Rockwell's, Geno City
Evening
"...I meant every word I said about him being a piece of shit. I'm more shocked that he didn't ambush me at the galleria but you and Little John do say that he loses interest in someone after a while if they're not named Manic." Akira recounted what happened with Anton to Manic after the latter asked why he arrived like he just ate a lemon.
"He pretty much has a hard-on for tormenting myself and Little John specifically. That fucking guy... What I wouldn't give to knock him down a peg or two..."
"Who wouldn't after meeting him..." Akira shook his head. "Anyways, let's head to the airsoft shop. We good for time?"
"Trust me, we got time. Plus it's not too far from here, so we're swell there."
The two head off from Rockwell's to go head to the airsoft shop close by. The airsoft shop was just down the street around the corner and called 'Jon's Alley Tactical Outfitter & Military Surplus'.
The window of the shop featured a mannequin wearing a replica of a Northamer General Defence Force's blue camouflage fatigues, a tactical vest and a grey combat helmet as well as showing off a tactical backpack, a flak jacket-style bulletproof vest with integrated shoulder-pads and there was also a holder that had a few tactical knives and machetes.
In addition, there was a big sign in the store window that read; 'Airsoft Guns & Gear sold here!'
The pair stepped inside the store and started looking around, checking out the various goods for sale on display. Akira checking out the heavy weapon shelf himself.
A mobian jackal was at the register, bearing a scar down his left eye and having a prosthetic hook hand in place of his left hand. He wore an Acorn Royal Army uniform cap on his head as well as wore a black muscle shirt with the phrase 'Gun Control Means Don't Miss' over a silhouette of an M4 rifle with a crosshairs replacing all the O's, a retro-style LCD watch on his right wrist, a pair of dogtags around his neck and a Ka-Bar knife held in a sheath on the back of his belt.
He had a very distinct resting scowl face, the kind of guy you would see at a bar and just try not to stare at. Akira almost thought he was seeing a ghost from his past.
The selection of airsoft guns were very diverse; pistols, machine pistols, submachine guns, assault rifles, marksman rifles, shotguns, grenade launchers which seems like a disadvantage in a standard airsoft match, revolvers and even some airsoft versions of vintage firearms.
There are a multitude of tactical gear usually used by military legions, special ops teams, espionage agencies, the occasional survivalist and military enthusiast. There was also a custom novelty dogtag machine in the corner that one could put a coin into and engrave their own dogtags and even came with a necklace chain for them.
"Shop here often?" Akira asks Manic. Checking out the goods.
"Oh yeah. Ended up buying plenty of stuff here for burglary jobs."
"...The store owner here knows you've used his items for them?"
"No. Just don't uh, don't tell him I have."
"I'm not going to be the one having to explain illegal use of his items. That's on you to tell him if he ever finds out."
"Don't worry, I'll figure something out. You let me worry about what to tell Jon over there, alright?"
"Okay." Akira checked through another shelf. "How good is his merchandise in here?"
"Completely reliable and able to be equipped with a multitude of weapon mods."
"Then the modifications should help increase our gun's damage output and accuracy in the Metaverse in theory."
"Well, isn't that what optics, pointers, and compensators do for real weapons?"
"Maybe but Metaverse logic is different from real world logic. There's no telling on what the airsoft attachments would do there til we try it." Akira said, holding his chin in thought. "See anything yet?"
Manic held up a boxed airsoft Beretta M12 submachine gun. "This."
"I'm gonna check out the pistols." Akira went over to the glass counter to get a look at the airsoft pistols. There were quite a few airsoft pistols and revolvers on display including an airsoft modern Colt 1911 pistol which stuck out the most because of the compensator barrel extension on it.
Akira thought of getting the Colt 1911 and he looked up to the owner Jon, pointing to the airsoft pistol in question. "How much is for this one and it's attachment?"
"Eighty mobiums." Jon answered. "One hundred if you want the adage of a two-year warranty."
"Any other offers?"
Logan pointed to a promo sign on the counter that reads; 'Limited time offer! Buy one weapon attachment mod, get one free!'
"What do you think? Should I get it?" Akira asks Omega. Looking like he's pondering over his choice to Jon.
