawn in deeper and deeper.
This includes a huge amount of crossovers. All three CSI shows, NCIS, Stargate Atlantis, and those are just the ones off the top of my head. Anyone and everyone could show up. The only characters I own so far are most of Team Kaos and other assorted fighters.
VMeet the DragonsV
There wasn't much that surprised Ryan Wolfe anymore. He had seen many things in his time working as an undercover cop. He'd seen drug deals go bad and domestic violence turn into something more. He'd watched as fellow undercover cops were "made" and killed before his very eyes. Ryan Wolfe thought he had seen it all, but as his cab pulled up to the address he had been given he found himself surprised. He had expected the Dragons' Lair to be a rundown house with broken windows and pealing paint, but that wasn't what he saw at all.
The Dragons' Lair was actually a well taken care of and expensive looking very tall apartment building. The brick building had the feeling of being ancient, but it didn't look that way. None of the windows were broken including the large glass windows on the ground floor. The trees in the front threw shadows over the path leading to the door, but were only half as tall as the building. All in all the place gave off the feeling of a regular apartment building, but Ryan knew different.
Ryan paid the cab driver and got out of the car. He stared apprehensively at the building. He hadn't wanted the assignment. He wasn't a violent person by nature, but his job sometimes required it. This assignment was going to push way past anything he'd ever experienced. The only reason he'd been assigned the case was that he was so damn good at his job. He thought Kurt or Sean would have been better for the physical aspect of the assignment, but as far as the people aspect went they definitely wouldn't fit the bill. His partner, the ever charismatic John Sheppard, had argued on his behalf, but in the end it hadn't changed anyone's mind. He would be the best at getting in and finding all the major players in the drug trade going on in the secretive and dangerous world of the Underground Fighting League.
So here he was in front of what was fondly called the Dragons' Lair. It was going to be his home for...well he wasn't sure how long. His objectives were in depth and would take time, lots of time. He guessed this would be his longest assignment yet.
Taking a deep calming breath he slipped into his new personality and strode up the path. Once past the shadow of the trees he was slightly surprised to see a young man waiting for him at the door. Obviously Asian in descent, the young man smiled widely at him, but nonetheless moved to block the door.
"Hello, here to visit someone?" The young man asked politely.
Ryan eyed him thoughtfully. "You're a little small to be security aren't you?"
"Doorman actually, I just greet and sign people in." The Asian man replied, still smiling, but his voice held just a hint of edge to it. "Can I help you?"
Before Ryan could reply the door swung open and a man appeared who Ryan instantly recognized. "It's okay Archie. This is Mr. Wolfe, the new team member I told you about."
"That's right! Sorry, H, slipped my mind." Archie said, grinning sheepishly. He held his hand out to Ryan. "Sorry about that Mr. Wolfe. I'm Archie Johnson."
"Nice to meet you Archie, but please don't call me Mr. Wolfe." Ryan said, giving a shudder for emphasis. He shook Archie's hand firmly. "Makes me sound like my dad. Just call me Ryan."
"Well Ryan, welcome to the Dragons' Lair."
Archie slipped back into the building and Ryan was left with a man he had already met once. Horatio Caine was the manager and protector of the members of the Raging Dragons, one of the most successful teams in the Underground Fighting League. He was well known for taking over the team when it was revealed that his brother, Raymond Caine, had been skimming from the team's victory winnings. Horatio brought order and honor back to the Raging Dragons and they had begun thriving again under his leadership. Horatio was also the only one who knew the truth about Ryan and was sworn to protect his secret. After speaking with the man, Ryan trusted him completely not to blow his cover.
"You're a little earlier than I expected you, Mr. Wolfe." Horatio said, motioning for Ryan to follow him.
"I was supposed to see Commissioner Mobley first, but he was too busy to see me so I came directly here." Ryan said as he obediently followed Horatio into the building and looked around the lobby.
