This is it, the special preview issue of Arkane Heights, introducing some of the major Non Player Characters and giving some background on the game World. For those of you who’s applications have been accepted, now’s the time to start thinking about how your character can fit into this. Who can they interact with, what plots can they be involved in? Or maybe you want to create a new story strand of your own. For those of you who haven’t applied yet – hurry! Places are filling up fast! For details of how to apply and how to play, see last week’s Arkane Heights column, and thanks for all the highly positive feedback so far!
Arkane Heights Police Department
“ULTRO DEAD!!!”
“Tragedy on 22nd Boulevard!”
“World’s Greatest Hero…slain.”
Officer Atkins sighed as he glanced at the morning’s headlines, before tossing the stack of newspapers onto the desk in front of him. He looked down at the Police Chief, and raised a bushy eyebrow.
“This is a real mess.” Atkins said. “I’ve been living and working in Arkane my whole life, and I ain’t never seen anything like this. Heck of a way to start your first day in charge, Sir.”
Chief Myers leaned back in his chair, and studied the thickset man standing in front of him. He pondered in silence for a few seconds, before smiling slightly.
“Treat me as if I’m stupid.” Myers said softly.
“Excuse me?” asked Atkins.
“Treat me as if I’m stupid,” Myers repeated. “I’ve had enough time before this transfer to study, but, just to be on the safe side – treat me as if I’m stupid. Start at the beginning, and tell me everything – who people are, why they do what they do, who they do it for. In fact, start by telling me who Ultro worked with, and who killed him.”
“With all due respect Sir,” Atkins replied, “The crime reports are to your left, the newspapers are in front of you, and the Officers who attended the scene are a radio signal away. You don’t need my take on any of this…”
“Atkins, you’ve lived in Arkane your whole life, right? You know more about this City than either me – or very possibly any other Police Officer – ever could. If I want hyperbole, I’ll pick up a paper. If I want forensics, I’ll pick up the report, and if I want random speculation at this moment in time, I’ll call in another Officer. Right now, though, what I want is a considered opinion. I want your opinion. These are your streets; they’re your people. So, one last time – treat me as if I’m stupid. Tell me everything you know.”
Il Nostra
Two streets away, inside the restaurant as “Il Nostra”, Luigi Carbone whistled quietly to himself as he prepared another fresh helping of dough, ready for the lunchtime rush. Two patrons sitting at a table by the door finished their meal, paid, and quietly made their way out with any further preamble. Nobody noticed the bag that the duo left under their table.
The Private Offices of Kortez Da La Vega
Kortez was a slim man, with a pointed nose and unruly red hair that sprouted in all directions. He knew he wasn’t handsome by almost any stretch of the imagination, and the only reason he ever attracted female company was by dent of his power and position. He didn’t care, though – as far as he was concerned, his position of power within Arkane’s Underworld came with certain privileges that were there to be enjoyed.
Tonight, however, had not been a good night. He had not had the time to seek out female company, or enjoy a glass or two of wine, or indeed relax at all. A report from one of his lieutenants confirmed suspicions that had been growing for several weeks, and that confirmation had filled him with a cool, calm anger.
Kortez had been betrayed.
He took a seat in a plush leather armchair, and drummed his long, thin fingers on the arm as he waited. Finally, he reached over to his left, and drained the last of his glass of wine, before pressing a button on his phone.
“Send him in,” He said in a soft, almost feminine voice. “And tell him to bring in a bottle of the ’65 red.”
Seconds later, a small man walked into the room, wearing a crumpled dark grey suit, his balding head bowed, sheen of sweat across his furrowed brow.
“M,m,m,Mr Kortez,” he said in a high pitched voice, “So, so good to see you.”
“Hmmm.” Kortez replied, gesturing to the opposite chair. “Sit, Merini.”
Merini nodded, his head bobbing up and down furiously, and fell down into the seat, placing the bottle of wine on the table, before sitting quietly, wringing his hands.
