"I agree that sticking together may be better. Many of the gangs are armed with V'Sori weapons, making them more dangerous."
Six’s ears perk up at the mention of V’Sori weapons. ”Then we should perhaps be our own gang, as you say. I would like to bring those weapons back here to… keep them out of their hands.”
"Who's got the wicked 'puter skills to find us a lead on a distant neighborhood afflicted with gang-itis?"
Fortune does a bit of searching on the Cortex to see what she can find.
She gets hits that seem promising.
Hellion shrugged at the weird turn of phrase that Fortune used. "Dunno about all that, but if your asking if we can sniff out any gamg stuff then I suppose we'll see. Should probably take the van out of the neighborhood, then we can scout out on foot. Man what'd I'd give for the ability to kust fly around in these sorts of situations."
Then she tilts her head in thought, "Actually let's see the last time I was around this area... Yeah I think I know some good roosts for the local gangs. Comeon, everyone in the Redemption Wagon." She points her thumb over to the Van and walks towards the driver door.
Fortune saves the computer search results for later, given Hellion's certainty and enthusiasm.
Hellion remembers the Black Hounds gang from her past. She was actually a part of their gang briefly before she started working for Dr. Doom. Driving to their last known lair, about 10 miles from the warehouse, she wondered if Big Dog still ran the gang.
Hellion - it's really hard to leave a gang. It was only because of your powers that they didn't try to kill you for it. So you're not exactly on "friendly" terms with them. Big Dog has a fondness for gourmet food, you might try that as a bribe, but no guarantees. Last you knew, they were running the usual street drugs (pot, cocaine, meth, etc.), but that could have changed over the years you've been gone. And when you left, none of the current gang members had any powers.
Hellion relays all the information she knew about the gang to see if the team has any thoughts on how they should proceed, or if it's still a waltz in operation.
Fortune is okay with a direct venture to locate the gang HQ and leader, but she thinks it might be better to venture into the terretory and try to observe the situation for a day.
She suggests everyone going in disguise themselves as homeless types and look around for a place to squat, maybe ask about getting drugs. Those who cannot pass for normal should hang back with transport for quick mobilization if there is trouble.
”Don’t think that simply walking in their territory will get us in good with your old crew. Maybe Fortune’s idea has some merit, though I don’t think some of us can pass for a junkie, let alone that suddenly a whole group of new ones show up asking for drugs is sure to make Big Dog a little suspicious.”, Six offers. ”Maybe the rest of us do some overwatch while a couple start leaning on the local dealers and work our way up.”
Hellion shrugs, "I mean that's fair and all, not like they had any powers or serious weaponry back in the day and I doubt they suddenly got there hands on a load of V-tech. But I could watch from the roofs for a while."
She glances at the group, "And yeah gonna be hard to pass any of you off as drug-addled considering you all look damn clean to me."
"I'm not thinking this would lead to one of us joining their gang, just getting an idea of who is in the gang, find out if this Dog guy is still leader, maybe where their crib is."
"I have been homeless and can scruff myself up, go a week without a shower, let my hair get all greasy, usually homeless sh!+. Between Hellion's cycle and that van, y'all can save my a$$ if I get in trouble. I can use a spell to improve my ability to gather information."
Fortune will disguise her self as described earlier (scuff herself up, go a week without taking a shower or brushing her teeth, etc.
If he agrees, she and Rashomon could be a team, with Fortune treating him like her grandfather or maybe just a friend. Her plan would be to wander around, panhandling if she sees anyone who looks like they might have coins, and try to see if there is a homeless tent city or maybe a shelter sponsored by a charity. I'd say describe the situation she encounters after her first 24 hours in the area, and then I can say how long be waits before attempting networking.
I'd think time spent in the area would go toward the networking, since that is assumed to happen over many hours, but she would be in no hurry to pry too intently if she is not in any danger.
Back-up: we have a van and Hellion has her motorcycle. So if we have radio communication, Fortune can keep the back-up folk informed so they can position themselves near enough to ride in to help. Hellion has mentioned rooftop options. If need be, Fortune can cast Telepathy as a spell.
Hellion takes to the rooftops to keep a general overaatch on things but keeps fairly out of the way until being brought in is necessary. Keeping watch on Fortune and the nearby area from a rooftop with some binoculars, but also watching the surrounding area for any members of the gang that she might recall, or symbols that would lead back to them.
