‘Those f*cking Howlers and their f*cking Altered have ruined my f*cking plans!!! Just why the f*ck did they have to come here of all places?!’ Ben internally cursed the appearance of the gang for the umpteenth time as he stared at the pile of documents on his desk with hateful eyes. The paperwork was stacking up to his chin, because he had recently instructed his staff to bring everything that needed his approval directly to him.
It wasn’t a coincidence that had led Ben Clove to Slough. The politician had done his fair share of research before he had come to the decision to campaign in this particular Tier-3 town, and unlike what he had claimed during the election period, his true reasons were far less utilitarian.
The thing that had made Slough stand out among the dozens of other Tier-3 towns he could have chosen, had been the particularly delicate balance between its underworld. The signs had been there that the two big gangs that controlled most of the town would clash in the foreseeable future, and he had intended to be there to reap the benefits when it happened.
Of course, he would have been unable to do it on his own, but, fortunately, he wasn’t the only one was interested in biding his time. The five small-time gangs had long since held gatherings to decide on a common course of action to not offend the big gangs, keenly aware that their continued existence was tied to staying off the radar.
At one of those meetings, Ben Clove had introduced himself to the gang leaders and using his charisma and glib tongue he had managed to win them over. In time, they had helped him win the mayorship, some directly, others indirectly, and all of them had waited for the inevitable falling out between Damion and Brandon…
Unfortunately, the outcome had turned out drastically different from anything they could have foreseen, leading them to a situation far worse than before. Instead of enjoying full control over Slough, the mayor was currently doing all he could to hinder the Howlers’ growth.
‘I can’t allow them to expand their influence any further. According to D, the other gang leaders are starting to complain more and more openly about this alliance. If I don’t do anything soon, some of them might consider deserting.’ Ben Clove thought as he picked up the telephone by his side and started to dial a few numbers to set up a group call to inform the alliance about the location for their next meeting. It was a place he would never go to if circumstances hadn’t demanded it.
——
Tier-4 towns had a nasty reputation of being cesspools of filth, housing factories that caused mass pollution. The people who lived there had fallen so low, leaving them with nothing else to lose. Nevertheless, those well-off considered them a ‘necessary evil', producing many things the Tier-2 and Tier-1 cities required to run.
Admittedly, aside from the worker areas, the living districts weren’t as bad to look at. The same couldn’t be said about the people, though. The population could roughly be divided into those who tried to live by doing the only honest work they could get, and those who wanted to get rich or die trying, with the latter not being a rare occurrence.
After all, there was something dangerous about those that lived in a Tier-4 town, painfully aware that they were practically the drags of society. Given how crazy and hectic the constant fighting and power struggles tended to be, the ones in charge rarely got to enjoy that privilege for long.
The top floor of this town’s highest building was a fancy restaurant with red and gold theme. In the centre there was a large round table set up, surrounded by a group of outsiders who had secretly travelled here.
“Gentlemen, let me thank you all for meeting me here. I understand that it must be out of your comfort zone, but I assure you this should be the only time.” The mayor said as he raised a glass of champagne to the present gang leaders.
With him in the room was Tony from the Block gang. The gang leader was sitting at the table while two of his gang members stood behind him. Opposite him were the three Red Blood Triangle brothers, the oldest brother was the one sitting, while his two younger brothers acted as guards.
To the right of the mayor was D, leader of the Raising Dragon, while to the left of him was ‘Little Dragon’, a gang headed by D’s little brother who had recently taken over leadership of the Hook gang before rebranding.
“Let’s cut the bull and get to the chase.” Tony yelled, as he slammed his glass onto the table, causing it to smash. “I don’t want to stay here a second longer than I have to! Heck, the fact that we have to hide from them is already saying everything that needs to be said about the current situation, don’t you think so, Mr Mayor?!
“More and more of my men are either leaving me to work for the Howlers, or are at least thinking about doing that soon. I have no idea what their leader is thinking, but his jacka*s way of doing angel-like business is making all of us lose money. I’m only afraid that if things continue the way they are, we’ll go out of business before they do.”
All of those around the room agreed as they nodded their heads in unison.
“Well, Mr Block, today's topic just so happened to be strictly about the Howlers and our next course of action to get rid of them once and for all.” Ben replied with a smile, not caring the least about the gang leader’s tantrum.
——
Outside the restaurant establishment, the currently strongest gang had been paid a handsome commission by the mayor to ensure that nobody would disturb that meeting. Aware that they lacked the manpower to offend their guests, their gang leader had happily agreed to lend out his men to show off his muscle.
“Hey, check the list. I’m pretty sure, we’ve already let in all the VIPs today.” A gang member who stood in front of the door as a sort of bouncer asked his buddy who had the list.
“Yup, everyone is accounted for. Well, you heard the boss, let’s give those masked freaks a beating.” The other answered, happy that this evening was about to get fun.
“Looks, like they sent over the welcoming committee. Let’s crash this little event of theirs, and move on.” A teenager in a fox-like black and gold mask said to the ones next to him.
*****
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If you guys didn't know, I and owner Jin started Shrine, trying to create a platform for Western artists to create content in the Manga style.
We have launched our first Kickstarter which allows access to a physical volume book with all Shrine series first chapters. Which includes a physical version of the first chapter of My Werewolf System.
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