Shaggy squinted against the glare of the sun as they walked down the sidewalk. He would’ve preferred to keep their little scouting party smaller. But Xiv and her crew insisted on hanging around. So Shaggy had his pack spread out and start taking in the neighborhood. Once out and through the deli that sat above their cavern home, Shaggy started walking. He didn’t really have a direction in mind. But he mostly wanted to get a sense of the area now that the Wild Bunch was gone.

What he saw as he walked wasn’t much of a surprise. The area had always been sort of destitute and with the Stampede, things were slightly worse. Buildings were burnt out, while the streets and random bits of public property were broken to hell. It gave the entire neighborhood a more apocalyptic vibe than it had previously. Shaggy groaned as he walked down the sidewalk, his hand up to shade his eyes.

“Nice place.” Xiv quipped sarcastically.

“Yeah, well, when a gang of hybrid mutants come stomping through looking to riot. This happens.”

“What happened to the mutants?” SenSor asked, brushing a hand through his beard.

Shaggy grunted. “Dave and I handled their boss, but the police were already cracking down on things. There were hundreds of the bastards.”

Mell snorted. “You and Dave battled a hundred NPC gang members? No shot.”

“Well, it wasn’t just us. This is Austin. The police were out in force and the HLO sent a token group of Supes. But mostly, Dave and I were clawing our way through the crowds. Until we found George.”

Shaggy pulled at the thin white t-shirt he had borrowed from a Lackey. It fit tight against his chest and he wasn’t a fan. Neither was he happy with the flip-floppy sandals he had procured from the same Lackey. What self-respecting person went around in sandals? He felt like the damn things were going to fly off at any moment.

Cutie floated down from the rooftops as the past another block. The fairy-like woman grimaced as she reported.

“This place is fucked. People are scrounging around all over. Those that aren’t outright leaving are fighting for their lives against random gangs. Where the hell are the Heroes?”

Shaggy shrugged as he focused on not losing a shoe. “I don’t know. I was told that this place isn’t exactly high on the HLO protection list. In fact, the cops out here are mostly Mundanes. So we should be left alone.”

Xiv turned to regard a crushed blue mailbox lying in the street. “So what’s the plan exactly? I mean, with this entire neighborhood. You sound like you want to take it over. But I can’t see why. There’s nothing here.”

Shaggy chuckled. “That’s exactly why I want to take it over. It’s pristine, the civvies aren’t going to put up a fight, and now that the Wild Bunch are gone we can truly move in. It’s going to take a lot of credits and elbow grease, but if we can build this place up. The Legion will have their own base of operations topside.”

“So you want to be heroes and save the neighborhood?” SenSor asked, confused.

“Kind of. We are going to ingratiate ourselves with the community. The cops and the supers aren’t helping them. So if we come strolling in, say we offer protection and supplies for a small fee. We will look like heroes.”

“Then the community will protect you and you’ll be insulated from Supers and police.” Xiv nodded understandingly.

“But will the city just let you do that? Don’t you have to have permits or something to work on buildings and do construction?”

Shaggy held up a hand as he rotated around a stumbling NPC. The obviously drunk man tsked as Shaggy danced away. But he went ignored.

“Who said anything about doing any rebuilding ourselves? We’re just a bunch of concerned citizens who live in the area. We’ve taken it upon ourselves to protect these people from the more treacherous elements of the city. If somehow construction projects get done and the community profits from that, well, that’s got nothing to do with us, right?”

Cutie nodded. “Okay, but HOW are you going to do that?”

“The Legion actually knows a construction company that may help. But before we get that far, we need to sweep the neighborhood. We’ve got a few Lackey’s out and about. But we’re not collecting scouting reports like we do below ground.”

“How do we get one of those?”

Shaggy shrugged. “We’ll build it later. But for now I gotta find my friend…”

Shaggy trailed off as he saw an odd-looking orange sign. The creature emblazoned on the wooden sign was standing provocatively and blowing a kiss to oncoming patrons. Shaggy grimaced as he read the sign.