"I'm not too crazy on guns myself personally... But if it helps you out in dealing with the Shadows in the Metaverse, then getting a projectile weapon with two attachments would be a smart choice on your part. Got the mobiums for it?"
"I should have enough after going to that ATM at the galleria." Akira told him. "I'll take the Colt 1911 please."
Jon nodded, reaching under the counter and setting the airsoft pistol down in front of Akira. "Listen. I can understand if you and your buddies are enthusiasts but don't let me hear about you boys trying to rob a place with these. I don't want to be dragged into some illegal shit right now. You won't let that happen, will you?"
"If it's any assurance to you, I'd be the type to stop a robber or blast them with a gun in an act of self-defence when it's my life versus theirs'..." Akira said, his face betraying no emotion. "Especially when they're on my property like pests... So, I'll be sure to be responsible. They should be packing a shotgun behind the counters anyhow."
Jon was silent but soon nodded, sliding the airsoft gun over to Akira.
"Eighty mobiums please." He said as Akira got out the mobiums requested and handed them over to Jon, the jackal putting the mobiums into the cash register sitting on the counter. "Anything else you need?"
"What other attachments do you have for the Colt 1911?"
Jon silently picked up a tray of pistol mods from the glass case in the counter and set it on the table. Among the mods were barrel compensators, extensions, extended clips, slide-mounted red dot sights, glow in the dark upgraded iron sights, laser pointers, tactical lights, underbarrel-mounted top rails and the most grandest of all; a top rail-mounted laser sight that looked just like the one equipped on the AMT Hardballer pistol.
The wolf pondered which free attachment he can choose from. The extended clips would help him get more shots into those Shadows, the laser pointers would make it easier to line up his shots on them, the compensators would help increase the damage output, the tactical lights could be useful in surprising a Shadow in an ambush, an under-barrel mounted top rail would offer more attachment options for the pistol and the top-mounted laser sight along with the extensions to the pistol could improve his accuracy.
Extended ammo capacity, increased damage output at the cost of accuracy or better accuracy and range at the cost of decreased damage output. Better damage is good for ending fights quicker, better range plus accuracy would make him miss less and better ammo capacity would allow him to get additional damage in on the Shadows.
Weighing his choices, he picked one to go with for now and that's the extended ammo capacity. "I'll take the extended clip."
Jon picked out one of each of three different capacity extended magazines and laid them out. "Twelve round mag, fourteen round or twenty-two round?"
"Twenty-two."
Jon handed the magazine to Akira.
"Thank you." Akira accepts the magazine from Jon and takes the Colt 1911 after the jackal put it back in it's box. Stepping aside to let Manic to make his purchase, the hedgehog ended up purchasing the aforementioned M12 submachine gun along with a mounting top rail and a micro red dot sight for it.
"Hopefully this and it's attachments will prove helpful in battle." Akira looked over to the tactical armours. "I wonder if those work in the Metaverse?"
"Why don't you get one and try it out the next time you go there with them?" Doctor suggested. "Could protect you more than without it."
Jon watched over the two as they bought their items, his gaze stone-cold and demanding respect. After some deliberation, Akira would buy the light tactical vest after Manic got his smg airsoft gun with the latter buying a tactical vest too when he sees the wolf getting one.
Both would pay for their items with the owner making no small talk with them whatsoever, they would find the guy was pretty hard to read. The two soon left the shop with their goods and printed receipts should they ever want to return them before the expiration date.
"Told ya this guy had some good stuff." Manic said to Akira with a grin.
"Not very personable though."
"He's had a rough life. He was a veteran from the Great War you know."
"I've met other veterans from the Great War myself and a few of them were involved in the most brutal parts of it but they'd still socialise with me nonetheless. One of them saw a fellow soldier getting turned inside out right in front of him by what he believes was a very rare inversion grenade prototype, nerve tissues on the outside plus urine dripping and all." Akira responded back. "That's a rough life living after seeing that firsthand and he only ever brought that up because someone I knew asked on why he became a vegetarian."
"Ouch..." Manic winced at that image. "Jeez, I feel terrible for folks that had to go through that; only to have another war immediately follow it after they thought they had won."
"That's politics, inaction and blindness of trust for you. Someone's always taking advantage of a war's end for their gains."
"Ain't that the truth..."
"So, what now?"
