Second Wind

Chapter 24: Fleurie's Wrath

Back in Foxtown, the overall sitrep there felt a bit busier than usual. Mobsters were all over the streets, many of which were on convoys who were actually leaving the city and towards the other sections of Detroit that they operated in, particularly Osborn and Warrendale. As for the forces that were in Brightmoor, they had been recalled and sent home by Lettie as her final request. However, as for Lettie's fate herself, very little was known about it. Everyone just assumed that she had fallen victim to the vigilante's wrath, and thus, had perished. Fleurie, however, had not known about this yet due to this entire problem being kept under wraps by the four elite leaders of the Pathfinder. Despite her lack of understanding over the issue, she was about to find out real soon.

In the Fox Theatre, which functioned as the main base of operations for the gang, there was a small group of goons who had entered the building as they made their way towards the auditorium, where Fleurie was currently residing in. Just behind that group was the rookie himself, who had decided to take a chance with the vigilante's advice. It did not take him long to get to Foxtown from Warrendale, anyway - it maybe took him about 20 minutes or so for him to get here. As the rookie quietly tailed the group behind him, he took the time to observe the theatre around him as he marveled at its complex architecture.

The first room that one would see once they enter the grounds was this massive hall that was unimaginably spacious - the ground, while slightly worn out due to time's influence acting on it, still displayed great quality regardless as the vermillion and golden tiles glistened under the light of the chandelier that hung over the floor, up in the ceiling. Speaking of the ceiling, great detail was put into its design, with 'ornate' probably being the best way to describe it. There were small carvings from the base of the wall which slowly rose up to the top, and at the very top of the ceiling itself lied a beautifully painted tapestry - as to what the painting depicted, no one really knows for sure. It is probably something only your enthusiastic thespian would know. Just ahead of them were two flights of stairs on both ends of the hall which guided people to the upper floors and rooms of the theatre, though chains have been placed in front of the staircases themselves, implying that they were out of bounds.

After reaching the other end of the hall, they were greeted with a set of swinging double doors in front of them, with the group pushing through the doors with relative ease while the rookie quickly made his way through the space between the doors before they could fully close. This place was certainly a lot bigger than the rookie had thought...

They were now within the concession area of the theatre, where the food and drinks were usually sold. Instead of stuff like that, however, this room had now been changed into a place where the mobsters could grab their weapon of choice before they leave and begin their duties. The counters were now easily accessible by anyone, and up on the wall behind the aforementioned counters were various weapons that anyone could pick up and claim as their own - pistols, assault rifles, machine guns...it was there. The countertops had been taken away, and they were instead replaced with case boxes which functioned partially as tables. Within the boxes lied even more weapons, with a few melee weapons being displayed as well. Grenades of various kinds were being exhibited, too. There were some tables and chairs lying around too, which meant that this place could also function as a temporary rest or hangout area for those who have not been put to work yet.

Sure enough, there were some mobsters within the concession area who were talking to one another to expend the time, but as to what they were talking about, the rookie did not know, while the group did not care. They merely pressed on to the other end of the room, where they were met with, once again, a set of double doors that they pushed through as he followed suit. They were now at the start of a rather small hallway that led to ANOTHER set of double doors, but after they quickly crossed the hallway and walked through the doors, they finally arrived at their destination while the rookie stopped himself from progressing further as he started waiting behind the doors leading to the theatre auditorium, knowing that he should only seek an audience with Fleurie after the group of goons were done with her.

The auditorium was massive - possibly even bigger than the entrance hall itself. There were countless seats lining one half of the room from one end to another, with the seats slowly moving downward in a conical fashion whilst reducing in quantity due to the gradual decrease in vertical space. There was a flight of stairs that separated the seats from the start of the room down to the middle, and while there were two separate flights of stairs on both ends of the auditorium, the doors in which the stairs start from have been chained up as well like the staircases back at the hall, rendering them inaccessible.

Just up ahead was Fleurie herself.

She was on stage, a fair distance away from the small, removable staircase which led up to the stage itself, meaning that she had positioned herself in the center. There was a lone chair up there which she was seated on, and there were five mobsters which acted as her guards standing behind her as well, with all of them armed with assault rifles. The team of goons walked down to the stage before coming to a stop just before the stairs, and once they stood before the Pathfinder leader, they could see just what she was doing.

Her eyes were closed shut, and her hands were interlocked together as they rested under her chin, with left pinky finger occasionally moving up and down. She let out a hum while she was doing this, indicating that she was probably thinking about something. After a few moments had went by, the humming quickly ceased as she opened her eyes before gazing at the group before speaking up, her voice sounding utterly intimidating and threatening.

"...what do you want?"

"Boss...we have news for you that we think you should know."

"...this better be good."

Upon hearing those words, the thugs momentarily looked at each other, unsure about where this was going. They knew that if she learns about what had happened in Brightmoor, she will completely lose her top. However, if she does not know, it will be even worse if she finds out for herself. Finding no other alternative to this, one of them spoke of what had transpired.

