Scouting For Talent

Having only just recently enrolled as a teacher at Alabaster High, Arachna's first order of business thereafter, rather than making lesson plans and whatnot that a normal teacher would do, was instead to patrol around the outer fringes of the ruins known as Mocca City.

The action was innocent enough on the surface. If one were to see her it could be assumed that she was attempting to take out crime a little closer to the source. What she was actually doing, however, was quite a lot more sinister. She needed to begin rallying those of much more questionable morals to her cause so that she could begin building her crime empire powered by those the school itself set out to teach the opposite. She found it all rather poetic honestly...

She'd hidden her arachnid appearance as much as possible, her raven hair cascading out from beneath a tie on hood while she wore a long cloak under which hid her extra legs, currently tucked close to her body. It didn't look entirely too convincing once one came in close considering the hood had to be rather large to hide her extra eyes and mandibles and her legs couldn't tuck in all too closely and so left the cloak to billow rather oddly behind her, but from afar it would appear innocent enough.

She was hoping that by random chance she'd perhaps be attacked by a mugger or gang banger of some sort that she could then negotiate with to strike her first deal. She'd have to start small on the road to building a notorious crime syndicate... Hopefully Lady Luck was on her side this day.

This section of the city had quite the history to it. From actions of The East District Mafia, to the fallout that came from the past giant gang war. Those that remained in this part of the city had been changed, though for the better or the worse had yet to be determined. Everyone here had some kind of a history, people either lived their entire lives here or got out as soon as they could. They either embraced the chaos, or ran in fear.

And so Arachna had decided to challenge Lady Luck, and it was time to see whether her faith would be rewarded, or punished.

As Arachna walked down a lone alleyway, she saw two boys talking at the opposite end. It wasn't anything too suspicious until they both turned simultaneously towards Arachna, their hands in their pockets as small smiles came to their faces. "Hey Chico, looks like we got someone lost doesn't it?" the first boy asked.

"Yeah, she looks pretty lost. Maybe we should offer to point her back home" Chico said as he started to walk forward, slowly pulling out a small switchblade which flicked open. "Alright lady, hand over any money you have on you and we'll let you go nice and easy. No need for anyone to get hurt today" he said.

Arachna would also hear movement behind her, as two other boys started to walk up from the other end of the alley. They were trying to corner her in without an escape.

Of course, these idiots really had no idea what they had just challenged.

Ah, well good. That had worked just fine, though it appeared these boys weren't of the more powered persuasion of things she'd still need some basic henchmen to boss around and take orders for more minor tasks that could be done without a powered touch.

"Zdravstvujtye!" Natalya greeted rather jovially despite her apparent predicament. "Uh... Greetings!" she corrected herself with a heavy Russian accent. "I come to you today offering... greater opportunity employment. This is a good thing, yes? Make more money faster provided you work for me rather than against me. Or..." She paused for a long moment of reflection. "Is it necessary to give a personal demonstration of my merit? Please, hear me out."

Despite her final plea, the words held much more authority and confidence than desperation. She was certainly not at all in fear for her life or well being. She just wanted to be heard before these men attempted to mug her for the zero amount of cash she had stashed under her cloak and extremely minimalist costume.

The two first boys look at each other, surprised with the way that this woman was speaking to them. Very few people took to a mugging like this so kindly. Was she stupid or something? Chico turned back towards Natalya before pointing his blade forward. "Look lady I don't know what kind of game you're playing but we don't take orders from you now do we? The boss would be ticked for us even listening" he said as he continued to hold the knife out towards the woman.

"Now, are you going to give us the money, or are we going to have to be less polite about this?"

Natalya pursed her lips tightly with an expression of disappointment as her request to be heard was denied. She couldn't say that she was altogether surprised, but she'd still hoped it wouldn't come to this so quickly.

"But you could... work for me, that is. I possess strength and connections that your boss could never hope to have and soon my authority will be absolute. In time your boss will also be working for me... or he will be deceased. Either way," she paused to raise her hands in an exaggerated shrug of indifference. "I possess nothing of monetary value on my person and even if I did you would be having none of it. You've already stepped into my trap and if you continue to refuse to change your allegiance I'll be forced to reveal why I should be feared much more than your current employer."

She grinned somewhat sadistically, possibly even looking a bit crazy as she gazed at the two men before her. She hadn't forgotten about the two behind her either, keeping tabs on them by the sounds of their footsteps if they attempted to advance on her from her blind spot.

She didn't have anything of value? When most people said that they were lying to save their own skin, but this woman...there was just something so different about her. Every word she spoke seemed to come with such confidence and power, like she was able to command anyone to die and it would just happen. Very few people had that type of charisma and leadership, and these boys she was talking to had only seen a few others with that sort of demeanor.