It was a simple design with a modernized flare to it. In the center of the lobby was an eight-foot statue of a poised to strike dragon done in beautiful black marble. To one side of the statue was a desk, like one would expect to find at a hotel, where Archie had perched himself. There was a clipboard on the desk, which Ryan guessed was the visitor's log. Archie was engrossed in one of two TV screens on the desk and Ryan absently caught the words "red alert" and "Romulan bird-of-prey" as his gaze went upwards. The middle of the building was hollow with railings around each level and at the very top was a glass ceiling that was spilling sunlight inside.
"Archie? Are you forgetting something?" Horatio said, catching the doorman's attention.
Archie looked up with a questioning look on his face. Then realization dawned on him and he smiled sheepishly. "I guess he probably needs that doesn't he?" He grabbed something that looked suspiciously like a credit card and handed it to Ryan. "That's your room keycard. Try not to lose it."
"Why not regular keys?" Ryan asked.
"Security reasons." Horatio replied. "If a card is lost or stolen we can deactivate it so that nobody can use it."
"Had a lot of trouble with break ins?"
"You could say that."
Horatio led Ryan look around for a few minutes before he led him into a room to their right. Immediately Ryan could guess it was some kind of entertainment room for the occupants of the building, but thought it was a little strange seeing as how everyone had their own apartment. Several men were already lounging around on a plush couch in front of a big screen TV.
"This is the common room." Horatio confirmed Ryan's thoughts. "Everyone has their own living space, but this is where everyone can come to relax together."
"Monday is movie night." One of the seated men stated. Ryan watched as the speaker stood up and turned to face him. "You must be Ryan Wolfe, the new fighter we've heard all about."
"I am." Ryan confirmed, meeting the stranger's probing gaze unflinchingly. "And you are?"
"He's Ben McGewen and he doesn't know his manors." The other man on the couch stood and turned to face Ryan as well. "I'm Kar McGewen."
If Ryan hadn't researched the Raging Dragons he would have been surprised to see twin faces staring back at him, but he knew all about the McGewen twins. They both had dark brown hair and brown eyes not to mention the same face, but Ryan was trained to notice things. He could instantly see the difference between the two. There was a certain hard edge to Ben's eyes, a distrustful shadow that told Ryan without words he would have to earn the man's trust. But in Kar's eyes he could see a warmth and playfulness that wasn't present in his twin. The only obvious physical difference between them was the scar above Kar's left eye.
"Nice to meet you both." Ryan said, giving them a polite smile.
Ryan noticed that the third man on the couch hadn't moved. He could see unruly dark black hair, but that was it. Just when he was wondering if the man would ever stand up and introduce himself, Kar addressed the man.
"Dude, don't be rude. Stand up and introduce yourself."
The man gave an audible sigh. "How many times have I told you not to call me dude?"
"About as many times as I've ignored it." Kar replied with a playful smirk. "Now stand up and introduce yourself."
There was another irritated sigh and the man finally stood. When he turned to face Ryan, the cop instantly knew who it was before the man spoke. "I'm Speed, you're Ryan, nice to meet you and goodbye."
Ryan watched in stunned confusion as the man known as Speed, one of the most famous fighters in the Underground Fighting League, strode past him and out of the room without so much as a glance back at anyone. He shouldn't have been surprised though. Timothy "Speed" Speedle was known for his gruff nature and often rude behavior. Ryan assured himself that he would be more prepared for Speed's attitude the next time around.
"Don't mind him. Tim treats everyone that way." Kar said.
Before anyone could say anything else Horatio's cell phone rang. He smiled apologetically at Ryan. "Can you two finish the tour and show him to his apartment?"
"No problem H." Kar said cheerfully.
With Kar leading the way Ryan followed him back into the lobby with Ben right behind him. Some might have expected Ben to walk beside his twin, but Ryan could feel the underlying intention. Ben was making a statement. He was telling Ryan that he didn't trust him and that he was going to watch his brother's back. Ryan could understand the sentiment and wondered exactly what it would take to get past Ben's barriers.
"Over there is the dinning room where we eat breakfast together every morning. We have a chef who comes in and fixes the best breakfast. On Friday nights we have dinner together." Kar explained, pointing the room connected to the common room.
