Shambhala City ( IC, Open, Hindu-Punk )

[Shambhala-OP]

Shambhala City

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" Cleverness does not always lead to gain nor stupidity to poverty. " - Vidura
[align=center]OOC: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=454363

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[Cossack Khanate]

Vikram Raja Chakram’s POV,12th District, Shambhala City

I made it out of the house early today, breaking out into the light. The usual noise of activity was reduced at this time, a fact I knew would change in a few hours. I crossed the small street in front of the house, my attitude generally relaxed, knowing this was the Dravidian block of the district. We were all friends here, and were further surrounded by the Hindi gang safe houses. The Dravidians and Hindi held some grudges, but the leaders could perhaps be counted as acquaintances, so our block was usually safe from the other races. I opened the door to a cramped store on the end of the street, and poked my head in. My usual contact, Ajay, was sitting behind the desk alongside the owner. Ajay had established himself as a prominent gang leader for the Dravidians, although he was mixed Dravidian and Hindi. Overall, we were friendly, but he made sure he was always on top.

“Nice to see you in one piece Ajay. How did the dealing go last night?”, I asked in Tamil.

“In our favor, Shah backed us. Only one problem. Han minority gang not happy, so we’ll have to talk to them more”, He replied in English.

I was wasn’t surprised Shah had backed us. Neal Shah, the leader of the most powerful Hindi gang in District 12, had always supported good relations. He made the point that we were all Hindu Indians. The real enemies were the Muslims and the Han. “I didn’t think that the Han were in a position to disagree. We surround them, and they need their drugs to pass through us to the other districts in order for them to survive. Unless they found another trade, we always have the upper hand”, I said.

Ajay raised his eyebrows. “The idea of them doing another trade is interesting. Anyway, I need a package to go to Anna’s house. Can you do it?”

“Of course. I’ll run it up now”, I answered. Anna (Tamil for older brother) was the main leader of the Dravidian gang, and also controlled the smaller gangs. Ajay reached under the counter and gave me a briefcase and some money, my payment. I left the shop and slipped through a small alley, where some smaller children were playing ball. I ducked through the drying clothes and clotheslines and made it to a parallel street, where I found Anna’s house. He was sitting on a short wall, speaking with some of his members. I gave the briefcase to him, and he opened it.

“Ajay paid you?”, he asked in Tamil.

“Yes”, I said. He then shooed me away in his typical manner and proceeded to count the money in the briefcase….

[Joohan]

The Ruby House, district 9

April 9th, 2099

He was covered in sweat, and it wasn't because of the hot steamy air in the club. He sat on his knees with his hands placed on his thighs, a gesture of respect and humility he was usually not accustomed to making - no doubt the persons surrounding him were not either. The nervous young man looked around the circle of people strewn about on pillows. He could make out their bodies and the outlines of their heads - but the room was just dark enough vapor filled enough to prevent him from ever seeing clear facial features. The few dim lights positioned around the room were filtered through various ruby red veils which hung about, barely separating the large room into booths. The veils were so thin that he could even see the shadows of others in different booths. Some were dancing, some were puffing on their pipes and hooka's, others still were engaging in more carnal acts, but the persons surrounding him held a kind of even more dreadful temptation.

There were 6 other people in the booth laying around him. Two women were lying about their pillows naked and in a drugged out haze. Whores were known to hang around the Ruby house, waiting for patrons to rent a booth before offering their services in exchange for a fix of what ever narcotic had them hooked. Another person, whose gender he could not determine, was seated more closely to the more lighted side of the booth. They had met only once before, and they had called them self Agni then. Agni was extensively augmented, in an almost artistic way: three bronze arms on either side, a perfectly curved bronze mask for a face, heat sensitive red and orange tattoos covered the entirety of their exposed chest. Agni was among a growing niche group of people who would get augmentations to resemble ancient gods. They're an odd and peculiar minority. Two other men, with decidedly less extravagant augmented arms and chest pieces had positioned themselves either behind, or next to the whores in their haze. Then there was Fei, the girl he had followed into the club and had been hanging out with for the last couple of weeks. Her head was laying on the lap of Gan - Lord Gan, as he insisted to be called.

Gan was the most easily made out person in the boothe. He was shirtless, proudly exposing his heavily tattooed and augmented body. Yaoguai fighting infernal battles etched into his flesh were then suddenly met by the silver metal of his two augmented arms and neck. He had shark eyes and a smile to match. With one hand he played with Fei's hair, and with another he held an inhaler up to a drip directly in his neck. The nervous man who sat precariously in the center of this circle tried his best to avoid all of their gazes while still trying to look unafraid, a task he was failing in miserably. He felt almost naked, even next to the whores, he felt exposed to these people. He wore a black leather vest which exposed a few tattoos on his chest and arms, as well as a drip inhaler in his neck and some circuitry traces around his left pectoral. He hoped that his sweating and shaking were hidden by the shadow and vapor of the room. Unable to look anyone directly int he eye, he contended with staring between the space right above Fei's head, around Gan's upper stomach. A blue Yaogui was smashing a lesser demon's skull with a wicked looking black club. Fei's eyes were looking forward, but not towards the man ( the boy really ), more through him - out into the nothing beyond. She was a giggling slurring mess, the narcotic cocktail having had it's way with her mind. Gan continued to play with her long black hair while he dripped the mystery slurry directly into his neck, smiling menacingly the whole time. It was like simply by looking at the man he could consume his fear and get a high from off of that.

" So you've just been skimming the surface then? Ice rainbow and tanzui? That's your stuff am I right? " Gan pulled the inhaler and tossed it to the side without taking his gaze from the boy. The boy tried for a brave response, " Yeah that's ah... that's about all I've really gotten into so far. Just - you know - party drugs and stuff. To give me a... " Fei giggled out loud for seemingly no reason, before returning to her quite strung out state, " buzz. "

Gan looked down at Fei, before looking back up at the boy. " Oh yeah - Fei said you were a pretty hard partier. Said you'd be cool to hang out at the house... with us. "

"hmmm. " a low alto murmur came from Agni as they blew vapor rings above their head - An index finger on one of Agni's right arms seemed to double as a kind of pipe, which the pretend fire god was puffing away on slowly. " Yeah I... I heard you guys have got a lot of choice stuff. I mean, who says no to membership at the Ruby House? " The boy smiled light heatedly, to which Gan replied with a deep chuckle which shook the boy to his core. There was no way this was going to end well, what had he gotten himself into for that girl? " Your not a member just yet - "

He pulled his hand up from Fei's hair ( she didn't seem to notice ) and reached over to Agni, who had produced an injector into his hand. The boy eyed the tool nervously. Gan held the injector up into the light, and weighed it in his hand. His eyes were leveled on the needle point." Vritra - you've heard of it yeah? "

The boy's response was little more than a whisper, " Yeah. "

" Sickest, most wicked, glorious rush you'll ever feel in your life. Party for days - sprint for hours - shrug off bullets and knives like their nothing. Makes you invincible. " In a single fluid movement, almost to quick for the boy to have seen, Gan had tossed the injector over to the boy, who just barely managed not to stab himself with the needle. He looked down at the injector in his hands, then back up towards Gan. " You want me ta- "

" We've gotta know your cool if your gonna be hanging around here... you are cool, right? " His smiling of devilish delight now turned to a more menacing sneer. The boy felt shivers go up and down his spine. Agni's finger glowed bright red as they puffed, and Gan's other two friends chuckled to themselves at the boy's fear.

The boy muttled out a response so soft that he even he couldn't make out what he had said, but Gan had taken it as a yes, seeing as how his devilish delight smile returned. He was way in over his head - too far! He held the injector in his right hand and felt it's weight; either the tool itself was light or his arm had gone numb. He did drugs to party and to piss off his parents, this was the stuff suicide bombers shoot up with before they go out and blow people up! He let out a short and shaky breath as he slowly brought the needle up to the drip port on his neck. He didn't want to go through with this - to hell with Fei, and to hell with the Ruby House! He just wanted to go home, he just wanted to-

BA-Booom! Crash!

