Shaggy ducked under a random bit of piping as they walked through the darkness.
“How the fuck did you build a Teleporter underneath the Arena?”
“It’s a DISPLACER!” Roald said angrily from his position behind everyone else.
The weird half-dirt, half-metal tunnels underneath the Arena were pretty narrow, and they kept having to start and stop as the chubby teen got caught on piping or a bit of metal He was currently maneuvering around a few bits of metal sticking out from the wall. Cekrass moved to help as Shaggy shook his head and asked his question again.
“Okay. How the hell did you build a Displacer under the damn Arena in the middle of Under-Town?”
“It wasn’t exactly hard. No one uses these tunnels except for secret and clandestine deals. So when I was upgrading the security in some areas, I let a few Minions loose and they did the work.”
“That’s fine, but are we sure that orc bastard won’t be following us?” Chromia asked angrily. Shaggy thought she was still salty from the ass-whooping the guy had handed all of them. He was too.
“Yes. The displacer was set to explode when the last of our group went through. So as soon as the wolf-man went through, it should have exploded.”
Everyone stopped in their tracks and turned to the boy. Even Blobby, who still looked slightly blackened and was moving slower than usual, stopped. Roald was trying to navigate his bulk around another odd pipe, but looked up when he felt everyone’s gaze.
“Should have exploded?” Ephemara asked angrily.
Shaggy thought he was going to have to hold his new Henchman back from attacking the poor kid. But she just stared daggers at the kid, along with the rest of their group. Including Sylus.
“Hmph. Yes. Should have. I can’t account for everything, so there is always a chance for error. But I feel there was a ninety-eight percent chance the self-destruct would go off as predicted.”
Everyone gave a sigh as they turned back around and trudged along the tunnels. Ephemara and Chromia had assured Shaggy that there were some stairs into these tunnels somewhere. They just had to find them. Shaggy spoke up again from his position behind Rita.
“Well, even if he follows us to Under-Town, I don’t think they are going to be looking in the right place. Hopefully, I planted a small seed that the Phreaks were at least tangentially related to us.”
“Do you think he bought it, boss?” Rita asked.
Shaggy shrugged and then realized she couldn’t see it. “Who can say? But if you had to choose between a low-rent outfit like us or one of the big boys like the Phreaks. Who would you go with?”
Rita nodded in agreement and swiveled past a bit of metal sticking out from the wall. Shaggy thought he could smell fresh air ahead. The air in the tunnels had been stale and smelled heavily of dirt. The sound of Roald tripping again brought them all to a stop and Chromia exhaled angrily as Cekrass moved to help the boy again.
“Still, we should probably keep our heads down for a while, boss,” Ephemara said.
“Of course.” Shaggy agreed sarcastically. “You know me, always willing to stay at home and guard the house.”
Shaggy felt everyone turn to stare at him and he knew why. He couldn’t stand not doing something in Under-Town. They had carved out a small piece of home for themselves, but they were still going to defend it. With the attack from Cog, they had even more gangs roaming about now. All trying to make a name for themselves. So now was the time to cement their own power base. He couldn’t do that and hide from Rakgu scouts. He was ready to defend himself when Ephemara and Rita sighed.
“Yeah. You’re going to keep being you, aren’t ya, boss?”
“He is, but we got his back. This pack thing helps a lot, so the others and I can help keep him out of trouble.”
Shaggy scratched the back of his head. “I’m not a little kid.”
Rita snorted. “Of course you’re not, dear.”
“Boss, we are going to want scouts roaming Under-Town, or at least our turf. So we have some kind of early warning system when the Raks move.” Ephemara explained.
Shaggy saw a light coming from up ahead and felt Rita pick up her pace. “Yeah. But that’s your job, remember? You and Slink are our spymasters, so you can get on all that. I’m just the Shock Troop leader. Which means the crew and I throw ourselves at our toughest enemies and crush them.”
Ephemara grunted but said nothing as they got closer to the light. Shaggy could make out stairs but they had to stop as Roald got caught on another pipe. Everyone groaned except Sylus, who shouted.
“Carn-flab-it boy! Go on a damn diet!”
“Hey! Don’t body-shame me!”
“If you are ashamed of your physique, then go on a diet!”
Roald jerked his body away from a pipe and sucked in his gut. “I don’t feel ashamed! I said you are shaming me.”
Sylus grunted. “I ain’t shaming you. I’m insulting you.”
“Everyone just lay off.” Shaggy said. “We are almost out, anyway. Once we are topside, we can go our separate ways and be done with all this.”
Chromia and Ephemara shot him looks, but he just winked at them. He had plans for both Sylus and Roald, but he figured he’d let them stew a bit. Maybe let them wander Under-Town alone for a bit. See how things were without protection, and then swoop in and grab them both up. But of course, Roald had to step all over his plans.
“Pfft. Like you are letting me go after I know so much about your operations. You are going to force me to work for you and build your whole crew stuff, just like my brother.”
