Sinners of the Way: The Sewer Crawk

--- Mercer ---

“Mercer.” Baki stopped them before they could leave, a package in the Traveler's hands. “You mind dropping this off.”

He gave the package a look before moving it to the fish man.

“I just want to make sure he’s eating something other than sewer rats and whatever half-mutated garbage is in the river.” The bouncer defended.

He rolled his eyes, before swiping the package. “Fine.”

“What did he give you?” Scarlet asked once they were a couple streets away from Covenant’s Club.

“Fish, eel, squid, and probably some kind of shark meat. All bundled up in a standard compression wrap the size of a shoebox.” He answered, waving the package that probably had close to thirty pounds of seafood in a three pound box. (Got to love magic packaging.)

“And why are we delivering food when we’re supposed to be looking for this ‘Romulus’ guy?” The teenager frowned.

“Because Nightwatch is currently combing through the city’s surveillance feeds and police records to figure out where he is. And while that’ll be significantly faster than us just wandering through his territory until we find him, it also leaves us with nothing pressing for the next hour or so.” He explained. “Hence why I agreed to drop this off, since it’s on the way to the house.”

“Um,” Bell began nervously. “We’re uh, we’re delivering that to um, Croc, you said his name was?”

“I didn’t, but good deduction.” He nodded with a bit of praise, glad she was smart enough to piece that together on her own. “Though his name is pronounced slightly different, due to the way their native language works. Craw-k.”

“Okay, but um, didn’t you say this… Craw-k lives in the sewers?” Bell asked, looking a little ill.

“Fuck seriously.” Scarlet grimaced. “We’re not going to have to go wading through shit to get to this guy are we?”

“If you want you can head back to the house.” He offered with a shrug. “Like I said, the entrance to Crawk’s is close enough that you can make your way back on your own.” The teen gave him a mean glare and he continued before she could open her mouth. “Don’t worry I’ll be back the moment Nightwatch has something on Romulus, after all I still need to collect DeWolf before we go after him.”

Scarlet stared at him for a moment before huffing. “Better than going into a sewer.”

“I’m sure.” He agreed.

---

Luckily he didn’t actually have to go into the sewers to reach Crawk’s lair. (I mean really, who would willingly set up shop in a sewer?)

Instead what he had to do was make his way down to this abandoned subway station from back when the city had tried to set up an underground railway. Back before they realized that loading metal cars full of people and putting them underground was a very bad idea in a city full of crazies who had no problem attacking said cars.

(Too bad it took a couple hundred deaths for people to realize, but hey even if the city’s officials are a bit slow, they’re learning.) He scoffed, as he made his way through a barrier that it’d take super strength (or decent acrobatics) to get through.

On the more positive side of things however these tunnels went on to become the city’s primary homeless camps, giving them shelter from the elements while also keeping them out of sight of those that would attack them for being an eyesore. What’s more thanks to the subway system’s power and water still being connected to the city grids via a (totally unintentional accident that slipped through the paperwork while the managers may or may not have been being threatened for embezzling money) these camps still had a basic access to clean water and a minimal amount of power thanks to a large number of industrial strength cords and simple piping that someone anonymously set up while said homeless people were asleep.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“You know it’d be a lot easier for people to get in here if you didn’t leave the entrance blocked off all the time.” He noted like he did every single time he entered the shanty town of Sinner’s Way.

“And you know as well as I that if the gangs thought they could get in here they’d be harassing people constantly.” A large muscular man in an even bigger brown hoodie reminded him.

“Meh, I’ve got most of the gangs under control.” He argued dismissively. “Just got to remind the outsiders they’re not welcome every once in a while.”

“What about the cops?” The brownish-green man asked, crossing his arms with a bit of amusement.

“Touche.” He admitted with his own amusement, before clasping hands with the Amphibios. “Crawk.”

“Mercer.” Crawk greeted him back. “What brings you down here?”

“Had to stop by the Covenant Club for business.” He explained offering the package Baki had given him.

Crawk stared at the package for a moment before sighing and putting two bandaged fingers in his mouth to whistle as he accepted the package with his free hand.

After a moment a teenager in faded and baggy clothes came out from the nearby tunnels and Crawk handed them the package. “Split this between everyone, make sure they all get something to eat. Especially Margrett since she’s feeding… however many children humans have in a birthing.”

“Normally one, but twins are uncommon, and triplets rare.” He answered for the non-human.

“So fewer than my people.” Crawk nodded before once moresending the teenager off to divvy up the food.

“Out of curiosity are you actually going to eat any of the food Baki sends you? Because he is worried about you eating whatever poisons the river’s fish have in them.” He didn’t point out that even when he was homeless he wasn’t willing to even try for those fish. (And that’s only half because fishing takes longer than picking a pocket.)

“Let’s be real, those fish are dead and have been for longer than I’ve been here.” Crawk told him before shaking his head. “Safer to do a hench job for one of the stabler Masks than to try my luck with whatever lurks in those rivers these days.”

“Aren’t you from a world where your people hunt giant sea monsters?” He asked curiously.

“The stupid ones.” Crawk scoffed as he crossed his arms. “I don’t care how honorable it is to go on a hunt for something that kills half of its hunters, I’m not suicidal and smaller game is far less risky.”

“Fair enough.” He conceded, knowing that this was something people always gave him shit over back on the Amphibios homeworld.

Crawk sighed before running a hand down his face as he took a seat on a subway bench barely big enough for him. “You said you saw Baki? How’s he looking?”

“Good as ever.” He shrugged leaning against a wall. “Says he’s only ten grand from his goal with Covenant.”

Crawk sighed once more, not bothering to look at Mercer, “He ask you to try and get me to join up again?”

He shook his head. “Nah, think he realized I won’t help any of the gangs with their recruitment.”

“Except the henchman’s union?” The part-time goon asked with a wry grin.

“Except the henchman’s union.” He nodded, because if people had to be criminals they deserved medical care and an attorney when shit hit the fan. (Neither of which this city will give unless they bribe their way out.)

“Wish he saw they’re stringing him along.” Crawk admitted.

“They can get you two home.” He pointed out, more playing devil’s advocate than disagreeing.

“Maybe, but we’ve been here for how many years now? Three, four?” Crawk shook his head. “I get it’s different for him since he had a life back home, but me…”

There was a lot to be implied by that, but given what he knew he decided the most important thing was to assure the Traveler, “You’ve made something of yourself here.” Because honestly someone needed to, especially given how many people still gave the Amphibios shit for not being human during his henching jobs.

“Maybe but… If I tell him that… That I’m more fulfilled here than I was back home.” Crawk gave another sigh, this one far more tired. “I don’t know…”

He was silent for a moment. “You know he’s got enough money to send one of you back home now.”

“I figured…” The Traveler admitted with a grimace. “I know I’m a coward for not telling him I’d rather stay, but… Is it so bad I don’t want to lose him?”

“No, if anything I’d say it makes you more human, but…” He gestured at the Amphibios.

Crawk gave him an amused huff. “Asshole.”

They both fell to silence after that, Crawk contemplating his family issues, and him keeping quiet because he knew he had no right to tell anyone anything about avoiding their family.