The sudden sound of broken metal and wood being smashed frightened the boy so much he had dropped the injector on the ground near Gan's feet. Everyone in the booth ( except for the girls, who were so strung out that they hadn't even noticed the crashing noise ) looked over to the entrance of the club. Gan spoke first, " What the hell is - "

" District 9 Police, everybody get down! You're all under arrest! " They couldn't see the supposed police through all the red veils that hung everywhere, but they could hear the boots stomp on the ground, the sound of bodies being slammed down onto the ground, the yells of those being thrown down, as well as the numerous swears of the people near the exit of the building as they suddenly scrambled to leave.

Gan suddenly jumped up, not bothering to make sure Fei's head didn't smack off the ground when he removed his lap. " La Shi! " Gan's two friends had also jumped up, while Agni had ducked and began crawling through the veils to some unknown place. The boy did not move, however, he just kept in his seated position, nerves rigid - too afraid to make a move.

Gan looked over to his men " Let's go! " Without even looking at the boy, Gan grabbed the injector that had been in front of him and quickly darted out of the booth. The boy did not move, because now, finally, he could look someone in the eye: It was Fei. She laid there, eye's still wide open, the pain only being barely etched onto her face, still totally unaware of the situation she was in. The boy couldn't believe he had fallen for this girl, couldn't believe he had gotten himself in this situation... what a loser.

Gan and his men hastily walked past the numerous booths and red veils, attempting to make a hasty B-line for loading dock in the back of the house. Those sober enough ran for the back exit - while those strung out either stumbled their way or had just taken to lying where they had been before the raid - to dazed to do any thing. Gan and his men were intently looking forward as they weaved their way through the winding corridor of veil when they heard an order barked from behind them. " You there! Stop! Put your hands up! " All three of them turned around to see two 9th district police officers in olive green uniforms, both with pistols drawn. One of Gan's men looked over at his partner before he looked back towards the cops. He raised up his right arm.

tat-tat-tat-tat-tat!

Both the officers had ducked, but while one had rolled out of the way towards concealment, he noticed that his partner had remained on the ground, lying in a pool of blood. The officer looked at his dead partner for a moment, before snapping back to his senses and fumbling his hand towards his radio. " All units, officer down! Officer down! Suspects are augmented and armed! Weapons hot! "

Gan had now broken into a full on sprint once the shooting started happening. It started with one of his men using the gun in his arm to blast those cops, but now it seemed like the hole house was getting shot up! Everywhere it seemed gun shots were going off. More than a few times he had sworn he heard a bullet zip right past him as it skidded across the ground or cut through a curtain. Gan had left one of his behind, content to save himself before anything. Besides he still had the other one, and they were already so close to the loading dock.

The loading dock was located on the small north side wall of the house, marked by a bright neon sign behind a bar that said, Dragon's Den. All the other idiots in the place were making their way to the exit in the back of the building - but Gan knew that the police would already be waiting on the other side for them. The docking bay would be safe though, it lead straight out into the open skyline behind the building, and was partially concealed by other buildings. They were able to move the product back there unnoticed, so surely he and his remaining man could escape undetected? Before Gan hopped over the bar counter he looked back to make sure that his remaining man was...not there anymore? He looked around the room for a moment, before he found his body lying limp on the floor - appearing to be covered in red. " Hmph, better you than me friend. "

Gan turned back around and hopped over the counter, knocking over several glasses and injectors while doing so. Just as he was about to put his hand on the handle, the door was suddenly kicked in by a boot. A masked police officer with a sub-machine gun rushed through the door and leveled his weapon towards Gan's head. " Get on the- " He sentence would be cut off as Gan, with lightning speed, smacked the gun out of the officer's hand and across the room. The officer attempted to raise his fists up, but was punched squarely in the chest before ever having the chance to do so. He was sent flying 8 feet back and would make a sickening crack sound when he slammed into the wall behind him.

" La Shi! " Gan cussed; they had found the docking area. He looked back out towards the room - it was a mess. Veils were being torn down everywhere, and Gan could see the police were leading handcuffed people out in droves - carrying those too high to move on their own. He had no choice, he would have to keep going with his plan on using the docking area. He turned back around and rushed through the door into the Dragon's Den.

The loading dock was a long and narrow room, with a metal desk near the entrance to the house, and three long racks dividing up three aisles from the front of the room to the back of the room. On the racks were hundreds of pounds of ice rainbow, tanzui, opium, amphetamines, Nirvana, even a couple kilos of vritra! There was a door at the far end of the room on the right most aisle, out of which was a landing pad, and Gan's getaway vehicle. If he could just get to it, he could duck out of here and disappear in the sprawl that was district 9. As he hurriedly made his way down the second aisle, he couldn't help but notice that there were no other cops in this room. The cop he decked into a wall surely hadn't been alone, he thought, pigs usually travel in -

as he turned down the third aisle he came no more than 10 meters away from two more cops; this time, they weren't going to tell him to get down.
" La sh-"

BOP-BOP-BOP-BOP-BOP-BOP-BOP-BOP-BOP-BOP!

On autopilot, Gan jumped and turned around, back into the second aisle, than the third, ducking and sprinting, trying desperately to avoid the bullets that cut throw the bags and crates full of narcotics - sending numerous powders and vapors into the air as they tore through the room looking to end Gan's life. In merely a matter of seconds, he had reached the front of the room and had knocked the metal desk over as cover, which he promptly ducked behind. As he sat there, with his back up against the cold metal table, he suddenly felt the stabbing pain in his hip and across his cheek. He looked down at his hip and saw that blood had began soaking into his pants. Drips from cut on his check also fell onto the floor as he looked down. He slammed the back of his head against the table and closed his eyes as he breathed out a sigh of frustration. It hurt - it hurt like a mother! He didn't know if he had the strength to keep -

Suddenly, he felt a weight in his hand. He opened his eyes and looked down at his right hand, seeing a single injector. The Vritra! He had picked it up when that one punk dropped it. He had been holding onto it the whole time! He held it up to the red light of the room, looking at the liquid inside turn into menacing shade of blood red. Shrug off bullets and knife wounds like they were nothing, makes you invincible! Without even so much as flinching, Gan brought the injector down to his neck, and stuck the needle squarely into his drip.

The two cops were approaching the desk cautiously, with weapons drawn. They were sure that, in the hail of bullets they let fly that they had to have hit him at least a few times. They didn't hear any sounds being made from behind the desk, maybe they -

" AaaaaAAAAHHH! " Gan suddenly jumped over the desk, catching several feet while doing so. The two officers were surprised, but ready still. They opened fire with their second volley. This time, they saw the bursts of blood crop up all over Gan's body - but he seemed unphased as he continued his astonishingly fast sprint towards them. Within seconds, Gan had closed the gap and had smacked the gun from the first officer's hand. With the other hand, Gan gave a massive back hand smack which sent the officer all the way back and slamming into the rack, with several packages of narcotics falling on top of him. The officer's partner was taken aback by seeing his comrade's body fly through the air, so much so, he had not noticed that Gan had managed to close the gap between the two of them. Gan grabbed the officer with both hands and lifted the man clear off the ground, throwing him nearly 10 meters down the aisle. As the officer rolled and smacked his way across the floor, he heard his helmet make a deafening crack, and he knew it was broken. When he finally stopped rolling, he was laid out flat on his back, looking up at the cracked ceiling. He lifted his head up to see Gan marching over towards him. The officer, having managed to keep his gun during the throw, raised it up as high as he could and pointed it squarely towards Gan's head.

* Click * empty.

Each of Gan's fists suddenly flipped out a blade from either wrist. The officer attempted to get up, but was not fast enough to dodge Gan as he brought his fist down hard into the officer's gut. The sound of metal on cement could be heard as the Gan's blade drove itself into the ground underneath and through the officer. He spasmed instantly, before his eyes rolled into the back of his head. His fist was wet and bloody as he pulled it up and out of the officer's stomach. Gan was breathing heavy like an animal, to taken with his kill to notice the sound of footsteps behind him.

* Thwack! *

Gan turned his head around, seeing the officer he had smacked from earlier stumble back, holding his gun like a club. Gan hadn't even felt the hit - only having registered that his head had moved slightly. Before the officer could bring his weapon/club back for another swing, Gan gave a right hand jab straight across the officer's face. His jaw had been shattered completely, not to mention that a fair bit of flesh had been torn away by the blade as well. When he attempted to bring his eyes back up to face his foe, he saw Gan's hand suddenly clenched up around his neck and slamming him hard against the wall. He then felt a sudden and violent stabbing pain in his gut. He felt a cold numbness, before finally nothing at all.

