#91 - Code of Honor

Good Biker, Bad Biker

Segment Notes: This is for the 5Ds Month theme for July 25th, You Give Bikers a Bad Name. It is very late for the prompt because things have been crazy around here. This story gradually took shape, with much thanks to MoonlightTyger for her ideas of a guy showing up wanting to join a gang and Radley eventually revealing his occupation in town! It turned out a little differently than she suggested, but the story had a lot of ideas of what it should be, lol. And I've never seen Sons of Anarchy myself, but as I was developing the plot I decided it had to be referenced.

Radley had a feeling it was bad news when he saw a new biker roll into town. He was dressed in greasy, torn clothes and looked very scruffy, like a stereotypical hoodlum biker. Still, Radley didn't want to give in to the prejudices that had plagued him and the Bunch, so he walked over with a friendly smile. "Hello," he greeted. "Can I help you with something?"

The other man grinned in an unsettling way. "I'm here lookin' for my old homie, Kalin. I knew him back in the Satellite. I heard he got himself a biker gang and I came up lookin' to join up. You guys took over this whole place, right? Just like that TV show Sons of Anarchy!"

Now Radley knew his first impression was sadly right. "No, not really," he said. "That's an interesting show with some deep ideas, but those bikers are into all kinds of criminal practices. We don't do that. We're making the town better, not worse. And I'm the one you see about recruiting." He folded his arms. "You don't sound like the type of person I want in my Bunch."

"Oh yeah?" The dirty biker's eyes flashed with mounting indignation and anger. "What are you guys then? A bunch of namby-pamby good-doers?"

"I wouldn't say that either," Radley sneered. "We just don't see any point in being crooked or ripping up towns and terrorizing people."

The stranger snorted. "Are you kidding me? That's the most fun of the biker lifestyle!"

Radley quirked an eyebrow. "You think that's what being a biker means? You, mi amigo, are most sadly mistaken. You give bikers a bad name! It's people like you who make other people scared of us."

"Yeah, that fear is great, isn't it?" was the nasty reply. "They know we're at the top!"

"If you wanna be part of the Bunch, you havta know that we don't care about any of that," Radley said. "We're not out to make people afraid of us. At least not anyone other than the bad guys."

A snort. "Kalin would never go soft like this! He was always tough!"

"I'm still tough," Kalin said as he appeared from around a corner. "You said you wanted to find me, Jerry. You might regret it when we ask you to leave town."

Jerry looked most unimpressed. "You don't have any authority over me if you don't rule this place with an iron fist! You can't make me leave."

"Well, actually . . . we kinda can," Radley said. "Or we can make you wish you could leave." He produced a pair of handcuffs.

Jerry stared at them in disbelief and suddenly burst out laughing. "Is that how you get your jollies or something? You really had me going there for a second."

Kalin gave him a dark smirk. "No, actually this isn't some kink. This is for real." He also produced handcuffs. "So you can leave quietly now or stay and end up arrested if you cause any trouble."

"Of course, if you really wanted to stick around and just see what we're all about, that's fine with us," Radley said smoothly.

"I've seen more than enough," Jerry exclaimed. "You guys are really cops?!"

"Hells Angels doesn't accept anyone who is trying to become a police officer," Radley said. "I guess you could say we're the opposite of them. Every member of the Bunch is law enforcement."

"You guys are a bunch of squares!" Jerry cried, backing up to his motorcycle. "I can't believe this! Even Kalin?!"

"He's chief square," Radley giggled.

"Proud sheriff," Kalin smirked.

Jerry gave Kalin an unreadable look. "I looked up to you! And look at you now! You've just gone soft! It was all for nothing!"

"I'm still all for protecting the people," Kalin said. "I just found a different way to do it."

Jerry shook his head. "I'm out of here, man. This is something out of a nightmare!" He practically jammed his helmet on his head and leaped on his motorcycle to ride off for parts unknown.

Radley watched until he was out of sight. "Oh brother," he sighed. "You know, I always hope bikers like him will fade away, but I guess they never will. I can kind of see the appeal, alright; motorcycles are seen as rebellious and free. I thought I wanted to be a rebel once upon a time. But when I got with Brittanie and saw what being a biker meant to her, I realized she and I had way different ideals."

Kalin nodded. "You look the part in some ways, but in others, you're not a typical rebel at all."

"I don't even have any tattoos," Radley chuckled. "Some people think I do, though. But I never thought having a needle go in my skin over and over to make a picture sounded fun. Of course, just because someone has a tattoo doesn't make them a rebel . . . even though it would to my family."

"Your family has always been narrow-minded," Kalin said.

Radley wearily nodded. "They sure have. Ironic that Brittanie hated me for still being too, well, square. I wouldn't tear up towns with her and scare the people. And I really don't get the appeal of running guns or the other criminal activities that the gang on Sons of Anarchy are involved with. Not unless it's about greed. That, I understand."

"But even though you love to make money, you would never do it in those ways," Kalin said.

"No, I wouldn't," Radley said. "But some people probably think the nightly duels for mine labor were close to that same level."

"I don't," Kalin said. "Especially not when you got into it in the first place because Malcolm started threatening the kids in town if you didn't play ball."

Radley gave a faint but pleased smile. "I'm glad that you see it that way."

"Most of the people here do," Kalin said. "You were their hero and champion before I came along. I still wonder if you should have accepted their desire for you to be mayor."

Radley shook his head. "I was just completely worn-out from trying so hard to watch over the town and being the beacon of hope for the Bunch even as my hope was fading away. I felt so alone being a pillar of strength and I needed a break. But I'm happy to continue watching over the town by your side."

Kalin smiled. "So am I.

"Oh, speaking of Sons of Anarchy, I saw a little of that show," he continued. "Is it worth watching all the way through?"

Radley shrugged. "Eh, it's got some interesting ideas and gets into some pretty deep thinking. One thing that's similar to how the Bunch was when we first came to town is that they protect their town and some of the people think they do it better than the police. The gang doesn't want drug gangs around, curiously enough. I haven't seen the whole show either, but the Bunch and I had to at least check it out, you know?"

Kalin nodded. "Maybe we could watch it together sometime."

"Maybe," Radley smiled. "For now I guess we'd better keep patrolling the town. How did you know that guy anyway?"

Kalin shook his head. "He loved the Enforcers and he loved even more when I really lost myself and got obsessively tough, even with those who didn't deserve it. He didn't care as much about saving the Satellite as he did the thought of being the most important person in it."

"That's disturbing," Radley frowned. "Yeah, he sure gave the impression of being power-hungry and a full-fledged bad rebel."

Kalin sighed. "I wonder if he would have turned out like this if I hadn't negatively influenced him."

"Kalin." Radley laid a hand on his shoulder. "Yeah, obviously that was a factor, unfortunately, but he sounds like he always liked that kind of thing. If it hadn't been you, he would've found someone else like you to look up to. I think he would have turned out the same way. In the end, it was his choice."

"You're right," Kalin acknowledged. "And I'm not going to sink into depression again over this. Who knows; if I can get pointed in the right direction, maybe someday he will too."

Radley smiled. "That's a good thought. Come on." He drew an arm around Kalin's shoulders and led him down the main street. Smiling, Kalin walked with him and soon had his arm around Radley's waist. They got a few looks from some of the townspeople, but neither cared.