When both Darius and Jett heard Skull speak those words, they looked right into his eyes, and the air around the table seemed to drop several degrees. Skull didn’t possess the typical, heavy pressure that one might expect from a standard gang leader or a corporate shark. No, when they looked into his single good eye, both Jett and Darius felt the exact same thing. These were the eyes of a crazy person, a man for whom nothing was too far, and no act was off-limits. It was the gaze of a predator that didn’t just want to win, but wanted to tear the world apart to see how it worked.
"Your student..." Darius began, his voice steady despite the tension. "Was he part of the Black Hounds? We weren’t aware that the Gilt Rats had people placed directly in our ranks."
"HA!" Skull laughed harshly, the sound like dry leaves skittering across pavement. He relaxed back into his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. "I guess you fools didn’t know the full extent of the arrangement. One of the people from the Gilt Rats was sent over specifically to test some of our newest equipment and field-test some ’stuff’ at your venues. He was supposed to be gathering data under pressure. And instead, he ended up being killed."
Although this information came as a massive surprise to both Darius and Jett, they quickly realized that this might actually work in their favor. It gave the Gilt Rats a personal, visceral reason to get involved in the conflict. The Black Hounds were still powerful, and normally, Darius and Jett would have no issue taking on a rival group themselves. However, there were two underlying issues that made this situation different.
For one, Darius had realized that the Bloodline group had a massive amount of money at their disposal. In their world, money meant connections, influence, and specialized equipment, resources that the Black Hounds were currently struggling to match. Every time one of their venues was hit or destroyed, it took a chunk out of their bottom line. The people who worked for them needed to be paid to maintain their loyalty, and with their revenue streams being cut off one by one, the Black Hounds were entering a dangerous period of financial struggle.
The second reason was more personal. Darius didn’t just want to push the Bloodline group out of his territory; he wanted to completely destroy them. Because they were up against a group with such a massive corporate influence in the VC world, he knew he had to follow their prior agreement and consult the Gilt Rats before taking any drastic action on his own. That was the whole reason they were sitting in this garden.
"He wasn’t just killed, though. I went to the scene myself," Skull continued, his tone turning clinical. "I had a look at the state of his body. That wasn’t some ordinary brawl. That seemed to be the work of a professional. Although my student was a failure in the grand scheme of the program, he was still incredibly skilled. He was skilled enough to beat up any of you guys, I would have thought, especially with the specialized equipment this guy has been cooking up."
Skull pointed a thumb toward Roman, the old researcher. "So my question to you is: who exactly did you guys annoy? Because that’s what really got me interested."
"The Billion Bloodline Group," Darius answered immediately. "They are a VC company that specializes in investing in startups. Jett here was the one who first got involved with them when he took on a particular job involving their CEO. They have money, that’s for sure. We assumed they hired professional mercenaries or specialized hits, which would explain how they managed to escape the venue the other day."
"You’re an idiot," Roman interrupted, his voice sharp and full of disdain. "Did neither of you try to do any actual research? Did you know that in the same area where the Billion Group operates, there is also a rising gang called the Bloodline?"
Both Jett and Darius looked at each other for a moment, the realization starting to sink in.
"We knew about them," Darius said. "The Bloodline gang were the ones who beat the Rejected Corps when they were working for us. They also took over the Chalkline Boys. But we haven’t had any direct issues with them recently, and they seemed to have stayed within their own territory."
"That’s why I called you idiots," Roman snapped. "From what you told me earlier, wasn’t the head of the Billion Group rather young? I did some searching and asked our own members. They said the group that attacked the venues when Jett had his issue were all rather young. Most of them looked like they should be in high school. The Bloodline gang is also composed almost entirely of high schoolers."
Roman slammed a hand on the table. "And if you actually look into the property records, the gyms in their territory, the places where their members hang around in uniform, are clearly owned by that same Billion Bloodline VC group!"
There was almost a physical sense of anger vibrating in Roman’s voice.
"It’s quite clear. Someone with a massive amount of money is either backing the Bloodline gang, or they are one and the same, creating an organization that doesn’t follow the typical rules! They are using the corporate side to fund the street side and the street side to enforce the corporate side. The two are the same entity. This isn’t just some simple investment group, and it isn’t just some simple street gang. If we put these two things together, you could even say they have the same power or level as a Syndicate!"
"Well, I think that’s going a bit far," Skull said, playing with the edge of his eyepatch. "You might be right in terms of their influence, Roman, but in terms of actual fighting power, I would have to disagree. Otherwise, our ’Big Grab’ person would have never been able to just walk in and pull that woman out of their territory, right? And Jett, didn’t you say you already went up against nearly all of them when they tried to move against you before?"
"I did," Jett replied, his mind flashing back to the fight. "Although I never went up against their boss directly, the skills of his subordinates were surprising, to say the least. I could still take them out, but I will say one thing: all of them have drastically improved in a very short amount of time. Their growth rate is unnatural."
Roman stood up from the table, his white coat fluttering in the sea breeze.
"Well, as of now, we need to consider the two groups as the same threat. Recently, the Billion Bloodline Group has invested in a project that touches on my own research interests, it’s stepping on my toes. I guess we need to get rid of them once and for all. And we will do so with our full force."