“Come on down to Nuc’s and save a buck.” Xiv read aloud.

“What the hell kind of creature is that supposed to be?” Sensor said, pointed a hand at the orange creature on the sign.

Shaggy sighed as he started walking closer. “She’s a hybrid and one of the Legion’s friends. Give me a second.”

“Hell no, I’m coming with.” Xiv said, sticking to Shaggy side as he approached the fairly large convenience store.

Nuc had chosen a magnificent spot for her new store, even if it wasn’t doing that much business by the looks of things. It sat on the far corner of the block and took up the whole side of the corner. It had a large open area where customers could come and go and Shaggy could even see a few metal shutters hanging, ready to descend at a moment’s notice.

Shaggy was barely through the door before an angry, squeaky voice was yelling at him.

“There you are! What the hell? I move out here and your people tell me you can’t be reached! I’ve been suffering by myself in this rotting neighborhood, waiting for you to live up to our bargain!”

Shaggy rubbed his head as he made his way through the store. Nuc had done a good job of collecting a wide assortment of items. She had clothes and shoes as well as food, and even some toys. Shaggy shimmied his way past a pile of foam footballs as he made his way to where Nuc sat on the counter. The Hob-goblin/Gnome hybrid had a hand on her hip and her pointed face was in a large scowl that pulled her orange skin tight on her face.

“Sorry. Pressing issues came up. We had to handle them.”

“Yeah, yeah. The entire city knows that a bunch of you guys took out Cog. Didn’t take you for the samaritan type.”

Shaggy blinked, but he shook it off. Of course, the NPCs had some idea about what went down. “I’m not. But Cog had it coming, and I owed him one. But how’s tricks?”

“How the fuck do you think things are? This place is a shithole and no one around here wants to buy a damn thing. Not to mention we’ve had a few small-time fucks try to burn down my shit! If it wasn’t for the people you got patrolling, my whole damn store would be in ruins… well, in more ruins.”

“It doesn’t look that bad…”

CRASH

Shaggy turned to see SenSor and Cutie hurriedly picking up a rack of plastic disc and ancient batteries. He swore under his breath before he turned back to Nuc, a grinned plastered on his face. Xiv and Mell were giggling over some novelty t-shirts in the corner as Nuc raised an eyebrow at him.

“They seem older than the last batch you had.”

“Yeah, well, the Legion is growing. These are a bunch of idjits that won’t let go of my tail. But never mind them. How many people have you talked to about coming over to our little slice of heaven?”

Nuc raised an eyebrow at him and crossed her arms. “None.”

“What do you mean none?!”

“Zero, zilch, nada, a number representing an absolute constant that consumes all other numbers. Who the fuck is going to come down here when there’s no one to offer them a deal? Sure, we got your little grunts walking around here in the shiny armor. But they ain’t carrying the credits the others are going to need to make the move.”

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Shaggy rubbed his face. “Okay… How much do you need?”

“How much ya got?” Nuc grinned.

Shaggy shook his head and leaned against the counter. The two engaged in a long, drawn-out negotiation that Shaggy was sure wasn’t in his favor. The skin-flint little hybrid was taking him for a large amount of credits. Not just to entice other merchants to the area, but also to buy her services as a liaison with the group. Shaggy went along with most of it, because he didn’t want to deal with all of it. He made sure to tell Nuc that only early adopters got the same five/ninety-five split she did. Anyone who didn’t come in early was going to be cutting the Legion a larger batch of credits. Nuc merely nodded as she greedily ran her clawed hands over the credits Shaggy had given her. After the talk, and after buying some boots, Shaggy asked Nuc about Kek’zar.

Nuc’s goblinoid pinched as she got a disgusted look. “That opportunist is to the east a few blocks. He’s peddling his nonsense on the local wildlife, hoping some gang is going to come out on top.”

“Not a fan of your neighbor?” Shaggy asked.