Kortez remained in silence for a time, drumming his stick like fingers on the table, his gaze never leaving Merini’s face.
“How long have you worked for me?” He asked eventually.
“Six years, Mr Kortez.”
“Hmmmm.” Kortez nodded. “Have I ever done you wrong?”
“Sorry Sir? No, no – of course not.” Merini was shaking his head so vigorously he seemed in danger of snapping his thin neck.
“Indeed.” Kortez replied. “Have I ever let you down, or failed to keep my word? Don’t bother to reply – we both know the answer. Ever since I employed you Merini, I have always made sure you and yours were safe, warm and comfortable.” He stood up, and began to pace around the room. “You have never wanted for money, or health care. You have never had to wonder where your next dollar or meal was coming from. You have never had to beg, or grovel to me for anything – you merely had to ask, and it was yours.”
“M,m,m,Mr Kortez,” Merini protested quietly. “May I ask…what is this about?”
“You may not ask for anything anymore, Merini.” Kortez replied, shaking his head. “You may beg and plead if you wish, but it won’t do you any good. No good at all. Open the wine, my friend, there’s a good chap.”
Merini nodded, and uncorked the bottle of wine, pouring a large glass for his boss. “Sir, I…” he began.
“Sssssh.” Kortez smiled. “I’m not an angry man, as you know Merini. Joshua is the man with the temper in this City. I am like ice to his fire, ying to his yang. Where Joshua is known for his changes of mood and unpredictable behaviour, I am a calm, placid person.”
“I know this, Sir. You are a good man – a wonderful man.”
“Yes, you may grovel as well, Merini, but again – it will do you no good at all.” Kortez stood behind Merini, and placed a hand on his shoulder. “How much is Joshua paying you?” he asked.
“What?! Sir, I…”
“Don’t test me, Merini.” Kortez warned. “I DO have a temper, you know. It’s just that I don’t easily lose it. I can lose it, however…if provoked enough.”
“Sir, please…”
“I know the truth, Merini. I’ve had you watched and followed for weeks, making sure that there could be no doubt – I would hate to have lost you and later found out I had acted in haste.” Kortez walked back to the front of the small man, and smiled calmly. “Tonight, at six o’clock, Joshua’s men hit a convoy of trucks, thinking that they contained contraband. They were wrong. The trucks were empty except for a group of my men, armed to the teeth and equipped with instructions to leave no-one alive.”
AHPD
Atkins sat down, and frowned, thinking. “Alright, so you want to know about Ultro? Well, he’s a founder member and leader of The Crusaders.”
“Who are they?”
“Sorry? Are you telling me you’ve never heard of…”
“Treat me as if I’m stupid – remember? I want to hear everything you have to say about everything.”
“Right, right.” Atkins fumbled around in his back pocket for cigarettes. “You mind if I…?”
“It’s a non-smoking Precinct, Atkins…”
“Yeah, well, I just feel like a draw, you know?”
“Sorry, no. Continue.”
Atkins muttered under his breath, and took his hand out of his pockets. “Godamn rules and regs, it’s not like it used to be…”
“Continue. Please.” Myers shot back.
“Where was I? Oh, yeah. The Crusaders. Best-known Super-Hero team in the World, the Dallas Cowboys of Super-Hero’s, and it’s been Arkane’s good luck to have them based right here for the past twenty years. Ultro put the group together to combat the threat of Lycan, a mutant madman who went on a killing spree.”
“A whole group to take down one man?” Myers asked, steepling his fingers in front of his face.
“Lycan wasn’t an ordinary man.” Atkins continued, warming to his theme and leaning forwards. “He was half-wolf, about six and a half foot tall, and no matter what you did to him – shot him, hit him, stabbed him – he kept on coming. He went on a rampage that lasted three whole days, murdered some three hundred and sixty people – there was talk about evacuating the whole City.”
“So then what?”
