The silence inside the Scavengers' safehouse wasn't peace — it was a vacuum waiting to be filled with chaos.
Elias Kane stood over the bodies, the Glock still warm in his grip. Blood pooled around his boots, but the only thing louder than his heartbeat was the chime echoing through his mind.
******
[System Alert: Temporary Control Acquired – Vire Alley Sector 3C]
Establishing Territory… Time Limit: 72 Hours
Requirements:
– Defend against rival claimants
– Secure minimum 2 Resource Nodes
– Recruit at least 1 underling
Reward for Completion: +15 Crime Points | +2 Skill Points | Rank Promotion Opportunity
******
He exhaled, finally letting the weight of what he'd done settle in. He wasn't running anymore. This was his now — a small, dirty, blood-soaked corner of Blackridge.
And the city was watching.
A new icon appeared on his HUD: Crime Shop [UNLOCKED]. With a thought, the display expanded:
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Crime Shop – Tier I Access
– [Bandit's Vest] – 10 CP
– [Low-Grade Lockpicks] – 6 CP
– [Blackridge Map Overlay] – 4 CP
– [Disposable Burner Phone] – 2 CP
– [Random Skill Boost (Lv.1)] – 15 CP
******
He had 10 Crime Points. Not much. But enough.
He purchased the Blackridge Map Overlay and Disposable Burner Phone. The map instantly overlaid his HUD, showing gang territory borders, rival patrols, and "unclaimed zones" in orange. Vire Alley blinked red — unstable.
The phone buzzed in his palm. No number. Just one message:
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"You hit Scavenger turf. They'll retaliate. You've got one shot to hold your claim. Use it." – Unknown
******
He pocketed the burner. No time to panic.
Footsteps echoed outside. Fast. Sloppy. One guy — maybe two.
Elias slid behind a broken vending machine and waited.
The door creaked open.
"You see this mess?" a voice whispered. "No way this wasn't an inside hit—"
Elias moved like a shadow. His butterfly knife glinted once before it sank into the first man's neck. The second barely had time to draw before Elias dropped him with a brutal elbow and two shots from the Glock.
******
+4 Crime Points
Loot: 9mm Ammo x8 | Key to West Vire Storage
******
He dragged the bodies out back, his muscles aching, but his mind sharp. He needed help. Someone expendable. Someone hungry.
The answer came five blocks away, in the form of DeShawn "Dizzy" Marr, a fast-talking ex-dealer Elias had saved from a beatdown months ago. Dizzy owed him.
At the run-down barber shop where Dizzy ran numbers, Elias found him cleaning clippers and humming off-key.
"I need muscle," Elias said.
Dizzy's eyes widened. "Muscle for what? You look like death ate you and spit you out."
"I just killed five Scavengers."
"…You serious?"
Elias tossed the Glock on the table. "I need someone who knows the streets and wants more than scraps."
A pause. Dizzy grinned. "Damn, man. You just went full psycho. I like it."
******
Underling Recruited: DeShawn "Dizzy" Marr – Tier 0 (Can be upgraded)
+2 Crime Points
******
Back at the safehouse, they reinforced the doors, rigged a crude alarm system, and mapped out nearby "resource nodes" — a stash house and a defunct drug lab, both neglected since the Scavengers started fighting internally.
******
Territory Progress: 1/2 Resource Nodes Secured. 1/1 Underling Recruited.
******
But trouble was brewing.
Later that night, a new message flashed on the system:
******
[ALERT: Rival Claim Detected – Syndicate Watchdogs Approaching]
Estimated Time to Conflict: 6 Hours
******
Elias Kane looked out the broken window toward the city's endless sprawl.
He wasn't just surviving anymore.
He was building an empire — and blood would be its foundation.