As much as the agony of being violently opened up by a blade could not be understated, waiting resided in a plane of its own. It would have been easy to let the time slip away if I could have afforded to be insensate, but it was also important that impressions were maintained. They always said that it was important to be in the moment when you needed to display something. It was much easier for the philanthropist to feel good about himself if he paid for the operation on the child who tried their best to smile than the one who stayed under during the visits because it hurt too much. If I hadn't known better, I might have thought that the presence of money was the best painkiller of them all. Even though it wasn't strictly necessary in my case, the lessons had stuck nonetheless.
If all went well, Mel would be back quickly with the latest news on potential clients. As much as kiff was quite effective at creating its own market, that market was also inundated with other suppliers who were much more established than we were. As for weapons, the start-up costs were more than I could bear and more importantly, our previous supply channels were no longer accessible. What was left were the connections that I still had as a member of high society and the ability to equip a small outfit with untraceable weapons. Taken together, it gave us our niche. It was just pure upside that it might make passing the reforms easier.
Finally, a knock came at the door. Though, while knocking would be the term applied to a servant's polite request to intrude, that was very much not the sound that I went to respond to. Less curt and more violent than a rap, it was best likened to what one might imagine of pounding on a door. Lan looked very nearly as pale as he had been when he found his wife's corpse and he panted like he had run all the way from the upper district.
"Sir, one of the local gangs, they call themselves the Clubs, they heard about us somehow and they're on their way here. I don't know what they're after, but if their reputation is anything to go by, then it isn't anything good," said Lan.
My built up boredom was of course a part of it, but I didn't admit as much to Lan. "Speaking of reputation, I can't help but see this as an opportunity to make something of our own. Go grab one of the crossbows and cover me from upstairs. Just make sure that you don't shoot me. Better to miss altogether." I didn't brook any arguments as I fastened my sword to my waist and swallowed a pinch, then I pushed past him through the door.
The Clubs were true to their name in that each carried a club and each looked like he had been hit in the head one too many times by the same. There were a total of six of them and no discernible leader among them. I could see a couple rustles and shadows that most likely belonged to onlookers, but none made any signs to indicate that they would interfere. I hoped that my rougher clothes were enough to hide my identity since it was far from time that I was known as anything other than the righteous son of a villain, but it was more hope than anything substantial enough that I wanted to spend any longer than I had to in the open. If anything, I needed to build myself a separate character to play for this role.
"What are you fine folks standing in front of my door for? I do welcome any and all clients with open arms, but such as it is, there is no need for you to be openly armed! We will of course see to that part ourselves!" I laughed boisterously at my own joke.
There was the temptation to attack them outright, take them surprise, but it was balanced by the effect that would have on our reputation. If my considerations were only as deep as what would feel the best in the moment, then I would be no better a villain than the two-bit fools who sowed chaos wherever they went. If I was to live in the world of a story, then I would at least live in the world of an interesting story.
None of the Clubs did much more than wave their clubs threateningly and continue to stare me down. Perhaps there was something in the flow of that movement that let them communicate, like bees dancing out directions to flowers, but eventually a particularly big one of them stepped forward.
"I figure you're not dumb as you look, so I'll spell it out for ya. You're on our turf and that means you pay tribute to us," he said. "Either that means money, or it means that we get to crush your skull in. We won't hold a grudge neither way." The five others did a bit more waving with their clubs and made their best nasty grins. Maybe it was just the universe's way of paying me back for all the bad hands that it had dealt me so far. The kiff was taking the smart out of my injury and if Lan hadn't gotten himself set up yet, it was his own fault for missing out.
"Our funds are solely dedicated to enriching my own wellbeing. I can't authorize their use on folks such as yourselves who profess no compunction to beating me. Perhaps if I explained the nature of our services, you would be interesting in supporting your local businesses?" I asked.
The one who had spoken raised his club and jumped forward. It took roughly the same amount of time for him to close the distance as it took me to draw my sword. The kaleidoscopic haze that made his matted brown hair look like a bird's nest drew in and focused to a pinprick. I could see the corded muscle in his arm contract as he brought the club down towards my face but little else. I made sure not to look away even as the hunk of wood whistled its way down past me. The sound of the crossbow was too faint for me to hear it, but the tell-tale thunk and then the screaming told me that it had definitely gone off. I did my best to take stock of the situation as I backed away from the men, but it was difficult with the unnatural focus that kiff forced on me. I could focus on one and see his every movement, but it was difficult to even remember he was there when I looked to see another one coming at me. Luckily, they weren't very strategic about the way they fought, they just all rushed at me while I dodged their strikes and made my way closer to the still open door.
I took a brief moment when their attacks let up at once and darted inside. I'd had more than my fill of fighting outnumbered. I stabbed out to keep them from following me inside, but the Clubs were persistent and on the tougher side as it went. As tough as they were, it turned out that they were only human in the end. One of the men in the back dropped and then another. When the four in the front noticed, it became more panic than persistence that made them throw themselves at me, desperate to get inside and to cover. The third one with a bolt through the back of his head finally got the final remaining Clubs to make a run for it. Two made it around a corner and away, but the third took one of Lan's shots to the leg. Mel was still in the middle of reloading as he walked up and dispatched with him.
"Don't worry about the bodies, we'll see them disappeared and nobody will be any the wiser, yes?" I shouted out to the onlookers. "Thank you kindly. I'm sure that you all have better things to be doing than watching such gratuitous violence."
After checking each of the downed men to make sure they were well and truly dead, Mel came over with an unamused glower on his face. "The amount they were asking for is a pittance. Why expose us like this?" he asked. "We could've even gotten our money back if we did it quietly, but now we're a bunch of lunatics who like to step on toes."
"Now, now. It's important for business that we have a reputation to market with. As they say, any press is good press." He looked unconvinced by my explanation, but I brushed it off. "There are more important things than hashing out these details. Do we have any clients or must I generate some more notoriety?"
"We have an offer. It's unsavory, but it will pay well," Mel said.
Lan joined us with the crossbow still in hand, looking even more nervous than he had before the Clubs had arrived. "Why don't we wait until Hector is back before we make any more decisions? He has the most experience in these things and all, so I think that maybe he should be here."
"Then let us leave these streets cleaner than we found them. Bodies are not my decor of choice." I replied.
