‘What the actually frag! That thing back there’s packed with enough firepower an’ drugs t’ buy… a lot’ve stuff! I’m not dumb right? Those are grenade launchers back there aint they?’.
‘Yeah. Fully automatic ones by the looks of it’.
His response was flat and without emotion. Pedro had wanted something to take his mind off of Kay; the phrase “be careful what you wish for” was ringing through his head. What they had in their possession wasn’t simply weapons and drugs; most people in Redmond had some of one or the other on them at any given time, usually both. What Kenda and Pedro had was some of the most high-end examples of the products that were available in the entirety of the Seattle metroplex. Things that could attract the attention of powerful people withing the Redmond barrens and beyond. Things people would kill to get a hold of themselves.
‘We gotta move this stuff an’ fast. Anyone finds out we got this an’ we’re gonna have every ganger in Seattle gunnin’ f’r us. Frag! Why’d the Nitro Mizuchi even have that just lyin’ ‘bout? Thought they were just a buncha car thieves an’ muscle f’r hire. This kinda gear? Y’ could fund a gang with this stuff f’r years’.
‘Maybe that was their plan? The Nitro Mizuchi were looking to expand into Redmond seriously and were bringing out the big guns to show they meant business? Maybe this was something they were smuggling in from out’ve town to the main chapter? Frag, maybe they just stole it from somebody and didn’t realise what they had’.
The idea that there could be someone, some force out there actively looking for the SUV and its contents sent a small shiver down Pedro’s spine. Anyone with the sort of resources to have all of “that” simply lying in a SUV would easily be capable of hunting down and raining devastation upon whomsoever raised their ire. They might even hire shadowrunners to chase them down.
‘Na, doubt this came from outside the gang. The SUV’s ‘lready in their colours; there’s no way they’d paint a stolen ride in their colours without checkin’ what was in it first. An’ the ownerships been wiped off the system too, that takes time, ‘nough f’r them t’ know what was in it. Might’ve been the gang got it smuggled in an’ were shippin’ it t’ the main chapter like y’ said, but I dunno. Y’d think they’d wanna get this stuff fast, like as soon as they loaded it int’ the SUV they’d be drivin’ off with it. An’ if the Nitro Mizuchi were makin’ a play f’r a bigger slice’ve Redmond why didn’t they have more’ve their gang there. We both saw that video. Was loads’ve fraggers from Renton commin’ down f’r backup. Why weren’t they ‘lready hear?’.
All fair points, none of which Pedro had conclusive answers for. He shrugged to himself.
‘It doesn’t matter where the Nitro Mizuchi got it from, not so long as we get rid of it fast enough. Once word gets around that their place is a burning crater anyone who knew about it will assume that it went up in flame as well. And if we sell the Psyche and the grenade launchers along with the grenades separate from each other we should be able to avoid anyone connecting the dots. Hopefully’.
‘Chuck can help me sell the SUV, either together or in parts. But that kinda gear? I got nothin’. How ‘bout y’?’.
He had been prepared to say that he didn’t know anyone, but his mouth hung open as his mind ran at a hundred miles an hour. Ideas and options flashed though his head. A hint of a smile began to form on his face.
‘I… Might have a couple leads yeah’.
‘For real? Who?’.
‘Already met one today. Sophia’.
‘Uh, y’ sure ‘bout that? Y’ didn’t leave on the best’ve terms back there’.
‘Sophia… She’s hear me out. At least when she hears about the Psyche. With that kind’ve profit on the table she won’t turn it down. If nothing else, she’ll want it to make sure none of the other local talismongers wind up with it’.
‘But… y’ sure she’ll be able t’ move that kinda product? Her shop didn’t look like a drug dealer place t’ me. More a kitschy touristy kinda deal’.
‘It’s a cover and helps pad her wallet. Real spellcasters know her as a reliable supplier, and trust me, when word gets out in the magical community that she’s got a line on some Psyche she’s going to get plenty of people lining up for it. Its main benefit is to spellcasters remember, it’s a specialist drug, and she’s a well know procurer of magical goods. She’ll be able to sell it’.
Kenda shrugged.
‘Well, I don’t got no better ideas so why not. What ‘bout the grenades an’ the launchers though. Doubt she can move them’.
Pedro smiled.
‘No, that’s not her market. But I do know somebody who’s going to be very interested in high grade weaponry. Remember my buddy Migel? The one who asked about and found out the name of the Nitro Mizuchi? The one who’s a part of the Charred Tigers? The gang which is in the middle of a gang war right now?’.
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‘Oh? Ohh. Yeah, they’d definitely be interested in what we got. But… you sure ‘bout this? Sellin’ a buncha grenade launchers t’ a gang I mean? Y’ know they’re gonna use them t’ finish off their war. Lotta people’ll end up dead. Y’ ok with that?’.
The smile on Pedro’s face faded. She was right. He’d be helping out Migel, maybe even saving his life by giving the Charred Tigers the means to end their gang war before it cost him his life. But he’d be ensuring that a lot of other gangers died as well in the meantime. Plus, he had no clue what the long-term ramifications of arming the Charred Tigers with such powerful weapons would be. Pedro might wind up turning them into something that would be a greater problem than the Nitro Mizuchi could have ever been with them. He sat in the oversized passenger seat in silent contemplation over what Kenda had said. After a few minutes Pedro turned to Kenda.
