The Starlight Saint

by mtnetsurfer

Rating: teen
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Starlight Glimmer, Sex, Crossover, Alternate Universe, Human
Length: 54185

A magical mishap sends Starlight into another world's past as an infant... To be raised by Stilwater's most violent gang member.

As Starlight attempts to use Starswirl the Bearded's time travel spell, a magical blast from Twilight causes the spell to backfire. This sends Starlight into a new world, both as a human... And as an infant.

Fortunately, she finds herself being raised by the most unlikely of people... Stilwater's most notorious gang member, Johnny Gat, and his girlfriend Aisha.

Things get interesting as Starlight's planned canonizing conincides with another new recruit, who's presence could shake the foundation of Stilwater... And beyond.

Published 2017-10-30 23:30:11 UTC
Last updated 2018-06-23 13:57:46 UTC

Early Years: Unexpected Power

As the years went by, Starlight began to grow. The mishap that brought her to this new world in the first place seemed to either erase or suppress her previous memories. Either way, she couldn't remember Equestria. Regardless, her capacity for knowledge was clear as her juvenile body slowly caught up to her adult mind. Aisha's new recording contract was able to put her into a decent school, but soon it become moot since she was able to bypass quite a number of grades.

That didn't mean her life was easy. As it turned out, Kingdom Come Records was a front for the Vice Kings, a street gang that all but ruled Stilwater. And the demands Aisha was being given were pretty extreme. Fortunately, anytime the company's manager, the new lieutenant Warren Willams, sent heavies to send a message, Johnny would send them back in varying states of injury.

How it went was simple. If they simple tried verbal intimidation, they merely needed an ice pack. If they tried to trash the apartment, they needed a cast. Tried to assault Aisha, they needed hospitalization. They tried to assault Starlight, and the police needed to be called in with a meat wagon and a body bag. It was only because Johnny was acting in defense of his daughter that he got away with this last one.

The odd thing was Aisha never got the short end as a result of this. They both chalked it up to Benjamin King, the Vice King's leader, talking down Williams. The man commanded a great deal of respect, even from Johnny, who normally had a real problem with authority figures. Still, the headaches were worth it, since the money brought in from Aisha's career was able to help raise Starlight.

"Say Dad," a now nine-year-old Starlight said, "Why did that man in the restaurant call you Ji-hoon?" The new family was just coming back from a dinner trip to Chinatown, where one of the patrons, a Chinese immigrant named Wong Sheng Tai, had called Johnny Ji-hoon. "Aw, that's just my birth name, from when my family was still living in Seoul, South Korea. It got changed when they immigrated here when I was just an infant."

"I didn't know that about you," Aisha noted. "Even you don't know everything about me, Eesh," Johnny replied, "After all, I'm a simple guy, so talking about my deepest, darkest secrets is not something I normally do." Aisha nodded. "I hear ya, Johnny." Such a simple explanation for her question was certainly enough for Starlight. Still, she had a nagging feeling in her mind. Like something was pushing against her skull.

"You doing, okay Sweetie?," Johnny asked. "Just more headaches," Starlight said, "They've been getting more frequent, and more severe." "Well, you are getting close to puberty," Aisha assured her. "I don't know Eesh," Johnny said, "Headaches aren't normally part of the package deal when it comes to puberty. Least it wasn't for me." It was just a few short days before Starlight's tenth birthday. Well, as close as Johnny and Aisha could approximate from the time Starlight showed up at their apartment's door.

"Mom! Dad! Something weird's happening to me!" This cry from Starlight got Johnny and Aisha racing to her room. What they saw completely surprised them. Starlight's eyes and hands were glowing with a transparent turquoise light, as were several objects around the room. Objects that were currently floating. "Okay...," Johnny muttered, "Definitely something worth waking us up for at just past midnight."

"Right on her birthday too," Aisha said that very morning, "What on Earth is going on? I mean, just yesterday Starlight was perfectly normal, and now on her tenth birthday she suddenly has some sort of... Telekinetic magic or something. How are we gonna handle this? Like just make her stop or something?" "No way," Johnny said, "What are we, the fucking Dursleys? This has gotta have something to with Starlight's unexplained headaches, and if she doesn't find some sort of control or outlet, it could just make her head explode."

Aisha nodded. "Yeah, you're right. This is just part of who she is. But still, how are we gonna help her control this? It's not like we can offer her a point of reference." "No, but I might be able to help her learn some mental discipline," Johnny suggested, "I happen to know a few good martial arts dojos that'd be perfect for helping her." Aisha chuckled. "While you're at it, you might as well teach her how to fight on the streets. With the Carnales rising up again after so many years, it's getting dangerous to walk the streets of Stilwater."

It wasn't just the Carnales that had Julius worried. A new gang was already forming, taking advantage of the power struggle between Los Carnales and the Vice Kings, calling themselves the Westside Rollerz. The turf war was starting to spill into the Row, and Julius didn't like it one bit. 'There's nothing for it,' he thought to himself, 'I'll just have to start my own gang to put an end to all this.'

He quickly staked his claim on the old church in Mission Beach, then got to work planning. He needed a new color to differentiate the new gang from the others. At first he considered green, but thought that might send the wrong message. Finally he settled on purple, to give the impressions of regal protectors. 'Protectors living in a church... I think I might know a good name for this new gang... The Third Street Saints.'

Now that he had the basis for his new gang, Julius started walking the streets, looking for anyone who might be willing to fight against the three gangs threatening the peace of Stilwater. It would take time to match their numbers, but Julius was patient. If there was one thing Ben King got right, it was that it was important to know when to wait, when to build, and when to act. And right now waiting and building were more important than acting. 'This time, I'll do it right.'

Author's Note

I've been getting some largely positive feedback from this community. Thanks you guys. One more chapter of this prologue before we get into the first Saints Row game. Now that we've established that Starlight still has access to her magic, next is making sure it's established that it won't be a storybreaker power.

Early Years: The Saints

Author's Note

I should mention that this chapter ends with the opening scene of the first Saints Row game. As a result, it will be mostly similar. It should go without saying, but I don't own the Saints Row franchise. Just saying that to be safe.

Early Years: The Saints

"That's right, keep that control," Johnny said as he watched over Starlight. It had been eight years since her telekinesis manifested, and by now she had learned a great deal of control, enough to be able to lift heavy vehicles. As she put down the semi she had been lifting, she asked, "Why have me learn to control my powers when you stress the importance of not relying on it?" "Better to have it and not need it," Johnny said simply, "This isn't like a gun or blade. It takes a great deal of concentration to pull off, which could work against you in a fight."

Starlight nodded, understanding what her dad was saying. If she was busy lifting someone or something to use as a projectile, someone else could put a bullet in her while she was too busy to notice. "Always remember," Johnny said, "This power is a tool, not a weapon. There is a difference. Speaking of which, I think we're ready for real weapons testing." Starlight smiled. Part of her learning how to fight involved a lot of small arms training. Already her muscles were hardening against varying levels of recoil from the different firearms.

"So this is your daughter," came a new voice. Starlight and Johnny turned to see Julius walking up to them. Julius had approached Johnny a few weeks ago regarding joining the Saints, a new street gang that being formed to combat the three others. Johnny had agreed, as long as Starlight was allowed to join once her training was finished. Julius seemed reluctant, but accepted once he learned about her special talents.

"I wouldn't have believed it if I hand't seen it firsthand," Julius noted, "I thought that sort of power was only in science fiction." "Don't get too excited," Starlight said, "I made Dad a promise that I'd only use this power in emergency situations." "Fair enough," Julius agreed, "Even without it we've almost got enough muscle to take back the Row. We can start your canonizing tomorrow, but for now I thought you might want to meet some of the other Saints." He led the father and daughter to the old church.

"Place looks like a dump," Starlight noted, "Maybe we should consider getting it renovated." "Sadly we don't have the money for that," Julius replied, "And even if we did, it'd only cause us to lose sight of our goals. We want to make sure the streets are safe for us and others to walk." The sound of a lighter could be heard, and Starlight turned to see an oddly clean-cut looking gang member sitting on one of the pews, lighting a cigarette.

"I wasn't aware we were recruiting anyone under twenty," the man said. "Starlight, this is Troy," Julius explained, "And don't worry about her none Troy. She's Johnny's daughter, so she knows how to survive on the streets." Troy shrugged. "If you say so." Another man, this one wearing a large denim jacket, came up and offered his hand. "Don't mind Troy. He's uptight. I'm Dex. Nice to meetcha." "Same," Starlight said as she shook Dex's hand.

"This mean we're finally getting another female lieutenant?," asked an Asian-looking woman. "Possibly, Lin," Julius said, "It all depends on how well Starlight does after her canonizing, which will take place tomorrow. First we need to make one final sweep of the city, make sure we know what's where and who we can turn to, to spread news about the Saints. So Starlight, any questions?"

"Just one," Starlight offered, "Why do you call the recruitment process 'canonizing'?" "It's what the Catholic Church calls it whenever someone is officially recognized as a saint," Julius explained, "As our gang is called the Saints, I thought it thematically appropriate." Starlight nodded. "I get it." Julius nodded in return. "Okay, me and Troy will head out and be back later this evening."

That evening, a young Caucasian man, only known on the street as "Playa", was walking down the Row. As he walked, he passed a street hustler calling out, "Watches! I got watches here!" Seeing Playa, he called, "Yo man, this shit'd cost you six-hundred dollars at the store." Seeing Playa ignore him, the hustler just said, "Aw whatever man... Watches! I got watches here!"

Playa soon stopped when he came across a scantily-clad street hooker. Seeing he was interested, the hooker said, "Hey baby. I can show you a good time." Before Playa could respond, he heard someone call out, "Oh hell no!" He turned to see three Vice Kings staring at a Rollerz tag. "Man!," Vice One said, "Fuck the Rollerz!" Vice Two turned to Vice Three and said, "Levar! You gonna let those bitches disrespect us?!"

Vice Three, Levar apparently, took a spray can he was holding, started shaking it, and responded, "Shit, what you think?" As he got to work spraying the tag over, a trio of Rollerz, wearing blue, walked up to them. Rollerz One brandished the bat in his hand as he said, "The fuck you think you're doin'?" "Just being civic minded, is all," Vice One snarked. "That so?," Rollerz Two retorted.

"Yeah," Vice Two said, grinning smugly, "Some dumb ass cracka went and shit on this wall. We just cleaning it up." Rollerz One responded by cracking Vice Two's head with his bat. Levar retaliated with a quick punch, and the two gangs were suddenly brawling. Before long, a group of Carnales, dressed in red, drove up. One aimed a sub-machine gun at the two other gangs. "Hector says beunas noches." He immediately opened fire.

One of the Vice Kings and one of the Rollerz got out their own semi-auto pistols in response, but only managed to squeeze off a few shots before being cut down. Several more rounds were exchange as another Carnales got out an automatic rifle. One of the Rollerz responded with his own rifle, causing the Carnales to swerve out of control and ram into a nearby building, clipping Playa on the way.

The Roller saw one of the Carnales still alive and trying to crawl out of the wreckage. He was soon finished off, only for Vice Two to cap the Roller before turning his attention to Playa. Pointing his gun, he said, "Wrong time, wrong place." However, the shot that rang out came from Troy's gun. He and Julius had stumbled onto the scene. "You okay, Playa?," Julius asked. Playa just weakly nodded.

As Julius helped him to his feet, Troy called out, "Julius let's move." He kept his gun out as Julius helped Playa walk away from the scene. A few blocks away, Playa had to sit down due to his bum leg. Looking him over, Julius said, "That don't look so bad, you should fine." He jerked his thumb back to Troy. "That's Troy, you can thank him later." Playa nodded to Troy. "The Row ain't safe no more, son," Julius said, "We got gangs fighting over shit that ain't theirs, and you're in they way. They don't care if you're representing or not."

Seeing what was going on, Troy objected, "Julius, this is no time to recruit. We already got our hands full with Starlight's canonizing tomorrow." Julius looked at him. "We need all the help we can get!" "What we need is to get our asses outta here!," Troy retorted. "In a minute," Julius replied. He turned back to Playa. "Look, the Row's got a problem. Come to the church when you wanna be a part of the solution." And with that, he and Troy, leaving Playa with a lot to think about.

Saints Row: Reclamation and Retaliation

Author's Note

No we get into the meat of the story. I'll be using guides from Ron Hiler (who knows these games like the back of his hand) to determine how each chapter is structured. Each chapter from this first series will constitute ten percent game completion (which means getting all the story missions, strongholds, activities, tags, and CDs), which means there will be ten chapters. Enjoy.

Saints Row: Reclamation and Retaliation

The idea of joining a street gang ultimately sounded appealing to Playa, so he decided to take Julius up on his offer since he didn't really have the greatest first impression of the other three gangs. As he approached the church, he could already see the Saints cheering as some of them were ganging up on a young woman, Starlight presumably. Playa remembered Troy mentioning her last night.

She actually wasn't doing too bad for herself, several of the soldiers that tried to jump her quickly paying the price. Playa winced as one soldier tried grabbing her from behind, only to accidentally grab her boobs. She responded by slamming her foot onto his, then turning around to grab him before slamming her knee into his groin. "All right, I think that's enough," Julius declared, "We need to save some for the next recruit."

He nodded over to where Playa had shown up. "I think you got the gist of what's going down here," Julius noted, "If you're gonna hang with us, you got to be canonized. All of us went through it, for better or worse. Some like Starlight and her father Johnny Gat were able to take on all comers, others suffered what we call blood in, blood out. Either way, once you've been through it, you'll be recognized as one of us. You ready for this, Playa?"

Playa nodded as several Saints approached him, ready to rumble. As the fight started, Johnny walked up to Julius. "So who's the new guy?" "Me and Troy found him last night," Julius explained, "He got caught in a three-way between the other gangs, nearly got capped for it." Starlight watched as Playa wound up mobbed and on his hands and knees, the other Saints wailing on his back. "Least he's durable," she noted.

Julius nodded and called out, "Alright, that's enough of that!" The Saints backed off as Troy walked over. "Here, on your feet. It's not so bad, we all went through it." "That's what it means to have blood in, blood out," Johnny noted. Playa nodded as he and Starlight accepted the new purple garments that indicated they were officially part of the gang. Starlight moved somewhere private to change.

When she came back, Julius addressed the Saints. "Alright, let's boil it down to basics. Everyone here knows what we need to do. We got all these bitches riding all over thinking they own these streets. I don't care what flags they're flying. Rollerz, Carnales, or Vice Kings. No one's gonna make us scared to walk these streets! We need to lock our shit down here and now!" He waited a moment for the cheers from the Saints to die down a bit.

"Now if we're gonna be serious about taking back what's ours," Julius continued, "Then we need to show those other motherfuckers what time it is. Break it down and it's all about respect. I know a few people from back when I was with the Vice Kings and I still have their contact info. They're willing to help us spread the word, and fund our gang, in exchange for a few favors. Once we get that respect, the others gangs will move out, and we'll move right on in. And if that don't work, we can always drop any motherfucker flying the wrong colors. Just so long as the word gets out."

"Alright," Troy said as he approached Playa and Starlight, "Julius wants me to walk you through your paces. Starlight, I'm sure your pop has already given you the basics, but a refresher course never hurt anyone. Playa, this'll help you understand how we do things around here. First off is getting you a piece." He walked the duo over to the nearby weapons store, Friendly Fire.

Troy handed the two of them some cash, two-hundred for Playa and a full grand for Starlight. Playa looked at Troy incredulously. "Hey, she earned it for practically winning during her canonizing," Troy retorted, "You would have gotten the same amount if you won." Playa just shrugged, then looked over the selection at the store. "I'd recommend the VICE 9," Troy noted, "It's reliable, holds a decent number of rounds, and you easily scavenge additional ammo off any gang member you drop."

Playa nodded and purchased the gun, while Starlight got the same. "Okay," Troy said, "Now let's see if you can handle those pieces. Some of our boys spotted Vice Kings scouting out the area around our hangout. Let's go clean house." Sure enough, several Vice Kings were already found not too far from the church. Playa quickly started firing at them, down them after a couple of seconds.

"Not bad," Starlight said, "But next time try for headshots if you can. Saves ammo that way." Playa nodded as the group headed for the next set of Vice Kings. They proved to be more aggressive, actually getting out their guns when they spotted the Saints, but still wound up dropped. The third group must've heard the shots, because they soon came in guns blazing. It did them little good, however, as they soon joined their teammates.

"Alright," Troy said, impressed, "Looks like you can handle yourselves on the streets. But right now we need to lose the heat from the Vice Kings. When their leaders get word that we're stepping against them, they'll bring in more soldiers. Their car should be nearby, let's jack it and head for Forgive and Forget. That should take the heat off." Forgive and Forget was basically a drive-through confessional, and that was using the term loosely. The odd religion behind the chain basically used their contacts to get people off other people's backs.

Once the trio did that, Starlight sighed. "So, can we stop by Freckle Bitch's? I worked up an appetite." "I can get behind that," Troy replied, "I'm jonesing for a Fun Bag myself." It should be noted that, between her forgetting her life in Equestria and her new human physiology, Starlight had developed a more varied appetite than the ponies of her homeworld. As such, it shouldn't be such a weird thing to see her bite into Freckle Bitch's signature burger, the Fist, other than wondering how her jaw could bite off so much meat at once and still be able to chew.

Which was what was going through Playa's mind when he saw just that. "That reminds me," Starlight said between mouthfuls, "I didn't see Lin at my canonizing. I thought she was gonna be there." Starlight and Lin had really clicked yesterday. "She wanted to be," Troy explained, "But Julius had an assignment for her and wanted her to get a head-start. I'm sure she'll be glad to hear you made it, though." Starlight nodded, but was a little upset at Julius for pulling something like that at the last minute.

Despite Playa and Starlight being the newcomers, Julius thought they should be helping out most on the front lines, since they showed so much potential. First thing Starlight wanted to do was check in on a few friends she made while still in school, since they owed her something. Not money, but some CDs she let them borrow. Two met her in Mission Beach, while a third met her in Harrowgate.

While in that neighborhood, the duo met with Will, a local pimp. Once he saw the two newcomers, he smiled, "Hey there young bloods. Julius said you two would be coming." He looked to Playa. "You look like you might be interested in a little sumpin' sumpin'. Why not try Peggy over there?" Playa and Starlight looked over to where Peggy was standing. The girl was so grossly disproportionate and overweight, she couldn't qualify as any sort of attractive.

Seeing the disgusted looks on their faces, Will gave a resigned chuckle. "Yeah, I didn't think so. I'll be honest, I've been trying to start a real business, but the only ho I got is so fugly blind motherfuckers turn her down." "How can we help with that?," Starlight asked. "Glad you asked," Will said, "If you can snatch me some of them fine bitches turning tricks for other pimps, I can start to see some real money. Now don't worry, I ain't asking for something for nothing. You get me the girls and I'll cut you in on what they make."

As it turned out, said girls were being used by abusive pimps, constantly slapping and demeaning them if they couldn't turn a profit. Playa felt no sympathy for capping said pimps before getting the girls to join Will's stable. The result was a good chunk of change in the duo's pocket, plus Will started spreading word of the Saints to all his brand new costumers, insuring they would talk about it to other people.

Later, Starlight lead Playa to her favorite restaurant in Chinatown. Reservations for the duo had already been made by Julius, so that they could meet another contact. Starlight quickly recognized Wong Shen Tai, looking slightly more wizened after nine years. Wong's translator spoke to them as Wong himself began speaking in Mandarin. "I'm sure Miss Glimmer recognizes me from when I addressed her father, but you young man are a new face."

Wong smiled as he continued to speak through his translator. "My name is Wong Shen Tai. In the envelope before you are a group of people who have wronged me. I was told by Mister Little that you could handle this task. Please speak to them about my grievances, but they are not to be harmed." Wong fell silent before his translator, then surprised Playa and Starlight by shooting the translator in the foot.

"Apologies," Wong said in perfect English, albeit with a heavy accent, "My translator heard me wrong. I want these people dead." "I'm surprised you didn't kill him outright," Starlight noted. Wong nodded to his translator as the man steadied himself. "It is hard to find a decent translator in Stilwater, and though I can speak English, my accent makes me difficult to understand for most people. Regardless, you will find more details about your targets in the folder."

Before getting started on the hit list, Starlight took Playa to another contact out in Charlestown. When they got to the garage Julius directed them to, a Latino man in a wheelchair rolled up them, which was a surprise for Playa. "What's the matter?," the man said indignantly, "Never seen a guy in a wheelchair." "You must be Miguel," Starlight noted, "You seem a little irritable."

"Don't mind him," said Miguel's girlfriend Jen, "He's just grumpy ever since the boys in blue crippled him for life." "Yeah, thanks to that my boosting days are over," Miguel said sadly, "But I still got an eye for what sells. I got a list of what I need on the wall over there. Some of them will need some aftermarket touches, but I'll be sure to reimburse you. Just be careful it gets here in one piece, or I'll have to dock some pay to recoup the repair price."

As they walked out, Playa tapped Starlight on the shoulder. He didn't say much, but Starlight could already tell what he was thinking. "I gathered from the photos that one of Wong's targets, this girl Jackie, is an ambulance driver. I know the city well, so I know hospitals in this district have a demand for more ambulances. Since Wong doesn't know where Jackie is, I figure we can simply take advantage of her job..." She got out her cell. "And get her to come to us. And then swipe her ambulance for Miguel." Playa nodded in understanding.

She dialed 911. When the operative picked up, Starlight screamed, "Please help! My best friend just got run over!" She gave the exact address they were at, and the operative promised to send someone to help. Sure enough, the driver sent turned out to be Jackie. The woman looked shocked as Playa pointed his VICE 9 at her. "This worked out faster than I thought," Starlight noted, before Playa capped Jackie in the head. They then dropped the ambulance off at Miguel's.

Starlight was able to get two more of her CDs from friends she met in Charlestown, plus she suggested to Playa that they could show the other gangs the Saints meant business by snuffing out their tags. "Dad would be miffed if I used my powers for this," Starlight said as she telekinetically levitated several spray cans, "But it's the best way to get the perfect tags to show Stilwater who the Saints are." Playa watched in amazement as Starlight grabbed three tags in Charlestown this way.