“Well, like I said, Ultro popped up alongside some others. It was incredible, I mean, truly incredible. Ultro had already had a go at Lycan over the past few days, but although he had no trouble putting him down, he couldn’t keep him down – so that’s why he called in the reinforcements.”
“Who were they?” Myers asked, “The original group.”
“Ummm, lemme see…it was Ultro, of course. And then there was Dr. Darkness, Spinz, PowerHouse, Brix, Wildside and Inferno. They were a heck of a team, Sir. It took them the best part of an hour to take Lycan out. They ended up entombing him in concrete and burying him in the grounds of Arkane prison.”
“They killed him?”
“Nobody knows for sure,” Atkins replied, shaking his head. “Most people doubt it was even possible to kill Lycan. All anybody knows for sure is that Lycan is trapped a long, looong way underground, and alive or dead – he ain’t never coming up again.”
“Fair enough.” Myers replied. He stood up, and walked over to the window. “What happened next?”
Il Nostra
Antonio Rossi, “Il Nostra”‘s head waiter, noticed the bag under the table as he was clearing up. He dashed outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of the duo who had been there a few minutes before, but they were long since gone. With a sigh, he walked back in, and bent down to retrieve the bag from where it was hidden. He grunted as he lifted it, surprised at how heavy it was. A part of him grew suspicious, but he shrugged it off, telling himself that he was just paranoid.
The Private Offices of Kortez De La Vega
The Crime Lord sat down, and took the glass of wine in his hand, taking a long swallow.
“Ah,” he smiled, “A wonderful vintage.” Placing the glass back on the table, he stared at Merini for a time. “The only man who had access to the information that there would be contraband worth trying to hijack was you, Merini. You were the only person informed of the drop, the only person who could have informed Joshua of the opportunity to score points against me. I am dismayed and disappointed, old friend. After the wonderful way I have treated you and your family, you have taken Joshua’s money and sold me out. You have betrayed me, Judas. You have taken your thirty pieces of silver from Joshua and betrayed me.”
“I….I didn’t…”
“I know you didn’t.” Kortez replied, waggling a spindly finger. “You didn’t do many things – you didn’t think, you didn’t stay loyal, you didn’t say no when you should have. What you DID do was take dirty money to help Joshua break the truce.”
“Sir, my Mother is unwell, I needed more money for her bills, and I was too scared to ask.” Merini stammered quickly. “And my gambling debts, they are out of control…”
“Hmmm”. Kortez nodded. “I am aware of these facts. I’ve never refused you anything, have I? Hmmm? Nothing. If you had come to me, and just asked, I would have given you all the money you needed, and done so gladly. Still, you don’t have to worry about those problems anymore. They are being taken care of.”
“Really?” Merini asked, leaning forward, a slight smile on his face.
“Yes.” Kortez replied, smiling in return. He stood up again. “As we speak, a select few of my men are ending your Mother’s suffering; in fact, they are ending the suffering of the rest of your family, as well. I imagine the suffering won’t end very quickly – I imagine the suffering will go on for some time before it finally stops…especially as I ordered it to.”
“No!” Merini squeaked, a sob breaking in his throat. “Please, no…”
“You’ve left me with no choice.” Kortez shrugged, “I can’t allow this to go unanswered – people need to know the cost of betraying me.”
AHPD
“Well,” Atkins continued, “The group stayed together. They got funding and built a headquarters, gave themselves a name “The Crusaders”, and announced they had decided they could do more good as a unit than as separate entities. They also said they were making Arkane their permanent home. Things was good for a while, they managed to keep the streets safe – despite the threats from people like Fice, Mordan, Elementor and so on. Cracks appeared, though – Spinz was the group’s resident hottie, and rumour had it that both Ultro and Dr. Darkness were in love with her. There was some sort of big fall out, and Darkness quit the group – ain’t nobody seen him since.”
“Nobody?” Myers asked. “Seems strange that one of the World’s best known Super-Hero’s could just vanish without a trace.”