"It's...involving Brightmoor, boss."

"What about it?"

"Our drugs...they've been destroyed."

"...what?"

After hearing this, she adjusted her posture a little so that she would be sitting in a more upright position against her chair, and the frown that she had on her face had intensified even more, reflecting on her growing rage involving what she had just heard.

"What. Happened."

"It's...the vigilante, madam. The one who we murdered back on the M-8...she's back."

"...I'm sorry, but did you say that she's back?"

"I know it sounds ridiculous, but that's exactly what happened. We got this information from our superior, and she was the one responsible for rigging the buildings where we operate in to explode...all of our drug storage has been compromised, and the people responsible for making them have died in the explosion..."

After Fleurie heard what had went down in Brightmoor, she let out a sigh as she stared down at the ground. She already knew what needed to be done, but she was rather surprised by the fact that she was not told about this. This surprise immediately contorted into infuriation as she spoke up, with her voice already teeming with restrained anger.

"Lettie...why did she not report to me about this incident?"

"I feel like she was supposed to, but we have not seen her after the explosions. We don't think she survived..."

Despite the rather depressing news, Fleurie herself did not look fazed at all by what she had heard. If anything, she continued to remain dismissive as she rested her hands on the chair's armrests before pushing herself up to her feet. Once she was standing, she walked up to the edge of the stage before coming to a halt, her eyes now completely fixated on the goons who had approached her. After a moment of silence was shared between them, she let out a sigh before speaking up, her voice now filled with a lot more conviction this time round.

"So you're telling me that all this happened...and no one bothered to tell me?"

"I-It's not that, boss...we thought we could handle it ourselves..."

"And look what happened."

"We did not expect one person to cause this much damage...! Surely you understand where we're coming from, boss!"

"Do not try and twist this entire thing to help your case, mongrels. You had one job, and it took one monkey wrench thrown into our plans for all of you to capitulate. All of you had it too easy."

"B-But...we did all we could!"

"Well, you did not do enough!"

"S-Surely we can find a way to recover from the damage!"

Fleurie raised an eyebrow upon hearing the group's pleas for another chance, and after taking a moment to glance over at the thugs that were standing behind her. All of them nodded at their boss, implying that they had come to a decision on something. And so, she looked back at the group yet again, speaking to them about the decision she had decided on.

"While your negligence is unforgivable...I could give all of you another chance."

"...r-really?"

The team was admittedly rather stunned by this revelation as they were filled with a sense of relief. A false sense of relief. As the group lookes at each other, Fleurie continued talking with them as she picked up from where she left off.

"But first, you will have to do something for me."

"W-What is it, boss? We'll do anything!"

"Good, good. I know you will."

Now that she heard what she wanted to hear, she snapped her fingers as the mobsters behind her suddenly brought their rifles out, aiming them right at the group as they suddenly froze in place, their relief immediately changing to utter dread as they looked between their boss and the hostile mobsters repeatedly while Fleurie walked off to her right, intending on moving herself out of the guards' way.

Now that she was a fair distance away from everyone, she cleared her throat before saying one singular word to the mortified group, who had now realized just what she was planning on doing.

"Run."

"W-What...?"

"You have five seconds. One's already gone."

With self-preservation now kicking in, everyone immediately turned around and began running for their lives as they attempted to make their way towards the exit to save themselves.

As soon as they started running, Fleurie looked towards her guards before giving them the command to follow.

"Kill them all."

With the command given, all of them pulled the trigger in unison as they began firing at the fleeing group. c*****e soon ensued as everyone desperately tried to get themselves away from the rain of bullets that were now rushing towards them, but it was too late - everyone was now getting hit by the bullets, and as the dwindling team inched closer to the auditorium doors, the goons were dying one by one as they fell victim to Fleurie's act of brutality.

When the firing ceased, everyone who had approached Fleurie had perished - all but one, who had managed to escape them as they barely managed to slink through the doors by the time the flow of bullets came to a halt. The guards were quick to notice this, and because of this discrepancy, one of them immediately spoke to Fleurie for further instructions.

"Boss, one of them escaped. Should we hunt them down?"

In response to the question, she merely let out a laugh before shaking her head side to side in disagreement as she made her way back to her chair whilst talking to the guard.

"I only gave them the command to run. If they managed to escape you, then that means they'll be spared. As for the others...too bad. If they mess up again, they'll be done for, without a doubt."

"...very well, boss."

With that, the conversation swiftly came to an end as Fleurie sat herself back down on her chair, and after spending a few seconds to gaze as the pile of bodies that were sprawled all over the auditorium staircase, she let out a sigh before speaking to the guards behind her, who intently listened to her instructions.

"Get someone to clean this mess up. I don't want this place smelling of blood."

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The rookie, unknown to everyone in the auditorium, had seen and heard everything that happened behind the doors - since the double doors had these windows situated on the upper half of both doors, it meant that he could peep through them to see what was happening on the other side. And really, that was not a good display there. When he noticed someone in a jaguar mask about to burst through the doors, he immediately backed off quickly enough to not get hit by the doors as the lone survivor barreled through the double doors and collapsed into the hallway.