Shaggy watched Rita head up the stairs and into the lights of the Arena as he snorted. “Bah! You know nothing except who we aren’t with. Besides, how could I trust anything you make under duress? Your brother did, and you made a damn Teleporter network.”
“DISPLACER!”
Shaggy ignored him as he stood aside waved Chromia up the stairs next. “Maybe we would take Sylus. We need shops around the bar and we did kind of wreck his. But that would depend on him.”
Sylus’ usually angry face turned contemplative as he rushed for the stairs. “Well… we would have to talk percentages and, y’know, how protection would work…”
The old man trailed off as he ascended the stairs. Blobby went next as Shaggy continued to stare at Roald. The pink alien wagged his head back and forth like he was considering things. Before he went silent. Shaggy nodded, but said nothing as well. The kid was a resource they needed, but as it stood, they really couldn’t trust him. So, for now, he figured they could monitor him. Ephemara moved to the stairs and shot Shaggy a look before looking back at the Alien teen. Shaggy nodded, hoping she would take his meaning. The pale woman nodded back and Shaggy hoped he hadn’t just killed the kid via a series of nods.
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Cekrass ascended the stairs with his bags of ammo and Shaggy couldn’t keep the grin from his face. They went out for an ammo restock and found themselves in the house of one of the biggest crime bosses in the city. The same thing happened when he went looking for the damn handler for Scholer. He hoped whatever AI was running the game would give him a damn break. He almost missed the days of trouncing small gangs. Although he wasn’t sure if that was actual days ago, time was real tricky when you lived underground. He was about to check his clock on the menus when Roald stopped next to him. The boy looked thoughtful and a little scared.
“You’re really going to let me wander alone out there?”
Shaggy sighed. “Yep. You’re free to do whatever you want. Of course, if I hear you’ve been talking to the Raks, I’m going to have to send Ephemara after you. But for now, yeah, do what you want or what you can.”
Roald seemed to bristle at Shaggy’s tone. “What, you think I can’t hack it by myself?”
“Sure, kid. You can do whatever you set your mind to.” He turned to go up the stairs as Roald huffed behind him.
Shaggy momentarily thought about turning around to see if the boy was making it up the stairs. But he figured he would hear it if the boy stopped or fell. The stairs were steep, and they went on for a long while. Shaggy wondered at the decision to make an underground tunnel system beneath the Arena, but he shook it off. He was sure the gangs were using it for something, and he didn’t really care what.
Soon the smell of the food and sweat hit his nostrils and new scent markers appeared in his vision again. He had turned so many grey that he almost didn’t realize they were missing. Now, however, they were all over the place. Shaggy guessed that the arena was still in operation, even with all the robots probably still roaming around. He paused as he remembered Tillani was in charge of the Arena.
“Shit!” Shaggy shouted as he started taking the narrow stairs two at a time.
Roald shouted in alarm behind him, but Shaggy ignored him and ran up the stairs. It wasn’t a long time until he was free of the stairwell and on the bottom floor of the arena. He looked around to find his crew standing by the exit. They all looked at him, clearly alarmed, as he came bursting from the stairs. Rita and Cekrass could probably feel his agitation. But Ephemara and Chromia just stared at him worriedly.
“Tillani’s in charge of the Arena, remember?” Shaggy said.
His crew seemed to get it at the same time. They all became cautious and stared at the few people around them. Shaggy even saw a few Rak goons roaming around. Shaggy grit his teeth and moved toward a food stall. If they were going to fight their way out of here, he was going to need a top-up. The sound of heavy breathing brought everyone around toward the tunnel entrance. Roald was sweaty and his pink skin was a darker hue as he panted and stared at Shaggy angrily. Shaggy shrugged and continued toward a stall.
After buying a few hot dogs and a pretzel. Shaggy felt more confident and turned to his crew. Rita had her sword out and was staring everyone down. Ephemara had phased, while Chromia had transformed. Cekrass was hovering near Sylus and Roald, but the big guy was still carrying a lot of bags, and Blobby was pretty much out of commission. The black and blue orb of liquid even looked like it was going to deflate at any minute. Shaggy swallowed the rest of his food and told them the plan. Such as it was.
“Okay, Blobby, if you can, you just focus on getting home. Ignore us and get back to the bar, or at least get somewhere where you can recuperate… or heal… or whatever your race does.”
Blobby grew a tentacle and used it to pat Shaggy’s shoulder. “~I just need a quiet and dark spot to slough off the dead… skin. That’s how you can think of it. I can do that back in the tunnel and then head back to the bar~”
Shaggy raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to be alright by yourself?”
Blobby gave a burble that sounded like a snort, but said nothing. It moved its mass back toward the stairs and Shaggy watched it go until it was out of sight. Soon as it was gone, Shaggy turned back to the others and explained things.