‘Migel… He’s had my back for a long time. He helped me out today when he really didn’t need to, when he should’ve been looking out for himself. I want to do right by him. And the Charred Tigers are alright as far as gangs in the barrens go; they deal some softer drugs, sell some stolen goods they get, and do actual protection for their neighbourhood… But you’ve got a point. We sell all of that to them and things’ll just escalate more. Other gangs or bigger syndicates will move in to steal them from the Charred Tigers, maybe simply to deal with what they see as an upstart problem. And if they don’t? Well, you know how they say if you’ve a good enough hammer every problem starts to look like a nail? Charred Tigers would have some real nice hammers and plenty of nails around them’.
‘So. What d’ y’ wanna do then?’.
‘… I think… We sell one launcher to the Charred Tigers and one duffle bag of grenades. That’d be plenty to take out whoever it is their fightin’, or at least scare them off their turf. The rest of the stuff… I guess the only person I know about that might be interested in it would be Vega’.
‘The Urban Brawl arena guy? He deals in guns?’.
‘He has some available for rent at the arena. But I’ve heard some of the other guys there mention that he can put you in touch with a real arms dealer if you need one. I’ve never needed to ask because…’, Wilde manipulated some mana and created a small orange flame which danced between his fingertips before fluttering out of existence. ‘You know’.
‘An’ y’ think he can be trusted?’.
‘Not as much as Migel. Maybe as much as Sophia? We’ll need to let him know what we’re trying to move. No point in getting his help only to be sent to a crummy pawnshop. He’d want a cut of the sale, an introduction fee for his help, but it’d probably make him more inclined to help us sell them. More money we make, more money he gets’.
‘So, we have a plan then. Sell the Psyche to Sophia. Sell one bag of grenades along with one launcher to the Charred Tigers. Sell the rest of it through Vega. You alright with this?’.
She looked down at him with a serious expression, serious, but not severe.
‘Like I said, I know Chuck can move the SUV, but everythin’ else? I got nothin’. So, I’ll trust y’ t’ handle it. I don’t think y’r gonna try an’ scam me or anythin’ so let’s just get it done fast. Havin’ all this expensive stuff sittin’ behind me feels… weird. Like when I was guardin’ smugglers, we tried t’ move that dreck fast as we could. Longer it was with us the better the odds were we’d get caught with it’.
‘Alright. I’ll call up Migel now and see if he’s good to talk’.
Pulling his aging commlink out of his jacket pocket Pedro hit the call button for Migel and lit it ring. It rang and rang until it timed out, mildly inconvenient, but not unexpected with what Pedro understood about his situation. He hoped his friend was alright. Wilde decided to settle with a quick text message to see if the Charred Tigers were able to buy the grenades and launcher. There wasn’t much point in offering if they didn’t have the nuyen for it.
‘Hey man, thanks again for the assist. I appreciate it I do. I also might have a line on some heavy-duty firepower for you guys. A big bag of grenades just fell into my lap that I’m looking to sell, and I figured the Charred Tigers might have some idea about how to use them. I’ve got something extra to go along with it as well if you’d be interested, but it’d be better to talk about it in person. Hit me up when you can and keep your head down. Talk to you later’.
Wilde had just opened his mouth to let Kenda know the message was sent when his commlink chirped with a reply.
‘Frag man you serious!? Yeah we’ll take ‘em! Red Bishops are kickin’ our hoops right now, we need everythin’ we can get! How’s Kay by the way? You find her?’.
He took a sharp inhale of breath. Pedro didn’t want to talk about Kay, didn’t want to think about her. But he was going to have to at some point, and Migel had gone out of his way to help him find her. Out of everyone he deserved to know about what had happened, at least to an extent.
‘Found her. She’s safe. We broke up though. We’ll talk about it later’.
Chirp.
‘Frag. Sorry to hear about that’.
Chirp.
‘Don’t mean to be too heartless about it but… when could we expect those grenades? We could kinda do with them soon as.
‘You got a safe place and a time?’.
No response.
As seconds turned to minutes Wilde started to worry that Migel had been messaging him in a place that wasn’t secure, or the Red Bishops had some means of cutting matrix signals. Another chirp from his commlink calmed his fears.
‘Four hours’ time, the empty lot next to the Tarnished Gold in Touristville. Can you be there with the stuff by then?’.
He could be there in five minutes from where they were, but this would give him and Kenda some time to see about selling the rest of their spoils to Sophia and Vega.
‘No problem. See you there’.
Chirp.
‘BTW, don’t suppose you or anyone you know would be willin’ to give us an assist against the Red Bishops? Like I said, it’s a all hands on deck kinda deal right now. We’d be willin’ to pay’.
‘Hey Kenda. You up for takin’ some pot shots at more gangers once we sell the stuff? Charred Tigers are hiring’.
‘Ugh. I kinda wanna get some shut eye t’night… If we can get away with a nights sleep I’d be down t’ giv’em some help tomorrow though’.
His own aching body cried out for rest as well. In his present state he wasn’t going to be much help to anyone either.
‘I’ve had a dreckstorm of a day, I kind’ve need to recover from. Could help out tomorrow though. I’ve got one other person that can help out too’.
Chirp.
‘You trust them?’.
‘Completely’.
Pedro hadn’t even given his response any thought. It was entirely truthful though. A day before, he would have rather been anywhere else rather than next to Kenda in her old pickup. Now he was prepared to brave a gang war with her at his side. He had lost the love of his life, but he’d found a friend. Not the best trade in the world perhaps, but as far as life in the Redmond barrens went it was as good as it got.