It was safe to assume that both were shaken by what had happened, but compared to the rookie's terrified state, the surviving thug was scarred. After they had dropped down to the floor, they immediately looked back at the doors as they closed themselves shut, and when they noticed the lack of footsteps approaching their general location, they quickly realized that they were not being followed as they desperately tried to call themselves down before pulling their mask off in a fit of exasperation and panic, allowing the rookie to see who was behind the jaguar mask.

They were revealed to be a woman, most likely to be in her mid-twenties now. She possessed emerald green eyes and blonde hair, and there were multiple, yet minor scars evident on her lips, eyes and cheeks. There was, however, a rather terrible-looking mark on the sides of her neck. She really did look like a battered and beaten woman on a physical aspect. Even though the rookie was literally behind her, she looked to be unaware of her presence - it most likely had something to do with her panic messing with her senses.

Although he initially wanted to remain quiet, he knew that he should at least try to help her out as he walked up to her before crouching down and placing his hand against her shoulder, with him speaking up in a calm manner.

"Uh...you alright?"

Admittedly, with her panic still in full force, she immediately turned over to the side as she pulled her weapon out, which was a pistol with a silencer attached at the barrel of the gun. However, when she spotted the rat mask that he was wearing, she realized that he was one of them before letting out a sigh and dropping the weapon to the ground. From there, she finally spoke to him, even if she was not exactly in the best position to speak right now.

"What...the hell do you want..."

"I...just wanted to see if you're okay..."

"Does it look like I'm okay, dammit?!"

Her sudden burst of aggression was enough to make the rookie back off in an instant, and when she saw his fear-induced act, she blankly stared at him before looking away from him and letting out a defeated sigh as she shook her head side to side.

"What did I even do to deserve this...these guys were not supposed to die back there..."

The rookie could only remain silent - he really was at a loss for words here. After what had happened back at the auditorium, he really did not have the willpower to go in there and ask Fleurie for guidance. Instead, he decided to aid the woman as he posed a question to her, hoping that he could get her out of here with him in tow.

"Uh...I think I should get you out of here...you need a hand?"

The woman remained unreceptive to his words at first, but after a few seconds had passed, she looked back at him once again with a tired gaze before holding a hand out to him.

"...come on."

Taking this answer as an indication that she agreed, he immediately grabbed onto her hand before pulling her back up to her feet. Once she was ready to go, the duo immediately got themselves out of the hallway and back to the concession area - after spotting an empty table with a pair of chairs accompanying it, he guided her towards the table as the two took their seats. The woman was still shaken after everything that happened, but she was buying into the belief that she was not being searched for - otherwise, she would have been captured a long time ago. Although they had remained seated, the two remained quiet for a while, and as he felt the awkwardness beginning to seep in, he attempted to break that silence by forcing out a cough, using this as an opportunity to kick start a conversation with her in hopes that she could loosen up a bit after that traumatizing experience.

"Um...so...I did not get your name yet."

The woman merely glared at her with a deadpan expression before placing her jaguar mask on the table - from there, she finally responded to him after she unintentionally freaked him out with her gaze.

"...I'm not going to tell you my actual name. But if you want my codename, then it's Jaguar. I see you're wearing a rat mask yourself."

"Yeah, but you can call me Max. That's my actual name."

"Huh...not many people refer to themselves by their real name."

"I mean, if it helps, I guess I'm pretty new here..."

"A rookie...interesting."

"Yeah, so I still have a long way to go...what were you in that auditorium for in the first place?"

After he asked her about what had happened in the auditorium, she stared down at the ground before rubbing her nose in a fit of frustration, causing Max to immediately apologize.

"S-Sorry if it is personal...you don't have to answer it if you want."

"Nah, it's not that...you need to know what's going on. I'm sure you know about the Brightmoor incidents, right?"

"Yeah, I do. That vigilante is still out there somewhere, and I don't really know where she may be..."

"The thing is...the boss did not know about what was going on. Our superior chose to keep things hidden and under wraps. After all the damage was done, we were left wondering why we did not inform this to her, and because of this, some of us decided to make our move to Foxtown so that we could break the news. Only for this to happen as a result..."

"I...I'm sorry..."

"Hey, it ain't your fault, kid. I was just...not expecting her to act this violently..."

"I guess she really does live up to her terrifying title."

"...she treats everyone around her like dirt. Like expendable dirt...I've been working for the Pathfinder for...what, years now? And this is what I get? A threat to my life?"

"Uhm...just what do you plan on doing?"

"...I honestly don't know. I just feel...broken."

Max could only remain silent to her current plight - however, he did pose another question to her.

"So...what are you going to do now?"

"...I have to find someone."

"Hm? And who will that be?"

"...it's the vigilante. No one has found her yet...I have to change that by myself."