"All right! After that, remember to send someone to take him home. And if anything seems off, report it to me immediately," Levi instructed as he turned to glance behind him. His tone was calm, but there was an edge of command in it that made everyone straighten up.
Izzy nodded sharply. "Don't worry, Mr. President! Everything will be handled."
Levi smiled faintly and leaned back, satisfied. His plans were moving forward exactly as intended. Every piece was sliding into place.
---
While Levi's strategy quietly unfolded, the Ames Guard had begun their first official deployment.
After a quick registration at the New York Police Department headquarters, the new Ames operatives were dispatched to their designated base of operations—a police station deep in Hell's Kitchen.
Calling it a "police station," however, might've been generous. The place looked like a haunted ruin. Broken windows, peeling walls, and the faint smell of mold filled the air. Weeds had overtaken the entrance steps, and rusted bars hung from shattered doors.
Bu Po and Sister Ren exchanged awkward glances. "This is... our headquarters?" she muttered.
"Guess so," he said, forcing a grin that didn't quite reach his eyes.
But before their dismay could settle in, Vanderbuilt Technologies' support team arrived—a unit of high-efficiency Modia Units, humanoid robotic craftsman models designed for rapid construction and repair. In minutes, the desolation turned into a coordinated flurry of mechanical precision.
The Modia Units worked like an army of tireless workers—cutting, welding, painting, and reassembling. Within half a day, the entire station was reborn. What was once a forgotten ruin now gleamed like a brand-new fortress of order.
At the entrance, large metallic letters gleamed under the sunlight: [AIMS]. The new logo of their division shone with pride.
Inside, the air smelled of steel and electricity. The floors gleamed, walls were repainted, and polished equipment lined the walls. Being non-organic, the Modia Units had no issues with toxins or formaldehyde fumes, so renovation was fast and flawless.
But the real marvel wasn't just the reconstruction—it was the technology hidden within.
---
Vanderbuilt Technologies had filled the building with advanced systems:
The Electronic Cage, a containment field capable of restraining enhanced criminals.
A Multi-Function Armory, storing precision-designed weapons with biometric locks.
And at the center of it all—a massive core server system named [Criminal Network].
It was Levi's concept, executed by Vanderbuilt's engineers specifically for the Ames Guard.
The Criminal Network functioned as a centralized AI surveillance system, designed to monitor every digital signal in Hell's Kitchen. Every smartphone, every camera, every connected device—it could all be accessed and analyzed in real time.
Once any sign of crime or violence appeared—an alarm triggered, a gun fired, a suspicious message sent—the system would respond instantly. Data would be filtered, processed, and displayed on the central hub's interface.
"Criminal activity detected!"—the system would alert, pinpointing exact coordinates for field agents.
It was a perfect blend of technology and justice—a digital eye over the city's most lawless quarter.
The entire design was Levi's brainchild, inspired by a system from the Japanese manga "Mind Measurer." Except this version was real—and far more dangerous.
---
After the renovations were complete, the Ames Guard officially moved in.
Excitement filled the team; for many, this was their first real mission since joining the organization.
Bu Po, known for his boldness, was already impatient. "Finally! Time to show what I can do in this hellhole!" he grinned, adjusting his tactical vest.
But Sabine, their tactical commander, remained calm and methodical. Her eyes, sharp and analytical, were fixed on the holographic screen before her.
"No rushing in," she said firmly. "We start with a briefing. One wrong move in Hell's Kitchen, and we'll be swimming in blood."
Bu Po groaned. "Come on, Sabine, do we really need another meeting?"
"Definitely necessary," Sabine replied, her voice like cold steel. "This is Hell's Kitchen, not a playground."
Bu Po sighed but nodded in reluctant agreement. "Fine. One hour. Conference room."
---
An hour later, Sabine pushed open the glass doors to the conference room. The Ames team was already seated around the long metallic table, the hum of the air system filling the silence. A few NYPD officers were also present, serving as verification liaisons between departments.