"Well... I suppose we can see if Little John grabbed those meds I asked him to get. We'll head to the hideout first to meet up with the others, then we'll head into the palace."
"Manic. The others wouldn't know where it is because you didn't tell either of them the location and we don't have their numbers either." Akira corrected him.
"I guess we can just get everyone to meet at the entrance of the Palace."
"I think Rockwell's would probably be the best place to find them at and to be honest, it'd be kind of late now to be taking on the Palace."
"Yeah, that's true. I figure we could just talk over some milkshakes and cream soda."
"We can do that."
"Right. We can probably stash this stuff at the hideout anyway."
"We should do that then."
"Let's hurry over there first." Manic then led Akira back to his hideout first. They'd drop off their equipment at the hideout and head over to Rockwell's. When they arrived, Manic got them a booth seat table and ordered cream sodas for both him and Akira.
"...And that's why they call it King George's Folly." The two would discuss among each other, Akira trading in what he's been learning from college so far. "The only male monarch in the Royal Acorn Family linage to not be represented by a big gold statue in the Hall of Kings at the Mobotropolis Museum like the other eleven kings from King Alexander to King Maximilian with King Theodore's firstborn Prince Emerson whom was killed in an accident before he could become king taking his spot instead, given the unflattering moniker of King George the Foolish and the king that's considered a very acceptable target of ridicule because of it."
He'd then added; "Oh but he does have a statue in the hall. A dull bronze statue as big as us and positioned right next to a museum waste bin. Even the bin's more respected than he is."
"Hah! Nice." Manic said with a laugh. "I'll be sure to give my blessings to him while I'm tossing out an empty soda and a greasy fast food bag while there."
"I think if Raffles was real and around during his time, he'd probably be given an knighting honour for showing him up. They'd let him keep the loot belonging to him." Akira chuckled to himself. "Done any checking on your Persona's background?"
"Well, I recently watched a Raffles movie with John Barrymore and I'm told that's like one of the good ones to get a read on his character. Was watching it with a film about a musketeer and that woman he's attracted to. What's their name?"
"D'Artagnan and Milady de Winter, both characters from the Three Musketeers. Not quite lovers, not quite husband and wife but they'd have fun with each other."
"I see. Jeez... That's kinda hot but at the same time it only barely sparks a half-chub."
"I guess you've had stuff that gave you the full monty instead."
"Heheheh, I've… I've watched a lot of stuff on the hub."
"I think I remember Little John said something yesterday about you clapping Princess Venus on the face or whatever."
"He meant I was 'clapping those cheeks of hers' Akira."
"Yeah, that. Clapping her cheeks. Wouldn't that be a problem?"
"I guess sleeping with a porn star like her when you're not of the drinking age yet can be a problem but it was consensual and for educational purposes, so it's all good."
"He said you would have been dreaming it up from whatever stuff you take when discussing the Metaverse to him. She from this city?"
"She started out here. She did small-time porno gigs before eventually hitting the big time."
"Wouldn't be too familiar with her or her body of work."
"What, you don't watch porn? Are you more of a hentai type?"
"I was more busy finishing off my high school term and getting prepared for the move out of Golden Bay City. Wouldn't have much time for anything else during that point in my life."
"So, you never like... Uh..." Manic said, rubbing the back of his head nervously, "...You never had any... Oh man, this is awkward to ask..."
"In case you're wondering, no. My priorities during those last three years were on getting good grades to be able to get into college and making sure I'm financially stable enough to be living on my own." Akira replied firmly and sternly to him. "I'd have been using most my spare time at home to read books, taking self-defence lessons or watch programs like Doctor Omega if I didn't have housing chores to do."
"Oh. No offence but that's boring. If you weren't changing your ways, you'd likely come off as slightly boring and uptight if I may be blunt for a minute."
'If you knew anything about my history, you wouldn't be saying that now...' Akira's inner-cynic voice said to him. "Boring to you but I wasn't given much of a choice in this society with what I had and I couldn't just goof off too much either. I originally came to this city to attend the C.C.C.C to study hard and keeping mostly to myself, only interacting with other people when I have to. That was before we got into that situation in the Metaverse."
"I see. I guess that makes sense... Still, I should definitely show you around and help ya to loosen up a bit. Maybe introduce you to her whenever she drops by."
"If that's what you want to do."