"In position, just make some sparkles if you need me to swoop in."
Rashomon will dress up as a homeless man and escort Fortune. Of course, he will also stay in the company of the other groups, ready to bring them all together via portals if necessary.
Six takes up point across the street from the alley in a local eatery. He is easily within running distance and will be able to reach the others if needed, he decides. He finds a suitable place to sit for a while and keeps watch.
Your destination is a place called "The Pit" — an old alleyway where a large group of homeless people had set up camp. It was one of the most dangerous parts of the city, not just because of the Black Vipers, but because it was a place where desperation ruled. Everyone there knew how to survive, but trust was in short supply.
When Fortune and Rashomon arrive at The Pit, the smell of damp concrete, unwashed people, and rotting garbage hits you hard. Makeshift tents and cardboard shelters dot the landscape, while fires burn in rusted metal barrels, casting flickering light on the broken faces gathered around them. You find a spot near a group of old shopping carts and set down your bags, keeping your heads low.
The first few days are all about observation. You keep to yourselves, trying to stay unnoticed. Fortune sits by the fire with the others, listening to the conversations around her. It doesn’t take long for her to pick up on the talk of the Black Vipers. People were scared — scared of the gang’s enforcers who came through to collect "taxes," scared of the runners who took advantage of the vulnerable, and scared of what would happen if they crossed the wrong person.
Rashomon, meanwhile, spends time with the drifters who move in and out of the camp, asking quiet, careful questions. It isn’t long before you learn that the Black Vipers had been recruiting from The Pit, promising safety and food in exchange for loyalty. Those who refused to work for the gang had it rough — supplies stolen, tents burned, and threats made until they either gave in or left for good.
But the real break came on the fourth night.
A man named Dex, grizzled and gaunt with deep-set eyes, approaches Fortune by the fire. He had been watching them since they arrived, his sharp gaze taking in every detail. At first, Fortune thought they had been found out, but Dex didn’t seem hostile. Instead, he sat beside her and muttered, “You two ain’t from around here.”
Fortune keeps her expression neutral, playing the part. “New to town,” she says, glancing at the fire. “Just trying to get by.”
Dex doesn’t buy it. “Yeah, right,” he scoffs, lowering his voice. “I know a Steel Fang scout when I see one. You’re here for information, not handouts. Lucky for you, I don’t care. But you might want to get out of here before the real dogs start sniffing around.”
Fortune’s heart starts to pound, but she stays calm. “You know the Vipers?”
“Everyone here knows the Vipers,” Dex grumbles. “They run this place like it’s theirs. And now, they’ve got something big coming. A new shipment, something they’re keeping tight-lipped about. People are scared. Whatever it is, it’s going down soon, and when it does, things are gonna get a lot worse.”
Fortune leans in slightly. “What kind of shipment?”
Dex shakes his head. “I don’t know exactly. But they’ve got more men than usual running through here lately. Rumor is they’re bringing in something from out of town — guns, drugs, who knows? But if you want to survive, stay clear.” He shuffles away.
What do you all want to do? Everyone heard the conversation because of the earbuds.
Katherine knows where the HQ used to be, and knows that the gang really liked their digs, and so are not likely to have moved, but it's possible.
FWIW, the gang's colors are red and black.
Other ideas/suggestions?
When the crew converses during a free moment, Six offers, ”Perhaps we need to have a nice long talk with one of these ‘enforcers’. Get the shipment information and see what we can do about it.”
"To hell with that let's just roll in and bust some heads. Knowing these guys it's nothing good. There were always pressures to move bigger badder stuff anyway."
Hellion seems a bit displeased with too much waiting, even though she knows there's sound reasoning to it. "Ehh sorry, just hate feeling like I'm sitting on my hands. Lots of training for action less for the build up to it. I could scout the warehouse from a dostance, or maybe Roshōmon can get inside as a kindly old warehouse worker. Or yeah we could crack open the enforcers know how not sure they'd tell us the truth though. Probably best I'm not there for the interrogation bits."
Fortune seconds Hellion's suggestion of a straight up attack. "The sooner the better. We should hit them before they start bringing in goons to beef up their defenses in preparation for the delivery. If we're successful, we can attack the delivery as well."
Angel listens to the others but has reservations. The last thing she wants is for innocents to get caught in the crossfire. Busting heads was all well and good, but they had to be certain that they were punishing the right people.