Chico's hand was starting to shake with his knife, as he seemed uncertain of what to do. "Enough" a voice called out from behind Natalya. Everyone would turn to look to see a young man, dressed in black with white hair and a red eye showing through the strange mask that covered the majority of his face. The eye stared right at Natalya as he seemed to be trying to decide what to make of her.

"Normally someone threatening my life would be a mandatory reason for me to kill them...but for you I think I'll make an exception" this new player said before looking to the others. "Leave us" he said calmly.

"But boss-" Chico began.

"Leave us" he repeated before his red eye stared right at Chico. The boy shivered for a moment before nodding and turning, the others quickly following his example and leaving. "My name is Charon" the red-eyed man finally spoke as he just kept his gaze upon Natalya. "I take it you must have powers, otherwise you're the greatest liar I've ever met to not be afraid of being robbed by four armed thugs"

The woman kept her gaze steady, easily noticing the wavering knife stance as the one named Chico began to question whether he should go through with this mugging or not. Everything was going according to her plan until a new voice called out. This one carried some weight to it and everyone appeared to pay attention to the newcomer almost immediately. Was this, perhaps, 'the boss'?

Natalya herself was the last to give him her full attention, turning to him casually and crossing her arms as she listened to what he had to say, engaging him in an equal amount of sizing up.

"How truly generous of you to spare me death at your own hands," she responded to his first words with more than a small hint of sarcasm. "Greetings, Charon. You may call me Natalya," she continued without pause. "I give you this opportunity to ally with me both against those heroes who would deny us as well as others who have taken our path who would seek to snuff our power to further expand their own. I would like to think that we can be reasonable about this."

She ignored his seeming request to know if she was a powered, currently unwilling to reveal all the cards she was playing with... at least until he gave her an answer she was pleased with or he forced her hand.

"Don't thank me yet, I've decided not to do it for now. I've been known to change my mind as well" Charon said through his mask which didn't seem to move at all as he spoke. His red eye continued to look the woman over, trying to decide how nervous he should be at all. There was definitely something going on with her, even if she wasn't going to admit it openly. No one remained this confident in the face of danger, she had no tells or any signs of concern in her posture.

She had to have powers.

"I have no love for anyone that call themselves a hero. That is only a matter of perspective and convenience" Charon spoke as he folded his arms behind his back. "So tell me Natalya, what exactly makes you think I even need you in any sort of an alliance? I'm doing rather well on my own"

Natalya allowed a small frown of dismay play over her features as Charon half=revoked his not attempting to murder her. That was a bit upsetting even if it was of little threat to her. It meant that the cards she was playing weren't having as outstanding an effect as she would have liked them to. No matter!

"You could always do better," she countered quickly. "Why settle for what you have when you could be accomplishing so much more? I'm offering to you a place in my web of power to encompass and ensnare the entire city over time. Given the opportunity we will even eclipse the so called 'East Diamond Mafia'." She let the name of what she considered her largest rivals to roll off her tongue with a hint of disgust.

"I have a hard time believing that your circle of influence is that strong, considering you seem to be walking up to anyone with a knife and asking them to join you" Charon pointed out as he started to casually pace, though he never took his eye off of Natalya. Only a fool would turn his back on someone that he trusted so little. Still though, Charon was always one to hear about potential offers before making a decision.

"Convince me that you're worth even considering. I have my own plans for the East Diamond Mafia and none of them included you. So tell me, what exactly do I gain from even considering this proposal of yours? Right now all I see is a woman with a lot of talk, but so far nothing to back up anything she's claiming"

"My circle of influence is, in fact, not that strong... yet. I've only just begun to make my moves and have recently gained myself a position of great influence within the city. With this singular step I'll be able to expand my circle of influence tenfold. However, to keep my position I require a face unashamed and unhindered to be seen as one with a shady sort of reputation. You could be my underworld representative, becoming the face of my ever-expanding empire... if you prove yourself to be trustworthy enough to hold the position. To be frank, you stand to gain quite a lot while risking almost nothing. If my plan turns to dust there's nothing stopping you from returning to your hovel here in Mocca City and picking up where you left off with your small crew of misfits and lost souls."

She looked to him expectantly, looking as though she'd just argued a point that couldn't possibly be refuted in any way. The way she saw it, even he would know he was a fool to turn down such an incredible offer. His answer was all but assured at this point. She'd just gained herself a new ally.