As Starlight put the finishing touches on her last tag, Julius called. 'Nice job. Already word of the Saints is spreading. Now we need to make use of that infamy. Troy's told me about an abandoned storefront in Athos Bay being used as a hideout by the Carnales. We need to clean that building out so we can hold down the Row.' "Got it," Starlight replied. As she and Playa drove to Athos Bay, she said, "You don't really talk much, do you?"

Playa just looked at her. "A little nervous?," Starlight asked. Playa nodded. "Don't worry about it," Starlight said reassuringly, "It might get rough, but I'm sure we'll make it through this." The Athos Bay Storefront by pretty much by the numbers. Several Carnales were inside packing heat, but proved useless as Playa and Starlight rampaged through the stronghold. As they got out the back of the storefront, they heard a cry of, "Damn it..."

Starlight looked to see a Carnales lieutenant making a break for it. "We got a runner," she said, and the two hurried to a nearby car to chase the lieutenant down. Soon enough, the lieutenant's car ran out of gas and he was forced to get out, making him a sitting duck. With the storefront cleared out, several Saints soldiers came in to claim it for themselves. The remaining Carnales in the area either ran off back to their other turfs or switched to the Saints colors.

"Nice work, Playa, Starlight," Julius said as the duo returned to the church, "Now that we have Athos Bay we've got a little breathing room, but two-thirds of the Row doesn't equal a whole, and the Rollerz still have a hold on Harrowgate." "Not for long," Troy said as he walked up, "I just got a tip that there's a big gang war going on in that neighborhood. All three enemy gangs duking it out. We can slip in during the mayhem and take out their lieutenants, sending a clear message to stay off the Row."

"Then what are we waiting for," Julius said, "Let's get our soldiers and head out there." The four of them got a nearby car and started heading for the docks at Harrowgate. "Julius, you okay with bringing the newcomer instead of Johnny?," Troy asked. "Even if I wasn't," Julius replied, "I'd say Starlight is a fair trade-off." Troy nodded as they reached the docks, where the sounds of gunfire could already be heard.

A few Rollerz were in sight firing at some Carnales. With the Rollerz backs turned away from the Saints, they proved easy prey. Playa then moved in and took out several Carnales, allowing the group to move forward. As the Saints moved up the dock, they got surprised when a Carnales vehicle rushed in trying to ram them. Starlight quickly put an end to that plan by halting the car with her powers, allowing Julius and Troy to finish off the passengers.

"Think stopping a car trying to run us over counts as an emergency?," Troy asked. Julius nodded. "If it keeps us out of the bay, sure." Meanwhile Playa continued to move up ahead, eventually taking out the Carnales lieutenant. "Y'know, I changed my mind," Troy said, "I'm glad we found this kid." They were now starting to see Vice Kings among the attackers, which meant all three gang, four if one counted the Saints themselves, were now accounted for.

Up ahead, Starlight was able to take out the Vice King lieutenant when he got distracted by a sudden explosion, caused by an incoming car hitting his own. "Just the Rollerz lieutenant left," she noted, "Why haven't we seen him yet?" "Don't forget this neighborhood is under Rollerz control," Julius responded, "They probably boxed in the Vice Kings and Carnales from two different directions. He should be up ahead, don't worry."

Sure enough, the group started seeing Rollerz again in the nearby parking lot, including their lieutenant. Some leftover Carnales tried to get revenge by firing rocket launchers, but only succeeded in distracting the Rollerz lieutenant long enough for Playa to cap him. By this point, the carnage was starting to die down. Unfortunately, that's when the sirens started blaring up.

"Shit the cops," Troy said, "Quick, let's get outta here." The four of them hopped into a still-intact car from the Vice Kings, and managed to evade the cops until they could reach a Forgive and Forget. After that, they returned to the church. "We did it!," Julius said excitedly, "We managed to take back Saints Row." "So," Starlight said, "Mission accomplished?" "I wish it was that easy," Julius replied, "But we've still work to do. Troy gather up our boys here at the church, this is far from over."

Once the gang was at the church, Julius walked to where the parson would normally stand. "Listen up people. We've got some serious shit to discuss. Sure, we managed to take back the Row, but that don't mean this is over. The Vice Kings, Rollerz, and Carnales will be coming back, and they won't be happy. They only way we can insure our safety is to turn them into nothing but a memory."

He turned to Dex. "Dex, I want you on the Carnales. Ever since they hooked up with the Colombians it's like they own this town. We simply can't compete with kind of drug money. Play it smart. The Lopez family is still around for a reason." Dex nodded. "Got it." "Troy," Julius said, "You get the Vice Kings." "Not a chance," Troy replied. Julius frowned. "Fuck you say?" "Anyone but them," Troy insisted. "Fuck him," Johnny said, "He's just scared of going up against Ben King. I'll handle the Vice Kings."

"You sure you're not biting off more than you can chew, Dad?," Starlight asked. "Relax Sweetie," Johnny said, "Even I'm not about to go hogwild against the Vice Kings. I already have a few strategies in mind. Besides, bullets still kill motherfuckers, right?" "Very well then," Julius said, "Just don't do anything reckless, at least not at first." "What about the Rollerz?," Dex asked. "That's my job," came Lin's voice.

"Lin!," Starlight said, hugging Lin as she walked into the church. "Sorry for not being there at your canonizing," Lin said, "But I was already undercover." "Yeah, I was about to say," Johnny said, "What's with the blue?" Starlight noticed Lin had traded out her purple track pants for blue ones. "Lin's going undercover in the Rollerz," Julius explained, "We know plenty about the Vice Kings and Carnales, but the Rollerz are newcomers. I wanted one of our's on the inside getting some information about them."

"I didn't know the Rollerz pimped hos," a random Saint called out. Lin quickly spun on him and decked him in the face, knocking him to the ground. "You were asking for that," Starlight noted. Lin smirked. "Any other comments?" "Yeah," Johnny said, "When you punch, don't throw your shoulder so much." "He's got a point," Starlight noted. Lin just shrugged. "Alright," Julius said, "Playa, Starlight, when you're ready, talk to one of these guys. They'll have something for you to do." He addressed the whole gang. "It's our time now. Let's get this shit started."

Before heading off to start dealing with the gangs, Playa and Starlight stopped by Adept Way and the office of Legal Lee. Inside, they could see he was already on the phone. "How many times do I have to explain it to you Miss Jackson, do not walk around without wearing your neck brace." "Is that for real?," Starlight asked no one in particular. Lee continued, not noticing the two. "If someone catches you it could severely hurt our chances in court. Just remember, the whiplash has caused you excruciating, chronic pain."

Once he was sure his client understood, he hung up. "Sorry about that. Some of my clients seem to forget the particulars of the court system. Anyway, Julius Little contacted me about your financial situation. I think the fastest way to get your gang the cash you need is with an expensive insurance case. The bigger the claim, the greater the chance it'll be settled out of court, putting the cash in your pocket faster. Of course, it helps if your injuries are... Convincing."

Starlight smiled. "I think we can handle that." Playa looked a little nervous. Next thing he knew, Starlight was playing pinball in traffic, with him as the ball. If anyone did see the telltale glow that accompanied her psychic powers, they dismissed it as a hallucination, especially since she worked to make the traffic accidents as believable as possible. It wasn't long before they racked up quite the insurance claim. Of course, most of the money had to go towards paying Lee his legal fees, but they still got plenty of cash out of the deal.

The next place the duo hit up was a strip joint in Misty Lane. There, they met the club's owner, Jenna. "Hey there," Jenna said when she saw the two of them, "Have a seat." "You told Julius you need someone with discretion?," Starlight asked. "That's right," Jenna replied, "See here's the thing. Plenty of celebrities, and not just the obvious ones, come to me when they need... Companionship." Playa and Starlight nodded, realizing Jenna was running a prostitution business out of her own strip club.

"Each of these people has made their way into my little black book," Jenna said, taping said book, "And the list keeps growing. Now these are powerful people. And if their hobbies were to get leaked it would ruin their careers, and by extension my livelihood. All I need from you two is a good driver. Someone who can give both my clients and the girls entertaining them some much needed privacy."

This task proved more difficult than the insurance fraud, since Starlight couldn't go sending the news vans flying without attraction unneeded attention. Plus some of later clients requested some pretty crazy things in order to get stimulated. Still, with some luck they managed to keep the paparazzi from seeing enough to get a good story on the clients. Jenna thanked them with a considerable cash deposit, and a promise that her regulars would know who the Saints are.

After taking a night to rest, Starlight and Playa tracked down some more of Wong's targets. Alan was found just outside a strip club in the Arena district. Poor guy didn't even see it coming when Playa stabbed him over and over with a knife. Around the arena itself was Bucky, a guy in a hot dog costume. Starlight thought it overkill to kill him with a hand grenade, but she went for it since that's what Wong requested. "He must have really hated that guy," she mused.

Finally, they took a quick trip down to the Barrio district, where they found Roxanne just walking around. Playa used his new NR4 to take her out. Finally, Starlight brought Playa to the Ultor Dome, where she found two more of her CDs. They were also able to snuff out four Rollerz tags with their own. "You're really into this, aren't you?," Playa said, surprising Starlight. "So you do talk."

Playa just raised an eyebrow at her. "I know, I know, not answering your question," she replied. She sighed. "Honestly, my Dad is probably the most violent man in Stilwater, maybe even the world. Me and Mom are the only ones that can even claim to be safe around him. When he first adopted me, he tried his best to shelter me from the crapsack world we live in. But it turns out, the world wouldn't let him."

She leaned on the wall near her last tag. "I've been forced to watch as Dad killed people, most of them trying to kill us. The first time I threw up, though after a while... I kinda stopped. Like some part of me accepted it. I don't like to talk about it much. Least not with new faces." Playa nodded in understanding. That was when a call in from Lin. 'Hey Starlight, can you and the new guy meet me at the arena parking lot? I'm thinking it's about time we move against the Rollerz.' "Sure thing," Starlight said, "We're actually nearby. We'll see you shortly."

At the parking lot, Lin was walking toward's her Voxel, tricked out to look like a typical Rollerz ride. Two Rollerz were walking behind her. "That's a sweet ride Lin," Rollerz One said. "Uh huh," Lin said, uninterested. Rollerz Two looked the car over. "So who tuned this baby for ya?" "No one," Lin said simply, "I did it myself." Neither Rollerz seemed to hear her. "The spoiler looks like Donnie's work," Rollerz One said.

Rollerz Two shook his head. "Nah, the underglow screams Ricky Liu." Nearby, out of sight, Starlight facepalmed. Lin shared her frustration. "What is this, the third grade?!," she called out. After the Rollerz left, Starlight and Playa came out of hiding. "They're like the opposite of your intelligence level," Lin said to Starlight, "I swear we're never gonna kill these bastards fast enough." "Let's not take it too fast," Starlight said, "You could run the risk of blowing your cover."

Lin took a deep breath and nodded. "Anyway I didn't overhear much. These guys are a bunch of macho meatheads." "They do seem to be testosterone driven," Starlight noted, "In more ways than one." Lin nodded. "That's not to say I didn't get any information. I got word that a shipment of high performance cars is coming in today." Starlight rubbed her chin. "These guys are all about street racing and chop shops. They either want faster rides or more expensive parts. Either way, it's something we can use against them."

"And I know just how to do it," Lin said with a smile, "You two need to jack the truck carrying the cars before it makes its delivery, then get it to Samson. He'll load up the car with a few surprises and finish the delivery." Starlight nodded, and she and Playa headed out to track down the truck. Turns out it wasn't hard, as it was already traveling down the nearby freeway, escorted by several Rollerz.

Starlight pulled up to their lone vehicle and side-swiped it, causing it to crash. Then she pulled alongside the truck, where Playa capped the driver, allowing them to hijack the truck without damaging it. From there it was easy enough to get it to Samson's garage, in spite of the Rollerz coming in force. "Now we just have to wait," Starlight said to Playa, "I hope Lin knows what she's doing. We've become good friends in a short amount of time... And I don't want to lose any friends..."

Saints Row: Rocking the Rollerz

Playa looked at Starlight as she said those words. "Sorry," Starlight said, "It's just... You've seen the friends I was showing you? I only knew them from grade school. But I didn't have long to know them since I'm such a genius I was allowed to skip multiple grades. Maybe it's the catalyst for my telekinesis, I don't know. The point is I didn't want to lose touch with the friends I made, since I knew I wouldn't really be fitting in with the higher grades. Like a part of me wanted to hold on to every new friend I made."

She shook her head. "I never even told them about my current life. I don't know about Troy and Julius, but I made good friends with Lin and Dex." She shook her head. "Listen, I don't like talking about my past a lot. Let's put it on the back burner for now and do a few chores for the Saints. It'll take Samson some time to rig up that surprise for Lin." Playa looked at Starlight, but simply nodded.

The duo headed to Chinatown, where they met with another lawyer named Seth. "Hey there," the man said, "I already heard about you from Lee. So, what sort of accident are you involved in? Traffic? Walking? Hot coffee?" "Hot coffee?," Starlight asked. "You'd be surprised how dangerous it can be," Seth noted, "Listen, I've been in this business for over a year. Worked on my law degree for five months. To me, your injuries are a good source of revenue for both our parties."

Starlight turned to Playa. "Relax, I can take the fall this time. Somehow my powers can form some sort of barrier around me, and I can act with the best of them." Playa raised an eyebrow. "Either that or I can play pinball with your brains again," Starlight quipped. Playa put up his hands in acquiescence. Starlight smiled as she headed out, ready to get her mind off her one-sided conversation from earlier.

"Okay, here's comes a tough one," Starlight said, "From my Dad's numerous altercations with the cops, I happen to know Bill on our current hit list is an FBI agent..." She sighed. "I've never been good offing police officials. Dad hates authority so he'll do it by the boat-load, but me... It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Plus, to even lure out the FBI we'd have to kill, I dunno, at least two dozen or more civilians. All that to kill one guy we can't even find normally."

Playa shrugged, and tossed a grenade into a nearby crowd. He then smiled gently at Starlight. "Oh," she said in realization, "So you plan on taking this one. Okay, I can accept that. Have fun, I'm gonna go over here and start throwing up now. That way I can get over the guilt faster. Or at least I hope so..." She went into a nearby alley while Playa drew in enough police attention to get Bill running in, before gunning him down with his K6 Krukov.

Needing to get her mind off the brutality, Starlight decided to hit up a contact at Poseidon Alley. The guy, Lorenzo, ran a street racing circuit around the district. "Hey there, girl," he said when he saw Starlight, "You're the one Julius mentioned, right?" "Yeah, that's me," Starlight said, "Look it's been a rough time and I need something to relax." Lorenzo laughed. "Well, I don't know how relaxing street racing is for you, but it might just take your mind off things. Careful though, the tuners around here don't play nice with newcomers."

Playa watched from the provided camera as Starlight zoomed through the courses. Some of them were standard lap races, some checkpoint races, and some were point to point races, where the drivers could take any route to a designated finish line. Once Starlight won the last race, she got out of her car smiling. "Well, I certainly feel a lot better. Come on, Playa, we still have some time to kill." They capped off the afternoon by nabbing two tags and a CD in Fox Drive, another tag and CD in Pilson, and one final CD in The Mills.

The next day, Starlight got a call from Lin. She and Playa met their friend at an inconspicuous nightclub. To Starlight's amusement, Lin pulled Playa aside for a quick dance while she talked. "Okay, the cars are rigged to blow once the engine reaches a high enough temperature. All you gotta do is make sure you get them nice and hot. They're competing a race down in Chinatown tonight."

Playa looked over to Starlight, who nodded. Playa then nodded to Lin. "Okay, make sure you give them some tough competition. These guys are meatheads, so when they see someone driving better than them, they'll hit the nitrous to blow past you. And when they do..." She leaned in to Playa's ear. "Boom." Starlight giggled silently as Playa shivered, likely in pleasure. "After that, just get outta there," Lin said smiling, "And thanks for the dance."

As Playa rejoined Starlight, she smirked. "Admit it, you liked getting that close to a girl as hot as Lin." Playa looked back at the club as they exited. Then he turned back to Starlight, and nodded as he returned the smirk. "Troy should be here any second," Starlight said, "He's in on the plan, and thinks he may have a great way to insure this plan goes smoothly." Sure enough, Troy pulled up in a sports car.

"Alright," Troy said, "Let's get this stupid lap-race started." Starlight and Playa looked at each other, then at Troy. "We would except for one thing," Starlight said, "It's a checkpoint race." Troy's mouth hung open for a second as his cigarette dropped to the ground. "Sorry, brain freeze there. Guess I'll have to wait until after the race to light up again. The plan won't work if we're blown to hell."

Starlight and Playa got into Troy's car. "Julius told me about your earlier racing," Troy explained to Starlight, "That'll help us keep up. But these guys have thicker skin than Lin realizes when it comes to competition. We wanna get them riled up enough to hit the nitrous, we need to get under their skin verbally." "So, insult their manhood?," Starlight suggested. "Among other things," Troy said with a nod, "Just leave that part to me. All you gotta do is close enough to the Rollerz for them to hear me."

Starlight nodded. As they approached the race, Troy spoke up again. "I'm a little worried about Lin. You go undercover long enough, sooner or later you start thinking like the people you're trying to infiltrate." Starlight looked at him. "How would you know?" Troy didn't answer. Starlight sighed at that. "Look, I won't pretend I'm not worried about her. In fact, I'm probably more worried than you. But Lin knows who her friends are, and she really hates the Rollerz. Trust me, she'll stick with the Saints."

"I guess that's a good point," Troy admitted, "Anyway, here we are." Sure enough, the entire set was mostly Rollerz. "Hey," one of them said, "Who are these newcomers?" "We were under the impression this was open invitation," Starlight said as she and Troy got out and switched seats. The Rollerz seemed surprised that a girl was driving, but this just made them more confidant.

As the race got started, one of the Rollerz managed to pull up to Starlight. "Hey babe, how about a date when I win?!" "Sorry!," Starlight replied cheekily, "I don't date slowpokes!" Troy smiled as the taunt worked, the Rollerz deciding to show Starlight how fast he was, only to go out in a blaze of glory. "That's a little too fast." The next guy didn't fare any better, thanks to Troy's heckling. "So, you're really going to risk giving up your parents' ride on this race!" Troy just shook his head as the idiot punched the nitrous and soon joined his buddy.

Near the finish line, Playa spotted the last Rollerz zooming in on his nitrous, exploding just before hitting the finish line. "That was cutting it close," Starlight noted. "You doing all right?," Troy asked, "Johnny mentioned you used to get sick at the thought of killing people." "I've gotten better, more or less," Starlight said, "Though only when it comes to rival gangs, or if I'm getting paid to off someone. Then I can swallow it down. Anyway, with the race disrupted, our own boys can move in on Chinatown. Which means we finally got a foothold on the Rollerz."

Driving around the Saints new territory, Playa remembered they had another contact in the area. However, when he and Starlight went to meet the guy, Dennis, he was speaking on the phone. Despite his tone, his face showed he was worried about something. "Look, tell Mr. Wong not to worry. Yes... Yes, I promise everything is on time, there's nothing to worry about. Alright, goodbye."

He hung up and leaned his head on a nearby support column. "I am so dead..." "Not yet you aren't," Starlight said, "We don't have you on Wong's hit list." Dennis turned to look at them. "And if you can help me get the cars I need for him, I won't wind up on there. I'm having trouble getting it done myself, that's why I asked Julius for help. I have the list Wong gave me. Every ride you can snag let's me live that much longer."

Luckily, it didn't take long to find the first vehicle. Parked right outside the Ultor Arena was an Attrazione, ripe for the taking. However, Playa also noticed the billboard for a demolition derby. Seeing his face, Starlight said, "Go ahead and sign up. I'll get the car to Dennis and meet you back here." Playa nodded as Starlight hotwired the car and drove off. Inside the dome Playa saw a couple cars already out in the arena.

The first car pulled up. "Hey, are you crazy? The derby is about to start, and you're just standing around." "Don't mind my brother," the driver of the other said, "He's just being a pussy. Just grab a car, there's still room on the roster for another driver." Playa nodded. During each round he had to take out a certain of vehicles to win. By the time he was done, Starlight had returned, having delivered the stolen vehicle.

The next day, after meeting four of Starlight's friends and snagging four more tags in Sommerset, Playa got a call from Lin. 'I met up with this Rollerz mechanic named Donnie. Sweet guy, definitely a lot nicer than the rest of the Rollerz. Anyway, I overheard him and his buddies talking about a storage garage in Pleasant View where they stash some of their more high performance cars. If we take them out, it would really cripple them.'

"Whoa, whoa, let's slow it down here," Starlight said, "We just hit the Rollerz yesterday. If we act on everything little thing you hear, they could get suspicious of you." 'This is all low-key attacks,' Lin argued, 'And that garage isn't anything we couldn't have found out about on our own. I know you're worried, but trust me when I say I can handle this.' Starlight sighed. She turned to Playa. "See why I'm so worried about her?" Playa nodded.

On the way to the garage, Starlight grabbed another CD in Pleasant View, as well as three more tags. Once at the Pleasant View Garage, Starlight took a look walk around the area. "I only see six cars. Lin suggested there would be eight." Playa pointed his thumb at the nearby road. Starlight nodded. "Well, we can probably stake the place out. But let's deal with what we can first. Got the gear?" Playa grinned as he lifted up the RPG they had brought to easily destroy the vehicles.

As it turned out though, destroying some of the cars drew in the other two cars. Before long, the entire garage was useless to the Rollerz, though some decided to switch sides since the Saints were already moving in to take Pleasant View. "I guess that helps a little," Starlight said, "But I still got a bad feeling. Sooner or later Lin's gonna get in over her head. If Julius doesn't have plans to pull her out before that happens, I may just do it myself."

Hoping to calm Starlight down with another contact job, Playa took her to Southern Cross, where they met with club owner Rico Martinez. The guy in question seemed to have a look of contentment on his face. Suddenly he blurted out, "Get outta here puta." Playa was about to leave, but Starlight put a hand on his shoulder and pointed below the table Rico was sitting at. Sure enough, one of the club's female waitresses crawled out from under it, wiping her mouth a little.