Katherine would know that the enforcers are pretty low-level in the organization, probably wouldn't know the overall plans, and easy to take out, but word would probably get back to those in charge pretty quickly.
So : attack the headquarters? I'll wait a couple of days for everyone to vote yea or nay . Katherine and Fortune don't have to post again.
"This is not my area of expertise. I will accede to those with better knowledge of this sort of thing. I do not necessarily have a preference, but what is to be our stance on the rule of law? Unreasonable search and seizure, and so on?"
"Perhaps I can do some exploration. I am reasonably unobtrusive. If I am discovered, I am very difficult to injure, and would likely be safe, unless they attempt to use lethal force and discover it does not work. If they assault an old man, we could then have just cause to use concussive behaviour modification."
Do we not want them to know we’re coming? Isn’t that the point? Pushing in to their territory will have them need to take a pause and re-evaluate their plans, let alone the chaos it will cause when they find out there is push back. We can take steps to clear out the innocent before the assault if necessary, but that will give them a message sooner than we might want.” He pauses. ”We bust some heads and get some answers and when they come down on the locals, we will have the law on our side. Protecting the innocent and all that.”
Kathrine shrugs, "Look I know you all want 'The Law' to be on our side here, but need I remind you there is still hardly any law enforcement on account of we just got out of a hostile alien occupation?"
She shakes her head a bit, "I really do understand your stances by the way, but I think maybe a hard and fast beatdown to clear the board is in order to make way for actual law enforcement to get a proper foothold again before we try and go the slow by the book route. If they're moving V-tech for instance we're on a very short very volatile clock. And based on the sound that this is something big and new... well I've got a few guesses what that means if it gets out."
"Which is another way of saying, we've got no back-up from local LEOs."
It should be noted that "innocent" to Angel means anyone who has not attacked first. She would be more inclined to try to talk them out of their criminal enterprise. Yes, I know that isn't a realistic option, but Angel doesn't know that. She truly believes that all humans are good at the core.
She will not fight unless given no other option, and even then, she will not kill.
"Perhaps we should give them a chance to repent?"
"These guys are classic bullies. Bullies only understand force. We show them we can beat them and give them orders to scram and they'll run. We don't need to kill, although they'll certainly not worry about killing us, if the stories I've heard are true. I'll go along with some covert investigation is that will make others happy, but I think they just need to know we will beat them down if they don't leave."
Kathrine looks at Angel, then to the others, then back to angel.
"You.. aren't serious right? Look I know we're supposed to be the good guys here. But these guys have been bad since before the V'sori showed up. They got worse when they got here sure, but they aren't just going to drop to their knees and start making things better. Their chance to 'repent' - She spits at the word- can come after we've dealt with this shipment."
"Hellion, you know them better than we do. If we hit some gang members outside the HQ to send a message, would they turn tail and run or just beef up patrols and defenses at the HQ and challenge us to attempt something. I'm concerned if we give away our presence and some of our powers, we're just giving them intel for free. If Rashomon wants to scout around, it could give us some advance information useful in our next move. We could do that before any confrontations. I could see if I've got any spells that might help."
Working her jaw for a bit in thought Hellion shrugs.
"Well it's been a while, but they'd probably not see us as a threat that's willing to slug it out if we just nip them in the ass. So they'd probably beef up and prepare to deal with an 'encroaching' gang if I were to guess."
Shaking her head at the Rashomon idea she continues, "We'd be sending the old man into the hornets nest disguised as a field mouse. That is to say they'd see you, get irrationally angry, and probably sting you to death before you had a chance to voice your opinion on the matter."
The demoness folds her arms, "I still stand by smash and grab, a quick way to show them we're bigger, bad-er, and can strike one of their more secure locations. That should get them to turtle up and then we can tear them apart all in one spot. Leave them without whatever they're trying to move into the city, and push them back into their nest. If Rashomon really wants to scout though, I have a different idea. If we can find what boat it's coming in on and he can get there, we can see what they're moving before it's here. Ya know wouldn't do us much good to smash em if they were for some reason bringing in actually food and medicine or something right, it'd give us reason to actually bust them and stay within 'the laws'. While I was born and raised outside the law of old earth I bet 'accidentally' seeing some stuff because you 'happened to be in the same location at the same time' isn't illegal and gives us the moral high ground, for whatever that's worth these days."