Charon said nothing for some time as his eye just remained on Natalya. Without saying a word he reached back and undid a few clasps on his mask. Pulling it down, the very air around Natalya seemed to change, the building seemed closer to have a general sense of claustrophobia as she would suddenly start to feel very paranoid about this person in front of her. The young man's face didn't help either. The mask was worn for multiple reasons, but the primary one was to hide just how damaged Charon's face really was.

In his right cheek the skin seemed caved in, some area having holes and torn flesh to expose his teeth and jaw behind his cheek. Burns covered what parts of his skin were left, and his right eye was pure white and clearly didn't work anymore. Looking on this face would lead to Natalya's first glimpse of Charon's power.

"Don't talk to me like I'm some pawn in your game" Charon said as he began to walk closer, his red eye starting straight at Natalya. "My world and yours are very different, and I believe that I am far more willing to do whatever it takes to get what I want. So don't think for a moment that I'd ever work for you. I work for me. Should you desire an alliance I'll listen, but place me beneath you...and you'll make an enemy today" Charon warned as his power continued to focus right on Natalya.

Arachna frowned, her lips tilting in confusion as rather than give her a positive answer the guy instead chose to start taking off his mask. What on earth was he doing? This wasn't an answer, positive or negative!

In an instant everything appeared to loom over her in a much more menacing manner than it had before, forcing the woman to gasp audibly and shrink back a step as she caught sight of the fully revealed man before her. What the hell was wrong with his face?! Once he began to step toward her, Natalya would be quick to retreat an equal distance, gritting her teeth tightly as she refused to let him gain any ground on her.

"Derzhitesy na rasstoyanii ot menya!" she warned in her native tongue, her voice now sounding incredibly stressed and on edge rather than confident. Any further conversation concerning the deal she was attempting to strike was instantly tossed aside as she now treated the thing before her as a threat rather than a potential ally.

Charon only took one more additional step before stopping as he saw Arachna take a defensive formation. He had no idea what she was saying, but he saw enough of what he wanted to see. She had passed. Without saying anything else, Charon lifted his mask and put it back on. As soon as the majority of his face was covered, Arachna would feel the menacing sensation leaving her body as quickly as it came.

"I've learned a lot over the years, but the most important lesson I've learned is that you learn the most from people when they're afraid. You start to see what they're really made of" he said as he finished clapping the mask in place. "You didn't run, you were defensive but you didn't run...that means you're a lot braver than most of the people I meet. Perhaps we can broker an alliance together, though....you'd have to do something for me first"

And just as suddenly as the feeling struck her like a lead weight, it lifted from her mind like a black sheet and she was free once again. She blinked in confusion, before narrowing her eyes sharply at the masked man before her.

"Nice power you've got there, Charon. I almost killed you over it." She straightened her posture quickly and recomposed herself before continuing. "In any case, I'm happy to see you're willing to join my network, though this task you're asking of me had best not be too complicated. I may only be just making a start, but that doesn't mean I'm desperate enough to jump through a dozen hoops for one man's cooperation."

"You almost tried to kill me" Charon corrected as he just smiled through the mask. "Before we get to what I need I think it's only fair we exchange basic information. I showed you mine, I think it's only fair that you show me yours" Charon admits. After all, anyone could claim to have the power to build a criminal organization. However, Arachna had done nothing to show Charon why she was someone to be believed.

"What is your power?"

"Simple enough," she replied as she took a slow step toward him, a single one of her arachnid legs emerging from beneath the cloak she still wore to gently poke him in the center of his chest provided he didn't attempt to shift out of the way. "I'm a spider. When I told you I was building a web I wasn't joking. In any case, does this satisfy your curiosity? Is there more that you'd have me do?"

She remained entirely at ease now, confident in her ability to handle whatever Charon may think to throw at her.

"No I think that's...descriptive enough" Charon said as he touched his chest where she had just poked him. It felt strange, but given that they were extra appendages growing from her body, what more could Charon expect? Either way, this would serve his needs just fine.

"My gang is small in the East District, but I have plans to change that. The boys I have following me are loyal, but I'll need more if I'm ever even going to attempt to make a real name for myself" Charon explained. "A small second gang has recently started patrolling our neighborhoods, trying to cut in on the scores that we take. All I want you to do is help me find their leader and help me kill him. Once I do, I have a feeling that his men will become my men"

"Easy enough," she answered after a quick moment of thought. "All we need is to find a patrol. I'll leave that part up to you. I can follow them to their hole out of sight with little effort. Once his lackeys leave again, assassinating their king should be easy enough provided there are no complications. Do you agree?" she inquired, opening her plan up to scrutiny or additional information she hadn't thought of.