"Sorry for the outburst," Rico said, "These discussions are best done without... Distractions. Anyway, I got the word from Julius, and as it happens the timing couldn't be better. Here's the quick exposition. Until I opened this club, I was a nobody. My neighbors, my family... They didn't give a flying fuck about me." "Let me guess," Starlight said with a grin, "That changed once you started getting money."

"Exactly," Rico said, "Now they're all suddenly my friends, and all want a few favors. Now I don't mind helping out, so long as they understand the consequences. Most of the time they keep their end of the deal. But a few can't seem to grasp reality here, and that's where you come in. You head out to where these people invest their cash, and do a little collateral damage. The more damage you do, the bigger the message it'll send." The job proved easy, but Starlight kept getting annoyed, and queasy, whenever civilians got caught up in the mayhem.

Hoping to take her mind of her new problem, Playa decided to bite the bullet and take Starlight to meet another contact who would let her indulge in her favorite activity, using him to play pinball with traffic. So they met with Dr. Raymond Gonzales in Cecil Park. "Nice to meet you," the exuberant doctor said, shaking both their hands, "Lee told me all about your work with him. I do a lot of work with his law firm myself, and my testimony in court has cost insurance companies millions."

"No less than they deserve for stiffing their clients on insurance contracts," Starlight said, obviously starting to cheer up. "Lee has told me how you normally operate," Dr. Gonzales said, "Perhaps you can use the same tactics around here. You just make sure to sell the severity of the injuries. I'll handle the paperwork. We do it just right, and we can all walk away a whole lot richer." After that, Playa's one thought through the pain was how much happier Starlight seemed, in spite of the acting she had to pull off to seem horrified at Playa's injuries.

Author's Note

I was told that this story was looking more like a Saints Row walkthrough, albeit with Stalight added in. Honestly, that's a good point, so I started by including more insight into Starlight's character in the previous chapter, and working on some interactions between her and Playa for this chapter.

Thing is though, it's kinda hard during these first few chapter since Playa, the player character, is mute for the most part. And it doesn't help that the way these first game chapters are being set up the story missions are kinda far apart. It'll get better before long, but I think I'll switch gears for the chapters revolving around the second game.

Saints Row: One Step Ahead

Author's Note

Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've had other stories I'm working on over at Fanfiction.net. Look those up if you want to see other stuff by me. Anyway, let's get back to work.

Saints Row: One Step Ahead

Starlight and Playa kept working on putting the Saints all over the map, first hitting tag spots in both Chinatown and Copperton. Starlight also grabbed a few more CDs in those locations. With that taken care of, the duo decided to finish off Wong's hit list, starting with a man named Jose who was hanging around the Truck Yard. They found him driving around in a semi and gunned him down with a T3K Urban. After that was some crazy exhibitionist named Juan found near the Apartments. He was taken down with a Tombstone shotgun.

Finally, they tracked down a guy named Charles in the Suburbs and beat him to death with a Nightstick. "That's the last one," Starlight noted, and she called up Wong, "We just finished off the last one." 'Good,' came Wong's voice, 'I'll have my associates send something special to your apartment, for your effort. And feel free to contact me if you need an extra gun. I am not so old that I lost my ability to kill. Also, a friend of yours wishes to speak with you at the tea shop. I would not keep her waiting. She seems most irritable.'

Sure enough, Lin was waiting at the tea shop in Chinatown. Some older man offered her a light for her cigarette, likely hoping to proposition her, but she simply grabbed the lighter, lit her cigarette, then tossed the lighter behind her so the man rushed off to retrieve it. Starlight and Playa walked in at that moment, Playa bumping into the man. "Asshole...," the man muttered, but backed down when Playa glared at him.

Starlight chuckled as she shook her head and sat down next to Lin. "So, did you find something?" "I think I may have pinpointed the Rollerz' leader," Lin replied, "Some guy named Joseph Price. Don't know much about him except he's friends with Donnie. Now if we can get in with Price's crew, we can be one step ahead of those fuckers." Starlight considered it. "It's a risky plan, but if it works we can be rid of the Rollerz in a matter of days. How do we go about it?"

"First part's easy," Lin explained, "Just go over to Donnie's shop and start tearing it up. Right when you get ready to finish Donnie off, I'll rush in to save his ass. Just make it look good, and try not to mess up my car, Starlight." "No promises," Starlight admitted, holding her hand up, "Besides, your cover might be more believable if you have a few bullet holes in your bumper." Lin sighed. "Fair enough, I guess. Anyway if all goes well, Donnie'll arrange a meeting with Price. Thanks for buying my tea." This last part was said out loud as she walked out, leaving Playa to sigh as he realized they just got hustled.

Donnie's shop was nearby, and sure enough there were several other Rollerz there, which made making the scene look good all the easier. As the duo started shooting up the garage, Playa kept an eye out for Donnie. Turned out it was easy to spot him, since he was the one screaming like a girl. "I think we got him spooked," Starlight said, "Remember, we need him alive so Lin can 'rescue' him." Playa nodded as they kept killing more Rollerz, moving through the garage as they did so.

Donnie had a couple of bodyguards, but they went down easy as Donnie burst out the exit, Playa in hot pursuit. He fired off a few rounds, doing a good job of making it look like he wasn't deliberately missing. It helped that Donnie was panicked from the attack. As the mechanic neared the street, Lin pulled up as scheduled. "Donnie, get down!" Donnie did as he was told, which meant he didn't see Playa and Starlight also hit the ground to avoid being hit when Lin fired an SMG near them. "Am I glad to see you, Lin!," Donnie said as he slid across the hood and got in the passenger seat.

Playa got up and fired off a few rounds, his way of telling Lin it was time to get scarce. "Just got this fixed...," she muttered as she laid down more supressing fire before driving off. Playa got up as Lin drove off, he and Starlight smiling at each other. The plan seemed to be going well so far. Getting in their car, they continued to chase Lin for a while until they reached Sommerset. Shortly after they let Lin escape Julius called. 'I don't know what sort of work Lin is having you doing, but it's paying off. We managed to take Sommerset during the chaos of your last assault. Good work.'

While waiting to hear from Lin again, Starlight checked off a few more tags and CDs in both Tidal Springs and Misty Lane. Lin called in just as the last tag was being finished. 'Okay, I'm in. We're meeting at Price's Mansion. Head up there, but quietly. All this would be pointless if we're caught this early.' The mansion in question was nearby, and there were a few Rollerz hanging around at the front door. Playa tapped Starlight's shoulder and pointed to a window where two men could be seen, a bald muscular one wearing the Rollerz' colors, and an older gentleman wearing a suit.

"Wonder which of those two is Price," Starlight whispered as she and Playa positioned themselves just under the window out of sight from the gangsters near the entrance. They could hear the two men talking, slightly muffled but not enough to obscure their voices. "So he's okay?," the muscular man said, "That's great." The other man nodded, but didn't seem enthused. "Yes, how could we possibly score dime bags without him." The sarcasm was evident in his voice. "Come on Uncle Will," the muscular man said, instantly identifying him as Price, "He's not that--"

"'Sup, Price?," came Donnie's voice as he and Lin entered the room, confirming Price's identity. "You scared the shit outta me, Donnie," Price said as he shook Donnie's hand. Donnie chuckled. "I scared the shit outta me." The man named Will had a neutral expression. "Donnie. I always enjoy it when you bring strangers into my house." Lin shrugged. "I ain't a stranger to Donnie. Name's Lin." "She's the one who saved my ass when the Saints attacked, Mr. Sharp," Donnie explained, "She's a helluva driver."

"I'm the best racer that ever came outta Chinatown," Lin said, allowing a small smirk. Price looked her over. "I've never heard of you." "Of course not," Lin said dismissively, "Cuz I got tits." Price snickered. "Is that what you call those?" Lin instantly decked him. Price chuckled weakly as he held the bridge of his nose. "Alright... I deserved that..." "You'll have to excuse my nephew," Sharp cut in, "He has a... Unique... Sense of humor." "That's one way to put it," Lin retorted. "Well," Price said, "I thought it was funny. At least until you hit me in face."

Donnie laughed. "And then it was hilarious!" "Fuck off, Donnie," Price replied, giving him the middle finger. "As stirring a conversation as this is," Sharp said, "You'd better get hurrying, Joseph. You don't want to miss your meeting." "Gotcha, Uncle," Price replied, "Sorry Donnie, I gotta take off. Lin, it was nice meeting you." He hurried out, then Donnie turned to Sharp. "So we're finally hitting that convoy, huh?" "I don't know what you're taking about," Sharp replied, his tone carrying a sense of warning.

Donnie was confused for a second before he took the hint. "Lin, just sit tight here. Price should be back soon." "Sure," Lin replied. She didn't ask any further, knowing it would raise suspicious. Besides, she knew Starlight and Playa had already caught the entire conversation. The two hurried back to their car, where Starlight called Troy. "Troy, it's Starlight. There's supposed to be a convoy being targeted by the Rollerz. We need any possible locations. And see what you can find out about a man named Will Sharp." Playa looked at her, his eyebrow raised. "It's not like he's doing anything else," Starlight defended, "He chickened out of the Vice Kings job."

Troy soon had info regarding several convoys shipping vehicle parts that the Rollerz would be after. With Playa driving and Starlight shooting, they started protecting each convoy one by one. Once the last convoy was safe, Troy called in. 'Got that info on William Sharp. Only known family is his nephew, Joseph Price.' "The leader of the Rollerz," Starlight replied. 'If what I'm reading is right,' Troy said, 'Price is only the face of the leadership. Sharp is the real brains. He's a cutthroat lawyer, using his wealth to finance both the Rollerz and Alderman Richard Hughes in the upcoming mayoral elections. Let's hope Lin isn't in over her head.'

Meanwhile, Sharp and Price were talking as they walked in on Lin and Donnie discussing vehicle finishes. "They all got away?," Sharp asked. "Yeah," Price replied, "My boys say it's that gang from Saint's Row." "It's the same guys who fucked up my shop," Donnie said, overhearing them, "I think they're called the Third Street Saints." As he went to take another drag from his weed pipe, Price grabbed it out of his hand. "Would you stop smoking that shit, Donnie? I need you to keep your focus." "Hey, that helps me focus," Donnie said, "Anyway, we still got time before the buyers need those parts, right?"

"Buyers?," Lin asked. Donnie was about to explain, until Sharp gave a warning cough. "It's better we just get straight to the point," Donnie said, taking the hint, "How about me and Lin come up with something to make up for the loss? It won't take more than a few days." Price nodded. "You okay to help, Lin?" "Sure," Lin replied, "Whatever you need. Within reason, of course." If she was being brought in on Donnie's plan, it wouldn't be too hard to relay that information to Playa and Starlight.

While Donnie worked on his new plan, the Saints duo took the chance to get in some extra news about the Saints by looking in on Phil, a mechanic who worked in the Rollerz' neighborhood. They found him hard at work on a car engine, his boombox blasting music so loud he likely didn't hear them come in. Hoping to get his attention, Playa took a nearby wrench and banged it against the toolbox. Sure enough, Phil took notice and turned off the boombox. "Nice to meet you guys. I'm Phil." He shook Playa's hand, who promptly wiped the grease on Phil's shirt.

Phil chuckled. "You're in the wrong line of work if you're afraid of a little dirt or grease." "We just try to keep things from slipping out of our hands, like guns," Starlight explained, "Julius mentioned he owed you a favor, and asked us to act as his proxy." Phil nodded. "Yeah. See, I have a few competitors I'd like off the market. I'll send the info, and you jack the shipments and bring 'em here. I'll be sure to pay you for each successful hijack." Getting the vehicles was tricky, though they did find a taxi to bring to Miguel in the process, but in the end they managed to snag all the shipments Phil asked for.

Seeing Playa was starting to get wound up, Starlight decided to take him to Loreana's place in Barrio. They had her as a contact anyway, which meant she likely needed some help. "Stay here while I talk to Loreana," Starlight told him. Playa nodded as Starlight walked over. "Hey," Loreana said, "Thanks for helping me with this. My establishment used to have the finest chicas on the block. Then those fucking Padrotes came rollin' around and suddenly I find myself lacking business." "Not to worry," Starlight replied, "I'll help you get your girls back." The job proved difficult on her own, but Starlight took pride in killing those abusive pimps that demeaned their girls. Plus, Playa was able to get some relaxation in as the girls poured in.

The next day, Lin contacted the duo saying Donnie was ready to present his plan. Playa and Starlight drove up to the Price Mansion undetected to listen in. Sharp and Price were already there, waiting. "I know he's your friend, Joseph," Sharp said, "But I don't want that nimrod ruining my plans." Price gave his uncle a threatening look. "Your plans?" "Our plans," Sharp allowed. Price just shook his head. "Look, I get that Donnie can get a little flaky, but he always steps up in the end." Just then, Donnie walked in with Lin right behind him. "We got this shit down."

Sharp gave an amused grin. "This should be interesting." Donnie seemed to ignore him. "Alright, we need certain parts for the buyers, but the only shipment that could have them got snatched out from under us, and we're not likely to get another chance like that in time. However, Lin and I did the math, and we've found a few key cars that we can strip down for the parts we need." Price gave a hearty laugh as he grabbed Donnie's hand. "What'd I tell ya? The kid's a fucking genius! I'll get the boys ready!"

Sharp gave a dismissive chuckle. "So you're plan is go out and steal cars. How original..." "Not like you got any better plans," Lin retorted. Sharp glared at her but said nothing else. Outside, Playa and Starlight headed back for the car. "Lin sent us the info for where the cars are located, four in total. And by the time we head out they'll already be snatched. Stealing cars is the Rollerz' specialty." "Then let's blow 'em to hell," Playa suggested. Starlight nodded. "Not a bad idea. We still have that RPG. Let's hunt down those cars."

Finding the cars as they were transported through the Rollerz' territory was tricky, but thanks to Lin's info they were soon hunted down and destroyed. "These actions are great and all," Starlight noted, "But we're still not making much headway in taking territory away from the Rollerz. Plus, if Sharp is as smart as Troy suggests he is, by now he may be suspecting Lin. We should talk with Julius about pulling her out, before something bad happens."

Meanwhile, Price was on the phone with Donnie. "Don't worry Donnie, this wasn't your fault. We'll find some other way to take of care of this. Yeah... See ya around." He hung up, then yelled out, "Fuck!" Sharp sighed. "Well, this turned out to be productive." "Can you cut the sarcasm for once Uncle Will?," Price called out, "We have a major problem here! This is twice now the Saints fucked us!" "Three times," Sharp pointed out, "If you count the attack on Donnie's garage." Price raised an eyebrow, having a feeling what his uncle was getting at. "What are you suggesting?"

"We have the same four people who knew about these jobs," Sharp explained, "Now, needless to say neither you nor I leaked that information, at least not intentionally." "You're not suggesting Donnie?," Price asked, worried. Sharp shook his head. "He's been with us for far too long. And besides, as much as I don't like him I know he truly sees you as a friend. There's no way he'd turn on you." Price nodded, getting the message. "Then it has to be Lin. She only came in right before the attacks."

"My thoughts exactly," Sharp agreed, "Now the only hard part is explaining this to Donnie. Fortunately, you don't have to do that part. You're too attached to the boy. I'll handle it." Price glared. "Listen, I don't care what you do to Lin, but don't you dare hurt Donnie." "Relax," Sharp assured him, "Naive as he is, he's still our best mechanic. We stand to lose much if anything were to happen to him. Rest assured I'll make sure he doesn't come to harm. I already know how to take care of this."

Later that day, Starlight and Playa met with a woman named Deb near Wardill Airport. "I'm glad you arrived as requested," Deb said, "I'm here to make a proposition. I have here a list of names and faces. For each one you kill..." She opened the nearby briefcase, which held several stacks of bills. "One of these is yours." She took a drag of her cigarette. "I'm sure by now you have two questions running through your head." "Would they be 'where do I find these people' and 'what do I kill them with'?" Deb chuckled. "Not what I was expecting, but I'm glad to see we have a deal."

There were four targets that the duo started off with. First was an old woman in Barrio named Julia, who had to be killed with the classic VICE 9. Next was a man named Thomas near the docks, who needed the baseball bat. Next Gabriel out near the factories, who required the Tombstone. Finally, there was Chris at the airport, who had to be killed with the SKR-7 Spree. "Y'know," Starlight said, "I've given up wondering why these people need to die, and just wonder why specific weapons are needed." Playa shrugged. "Maybe they're sending different messages?"

That night, Starlight and Playa headed for the street races near the Ultor Dome, where Starlight had been accepted without problem. It turned out the reason was because the race was overseen by a woman named Libby. "Heads up people, if you're not at the starting line in five you don't race." Libby turned to see Starlight. "Good to see some girl power in this race. Go show those boys what you can do." "Will do," Starlight replied with a grin. There a lot of bookies grumbling on the sides as Starlight caused them to lose bets.

Once eight races were done, Starlight rejoined Playa. "Julius get in contact with Lin?" Playa shook his head. "I'm getting worried," Starlight said, "This whole thing has smelled from the start. I tried warning Lin that things were moving too fast. Sharp may already be onto us. We'd better keep on our guard, or else our gang days could over quickly." Playa nodded, hoping the two of them, at least, would get out of this okay.

Saints Row: Sharp Decline

While waiting hear from Lin, Playa and Starlight checked off a few more tags and CDs down in Poseidon Alley. After they were done, Playa got a call from Julius. 'Hey there, Playa. You and Starlight have really been helping the Saints get up in this city, and now its time to put some of that respect to good use. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get hold of Lin, but she did send me a text shortly before that convoy incident. Seems several of the Rollerz have a court date, and Sharp has been throwing paper and pussy at the jurors to get the case thrown out. They're at the apartments in Tidal Springs right now. Go there and "dismiss" some jurors.'

When the duo got to the apartments, they saw the jurors in question were being guarded by Rollerz. "Time to clean house," Starlight said, "If these guys are willing to break procedure and take bribes, they deserve everything they get." The area soon became host to a big shootout, as the two Saints moved room by room, taking out the jurors and any Rollerz protecting them. Things got so bad it wasn't long before the police started moving in. Thankfully Starlight and Playa finished the job before the heat got too bad, though by the end of it a few more Rollerz would be seeing the inside of a courthouse. To add insult to injury, the Saints quickly moved in on Tidal Springs to claim it for themselves.

There was still some hours in the day, so the duo decided to check in with a contact named Mary, a club owner over on Nob Hill. To their surprise, the woman turned out to be middle-aged. "You're Mary, right?," Starlight asked. "Yes, I am," Mary replied, "You must be wondering why a woman like me is running this place." Starlight nodded sheepishly. "The thought did cross my mind. No offense." Mary waved her hand in reassurance. "None taken, truly, it's understandable. To make a long story short, I took it from my ex-husband during our divorce."

Playa and Starlight looked at each other and nodded in understanding. "I see you understand where I'm going with this," Mary said, reading their expressions, "Here's the thing. Nathaniel, my ex, recently ran off with my trollop of a sister and still owes me for thousands in alimony. So to insure he pays up, I need you to destroy his other holdings. A little collateral damage should be just the thing to make him understand his position. The more damage, the better, so don't be afraid to go a little nuts." A few hours later, she was smiling when her ex called, having heard of his holdings being destroyed and agreeing to pay the alimony if she'd just make it stop.

Later the duo stopped by the suburbs to meet with Laura, a woman in her late thirties who was new to the drug trafficking scene. To their surprise, she seemed to be a typical white suburbs woman. "Hi there," she said cheerfully, "You must be Starlight and Playa. Are those street names?" "Playa's is," Starlight explained, "But Starlight's my real name." Laura nodded. "Your parents must have quite the imagination. Anyway, I hope you don't mind but I'm a rush for this because I have to pick up my youngest at Five."

She turned to Playa. "You have kids?" "No," Playa replied. "I see," Laura said, "Well, anyway, the reason I got into this business is because one of my colored friends told me the real money is in this thing called koma." "That's a designer drug developed years ago," Starlight noted, "It was named after the Greek word for deep sleep because it induces lethargy in those who take it." Laura nodded. "I see you're well-educated. Guess even gangs need brains to run properly. Anyway, my friend set me up with some deals with my son's friends."

"And you need protection?," Starlight guessed. "I'm a little nervous wandering around the neighborhood," Laura admitted, "Between the drugs and the cash I keep on me, there's a good chance of me getting mugged. All I need from you is to keep gang members, and possibly police, from stopping the deals. Leave the driving to me." Starlight rode shotgun with Laura while Playa took the back. "By the way," Laura said, "Starlight, I was wondering what sort of hair dye you use." "I don't," Starlight replied, "Believe it or not, this is my natural hair color."

Laura looked surprised. "Wow, I'd have never guessed. It's like that show my little girl enjoys. Sailor Moon, I think. One of the main characters has natural blue hair." Driving to the deals wasn't easy, since police and Rollerz alike were trying to intercept Laura. But luckily there was ammo to spare. Starlight tried aiming for the drivers of enemy vehicles, forcing them to stop short. Failing that, a popped tire was sufficient to lose pursuers. Before long, Laura had completed all her deals and provided the duo with a good-sized check for their trouble.

That evening, Playa and Starlight met with Julius at the church. "Still no word from Lin," Julius admitted, "I'm starting to get worried. The Rollerz are getting pushed back so maybe they--" Before Julius could finish, Starlight's phone went off. "Lin?" 'Starlight,' came Lin's voice, 'Meet me at the pool hall. The Rollerz are getting into something big.' Then she hung up. Starlight raised an eyebrow. "Something's not right. That felt scripted. It was definitely Lin on the other line, but I don't think she was holding the phone." "That could mean trouble," Julius noted, "Playa, you'd better go with her. And bring some major hardware. I got a feeling that meeting place could be crawling with Rollerz."

The duo geared up, and a good thing. Julius' hunch turned out to be right, as about a dozen or so Rollerz were waiting inside the pool hall. After shooting their way through them, Starlight found Lin bound and gagged. Before they could untie her, something nailed Starlight from behind, followed by Playa. Playa retained consciousness just long enough to see Sharp standing with another Roller holding a baseball bat. "Good work," Sharp told the gangster, "Get them into the car." While the Rollerz were distracted, the Saints were able to capture the Ultor Dome, but it didn't change the fact that three of their number was missing.