"I'll do it." Manic replied as the lioness girl they saw on their last visit here brought them their cream sodas.
"Thank you." Akira thanked her. The lioness girl nodded before returning to her stool to play on her phone.
"Drink up." Manic said with a grin.
Akira nodded and drank his glass with him before asking him something; "Was this side of the city always that rough or did it only got to that point in the last few years with people like Anton moving in?"
"It's been like that for as long as anyone can remember. Dad even said that it was like this when he was a kid."
"When I was trying to look up on both sides of this city's histories, a source says that the Lorenzo Crime Family had their operations out here during their peak years and were controlling about seventy percent of the whole city before their collapse."
"Yeah, that's about right. The Lorenzos owned this place before their eventual collapse ages ago."
"And yet that hasn't done anything to improve this side of the city. Seemingly made it worse without them around to bring "order" to all this if there was any to begin with." Akira taps his chin. "Seemed like the divide was put in place around that period when the organisation went under following the deaths of the whole Lorenzo Family. I got a quick history on how Cyber City got gentrified by young upstarts and that while I was at the galleria. The so-called virtuous self-righteous crowd that is."
"Oh fuck, my man. That shit started happening when I was like six years old. You think it was bad when Robotnik nearly took over the planet? In comes these fucking college grad hipsters and they start moving into cheap houses of their own, then they start getting jobs. It was harmless at first and most wrote it off as just a buncha college kids settling into places of their own. But then some of the ones with money came in and starting buying up businesses and buildings in one of the other districts. Next thing you know, they own a literal half of the city, then put several of their own into the city government and before long; they had the City Hall entirely. Forget the invasion of the Robotnik Empire. This was the invasion of the Gentri-Fucks."
"Not even Robotnik wanted this city."
"I know, right? Out of all the cities he had to pass up, it had to be the one under siege from those opinionated college grads."
"Ain't that a pain?"
"Oh absolutely. They make great pickpocketing targets though. No offense."
"I take offence to the fact you and John thought of me as one."
"You're alright in our book personally speaking."
"After nearly dying to a firing squad inside some asshole's head, I supposed it would make me as okay as any in your book."
"We were both there man. We were both there."
"You and John mentioned Anton's family were from some island. Any idea which island he was from?"
"South Island. It was one of the last places to be taken over by the empire back in the day before Sally Acorn formed her own resistance."
"And if I know my Sonic history, that's also the first recorded event where Sonic defeated and ran Dr Ivo Robotnik off from it " Akira recalls. "The first major strike against his rule within Northamer no less."
"Pretty much."
"Plus on the day we ran from his gang, Anton seemed to react when I brought up Sonic."
"Oh, he must absolutely hate Sonic if that's the case."
"Never heard of Sonic having an encounter with him. If he did, it's lights out for him in a one-on-one fight." Akira sips his glass again. "Maybe he hates Sonic because he's been overshadowed by him when people around the world talks about South Island and he's never the vocal point in any of the discussions? I've never heard of him til I moved here and Sonic would be one of the only things I'd be seriously up to date on when it comes to him and his friends' exploits."
"Maybe."
"Could be the reason for him having the keyword influential."
"Likely, yeah."
The two would continue talking with Manic getting a call from Little John to be told that he got what he asked him to get during the conversation before eventually leaving Rockwell's. Manic thanked Little John for getting him the items, being sure to let him know that he was at Rockwell's with Akira and took a dander around the streets to show the wolf more of Soucie Street.
"This street is pretty much one of the only things standing between these poorer neighborhood gentrification. Only trouble is that Mayor Fumfer being the self-rightious self-important prick that he is has been trying to 'renew' this community by adding newer housing, shops and stuff. So far no one's been selling and no one's been in bad financial shape."
"Probably because they can see right through what he's doing." Akira said, seeing a person or two sleeping on the streets and old buildings worn-down from low-maintenance. "Though, those rumours of ma and pa shops having extortion problems is coming to mind now that you mention it."
Manic shakes his head, "No doubt they're getting extorted by folks connected to the Mayor."
"Assuming they're even connected to the Mayor. Rumours says a gang's involved in the extortions but didn't specify which one exactly and if it's the Hooligans that's doing it or not. Know any shops that's likely to be targeted?"