"Or perhaps I could work my way in as a member and eliminate him from the inside?" She used the arachnid limb still poking out from within her cloak to stroke her chin thoughtfully as she continued to think of possibilities for eliminating the leader of a gang without actually damaging his subordinates.

"I personally don't feel taking the time to infiltrate is necessary. And you're not going to kill him, that's something I'll have to do myself" Charon stated as Arachna could see that he was smiling through the mask. "The story would be so much better when they realize what I do to him, rather than hearing it came from you. These stories matter far more in this part of town" he added before motioning to the road that she had been walking towards before being stopped.

"They like this street a great deal, due to how much foot traffic there is. I've been trying to have my boys man it but it's led to a few fights I know they won't win. With your help though, sending the right kind of message isn't going to be that difficult" Charon said before turning to the woman. "So it's agreed? Help me kill this guy, and then we can really talk about working together"

"Very well," Natalya responded with a nonchalant wave of her arm. "What would you have me do then, since this is apparently your show. I suppose a simple assault would be faster. Am I simply finding the leader's location and signaling you to come in to finish the job?"

Charon reached behind his back and underneath his shirt before pulling out a small pistol. He loaded the first bullet in to place before looking down the barrel of it. "No, I'll be with you the whole way. I merely want you to take out any of his guards that might be watching over him...non lethally of course, the more men I recruit for myself the better" Charon explained. "Don't be afraid to rough them up badly though so long as they can heal. Whatever stories they spread, they'll believe that you work for me and they'll think you can attack them again just as easily"

Charon motioned to the streets. "After you. For this gang you'll recognize them by their colors, apparently they wanted to be recognized from far away...a sentiment I can't help but share. They were blue and white checkered scarves tightly around their necks. The leader wears a plain blue one though, and he always has a stupid grin on his face. I'm sure you'll find him with ease once you see him"

"You're making this more and more unappealing with every word..." Natalya sighed heavily while massaging the bridge of her nose between two fingers in displeasure. "Fine, let's get this over with before I regret working with you and your gun... Stay out of sight. I've got my own plan."

She shook her head and headed out into the street, looking as inconspicuous as a woman could look walking through the dilapidated streets of Mocca City as the day grew closer to evening. It was fortunate that she had some information from Charon that this street was frequented or she'd be relying entirely on luck once again and lightning rarely struck twice around here. For his part, the information was accurate and she was able to locate one of the local gang members after only about ten minutes of walking Hm... make that two, not that it really mattered how many there were.

The two regarded her with obvious stares of both interest and confusion as their paths neared one another, whispering back and forth as they probably discussed the possibility of robbing the poor girl or maybe even worse. Unfortunately for them, they wouldn't even have time to begin reaching for their weapons before Arachna suddenly tore away her cloak to reveal her costume and odd mutations beneath. It was time to pretend to be a hero.

"Halt, criminals!" she shouted as heroically as possible, leaping forward quickly to jab one of the gang members hard in the chest, instantly pinning him to the building behind him and coming in hard with a flying kick to the face that instantly took him out. By the time she'd turned toward the second one he was already taking off toward whatever he likely called his base, hoping to outrun the heroic villain. Obviously fighting a superhero wasn't really on his bucket list.

With his head start given, Arachna was quick to follow him, crawling up the nearest building and following him from across the rooftops and out of his line of sight. She caught sight of him as he ducked through the door to a large warehouse, probably already babbling about a super-powered spider that was chasing him to whoever was inside. They'd probably be expecting her, but that was just fine. She'd even give them a little time to hole up within...

She made her way to the side of the warehouse, unguarded to keep its location more of a secret. There was no power and it was getting dark so they were probably relying on flashlights and lanterns to see what they were doing within. All the better for her. With Charon all caught up, she filled him in on the information that he should stay outside and wait for her to flush the boss out so he could finish his task quickly and easily.

She crept her way silently to the door that the ganger had only just entered a few minutes earlier and knocked it open hard with one of her extra limbs, immediately causing the inside of the warehouse to light up with the sounds and bright flashes of gunfire. Yup... they were waiting for her. She waited for the fire to come to a stop before quickly leaping through the doorway, grasping the upper edge of the doorway with two of her spider limbs and quickly pulling herself up and onto the wall of the warehouse. With quick movements, she scuttled off into one of the darker corners amidst some more scattered gunfire and let the thugs sweat.

Obviously she wouldn't stay put. She was already moving into a better position of ambush, seeking to annihilate the thugs one after the other till she had the boss shaking in his boots. It didn't take long to find him, already barking quick orders to his subordinates as they scattered about in an attempt to find her and end her.