"How many people live here?" Ryan asked.
"Well, there's twelve members of the Raging Dragons, including yourself now. We have the support staff. The rest are strays Horatio has picked up." Kar explained.
"Strays?"
"Horatio likes to help the unfortunate." Ben answered. "Guy has a big heart."
Ryan wondered how someone who supported a League where men and women were regularly beaten to death could possibly have a big heart. It almost seemed a contradiction and it was one Ryan looked forward to finding the answer to.
There were two other rooms on the ground floor. One was the security room where the recording devices for the security cameras were. The other room was Horatio's office which he was told had an "open door" policy. Kar made sure he understood that Horatio would never turn him away if he needed to talk. Again it was slightly baffling how such a supposedly caring man supported such a bloodthirsty sport.
They took the elevator to the first floor where the apartments started. Kar led the way to this first apartment and Ryan was slightly surprised to see a name, Delko, labeled in gold across the door. It reminded him of dressing rooms for wrestlers. He wondered why they did it, but wasn't going to ask as Kar knocked lightly on the door. There was only a short pause before the door opened and Ryan saw the tall, dark and handsome fighter many women swooned over.
"Hey Delko, you said you wanted us to bring the new guy to you." Kar said by way of explaining Ryan's presence.
Ryan felt Delko's eyes sweep over him and took a moment to return the favor. Eric Delko was a gorgeous man, which Ryan wasn't afraid to admit to himself. Slightly taller than Ryan, Delko had a lean and muscular frame that in a relaxed posture hid the brutality he was capable of in the cage. From reading his file, Ryan knew that gaining this man's trust would be instrumental in being accepted into the team.
Delko smiled brightly and stepped out of his apartment. "So, you're the kickboxer that H recruited, huh?"
Ryan stuck out his hand. "I'm Ryan Wolfe."
"Eric Delko."
"He's already met Speed." Kar announced with a smirk.
"If you can call that a meeting." Ben retorted with a matching smirk.
Eric laughed, eyes still fixed on Ryan. "I'm guessing he gave you the "nice to meet you and goodbye" treatment. He does that to everyone at first."
"In fact don't be surprised if you never get more than one or two words spoken to you." Kar said.
For some reason that notion bothered Ryan, but he didn't bring it up. "If I'm going to meet the whole team, why isn't it all at once? Wouldn't that be easier?"
"Trust me, this is a lot easier." Eric said, smirking at the idea of all those personalities in one room. He didn't think meeting the whole team at once would be a wise decision. "You'll get a chance to actually meet everyone."
"Except Warrick, cause he's in the hospital right now." Kar spoke up. "He'll be home in a day or two."
Ryan watched as Eric eyed the twins, looked at Ryan, and then back at the twins again. "Why don't you boys run along. I'll show Ryan around."
Kar opened his mouth to object, but Ben grabbed his arm and pulled his twin down the hall to the elevator. Eric watched them go before turning his attention back to Ryan. He stared at Ryan a few moments longer than was polite and Ryan was just about to say something when Eric turned and shut his apartment door. When Eric turned around he immediately started walking and led Ryan around the corner and over to the next apartment door labeled Stokes. He knocked three times and it was only a moment's pause before the door opened.
"Hey Delko, I thought for sure the twin terrors would be showing the new guy around." The man standing in the doorway said. He had a warm Texan accent that was open and friendly. He shot Ryan a grin and held out his hand. "Nick Stokes."
Ryan took the hand and shook. "Ryan Wolfe."
Ryan was treated to the same scrutiny as before, which he readily returned. Nick Stokes was the embodiment of what a Lightweight fighter should be. He was a lean mean fighting machine who had the reputation of being a brick wall in the cage. His eyes were dark, but held a sparkle of something Ryan couldn't quite put his finger on. Ryan could see why Nick had so many female fans.
"Ryan asked why we were introducing him to everyone one at a time." Eric informed his teammate.
Nick laughed loudly. "Oh man, that would be a sight to see."
"Can you imagine Battle in the same room as Tom? They'd kill each other."