“The fuck is far too shrewd for my liking. I still don’t know where he’s getting his inventory, and he seems to revel in the chaos the local gangs are bringing. I’d keep a tight leash on that one, Shaggy.”

Shaggy gave the small hybrid a nod as he turned to leave. As he moved, he spotted Xiv and her friends huddled around a few magazine racks. The digital readouts on the rack displayed the names of many magazines. But Xiv and her friends seemed to be wrapped up in comic books. Shaggy coughed to get their attention.

“Ahem! Y’all ready to go, or do I need to buy you candy first?”

Xiv and Mell shot him dirty looks as Cutie chuckled. SenSor merely glanced up from his aqua-colored comic book.

“You done?”

“Yeah, and I know where Kek’zar is. So let’s go.”

“What’s a Kek’zar?” Xiv asked as she put her comic back on the stand.

Their little troop left the store and headed east as Shaggy explained about the alien weapons-dealer. Xiv and Cutie looked impressed by the story. But Mell was a little more skeptical about the usefulness of a weapon’s dealer who wasn’t loyal to the Legion.

“He’s a necessary evil for now. In fact, him selling to the local gangs is a good thing cause it makes them an actual threat. So when we come in to take them down, we get new weapons and we look good to the civs. It’s a win-win.”

“Until one of us gets cubed by this Cal-zor’s weapons.” Mell grumbled,

Shaggy rolled his eyes. “Oh boo-hoo, you’ll have to go to Deathville and you’ll miss a few things. If it makes you feel better, you can be the one to fry him once we’re done with his services. Happy?”

“Not my issue.” Mell said, shaking her head. “I just don’t think having an unknown element on our turf is a good thing. We should give him the option to bend the knee or move on.”

“He’s already ‘bent the knee’ at least as much as a guy like him will. I put the fear of god into him last time we met. Don’t know how he’ll act now. But we’ll see and take it from there. Sound good?”

Mell shrugged her shoulders and kicked a piece of trash down the road. “You’re the boss.”

Shaggy stared at the blue-haired woman for a few beats. But he decided he wasn’t going to ever have a good read on her. She seemed extremely loyal to Xiv and followed the woman around like a loyal soldier. But she also questioned everything. Which, when Shaggy thought about it, is probably what you wanted in a second in command. Ephemara spent much of her time giving him shit, too.

SenSor and Cutie were easier to figure out. The broad-shouldered SenSor was a player who was just here to have a good time and hang with friends. He didn’t really want to rule the gaming world, just have some fun and kick back. Cutie was kind of the same way, expect she seemed a bit more flighty in both tone and attitude. Xiv was the real go-getter. She wanted to experience everything the game offered and was more than willing to ride someone’s coattails to get it.

Their group traveled across the barren and broken streets. Passing collapsing buildings and burning piles of trash. A few times, Shaggy had to stare down a passing crew of street toughs. But they seemed to register how dangerous Shaggy’s crew were or they just had great survival instincts. It was when Shaggy started spotting weapon bulges on the passing mobs that he figured they were getting close.

The passing NPC thugs had eager looks in the eyes. Shaggy could feel his crew tense up as they passed each new mob. The area was full of thugs with new weapons, just looking for an excuse to try them out. Shaggy was about to make an example of a purple alien that was eye-balling him, when Xiv pointed to a large space near the center of the block.

“Is that it?”

Shaggy blinked as he took in the large spot between two massive apartment buildings. It looked like it used to be a communal parking lot for both buildings. But now it was virtually a marketplace, complete with a rolling entry gate. Various rock aliens and ogres dotted the area as Shaggy and the others approached. Both the rock aliens and ogres were carrying some heavy duty rifles that Shaggy could not identify. But most everyone seemed cool with the roving guards.

All throughout the open area, shopkeepers hocked their wares and patrons zigzagged through the asphalt market. Toward the back a bigger wooden stage was setup and Shaggy could just make out the alien, Kek’zar striding back and forth on the stage. Shaggy felt a shiver go down his spine as they crossed the threshold into the area. Several guards and patrons turned to regard them, but immediately went back to their business. Not seeing them as anything interesting.