"Well, there's the Horowitz Drugstore over on the corner." Manic pointed over to a drugstore a few walks away from them. "The family that owns that store came over from the motherlands during the war and pretty much set up shop here. They started with nothing and managed to basically make a name for themselves on this street."
"Shall we go check it out?"
"Sure. I'm friends with their kids, so it's all good."
"Lead on then."
Manic nodded, leading Akira to the drugstore in question. As they approached it however, a pair of men would be exiting it and both looking like trouble if there were a better description to label them.
"Go to the police and there'll be trouble for you all..." One of them said to the owners in a threatening voice before fist-bumping his colleague as they head off with a little sack bag in hand. Akira could spot a shiny-gold tooth from the one holding the bag and Manic watched them leave with a glare as he hurried into the store.
Some items had been knocked off one of the shelves, though the owner; a mobian mouse with a balding ponytail and wearing a blue button-up shirt and a pair of slacks sitting on the floor nursing a bruise on his face. A teenaged mobian mouse with long brown hair in a braided ponytail, half-framed glasses, wearing a red t-shirt underneath a pair of denim overalls and a pair of black round-toed vinyl pumps as she was helping her father nurse his wounds.
"Sofiya! Mr. Horowitz!" Manic runs over to their aid "Are you okay? They got you good, didn't they?"
"Zose thugs raised the protection payment..." The older man said, a distinct Russian accent in his voice. "They also made offer to lower payments if I sell Sofita to a brothel."
"No..." Manic look to Sofiya with worry. "Don't worry about this Mr. Horowitz. I can get you the money like I always do."
"You know those two back there?" Akira asks, giving a hand as well. Doctor Omega and him furious at what they're hearing.
"Just thugs..." The elder mouse shakes his head as Manic and Akira helped him up. "Greedy criminal thugs like ze kind zat drove me and my family from ze motherland. Peh! I spit in their direction."
"Well, just don't do that in front of them sir." Manic told him. "Look, I can get you the money tonight alright?"
"Not by stealing, I hope." Sofiya said, sounding worried.
"I'll do what I have to..." Manic told her, holding her hands. "I promise. I just need to make one score and I can get your dad the money. You won't be sold to a brothel. I promise."
"...When did this extortion started if you don't mind my asking?" Akira questioned the older gentleman. "Had to have been recently if it's even being talked about in Cyber City."
"It vas..." Mr. Horowitz replied. "Ze saw my store doing vell and wanted a piece."
"Who's they?" Akira doubt he'd get a simple answer from him, considering he's a stranger to the man but it's worth trying.
"Some gang. They didn't give their name, they just came in and asserted themselves."
"Any guesses on who they'd belong to? I think one of them has a gold tooth on him."
"Could be one of the crime families from the Cyber City side."
"Definitely one of the wealthier ones if one of their goons can afford a gold tooth."
"Especially if they're threatening to sell her to a brothel..." Manic shake his head. "She's only fifteen and she wouldn't last a day in one of those places. She's way too pure for that."
"Not that it matters to them." Akira whispered to him. "You or John know any guy on the streets with a gold tooth? It's worth looking into for their sake."
"Maybe. We'd have to check our records. We keep records of a lot of high-profile criminals in the city."
"Then we'll just to have to consult them..."
"Pretty much."
"Will he be alright?" Akira then asks the owner's daughter.
"Da. He vill."
Akira turned to Manic. "Come on..."
Manic nodded, looking to the young mouse. "Don't worry Sofiya, I'll fix this. I promise."
"Thank you Manic." She said with a nod, smiling past her tears. The two young men took their leave, taking in what they witnessed.
Are the other owners being threatened the same way to keep their silence from the police and can they put a stop to it? Akira followed Manic as they head off to go get the records he has compiled, seeing a few more homeless people on the streets. Could even spot a young vixen among them.
"...If she's able to get a buyer here or people here starts selling, what becomes of these ones on the streets?"
"Hard to say. It depends on what the Geno City half will be forced into doing to them. Some might go to jail. Others might get sent to a sanitorium. Others still might luck out and get sent to a shelter."
"Yet the negatives would outweigh the positives and a lot of this will get swept under the rug..."
"That's just how it is, man... But I do agree, it can't go on like this."
