Chapter 7: American Orientation
" That would be fine. I'm sure you want to clean up. "
The businessman escorts Preston to his home,
Ashen Heights, a nice apartment complex that stretches for many stories on up. He leads Preston through the post-modern interior of the lobby, to the elevator, which carries both of them to the 23rd floor. They enter into a sterile hallway, into room 15. The room is spacey, white-walled with post-modern incongruent furniture and decorations. The businessman takes off his shirt, throwing it into a bin. "Can I get you something to drink?"
"Sounds like a real arse. D'you mind comin out to the Pub at some point, hangin' around there to meet the others, or would you rather keep this between the two of us? Phone, email, all that non-personal shit."
He turns to waitress, who obviously heard everything they just said but probably doesn't care.
"Could I have, uh, just a double cheeseburger, hold the pickles, with a side of onion rings and a...what do you guys have here to drink, anyway?"
"I guess I could come down to the Pub, if you're sure the old owners won't be showing up again." The waitress leans in, "We've got cola, sprite, juice soda, plain juice, coffee, water..."
"And THAT is how we operate! Don't take shit from anybody, and kick their ass if they try to give it to you!"
Speeches.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSet6htnVcQ
"Fuckin' A!"
Tag a nearby wall with our Gang Symbol while Eloni gives his badass speech
Tom, who has been following, steps up, and gives Eloni a look along the lines of "I got this."
Better Speeches.
Eloni speaks to the impressed recruits on their recent victory, (3) "That's how we win! Because we're the best, we run these streets! Cold blooded-killers!" It's not a particularly original speech, but it's rousing enough. Tom decides to intervene with an even better speech. (1+1) "....Yes. Listen to Eloni." Truly riveting oration.
Trent takes out Graffiti, tagging a brick wall nearby. (4+1) The symbol of the Black, Fedora wearing Coyote appears clearly on the side of a beige building nearby, anyone walking by will be able to recognize it.
After the wall is tagged, the Syndicate notices a few guys in a two-story housing project across the street are observing them through a window. When these peepers notice that they've been discovered, they immediately shut the blinds on their windows.
Dave grabs the cash, and does a quick inspection under the hood. Knife is still on him. If the car does, in fact, look like it drives well enough and is in decent repair mechanics-wise, he pays the $600 cash and thanks the man, taking the car out back to the pub and parks it out back. (Dave does know basically how to drive a car on US roads without dying, right? If not, let the car be for now and get our driver to pick it up.)
"Mind if I take a look under the hood?"
"Ho ahead." Dave checks out the White Sedan, secretly armed. Everything under the hood appears to be intact, and a quick look through the windows reveals that the interior seems to be in adequate condition besides the fact that it could use a good vacuuming and cleaning. Concluding that the car is in good shape, Dave pays the owner $600, and a handshake. "Yeah, you're welcome."
(-$600) (+White Sedan) Dave gets in the driver' seat and pulls out, driving it back to the Pub with no issues, parking it in the secluded back section of the Pub.
[We'll assume that everyone has taken an 'Orientation on American Rules and Culture', formally taught in the Syndicate. As he parks the car, a shaking, lanky woman bangs on the driver's window. Dave doesn't have to look at her very long to realize that she's a crackhead beggar.
Look around, what else is going on around us?
The streets seem to be cleared, except for a group of young hoods who stand on the street corner, watching the events unfold with curiosity but not moving in to effect it one way or another, solidifying their positions as observers and not participants in any way. The surroundings houses and stores respond by shutting their windows and blinds, as if they were under the notion that if they couldn't see what was happening, it would just vanish. The assailant takes the woman, picking her up and throwing her onto the sidewalk, where she audibly lands on her back, a jagged breath escaping her when she makes contact. No one is in close proximity to this, except for Freedom, and he has no information or context for what is happening.
Total Funds: $2400
Gang Skills:
Territory:
None
Headquarters: Irish Pub
Damage: N/A
Base Assets: Office
Misc.: Pool Table
Electronics:
Weapons:
Storage: Basement, Garage
Vehicles: White Sedan
Bosses: 8
Dragons: 0
Knights: 0
Footsoldiers: 3
Notable Footsoldiers: 0
Peasants:
Eloni Montera (Spinal_Taper)
Inventory: .32 Revolver, Miscellaneous Consumables
Skills: 4 Firearms, 1 Intimidation, 1 Survival
Health: Fine
Dave Green (Doomblade187)
Inventory: Combat Knife, Toolbox, Old Cellphone, Scrap Metal
Skills: 4 Vehicle Mechanic, 1 First Aid, 3 Knives, 1 Brawling, 1 Knife-Throwing
Health: Fine
Aaron Bradley (Greenstarfanatic)
Inventory: $128, Boxing Gloves, Deck of Cards, 6 Lockpicks, Laptop, Switchblade, Lighter, Unopened Bag of Cheetos, Cell Phone
Skills: 5 Melee, 1 Persuasion, 1 Lockpicking, 1 Conning, 1 Hacking, 1 Surveillance
Health: Fine
Mason Johnstone (anailater)
Inventory: Suit, Pistol, 1 Box of Matches, Bike Chain, Bottle of Pain Killers
Skills: 4 Lockpicking, 1 Charisma, 1 Science, 3 Brawling, 1 Pistol, 1 Running
Health: Fine
Trent McGrath (Gravehaunter92)
Inventory: 2 Switchblades, Spray Paint Can, 5 Lockpicks, Trash Bag, Bandanna, Pistol
Skills: 4 Blades, 1 Stealth, 2 Graffiti
Health: Fine
Blake Jessop (ScriptWolf)
Inventory: 2 Fragmentation Grenades, 1 Medkit
Skills: 4 Explosives, 1 Electronics, 1 Combat Medic, 1 Sharpening
Health: Fine
Thomas Marshall (Playergamer)
Inventory: $1070, Swiss Army Knife, Cellphone, Pistol, Small Safe, 3 Ski Masks
Skills: 4 Persuasion, 1 Bluff, 1 Bribe
Health: Fine
Thomas Freedom (Persus13)
Inventory: Driver's License, Taxi License, Taxi Key, Wallet ($6), Cell Phone, Pocket Knife, Crucifix Necklace, Pistol
Skills: 4 Driving, 1 Firearms, 1 Negotiation
Side Hustle: Taxi Driver - $40 per Day, 6 Days a week.
Health: Fine
Preston Duellos (Patrick Hunt)
Inventory: Expensive Suit, Expensive Shoes, Rolex, Laptop, Phone, Wallet ($4,800; Credit Cards)
Skills: 4 Law, 1 Persuasion, 1 Business
Rent: Manor - $1,100 (Due: 28 Turns)
Health: Fine
I fondly reminisce about the days where I could fuck around on the forums for stretches at a time, checking out whatever I wanted, updating my games whenever I felt like it. Now I have to deliberately schedule my updates after extended days and multi-thousand word essays. I guess that's just part of getting older, not that it's necessarily harder or worse, it just seems like you have more and more to do.
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Topic: <Syndicate II> - Chapter 10: New Friends (Read 39670 times)