Moments later, all three Saints woke up. "I think we stopped moving," Lin said, "Starlight, can you get us out?" "Sure," Starlight replied, "Just give me a second to focus." Just outside, another car could be heard, and Donnie's voice said, "What are you doing with Lin's ride, Mr. Sharp?" "Just something I thought you should see," Sharp explained. And suddenly the trunk opened. Donnie seemed a little shocked. Starlight had been focusing her magic to open the trunk, but when she saw Sharp had a gun, she aimed for that instead.

Sharp looked surprised as the gun went flying out of his hands and across the parking lot. "What the...?," Donnie said in surprise as Starlight took the chance to focus again while Sharp went after his gun, an annoyed expression on his face. Just as he got it, he spotted Starlight using her telekinesis to move the car into the nearby river. He quickly tried to shoot her, but Starlight just used her magic again to close the trunk, which Lin had fitted with a bulletproof interior. "So glad I shelled out for that feature," Lin said as the impact of the gunshots was heard.

Donnie confronted Sharp. "What the hell was that all about!?" "Wasn't it obvious?," Sharp said, irritated by the turn of events, "Lin's been working with the Saints all along." Donnie just shook his head. "Doesn't give you the right to shoot my girl..." He walked off, leaving Sharp standing there, sighing. "Children." He got out his phone and dialed a number. "It's Sharp. I need a ride to my nephew's mansion." Out of his sight, Starlight had managed enough focus to untie herself, Playa, and Lin, and pop the trunk open so they could escape.

"That... Was too close," Lin said, "I think our best option at this point is taking Sharp out of the equation. If I'd known how dangerous he was I would've planned better." "Got any hardware we can use?," Starlight asked. "If you can fish out my car," Lin replied, "I keep a few heavy weapons under the back seat." Starlight and Playa smiled as Starlight used her magic to grab the car and pull it out of the river. Moments later, Sharp got the shock of his life when he saw the three Saints, still alive and pointing an RPG at him. "Shit...," was all he time to say before his car exploded from the grenade.

Later, as the trio started walking back to the church, due to Lin's car being too soaked, they spotted Donnie. "Lin!," he said excitedly, "Thank God you made it out okay." "I overheard what you were saying earlier," Lin replied, "I'm a little surprised." Donnie shrugged. "Whatever your reasons, it was pretty clear you never wanted me dead. Otherwise you could have done it at any time. I figured that had to mean something, so--" He got interrupted by Lin planting a big one on his lips, to the amusement of her friends. "It was a little stupid," she said, "But also sweet. Though maybe you're better off dropping the whole gang thing." Donnie just nodded numbly.

After getting some sleep, Starlight and Playa headed out to check in on another contact named Sam, who was gazing at his new business. He spotted the duo and smiled. "You must be the ones Julius mentioned. Take a look at it. It ain't much now, but this place is gonna make me rich. See ever since I was a kid I wanted to handle a rig. Problem was, when I tried to get a job as a trucker they said they don't hire kids from the ghetto. So fuck 'em, I'll just start my own business." "You still have competition in the area," Starlight noted.

"That's true," Sam admitted, "But that's where you come in. Jack some of the shipments of my competitors and I can start moving in and making some money for myself." Grabbing the vehicles, Starlight noted a couple could also be used to deliver to Miguel, a Compton and a Reaper. Just before the last couple of shipments, Starlight and Playa met up with Sampson Downtown. The mechanic was just finishing the clean-up of a vehicle in his garage, polishing off the license plate. "How about that?," he said, noticing the duo as they came in, "You'd never believe that four niggas got shot in this car."

"You do good work, Sampson," Starlight noted. Sampson laughed. "Well I don't just make my paper hooking C4 to muscle cars. Anyway, there's a few cars I still need for a delivery. Julius said you guys could handle the jacking, so here's a list of what I need." The duo quickly got the Mag Sampson wanted, then finished the hijacking task for Sam. Just to finish off the day, they hit some tags and CDs around Southern Cross, Ezpata, Encanto, and Cecil Park.

The next day, the duo tracked down a couple more hit list targets, Theresa in the Barrio with a knife, and Tina who and also in the Barrio and required the GDHC .50. Shortly after that Lin called them. 'Listen I got one last piece of info before Sharp realized I was a mole. Seems the Rollerz have taken interest in a recieving station in Copperton. Go take a look, but be careful when you do. I have no idea what their plans are there.'

There didn't seem to much at the station except a lot of Rollerz, until Starlight noticed they were loading something onto a rig. The Rollerz soon spotted the duo and started attacking, forcing Playa and Starlight to hold out for a few minutes. Once they spotted the rig start up and try to leave, Playa quickly got out their RPG and fired, destroying the rig and leaving behind the cargo it was carrying. The Saints came in force shortly after, taking Copperton. "Looks like the Rollerz are on their last legs," Troy noted. "Let's not get cocky just yet," Starlight said, "After what we put them through, Price is bound to be pissed at us."

Author's Note

I really wish I could leave notes at both the bottom and the top. It's kinda my style when writing. Anyway, glad to get one of my personal favorite changes to this universe out of the way.

Saints Row: Capping the Carnales

Author's Note

This chapter officially starts the Carnales arc. Expect exasperation from Dex when people start calling them "the Los Carnales", which really is redundant... Also, "Any line written like this is translated to English".

Saints Row: Capping the Carnales

After grabbing some tags and CDs in Sunnyvale Gardens and Shivington, Playa and Starlight decided to meet with Dex to see what he had on the Carnales. The main brain of the Saints was pouring over a map of the city, circles drawn around the Carnales' territory. Starlight cleared her throat, causing Dex to turn around. "Oh sorry, didn't hear your come in." "What's with all this?," Starlight asked, "Starting with some research?" "Definitely," Dex replied with a nod, "The Carnales are the first organized gang in Stilwater. Julius tells me they used to own the whole city before he and Benjamin King stepped against them, taking out the previous leader, Alejandro Lopez, in the process."

"But now they're under new management," Starlight noted. Dex nodded. "Alejandro's sons, Hector and Angelo. The two brothers run the Carnales with a ruthless efficiency. And both of them are crazy. Angelo is probably the crazier of them, but they both have their own brand of crazy. There's also their enforcer, Victor Rodriguez. He's been reported to have survived at least a dozen VK drive-bys. Making matters worse is the fact that the Carnales are backed by the largest drug cartel in the world."

"So hitting them won't be as straightforward as the Rollerz," Starlight realized. "No doubt," Dex agreed, "But luckily, we do have a starting point. Julius was right when he said we can't compete with their drug money, but in order to earn that they need drugs to sell. So we start by cutting into the Carnales' profit margin. Troy's identified two of their labs in both The Mills and Southern Cross. They're small labs, but it'll be easy to shut them down. And we'll be able to grab two territories from the Carnales at once."

Taking down the labs proved a simple affair. There was some light resistance, but getting by them was just a matter of ammo, and taking out the labs proved just as easy due to the flammable and explosive chemicals being used. Once the territories were in Saints' hands, the duo headed to pick up the last hit list Julius had for them. They were to meet a man named Marcel in Shivington. The man was in a bar enjoying a beer while he waited. "Hey, glad to meet you," he said when he saw Starlight and Playa, "Have a seat. Julius tells me you're used to taking out targets requested by people."

"What's the deal this time?," Starlight asked, "Our last clients didn't give any details, but they didn't seem the sort who would give answers." "It would be fair to explain why I need these people dead," Marcel agreed, "See, one of my niggas in is real trouble with the law. The prosecution has a bunch of witnesses that can put him away, and I just can't let that happen. Luckily, I was able to get a list of the witnesses. I'll pay you well per head, cool?" "Got it," Starlight said, taking the list.

They started with two of the targets. There was a businessman named Richard who could be found in the High End Retail district, and required the .44 Shepherd. There was also a guy named Dick somewhere in Downtown. He was requested to be taken out with a knife. They also knocked off a couple of chop shop requests, a Cavallaro, a Quota, a Keystone, and a Nordberg.

The next day Starlight and Playa joined Dex and Troy at a gas station near Carnales turf. They were going over a map and discussing something. "What if we come in from here and here?," Troy asked, pointing out a few points on the map. Dex shook his head. "Nah, they'd see it coming. Cops try that shit all the time and it never works." Troy rubbed his chin and sighed. "Yeah, you're right. So what do we do instead?" "What's going on here?," Starlight asked.

"Just in time," Troy replied, "I got a lead on where the Los Carnales cut all their shit." "It's not 'the Los Carnles'," Dex pointed, "It's just the Carnales." "What?," Troy asked, confused. "Los is the Spanish word for 'the'," Starlight explained, "Saying 'the Los Carnales' is like saying 'the the Carnales'. So it's either Los Carnales or the Carnales, never both." Dex nodded. "It's like saying Rio Grande River. Rio is Spanish for river, so it comes off as redundant. But this is beside the point. The point is we can't hit the factory just yet."

"Why not?," Troy asked. "Because I'm not a gun-toting psycho named Johnny Gat," Dex explained, "No offense, Starlight." "To be fair, you're not wrong," Starlight admitted, "So what do we do instead?" "One of my boys spotted an LC truck leaving the factory district," Dex explained, "It's probably loaded with drugs, but that's just a bonus. The truck is what we really want, so we need to jack it and get it to the Row in one piece." "What do you need the truck for?," Troy asked. "Let's just get the truck first," Dex replied, "Then I'll tell you the rest."

"I'm just saying, it'd be nice to know," Troy retorted. Starlight glared at him. "Can we just trust Dex knows what he's doing? He's probably the smartest out of all of us, and this is coming from a girl who's skipped several grades going through school. And need I remind you, we're out in the open not far from enemy territory. Which means there could be ears listening in on our plans. Granted this means they probably know we want the truck so they'll try to protect it, but so long as they don't know what we want it for, they'll be flying blind once we grab it. Easy, right?" "Nice to see someone's on the ball," Dex said to Troy smugly. Troy just sighed in defeat.

Meanwhile, the Lopez brothers were meeting a Colombian cartel leader, Manuel Orejuela. WIth them was Victor, as well as Angelo's girlfriend Luz, who was sunning herself near the table. "Angelo," Hector said, "I need you to go to the lab tonight. One of our shipments didn't arrive, and I want to make sure no one's skimming off the top." Angelo nodded. "No problem." Luz got herself up when she heard this. "Angelo, you promised we'd go shopping tonight." Angelo sighed. "Ah shit. Hector, I told Luz I'd take her downtown. Can Victor take care of--"

"Is Victor sitting at the table, Angelo?," Hector cut in. "Yes," Angelo admitted. Hector nodded. "So if I wanted Victor to handle it, I could have asked him, right?" Angelo frowned and said, "Luz, we'll go out tomorrow." Luz didn't seem happy to hear that. "But Angelo--" "Fuck, Luz, Shut up your mouth, okay? Didn't you hear me?," Angelo called out, cutting her off. Hector nodded. "Gracias."

Manuel seemed more dismissive of the scene. "You should be nicer to the lady..." "Oh yeah Angelo, put your dick in her mouth, that will shut her up!," Victor said, laughing. Hector couldn't help but laugh as well, but Luz wasn't as amused. "Go to hell!" "Luz," Angelo assured her, "Come on mama, don't be so sensitive." Luz started to walk off. "I'll be inside." "Senorita, a moment," Manuel said, "If Angelo is busy, I can take you out tonight." Luz seemed to like the idea. "Mr. Orejuela, I couldn't--"

"Nonsense," Manuel assured her, "It would be my pleasure." He turned to Angelo. "Unless you have a problem with me entertaining the lady." Angelo got up to voice his displeasure, but caught his brother shaking his head in warning. Angelo sighed and sat back down. "No, of course not." Manuel nodded, pleased. "Good. I'll see you at eight." Luz smiled and walked inside the mansion. Manuel grinned as he watched her leave. "That's a lotta woman you got there, Angelo." "I know," Angelo replied in an angry tone.

"Eh," Hector chimed in, "I always thought she was a bitch." Victor started laughing again while Angelo and Manuel stared each other down. The tension was broken as Hector's phone went off. "Hold on. Yes, what's up? What? But what happened?" Angelo looked worried. "What is it?" Hector suddenly became angry. "That asshole son of a bitch!" "That didn't sound encouraging," Manuel noted. "Everything's fine," Hector assured him as he hung up.

"Of course it is," Manuel said, though he didn't sound convinced, "If you would excuse me, I'm going to check on the senorita..." He got up and headed for the mansion, while Angelo watched in anger. "That faggot dirty old man, I'll kill him if he touches Luz!" "Angelo...," Hector told him, "You are my brother and I love you, but if you let your dick fuck things up with the Colombians I'm gonna cut it off." Angelo nodded. "Forgive me Hector." "Don't let it happen again," Hector warned him.

"And what was that?," Victor asked, curious about the earlier call. "Those pendejos in Saint's Row are the ones who took the shipment," Hector explained, "With the Colombians arriving, we can't show any weakness." "The Colombians are already here," Angelo pointed out. "All the more reason to settle this now," Hector replied, "Victor, Angelo... Gather your men together. It's time to tear Saint's Row apart."

While the Carnales were plotting, Playa and Starlight were checking off a few more tasks. Starlight managed to grab a couple more CDs at Wardill Airport, while Playa grabbed a Nightingale for the chop shops. That night they went to the arena district to meet a pimp named Helmers, a heavy-set trailer dweller who seemed to be a bit lazy. As they approached, Playa accidentally knocked over a pyramid of beer cans that was set up nearby. "What the hell is wrong with you?," Helmers called out as he threw another beer can, which Starlight caught with her magic.

Playa grabbed Helmers by the straps of his wife-beater. "Wait, wait, I'm sorry," Helmers said, and Playa let go, "I thought you was one of my kids for a second. Here's the thing, I may not look it but I've been part of the pimping business for a while. Been looking after my girls ever since they grew titties. But recently they got lured away by some fancy-pants in a hat and cane. It turned out to be sheer bamboozling though, cause those other pimps have been abusing my girls and I'm stuck here unable to do anything. Julius said you could help, so can you please get my girls back for me?" The duo nodded. Since the pimps lacked the protection of the Rollerz, getting the hos back proved easier than before.

The next morning, Dex gave Playa a call. 'Seems with the Carnales' drug business hurting, they're starting to move on to gun running to recoup losses. They already have a weapons plant in an old steel mill on Fox Drive. Starlight will be picking you up along with some explosives you'll need to plant at strategic locations around the facility, then get out of there before it blows.' Sure enough, Starlight soon arrived with the shipment.

The first part involved removing a few defenders from the front of the steel mill. Once they got all four bombs placed, they made their way down from the upper part of the mill via some nearby covered ramps, then hurried out. Explosions were heard from inside the mill shortly thereafter. "I think it's safe to say the Carnales won't be getting into gun running," Starlight noted, "And with this, we can take over Fox Drive. We're getting a good foothold on them." They capped off their day with a few more tags and CDs in Prawn Court, Rebadeaux, and the Bavogian Plaza.

Playa and Starlight spent part of the next day tracking down a few more hit list targets. There was Marty in the suburbs, with a baseball bat, Henry at Downtown, with a T3K, and Billy Bob in the same location, with a 12 gauge shotgun. Afterward they met Dex in his office back at the church. "Thanks," he said into his phone, "I'll be by to pick that up later." "Who was that?," Starlight asked. "Sampson," Dex explained, "He patched up the truck you stole. Now we're to move in on our--"

"Dex, we got a problem!," another Saint said as he came in. "What's wrong?," Dex asked, worried. "It's the Carnales," the Saint explained, "They all over the Row. Angelo and his boys started fucking us up. After a while we were able to push him back, and it seemed like we had him on the ropes... 'Til that Spanish gorilla Victor popped out and bailed Angelo out! I tell ya the stories about him are more than just hype. I saw him take a bullet right in his lung and he didn't so much as flinch. Then they proceeded to drop some of our boys, then laughed it off while they drove to Freckle Bitch's."

"Just drove of to get fast food after taking a bullet?," Starlight asked. The Saint shrugged. "I don't speak Spanish, but Victor definitely named the restaurant in English. Angelo even offered to pay for both of them. But that's neither here nor there. The point is they left at least a dozen other Carnales on the Row as they left." Dex nodded. "Alright, let's grab some hardware. It's time to do a little homeland security." The four of them grabbed some guns and split up to search the Row. Without Angelo and Victor, the other Carnales proved easy to take down. "Looks like Hector wanted us dealt with for stealing the shipment," Dex noted, "But he'll be real steamed once he learns what we're really after."

There was one final task to complete before turning in. Playa and Starlight headed for the airport where they met their contact, a shipping owner named Ralph. "Let's just cut to the chase," he said as they arrived, "My shipping business is in trouble and I need help to get it back up. I got a list of my competitors' shipments and I want you to steal. Keep whatever you make from the hijacking, I just want those bastards hurting." "Short and sweet," Starlight noted, "I like it." They finished off the last hijacking task before turning in, knowing Dex would be ready for their big surprise tomorrow.

Saints Row: La Muerte en La Familia

Author's Note

Now the Ron Hiler walkthrough I've been using suggests getting two of the Chop Shop targets during the Hijacking mission from the end of the last chapter. Thing is, the way the guide is set up, completing that Hijacking puts you just above the 60% completion threshold, so I had to cut the guide a little short. Luckily the game itself is flexible.

Saints Row: La Muerte en La Familia

Before getting back to Dex with his plan, Starlight took the time to grab a Varsity and a Bulldog for the chop shops. Then she and Playa met with Dex at Sampson's garage. Troy was also there. "So Dex, now that we have some breathing room, and are closer to our own turf, can you tell us what you needed the truck for?" "Well, since you asked so nicely," Dex replied, "You ever read the story of the Trojan Horse?"

Troy nodded. "Yeah, Odysseus decides to have the Greeks build a giant wooden horse, ostensibly to honor Poseidon and get a safe journey home. The Trojans, against wiser words, bring it into their city to honor it, not knowing that in reality Odysseus and several other Greek soldiers are stowed away inside. That night they pop out, get the gates to the city open, and let the main bulk of the army invade."

"Exactly," Dex said, "My plan isn't quite so epic, but it does rely on the same basic principle. We found the main drug production facility of the Carnales in Pilsen. With the truck fixed up good as new, we can have a few of our boys stow away inside it as we drive it over. Once they're let in, we can all pop out and take over the place." Troy shrugged. "It's not the most original plan." "Sometimes old tricks are the best tricks," Starlight noted, "The simpler the plan, the fewer the things that can go wrong." "Just remember not to blow the place to hell," Dex reminded them, "It'll cost us to replace whatever winds up destroyed once we take it over."

As Starlight predicted, the simplicity of the plan made it go as smooth as butter, and soon enough the Saints had successfully taken over Pilsen and the drug lab. This was naturally making things tense between Hector and Manuel back at the Lopez estate. "Manuel, you worry too much, everything is under control," Hector assured him. Manuel didn't look convinced. "I've heard some nasty rumors, Hector."

Hector just shrugged. "Like what?" "That one of your drug labs was shut down," Manuel replied. "What's that? That's not a problem," Hector said dismissively, "One of our couriers thought he could cut the shit out of his deliveries. It looked like we were missing a lot of product, it really was just this pendejo. Angelo took care of him." "And the drugs?," Manuel asked. "Found," Hector replied quickly.

Manuel didn't seem to buy Hector's explanations. "What about this gang from Saint's Row?" Hector scoffed "A bunch of mulas, a nuisance, nothing more." "Your father would have killed them all by now," Manuel noted. "I am not my father," Hector retorted. Manuel narrowed his eyes. "I've noticed." Nearby, Luz could be heard screaming in anger. She stormed into view followed by Angelo, who was looking pretty angry himself. "Hey, don't you walk away from me, puta!"

"Hey Angelo, what's wrong with you?," Luz demanded, "He's so old he could be my father!" Angelo was having none of it. "Woman, you listen to me--" "ENOUGH!," Hector yelled, getting their attention, "I'm trying to work here! Either you behave or you get out of my house already!" Manuel regarded the scene. "You're right. Looks like everything is under control, Hector," he said, the sarcasm evident, "We'll talk about this more when the others arrive." Hector didn't like the sound of that, and kicked over a nearby chair in frustration once Manuel was gone.

Playa and Starlight continued cleaning up what was left of their to-do list by grabbing some more tags and CDs, this time in Union Square and Filmore. Dex then called them up. 'Just got wind of another big shipment the Carnales are moving at the shipyards in Stoughton. It's too much for us to just go in and take, so we're gonna destroy it instead. Head down to the shipyard and dump the whole shipment into the bay.' At the shipyard, Playa grabbed a nearby bulldozer and used to dump all cargo containers, which happened to be near the water. Once it was all gone, the Saints were able to move in and grab Stoughton.

Once that was done, the duo headed to Bavogian Plaza to meet another contact at the local brothel. The woman, Vikki, was berating a man when they walk in. "If you come by here one more time, no, if you even look at this place, I will feed you all three inches of your cock. Now get the fuck outta here, I have people to meet." The man looked and recognized the Saints' colors, then decided to make himself scarce.

"It's tough being a woman in this business," Vikki noted. Starlight looked around. "You seem to be lacking a business. I'm guessing this is what you called about?" Vikki nodded. "Yeah, some out-of-town pimps went and grabbed up all my girls, trying to put me out of business. To add insult to injury, they suggested I go back to ho'n! I need you to go out and get my girls back. I'll be sure to pay you well." Playa and Starlight nodded, then went out to take care of the bad pimps and recover the girls for Vikki.

The afternoon, Playa, Starlight, Troy, and Dex met at a Friendly Fire shop, where the saleswoman was showcasing the McManus sniper rifle Dex had ordered. "As you can see, it's fully collapsible and comes in a stately black attache. The eighteen-inch cryogenically treated stainless steel bull barrel gives this rifle a guaranteed accuracy of point-two minute of angle at six-hundred yards with match grade ammunition. With it's hand reamed chamber and match grade trigger, the McManus is designed for the marksman who wants to reach out and touch someone at a moments notice."

Starlight whistled in appreciation as she handled the rifle. "If Dad didn't have a preference for going up close and personal he'd love this beauty." Dex smiled and nodded. "We'll take it." The saleswoman looked pleased. "Excellent sir. Would you like that gift wrapped?" "That won't be necessary," Dex replied, "We intend to use it immediately after purchase." He handed the woman the money for the gun, then after the sale was finalized he took the group aside.