"If Funsch didn't kill him first."
Ryan knew he was missing some facts, but he did recognize the names. Obviously there were some integral aspects to the team he was going to have to familiarize himself with. For the moment he just went along with what they were saying, beginning to get a feel for the interaction between the teammates.
"You're a quiet one, huh." Nick said with a wide smile.
"Would you rather have another Kar? Or god forbid we get another Tom." Eric replied.
Ryan watched as Nick shuddered at the thought. "I see your point. I'll take another quiet one any day." He leaned against he doorway. "Now, you've got a lot of people to meet so you'd better get to it."
Eric agreed with his teammate. Ryan and Nick exchanged goodbyes before Eric led him down the hall and around the corner to the next apartment on the floor. The door was labeled Funsch and Eric banged harshly. After a moment there was no answer and Eric sighed and banged again.
"Fuck off!" A voice shouted from inside.
"Don't be that way Funsch. Our new teammate's here." Eric called back.
"He can fuck off too!"
Eric glared at the door for a moment before he rolled his eyes and led Ryan away. They went around the corner to the last apartment on the floor. The door was label Jenson and there was a bright pink post-it note stuck to it. Eric pulled it off, glanced at it, then handed it to Ryan. Ryan took it with a confused frown and looked down at it.
Welcome to the Dragons' Lair. I meant to be here to meet you in person, but I have to help take care of Warrick. I'll drop by your place when I get back and we can officially meet.
Your friendly neighborhood Runner, Tyler Jenson.
P.S. Don't let the big guys scare you. Their bark is worse than their bite.
"New teammates are a big deal around here, huh?" Ryan mused as he folded the note and put it in his pocket.
For a moment Eric didn't reply and Ryan got a feeling that there was a long-winded in depth explanation and a shortened version. At some point and time he was going to want the in depth version, but for the moment his head hurt too much to deal with that. Eric seemed to come to the same conclusion.
"This team is a family. It's dysfunctional and not always cohesive, but it's the only family some of us have." Eric explained. "You're not just joining a team, you're joining the family."
That explained a lot. He'd read the team's professional profiles and knew all about their fighting records and things of that nature, but he knew nothing about their personal lives. Just by listening to Eric talk Ryan got a feeling that this team was Eric's only family. He had to remind himself that he was a cop and he couldn't let himself get attached to anyone or he could compromise his mission.
Eric led him back to the elevator and they skipped the second floor and went up to the third. "That floor just has a few families who Horatio took in."
"Do they participate in the dinners and movie night?" Ryan asked.
"Not usually. Most of them like to keep to themselves. Once a month Horatio has our chef, Beck, cook a feast for the whole building and we eat dinner together." Eric explained. "You'll meet them at some point and time I'm sure. For now I'm just introducing you to the team and support staff."
"Support staff?"
"Well, that would have been Tyler, but he's been pulled to look after Warrick. We also have two other Runners who you'll meet in a little bit."
"What do you mean by Runners?" Ryan asked. There was a lot of information to take in, but he wanted to know everything important.
Eric led Ryan over to the first door to the right of the elevator and paused. "They're helpers. Like personal assistants only they're for the whole team. We started out with just Don, but as the team grew we needed more Runners to take care of things. The press likes to make them out to be slaves and on some teams they might be, but for us they're just more members of the family."
Ryan nodded in understanding and turned his attention to the door. He swallowed hard at the name he saw on there. Battle. He wasn't even sure he wanted to meet the undefeated UFL Heavyweight Champion. No one in their right mind wanted to be within ten feet of the guy. Ryan was no coward, but he didn't feel comfortable with the idea of knowing a guy who once crushed an opponent's skull.
"Scared?"
Ryan jerked his head to look at Eric who was grinning at him. "No."
"If he likes you you'll have nothing to worry about." Eric told him. He smirked and added, "If he doesn't like you I'd avoid him."