Gan pulled the blade out from the officer's belly and let his limp body fall to the floor with a sickening slide - a red streak being left behind from his slide. A door at the end of the docking station had suddenly opened up, and this time Gan registered it. It was another cop, this one with a pistol. The cop brought both hands up and lowered the muzzle towards Gan, " You need to - " Then suddenly, with lighting speed, the officer let go of his pistol and ducked to his left towards the wall. Only milliseconds later, the pistol the officer had been holding was suddenly cut in half as a blade shot straight through the air and wedged itself into the wall next to the door. Gan's left hand had been raised up and aimed towards the officer, having used the knife in his wrist as a projectile. With an animal growl Gan suddenly began charging towards the officer.

The unarmed officer pushed himself off the wall and raised his hands up, ready for a fight. Gan gave a lighting quick right hook, followed by a left hand uppercut, then a spinning back hand - and each time the officer had dodged these blows with only centimeters to spare. As soon as the back hand had over shot itself, the officer brought three quick jabs to the abdomen, chest, and jaw of Gan. These blows weren't even registered by Gan as he brought his left hand around to clothesline the officer from his right temple. The officer ducked just in time not to get his head taken off. With his side left open, the officer brought a heavy kick to Gan's side. Again, the he shrugged it off without even noticing. Gan brought his right hand back, the one still with the blade, and brought it forward, toward the spot between the officer's eyes. The officer ducked at the last second, so close that he could see his own reflection in Gan's silver arm.

Dropping to his rear and pushing himself backward, the officer scrambled his way over to the wall next to the door he had come in through. Gan's blade was still wedged into wall from when he had shot it across the room. The officer tugged on the blade, it resisted, then he tugged again and the blade finally come undone. The officer turned around just in time to raise his hands up to block a tremendous kick which sent him flying threw the door he had come in through.

Lying on his back, with splinters and door shards strewn about him, the officer slowly got up, readying himself for Gan's deathly approach. They were out in the parking dock behind the Ruby House. Out in the open air, the green clouds of the afternoon could be seen hanging over head, the sounds of people, traffic, generators, and police sirens could be heard all around. This was a dock for sky bound vehicles, no cars or mopeds here. Personal use vtols and even a few hover bikes. The officer rose to his feet and clenched the blade firmly in his hand, ready to take on Gan's onslaught. Just as Gan was about to charge begin his attack on the officer again, a police vtol suddenly rose up from below the dock and cast it's spotlight on Gan and the officer. From the vtol a loud speaker spoke, " This is the 9th district Police department. You are surrounded, surrender now! "

Gan simply looked up towards the vtol, his registration of the situation was still questionable - the vritra coursing through his veins and keeping him in his animal state of rage. He clenched his fists and howled in fury up towards the vtol before bringing his gaze back down towards the officer. He charged, his bladed fist brought back and forward with terrifying force and speed. The officer brought his own blade up just in time to deflect Gan's blade from going straight through his chest. Sparks flew from the force of the collision. Gan stumbled, before bringing his arm back to slash the officer, who managed to jump back before he had his belly slashed open. It had been close enough to tear a hole in the officer's green uniform to reveal his tan under shirt. This time, it was Gan who saw his opening; with his left arm he grabbed the officer's blouse and pulled his shoulder into his stomach, forcing the officer to keel over. The officer would bring his head up just in time to block Gan bringing his blade downward, about to split his skull in two. The monstrous force of the chop had left a dent in the officer's blade and his own hand was now bleeding. Gan pulled his arm back and made for a lunge, but the officer caught his arm and drove his blade directly into Gan's mechanical forearm. Sparks could be seen emanating from the open wound, as well as a terrible ticking noise. With his arm still trapped, Gan cried out in rage and grabbed the officer's head with his free arm. The officer could feel the tremendous amount of pressure that was being applied to the left side of his face, he knew he had to end this fight now. Taking his elbow, he drove it into the Gan's elbow pit, forcing his hand to point upward. The officer wrapped one hand around Gan's wrist and placed another on the blade that he had driven into his forearm. He could already see the blackness crowding around the sides of his vision, and knew he was dying. With what strength he had left, the officer pointed Gan's right wrist blade directly underneath Gan's chin, and with his other hand he drove the blade even farther into Gan's arm.

* Pha-Chink!*

The pressure along the officer's head was instantly relieved, and Gan suddenly stopped his onslaught. The officer looked down at Gan's face, and saw that a wrist blade now stuck squarely underneath his jaw. Gan's arm had short circuited, and he had shot himself. The officer pulled himself back from Gan, who then fell to the ground - his cybernetic enhancements now finally spasming with the death of their host. He was a terrible sight to see, Gan. His body was riddled with bullet wounds and bruises, broken bones and fractures were clearly visible across several areas, and now the large blade which stuck under his chin. He was a mess... and so too was the officer. He would collapsed onto his back had not a hand caught him. He was quickly turned around by another masked police officer. " Sir - Sir! Are you okay? "

The sir in question shook his head before pulling his green mask off. The face beneath was golden brown, with short cropped black hair ( wet with sweat ), a pronounced Hindi nose, a down turned mouth, and sharp black eyes. He appeared to in his mid to late 30's. Captain. Akash Dong continued to breath heavily, even while he spoke. " I'm fine... but there are two more men in the docking area who are in critical condition... get in there and help them first! "

With his senses finally returning to him, Captain. Dong now could see that the vtol had landed and it's squad had already secured the docking lot. The officer nodded with an emphatic, " Yes, sir. "

before signalling the rest of his team to start moving inside. Capt. Dong moved passed them all and towards the still running vtol. As he walked he felt the adrenaline start leaving his system and he could really start to feel the damage. His right hand had a deep cut in the palm, his Ulna's were certainly bruised, a few broken ribs, and a - he stumbled as he haphazardly fell into the vtol - minor concussion. The pilot looked back at the battered and bruised captain. " Sir, are you sure you don't need immediate aid? "

Dong sat there on the metal floor of the vtol and looked out at the spasm bloody corpse of Gan for a long while before he decided to answer back. " Not until all of our wounded are out of there first corporal. After that... yeah... I should probably go to the hozbitoo..." he was unable to finish his sentence before slumping over and passing out cold...

[Terranihil]

z

[Cossack Khanate]

V. R. Chakram’s POV, Pervilla House, 9th District

“Hey Vik, you sure about this?”, asked my friend Karthi

“I told you, it's a job for Anna, who's doing it for Shah. Very high level”, I responded, keeping my voice at a low whisper.

“Yeah, but these Han are making me uncomfortable. I know that Shah sent some boys, but-”

“No doubt. Be happy we can’t be bribed for drugs. Look, our man is here.” With this Karthi and I weaved through the crowd in the club, averting our eyes from the various thugs and prostitutes who crossed our paths. According to plan, one of Shah’s men discreetly handed me a more powerful handgun, and I gave him my RT-5, which would be safely transported home. I slid this in a holster under my shirt and covered it up again. There was also 3 knives on me, and Karthi had some too. Despite his nervousness, he was a strong fighter, flexible like me, however also experienced with weapons. I pushed away the red curtain to a booth and let myself in. Two Han sat across from myself and Karthi, one puffing smoke from a inhaler of some sort, the other chewing on something of questionable content.

Our dealings now began, and they went smoothly. The Han agreed to let some of our tradesmen through to sell weapons, we agreed to let them supply the Han minorities in our district with drugs. We got the better end of the deal though, and perhaps they were too drugged to know it. After both parties had signed on a tablet and the dela was sent to both of our gang leaders, the Han invited us to stay for some drinks. We agreed, and soon our drinks were brought in, and Karthi and I made sure not to drink alcohol.

Ten minutes through, I nodded to Karthi. I secretly sent a message from my phone, and told the Han that it was a nice meeting, and then we left. As I left the booth, who appeared to be a Hindi prostitute entered. But I knew she wasn’t. The “prostitute”, Anaya, was actually one of the female fighters of the Hindi gangs. She smiled slightly when we brushed shoulders, and I knew the Han inside would be dead with poison in 2 days….