Manic's gaze shifted a mobian skunk doe wearing tattered, dirty clothes and huddled in an alleyway nearby; sitting under a cardboard box she was using as shelter. Her long brown hair was dirty, greasy, unkept, and her blue eyes showed nothing but sadness and regret. She seemed to be trembling violently and by her feet were many used needles. "Jean... She was once a cop before she was framed for a scandal by some of her fellow officers."
"Turns out those officers were the ones that were committing crimes under Krouch's watch, likely under his command. She knew about it and was about to go to the higher ups about it but they somehow found out what she was going to do, then threw her under the bus and got her thrown off the force soon after. Now she's homeless and a drug addict." Manic glances to Akira. "I try to bring her food and drink and supply her whenever I can as well as bringing her blankets and stuff for her shelter. I do however keep trying to get her to go to a shelter but she won't have it. My biggest fear is that she'll be sent to a sanitorium."
"They're suppose to protect and serve the people. That includes cracking down that extortionist group and the likes of Anton's gang..." Akira couldn't believe what he was hearing despite knowing how screwed law enforcement here is. "He is no different than a gangster and that's only hearing it from you. I don't doubt he'd be pleased at having another loose-end tied up when that happens."
"Oh yeah." Manic spotted a convenience store nearby. "C'mon. We're gonna buy food and some water for her. It's the least we can do. And..."
He pointed to a nearby thrift store. "We're gonna buy her a new blanket and a radio because I think she might've pawned off the last blanket I bought her for drug money."
"Right..." The two would do a quick shopping at the convenience store before coming over to Jean with the items they brought for her.
"Yo, Jean." Manic greeted as they approached the ex-cop. Jean looked over and gave a weak smile.
"Hi, Manic. Sorry about the mess. I kinda went crazy last night..."
"I can see that. Jean, you know what I told you about the drugs."
"I know..." Jean said, whimpering a bit, "I just... I can't help it..."
"The streets can be cold and tough to a lot of people..." Akira said, putting a blanket over her shoulders. "You figured having a piece of nirvana would make it easier to cope here. It's as tempting as nicotine."
"I just... I got hooked so fast..." Jean trembles as she pulled the new blanket over herself.
"Yeah but Jean, you know what they could possibly do to you." Manic told her. "You could end up in a sanitorium locked in a straitjacket and pumped so full of sedatives, you'll be barely functional. Is that what you want?"
She shook her head and whimpered out a no in response.
"Then get sobered up." Manic told her, "I'm telling you this for your own good. I don't want him to win. If I lose you, I wouldn't be able to live with myself."
"...He did a lot to me..." Jean murmured, furrowing her brow in anger. "He still does too. He sends his cronies over to constantly to harass me and threaten me with jail or being sent to a sanitorium..."
"What a bastard... By the way, who hooked you up on these?" Akira asked, pointing to the needles.
"Some drug dealer... I often have to sell my body or pawn something off in order to pay for the drugs..."
"...He really has ruined your life and he's not even finished with you yet..." Akira wonders if Geno City is in such a dire state because of the likes of Captain Krouch doing whatever as they please and getting away with it. According to Manic, the people on the streets are afraid of him due to his casual abuse of the badge and sees Geno City as his own stomping grounds to exercise his authority.
And he's still yet to run into him but his influence is unsettlingly far-reaching for a man in a uniform. "This dealer. What does he look like?"
"Please, don't cause trouble on my behalf..." Jean whimpered. "I... I don't want that..."
"Jean. They're already causing trouble by selling their poison on the streets and profiting off others' miseries..." Akira shook his head. "Wether they're doing so willingly or have no choice, the other people are suffering by trying to escape this harsh world and dying from it."
"We're not going to try to be cleaners of the streets as much as we want to, we just want to do what we can to help folks here the way you would have done it on the force. Investigate a trail, figure out who's involved, collect evidence, gather testimonials and then get the law to put the criminals behind bars." He assures her. "Even if it isn't the mastermind in charge that gets put away, justice must be served. Inaction only helps injustice."
Jean trembled even more, pulling the blanket closer to herself. "...He's a mobian rat man... Has a bunch of gold rings on his fingers... Short black hair... Wears a green leather racing jacket... Has a very shifty look to him..."
"Anything particular about what he sound like or his body language?"