Ryan opened his mouth to say something, but Eric knocked on the door and he swallowed his words. He half hoped Battle would be like Funsch and not open up, but his hopes were shot down when the door swung open. Battle was every bit as intimidating as Ryan thought he would be. The Champion stood at an imposing 6'5'' that made Ryan feel like a child next to him. The bald head and piercing eyes just added to the intimidation and his clothes hid the tribal tattoos Ryan knew were there.
"Gonna stand there and stare all night?" Battle demanded.
Ryan swallowed nervously and shot Eric a sidelong look. "I'm...uh..."
"Your name is uh?" Battle grunted, eyes narrowing.
Eric cleared his throat and shot the taller man a disapproving look. "Damn Battle, you don't have to go out of your way to intimidate the kid."
"Gotta get my kicks somehow." Battle retorted. A smile flickered across his face, but was quickly gone. "You're Ryan Wolfe, right? New Lightweight fighter that got Horatio's attention."
"That's me."
"Well, now we've met and you can be on your way. Goodnight boys."
With that Battle stepped back into his apartment and slammed the door. Ryan blinked a few times, still a little shell shocked at the quick, but intense meeting. Eric laughed and took him by the arm and coaxed him into walking. Ryan hoped they didn't have any more meetings like that.
"That actually went pretty well." Eric said, smirking at his newest teammate's stunned look.
"I thought he was going to eat me."
Eric laughed. "Nah, he didn't threaten you, so he must like you."
"Did he threaten you the first time?" Ryan asked.
"Course not. Everyone likes me." Eric replied with a cheeky grin.
"I bet Walter Marcos would disagree about thirteen times." A new voice cut into the conversation.
The speaker was leaning his back against the railing and facing another man, both of them with beer bottles in hand. He was tall and skinny, obviously a Lightweight competitor. Like many of the other guys Ryan had met already he had black hair and brown eyes. He had the air of a man completely relaxed with his surroundings. The newcomer didn't even concern him in the least, but his face lit up with a welcoming smile.
The other man was equally as tall and had a bit more of a build to him. He had dark hair and gray-blue eyes that had a slight manic spark to them. His whole manner was that of someone who just didn't care which was apparent by his blue jeans and old stained white shirt. He looked like some kind of wannabe rebel without a cause.
"Yeah, well Walter Marcos is a jackass." Eric retorted. "But we're not going to soil this good atmosphere with talks of traitors."
The wannabe rebel took a swig from his bottle. "Gonna introduce us to your tagalong Delko?"
"Ryan Wolfe this is Ray Templeton," Eric pointed to the man leaning against the rail, who held his hand up in a brief wave. "And Tom Marshall. They're the troublemakers of the team."
"No, Tom is the troublemaker I just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time." Ray said with an innocent look that wasn't fooling anyone.
Eric snorted. "Yeah, wrong place and wrong time every time, Temple. You're not fooling anyone."
"Guy can try." Temple said with a shrug. He took a swig of his beer. "The twins aren't at home."
"He's already met them." Eric replied. "You two looking for trouble tonight?"
"If you're asking if we plan on hitting the clubs the answer is yes, but you're not coming." Tom replied.
"Why not?" Eric almost whined.
"Because we spend more time trying to make sure you don't hit on the wrong girls that we never get any action of our own." Temple said with a smirk. "You can always pick the ones that are married with possessive husbands."
"Or the ones that are violently homophobic." Tom added.
Eric's eyes grew wide and he shot them a heated look. "Guys."
"Delko, this city has the highest acceptance level of gays and lesbians than in any other city in the country. Half the population is at least bisexual." Tom said in a bored tone.
"You don't have a problem with homosexuals, do you?" Temple asked, fixing Ryan with an intense stare.
At least this was something Ryan wouldn't have to lie about. "Nope."
"See, I knew my gaydar wasn't off." Tom said with a smirk.
Ryan gaped. "Wh-what?"
"Oh don't tell me you haven't admitted it to yourself yet."
"I--."
"Tom! Play nice." Eric jumped to Ryan's defense. "You just met the guy and already you've got him stuttering. Give him at least a week before you start in on him."