[Cossack Khanate]

We almost made it out the door when a blast sounded outside. I immediately drew my gun, as did several others. Some were too lost in the haze, heads slumping and smoke flying. Gunshots rang out, but it wasn’t the cops. The main doors blew open, and masked intruders yelled in Urdu and threw flaming explosives. They were terrorists. Probably on Vritra, making us unarmored pedestrians during a Han chop shop race. Basically, dead. Two rushed towards us, brandishing Kukri-type blades. The 20 meters between us was closed in an instant, and I only managed to get a single shot on them before I had to roll away. The table where I had been was smashed, and an unsuspecting Han was thrown into the ceiling. The two terrorists decided that we were their target, and the hole in one of their chest didn’t seem to be hurting them. One of them leaped towards us, fist in the air. Karthi leaped away into a booth right before the attacker smashed his fist through the wall. Cement dust now mixed with smoke to make it even harder to see. Through the smog, I could see the people aware of their surroundings taking a large dose of energy pills. The terrorist after us turned to face me, and let out an unearthly scream. I took that opportunity to shoot him in the head and run. Karthi also stumbled out, clearing the dust from his eyes. I yelled at him to run, and that brought him to his senses. We ran up a nearby staircase, Islamic shouts behind us.

Suddenly, the sound of police vtols sounded outside. Heavy machine gun fire ripped through walls and terrorists. Nevertheless, a single Islamic militant chased us all the way to the 3rd floor, the executive room. A lone Han executive began screaming for us to get out.

“Sir, terrorists downstairs, one is coming up now you should leave!” I screamed to him, while I continued to run down the hallway.

He didn’t have time to react when a chair hit him in the chest, throwing him against the wall. Blood spurted from his head. Karthi kicked down the door to the vehicle zone while I lay down suppressing fire with a nearby machine gun. I knew our pursuer sustained damage, but he was still going. Vritra turns a human into a machine, unlocking the animal senses and raw power.

We made it to the parking area and leaned against a personal vtol. I heard the heavy thumping of the terrorist’s feet. The dim lights made his knife shine. Karthi silently tapped my shoulder and pointed. Two racer hoverbikes sat nearby. It wouldn’t take much to steal them.

Meanwhile the terrorist spoke in a growling voice, “If you come now, embrace the service of Allah, I shall forgive you. The Lord shall pity you…….

The terrorist droned on with his speech. Karthi and I both rewired the hoverbikes and powered them on. The garage was opened, and I told Karthi to go first and not to look back. He went, flying into the night. I could hear sirens outside, but Karthi wouldn’t be caught. Karthi didn’t know it, but I had slipped the handgun into the storage of his bike. Instead of climbing on the bike, I moved into the pilot seat of a heavy hover car. The terrorist was now closing his eyes, the lack of stimulus shutting down his brain. The roar of the car was enough to startle him. I drove straight through him, sending him flying. The bike that he fell onto was crushed, and by the time he got up I ran him down a second time. Before I could turn away however, the militant smashed the front of my car and threw me into a wall. The smoke was too thick for me to see. I crawled out on all fours, spitting blood. I knew I had to stand. As I stumbled around, I suddenly ran into the terrorist. Suddenly I was face to face with him. Both our fists went up. He wasn’t actually much more muscular than me. His only advantage was the Vritra. He was about an inch taller than me, only his eyes showing a scene of hatred. Several bullet holes covered his body, blood seeping onto the ground. I simply had to wear him out. The vritra was keeping him alive at this point, his brain fixed on a single goal. He threw the first punch, narrowly missing my face. I slid to the left and knocked him in the jaw. He grabbed a pole and swung, missing and smashing the glass of a nearby window. I leaped into the ari and kicked him in the face again, followed by punch to the stomach. I rolled backwards and drew my knife. He came charging at me, and I launched myself over his head. I swung at his neck, opening a wound. He realized, through his haze, that his last weapon was on his chest. He shrugged off his bloody jacket, and I saw a single explosive attached to his heart. He pulled out the detonator from the explosive and made the final charge.

His pace was slow, and the space between us was long. I threw a knife, and it hit him in the arm, causing him to drop the detonator. But he had already pressed it. I had enough time to run towards the exit when the blast blew me off my feet and hazied my vision. I dragged myself towards the exit, until a girl appeared over me, when I blacked out…..

[Cossack Khanate]

Geeta Valli’s POV, Pervilla House, 9th district

Anaya and I found Vikram lying unconscious in the vehicle dock. We dragged him into a personal vtol, and Anaya flew off with him to District 12. I grabbed a nearby hoverbike; after all, these vehicles were usually expensive.

I’m sure none of the Tajik or Han gangs noticed when a brown girl dressed in all black and bronze, hair tied in a bun under a black hood, raced through the dark neighborhoods on a racing bike. I sped through the 9th, 10th, and 11th districts in a haze.

Vansh Safe House, 12th District

Later, when I stood on a balcony, staring into the busy night, someone tapped me on the shoulder.

“Geeta?”

“Ah, Vikram how are you feeling? What even happened? I was so worried that-”

“Forget about me. Is the target dead?”, asked Vikram

“Yes. Karthi hit him on the go while the target was trying to escape. His body is in some highway valley somewhere. But, you know I was really scared, that maybe Yamuna had come to take you to a different world...” I trailed off, staring off into the lights of the city. In reality, I just couldn’t bring myself to say that one of my friends could have died. Or maybe I thought of Vikram as more than a friend. He gently turned me to face him. I locked eyes with him, and although my jacket was off and the breeze was blowing, I felt warm and at home. I reached for his hand, and set it under mine on the railing.

“Vikram, I have been meaning to tell you something...I...I don’t know how to put it in words”, I said, stammering.

He smiled and held my other hand. Looking down, he was about to speak when gun fire splayed across the railing. He shoved me inside, and I landed on a couch stomach down. At first I was annoyed with him, but then I realized he was putting me out of danger. I craned my neck just in time to see him stumble through the doorway and fall onto another chair. I got up and ran to him. A single bullet had lodged in his lower abdomen, but the blood flow was weak. I yelled for some of the Vansh members to take him to the med room. I ran downstairs, grabbed a rapid fire pistol, and hopped on a speed bike. I caught up to the shooters at the end of he street, and sped past them while firing at their car. I bent low and spun on the intersection, chasing the now moving car down a small road. It took the ramp to a highway, now filled with speeding bikes and cars. The wind was sharp on my face, but my half-helmet covered my eyes. We kept on the highway for a long time, but I kept at it in my rage.

The car now took a downtown road into the 10th district, the Tajik district. I was now in the midst of a street race. In order to keep up with the car, I zoomed my bike over a racer and landed on a backstreet. I saw the sole surviving shooter attempt to appear casual as he sauntered into a garage. I reloaded my pistol and pulled off my helmet, setting on my bike. I strode into the shop to find the shooter hiding in a corner. As he tried to run, I shot him twice in the legs, once in the arm. I now held him at gunpoint, him on the ground:

“Why did you shoot? Huh? Why!?”, I yelled in basic Tajik.

“Please...don’t shoot. I’ll explain,” he briefly paused to catch his breath, “We were paid by the Han...to intimidate your friend… your friend’s gang made enemy of Han triad..long time ago...now they are coming back for revenge…” His eyes rolled back in his head and he promptly fainted. Now armed with this disturbing glimpse of Vikram’s past, I stepped out onto the street to face the world again….

[Cossack Khanate]

Vikram’s POV, 3 months later, Shah Home, 12th District

After that fateful night 3 months ago, I had slowly recovered from the beatings and bullet wounds. I had finally finished my sentence to Geeta, and she had moved into the Kottai house. Our bond had become closer, still no one knew that we had killed two major Han gang leaders, and the Indian gangs were getting stronger. Weapons and drugs were popular among the other districts, however few district 12 citizens actually were addicted to these drugs. Vansh relied on private drug producers to supply them, which they sold to areas that needed to be convinced. Today Shah had called me in to help him track down some friendly dealers in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th districts…..