"He has a distinct spagonian-northamerican accent and tends to talk with his hands."
"Would he look like a Cyber City or Geno City type of guy?"
"He seems like the kinda guy who spends time in both sides."
"Probably has a house somewhere around this side of the city." Akira surmises. "Anything else you can say about him?"
"He's a really bad guy. He threatened to sell me off to a brothel if I didn't pay up on my protection money."
"Just like those extortionists... If he's trying to sell you off for that, then that's just more reason for us to want to help you out."
"I guess so..." Jean replied, looking down at her feet.
"I can't promise anything major to you but some day, people will know the truth and you'll be seen as a hero for trying to expose Krouch's corruption. The real criminal who deserves prison time along with all his friends. Not you." Akira says to her. "Other people in the city would have just kept their heads down and do nothing about it rather than face it head-on. Remember that."
Jean nodded with a faint smile. "Thank you... Bless you... Bless you so much for this..."
"You're welcome..."
"Listen Jean, we gotta go for now." Manic said to her. "But I promise I'll check up on you again tomorrow, alright?"
"Okay."
"And no more drugs, ya hear?" Manic added. "Get off the stuff. Remember what I told you."
"I'll try..."
"I'll see you next time." Akira said to her. "Stay safe."
Jean nodded, pulling the blankets close to herself as Manic led Akira away from her.
"Now you see what I fight for every day." Manic told him with a sad sigh.
"I have a better understanding of what you're dealing with now thanks to her." Akira replied with a curt nod as they walked away from the scene. "We know one of the extortionists has a gold tooth and what her dealer looks like. We just need to put a name to their face and figure out what gang they're apart of. Still, to think that even a cop can screwed over in this city..."
"It's a brutal world out there Akira. If you're not strong enough or smart enough, then that's it. You're done for."
"It's only brutal because some people are abusing the system and getting an unfair advantage over everyone else. People like Captain Krouch would be done for if you took that advantage away from them."
"That's why I can't lose Jean. Out of everyone in this city, she's the one that I've had to look out for the most. If I lose her, I wouldn't be able to live with myself."
"Was she a family friend to your father or was she a cop on the force who knew you were innocent of the false charges against you?"
"It's a little of both. My dad saved her life once and she's been repaying the debt by watching out for me. For a while, she was the one keeping me out of trouble. If a call went out about me, she made sure that she was the first officer to respond to it so she could cover for me. Then he came along and that became difficult for her to do. She knew all along those charges were phony and that's probably why they burned her eventually..."
"...Before they did what they did to her, she told me she was building a case against Krouch. She was snooping around to gather evidence and I guess he must have found out about it because then they pinned a bunch of false charges against her and got her fired and blacklisted. She went to jail for about a year, and during that time they auctioned her apartment and all her possessions as part of a '"criminal asset auction"..." The hedgehog said with a grimace. "No doubt they reaped the money from that for themselves. Now she's been living on the street, homeless, drugged up and prostituting herself for quick cash."
"What utter bastards... No doubt he and them must have gotten nervous from her investigations before they slapped those bogus charges on her." Akira growled, astonished by the sheer corruption this Krouch one displayed. "I assume she's the one who broke the news on your father's death and knew how he handled the case if what Anton's Shadow said is true."
"That she did. She always looked out for us like I said."
"She seems like a decent persona that was dealt a bad hand by him..." A thought then came to Akira's head. "Though since we're talking about Krouch, there's something that has been bothering me from both times we've been to Anton's Palace. An Enforcer made a reference to Krouch, referring to a 'Captain Krouch Special' and there's the stuff Anton's Shadow had been saying about your father's case including where his head-wound is."
He looked to Manic. "How would he, a gang leader know about that? In a case where someone is killed or murdered, police procedures would have the investigators withhold key details from the public for investigation reasons. Making it easier for them to find an actual crime scene witness or even a suspect that way if they give details which happens to match up with what they have on record."
Manic was quiet for a moment as if thinking. "...I don't know... I mean, I kinda figured that he was responsible but... The question is, why would Anton know about it?"
"Same goes for your conviction record. How does he know about that too?" Akira held his chin in thought. "Furthermore, what's the actual connection between him and Anton?"
"It's possible something really fucked up and shady is going on between those two..." Manic said, "And I bet it would something they'd want Jean silenced over."