"Okay, here's the deal," he said, "We found a memo at the drug lab we seized saying Hector is meeting with the Colombians tonight. Now that's a lot of firepower we'll be up against, so going in guns blazin' would be suicide." "Not to mention screaming to all of Stilwater that the Saints are responsible," Troy noted. "Exactly," Dex agreed, "For this plan to work, we need to tear apart the alliance between the Carnales and the Colombians, which can't happen if either side suspects a third party."

"Hence the need for some silent scoping," Starlight realized. Dex nodded. "Take McManus here and introduce him to the people at the meeting down at Poseidon Alley. Make sure you get up high and out of sight." "There's no way you'll prevent anyone from realizing someone's shooting," Troy noted, "But do it right, and the heat's off us and on the Colombians." Dex grinned at him. "Glad to see we're on the same page for once. Anyway, once you're done get the fuck outta there. Plan's a bust if you get killed during the mission."

The job proved tricky due to the number of RPGs at the meeting, but Starlight was able to pull it off regardless. When she and Playa got back to the church, Julius was there to congratulate him. "Great job with the meeting. Police rolled in and arrested the surviving Carnales, not to mention seizing much of their product. If Hector wasn't already dead, they'd have enough to put him away for life." "That just leaves Angelo," Troy noted.

"Angelo's a hothead," Julius assured him, "Yes that makes him dangerous, but it also makes him predictable. He'll likely send Victor after us just in case, but his sights are no doubt centered squarely on the Colombians. And we can turn that to our advantage. The Colombians want a foothold in Stilwater, and the Saints are now in a position to give it to them." "I really don't like dealing in drugs, Julius," Troy said. "Neither do I," Julius admitted, "But the money and connections we can get from that deal will give us the muscle we need to step against the Vice Kings. Between all this and grabbing Poseidon Alley once the cops cleared out, I'd say this was a successful venture."

Since there were three final hit list targets to take out, Playa and Starlight decided to finish those off. There was Don in the Red Light district, he required a .44 Magnum. Hank could be found at the Museum district, and had to be killed with a molotov. Finally there was a barker named Louise at the High End Retail district. This last one had to be killed with an RPG, which Starlight thought was little overkill.

Dex called them up again as they finished up. 'Taking out Hector was a demoralizing blow to the Carnales, and now it's time to drive home the message. Snuff out their tags at the refinery in Black Bottom. That'll remind them not to mess with the Saints.' There were seven such tags, and the Carnales were lurking around the refinery in case it was targeted. It didn't take long to finish the job, however, driving the Carnales out of Black Bottom and letting the Saints move in. The duo continued to snuff out tags, and grab a couple CDs, in Brighton, Adept Way, and Amberbrook.

The duo met with Dex and Troy the next day. "We found the Colombians' mouthpiece in Stilwater," Troy explained, "Manuel Orejuela. He's been meeting with the Carnales regularly up until now." "I know that look Troy," Starlight noted, "We can't just take out Orejuela. Hector was one thing, but there's no way a street gang stands a chance against the world's biggest drug cartel." "She's right," Dex reminded him, "Let's see what Orejuela's up to in Stilwater first. You know where we can find him?" "Not per se, but I can narrow it down," Troy said, "We should start with the strip clubs."

Unfortunately, once the group reached the strip club, they found Victor waiting in ambush. "Shit!," Dex said, "We need to get out of here! Head back for the church!" It took a while to shake Victor and the Carnales with him, but they pulled it off and returned to the Row. "We'll have to find Orejuela another time," Dex noted, "For now, it looks like Angelo is out for blood. I'll talk with Julius about a different strategy, swing by later and we might have something." The duo and Troy nodded.

The next day, Starlight and Playa grabbed a Peterliner, Halberd, and Westbury for the chop shops before returning to check in on Dex. Julius seemed a little miffed about recent events. "If you were really going to talk to the Colombians you should have brought me." "We never even got to meet them," Dex pointed. "It's still going over my head a little," Julius reminded him, "I gave you control over the campaign against the Carnales, but something this major requires a leader's full attention."

Dex nodded. "Okay, got it." Just then, shots rang out outside the chruch. "Shit!," Starlight called out, "These Carnales don't know when to quit!" "Get the boys together!," Julius ordered, "We need to protect the Row!" Several waves of Carnales attacked, followed by Victor himself. Playa aimed an RPG at his car and fired. The car exploded, but then Victor crawled from the wreckage, finally showing signs of injury but still very much alive.

"Shit!," Julius cursed, "What's this motherfucker made of!?" "I'm gonna go with iron!," Starlight replied, "We gotta take him down, NOW!" The four of them opened fire, unloading all the ammo they had. Victor seemed like a juggernaut, but eventually even he took too much lead to his body, finally collapsing as he died. Troy took a cigarette and lit it on Victor's flaming corpse. He saw the others look at him in disgust. "What?"

Saints Row: All-City

Author's Note

The title is in reference to the fact that the last of the activities in being completed this chapter, meaning now the whole of Stilwater will know who the Saints are. We're also finishing off the Carnales, so there's that.

Saints Row: All-City

Starlight and Playa headed for a strip club in the Red Light district to meet with another contact. They spotted the man, Bruno, throwing a paparazzi to the entrance. "The rules are clear asshole," Bruno said, "No cameras." The paparazzi started to get up. "You wait 'til my lawyer gets word of--" Starlight cut him off with a good sock to the jaw, laying him out. "Rules are rules in a strip club," she quipped.

Bruno nodded in approval. "Julius said you were good at dealing with the press. Here's the deal. Some of our big shot clients like to rent out the girls for private parties. I'm sure you know what that entails by now. Just make sure they're good and happy as you drive them around, and make sure no news cameras get any dirt on 'em. Pull it off, I'll pay you big time. The club's popular so money's no object." A few more clients driven around the area, and the duo could finally check off the escort jobs. They capped the day off by grabbing a Zenith for the chop shops.

Later Dex called Starlight. 'I found one last drug lab owned by the Carnales in Cecil Park. You take this out and it'll cripple their drug empire, leaving them vulnerable. Be careful when you go for it, it's bound to be well-guarded.' Sure enough, getting to and destroying the drug lab proved easy. But then the duo had to deal with some Carnales enforcers trying to take them out, including one lieutenant. It was easy compared to Victor, however, and with Playa and Starlight successful the Saints were free to move in on Cecil Park.

The next day saw the duo checking off a few more tags and CDs in Humbolt Park and Nob Hill. In fact, they had managed to finish off the last tags in the city, leaving the Saints' name everywhere. After that they met with Troy and Dex at the church. "Julius just got done with his meeting," Dex said, "Orejuela's willing to work with us exclusively, but under one condition... He wants us to retrieve all the drugs confiscated by the police after the Poseidon Alley shooting." "How are we supposed to do that?," Troy asked.

"We gotta take out the police station," Dex replied, "Julius says its the best way." "I don't think he's right in this case," Starlight noted, "The cops would lock down the station before we could get to the evidence locker, and we'd just lose soldiers trying to force our way in." "Starlight's right," Troy said, "But I have a better solution. We can load up a car with some explosives and leave it by the wall outside the evidence locker. Once it blows, we have easy access."

Dex considered it. "That would keep the body count to a minimum, and we wouldn't have to sacrifice anybody. Alright, let's go for it." They got the car rigged up by Sampson and parked it where Troy suggested. Sure enough it easily breached the evidence locker. A truck driven by a crew of Saints pulled in and they started loading it up with the confiscated drugs while Playa and Starlight held off the cops.

Once the truck was loaded, they passed by a Forgive and Forget before returning the drugs to Manuel, who was very grateful. They agreed to meet at his favorite strip club. "Well Mr. Little, I believe we can do business together," he said, shaking Julius' hand. "I'm glad were able to come to a reasonable conclusion," Julius agreed. Manuel nodded. "So, how do you wish to move forward?"

Before Julius could answer, Angelo stormed into the club holding an assault rifle. "I knew it!," he called out, "You'll die for what you did to my brother!" "You think he means us or Manuel?," Dex asked. Angelo opened fire, but the bullets were stopped when Starlight threw up a telekinetic shield. "I'm going with both," she quipped. She and the others returned fire, Starlight clipping Angelo in the shoulder. "Damn bruja...," he muttered as he retreated. "The fuck does bruja mean?," Troy asked. "It's the Spanish word for witch," Manuel explained, "Given the young lady seems to know magic, it seems a fitting moniker."

"Guys," Starlight said, "Angelo's getting away." "No hurry," Manuel assured her, "I know where he'll go." He handed Julius a post-it note with an address. "That's where Angelo lives with his woman. Consider it payment for your act of good faith." As he made to leave, he said, "One thing. I'd appreciate it if you did not harm the senorita. We have grown... Rather close recently." The Saints nodding in understanding. In addition to their new connection to the Colombians, the Saints were also able to take Encanto during the chaos at the police station.

The next day, Playa and Starlight finished off the chop shops by grabbing a Nelson and Raycaster before Dex called again. 'Troy just got another tip. Seems Angelo is desperate enough to kill us that he's bringing help from outside. They're meeting with some Carnales lieutenants in a warehouse in Charlestown. Take control of the warehouse, hold it down, and take out those hitmen before they even meet with Angelo.' The task proved pretty simple, merely required an excess of applied ammunition. Thanks to the duo's efforts, the Saints now had control of Charlestown.

Before the Saints got set to raid the Lopez' house, Starlight grabbed the last of the CDs from her old friends in Atlantis Avenue and Huntersfield. Afterward, the group met at the church before driving off. "Any plans on how to approach the hacienda?," Starlight asked. "I think for once we can take a page outta Gat's book," Dex replied, "Just go in there and start shooting. By now the Carnales are outta tricks, so dealing with Angelo shouldn't be a problem."

Once they got to the house, they found it crawling with Carnales. Dex, Playa, and Starlight, along with a whole crew of Saints, started blasting enemy soldiers as they made their approach. They stopped briefly when they heard a shot from the balcony, which was Angelo wielding a sniper rifle. "When I kill you I'm going after Manuel!" "Guy's completely lost all sense of reason," Dex noted, "Let's move in between shots."

Once the group reached the inside of the house they were safe from Angelo's rifle, though there were still more Carnales inside. They soon reached Angelo's room. He grinned smugly as he pointed a gun and pulled the trigger, but got a surprise when it turned out he had used all his bullets trying to shoot the Saints earlier. Freaked out, he was outnumbered and outgunned after all, he hopped over the balcony. Playa quickly ran onto it and started shooting at him, managing to nail him in his other shoulder. "Now he's symmetrical," he quipped to Starlight as the two of them hopped off the balcony themselves to follow Angelo as he crashed through a nearby window.

The building Angelo crash into turned out to be the garage, and he quickly drove off in his car. Dex pulled up in stolen Caranles car. "Come on, let's get after him!" Dex drove as fast as he could, Playa and Starlight trying to shoot down Angelo's car. Suddenly, they reached the city drawbridge while it was going up. Angelo grinned as he gunned the gas. Realizing what he was doing, Dex muttered, "You gotta be fucking kidding me..." Sure enough, Angelo managed to jump over the raised drawbridge, while Dex was forced to stop.

"Damn," Starlight muttered. "It's fine," Dex said, "He's only got so many more places to hide. WIth his house raided, we have control of Ezpata. The Carnales are down to one territory." "Their last territory is the Wardill Airport," Starlight pointed out, "Which means Angelo doesn't need to hide, just hold out until he can fly outta Stilwater." "Let me worry about that," Dex assured her, "Taking down a plane can be easier than you think."

As it turned out, there was one final contact on Julius' list, a dealer named Marvin. They duo met him at his garage, which doubled as a drug lab. "Glad to meetcha," Marvin said, "Here's the thing. I got the best product in the city, which is good because my clients go through these drugs like candy. But on the downside, stealin' junkies away from other dealers tends to cause hard feelings. I just need you to protect me while I'm doing my deals. Leave the driving to me." The duo nodded. Once all the deals were done, Marvin offered them a generous payout.

The duo was about to grab dinner at Freckle Bitch's, but then Dex pulled up. "No time, guys. One of Troy's crew spotted Angelo at the airport. If he leaves town he can get a chance to rebuild." "Then what are we waiting for," Starlight said as she got in. The trio drove for Wardill as quickly as possible. As they approached, Angelo was waiting at his private plane, talking one the phone with Luz.

"Luz, where are you?," he asked, "Well evidently you are talking to me. Luz, I apologized okay? Now get your ass to the airport. What do you mean why, have you seen the house? We gotta get outta town. It doesn't matter, just pack some things and let's go. For God's sake, just leave them. I don't give a fuck, they're shoes! Good. Good, good, good, good, I'll be waiting for you. Bye-bye." He hung up and turned to one of his soldier. "Get the plane ready, she'll be here soon."

Just then, he heard the engine of Dex's car. "Damn it," he muttered, "Never mind, we need to leave now." "What about Luz?," the gang member asked. "She's not worth waiting around to get killed for," Angelo replied, and boarded the plane. As they spotted the plane take off, Dex called out, "Starlight, can you try grabbing the plane's wheels to slow it down?" Starlight considered it. "I can try."

She focused on just the wheels and sure enough, managed to grab them and get them to grind to a halt. Letting Playa easily destroy the plane, with Angelo on board. Dex stopped the car and smiled. "Johnny's gonna be jealous he wasn't in on this." Just then, Luz pulled up in her own car, causing the trio to train their guns on her. "What happened here?," she asked, clearly concerned.

"And just what are you doing here?," Dex asked, as Starlight got out to check her bag. "I was supposed to leave with Angelo," Luz explained. Starlight raised an eyebrow. "Why do you have shoes in this bag?" Luz smiled sweetly. "Well, these are this year's latest--" "Bullshit," Playa called out when he saw the shoes Starlight pulled, "That shit's from last season." Dex and Starlight looked at him in surprise, more at the fact that he knew his fashion then at the fact that he spoke.

Starlight shook her head. "Anyway, maybe you should head back to your house. We'll contact Manuel and have him pick you up." Luz nodded. "Okay, gracias." The trio looked on as Luz drove away. "Well," Dex said, "Regardless, we managed to take out the Carnales. And we have control of Wardill Airport." He turned to Playa. "Looks like Julius was right about you. Now we have two thirds of Stilwater, control of the drug trade and some decent businesses, and our name is all over the city. I was nervous about going up against Ben King before now, but now I think we just may have the muscle to pull it off. Let's get some rest, then check in with Johnny."

Saints Row: Vexing the Vice Kings

Starlight and Playa walked into Johnny's office in the church. Dex was already there. "Hey sweetie," Johnny said warmly, "Hear you and the new guy been making waves through Stilwater." Starlight grinned. "We may have gotten into some mischief." Johnny looked at Playa. "Gotta admit, you don't look like much. But then again, I don't like I have an eight-inch cock." "So how come I don't have any siblings yet?," Starlight asked. "We're working on it," Johnny assured her. He saw Playa's confused expression. "She's talking about her mom, who adopted her alongside me."

He stood up. "Anyway, let's get down to business. The Rollerz were easy. The Carnales were a bit middling. Now here's the hard mode stuff. First of all, the Vice Kings are named for one man, Benjamin King. Shit like that don't happen unless you're a professional or a badass. And in King's case... He's both." Before he could continue, his phone went off. He looked at it. "Hold up I gotta take this. Aisha, Starlight was just talking about you." His expression suddenly grew worried. "Whoa, whoa slowdown... Okay, that's louder not slower."

His eyes widened. "Shit, where's she headed. Okay, I'll take care of it." As he hung up, Dex said, "What's up?" "Some motherfuckers grabbed Aisha's sister right off the street," Johnny explained. "Aunt Nina?," Starlight asked, worried. Dex sighed. "That's the sixth girl this month. We know who's doing this?" "From what Aisha saw, it's the Vice Kings," Johnny said. Dex looked surprised. "Hold up, kidnapping ain't Ben King's style."

"Some of his lieutenants must be going behind his back," Johnny retorted, "The point is the kidnapping just happened, and close by, so if we act now we can put a stop to the whole operation." Sure enough, a familiar Vice Kings vehicle was spotted just a block away from the church. "Shit, it is the Vice Kings," Dex said, "Think this is Tanya's doing?" "Probably," Johnny replied, "Follow them closely, but not too close. Until we get those girls to safety we're playing this safe." Dex looked surprised to hear that coming from Johnny's mouth.

Before long, the tail lead the Saints to a warehouse in Bavogian Plaza. The vehicle stopped, and Starlight recognized Nina being dragged out at gunpoint and forced into the warehouse. "Looks like this is place," Johnny noted, "Let's take out the VKs, but be careful not to hit the girls. Eesh would kill me if her sister got hurt." There was only a token resistance so getting to the room with the girls was easy. Unfortunately, the door was locked.

"Aunt Nina, you in there?," Starlight called out. "Starlight, is that you?," came Nina's voice, "The guy with the key to this room went off to Tee'N'Ay." "That's the strip club in Rebadeaux," Dex noted, "It's only a short drive from here." "Then let's get down there," Johnny said, "The sooner we grab the key, the easier it'll be to get back before more VKs come to check in on their ill-gotten merchandise."

At the club, the VK pimp had a few bodyguards, but it was easy to take them out. With the key in hand, the group was able to return to the warehouse before more soldiers showed up. However, they did show up shortly after they unlocked the door. However, everything from there proved easy, taking out the VKs, then driving the girls back to the Row. "Thanks you two," Nina said, "I'll be sure to let Aisha know I'm okay." "Well, that was productive," Johnny said as she left, "And our boys took Bavogian Plaza in all the chaos. I'd say we're off to a good start."

Later that day, Starlight got a big surprise when Aisha turned up at the church. "Mom!," she cried excitedly, hugging her adoptive mother. "Hey sweetie," Aisha said, returning the hug, "Thanks for helping to get your Auntie Nina back." Playa raised an eyebrow at the scene. Johnny chuckled at the confusion. "Aisha is basically a living landmark of the Row. Like me she was born and raised out here. But when we first adopted Starlight we needed the money to take care of her. Picking up her major recording contract proved just what we needed."

"But now it's gotten to the point where I need to get out," Aisha said, "See I'm signed with Kingdom Come Records." "And it's no surprise the label is run by the Vice Kings," Johnny chimed in, "And they have a habit of extorting their clients to keep them around for as long as possible to squeeze out every cent. Up until now it hasn't been a problem for Eesh due to her relationship with me." "But when the gang your bosses run tries to kidnap your sister behind your back," Aisha pointed out, "Then it's time to find a way out. And the only way to do that is to fake my death."

"That's where you two come in," Johnny noted, "Not only are we gonna fake Aisha's death, we'll do it in such a way that it'll look like her body can't be recovered, or least is unrecognizable. She's got a recording in a few minutes, so drive her down there, but stop by Samson's on the way to load the car up with some C4. Park the car at the studio, stand far away, and hit the trigger. Eesh, make sure someone sees you before you slip out the back." Aisha nodded. "Thanks for this Johnny." "No big deal," Johnny replied, "I was looking for an excuse to blow the place up anyway."

After getting the bomb set up, Starlight noticed a rather conspicuous van nearby, with an irate looking character inside. "Aisha," he muttered, "Why haven't you called me back?" Aisha sighed. "Not him again. That man's been stalking me for weeks." Starlight glared, her magic starting to flow. "You stay from my mom, you ingrate!" The man looked confused. "Mom? But Aisha doesn't--" He got cut off as Starlight picked up the van and threw it onto a nearby rooftop. "One more benefit of pulling this off," Aisha noted, "I'll never have to worry about him again. Let's get going."

Soon enough the group reached Kingdom Come Records. Playa parked the car right outside and he and Starlight headed to a safe distance while Aisha walked inside casually. "You're a little late today," the receptionist noted. Aisha shrugged. "You gotta look good to sound good." The receptionist accepted this. "You want me to let them know you've arrived?" "Sure, go right ahead," Aisha replied. She snuck out the back as planned, then called her daughter when she was clear. Starlight gave Playa the go ahead, and the whole building went up in flames. In the confusion and chaos, the Saints were able to move in and kick the Vice Kings out of Union Square.

Later that day, Johnny contacted Playa about a new stronghold. 'Julius has been looking for an excuse to take back his home in Sunnyvale Gardens, and I just found it for him. Seems some of Warren William's crew are talking about getting in on the drug trade. Best we nip this in the bud, before we wind up getting the same treatment we gave the Carnales. Head down to the Sunnyvale Loft and take out all their lieutenants.'

The first step was easy, just taking out several VKs that were safeguarding the loft. Once inside, Starlight noticed several lieutenants pulling up, likely to make plans to cut in on the drug trade. Luckily, they had already brought a McManus for just such an occasion, and sniped the VKs from the relative safety of the upper level. Once all that was done, the Saints were able to take the Sunnyvale Gardens.

That evening Playa was asked to meet Johnny at Freckle Bitch's. He was there along with Starlight and Aisha, the latter dressing in such a way that people wouldn't recognize her. Playa raised an eyebrow. "What?," Johnny asked, "Just because one of us is legally dead doesn't mean we can't have a family dinner together." "I just wish we could've gone to Mikano's," Aisha grumbled. "We're trying to keep it low-key, Mom," Starlight noted after swallowing her bite of burger. Aisha shrugged. "Fair enough."

"Anyway, we were just finishing up," Johnny told Playa, "Cuz we got a bit of business. Here's the deal. Seems Tanya's been fuckin' people in every sense of the word. Her main boy toy right now is Big Tony, King's personal bodyguard, but she's also doing Warren behind Tony's back. Seems the only VK she's not leading around by his cock is King himself, so if we put the hurt on Tanya, then we'll be fucking up the Vice Kings."

"So what's the first move?," Starlight asked. "Tanya's got an operation in Prawn Court," Johnny explained, "Go there and drop every motherfucker, including customers. Don't know about some folks, but I certainly wouldn't wanna die just to get a blow job." The duo started with a few VK patrols that could found around Prawn Court. Once they were dealt with, Starlight and Playa headed for the brothel Tanya owned. It turned out they didn't have to kill any of the customers, as they hightailed it once the Vice Kings started dropping like flies.