[Budraria]

Rong Chen, 9th District Councilor // LiuChenTai Triad Leader, 40
Xinzhong Plaza, 9th District, Shambhala City

Rong sighed as she overlooked the bustling plaza below her, its brightly lite skyscrapers reaching far into the sky. Xinzhong Plaza was by far one of the most developed sections of the 9th district, bustling with commercial, corporate, and governmental activities. She and the other two triad leaders could only dream of one day expanding the control of LiuChenTai to the lucrative area. However, the action would have huge consequences, with the district government, and judiciary residing there likely putting at risk the seeming truce between both bodies over the territory each actually governed. "Speaking of government," Rong thought to herself, "It won't be long until I have to head back to the Council, and away from this beautiful district."

Shaking herself from her thoughts, Rong turned away from the scene in front of her. The Councilor shook her head in disgust as the large courthouse came into view. It was so extremely Persian in influence that it looked almost absurd among the mix of Chinese buildings that rose for kilometres into the distance, a blaring reminder of the non-Han judge who sat on the 9th districts highest court seat. Of course, like most of the wealthy Han, Rong faked respect for the judge, but also like almost every resident of the district, she wanted Astana-Sarsenbaev out and a Chinese judge in.

She quickly walked away, an air of confidence surrounded her; she had more important things to deal with today.

After a brisk walk, Rong finally reached Xinzhong Station. The area was heavy with foot traffic as commuters weaved in and out of a number of stalls, buildings, vehicles, and of course other people. Despite being in Xinzhong Plaza, its namesake station seemed almost as if it was in a different world, as the modern, gleaming buildings blended into more traditional, Chinese culture. Rong had made it just in time, hopping onto the airtram, reminiscent of those that had populated the former Chinese metropolis of Hong Kong, just as it was about to depart.

Rentong Temple, 9th District, Shambhala City

It was now about nine in the morning and Rong had finally reached her destination, one of the 9th districts most important temples: Rentong. What had once been a bimonthly, if even, had turned into an almost weekly prayer at the site over the years after her father's death. Although its halls were usually crowded with believers, Rong found it weirdly quiet, especially for the time.

Shaking off the feeling, she went inside the building and headed directly towards an alcove in the back of the temple where her father's memorial was laid out. Where food and drink was brought as an offering each day and incense burned for hours after anyone had last visited.

Rong moved quickly, hoping to be able to complete her goals for the triad by mid-afternoon. She lit an incense stick before bowing three times to the image of father that seemed to watch over her. "Please. Please. Please, dad," she said, "How can I better run the triad of our of pride and work so that we can prosper and continue spreading our influence. Either way, I wish you all the best in the heavens.

She whipped quickly around and began a fast-paced movement out of the temple and onto the streets. She was almost in direct LiuChenTai territory, and after that her true work for the day would begin.

[Cossack Khanate]

V.R.Chakram’s POV, Shah’s House, 12th District
“Overall, our hold in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th districts is not that great. Furthermore, demand is increasing and we need more producers. We can easily spread our influence to the Indians in those districts if we can first open business their”, said Shah.
He was talking to a group of us, including Geeta, Anaya, Karthi, Ajay, some guys from Kottai, and some of his own men. He projected a 3 dimensional map of the districts in question.
“These specific districts, as you all know, have the most intricate and complicated tunnels and caves and underground and aboveground whatnots. This, at the junction of the 3 districts, is the Lala Sapa”, Shah said, zooming in on the neighborhood. “This is most likely where we can find producers. They may not be willing to come, however. So we have to make it in their best interests”. He held up a dart gun. “If they don’t sit down to talks voluntarily, then make them”.
Shah was about to say something else, but another Vansh member rushed into the room and whispered something in his ear. Shah then spoke to us:
“It seems that Agni, one of our customers from the 9th,is due to be produced in court today. The smuggler Agni goes through was also arrested, a man by the name of Wu. He has valuable information on us, and may expose us in court. Agni doesn’t know much about us personally, but Wu does. Looks like we have a change of plans boys. We need Wu back, dead or alive, it doesn’t matter. When Agni and wu are being transported to the courthouse, you will arrange a little...incident, shall I say. This is important. Get on it”
This was followed by a chorus of “Yes, bhai (Hindi for older brother)”.

Somewhere along the highway, 9th district

I was waiting on a bike, dressed in all black and carrying a machine pistol. The plan for us was all set. A man was waiting near the jail, and he would tell us when Wu was getting boarded on the armored transport. Geeta was waiting along the highway, and would inform the three bikers, including myself, the direction of the transport. We would chase the truck, and shoot the driver. We would then get Wu and kill Agni and leave.

The call came over my earpiece that Wu was loaded. I started my engine and slowly moved to the end of my narrow street. Ten minutes later, Geeta said the transport was on the highway, heading east. I sped onto the ramp, knowing Karthi and Ajay would be doing the sam from various other points. The traffic at this time at night was lighter, so I could go faster. I opened the projection of the district map on my wristwatch, complete with a red dot for the tracker on the transport and blue dots for the two other bikers. After five minutes of intense driving, the transport came into view. We had them in a tight spot.

I told Karthi to open fire first, as he was driving parallel to the transport, coming up a ramp to its right. I saw the sparks fly off the body of the transport, and the sirens blaring on. I gave my speedbike more push, and leaned low over the handles. I felt the wind sharp in my face. I came onto the left side of the truck and opened fire myself. This time, a heavy gun extended from the roof and fired. I had to switch roads in order not to get killed.

Our last hope was Ajay, coming at the truck in the opposite direction. From the little view I had, I saw his bike jump the divider and face the truck head on. At the last moment, he fired and turned away, the truck missing him by inches. Amazingly, he stayed on his bike. The truck itself swerved and smashed into the divider, ruining its engines. I stopped my bike and ran up to the truck, gun drawn. The policeman in the passenger seat tried to make it out, but Karthi killed him. We opened the back of the truck to find Wu and Agni chained to the benches. First we got Wu out, shooting at the chains. As Karthi drove away with Wu, Agni spoke:

“What about me, you b**ch?”

I raised one eyebrow at him, and Ajay opened his mouth to respond. Before he could though, the sound of sirens rang all too close.

“Drop your weapons, surrender now!” The voice of cops rang out.

“Sh** man, we have to run. Forget about him, we don’t have time”, I yelled to Ajay. He didn’t need further convincing. We ran to our bikes and gave the cops a good long chase through the depths of the 9th district. Police kept shooting warning shots, but we both had experience being on the run. Finally, the sirens faded in the background and was taken over by the bustling sound of the red light section of the 9th. We were now stuck in a endless sea of vehicles and criminals, so we parked in a discreet corner and called Shah.

“Bhai, job is done. Karthi is bringing Wu to base. One problem, before we could shoot Agni, the police tried to arrest, so we had to run. We’re in the 9th, but we got trapped up in the bad sections, so we might be a while”, I said.

There was a long pause, and then “Fine then, don’t worry about Agni, just remember that if you see any new producers, you hook them up with us.” Shah then cut the call.

Ajay and I walked on foot through the extravagant lights and buildings. Club music mixed with vehicle noise, advertisements, vendors, and speech to create an environment that would obscure any underhanded dealing. We walked into a roadside bar, being careful not to stare at the Han prostitutes who were waiting for a customer. Ajay then tapped my shoulder and motioned to a table across the bar. Through the smoky air and general jostle of people, I saw a slim Hindi man sliding a package over to another man, in exchange for money. The other man immediately opened the package a small bit, just enough to expose the Ice inside. The Hindi man then smiled, apparently received a compliment, and left. Ajay and I got up from our table as well, trailing the man. He weaved through the crowd, passing unnoticed by everyone except us. He finally took a turn onto a darker street, and I took the opportunity to call out to him;

“You there!” I called out. He turned his head, and he fled in the opposite direction. We too off in pursuit, not losing sight of him as he leaped walls, rails, and other cars. He decided to scale a roof, and we followed. Before we climbed over the top, he shot at us. Ajay then yelled out “Wait, wait, we just want to strike a deal, we’re not cops, we’re Vansh gang members, 12th district”. The shooting stopped, and Ajay and I climbed onto the roof.

“You two are 12th district? My name is Mahi, 4th district. Anyway, what kind of deal?”

“I am Vikram, and this here is Ajay. Our gang runs some trade with smaller producers, like you make it, we export it type of thing. We saw you selling some Ice..”, I said
“The Ice? Well, I don’t produce it. I just sell it. I get the Ice from a small producer, but I think you’ll have to talk to her about this. Here, I’ll call and see if and where she wants to meet you”, Mahi responded, pulling out his phone. He dialed a number and spoke off to the side a bit, and came and told us that the producer would meet us at the Lala Sapa as soon as possible. With this, he also agreed to accompany us in our meeting.