“I’ve often thought that myself Sir.” Atkins nodded. “But like I say – nobody’s seen him since. Then, one day, the big bad guys all got together in one group. Seems that they’d decided The Crusaders had to be removed from the picture, so they tried to take them the group out all once. Damn near succeeded, too. Ultro and Spinz managed to save the day, but Inferno and PowerHouse were killed. Looked like the group was really done for – they seemed to be splitting up for good, but Ultro went on a recruitment drive.”
“And that leads us to the current team?” Myers asked, sitting back down.
“Exactly. Turbo, Grav, Quill, Empathy and PoleAx; plus the originals, Spinz and Brix, of course. Oh, and Ultro…until last night.” Atkins sighed. “Hell of a thing to happen…some people, they just seem invincible, you know? You can’t imagine anything stopping them…”
“Okay, so, continuing on the same theme,” Myers said. “Tell me about last night…”
“These things calling themselves ‘Shadders’, they’ve been running about the City the last week, causing all sorts of chaos. Nobody knows who they are, or what they are. They’ve got black and white painted faces, and all wear the same long black coats. Seems like they’ve got some sort of agenda against The Crusaders, that is, they kept on attacking all the monuments and buildings dedicated to the group, and defacing them.”
“Defacing them how?”
“Depends. Some of the time, they’ve torn the things down – with their bare hands, so it’s said. Other times, they’ve been seen to urinate on them, others…well, you get the idea, Sir. Point is, they’ve got a mad on for the Crusaders. Last night, the group finally cornered the Shadders, by Baker’s Park. During the fight, a cameraman who was filming caught the weirdest thing on camera. One of the Shadders ran up to Ultro, and put his hand right through him – right into his chest. Seconds later, Ultro dropped to the ground without a word, just like a stone. Then the Shadders just vanished, all of them – they seemed to ‘melt’ into the shadows.”
“Do we know what killed Ultro yet?” Myers said.
“Forensic’s say it looks like a heart attack, but without an autopsy, we can’t be sure. We need next-of-kin permission, but how the Hell can we get that when we don’t know who the guy really is?”
“Right.” Myers nodded. “So these Shadders can turn intangible by the look of it, and vanish in dark shadows…?”
“Yes Sir.”
“Just like Dr. Darkness used to be able to do,” Myers mused. “Interesting. I had a letter waiting for me this morning on my desk, Atkins. It’s from an anonymous source, who claims to be one of the Shadders. It says that one of the current members of The Crusaders is working for them, tipping them off on the movements and weaknesses of their team-mates.”
“My God,” Atkins breathed, “Do you believe it?”
“I don’t know, at least, not yet…” Myers replied. “But until we can prove otherwise, we’ll have to give it consideration. The letter writer said they’d sent a copy to the press as well, so you can bet that it’s going to be all over the news by tonight.”
“I don’t believe it.” Atkins stated, shaking his head, “Nobody in The Crusaders would betray any of their own…no way…”
“Who else should I know about?” Myers asked.
Il Nostra
Antonio took the bag into the kitchen to show it to Luigi. Luigi waved a disinterested hand, and told his waiter to store it behind the counter, just in case the customer’s should retrace their steps and come looking for it. Antonio nodded, and walked back out into the restaurant.
The Private Offices of Kortez De La Vega
“I am so, so, so sorry, Sir…” Merini threw himself on his knees, and began to sob loudly. “Please, don’t hurt my family…do what you like to me, but don’t hurt my family.”
“As I said, Merini,” Kortez replied, “You’ve left me with no choice. Oh, the bookmakers that you frequent has been burnt to the ground as well; with him inside it. Nobody puts a member of the Kortez group into debt like that, even if he didn’t know you were working for me.”
“Please!” Merini sobbed. “Please!”
“Shall I tell you another difference between me and Joshua?” Kortez asked, pouring another glass of wine. “He comes from a rich, rich family – he was born with the money to set himself up, simply took over the business from his Father. Me? I was born with nothing, nothing at all. I had to use my wits, my intelligence, and my ‘gifts’ to rise to the position I am in now.”
