Yeah.  Like that's ever going to happen.  This is my turf; just defending it is enough for me.  The money Ingress pays me...sure, I could possibly demand more, but I'm also going to be getting into her House once all the ceremonial stuff and whatnot is handled.  Besides, I take my compensation in...other ways.  (Like the fantasy I entertain of having her in one of those Private School jobs all the girls are wearing this week.)  That Junior hasn't resurfaced yet has me worried - I know he said he would be gone for a while, but this while...it's eerie.  I expect he'll be back, that he will be is something I've never quite given up on, but the silence worries me nonetheless.<br/><br/>The good news is that I've managed to make friends with people who are...shall we say, mutual associates of both Junior and Ingress.  Just a couple at this point.  There's the good Detective Enkidu (yes, like from Gilgamesh, and ALSO yes, that is her name), one of the local RHD crew.  She showed up for the first time in my life after I put down that one Killjoy, and ever since then, she's found reason to put herself in my awareness.  She's a good cop, at least from what I've heard, though whether or not she can do what I do...well, one thing at a time.<br/><br/>The other is Declan L'Estrange.  'Antiques dealer.'  That got him into the Arches' orbit, but really I know him because he knows Junior.  Declan came around asking about him - guess<em>I</em>ended up at the message-holder for anyone coming to look for the guy - and everything evolved out of that.  It's slow going, trying to build out my network of people I know and can rely on, but at least I'm making progress.<br/><br/>That being said, both Declan and Enkidu have made mention that they do some 'side line' work with other individuals...I haven't met any of them yet, but hopefully I'll get the chance to, one day.<br/><br/>That said.<br/><br/>++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++<br/><br/>It would appear that while what I did to the head jerk of the Killjoys was enough to put them aside for good, that in and of itself isn't enough to keep the coffee house clear.  Though, judging by what I've seen of this particular goons, they may not be from the neighborhood.  It's all Asian characters and racecars and definitely looking like 80s fashion.  Time to go to work, as they're busy harassing the staff and customers.<br/><br/>I've gotten a lot of training since then.  Phil's been pretty good at teaching me hand to hand as well as how to effectively use a baseball bat for more than just hitting balls.  (Well, okay, I hit balls, just not the inanimate kind.)  Between that and Declan agreeing to teach me some firearms tricks, I've gotten a lot better since my showdown with the Killjoys.  I've also got some new toys, too.  Phil helped me find a guy who does custom work on baseball bats - there's a wolf's head profile etched into opposing sides of the bat that I own.  Declan hooked me up with a piece - S&W 3566, which uses the .357 S&W cartridge (not exactly your standard 9x19, but not too hard to find) - and between them both, I have a harness that I can use to carry both.<br/><br/>I've also got one other thing.  Everywhere I went for the couple of weeks after the showdown, any time I opened up a closet, I found a red hooded cloak in it.  Didn't matter if it was mine back at my place, or the one where I keep some of my stuff down in Ingress' rooms, or even the upstairs.  Declan told me that the City sometimes has a mind of its own, so I figured this red cloak thing was it trying to talk to me.  I don't always wear it, not when I'm just sitting around the coffee shop, but whenever I have to work...like right now.<br/><br/>The red cloak fluttered as I slowly descended the outside of the coffee house, my magical wolf's claws slowing my drop whilst simultaneously leaving nary a mark on the workings.  I reach behind me and grasp the wooden handle of my baseball bat, pulling it out of the breakaway scabbard I keep it in -<em>Blade</em>-style - on my back.  The goons don't even notice me until I'm right up next to them.<br/><br/>"Hey, asshole."  And the first unfortunate idiot to respond gets the bat full on in the face as I bring it down in an overhand power stroke, the last thing he sees being the wolf's head before it makes contact with his face, breaking his mirrorshades and hopefully his nose in the bargain.  As he falls to the ground, I keep moving, swinging left-right, right-left, smashing faces and generally kicking the ass of these Oriental thugs.  They've got knives and nunchaku, but I've got speed and the willingness to put down anyone that's not immediately running away (though they'll get theirs).  I trip up one goon by sticking my bat between his legs and tapping the back side of his knee, foiling the guy behind him as he falls right over his buddy.<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Dice Roll</div><div class="spoiler_body">Yang 4 = 1, 1, 2, 4.<br/>Yin 2 = 4, 5.</div></div>