Lala Sapa, 3rd district, 90 minutes later

We were seated at a table far from the action of dancing and music. About five minutes after we arrived, a young woman from another table sat at ours. She had long dark hair, indistinguishable from either brown or black. Her skin was a light brown, and her facial features gave nothing away about her origins. She extended her hand across the table to shake both our hands, which we did. She gave a simple glance at Mahi, who seemed to take that as a friendly gesture.

“I’m Shireen. Mahi here said you two were in a gang?” she asked.

“Our gangs work together. I’m in Vansh, you might of heard of it, biggest gang in the 12th, and Vikram here runs a small-time gang that works with us. My name is Ajay, by the way” Ajay replied.

“Our gangs are looking for more producers to meet demand. This is how we run it: We have some small level producers, and some big levels. But these are all individuals or other groups, not us. We pay the producers for the good, we get it where it needs to go and sell it there. Recently demand has went up, so we’ve had to look for new producers. We saw Mahi selling some of your products, so we thought of asking if you might be interested in our trade.” I added.

Shireen nodded her head. “I will see about this. Give me a day or two. Here is my link so you can call me when necessary, just type in your link and I will call when I am ready”

Ajay and I agreed and left the Lala Sapa behind, and made the trip back to the 12th district...

[Joohan]

Councilor Chen's Office, 9th district

April 14th, 2099

Captain. Dong stood motionless at the position of attention, feet together, fists balled with the thumb facing outward, hands positioned at the seam of his trousers, chin tucked back, and looking forward; he was in agony! His fight against that vritra crazed gangster the other day had sent him to the hospital with a concussion, three broken ribs, a deep laceration to his right hand, and bruises on his ulna's. After passing out, he didn't wake until several hours later. His physician had suggested that he take the next week and a half to heal, following his first day in the hospital. Not heeding a word of his advice however, Captain. Dong had signed himself out of the hospital only three days later... nothing really having healed properly yet. Captain. Dong was simply too busy to stay and heal - especially considering that by that end of the month, he was to be the new chief inspector of the 9th district, following the old inspector's retirement. So then, duty and honor bound, the captain stood at the position of attention - waiting in the lobby of Councilor Chen's office - in resolute agony.

His purpose here today was, if one were to side step the formality of his yet appointment, his first action as the chief inspector. Twenty years on the force, and nineteen as a detective - serving from petty private to a senior captain - have granted Akash Dong a holistic perspective of the police's duty and performance ( at least as far as the 9th district is concerned ). Though the department was well funded and supplied - though the police had excellent training - and though among their ranks were a plethora of adept and resilient officers, crime within the district seemed never to subside! It didn't matter how many gangs they busted up, or how many dealers they jailed - tucked away in the shadows of musty alley ways and smoky opium dens, there was always a new gang rising, a new rogue looking to make a name, some new criminal craze seizing the minds of the desperate and impressionable. The good solid police work which Captain. Dong and the 9th district police department had become accustomed to was not enough - it had never been enough, a fact which Dong had been aware of for years now. Something which, until recently, he had had no hope of ever changing. But now, through all the dirt, and grime, through all the hate and anger, after struggling for years in his never ending war with the shadow world, Akash Dong was very soon to be in a position to change his home for the better - a true and lasting change!

Captain. Dong stood at attention, in resolute agony, intent to suffer, as he had for his entire life, so that others would not have to.

[Budraria]

Rong Chen, 9th District Councilor // LiuChenTai Triad Leader, 40
Councilor Chen's Office, 9th District, Shambhala City

Rong wasn't happy to be here. Not at all. A little over half an hour ago she had been in Cantotown working out the details of the LongChenTai's newest business venture: a brothel. While it wouldn't be the most legal of operations, the triad had de facto control over the area, and it had been a long time since governmental law enforcement had bothered with their territory. It would be fine the other heads had assured her, and thus the plans were put into effect. However, all of that had been interrupted by that damn call from her office.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Rong gave a small sigh and stepped into the building, which unlike the judicial building next to it, was a beautiful combination of both traditional Chinese and modern Shambhalan architecture. The councilor then moved rapidly towards her assistant's desk. Her shoes making loud clicking sounds as they hit the marble floor.

"Why the hell did you call me here," Rong all but yelled to the young woman, "does today's youth not know what being busy means," she fumed, raising both of her arms in frustration.

Barely giving the girl time to talk, she had moved on, "whatever at least tell me who this person that is oh so important for me to meet is." The answer most definitely didn't satisfy the triad leader in her, "a law enforcer, by Guanyin could the day get any worse?" she though to herself, before turning around leaving a distressed assistant behind her. At least she now matched Rong's mood.

Stopping right outside her office door, Rong composed herself, glad that her office was soundproofed both ways eliminating any chance the officer had heard anything that had gone on. She opened the door, a smile now dancing on her face as she looked out across the room. It appeared just has Rong had left it, sparse except for a few plants and Chinese mementos; the only thing out of place was the man sitting by her desk.

"So, Mr. Dong, am I correct?" Rong asked. Not waiting for an answer, the councilor moved on, "so what brings the Senior Captain of the 9th District to my office today?" she inquired.

[Joohan]

Captain. Dong Bowed in acknowledgement, " Madame Councilor. Thank you for seeing me. " As the councilor lead Dong through her office and towards the more official meeting desk, Dong took the opportunity to continue speaking, " Madame Councilor, I am scheduled to take Inspector. Giang's position by the end of the month, as you know. In preparation for my new position within our police department, I intend get an early start on my duties. "

As the councilor and Dong sat down at the councilor's desk, Dong leveled his tone in a more serious and to do tone, " Councilor, I have a series of ideas which I believe will greatly help the security of our district and assist our police forces in not only the apprehension of criminals, but the prevention of crime all together. The chief among them, however, and the subject for of my desire for a meeting with you - requires the approval of your office. "

Dong leaned back into his chair and starred intently towards the councilor, intending to convey the seriousness of his proposal through body language. " Councilor, in my years of experience on the police force, and through extensive analysis of our records - I, and numerous other parties, have found that the majority of reported crimes go unsolved for a lack of witnesses and evidence. "

Dong paused, looking the councilor up and down, assessing her body position and facial expression ( taking pictures and recording through his eye while doing so ) before continuing, " But, the vast majority of such unsolved cases occur in specific areas - areas defined by a single and specific variable. These areas include residential areas, small non-corporate businesses, and religious sites. The constant with all these areas is a lack of surveillance. "

Dong paused for a second, allowing the revelation to sink in for the councilor. Dong was fully away that his proposal likely not to be received well by the councilor. Public surveillance had always been a touchy subject, even before Shambhala. How he would deliver this message would be incredibly important - and in the event of his failure, these recordings would be equally important for his back up plan. " It is statistically proven that crimes committed in areas with active surveillance are 90% more likely to be solved in a timely manner then in areas without. The problem is, currently, is that less than 10% of the district posses a sufficient level of surveillance. My proposal then, Councilor, is that we increase current police surveillance to 85% district - if not a greater whole. "

" Councilor, this district has been steeped in criminality since the earliest days of Shambhala City. Thousands have suffered, and continue to. With this proposal we will be able to shed light upon the shadows that the criminals of this city hide in and we will finally be able to give the public the peace of mind that they deserve. "

[Cossack Khanate]

V. R. Chakram’s POV, 9th District

I leaped over a short wall, shooting a quick round in the general direction of my Han pursuers. Inside a pocket in my jacket, a small memory chip of a low-tech surveillance camera. The Han seemed rather intent on obtaining it, as it had footage of a high-profile murder case in which the Han were the attackers. Shah had wanted to get back at the Han for their betrayal of a trade deal. So, the natural runner he could get hold of was me. I dashed through the narrow Chinese alleys, ducking whenever the enemy decided to spray fire at me. I made it to the main street, and almost got ran over by a truck. Although the traffic made it dangerous for me to cross, it made it easier for me to lose my pursuers…..