“Gifts?” Merini asked, frowning.
“Yes, gifts.” Kortez told him. “You see, I don’t trust many men at all. Not completely. Oh, there are those I trust to work for me, those I trust to carry out menial jobs – men like you, in fact, my friend. Well,” he shrugged with a smile, “I used to trust you, anyway. The thing is, I have a gift, a gift for causing pain, but I don’t like to allow people to know about it unless I absolutely have to, which is often when I have to actually use it.”
Merini clambered to his feet, abject terror all over his face.
“Its catch-22, you see,” Kortez continued, “For me to let most people know I have this gift, I often only do so at the point of showing them what it is, and when that happens…they die. Very few men are allowed to know about it and live, as I don’t feel I could trust them to keep my secret. It started off with oranges, and apples; I could peel them as a child, without even touching them – and as I got older, I found I could do the same thing with other objects – tennis balls, trees, candles…anything that has an outer skin in fact.”
“Skin?”
“Hmmm.” Kortez raised a hand in the air. “Skin.”
At that moment, Merini slapped his hand onto his cheek, and screamed once. He took his hand away, and found that the skin had come with it, revealing the vivid colour of muscle underneath.
“This may hurt.” Kortez smiled, gesturing with his hand once more. “I hope.”
Merini collapsed as the skin on his body began to peel away from him in bloody strips, spilling blood on the carpet. He tried to scream again, but Kortez gestured and his throat split in two, leaving an angry gash that spurted red all around him.
“I can peel you like an orange, Merini…” Kortez whispered. “A fitting, painful end for those would seek to betray me.”
Merini managed to raise his head, showing white bone on one side where even the muscle had been stripped away, a ruined jaw tried to open and close, and as the membranes of his eyes slipped away, he sank forward, reaching out with a hand, imploring his Boss to end the horrific pain.
“Hmmm,” Kortez smiled, “Don’t worry about the carpet, Merini. I can always buy a new one.”
AHPD
“Well,” Atkins continued, “There’s Joshua and Kortez. They’re both ‘businessmen’ within the City…rumour is that they both have more than a passing interest in the underground crime scene, but nobody has ever been able to pin anything concrete on them. Word on the street is that both of them paid money into Mayor Dooley’s election fund…the last Chief before you – he was a good man, a decent kind of guy – thought he had something on each of them, after a long time of searching…but word came down from on high that both of them were to be left alone. That stunk, Sir, it really stunk.”
“You suggesting there might be corruption in the Mayor’s Office?” Myers asked, frowning.
“I ain’t suggesting anything, Sir.” Atkins replied hastily. “All I’m saying is that after all these years, and despite all the rumours, nobody has ever been able to pin anything on either Joshua or Kortez, and that ain’t right, in my humble opinion.”
“What else do we have, Officer?”
“Well, there’s this guy calling himself Lord Chrome.” Atkins continued. “He reckons that he’s some sort of ‘Mutant Messiah’, announcing himself as the guy who can set free the mutants and lead them to the Promised Land.”
Myers stared at Atkins. “You an anti-mutant, Officer Atkins?” he asked sternly.
Atkins shrugged. “I guess not, Sir. Truth is, I don’t have any problem with them – they’ve never done anything to hurt me. There’s plenty of scumbags out there who aren’t mutant, if you know what I mean? That ain’t to say that I feel exactly comfortable around mutants, mind.”
“And how do you feel about the Mutant Registration Laws?” Myers continued.
“Beats me,” Atkins replied, shrugging again. “I mean, I can see why they have to be registered, but the registries private, isn’t it? Nobody outside the Government knows who the mutants are, so anybody you meet on the street could be a mutant and you’d never even know. It does seem like a good idea to keep their details on file, just in case. Thing is, Chrome’s speaking out against it, going public as a mutant, saying why should he have to hide – who he is, and what’s more, why should he have to register? There’s trouble brewing there, if you ask me. More and more mutants are going public, saying that they have got nothing to hide, and it’s creating tension…”
“Okay,” Myers nodded, “Thanks for your help…what else we got?”