Meanwhile, Ben King was talking with Warren in his office. "How much is the studio incident gonna set us back?," Ben asked. Warren looked indignant. "The incident? I'm sorry. I thought some muthafuckas blew up my shit. I didn't realize it ain't no thang." "How. Much," Ben repeated, more sternly then before. Warren sighed. "Including the loss of revenue from Aisha's death... I'd say we're talkin' millions."

Ben nodded. "Okay. We got a few contractors that owe us, convince them to hook us up. That takes care of building. As for Aisha, throw together some memorial box set. People eat that shit up. That should recoup some of our losses." He turned to Anthony "Big Tony" Green, who was also in on the meeting. "How's Tanya's side of things?" Tony shook his head. "Grip is short, Mr. King."

Ben frowned. "I'm not happy, Anthony. You said she could handle it." "It's not her fault Mr. King," Tony explained, "The Saints have been fuckin' with her." Warren jumped out of his seat. "That's what I'm talkin' about! Are you gonna let these bitches disrespect us?" "Those 'bitches' own two-thirds of the city after taking out the Rollerz and Carnales," Ben explained, "Now just calm down before you burst a blood vessel."

At that moment, Tanya Winters entered the room. "We gotta talk about the Saints." She took a seat in Tony's lap. "Hey, baby... King, they've taken Prawn Court." Ben shook his head in disappointment. "How did this happen?" "How the fuck you think it happened?," Warren asked rhetorically, "Look, we need to get together here and just--" "What we need," Ben said, cutting him off, "Is for you to shut the fuck up, you feel me?"

Warren nodded. "Yes, Mr. King." "Good," Ben said, satisfied, "I'll have Monroe put some pressure on the Saints. While they're distracted, it should be easy to take back what's ours. Everything else is business as usual, understood? Now, this meeting is over." Despite his words, Ben was a little concerned. It was clear he had less control over his gang than he thought. Between that and Julius coming through on the promise he made, it seemed the Vice Kings days could be numbered.

Taking back Prawn Court didn't prove as easy as the VKs thought. In fact, the main lieutenants were able to move in and clear out the Vice Kings in spite of the police crack downs. "Shit," Johnny said as they came back, "Is it quota time for the cops or something?" "More like Ben King's having Chief Monroe put pressure on us to keep us off the VKs back," Julius explained, "We may have control of most of the illegal businesses in Stilwater, but King's ace in the hole is that he has the police in his pocket. One phone call and he can easily organize a similar crack down."

"So, do we lay low?," Dex asked. "For now," Julius agreed, "At least until the heat's off. Then we keep hitting at the Vice Kings." "Least we're not retreating with our tails between our legs," Johnny noted. Julius nodded. "Not when we're getting close to making Stilwater our's, we're not. Troy got a tip that Tanya's holding out in an abandoned police station. I have some boys scoping the place out discreetly. Once they get back, you can hit it anytime you're ready."

The next morning, Starlight got a call from Johnny. 'While we're waiting for the signal to storm the station, Julius wants a little favor. Seems the Vice Kings recently rigged a hockey game and Julius is steamed about it. The bookies responsible are meeting with the VKs in a parking garage in Filmore. Go and send a message that not all gambling is meant to be rigged.' The message in question involved destroying the Vice Kings' cars. A final VK lieutenant tried to escape, but Playa managed to take him out soon enough, allowing the Saints to claim Filmore.

Later, Playa and Starlight got word Johnny was ready to move against Tanya. They found him in his office, several weapons laid out on his desk. "It's always the hardest part of the raid," Johnny explained, "Balancing stopping power with personal enjoyment. It's always nice to have a gun feel good when you shoot it, but that don't mean dick if it don't hit something when it goes off, ya feel me?" Playa nodded in understanding.

"Is it just gonna be the three of us?," Starlight asked as she picked up an SMG. "Course not," Johnny replied, "That place will be crawling with VKs. I have an entire crew meeting us there, should make things easier. I may love a good fight, but I'm not suicidal." Sure enough, several Saints were engaged in a gunfight with the Vice Kings at the station. Tanya was just inside, barking out orders.

"There's the bitch!," Johnny called out, "Let's make our way inside!" Tanya spotted them and hurried to move further in. Finally, they seemed to have Tanya corned. "Got ya now," Johnny said. Tanya smirked. "Who's got who?" A shot rang out, and Starlight grabbed her shoulder as she dropped her gun. Before the others could react, Tony nailed Playa in the head with the butt of his shotgun, dropping him to the ground. Tony then aimed the barrel at Johnny.

"I'd drop the gun if I were you," Tanya said. "You gun down a girl in front of her father and you think you can make demands of him?," Johnny quipped. "This girl's your daughter?," Tony asked, "I don't buy it." "What you think I can't adopt?," Johnny retorted, though Tony pressing the shotgun into his back convinced him to drop his gun. "Sheesh, no need to be hostile." Tony did a quick search of Johnny, not noticing Starlight was focusing her magic. When she saw Tony remove her dad's VICE 9, she carefully moved it over to Playa, who was starting to stir.

"He got anything else?," Tanya asked. "Just some rubbers," Johnny quipped, "I was hoping to get Tony's sloppy seconds." Angered, Tony hit Johnny over the head. "Guess I hit a nerve," he muttered. "You boys think you're so smart," Tony said angrily, "King's already got the police arresting your gang as we speak." "And you're dumber than you look if you think we don't know about Monroe being in King's pocket," Johnny retorted, "The police'll find very little purple on the streets for the next few days. We only came out here because we heard you were using this old station as a hideout. Then again, you don't even know about Tanya and Warren, do you?"

Tony growled, then shot Johnny in the knee. "That's for calling me dumb." Johnny, despite the pain, got out his switchblade and stabbed Tony in the foot. Playa took that time to grab the gun and fire off a few random shots, putting Tanya on the defensive while he grabbed Starlight and hefted her onto his shoulders, leaping out the window with her. "Damn it," Tanya said as she saw them escape, "Baby, we'd better call King."

Back at the church, Playa and Starlight had managed to shake the cops and get their wanted level down. Troy was now finishing patching Starlight up, a job made easier since her magic had brought the pellets closer to the surface of her skin. "First time I've ever really been shot," she noted, "Dad always trained me not to be scared of gunshots, but I've always worn body armor during that time."

"I'm glad you two made it out," Julius said, "Some of our boys escaped the cops' siege of the abandoned station and told me what happened. We'll find a way to get Johnny back. Until then, King thinks Tanya and Tony scored a major victory. He'll be sitting on his ass thinking Monroe will catch you two eventually. We can use his own creed against him." "How so?," Starlight asked. "His creed is to know when to wait, when to build, and when to act," Julius explained, "But overtime Ben's lost the ability to determine when each is appropriate. He should be more proactive in stopping us, but instead he's leaving it to the cops. I always told him it was a bad idea to mix white collar crimes with gang crimes, and now's the time to prove me right."

"If you're up to it," Dex said, "Maybe you can go back to the abandoned station and spring some of our boys still being held there. By now they've probably moved Johnny, but I'll see what I can do to rectify that setback." Luckily for Starlight, the shot had only hit muscle, not bone. So although there was some pain inhibiting her, she and Playa were still able to rescue the captured Saints, and take out one of the Vice Kings' lieutenants in the process, grabbing Shivington for the Saints.

The next day, the entire leadership of the Saints, sans Johnny of course, was in council. This now included Playa and Starlight, who were officially made lieutenants. "Dex came up with something to help us get Johnny back," Julius explained, "Dex, if you would?" Dex nodded. "Johnny's quip about Tanya and Warren got Tony all paranoid. Now he only let's her outta his sight when she's checking on the reconstruction of Kingdom Come Records."

"And that gives us an opening," Lin realized. "Exactly," Dex replied, "Everyday that bitch heads down to the studio to suck Warren's cock. While she's busy, we can have one of our boys take her chauffeur's place. Once she's done wiping her mouth she'll have our boy drive her back to wherever Tony is." "And you really think Johnny will be there too?," Troy asked. "I'd put good odds on it," Dex said, "Dangerous as Gat is, they ain't about to let him out of their sight. Once we know where he is, we move in and rescue Johnny."

Playa volunteered to be the one to replace the chauffeur. He soon spotted Tanya getting out of the limo at Kingdom Come Records, making a quip about not being long. Luckily, taking out the chauffeur and replacing him took even less time, and Tanya was just coming out of the building as Playa pulled up. Thanks to the divider window, Tanya didn't even realize who Playa was.

Playa looked in his rearview to see Starlight watching from a distance in a generic car. Tanya took some time to go shopping, but eventually led the Saints right to where Tony was waiting for her. As she got up to his apartment, Playa and Starlight followed, Starlight telekinetically slamming Tanya's head into the door, knocking her out. The duo then busted into the apartment.

Tony was inside with some more Vice Kings, and to Starlight's relief Johnny was also inside, tied to a nearby chair. Tony fought back as the two Saints shot at him, but as far as bruisers go he wasn't nearly as tough to put down as Victor. As Starlight untied her father, she said, "You have no idea how worried me and Mom were." "You do realize she'll deny that," Johnny quipped, "I just wish you coulda saved Green for me."

Starlight helped him stand, and it was clear his knee was still in pain from getting shot. "What about Tanya?" "Still alive," Starlight said, "Someone's gotta let King know his plans failed." Johnny nodded. "I heard Green say he had some heavy stuff in the back. Once we return to the church I'll have some of our boys pick it up." Thanks to the plan to rescue Johnny from the Vice Kings, the Saints were able to grab Atlantis Avenue, bringing them one step closer to owning the city.

Author's Note

We only have one more chapter in the first game's arc. And those of you who know the game will know what's about to transpire.

Saints Row: Kings Fall, Saints Fall

Dex met with Johnny and Playa and a clothing store, Johnny now sporting a movable splint for his leg. "So, what's this plan you got, Dex?," Johnny asked, "And why isn't Starlight getting involved." "I'll get to that second bit," Dex told him, "First things first. I figure the reason the police are working with the Vice Kings is they got some kinda big plan going on. I'll figure out what that is on my own, but in the meantime our best chance of taking out the VKs is breaking up their little alliance."

He tossed the two of them a couple yellow hoodies that could easily pass for Vice King uniforms. "Put these on and go wreck some havoc in plain view of the cops. It'll bring the public eye onto the VKs, and put pressure on the cops to come down on 'em. This is actually why I couldn't include Starlight on this. She's pretty distinct looking and a known Saints member. The plan can't work if people recognize you for who you really are."

Johnny considered it. "It does sound fun, but it'll work better if someone catches it on tape." "Get enough attention from the cops and I'm sure the media'll get involved," Dex assured him. "Sounds perfect," Johnny said, "Come on, Playa, let's go cause some public disturbances." As they walked out, he said, "I'm kinda glad Starlight's not getting involved. You probably already know this, but she gets squeamish about killing civilians. She'll kill gang bangers all day, but she hates killing folks on their daily commute. I'd rather she not break down."

Starlight was listening to the radio at the church when the news reel came on. 'I'm Jack Armstrong in the newsroom. This just in from the news desk: Glenview Hills seems to be the target of gangland warfare today as elements from the hoodlum gang known as Vice Kings are rampaging through the district as we speak. Reports indicate that everything is fair game and nothing is safe; storefronts smashed and firebombed, vehicles being destroyed, pedestrian traffic getting caught up in the violence. Do not, repeat, do not, enter this area until the police have had a chance to quell the uprising.'

"Sounds like Dex is putting his plan into motion," Starlight noted as the report continued. 'Repeating, Glenview Hills is under attack by the Vice Kings gang. If you are there now and are hearing this report, take appropriate safety measures. We will have a live report from Flying Officer Mike McCabe with the Stilwater Police Department in our Eye-in-the-Sky Chopper Two as soon as he can get airborne. And we will keep an eye on this developing story here in the newsroom. I'm Jack Armstrong.' Some time later, she and some other Saints moved to take advantage of the chaos and grab Nob Hill from the Vice Kings.

In his office, Ben was on the phone with Alderman Hughes. "Don't worry about it. Look, if it was one of mine I'll take care of it, but I'm tellin' ya, I don't care what colors they were wearing, it was that crew from Saint's Row I was tellin' you about. No, I'm not makin' any excu-- I will. Tell your wife I said hello. Goodbye, Alderman." Warren didn't look happy. "Great, now we got yo' cracka ass friends trippin'. Like I said, fuckin' with City Hall is a waste of time." "Wrong," Ben retorted, "Workin' with them is what gives us power." "Yo, fuck that," Warren snapped back, pulling out a gun, "This is what gives us power." Ben stood up, glaring. "Get the fuck outta my office."

The next day, Johnny called up Starlight. 'Sorry to leave you out of the last job, but I got something interesting to make up for it. There's been sightings of VKs going in and out of the grocery store in Huntersfield, and something tells me they ain't there buying bread and milk. Head down there and find out what they're up to.' Starlight went in with Playa, shooting their way into the store. Once they cleared it out, it was clear the Vice Kings were using the store to stockpile weapons. With the grocery cleared, the Saints were able to grab Huntersfield for themselves.

Later the duo met with Dex and Johnny in a local cul-de-sac. "Hey Dex," Starlight said, "Did you find out why the cops are on the VKs payroll?" "Sure did," Dex said, "It turns out they're getting in on the Vice Kings' protection rackets." He got out a map with several locations circled in yellow. "If we go public with this--" "No need," Johnny said, "I got something more subtle, and more effective." He brought out a large case, which Dex opened. His eyes widened when he saw the rocket grenades inside. "Johnny were did you get these!?"

"At Tony's condo," Johnny explained, "Guy was loose-lipped while he thought I wasn't a threat. We drive up to where the deals are, and use these to break 'em up. So long as we make sure the only cops that get killed are the ones doing the deals, it'll get the public asking questions, and put pressure on Monroe to crack down on the Vice Kings." "I can't believe I'm saying this," Dex said, "But that's actually a good plan." Johnny smirked. "I have my moments."

He, Starlight, and Playa got in the car and drove to where the protection rackets were being collected, using the RPG to interrupt the meetings. After stopping all of them, Johnny had one last idea. "I got some dynamite in my trunk," he explained, "Let's remind Warren that his fancy recording studio is on our turf." They pulled up to Kingdom Come Records, which was still being reconstructed, and walked away. Once they were a good distance away, Johnny hit the switch and blew the building to kingdom come for a second time. "I just got word," Starlight said, "Our little excursion gave our boys a chance to take Humbolt Park. We're getting close to owning the whole city."

That evening Starlight was talking with Playa in Johnny's office, or rather Playa was listening as Starlight talked, when Julius came storming in. "Where's Gat!?" "He's out on a date with Mom," Starlight replied, "Why, what'd he do now?" "It's not what he did," Julius explained, "It's what I need him to do. I just a call from Benjamin King. Seems one of his boys got a swelled head and tried to take him out."

Starlight looked shocked. "Is he okay?" "For now," Julius assured her, "But he still needs help. I still owe him a favor or two from our younger days, so I need you two to go out and rescue his ass. He's not dying if I can help it." Starlight and Playa nodded, then headed out to Ben's office building, where he was stuck on an overpass. He still looked glad to see the two Saints. "You must be the ones Julius sent. I've been hearing a lot about you two. My car's nearby. Let's take it and lose these suckers."

Once they reached the car, a few Vice Kings drove in to take them out, but they proved no problem. Before the trio could leave, Warren came racing in with his own car. "You're dead, King!" "Looks like Warren needs to learn the ultimate lesson," Ben noted. "Take the wheel, Playa," Starlight said, "I got this." She got out an SMG and started shooting at Warren's car. Eventually it started flaming and finally exploded. "Well," Ben said, "If Warren isn't dead yet he soon will be. Tanya's likely to try taking his place now that he's proven useless." After returning to the church, they learned the Saints had managed to snag Amberbrook while the Vice Kings were preoccupied.

The next day Johnny called the duo. 'I got word from Julius about what happened. Warren's been found shot to death and now Tanya has control of the Vice Kings. I think it's time we show her that without Ben King, there's no way she can hold the gang together. Some VKs are having a party at the waterfront in Rebadeaux. Go and crash it, Saints style.' Once Playa and Starlight reached the roof and cleared it off, they used an RPG to take out some Vice King patrols in the area from a safe vantage point, gaining Rebadeaux for the Saints.

Back at the church, Ben sat down with the rest of the Saints' leaders. "Looking good, Ben," Julius noted, "Sorry about Tony." "That was just business," Ben said dismissively, "An occupational hazard in our world. I appreciate you bailing me out. But I do need to get back to my business." "You don't have much of a business left," Starlight noted. Ben shook his head. "I'm not talking about the Vice Kings. They're all but finished, especially now that Tanya's in charge. She'll wind up running the Vice Kings into the ground. But I still have a legitimate business."

"We still got to take Tanya out if that's your plan," Julius reminded him, "She won't rest until you're dead. And while we're at it, we might as well finish off the VKs." Ben nodded. "If that's how it's gotta be. It certainly was nice while it lasted. So here's what we do. I know where all the Vice Kings hideouts are. We cause a ruckus there, then lead the lieutenants to the cops. Shouldn't have to do much so long I show up. Tanya's bound to have a price on my head by now."

As Ben was being driven around by Playa and Starlight, Starlight talked with Ben. "So, we learned Julius is from Sunnyvale like you. When I first met him, I thought he was from the Row like the rest of us." "Don't mistake his intentions," Ben assured her, "He picked Saints Row because it reminded him of his simpler beginnings. By the way, did he give that 'I don't care what flags they flying' speech?"

Starlight nodded. "Sure did. Made the whole deal about respect and everything." Ben chuckled. "Yeah, I wrote that speech years ago when Julius and I founded the Vice Kings. He knows it by heart, so I'm not surprised he kept using it when he founded the Saints. Ah, we're coming up on the first hideout." From there it was simple enough to lure the Vice Kings to the cops, causing a serious shootout to occur. In the ensuing chaos, the Saints moved in to take Brighton, leaving the VKs with just one territory left.

"Alright," Johnny said as the group met later that day, "Me and King have been talking. Seems Tanya's little coup doesn't sit well with some of the Vice Kings. What with the all the infighting going on, now's the best chance for us to take 'em out." Ben walked in, holding a shotgun. "I'll be going as well. I want to see Tanya dead personally." "You sure you can handle this?," Johnny asked, "This is your crew, after all."

"Not anymore it ain't," Ben reminded him, "That's why I'm here. So how 'bout you put your dick away, pick up your gun, and keep your knee away from the bullets." Johnny snickered. "Okay, that was a good line." He stood up. "Alright, let's finish this." They got in Ben's car and started driving. "If we're gonna get to Tanya," Ben said, "We need the code for the elevator. By now she's probably changed it."

"How are we supposed to get it?," Starlight asked. "Luckily there's one person Tanya trusts unconditionally," Ben explained, "Her fashion consultant. She tells him everything. His name's Stefan, and he's some Eurotrash motherfucker who works at Impressions." Johnny winced. "I hate the guy already." Stefan proved to be a whiny coward, and he cracked after several blocks of high-speed driving, not easy with the cops harassing the group. Once they had the elevator code, they hurried to Adept Way to confront Tanya.

"Alright," Ben said as they got out, "From here it's simple. We clear a path to the elevator, then confront Tanya and kill that bitch once and for all." Johnny chuckled. "My kinda plan." "Of course it is," Starlight said. There were several Vice Kings on between the four of them and the elevator, but it didn't take long to reach it. Using the code, Johnny unlocked the elevator. "Where to?" "Penthouse," Ben replied.

As they went up, Johnny announced, "I'm gonna skull fuck that bitch." Playa looked at him, and said, "Hope you don't mind hepatitis." Johnny whirled around in surprise at hearing Playa speak, while Starlight just giggled. Once at the penthouse, the four of them shot their way to Tanya's office. She seemed dismissive of their presence. "Some guys just can't get enough of me." "I'm a girl," Starlight pointed out. "Congratulations," Tanya replied with a sneer.

"It's over, Tanya," Ben said with confidence, "You won't be able to fuck your way outta this one." Tanya laughed as she pulled out an assault rifle. "That's cute, sweetie. That's just precious." Before she could open fire, her four attackers shot first, sending her out the window. She managed to grab onto the ledge, but it was clear she was slipping. Starlight knelt down to her. "So, at what point did you think even an assault rifle would protect you against four armed gunmen when you had no defensible position?"

Rather than hear Tanya's response, Starlight used her magic to force the former hooker's hand free, sending her screaming down to the bottom, hitting Ben's car when she landed. "Oh, sorry about that King," Starlight said, apologetically. "It's fine," Ben assured her, "I have it insured. And yes, the coverage includes someone falling on top of it from a great height." They headed out before the cops showed up.

"Listen," Ben said to the three of them, "Stilwater now belongs to the Saints, no disputing that fact. But I speak from experience when I say it doesn't end here. The real battle begins now. There will always be those looking to take what's yours, so you need to work hard to fight for it." Johnny nodded. "We'll be sure to keep that in mind." Ben nodded and walked off. Johnny then turned to Starlight. "Can you and Playa make your way back to the Row. I gotta look in on your mom." "Maybe making me a new sibling?," she asked hopefully. Johnny chuckled nervously. "We'll see." He headed off, while Playa and Starlight returned to the Row.

Playa was sitting in the church the next day when Julius called. 'We did it, Playa. Third Street owns this town. Now, that's not to say that shit didn't cost. We crushed a lot of families, and someday they're gonna holla at us. But believe me when I tell you, we did the right thing. With the Rollerz wiped out, Benjamin gone, and the Colombians in our pocket, there ain't gonna be a need for a gang war ever again. And in the end, that's gonna save a lot more lives than we took. So relax, you've earned yourself a break. You've impressed the hell out of me son, and I've told the crew you're gonna be my right hand-- Hold up, some berry just turned on his flashers. Yeah, Playa, I think I'm gonna have to call you back. This may take a while.'

Playa nodded as he looked over the church. He breathed deep as he remembered how far he and Starlight had gotten. He knew a little about her story, but she didn't know anything about his. Not that it mattered in the long run, it was pretty boring. But he was a Saint now, and officially the top lieutenant of the crew. Several Saints approached him, nodding in confirmation. "Just say the word," one of them said. Playa nodded. "We have businesses to run, so let's get to work."