Shaggy kept his ears open as he passed by several vendors. Making mental notes about what was being sold in this little marketplace. It sounded like everything from potions to weapons was being passed around. There was even a winged angel-like alien selling poisons of some stripe. Shaggy found it very interesting that Kek was doing a lot of this out in the open.

SenSor tilted his head toward one building and stopped. Shaggy turned to regard the big man, but SenSor shook his head and started walking again.

“Something interesting?”

“Just a gang planning some nonsense. But not all of them seemed interested.”

Shaggy looked around at the crowded bazaar. “You can make out noises in all of this.”

SenSor nodded. “Yeah, I gotta focus, but I can do it. All my senses are enhanced. So not only can I hear them. But I can smell them and if I knew where they were standing, I could see them too.”

“That had to be hell when the game started.”

“Actually, it was fairly easy to get a handle on. Sure, things were a little overwhelming at first. But once set your base limit for things, you can dial it in as you want.”

“So what made you pick up on the gang, then?”

SenSor shrugged. “I’m always keeping an ear out for certain keywords. ‘Attack’, ‘kill’ things like that. It’s like setting a trap. Once something triggers it, I zero my senses on it and listen in.”

Shaggy nodded slowly as they arrived at Kek’zar’s stage. “Well, keep your ears open. My gamer senses are tingling.”

“I’m sure they got a cream for that.” Mell smirked.

Shaggy rolled his eyes as he moved to the edge of the stage and glanced at the pacing Kek’zar. The tanned alien man with the swirling eyes. Regarding everything in the market as he walked back and forth. Shaggy thought the slim man seemed nervous as he raised an arm and waved. The arms dealer spotted Shaggy immediately and a smile broke across his face. Shaggy swore mentally, as he did not like the look of Kek’zar’s smile. Neither did Xiv.

“He looks like a cat that’s just seen a mouse.”

Shaggy groaned as he agreed. “Be on your toes.”

Unbidden, Shaggy jumped onto the stage and rushed over to the taller man. Kek’zar smiled down at Shaggy as he raised a hand to hold off his guards.

“Shaggy! How good to see you! What can I do for you on this fine day?”

“Save the small-talk, Kek. What are you planning?”

Kek’zar grimaced as he raised a finger. “It’s not me that’s planning anything. I just got a better offer.”

“From who?” Shaggy snapped.

Kek’zar’s face sneered as Shaggy heard SenSor suck in a breath from the side of the stage.

“Someone who knows what they are…”

Kek’zar was interrupted as SenSor shouted. “Snipers!”

Shaggy sprouted his claws and slashed at Kek as he dove forward. A green flash appeared in his peripheral vision and Shaggy felt his right side scream in pain. He and Kek’zar skidded to the far end of the stage as Shaggy’s claws bent around the taller alien’s chest. Kek was clearly wearing some kind of armor.

“You aren’t unstoppable, Mutt! It’s time you learned that.” Kek’zar shouted in Shaggy face.

Shaggy ignored the alien as the sounds of laser fire and shouting were happening all around him. His right side was wailing in pain as tried to get to his feet. But he was unsteady and instead fell on top of the prone Kek’zar. The fall made another green laser flash miss Shaggy by a hair and he rolled him and Kek over. Putting the taller alien in the way of anymore fire.

“Who got to you?!” Shaggy shouted over the sounds of fighting.

Kek’zar grinned even as Shaggy’s claws climbed up to his face. “Oh, you poor stupid dog! This is way above your pay grade.”

Before Shaggy could ask anything else, there was another flash of green and Kek’zar grunted. The tan alien had just enough time to look surprised before his skin turned grey and he turned to dust. Shaggy’s grip loosened as the man and his clothes were disintegrated right in front of him.

“What the fuck did I just step into?” Shaggy wondered as he watched Xiv and the others fight off Kek’zar’s guards.