Re: The Vivacious Deadlock: S3G6: Round One: Genreshift
09-11-2011, 06:42 PM
Originally posted on MSPA by Pick Yer Poison.
It was the perfect crime.
Klendel crouched catlike on the gargoyle statue, his dark skin and black clothing blending perfectly into the dark skyline. The wind buffeted him and the rain drenched him, but his grip was too strong to break and he didn't care about the water. He allowed a ghastly grin to force itself out onto his face. He had, in record time for him, set up most of the mafia gangs in the city to turn on each other at a moment's notice. Rivalries would flare up and alliances would snag on each other. For every gang that entered the fight, two more would be pulled in to defend or support their allies. It was an impressive setup given the amount of time he'd had to put it together.
He looked down on the unsuspecting city and couldn't help but chuckle darkly. It really was the perfect crime. He had no interest in ruling after the gangs had finished each other off, he didn't particularly care if the city was destroyed, he wanted no monetary reimbursement - as far as anyone could tell, he gained nothing from it, so he would never be suspected. But by destroying what was essentially the city's would-be rulers, he ensured that its people would never be subjected to the tyranny they would face otherwise. No matter how many died in the chaos that it took to free the city, it would all be worth it in the end.
But until then, it was necessary to disguise his activities, which meant becoming a criminal. Only after they were free would the people of the city recognize the great boon he had granted them, for they were foolish and thought they knew best, thought that the shadows on the cave wall were reality. But he had seen the Star that granted them all freedom, and...
He shook his head. He was ranting to himself again, something he thought he'd stopped long ago. Evidently not. He gazed down to the city below again, wondering if any of its inhabitants had any idea what was in store for them.
The word on the left, money, was crossed out. At first Northwind had assumed his target was hired by some other gang to set it up, but he was rapidly running out of gangs that weren't being set up and were capable of paying for an operation of this magnitude.
The word next to it, revenge, was not crossed out, but it might as well have been. Nobody could have been wronged by every one of these gangs. It simply wasn't possible. At least, Northwind was pretty sure it wasn't possible, given that there were more gangs in the city than he had toes. Anyone who had crossed that many gangs would certainly be a notable figure, and would've had a good deal more trouble getting into the confidence of the gang leaders. After a moment of consideration, Northwind crossed out revenge as well.
Which left two words - love and insanity. Love was unlikely, but possible. One hell of a romance, that's for sure, Northwind thought with a chuckle. He thought insanity was much more likely. No one in their right mind would be doing this. He circled insanity as the most likely option and closed his notepad, placing it and his pencil in an inner pocket in his trenchcoat, pulling his hat lower over his head as he stepped out from under the overhang and into the pouring rain. Unusual for this time of year, but he had bigger things to worry about. There was a criminal mastermind on the loose.
A flash of lightning, followed shortly afterwards by a burst of thunder, punctuated his thoughts.
It was the perfect crime.
Klendel crouched catlike on the gargoyle statue, his dark skin and black clothing blending perfectly into the dark skyline. The wind buffeted him and the rain drenched him, but his grip was too strong to break and he didn't care about the water. He allowed a ghastly grin to force itself out onto his face. He had, in record time for him, set up most of the mafia gangs in the city to turn on each other at a moment's notice. Rivalries would flare up and alliances would snag on each other. For every gang that entered the fight, two more would be pulled in to defend or support their allies. It was an impressive setup given the amount of time he'd had to put it together.
He looked down on the unsuspecting city and couldn't help but chuckle darkly. It really was the perfect crime. He had no interest in ruling after the gangs had finished each other off, he didn't particularly care if the city was destroyed, he wanted no monetary reimbursement - as far as anyone could tell, he gained nothing from it, so he would never be suspected. But by destroying what was essentially the city's would-be rulers, he ensured that its people would never be subjected to the tyranny they would face otherwise. No matter how many died in the chaos that it took to free the city, it would all be worth it in the end.
But until then, it was necessary to disguise his activities, which meant becoming a criminal. Only after they were free would the people of the city recognize the great boon he had granted them, for they were foolish and thought they knew best, thought that the shadows on the cave wall were reality. But he had seen the Star that granted them all freedom, and...
He shook his head. He was ranting to himself again, something he thought he'd stopped long ago. Evidently not. He gazed down to the city below again, wondering if any of its inhabitants had any idea what was in store for them.
---
"He's close, I can tell," Detective Northwind muttered to himself. He'd been on the trail of this shadowy figure for only a couple of days, but he was astounded by what his target had managed to accomplish in just that short span of time. He didn't have the whole picture, but he was pretty sure that the villain had somehow managed to set the stage for a major gang war. That was clearly the objective, but...Northwind furrowed his brow. Something was troubling him. He couldn't figure out why his target was setting this whole thing up. He pull out his notepad and flipped a few pages in until he found the set of notes he was looking for. A few words were spread across the page, with various explanations and contradictions written around them. The word on the left, money, was crossed out. At first Northwind had assumed his target was hired by some other gang to set it up, but he was rapidly running out of gangs that weren't being set up and were capable of paying for an operation of this magnitude.
The word next to it, revenge, was not crossed out, but it might as well have been. Nobody could have been wronged by every one of these gangs. It simply wasn't possible. At least, Northwind was pretty sure it wasn't possible, given that there were more gangs in the city than he had toes. Anyone who had crossed that many gangs would certainly be a notable figure, and would've had a good deal more trouble getting into the confidence of the gang leaders. After a moment of consideration, Northwind crossed out revenge as well.
Which left two words - love and insanity. Love was unlikely, but possible. One hell of a romance, that's for sure, Northwind thought with a chuckle. He thought insanity was much more likely. No one in their right mind would be doing this. He circled insanity as the most likely option and closed his notepad, placing it and his pencil in an inner pocket in his trenchcoat, pulling his hat lower over his head as he stepped out from under the overhang and into the pouring rain. Unusual for this time of year, but he had bigger things to worry about. There was a criminal mastermind on the loose.
A flash of lightning, followed shortly afterwards by a burst of thunder, punctuated his thoughts.
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