“we are in enemy territory. Which isn’t that much different from normal. But now we are on the turf of a guy I have pissed off a few times now. So his people are probably looking for me. So we need to be careful and if shit goes to hell, be ready to fight. Cekrass, your job is to get the ammo back home. We already lost the guns and this trip can’t be for nothing. So if a fight breaks out, you just run. Forget us and get back to the bar. Understand?”
The giant lizard looked ready to argue, but a stern look from both Rita and Shaggy had the big guy nodding reluctantly. Shaggy turned again to address the others, but Ephemara phased into existence again, halting his speech.
“Rita is here.”
Shaggy glanced at the older woman and then back to his Number One Henchman. Rita was staring at Ephemara like she was an idiot, but the pale woman just groaned.
“I mean the other Rita. You know, the one you met at the diner? The one with the frizzy hair and the shitty attitude.”
Shaggy nodded as realization dawned on him. “Scholer’s Rita?”
Ephemara just nodded as she continued. “She’s here leading a bunch of people outside. It looks like she is in charge of security.”
Chromia shook her head. “Tillani would never let another group watch over his Arena. His guys are the ones running security.”
Ephemara shrugged. “Not anymore.”
“So what’s that mean?” Rita asked.
“It means that this might not be that hard at all.” Shaggy grinned and started walking toward the Arena entrance.
“Uh boss…?” Ephemara started.
But Shaggy ignored her and continued walking. If Scholer was now in charge of Arena security, he might be able to talk their way out of here. Sure, he hadn’t exactly gotten along with Rita and Scholer, but he had gotten Seymour down to Under-Town. That had to count for something. He heard the others rushing to follow behind him just as he exited the Arena and got under the large awning in front of the ticket-takers. Sure enough, the frizzy-haired Rita was shouting orders at several suit-wearing gangsters.
Shaggy waited until she spotted him as she was yelling at everyone around her. He waved placidly as her face went red. He could tell she was almost ready to order her people's attack. But a man beside her grabbed her arm. Shaggy recognized the man as Toli. Another of Scholer’s goons and the one that had carried him into the Rak Captain’s office. Shaggy waved again as Rita angrily marched over. Chromia stepped beside Shaggy just as Rita got in his face. He could feel Cekrass and Rita and just behind him, flanking him like bodyguards.
“What the fuck are you doing here?!” Rita asked contemptuously.
“Oh, you know, taking in the sights, checking out the deals, trying to pick up pretty girls.”
Rita’s anger red face went almost purple. “The meeting was over thirty minutes ago. You are lucky the cease-fire is still in effect for this area or I would have your damn head.”
Shaggy grinned wolfishly. “What would Scholer think about that?”
Rita sputtered, unable to form a coherent sentence as Toli finally walked up beside her. He took one look at his friend and then glanced at Shaggy. He seemed to take all of their faces in and memorize them before he just nodded.
“Y’all should get out of here. Cease fire ends in another thirty minutes. With all the new gangs out and about, you don’t want to fight your way home.”
Shaggy shrugged and started walking away. “I don’t know. It would’ve been fun. But you are right. We got things to do and people to kill, so I will say goodbye.”
“Do you know what happened to Tillani?” Rita asked, still pissed off.
Shaggy turned and felt his eyebrows climb up his forehead. “What?”
“Tillani is still missing.” Rita explained.
“Well, that’s fucking concerning.” Shaggy said, not hiding the consternation in his tone.
Rita smiled as she studied his face. “He went missing just before his little coup failed. He lost people at every location he sent them to. Even the Quinica were demanding his head. Scholer seems to think that this will settle your agreement with her.”
Shaggy grinned again. “Well, she should know better than that. Our time together is far from through. I still have some many stories to share. Who else would I share them with if not her?”
Rita had calmed down, but now her face was red again and she looked ready to start shouting. But Shaggy had said his piece and as a Villain, you always wanted to make sure you had the last word. He gestured to his crew, and they always left the shadow of the awning and turned east. It was a fair distance back to the bar, but once they were clear of the Arena, they should be as safe as they could be. As Shaggy picked up the pace, Ephemara phased into existence next to him, a surly look on her face.
“Geez boss. Couldn’t you wait until we were back a full hour before you pissed someone off?”
Shaggy chuckled and looked back. Everyone was slowly jogging after him, including Sylus and Roald. The pink-skinned alien didn’t seem happy about it, but he was doing his best.
“What can I say? Winding people up has always been my favorite pastime.”
Ephemara snorted. “We need to get you home before you cause more trouble.”
“Agreed. Although I think I am done causing mischief for the day.”
“Bullshit.”
Shaggy cackled as he turned his jog into a full run. He heard a certain pink alien groan, but he ignored it and continued toward the bar. Tillani being out there somewhere was worrying, but for now, they could go home and enjoy their spoils. Under-Town was slowly changing with the invasion of Cog’s robots and the creation of new gangs. Things were going to get more and more interesting. Shaggy could feel his excitement travel to his new pack mates and he had to stop himself from howling as he ran back home.