Tom shrugged and drank his beer. Temple leaned forward and smacked him on the back of the head. Tom coughed on his beer and shot a glare at his friend. Temple glared back and it seemed like an entire argument was shared in silence. Ryan could see his opening to get a shot back at Tom and either get on their bad side or earn a little respect. He had a feeling with these guys brash was the way to go.
"Sorry for outing you. I hope you're not offended and that it won't affect our working relationship." Tom said with a tone that indicated it was a well-rehearsed apology.
"That's okay Tom." Ryan replied with the hints of a mischievous smirk. "But tell me Tom, how long have you two been fucking?"
Temple choked on his beer and Eric let out a bark of laughter while Tom gaped at him like a fish out of water. Tom grabbed his friend and slapped him on the back a few times. Ryan smirked at them. That was all the reaction he needed to know he had guessed right.
"Nice. Most of the time it takes a newbie a few days to crack back at Tom." Eric said with laughter still in his voice.
"He's got your number Tom." Temple teased before he coughed a few more times.
"'Bout time someone did." Eric added.
Tom shot his partner in crime a glare and then transferred it to Eric. "Don't you have someone else to bother Delko?"
"In case you didn't catch that, that's Tom's not so subtle attempt to tell you to get lost." Temple clarified, obviously enjoying himself.
"Yeah, we'll leave you two to get plastered by yourselves." With that Eric turned and led Ryan back to the elevator. "The other two apartments are Ben and Kar's."
Ryan wondered how in the hell he was going to keep track of so many people. He was going to have to observe them all to make sure none of them were in on the drug trade. Even though he had read all their professional profiles and knew there were a lot of Dragons it was just hitting him just how big the assignment really was.
On the next floor they stopped at Ryan was briefly introduced to Don Flack and David Hodges. Both men were Runners and were too busy to actually talk. Don promised he would catch up with Ryan later while David just gave a dismissive roll of the eyes and was gone. Eric didn't seem at all fazed and instead took Ryan up to the next floor. It was there that Ryan met the man he knew he'd have to watch out for.
Eric knocked on a door labeled Messer and moments later it snapped open. The very first things Ryan noticed were the intense blue eyes. Where Horatio's were warm and welcoming, this man's eyes were hard and cold. When Ryan finally blinked and could look at something else he realized he was seeing the first and maybe only blond on the team. But as quick as he looked away his eyes were drawn back to the piercing stare of those blue eyes.
"Danny, where are your manners?" Eric demanded. "You have to wait at least a day to give the newbie that look."
"What look?" Danny asked innocently, looking away from Ryan for the first time. He had a New York accent that Ryan found appealing. "I'm not giving him a look."
"Yes you were. You were giving him your I-know-how-to-kill-with-one-hit look." Eric retorted in a tone that suggested Ryan was not the first one to receive that look.
"Did not." Danny argued petulantly.
"Did too."
"Did not."
"How about we say he didn't and get on with this." Ryan spoke up. He was hoping that by jumping in on Danny's side him might gain a little ground there.
Danny shot him a bright smile. "See, the kid even agrees with me." He held out his hand and all trace of any of the earlier hostility was gone. "Danny Messer."
The newest Dragon took the offered hand and shook it firmly. "Ryan Wolfe."
"Welcome to the Raging Dragons, Wolfe." Danny said. "Sorry about that look that I didn't give you. Picked up the habit from Battle."
"It's a bad habit." Eric told him. "Makes you look like a mean guy."
"I am a mean guy." Danny retorted.
Eric laughed at that. "Dude, you are the nicest guy on the team."
"Next to you of course."
"Of course."
Ryan relaxed a little more as the two men bantered. He could tell they were really close. Like brothers. He supposed it made sense in all reality. These guys never knew if the next fight would be their last.
"Well, only one more to go." Eric announced, bringing Ryan back from his thoughts.
"Speed?" Danny guessed.
"Nope, Speed was one of the first he met." Eric replied.
Danny laughed. "Bet you got the "nice to meet you and goodbye" treatment, right?"
