The Liberal Assassin

I got off the ground lamely and ambled around aimlessly for a while. Now that my plans had fallen through I had to think of something new. Nash was right, we didn't exactly have any lead on the Red Rumble. Ignacio refused to talk about it too. So how do I nab someone who knew about the gang for information?

An idea struck me so quickly I had to catch myself before I burst out laughing. The best way to catch a suspicious person is to act suspiciously in the right places. It was so simple I didn't even need a plan. First, to the shadiest part of the Slums!

It certainly did not take long for trouble to find me once I was there. Six men started stalking me in less than two minutes after entering the zone. The western parts of the Slums were deserted and more silent than the rest. It was common sense to anyone who lived in the Slums to avoid it if you don't want trouble.

After turning into a dark and narrow alley where Pyros couldn't reach, they made their move and surrounded me.

"Which gang are you from?" their leader grunted.

"Sorry?" I blinked, looking as confused as I would like any pampered Inner City kid would.

The man who spoke had red Mohawk and some tattoo art covering his right arm. He pulled out his weapon of choice and glared at me. "You were reconnoitring the place."

Mildly impressed with his use of such a big word I smiled. "You got me wrong. I was lost. It's my first time exploring the Slums."

"Exploring the Slums?" another man snorted. "Sounds like a rich lad from the Inner City to us. What are you doing here?"

I shrugged and put on my most innocent face. "Just wanted a change of scenery I suppose. The Inner City isn't the safest place to be now."

My comment must have sounded funny because the men were now guffawing as if it was a joke. They probably didn't know about the Night Walker's appearance and the murder of some important people.

"City boy, the Slums are a thousand times worse than your Inner City. Didn't you know about the gang war going around? The Red Rumble might be the biggest but small gangs still fight from time to time and unlike us, they don't care about the safety of anyone."

I tried to screw on my most confused look. "Is the Red Rumble really impressive or something? Aren't there law enforcers here?"

The flame Mohawk guy seemed to internally struggle with a response. If these men are from the Red Rumble I was in luck.

"Look here. Does this place look like a fancy district? There are no laws. The one power is the law. Currently, that position belongs to the Red Rumble."

"I don't get it. Does that mean anyone who joins the Red Rumble can make the rules?"

It appears the intellectual department of these men are lacking because they struggle to come up with an answer. Regardless, I waited patiently. I had time to spare after Nash kicked me out.

"No, not exactly. The one in charge of Red Rumble is."

"You're not the leader?" I gasped. "I think you look really tough to me."

A little flattery goes a long way, fools and ladies alike. "Well, the leader is tougher. He's not only strong, he's smart too. The bunch of us here are about as smart as a pile of rocks. In fact, the leader is just slightly older than you are. He started the Red Rumble about a decade back so we don't have a long history, unlike other gangs. The gangs were constantly at war before but ever since he came, Red Rumble became the best and helped improve living conditions around."

That sounded perfect. I need to meet this man. "Do you think I can join the Red Rumble?"

At that question, the men froze. The air pressure seemed to intensify and the tension was thick. Did I make a mistake somewhere?

Suspicion blazed in their eyes and none of them made any attempt to answer me. My throat felt dry as I swallowed. Maybe I pushed it a little too far.

"What's going on?"

The new voice cut through the tension like a knife. The uneasy atmosphere fell away and I felt a confident and powerful aura even before I saw the man. This must be their leader.

The man was dressed in some questionable fashion. Unlike the casual tank tops and jeans the lackeys wore, this man was dressed in some puffy coat with bulky looking pads on his shoulders and elbows. The coat had multiple straps as well that paired well with fingerless gloves. A pair of rustic combat boots finished the overall look and I found myself swooning. Whatever this man did for a living, it was cool.

"Where did you buy those? Especially that jacket… I would really like to have one." The moment those words left my mouth, I felt my face heating up. Before I could take them back, the handsome looking man burst into laughter.

On closer look, I noticed how tan he was. That was unique because all New-Man had blue eyes and blonde hair after the genetic modifications. He had maroon hair and a birthmark beneath his left eye shaped like a teardrop. Violet eyes twinkled with amus.e.m.e.nt as he addressed me, almost causing my heart to malfunction.

"It is an honour to meet you here, Mr Crowley. I apologise for the rudeness of my men. If you aren't too busy would you like to have a chat at our headquarters? I know you are a curious man and I'll try to answer all your questions."

Blinking, I tried to recall if I had met this man in the past. "I'm sorry I don't recall who you are… could you perhaps refresh my memory?"

Surprise riddled the anonymous man's expression but soon cleared when understanding set in. "I'm afraid I've never had the p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e of meeting you in person before, Mr Crowley. Let me introduce myself, I'm Rush Rhodes – leader of the Red Rumble. I've read about your accomplishments and had always wanted to meet you. It truly must be fate to meet you here of all places…"

Half of me wanted to curl up and die. The other half simply was intrigued. Hands itching to touch the puffy coat, I restrained myself. "Please call me Titus, all my friends do. Indeed I have many questions about the ways of the Slums Mr Rhodes. Would you be so kind as to enlighten me?"

Rush merely smiled. "Only if you call me Rush. Let's head over to my headquarters."

Grinning like a lunatic, I followed. This was a golden opportunity! Things got even better when I saw the legendary racing wheeler. Unlike the other wheelers that were in the forms of carriages, this was a mounted seat with handlebars at the front. The design screamed reckless and I loved it.

The geeky side of me kicked in and before anyone could move the questions were firing out of my mouth like bullets.

While Rush maintained the polite smile, the rest of his subordinates looked as if they were in front of an unknown species.

"I'm sorry. I got a little over excited."

Rush patted my shoulder good-naturedly. "Don't be. I'll say it is quite the beast. It took me a long time to design and build this from scrap parts. However, unlike the wheelers from the Inner City, it doesn't have any artificial intelligence. Driving is all about skill. I could arrange for another time to teach you how to operate it if you'd like."

"Yes, please! Also, it would be nice if you could share with me the blueprints for me to study the technology. Perhaps I could implement this within Luna Services for the logistics instead…"

The last part came out as a murmur but Rush heard it anyway. "I won't recommend it. It's not exactly safe for delivering precious cargo."

"Why?"

The smirk on his face made warning bells go off in my head.

"You'll find out soon." A helmet was thrown my way. "Wear that and get on."

"What about you?"

Rush gave me a grin as creepy as Ignacio's when he was up to no good. "I'll be fine."

Two minutes after the engine came to life, I was regretting every decision I ever made. There was no way this thing was a beast. At best, it was a demon!