One of the braver fools actually raced straight to the corner she'd vanished into and he'd find himself the first of the group to feel the bite of a spider. She'd long since ducked between two boxes a short distance away as he shined his light into and around the corner she'd vanished to. He practically backed straight into her as he tried to keep his back to the supposed safety of the stack of boxes. Instead she merely pushed them over noisily straight onto him and delivered a quick stomp to the face to put him out of commission.

From there, she fled immediately, keeping close to the ground and out of sight as more of the thugs ran over to check out the noise. She'd take them by surprise next...

"You're the one that wanted alliances, it doesn't come as easy as asking someone nicely anymore" Charon pointed out as he slipped his gun back in place. After making sure it was loaded, he wouldn't need it for some time. With some luck he wouldn't need it at all, but it was unlikely that they'd find this rival leader without any sort of bumps in the road. For now, Arachna had asked him to stay back and out of sight.

That was fine by Charon. Even if this whole thing went horribly wrong, now Charon had some distance between himself and the event. Power plays like this never ended without the shedding of some blood. The more that was one Arachna's hands instead of Charon, the better it was for him.

Charon stayed out of sight as requested, another thing he was grateful for as he wanted to see how exactly Arachna went about her assignment. If she wanted a web of villains under her command, Charon needed to see that she was capable of making that a reality before trying to help her in any way. The world was changing, and it was going to take a specific breed of people to lead it. Charon planned on being one of those people, and he had a feeling that Arachna desired something very similar.

As Charon caught up, he listened to her report and waited for her next plan of action. Charon let her move in to the base, allowing her to draw the attention and gunfire of many of the thugs inside the building. Ignoring Arachna's request, Charon slipped in to the doorway and stuck to the shadows, moving quickly and quietly through the building in order to get closer to the gang leader. After Arachna defeated a few more thugs, Charon saw the man duck in to another room and make his way to the stairs.

Charon quickly followed, moving past and avoiding the thugs that were still looking for Arachna. Moving up the stairs he heard two voices talking above him. One belonged to the leader, while the other belonged to his second in command: Marcus. "Perfect" Charon said to himself before pulling his gun out. With the chaos going on downstairs, no one would thing of what one other random shot would mean.

Approaching the shut door, Charon quickly kicked it open before moving forward. The leader and Marcus were discussing something urgently, only to turn their attention towards Charon. Marcus reached for his gun but Charon quickly shot the man in the leg. "No no, you just stay there Marcus. You need to see this" Charon said before turning his gun back to the leader who stood there without a weapon of any kind. "I warned you that you'd pay for stepping on to my territory and threatening my boys. Bet you feel pretty damn stupid now"

The leader just narrowed his eyes before spitting down at Charon's feet. "Go to hell"

Charon just smiled. "Oh, I'll end up there, but you'll have to save me a spot" Charon said before firing a bullet straight in to the leader's knee cap, causing the man to drop to the floor in pain. As he writhed in agony, Charon began to walk forward and slowly unclasp his mask. "Now now...don't be afraid. I'll make this quick" Charon said with a wicked smile as his exposed face caused the leader and Marcus to both shake in fear as he drew closer.

"So it's true...what they say about you" Marcus said quietly as he used his hands to try and push himself away from Charon.

Charon looked to Markus before turning his smirk back towards the gang leader. "You're about to see" he said before picking up a gasoline can that was in the room. Without delaying, he quickly emptied the contents of the can on to the gang leader, drenching him despite his squirming. "I think you just need to lighten up" he said as he reached in to his black jacket and pulling out his customized Zippo lighter. Charon ignited the flame before leaning down, igniting the gang leader in a mix of orange flame. The screams of the leader would be heard even in the bottom of the warehouse where Arachna was.

The remaining thugs may not have thought much about the two gunshots that rang out, but Arachna certainly did since she wasn't the cause of them. She didn't realize exactly what was going on, however, till she saw the glow of heavy flames through the office door nearby along with the ghastly death screams of a man whom could only be assumed to be the former leader of this gang.

"Damnit, Charon..." she cursed in annoyance. It appeared that he'd directly went against her orders and snuck inside behind her to handle the boss before she could force him to flee the scene. It worked, but it was still annoying that the man couldn't even follow a simple instruction such as to stay put. ...Either that or the boss had just decided it was about time to turn his office into a barbecue and those death wails were actually screams of intense joy... Doubtful.

At this turn of events, Arachna chose to lay low rather than eliminate the last few mooks remaining that weren't unconscious. If Charon was going to keep doing things his way rather than hers, she'd let him deal with the consequences when everyone realized what was going on like she had and ran to confront him.