"Perhaps that case she was building against Krouch contained key information which then promoted him to act once he found out and have her pinned on false charges rather than get rid of her much sooner... There's something missing here and it'd be easier if we some clues to bridge everything we've been gathering so far together." Akira sighs, feeling like they don't have enough pieces of the jigsaw puzzle to get the whole picture. "Say, how long ago did that all happen for her in relation to how long your father's been gone for?"
"She was burned about three years ago and my father was killed when I was about ten years old... And I got sent to juvie when I was about thirteen..."
"And you'd be how old now?"
"I'm seventeen now and will be eighteen in about two months. So, basically two more months and I can be charged as an adult for crimes I didn't commit."
"The year is 3239. Your father would be deceased since 3230 when you were ten years old, you were sent to juvie in 3233 when you were aged thirteen and she would have gone to prison in 3235 when you'd be fifteen years old..." Akira ran off his estimations to Manic. "Would that accurate?"
"Pretty much."
"Is your birthday in February or March just to be clear?"
"Start of March."
"You'd have been born on March 1st, 3221."
"Yup. What a year that was."
"Considering this city's proximity to the Eurish border and what was going on in the year, you were born in the first year of the Great War. You'd have been five years when Robotnik's coup d'état took place in Mobotropolis and the First Robotnik Wars that entails. Since you were raised here and I was from Golden Bay City that's over the Eurish border, we were largely spared by his expansionists goals."
"Still, even without being invaded; this half of the city was still a shithole but it was our shithole. We made it our own."
"But now that's being slowly taken away by Fumfer and presumably those criminals too... A repeat of the Wild West's decline." Akira then said; "And I doubt you're convinced your foster father was killed because of some random house break-in or junkie breaking into houses to fund their addictions. Anton's Shadow made note of that as well."
"And tomorrow, we're gonna back in there and get some answers." Akira knew Manic will have to tell him about what exactly happened with his foster father in his own words. Getting the facts from the son whom knew him dearly and why he doesn't believe the current narrative spun about him.
"Investigate more of the Palace and investigating these street crimes sounds good to me. Both can reveal something about each other." Akira concurs to that. "Let's check those records and if we don't find a match for those descriptions including the two extortionists we saw tonight, then you and Little John might find something in the morning. I got the descriptions written down, just need a composite to give us a rough idea of what we're looking for. Maybe even bring in Sofiya or Jean to ID them for us perhaps?"
"I suppose we could do that. We'll just have to be careful with the latter. I don't imagine he would like her talking to people about the things she's seen and heard."
"Then caution would be best advised for this."
Manic nodded. "Tomorrow before we go into the Palace, I wanna do my daily checkup on Jean if that's okay with you."
"Of course. How about taking her to your hideout even?"
"Well, I guess she might be safer there than out on the streets..."
"How come you haven't thought of that one before? Unless it's her addiction that's the reason why..."
"That's quite astute actually. I'm kind of hesitant because of her addiction and had declined the offer last time I offered it. Not to mention if he found out we're housing her, it could bring him to our hideout and that'd be bad for us."
"I see. Well, let's go check out those files..."
'...I looked through some of the files Manic had acquired over the years at the hideout and I'd have to ask him about it another time. Didn't find any matches, so I headed on home for the night...'
City Courthouse, Westropolis...
Night
The driver of a semi-truck hauling freight whistling behind the steering wheel while waiting for a traffic light at a cross-junction to turn green. Eventually, the light turns green and the semi-truck got moving again. The driver bringing it through the west-side part of the city, watching the road as he was approaching a pedestrian crossing near the city courthouse.
A few people were coming from the direction of the courthouse including a grey raccoon wearing a blue suit with gold buttons, a red bowtie, black leather shoes and a small orange hat. Carrying a suitcase while walking over to the crossing where the pedestrian traffic light is green and reading a comic by Sketch Lampoon on his phone.
The raccoon chuckled to himself when reading the comic. "Hehe, you've hit it out of the park again Sketch. Maybe I'll add you to the new bil—"
"LOOK OUT!" A woman near him screams. When he looks up from his phone, he sees his own reflection on the polished front grill of a semi-truck racing towards him with it's headlights bearing on him like eyes of a predator and the last thing he'd ever see before his life ends...