30 minutes later…

The Han were off my trail for now, and I walked casually through the administrative sections of the city. I bought some brown, recycled, and sturdy wrapping paper. While walking, I wrapped the memory chip and pushed open the door to the police station. I dropped my package on the surprisingly empty reception counter and quickly left the station, hoping that I hadn’t been spotted by a police officer. I obviously didn’t blend in with the high-class crowd that populated the plazas and business centers that dominated the city around the administrative buildings. Around me was a sea of mainly Chinese features, peppered with light-skinned Hindis, Punjabis, Pashtuns, Tajiks, and other ethnicities. I was perhaps the only dark Indian for a good half a square kilometer. I somehow avoided the questioning gaze of several passerby until I reached my car on the top floor of a parking garage.

A large truck stood next to my car, illuminated by the dull lighting of the garage. I was about to leave when I recognized the markings of a distinctive gang: The LiuChenTai. Frowning, I walked over to the driver side door. Peering inside the foggy window, I noticed a man slumped over in his seat. Then I realized the door was open. Looking over my shoulder, I pulled the heavy door open. The man still didn’t wake. Then I saw the knife in his stomach….

Meanwhile….

The group of six Han gangsters were not happy to have to call Chen. In fact, they knew that they were quite doomed. But the call had to be made. Councilor Chen had made up her mind and was about to speak to Captain Dong when she received the call. “Excuse me, Captain”, she said, and she went into her soundproofed private quarters. She wasn’t exactly pleased at the news….

[North Timeria]

Nav had lived in the Jade Flats his entire life a small apartment complex in Shambhala City. He had spent his life running around the city getting into trouble with his friends. Growing up poor was hard for Nav and as he got older he found ways to make money. The boys in his flat often got together to rob stores or do small jobs around the city. Now they were the Jade Boys, a pretty good crew.

Ajaib was waiting for Nav outside on the stairs. "Finally up huh?"

Nav laughed and headed down the stairs with Ajaib. The Jade Boys often meet courtyard in the middle of the Jade Flats. Today wasn't just another day; they'd be talking about the future of the Flats and where the Jade Boys wanted to take things. Their main goal had always been the prosperity of the Flats and their community. As the Jade Boys started to gather so did the rest of the flats. On the banisters around the courtyard, people started to come outside to listen to the Jade Boys.

The Jade Boys had done a lot for the community and people could see it. They looked to the Jade Boys for many things and they had become somewhat like the flats leaders. The Jade Boys did more for the flats in 3 years than the city has ever. The Jade Boys had won over the support of kids and then eradicated crime from the Flats.

As Nav looked around almost everyone from the flats had gathered in the courtyard to listen, in the middle were the 46 Jade Boys.

"It's crazy now... We're like idols." Ajaib looked around at everyone that had gathered around.

"Nah... Not me, I'm just doing what I should." Nav sat down as the boys gathered and greeted each other.

"Glad to see everybody out here but you know when poor people gather the rich come to tear it down." Asman was the youngest of the group but many saw him as one of the wisest. Living in the poor conditions of the flats didn't seem to affect him. Asman was always happy and often gave the largest portions of his loot to the community. Asman joined the group after pulling a stunt to earn his way in. Asman had managed to steal a large delivery of rice and brought it back to the flats. He shared it amongst the community and even had a small dinner for the entire Flat.

The Boys settled in and began discussing what their next moves would be.

[Budraria]

Rong Chen, 9th District Councilor // LiuChenTai Triad Leader, 40
Councilor Chen's Office, 9th District, Shambhala City

Rong walked quickly, guiding her guest towards the councilor's desk, while discretely eyeing the top of her desk, making sure nothing triad-related remained. Luckily, nothing incriminating was visible on the desk.

After motioning for the captain speak, Rong listened with feigned interest, nodding along with many of Captain Dong's first points: more security here, law enforcement there, crime prevention, blah blah blah; it was all things she had heard since becoming a councilor. However, it seemed the new captain did have a surprise up his sleeve, one that made the councilor break her facade for a split second, as a frown appeared.

Rong was quick to mold her face into a neutrality, "Oh Guanyin, please say he saw nothing," she prayed silently. Even if most citizens would be against it, she didn't want any possible actions connecting her to criminal activities.

She paused for a few seconds after Dong had finished speaking, collecting her thoughts.

"Well Captain Dong, I agree with you completely in the fact that it is absolutely necessary that the government of the ninth district work toward limiting the criminality that has almost become its heart. However, I must respectfully question your methods and further knowledge on the district," Rong said, "There is almost no way the people of the ninth would support this proposal, and definitely not its implementation."

"I hope you can see the tough spot I'm in. I must represent my constituents. And unlike you in your role as Senior Captain, I, I must be elected to my position. I'm very sorry even though I'd love to help, putting my name on this would doom my career as an elected official."

The councilor then turned towards a more conciliatory tone, "Why don't we try to work something else out instead. More funding for police, better training, or equipment? Would that help?"

[Free California Republic]

Jomm Nguyen strolled by Saigon Street in the Vietnamese district, listening to the sounds of street vendors, waiting to sell their goods, the smell of cooked meat filling the air. The street was already very crowded and people lined up at booths, some wearing straw hats or hijabs. He looked for a raised platform, somewhere on the side of the road. He found an improvised stage, where people were sitting and standing, eating food and playing games. He went up to the platform, carrying his musical equipment with him. Unloading the keyboard, grabbing the guitar, and getting the microphone set. He had done it, finally for the first time in a year, he would perform. He started to sing.

"Come on, does it matter if it's fake?
Come on, if it's real it's just another mistake!"

The masses of people directed their attention to the stage, syncing their heartbeats to the music, and humming the melody. A person came up, with some makeshift drums, made out of wood and metal, bringing them up to the stage, and they had started to play.

[Joohan]

Dong was not suprised - allowing for a non-audible grunt in his conscious to sum up his reaction to councilor's position. Just as he had expected in before coming to this meeting - the idea of mass survelliance was never a popular or liked practice ( even when necessary ). Nevertheless, Dong had to try the easiest ( though unexpectedly fruitless ) route first. Seeing as how that path was now closed to him, it's become now necessary to pursue his goals through other means.

Captain. Dong gave a bashful smile, " Well, to be frank councilor, this wasn't yet an official appeal to your office on behalf of the police department. This was a preliminary meeting before I am promoted to Chief inspector - which there in I intend to official appeal to your office for the new resources our department needs. I was hoping to bounce the idea off of you before I brought it up in an official meeting. But I do see your reservations as valid - though I may disagree with them. As for what other resources you can provide to our department, I prefer to bring that up when I have the appropriate materials on hand. Two weeks time and I will have the appropriate data... and rank. "

With that, Captain. Dong gave a nod and a small one sided grin before standing up from his chair. " With that, I won't take up anymore of your time councilor. I know you're busy. "

Captain. Dong gave an appropriate bow to the councilor and made his way out and to the door, As he pushed open the door and was halfway out, he stopped to place his hand on the door frame and turn around to call back, " Two weeks councilor! " With that he dropped his hand and finally pushed his way entirely out of the door.

Finally out of the office, his grin had quickly disappeared, and his pain filled stride took a menacing step. In little more than 14 days he would ensure that the councilor would be much more pliable to his demands. Two weeks indeed!

[Free California Republic]

Cops and other detective people pay attention to this

As Jomm sang, he felt safety in his life. Until a loud noise coming from the drums reached him, and he watched the drums plummet to the ground, injuring one or two families. He ran, looking for somewhere to go. Gunshots rang in his ears as the drummer, who turned out to be a shooter, shot at the helpless crowds below, each person scrambling for safety. It was then when he was shot twice in the arm, once in the leg, and once in the chest. He laid there, unconscious, unaware of what was around him.

[Khasinkonia]

Thawdareindra Astana-Sarsenbaev

The courthouse. The highest judge of the land. That was me, at least for this district. Of course, the citywide Supreme Court had each district judge rule together on important things such as citizens suing the government, or fundamental law changes, but for the average 9th District case, I'm the end of the line. My rulings are final, and the juries have no jurisdiction in higher courts beyond their recommendation, as the district judges know best. Appeals go back to lower court before I'd see them again, and I usually wouldn't. Most understood quite clearly that District 9 would have a verdict, singular. Of course, the persistent and stubborn would receive their dues. Murder appeals usually get the death penalty for their crimes after an appeal, partially for wasting court time, partially for wasting mine. Likewise, people suing for civil rights would get them...if I felt it justified, otherwise, contempt of court and a fine for me to skim off of.