"Good," Sabine began, her tone commanding attention. "After an hour of data collection, I've mapped the full distribution of criminal forces within Hell's Kitchen."
She clicked a button on her remote.
Instantly, the holographic screen came alive, displaying a detailed 3D map of Hell's Kitchen. Every block, every alleyway, every building was meticulously labeled. The display pulsed with red markers of varying intensity.
"These," Sabine explained, "represent gang territories."
As she spoke, the screen zoomed in—revealing streets pulsing with crimson lights.
"There are twenty-three gangs operating in the area," she continued. "But only five of them form the backbone of Hell's Kitchen's crime structure."
She pointed at five highlighted zones. "The Bigfoot Gang, the Black Hand Syndicate, the Viper Crew, the Blood Serpents, and The Hand Hehui."
Her tone dropped lower. "If we want to clean up Hell's Kitchen, we start with them."
The NYPD officers exchanged uneasy glances. They knew those names well. These weren't street thugs—these were empires built on blood, drugs, and human trafficking.
One of the officers muttered under his breath, "It took us months just to identify two of those groups... How did you get this data so fast?"
Sabine's eyes glinted. "We have help."
She began to dissect each gang's operations—their structures, hideouts, revenue sources, and internal rivalries. Her words painted a chillingly clear picture of Hell's Kitchen's underworld.
By the time she finished, silence had swallowed the room. The NYPD officers were stunned. They had spent years fighting blindfolded in the city's darkest corners, and yet in just twenty-four hours, the Ames Guard had drawn up an entire strategic map.
---
"This… this is unbelievable," one officer whispered. "You know their hierarchy, their smuggling routes, even the names of their enforcers."
Bu Po leaned back, smirking. "Guess we're not your average cops."
But deep down, even he was impressed. The efficiency of the Criminal Network was terrifying.
Sabine wrapped up the meeting with a single order: "Our goal is stability. No unnecessary bloodshed, but no hesitation either. Each gang will be approached differently. If we can dismantle their infrastructure before confrontation, we will. If not—" she glanced at Bu Po "—we hit them hard."
Her tone left no room for debate.
"Understood!" the team responded in unison.
Sabine nodded and turned toward the glowing map once more. "Remember, we're not just fighting criminals. We're fighting a system that's been growing here for decades. This is Levi's first step in reclaiming New York's shadows."
---
Meanwhile, in a nearby data chamber, the Criminal Network server hummed with quiet energy. Its countless data nodes flickered like stars as endless streams of information flowed through them.
Text, sound, heat signatures, location data—every fragment was analyzed in milliseconds. On one monitor, an algorithm highlighted possible gang communication. On another, it tagged suspicious vehicle routes.
A mechanical voice echoed softly:
> "Surveillance coverage: 89.7%.
Probability of violent incident in Block 42: 71%.
Suggested action: Deploy patrol unit Delta-3."
Each calculation was instant. Each suggestion, razor accurate.
This was Levi's vision made real—a world where machines could read human chaos and turn it into order.
And yet, deep within the system's encrypted layers, something else stirred—lines of code that didn't belong. A shadow process hidden under Levi's design. One that whispered and learned. But that was a mystery for another time.
---
By nightfall, the once-dead police station was alive with light and movement. Modia Units patrolled silently, their footsteps echoing through the corridors. Ames officers calibrated their gear, preparing for deployment. The glowing AIMS emblem shone above the entrance, casting long shadows onto the street below.
Sabine stood on the balcony, overlooking Hell's Kitchen—a city of neon, smoke, and sin.
"This is just the beginning," she murmured.
Behind her, Bu Po grinned, slinging his rifle over his shoulder. "Then let's start the cleanup."
Sabine's gaze hardened. "No mistakes."
Down below, a convoy of black armored vehicles rumbled to life, engines roaring. The Ames Guard's first mission was about to begin.
And far away, watching through the monitor feed, Levi smiled faintly in his chair.
Everything was going exactly as planned.
The network was alive. The hunt had begun.
---
End of Chapter 23: Criminal Network! Sabine's Action Plan!
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