As Starlight walked into the church later, Playa had a worried look on his face. It seemed Julius' run-in with the police was more complicated than expected. "He's wound up essentially kidnapped," Dex noted, "Playa asked for all hands on deck. Only one missing is Troy. I've got my suspicions as to why, but we ain't got time for that." At that moment, a call came in, which Playa answered.

'This is Chief Monroe. If you want Julius back, listen to what I've got to say. Now, that stunt you pulled downtown with the rocket launcher cost my associates and I quite a bit of money. Now, I may not be an honest man, but I'm a fair one. So rather than turn Saint's Row into a parking lot, I'm going to let you work off what you owe me. There's a mayoral campaign going on, and I want one of the candidates taken off the ballot. Marshall Winslow is in his campaign bus right now, and he has an appointment with the northbound. Park that bus on the train tracks tonight, or you'll find Julius' body floating in the river tomorrow. Don't disappoint me. Julius is counting on you.'

After he hung up, Johnny shook his head. "Monroe is also on the ballot. He's basically using us to secure the election." "Well," Starlight said, "When you get down to it, he never told us to kill Winslow, just park his bus on the tracks. Anything past that is our will." "He's right," Lin said, "We might be able to get Julius back without giving Monroe what he wants." Playa nodded. "I'll get the job done. Be back with the marhall."

In spite of Playa managing to get Winslow out of the bus after parking it as instructed, Winslow was found shot dead by an unknown assassin the next day. Playa got the call from Monroe shortly after. 'Clever move, only doing exactly what I told you but rescuing Winslow afterward. Lucky for me I was anticipating that. But I'm a generous man, and you did technically do as I asked, so I'll see to it you aren't implicated in the assassination. That said, it will still be some time before I can release Julius. I'll be in touch.'

The group was understandably miffed at the whole thing. "We keep letting ourselves be Monroe's bitches and it'll hurt our reputation," Johnny noted. "What else can we do?," Lin wondered, "And where the fuck is Troy? We could use another brain in this church." "If we really need an idea, I might have one," Dex offered, "Winslow was a major public figure. It'll raise questions if the chief of police wasn't there for his funeral."

"Dex, don't tease me here," Johnny said with a smile, "Are you really suggesting we take out the chief of police?" Dex smiled and nodded. "It would send whoever he's working with a clear message." Johnny laughed as he high-fived Dex. "What are we waitin' for?" The Saints headed to the rooftops ahead of Monroe's route to the funeral. Johnny and Starlight were stationed on one roof, Dex, Playa, and Lin on another.

When Dex saw the convoy, he frowned. "Shit, there's more than one car. No matter, we can work with this. It'll just take some more effort to find him." Just then, several windows on the police cars started rolling down. Dex squinted to see what was going on, then smiled. "It's Starlight." "She's using her magic to bypass the tinted windows," Lin realized. "This is perfect," Dex said, "Playa, take the shot the moment you see Monroe." As the police stalled to find out what was wrong with their car windows, a single shot rang out and they looked to see Monroe dead from a gunshot wound to his skull.

Starlight thought her little trick had managed to make Monroe's cohorts understand not to mess with the Saints, but as it turned out she was wrong. It seemed Monroe's boss, Alderman Hughes, still knew what happened to Monroe, and was in fact counting on the Saints getting rid of him. He had asked Playa to meet him on his yacht, and while that was going on, Starlight found herself and Johnny arrested.

Johnny agreed to come quietly on the grounds Starlight not be given the same death penalty he would no doubt be saddled with, which was surprisingly accepted. And why not, as it turned out Troy was really an undercover cop. He had been hoping to steer the Saints into removing the warring gangs and bringing some control to the city. Unfortunately his superiors then wanted the Saints removed, and pulled Troy from his assignment, explaining his absence. He still had enough pull to keep Lin and Dex out of prison, and ensure Johnny's plea for his daughter's life was accepted.

As Starlight got into the squad car, she heard a massive explosion coming from the waterfront. In short order she learned something horrific. Alderman Hughes' yacht had inexplicably exploded, and there was no sign of anyone leaving it, meaning Playa had been on board when it blew. Deep inside her head, a thought began to emerge in Starlight. 'Is this punishment...? Is what I tried to do... Coming back to haunt me...?' She didn't realize it at the time, but some of her memories of Equestria were starting to resurface, if only briefly.

Author's Note

So yeah, that's how Starlight avoids getting blown into a coma, unlike Playa. Of course this means I need to cut Hughes from the story, at least as far as an actual appearance is concerned, but that's because that scene is pretty much unchanged. Before we get into Saints Row 2, we'll have an intermission chapter, so look forward to it.

SR2: Saints Rise Again

Author's Note

We're into the second arc, and I've decided on something. Here's how this arc is gonna be structured. First off is the prologue missions, including Revelations and the single stronghold. Then each subsequent chapter will hold three missions, one from each gang going in order of Brotherhood, Ronin, and Samedi. Activities will occur before each mission that unlocks the territory said activity in held in, tags and CDs will occur after. If a mission unlocks a stronghold, it will be shown immediately after said mission, with the same rules applied to activities and missions.

And please leave some likes, I'm kinda concerned that the red bar is growing.

SR2: Saints Rise Again

At the Stilwater Penitentiary, a guard named Fred was watching a new talk show, shaking his head at the bigotry of its host. As a commercial came on, his fellow guard Barney got his attention. "You'll never guess who's awake." Fred looked shocked. "You're shitting me. After two whole years?" "Just about," Barney said, "Come see for yourself, I was just about to head down there." Fred turned off the TV and joined his partner as they headed to the medical wing.

"So how's the family?," Fred asked. Barney shrugged. "My wife's cheating on me with an Ultor exec, and my daughter sits in her room listening to Aisha albums all day." Fred chuckled. "For a dead woman, she certainly released a lot of records... God, that was a hell of a year. Aisha's declared dead, three whole gangs disappear in a cloud of violence, the three mayoral candidates wind up dead..."

Barney nodded. "And all thanks to that asshole sitting in intensive care on the tax payers' dollar." "Yeah, well," Fred replied, "Troy said he wouldn't pull the plug. Must still have a soft spot for the guy. Has anyone called him?" "Couldn't get through," Barney said, "The press has mobbing him with phone calls. It's about that little event happening today." Fred nodded as the two reached the medical wing. "How's the patient?," he asked the doctor.

"Surprisingly good considering he survived a massive explosion," the doctor noted. "Coming through!," a nurse called out as Starlight and Carlos were wheeled in. "Shit," Barney said, "What happened here?" "Best we can figure," the nurse said, "Another inmate broke into the girl's cell and raped her. The guy tried to stop it and got shanked for his troubles." The two were placed on either side of Playa's bed as the doctor moved to remove his bandages. He blinked as light hit his eyes for the first time in months.

"That seems to have healed nicely," the doctor noted. Playa moved his head around trying to take in his surroundings. Barney approached him. "You got anything you wanna say to the judge you better start thinking of it now..." He and Fred left, along with the doctor. Seeing them gone, Starlight cut the fake waterworks she had earlier been employing to sell the fake rape incident. "You doing okay, Playa?"

"I thought something was fishy," Playa replied, "No way some motherfucker could possibly hold you down long enough to rape you." Starlight chuckled. "Getting blown up seems to have loosened your vocal cords. Oh yeah, let me introduce to my boyfriend Carlos." Carlos removed the curtain between him and Playa. "Hey, what's up?" Playa raised an eyebrow. "When did you two hook up?"

"We started as cellmates," Carlos explained, "Don't ask me how it happened, cuz I have no idea. After a few months we wound up becoming an item." Playa chuckled. "Wait 'til Gat hears about this. Speaking of, is this the part where you tell me the Saints are here to bust me out?" Starlight frowned. "How long do you think you've been out?" Playa shrugged. "Two, maybe three weeks?" "Try two years," Carlos corrected him.

"And in that time the Saints wound up dissolved," Starlight explained, "My dad's on death row, Troy was revealed to be an undercover officer, Dex is now working for Ultor, Lin's settled down with Donnie, and Julius... Julius just disappeared." Playa sighed in frustration as he brought his hands to his face. "Are we still getting outta here? Cuz I'm not looking forward to facing a judge with my rap sheet."

"Oh don't worry," Starlight assured him, "There's a reason we faked the incident in our cell. First thing we need to get is a boat. This prison's on an island, after all." Playa nodded as the three of them got up. The doctor had come back in, but Starlight's eyes glowed as the doctor fell unconscious. "You've been improving your magic?," Playa asked. "I've had a lot of free time over the last two years," Starlight explained, "I can do more than just throw things around now."

The three of them headed out the back door leading up to the roof, knocking out guards in one way or another as they went. "So Carlos," Playa said, "You said your brother was in the Saints?" "Yeah," Carlos replied, "But he got killed when the Row was being invaded by Los Carnales. When I heard you and Starlight were here, I hoped to find some way to help you restore the Saints, so they could reclaim the city and make my brother's death mean something."

"How long was your brother in the Saints, anyway?," Starlight asked. Carlos chuckled. "From the beginning. He once joked to me about your canonizing, when he accidentally grabbed your pechos and got nailed in the crotch for it." Starlight's eyes widened. "That was him?" "Okay," Playa said, "Now I remember your brother." The trio managed to get to the boat without being seen, but as they started to cast off the alarms sounded off. "Right as we were leaving," Playa noted, "Lucky thing this boat has a gun."

Carlos drove as Playa started shooting down any coast guard that approached by chopper or boat. Before long, they managed to reach a dock near Sunnyvale. As they did, Playa got a real shock. "Shit, is that the Row?" "It is now," Carlos replied, "After Ultor got done renovating it. Good news is the church is still standing, albeit refurbished." "I always told Julius we needed to remodel," Starlight noted.

"I can't believe a clothing company got this big in two years," Playa admitted, "Well, they did," Carlos said, "After Hughes was killed in that bombing, Ultor picked up the pieces. Now they're everywhere in Stilwater." "For now we should get some new threads and maybe a beer," Starlight said, "Stilwater's changed dramatically over the last two years, and you've been out the entire time. You need to get reacquainted with the city." "A beer sounds good right now," Playa agreed.

The three escapees got their new clothes and settled in at the nearby Tee'N'Ay. After ordering their beers Playa overheard a local news report from Jane Valderamma, who he remembered hearing occasionally during news reports back in the Saints heyday. 'It's said by some, to be the trial of the century. A notorious member of Third Street Saints, Johnny Gat, was arrested two years ago following the confirmed death of Alderman Richard Hughes.'

"And good riddance to him," Playa noted as the report continued. 'Gat was convicted of a staggering three hundred eighty seven counts of first degree murder... Promptly sending him to death row. Rumor has it the only reason no officers were killed during his arrest is because he agreed to surrender on the grounds that his adopted daughter, who was also arrested for gang-related crimes, not receive the same sentence. Over the past year Gat's legal team has filed appeal after appeal--'

As the news continued, a gang member dressed in red, who Carlos noted was from the Brotherhood, sat down next to Playa and rudely called out, "Hey Barry, turn this shit off!" As the bartender did so, Playa glared at the gangster. "Hey, we were watching that." The gangster just sneered at him. "I guess you're not anymore, huh bitch?" Playa responded by grabbing the gangster's beer bottle and smashing it against his skull. "Actually, we are. Barry, could ya turn the TV back on?"

The bartender nodded and switched the TV on again. 'In a few short moments, we'll be allowed back in the courtroom and find out once and for all if Mr. Gat will go home a free man, or a dead one. Back to you Jack.' "Dad...," Starlight muttered, worried. "You know where the courthouse is?," Playa asked. "Adept Way," Carlos replied, "If we hurry, we can get Johnny outta there." The three returned to the car Playa had swiped and raced off.

"Why would Johnny bother will all the courtroom melodrama?," Carlos wondered, "He's already convicted." "Dad was in the same prison as we were," Starlight realized, "He must've also heard that Playa woke up. That's why he's getting this appeal filed. He's trying to get our attention." "Well he got it big time," Playa said, "Let's keep his ass outta the chair." It wasn't long before they reached the courthouse, where news cameras were already everywhere.

Inside the courtroom, Johnny was cuffed and waiting while Judge Melmack went over his case. "Mr. Gat, you've been convicted of over three hundred murders," she noted, "Do you really expect this appeal to work?" Johnny shrugged. "I figure with the statute of limitations it really should be closer to two fifty." It was a bluff and he knew it, but he had to play it up until his expected help arrived.

Melmack frowned. "There's no statute of limitations for murder!" "Why the fuck not?," Johnny asked. That, at least, was a legitimate question. All other crimes had statute of limitations, yet murder was the only exception for some reason. "Watch yourself Mr. Gat," Melmack warned. "Or what, you'll hold me in contempt of court?," johnny said dismissively, "You're already planning on giving me the chair, you think I give a shit what you think of me?"

Melmack banged her gavel. "I'm curious if you can keep your cavalier attitude when two-thousand volts are running through your body." Johnny chuckled. "Well I'm curious if you can keep acting like a douchebag when I shove that gavel up your ass." Legal Lee, who was Johnny's acting attorney, chimed in. "My client would like that stricken from the record." Just then, gunshots were heard from outside the courtroom.

One of the bailiffs went to check the door, only to have it knocked down by Starlight's magic. "Sweetie!," Johnny said, "When did you bust outta jail?" "Sorry I'm late," Starlight said, "I had to pick up a friend." Playa moved in and pointed a gun at an approaching bailiff. "Drop it," he demanded. The guard did so, and the gun wound up going off, causing most of the people in the room to duck and cover.

Once the ricochets stopped, Lee popped his head out. "Anyone hit and need a lawyer?" Carlos came in last and grabbed the keys from the downed guard. "Shit," Johnny said to Playa as he undid the cuffs, "'Bout time your burnt ass woke up." "Good to see you too, Johnny," Playa replied, "You doing okay?" Johnny nodded as he rubbed his wrists. "Yeah, aside from almost getting sent to the chair."

He looked Playa over. "You look a little different. You do something with your hair?" "Do I really look that different?," Playa asked Starlight. "You did seem to have pulled a reverse Micheal Jackson," she noted. "By the way," Johnny asked, "Who's the third guy?" "This is my boyfriend Carlos Mendoza," Starlight explained. Johnny raised an eyebrow. "You hooked up in prison? Shit, wait 'til Eesh hears that. Speaking of, we should get going."

As Playa drove Johnny to Aisha's place, they caught up on what was happening over the last two years. It was a lot for Playa to take in. Before he could settle in, Starlight told him something interesting. "I've been working a little on spellcrafting, something I practiced growing up ever since my powers started manifesting themselves. It was mostly a hobby during my time in prison, but Carlos was able to take the spells I crafted and hand them to a few contacts. Some we know, some that are new."

Deciding it was time to remind people that the Saints owned Stilwater, and would again, Playa made a brief return to the Stilwater Prison. He found three tags belonging to the new gangs at the Hangman's Wharf, and he used the new enchanted spray can to paint them tags over with those of the Saints. He also found a couple friends of Starlight's, contacts she made while in prison, who offered him a few spells bound to CDs. Clearly they were also expecting the Saints to return.

The Stilwater Penitentiary itself had two more tags, and three more contacts. Finishing up, Playa met with one of the prison officers, a man named Taylor. "Heard you were up and about," Taylor said, "I'm just surprised the prison's not more of a mess after your breakout." "You likely have Starlight to thank for that," Playa reasoned. "Speaking of," Taylor said, "I got a couple magic numbers here developed by Starlight. If you were ever nostalgic for the old days when Troy was still working with your gang, this'll give you a direct line to him. The other's for Legal Lee, no idea why."

"What's the catch?," Playa asked. "Glad to see you know the score," Taylor noted, "Here at the Stilwater Penitentiary we have a special way of letting the inmates blow off steam. A little fight club out here in the exercise yard." "With the guards making bets on the side, right?," Playa quipped. "Of course," Taylor said, "I heard all about you from your time in the Saints, so the way I see it, you could easily dominate the fight club and make us both a ton of cash. Naturally I'll throw in those numbers along with your cut." "Sounds like a good deal to me," Playa agreed.

With the fight club easily won, Playa was quickly regaining a lot of his lost respect. He also got some cash to start refurbishing a small loft owned in his name over in Prawn Court. The other island off the coast of Stilwater was the Stilwater Nuclear, a power plant. Here Playa found five more tags and four other contacts. He also met another of Starlight's contacts, a plant worker named Homer.

"Glad you could make it," Homer said, "Starlight somehow managed to craft a couple heavy weapons while in prison, then sealed them in capsule-sized containers which she sent to me. I'll offer them to you in exchange for a favor." "What kinda favor?," Playa asked. "The city wants to shut down the plant for safety reasons," Homer explained, "Ignoring the fact that we've gone a good five years without a single accident, a record by any power plant's standards. I'd like you to tear up Stilwater so much it'll turn media attention away from any hypothetical meltdowns."

"So, a basic mayhem-type rampage?," Playa asked, "I can do that. I need to shake the rust off anyhow." After Playa finished the mayhem, he found himself back in Saints Row, now completely changed from how it used to be. He still found things to do there. There was a tag to mark in Athos Bay, a contact in Harrowgate, and finally one tag and two contacts at Mission Beach. After meeting a final contact on the bridge between Rebadeaux and Filmore, Playa decided to check in with Johnny.

At Johnny's new home in Misty Lane, Johnny himself was there to greet Playa along with Starlight. Greeting his old friend, Johnny said, "Come on in. You wanna beer?" "That'd be great," Playa replied, "It's been a long day. Starlight, I picked up those new spells you were apparently working on." Starlight smirked while Johnny laughed. "She's apparently been working to see what else she can do while in prison. Guess Angelo wasn't wrong to call her a witch."

He handed Playa a beer from the fridge as the three of them sat down in the living area. "Johnny, who is that?," came Aisha's familiar voice. "Come to the living room and find out," Johnny said. He was making to open the bottle against the table, when Starlight shoved a bottle opener in his hands. Johnny took the hint and used it as Aisha came down, gasping when she saw Playa. "It's you!"

Playa smiled warmly. "Surprised, Aisha?" Aisha smirked. "That you're here, or that you're talking?" "Either or, I suppose," Starlight noted. Aisha giggled. "We all thought you were dead. You look good considering you got blown to hell. You do something with your hair?" Playa chuckled. "Yeah, I've been getting that a lot... Say, where's Carlos?" "Starlight's new boyfriend?," Aisha asked, "He has a few friends that owe him cash, so he's going to collect now that he's out of prison. He's a nice guy, actually."

"Well if there was anyone deserving of our baby girl," Johnny noted, "Anyway Playa, now that you're up and about, I think it's about time the Saints made a comeback." Playa nodded. "We definitely need to remind motherfuckers who we are." "Not here though," Starlight noted, "Setting aside the fact that this place is too high-profile, Mom's glaring at you for even thinking it." Johnny glanced over and saw she was right. "Alright, I got another solution. Eesh, we'll swing by in time for dinner." Aisha nodded as the three of them headed out.

"So where we heading?," Playa asked. "The old mission house in Bavogian Plaza," Johnny replied. "Why not the church?," Playa asked. "It's a tourist trap now," Johnny explained, "Place is even more high profile than our house. You have Ultor to thank for that." Playa nodded. "Fair enough, but aren't religious buildings kinda been there, done that. I mean I know we're called the Saints and all, but..."

"Oh we're not staying in the mission itself," Johnny said, "Check it out. Years ago an earthquake dropped part of the city below sea level. Rather than clearing out the rubble, the city built over it. There's an abandoned hotel below the mission that'll work for our purposes." "Only catch is," Starlight said, "It's currently being used as a flop house for bums and Samedi. So we need to evict the current tenants." Playa smirked. "Sounds fine by me."

Inside the hotel, the Samedi were quick to notice the newcomers and naturally tried to kill them. However, being stoned out of their minds made them easy targets. The bums needed more convincing, since they already had makeshift hovels built around the place. But grabbing and throwing the bums into their own homes made it clear they had to leave, though the more stubborn ones needed a more permanent solution.

As they started cleaning up, Starlight brought in her old friends from two years ago to start building up the gang's numbers. Playa looked around the place. "It's kind of a shit hole." "For now," Starlight said, "But as we bring in capital we can start to renovate it." "Yeah man," Johnny said, "A stripper pole, some flat screens, maybe even some nicer furniture." Playa smirked. "You had me at stripper pole." Starlight rolled her eyes in amusement. They completed their marking of their new starting territory in Old Stilwater by painting over two tags just outside the hotel.

Playa talked about meeting with Troy while driving Johnny away from the courthouse, and now seemed like a good time to get that done. Despite the fact that he was a respected police chief now, Troy was glad to see Playa after so much time. "I heard you finally woke up," he said, "Guess it was worth keeping you on life support on the tax payers' dime." "Johnny and Starlight got me up to speed after I woke up," Playa explained, "Still can't believe you turned out to be an undercover cop. In hindsight, there were clues I shoulda picked up on."

"Yeah well, Dex sure did," Troy noted, "I thought I had myself trained enough in the street language to blend in, but some habits still bled through. The clean-cut look, the use of police tactics... And there's the fact that I wanted the police station breached rather than invaded to minimize casualties. I'm just surprised Dex didn't drop me when he confronted me with that knowledge."

Playa nodded. "He always was the forgiving sort. Johnny said you were looking into what caused the yacht explosion. You get any leads?" "Even better," Troy replied, "I discovered it was Julius who planted that explosive." Playa's eyes went wide. "Julius!? The fuck!?" "My sentiments exactly," Troy said with a nod, "As much good as the Saints did removing all the gang violence, my superiors at the time still wanted them gone, mostly because some crimes were still being committed by the Saints. Monroe and Hughes would settle for nothing less than a crime-free Stilwater."

"And they turned to Julius to get it done," Playa realized. Troy nodded. "They had me talk to him since we knew each other. Julius was able to convince Lin and Dex to drop their colors, but you, Johnny and Starlight seem to live for the gang life. The latter two were arrested in short order, mostly because I was able to convince the interim chief to accept Johnny's deal. I thought we'd be able to arrest you as well once you got through dealing with the alderman, but Julius had other plans."

"Where's Julius now?," Playa asked. "Dex would know that more than me," Troy said, "I can set up a meeting with the three of us. Who knows? He may even bring Julius with him. Then we can get his side of the story." Playa nodded. The idea that Julius Little, the man who practically saved his life and gave him purpose, was possibly trying to kill him once all was said and done, seemed out of left field. He hoped Julius had a good excuse, or he'd put a bullet in his brain.