“Well,” Atkins pondered, “There’s Nightwind, the vigilante. He started to patrol around Arkane about twenty years ago, and then vanished about five years ago. He was a real nasty piece of work – I mean, he caught the bad guys alright, but he used to beat them to a real pulp…he was merciless Sir, you know? Truth is, I never felt that comfortable having him around, he was just too unpredictable.”
“What happened to him?”
“Nobody knows.” Atkins shrugged. “One night he was dishing out his own unique brand of justice, the next he was gone. I did hear talk that he’d been run out of town by The Crusaders; most of us knew that he never saw eye-to-eye with them. His methods were too extreme for their tastes.”
“And now he’s back, I’m assuming?” Myers asked.
“Well, somebody who fits the description of his costume and has the same M.O. is back, that’s for sure.” Atkins nodded. “Can’t say for sure if it’s him or not, but whoever it is, they’re just as nasty as Nightwind ever was.”
Il Nostra
Luigi walked into the restaurant, smiling and nodding at some of his regulars. He walked to the counter, tapping Antonio on the shoulder to signify that he was going to take over from him. Glancing down, Luigi got a good look at the bag.
What he saw with his x-ray eyes caused his heart to skip a beat.
Seconds later, glass shattered and tables and chairs were thrown through the air with the force of the explosion. It would take forensics nearly a week to gather up all the scattered pieces of what remained of Luigi. Antonio was thrown through the air, his whole body on fire as he was sent crashing down hard onto the road outside. In all, twenty-two people died and fifteen were badly injured.
A group calling themselves the M.E.F. – Mutant Extermination Front – claimed responsibility, saying that Luigi, the restaurant’s owner, was a registered mutant, and as such was a legitimate target. The group stated that they would not rest until what they described as the “stain of mutant-kind had been wiped from the pure face of humanity”.
Later still, those mutants who had registered but decided to remain anonymous within society (as by far the vast majority of mutants had chosen to do) began to question how the M.E.F. had known that Luigi was registered, when the lists were supposed to be confidential…
The Private Offices of Kortez De La Vega
Kortez stood still for a while, delaying the end, extracting the maximum pain from his helpless victim. He didn’t do so from a sense of anger, or vengeance; in fact, as he surveyed the dying man, he felt almost nothing aside from a calm detachment.
Joshua had acted rashly towards Kortez – the two men had held down a truce for many years, each one content to rule his own part of the City, take his own money and run his own businesses. Each of them was satisfied in the knowledge that despite their personal dislike of each other, a gang war could blow their semi-respectable cover and bring down everything they’ve ever worked for. Now, however, in trying to buy one of his men – and, in doing so, attempt to disrupt and destroy his powerbase, Joshua had crossed a line that each of them had long vowed never to walk over.
Merini, face down, twitched once and then lay motionless for good. Kortez nodded to himself, and turned away, taking no pleasure from the fact that his former friend was dead. It was just business to him – that was all – just business. Now, as always, Kortez did what he had to do.
He reached out for the intercom. “Call Joshua’s people on the usual number. Tell him I would like to meet – we have a lot to discuss. He has certain things to answer for.”
AHPD
Myers jumped up from his chair at the staggering noise from the explosion, and exchanged glances with Atkins. The two men ran from the room, joining the growing throng of Officers preparing to move towards the disaster outside. As they filed out of the station ready to lend assistance, Atkins clapped a hand on Myers’ shoulder.
“Welcome to Arkane Heights, Sir!”
Next Week: The roleplayers finally enter the fray, as Kortez and Joshua meet face to face, plans for Ultro’s funeral are put into place, and the M.E.F. step up their campaign!