Today's case? Auto-theft by 32 year old Southern Chinese Chen Keigwan. He’d already plead guilty, but had appealed on the sentence. Southern Chinese folks were pretty rare to see in court. Pretty rare in general, really, since most of them ended up in a different arc city. He was a slight man, not someone who'd generally be stereotyped as a criminal. But here he was, having stolen a car model I recognised to be rather expensive model, apparently owned by the proprietor of the gas station right near 8th District Police Headquarters. He did get some credit from me for having managed to evade them until a 9th District speed trap caught him. And getting caught by a speed trap lost that respect, as even some of the schoolchildren I met at a career day PR event at a local school asked if I had the power to deal with them. I consistently fed them the half-truth that there wasn't anything I could currently do.

The bailiff brought court in session with "All rise...The Supreme Court of the 9th District is now in session, with Judge Thawdarei—"

"Just say Judge Thaw presiding or we'll never get through this," I interrupted, "Please be seated. Right, good afternoon, ladies, gentlemen, other assorted humans, and whatever algorithms are deal with the automated transcription today. Now, onto the business of The 9th District of the City of Shambhala versus Chen Keigwan. Are both sides ready?"

"Yes, Judge Thaw," the District Attorney said.

"Ready to serve the people, your honour," the Public Defender recited.

"And the jury of this court are aware of their duty to observe and convey their candid opinions to me, correct?"

"Correct," said some of the jury, while a few nodded, and one gave a thumbs-up.

"In the interest of time, the statement of information has already been committed to court record, as has been established by the Justice Department Ordinance of July 12th, 2097 regarding usage of supreme court session time, as you should all be aware. If anyone present has either not received the briefing update as of today or is not confident that they have thoroughly reviewed the case, please speak now."

A moment of silence affirmed that, for once, everyone on jury had made proper use of the lunchtime break between court sessions to ensure they were informed.

"Now, given established information regarding whereabouts, numbers, names, and other easy things to put on a form, Chen Keigwan, please take your place at the podium. We should be finished in due time, given that this case has relatively few discrepancies between stories. Thank goodness, too, because a guilty plea is, as I’m sure the defendant has told you, your best option here.”

The man did as ordered, and stood nervously at the podium as I spoke. The case was frankly very clear-cut, and would've been settled out of court had the man not been already broke.

“Now, I understand the prosecution has noticed some discrepancies. Shall we

"Certainly, Judge Thaw," the District Attorney said, rising and standing before me, "To begin, let’s make sure we’ve got the story right. Based on the current evidence and your written testimony, Mr. Chen, you were walking on the side of the street opposite to the gas station by the 8th District Police Headquarters, and you suddenly crossed over in violation of traffic laws by not using a crosswalk, which is a matter for traffic court if you do not wish to pay the fine, of course. After jaywalking across at a quote: “brisk pace”, you ran for the unlocked car of the proprietor of the gas station as he spoke with his last customer, and got into his car, and sped away. Would you say this information is accurate, or do you have something to add?”

“Yes, the information is accurate,” the defendant sighed, with an evident expression of shame on his face, “That’s what happened.”

“Now, we then know that you were caught in a speed trap along the main interdistrict service road in District 9 approximately three hours thereafter, after evading arrest. Is this information accurate?”

“I evaded arrest for 4 hours,” he corrected, “And it wasn’t the service road, but the intersection of Zhu Street and the service road, and I was driving on Zhu Street.”

“Duly noted. Now, do you have any other general corrections, or additional details that might impact your sentence, as you are pleading guilty?”

“I have a family,” the defendant stated.

“You have a family?” the prosecutor asked.

“Yes, I have a family. I stole that car to sell it and try to pay for my mother’s medical—“

“Does this have anything to do with the crime committed?” I interjected.

“It’s my motive! I beg of you, go easy on me! I need to pay for my mo—“

“I’m so moved,” I droned, pointing to my teardrop-shaped implant, “Look, this borderline contempt of court has me crying.”

He stopped speaking for a moment, and twitched.

“...Now, are there any other pertinent statements you have regarding your case, Mr. Chen?” the defendant reiterated.

The defendant shook his head solemnly, and shot a resentful glance from his podium, directed at me from what I could tell. I overlooked another case for contempt of court, as the man clearly understood he’d be right back in front of me if he got himself in any more trouble, and common knowledge is that the only repeat visitors I like in my courtroom are lawyers, politicians, and some jury members.

“Now, members of the jury, having read the laws provided in the case briefing regarding automobile theft, are there any objections to circumventing the defender’s case, on account of the defendant’s plea and the given evidence? Speak now, or forever hold your peace,” I announced.

The jury was silent, and nodded along.

“Now, final statements from the prosecution and defence are in order.”

“Excellent,” the prosecutor said, clasping his hands together with another job wrapping up, “Give our established case, that the defendant has no alibi, and has openly admitted to committing the crime of auto-theft, further acknowledging that the defendant was arrested in the stolen vehicle, identified by security cameras at the gas station and by the proprietor alike, I believe it is clear that a guilty verdict must be reached, your honour, and that a standard sentence ought to be given.”

“While my client pleas guilty, and acknowledges his crime,” the public defender softly began after the defendant whispered something indistinct in what sounded like Cantonese into the defender’s ear, “He does implore the jury and the court to find his cause for theft morally justifiable, and to reduce the severity of the sentence accordingly, as the car stolen has been returned cleaner than it was stolen with no damage.”

“With that I mind, jurors, please submit your propositions for sentence, or lack thereof based on the information at hand. I will remind all of you that the standard sentence for this crime averages at around 16 months in jail, although the frequency of this particular crime lends itself to alternative sentences.”

Each juror took their sheet of paper, and jotted down what they believed ought to be done, with the foreperson collecting the propositions from the rest of the jury. The foreperson then handed the stack of papers to the public defender, who passed them to me.

“Excellent. You may sit quietly, and are permitted to use electronic devices while I review these propositions,” I announced, allowing my court a privilege rarely extended in higher courts.

Although the majority of propositions were varying lengths of time for a prison sentence, there were a few alternatives. One paper had written on it flogging, which was always an interesting option on the rare occasion it came up, while another suggested a mundane hefty fine. A third had guillotine written and scratched out, with caning written just underneath in smaller letters. As was tradition, there was always at least one soft-heart that suggested community service, which I usually threw out for cases of theft, although the city could always use more unpaid labour...

“I have finished reviewing the proposition, and my decision is made,” I announced, “Please return your attention for the verdict.”

The courtroom was once again focused on me, and I sat up, leaning onto my ornately decorated bench.

“Mr. Chen, the court reaffirms your guilty plea,” I enunciated, “Now, with regards to the sentence, I have received multiple different propositions for your sentence. I’m feeling nice today, so I’ll allow you the choice between them, as goodwill for not wasting my time with useless tripe. You may serve three sessions of either caning or flogging, 25 months in district jail, or, you may commit to 50 months of community service, with the caveat that, should you break the terms of a community service sentence, you will be automatically defaulted to serving half as much time in jail. So, Mr. Chen, what do you chose?”

He sat for a moment, and furrowed his brow. He returned to the podium, and cleared his throat.

“I will take the community service, your honour,” he finally replied.

“Excellent. Let the record reflect that on this date, Chen Keigwan has been convicted by the Supreme Court of the 9th District of auto-theft and is to serve 50 months of community service, making up an equivalent amount of time if he attempts to circumvent this sentence. The jury is thanked, and court is adjourned,” I concluded. The jury shot me confused looks as the defence and the prosecution gathered their things.

“As for the members of the jury, I must inform you all that the supreme court has just dropped the civil suit of Wei versus Goswami, so you will have a significantly longer recess. The next case will be this evening, after dinner. Today we have two cases remaining, and then you all may return home. Jury dismissed.”

With my closing statement, I stood, and retreated to my office. I needed to have a conversation with the police captain regarding protocol, as I’d been getting reports from lower judges that criminal suits were too frequent with the rising crime levels. For clear-cut cases such as the one I’d just had, there shouldn’t have been a need for a trial in the first place, being that established standard procedures existed. I dialled the captain up, waiting for the hologram call to go through.

[Free California Republic]

/bump