"Yup. I thought it was rude at first, but I'm starting to think that's just his usual greeting." Ryan said, feeling at ease with these two men or as at ease as he could be.
"Well, if you're on this level already I'm guessing Deke is the last one." Danny took another guess, looking at Eric for confirmation. At Eric's nod Danny winced. "Deke is kinda in a mood right now."
"We'll make it short then." Eric said, turning to lead Ryan back to the elevator.
"Oh I have no doubt about that." Ryan heard Danny muttered as they walked away.
Ryan had a bad feeling about this last meeting. His cop instincts kicked in and he knew he didn't want to meet this Deke character. He knew it would look suspicious if he didn't, but Danny's words seemed kind of ominous. Nevertheless he obediently followed Eric when the elevator stopped again. Eric led him to the far side where he knocked on a door labeled Kay. At first there was no answer and Eric raised his hand to knock again when the door snapped open.
"I'm Deke, you're Ryan. Hello and goodbye."
And then the door was shut again. Ryan blinked, once more surprised by a curt greeting and dismissal. Ryan only got a chance to notice two things. One was that Deke was a pretty well built African American. The other was that he was bald. It wasn't much to go on.
"Wow, he really is in a mood." Eric murmured. He turned to look at Ryan. "Give him some time I'm sure he'll warm up to you."
Ryan decided to change the subject before Eric could notice just how uncomfortable that brief encounter had made him. "So, now I get to go to my apartment, right?"
"Yup, now that you've run the gauntlet." Eric confirmed. He led Ryan back to the elevator and they went up a few floors. "You're on the last floor with Speed, Horatio, and Ronon."
"Is Ronon a fighter?" Ryan asked. He hadn't received a file under the name Ronon.
"Nah, he's our nightshift security guard." Eric replied. "You probably won't meet him for a while."
Ryan accepted that and followed Eric out of the elevator. Eric stopped at the first apartment on the right. Ryan was only slightly surprised to see it was already labeled Wolfe in the same gold plating at the others. It touched a distant part of his soul that was still yearning for a place to belong.
"We already brought your stuff up here, but none of it's unpacked. Your kitchen is stocked too, but if you need anything else you can have one of the Runners get it for you or get it yourself."
"Why don't you just do things for yourself instead of using other people to do it?" Ryan asked.
"Well, part of the reason is to give kids jobs when no one else will. The other reasons are a little more personal." Eric answered. "Most of the times Runners are used to get things that we...are too embarrassed to get for ourselves or are having a hard time finding." He leaned against the railing across from the door. "I'm going to leave you alone now to get settled. There's a cell phone in there with all our numbers programmed in as well as some other important numbers. You'll want to keep that on you at all times because that's how the Commissioner likes to announce matches."
"What's the average amount of matches?"
"One or two a month." Eric replied. "Maybe three."
"Makes sense. We had less fights than that in the kickboxing league I was in."
"Gotta bounce back quick here." Eric said. "Well, I'll leave you to your unpacking. If you need me you know where to find me."
"Thanks."
Eric turned and walked away while Ryan entered the apartment. Whatever he had expected it was not what he found. It was what he imagined it would feel like to walk into a penthouse. Whoever had designed it definitely knew what they were doing. Further exploration showed it was fully furnished with a king-sized bed, a couch, a chair, and a full entertainment system. Boxes of his stuff were stacked everywhere and he groaned at the idea of unpacking it all.
With resignation he decided to start on his bedroom stuff. He had clothes and personal items that would make him feel more at ease. As he was working he began to think about all his new teammates. He didn't think he was going to have to worry about Kar, Temple, Tom, Eric, or Nick. But he had his concerns about a few of the others. His two biggest concerns were Speed and Danny. Both of their fathers were sponsors of the League not to mention two of the men Ryan had to investigate. It would be in his best interest to get on both their good sides. His meeting with Speed didn't inspire much confidence and he wasn't exactly sure what to make of Danny. After the initial hostility Danny was friendly and warm, but there was something about him that screamed danger. Ryan was going to have to be careful around him.
"What have I gotten myself into?"