Perhaps it was fate that Dex agreed to meet Troy and Playa at the old church. Things felt like they had come full circle. "Good to see you again," Dex said when he saw Playa, "You look different. You do--" "I didn't do shit to my hair," Playa interrupted. "You sound a lot angrier," came Julius' voice as he came in, "Dex told me you survived the explosion, but I had to see it for myself."

Playa chuckled. "Troy thought you might show up as well. All we need is Johnny, Starlight, and Lin here and it's a regular family reunion." Julius sighed. "That's just it though. I never saw the Saints as a family, just a means to an end. Was it a bad call to think that way? Hell yeah, and seeing Starlight mingle with the others made me realize that. Do I regret planting that bomb? No, though I regret having to do so."

"Whatchu mean by that?," Playa asked. "I truly thought the Saints weren't needed once we cleared out Stilwater of the other gangs," Julius explained, "But I should've taken Ben's words to heart. Without the Saints, the Brotherhood, Samedi, and Ronin were free to divide Stilwater among themselves in the most violent way possible. That never would've happened if we'd been there to put them down early, and we certainly had the muscle to do it."

"Sure," Dex agreed, "We had control of all the local businesses, the Colombians in our pockets, and enough contacts to spread the word not to mess with us or else." "It's just too bad my bosses had other plans," Troy noted. "Well, at least now there's a chance to make it right," Julius said, "But it'll have to be without me. It's clear I'm no good for the Saints. Playa, you've shown you're a capable leader, and I already made you my right hand before we were forced to disband. I can't think of more capable hands to leave the Saints in."

He placed a hand on shoulder. "I'm sorry for putting you in that coma, but it was the only way I could think of to get you to stop without tearing half the city apart. But now it's your time. The Saints need someone to lead the new generation, and you're it. I'll keep an eye on the news." He smirked. "Don't let me down." And with that, he left the church. "Least I don't have to kill him now," Playa noted.

Dex chuckled. "Well, I promised to go straight so I can't pick my colors back up, but that don't mean I can't help the Saints in my own way. Listen, there's a lot of businesses around the city. As you start taking over territories from the other gangs, let me know. I'll look up the deeds to any stores in those neighborhoods and send 'em to you, then you can buy 'em in your name and increase the profit you get from the area."

Playa nodded. "Sounds good." "I can't really help too much in my current position," Troy noted, "But I can make it easier on your conscience. Here's the thing, despite my best efforts the Stilwater PD is completely corrupt. I got maybe a dozen officers that are legitimately honest. I'll offer them a paid vacation out of Stilwater, leaving only the corrupt ones left for you to take down whenever necessary. Just remember you'll still have to rely on Forgive and Forget to lose any police notoriety. I was able to give you and the other former Saints a clean slate, but that's all I can offer." "It's enough," Playa said, "Thanks for having my back."

Later Playa met with Johnny and Starlight outside a tourist building in Black Bottom. "What's going on here?," Playa asked. "Check this out," Johnny said, "Inside this building is a mass of man-made caves created during the construction of the freeway. It's so similar to an actual cave system that Ultor made it a tourist trap. And right now it's home to a bunch of homeless bums, many of whom used to be squatters at what's now our new hideout."

Playa raised an eyebrow. "And you care about that, why?" "Normally I wouldn't," Johnny admitted, "But these assholes have been mugging tourists, trying to get enough cash to come at us. We need to nip this in the bud, so I suggest we wreck their little shantytown, and remind them who they're messing with." Naturally the bums were't keen on letting the Saints run them out, not that there was much they could do to stop them.

Before long, the entire shantytown was rubble, the bums were either evicted or dead, and the Saints officially claimed the Stilwater Caverns for themselves. "So far all the territory we've gotten is underground," Playa noted, "Though it is making a grand per day, so there's the silver lining." "Baby steps, Playa," Starlight noted as she marked off the two tags in the area, "We'll start getting big again."

The next day, the Saints were starting to clean out the hideout, removing bodies and moping up blood. "Yo, I'm grateful for having a starting crew," Johnny said, "But if we're serious about taking back Stilwater, we need more numbers. Not to mention some lieutenants." "Well, I've no idea how to get in touch with Lin," Playa said, "Julius passed leadership to me since I was second-in-command toward the end of our previous reign, and Dex and Troy said they can't pick their colors back up again."

"So we'll start fresh," Starlight suggested, "I'll bet Carlos will sign on without hesitation. The way he tells it, his brother was in the Saints." "Hey, was he that guy who you kneed in the crotch at your canonizing?," Johnny asked, "Guy looked a little Latino, but I don't like to assume, so..." "Oh yeah, that was him," Starlight said with a smirk. Johnny nodded. "Okay, well we'll still two more lieutenants, so we have some warchiefs to work on the three rival gangs."

"I do know two other people who passed through Stilwater Penitentiary briefly," Starlight said, "There's this girl named Shaundi who's in on the drug scene. She's higher than a kite most days, but her brain still keeps an eye on Earth and she's a science graduate. Then there's Pierce, a local street smart who knows both the lower and upper parts of gang activity. Best part, he's as book smart as he is street smart." "Alright," Playa said, "Let's go talk to these people."

Carlos was happy to see Starlight again, as well as Playa. "We need some lieutenants to help lead the Saints against the other gangs," Playa explained. "Hell, I'm in," Carlos said, "But I got one last debt to collect. A deadbeat friend who needs a little extra motivation. His car's at the Mourning Woods Cemetery. Care to help me repossess it?" Starlight and Playa grinned at each other.

As they drove, Carlos said, "Our little incident at the courthouse was all over the news. I can't believe you'd go that far for a friend." "Not like I was gonna let Johnny fry," Playa noted. "I hear ya," Carlos admitted, "I only met Johnny one other time in prison. He looked a lot surlier then." "Both he and I were in prison," Starlight explained, "He's a nice guy, so long as you aren't an enemy."

At the cemetery, Carlos hooked the car up and the trio drove off. Carlos called his friend afterward. "Hey Ramon, what's up? Listen I don't gotta lot of time, just wanted to let you know that..." He chuckled. "I stole your car." He let that sink in for a while. "You still there? Great, then here's the deal. If you don't want your car cubed I suggest you pay me what you owe. Talk to you later Ramon." "You're gonna fit in great with the Saints," Playa noted, causing Carlos to smile.

After Carlos headed off for the mission house, Playa and Starlight met with Pierce. "Good to meetcha again, Starlight," Pierce said as he high-fived said girl, "And you must be Playa. Starlight spoke a lot about you. Before I agree to join the Saints, I need to know its not just hype. There's some Ronin patrols hanging here. Take 'em out, and I'll know you're the real deal." "Easy enough," Playa said.

As the Ronin were met and killed, Playa asked, "So Pierce, what's your deal?" Pierce chuckled. "My deal is that I'm the total package. You need someone shot? I can do it. You need someone to strategize? I can do it. You need to score court side tickets? I can do it. Ya know what the only thing I can't do is? Be stopped. Or figure out how to play pai gow poker, cause that shit don't make a damn bit of sense."

"Pierce has grown up on the streets his whole life," Starlight explained, "He knows the ins and outs of Stilwater like the back of his hand. And he keeps up with whatever changes occur, which is good for you because Stilwater's changed a lot in two years." Playa finished off the last of the Ronin marked. "Well I hope you're impressed, because you definitely have skills we could use in the Saints." "Shit, you convinced me," Pierce said as he shook Playa's hand, then headed off for the mission.

The last person to meet was Shaundi, who greeted Starlight with a friendly hug when they arrived. "Hey, you must be Playa," Shaundi said, "Starlight didn't mention you'd be so rugged looking. Anyway, before I sign up I need to know how hardcore the Saints are. There's a few spots around Stilwater that are great for stunt jumping. Hit a few around the area and I'll sign up no problem."

As Playa drove to the first spot, he said, "So how do you and Starlight know each other?" "We had a small drug ring going around while I was in prison," Shaundi explained, "Mostly koma, but also pruno. That stuff has a twenty percent chance of making you go blind, but it has this great oak-y flavor to it. I'm the only one who can make it without killing someone, and Starlight was just the sort of people person to convince potential customers to buy from us." Once Playa hit the jumps marked, Shaundi agreed to sign on.

Back at the hideout, Johnny was just beating on some new faces. "We getting into canonizing already?," Starlight asked. "Yeah, I made some calls and got us some new guys," Johnny explained. He singled out another recruit for the next hazing as the three new lieutenants came in. "Place looks like a dive," Carlos noted. "It kinda is," Starlight admitted. Shaundi shrugged. "I dunno, add a flatscreen, some throw pillows, and hookah at this place would be alright."

"You definitely need a stripper pole in here," Pierce added. "Well, it is good cardio," Shaundi admitted. "Yeah," Starlight replied, making Pierce do a double-take. "Starlight's into burlesque," Johnny explained, "And don't get any ideas, she's spoken for." He pointed to Carlos, who grinned. "So what's next?," Shaundi asked. "Now we listen," Johnny replied, as Playa walked up the large staircase to adress the new crew.

"Alright, everybody listen up," he called out, "We got some serious shit to discuss. The Saints used to own Stilwater and it seems like the only muthafucka's that remember that are me, Gat, and Starlight. I think it's time we give those other crews a wake up call." That got the Saints cheering. Playa nodded at the enthusiasm. "Now I ain't gonna lie, a lotta shit's changed since I've been outta the game, so I'm gonna need some help. Pierce, you're on the Ronin. I wanna know who's callin' the shots and what businesses they're running."

Pierce nodded. "Done." "Shaundi," Playa said, "You got the Sons of Samedi." Shaundi seemed less than enthused. "It's gotta be them?" "Fuck you say?," Playa reprimanded her. "It's cool...," Shaundi said in a resigned tone, "I got this..." Playa nodded. "Carlos..." "The Brotherhood," Carlos said without hesitation, "I'm on it." With that settled, Playa finished up. "Alright, once we're done here talk to one of these guys. They'll have something for you to do. It's our time now, let's get this shit started." He raised his fist in triumph as the Saints burst into applause.

SR2: First Steps

Author's Note

From now on, Playa will be going by Boss. Just something I wanted to let you guys know.

Also, there's an OC I agreed to use courtesy of Speedy Silverstreak. You'll know him when you see him.

SR2: First Steps

It wasn't long before Boss, as the the Saints started calling him, got a call in from Carlos. 'I did some digging into the Brotherhood. They're led by a big bruiser named Maero. He found out I was looking into him, but didn't seem mad about it. In fact, he wants to sit down and have a have a chat with you, try to work things out before they get outta control. He's waiting at the underground caverns.' "Meeting on our turf," Boss noted, "And here I thought this might be a trap."

Deep in the caverns, Boss, Carlos, and Starlight found Maero sitting on one of the benches. He seemed to take most of it. His arms were crossed, showing off his muscles and tattoos. "You must be Maero," Boss noted, "Where's your crew?" "I don't need one," Maero said confidently. Boss scoffed, then pointed a gun to his face. "You sure about that? I could kill you right now." Maero stood up, showing just how big he was. "No... You couldn't."

Boss smirked. He had to respect the guy, he really had balls to step up when he was outnumbered and outgunned. Despite his boast, Boss really could've killed Maero then and there. But he decided to hear him out. If things didn't work out for the Saints, he could always kill Maero another time. "Alright, so whaddya want?" Maero started pacing. "Listen, I'm not stupid. I know who you are. There's no reason for us to tear each other apart. Instead, I'm thinking we divide Stil--"

"I hear voices this way!," came the voice of a police officer. "Shit," Carlos said, "Someone must've tipped the cops off about our meeting." "We need to get outta here," Maero noted, "We can continue this at my gang's hideout in Stoughton." "Which way do we take?," Boss asked. "Up or down is the same distance," Starlight noted, "We can grab a boat if we go down, avoid the cops. If we go up, it'll be easier to move to Stoughton."

Ultimately they chose to shoot their way through the cops, finally reaching the surface and driving to Stoughton. Once at the Brotherhood's hideout Boss noticed something. "You guys have your hideout in the open?" "People know to stay away," Mearo assured him. He turned over to a pair of familiar faces. "Hey, how's my truck coming?" Sure enough, Boss recognized Donnie, and he was certain it was Lin working on the monster truck's underside.

"It'll be ready for the competition," Donnie said, giving Boss a subtle look. He didn't outright state his recognition, but it was clear he wanted to meet later. Inside the warehouse, which looked like a tattoo parlor, Maero met with a young woman and a blonde man with several piercings. The woman looked excited to see Maero. "You're back!," she said as she literally jumped into his arms.

Maero smiled warmly at her. "Come on, did you expect any less? Anyway, I brought some company." Boss nodded. "I'm Playa, but my crew likes to call me Boss now. This is Starlight and her boyfriend Carlos." Jessica shook Boss's hand. "I'm Jessica." She looked at Carlos. "Ya know, you remind me of my old house cleaner..." Starlight glared at her. "Are you acting racist to my man?" Jessica backed off a little. "I was just kidding..."

Maero placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Babe, you wanna count the cash?" It was clear he wanted to make a good first impression. Jessica nodded as Maero sat down in the barber chair. "Matt, you ready?" The blonde guy, Matt, grinned. "Always." Carlos looked like he recognized him. "Aren't you the guitarist for the Feed Dogs?" "Don't encourage him," Jessica said, annoyed. "Look lady," Matt said defensively, "You and Maero met at one of my concerts so I don't wanna hear it."

"Looks like you're also the Brotherhood's scrimshaw," Starlight noted. Maero nodded. "Guy's a regular Rembrandt with a needle." "But don't you think you have enough tattoos?," Starlight asked, "You've got more ink than a Maori warrior." "Lady," Maero replied, "I've got a lot of canvas left. Anyway, back to business. The Brotherhood is about to come into something big and I think the Saints will wanna get in on the ground floor. My suggestion, we split the city twenty-eighty."

"With us getting the eighty I trust," Boss suggested. Maero scoffed. "Yeah, sure you do." Boss glared. "You just expect us to take twenty and say thanks?" "On your hands and fucking knees," Maero said threateningly. "You do remember who we are right?," Starlight asked, "Two years ago we wiped out three whole gangs. Do you really think it's a good idea to be offering such a bad deal?"

"Oh please," Mearo said, "Time's passed you by. You're both just a couple of has-beens." "And you're a not-all-there," Carlos countered, "From what I've seen of your gang, you're nothing but Rollerz who do gunrunning. Meanwhile, us Saints are into drug dealing, protection rackets, money laundering... You give us the lower end of a twenty-eighty deal, and the cops'll run over both our gangs."

"Like anyone could stand a chance against my crew," Maero said smugly. Boss shook his head. "You really made a bad mistake. Let's go guys." The three of them walked out, Jessica looking after them. "Honey, you want me to have someone take care of them?" "No," Maero replied, "They'll be dead soon enough." Despite Maero's words, he later learned that the Saints made a first strike by taking Southern Cross from him.

Back at the hideout, Boss, Johnny, and Starlight saw Pierce setting up some kind of model. "What's with the dollhouse?," Johnny asked. Pierce scoffed. "It's a model so I can work on my plan for us to fuck up the Ronin." "What's your thinking?," Boss asked. "The Ronin have a stake in Poseidon's Palace, the big casino in the marina district," Pierce explained, "The way I see it, we start by hitting the Ronin in their pockets, and they'll know we ain't fucking around."

"Not a bad start," Boss admitted, "So how do we break in?" Pierce started moving around the pieces. "You and I enter the casino here... Once inside we need to distract this security guard. I was thinking you could catch me cheating, or some shit like that. Anyway, while the guard's concerned with throwing me out, Gat'll sneak in through this security door... Don't worry, I already got today's passcode from the blackjack dealer Shaundi's fucking. Now, once inside, Gat'll have to sneak past the guards to cut the power.... When that happens we only have about 45 seconds before the backup generator turns on. During the blackout, though--"

"Pierce, Pierce," Starlight cut in, "This plan is great and all, but it has too many steps, which means too many things that can go wrong. We're a street gang, not a group of professional thieves. And while such a complicated plan could work in the real world, we don't have nearly the amount of resources necessary to realistically pull it off." Pierce rubbed his chin. "Shit, you're right. I forgot we were just starting out. Good thing I have plan B."

"Tell me plan B is more fun than this Ocean's Eleven shit," Johnny pleaded. "Oh, it is," Pierce assured him, "First we get some of our crew near the casino with a large truck, where they'll wait outside. Inside, we start by taking out the Ronin that'll be watching over the games and picking up the take. Once that's clear, we just need to apply some C4 to the safe with the money. That was gonna be the last part of plan A, but it can still work here. I had the safe checked out earlier, it's sturdy but twenty ounces should suffice to crack it open." Johnny smiled. "Now that's a plan."

As the four of them drove to the casino, Pierce said, "Listen, when we get there, try to keep the Ronin at a medium range. Those swords they're carrying aren't props, and word is they keep 'em sharpened samurai-style." "I'd expect nothing less from a gang called the Ronin," Johnny admitted. "We got word on their leader?," Boss asked. "His name's Shogo Akuji," Pierce replied, "He's obsessed with his father's approval, or at least that's the rumor, but he's still ruthless and knows how to run his gang."

"Not to mention the Ronin have a deal with Ultor," Starlight noted, "Their project head Dane Vogel approached me several times in prison, hoping to have my powers researched." "We'll have to look into what Ultor's into at some point as well," Boss said, "But for now we hit the casino." Once inside, the quartet started firing on the Ronin, dressed in black and yellow suits. Once they were dealt with, Johnny and Pierce started setting the charges on the vault's hinges while Boss and Starlight defended them from more Ronin swarming in.

"They kinda remind me of bees," Starlight noted. "They probably sting just as bad," Boss replied, "Remind me to train the crew in kenjutsu when we're done here." "I cannot believe you used that term right," Pierce said as he and Johnny finished with the bomb, the four of them getting a good distance away before it blew, exposing the vault's interior. Right on cue, the Saints came rushing in and grabbed as much money as possible. "Where are we gonna hide the money until we can clean it?," Boss asked. "I'll leave it at Eesh's place," Johnny explained, "It's the last place they'd look."

At their hideout in the Tohoku Towers in Filmore, Shogo was going over the recent incident. The Saints had not only chosen to rob the Poseidon's Palace, but they had also taken Centennial Beach in the confusion, marking their tag over one the Ronin had left there. There was also talk about the Saints making contacts in two separate locations in that neighborhood. Shogo spoke with his bodyguard and second-in command, Jyunichi.

"Mr. Akuji won't be happy to find out about the casino incident," Jyunichi said in his native Japanese. "Jyunichi, you need to relax...," Shogo replied. Jyunichi narrowed his eyes. "You can't hide anything from Mr. Akuji." Shogo scoffed. "My father won't find out about the casino..." "You can't just act as if nothing has happened," Jyunichi reminded him. "Don't question me Jyunichi...," Shogo reprimanded, "And we're in America, speak English."

Jyunichi sighed "Forgive me Shogo." A sudden knock at the door had Jyunichi draw his sword in reflex. Shogo chuckled as he got up and walked over. "A little jumpy today?" He opened the sliding door to reveal a butler carrying a drink tray with a champagne bottle and the appropriate glasses. Shogo pointed to nearby table. "Over there." The butler nodded as he moved the tray over. Before leaving, he bowed to Jyunichi. He also placed his hand out for a tip, but Shogo slammed the door in his face. "Sword."

Jyunichi handed Shogo the sword he had drawn, which Shogo used to open the bottle before stabbing it into the ground. He then sat down with his glass. "Listen Jyunichi, I know you're having a hard time... Adjusting, to the way I run things here. But how about you let me deal with my father and you deal with whatever the fuck I tell you to deal with." Jyunichi gave a reserved sigh. "Of course Shogo." Shogo smiled. "Excellent..."

Later Pierce had Boss and Starlight meet him outside the strip club Technically Legal in Misty Lane. "If we're hiding the cash from our robbery here, I'd say it's best we make it Saints' territory to increase security," Pierce explained, "And I've found just the excuse to raise the ruckus necessary for us to move in. Now one of my girls here at the club called me up and said that a Ronin was getting too touchy feely, and the bouncers have all been paid not to do dick."

"So it's up to us then," Boss realized, "And while we're busy distracting the Ronin, our crew can move in and take the territory for the Saints." Pierce nodded. "Exactly." Once inside, taking out the Ronin was a three-step process. First there was a group on the ground, next a group on the second floor. Finally, several reinforcements arrived outside. Once they were all dealt with, the Saints regained Misty Lane. This was marked with two more snuffed tags, while Starlight picked four of her new contacts.

Boss had been sent a message by Donnie, asking him to meet someone at the Stilwater University district, in the Frat Row. As it happened, one of Starlight's contacts was also there. The latter, a man named Carl, met Boss as he was looking at a Demolition Derby flyer. "You must be the one Starlight was talking about," Carl said, "I see you're eyeing that poster. Tell you what. I happen to be registered in that derby. If you can win it for yourself, I'll hand over the items Starlight left me. They're charms that'll convince auto store mechanics to offer you a discount."

"That definitely sounds useful," Boss admitted, "Alright, you're on." Boss had to earn a certain amount of cash with each round, and in between rounds he was allowed to upgrade his car to be faster, more durable, and more destructive. Once he cleared all the rounds, he walked outside and saw a young man with dyed blue hair. "What's up?," the guy said, "I saw your derby." "You the guy Donnie mentioned?," Boss asked.

"Yeah, that's me," the guy said, "Name's Calvin Thompson, but all my friends call me Speedy. I used to hang with the Rollerz, until Sharp was killed." "Smart of you to drop your flags then," Boss noted. Speedy nodded. "No doubt, especially since Price lost it after that happened. I've been friends with Donnie ever since we joined the Rollerz, and I also got to know Lin real well. Still threw me for a loop when I learned she was really with the Saints."

"I saw her and Donnie working on cars for the Brotherhood," Boss said. "They've been trying to make ends meet since the the alderman's yacht blew," Speedy explained, "The Brotherhood offered them a sizeable paycheck for tuning their rides. I was also with the Brotherhood until recently, when I overheard Maero trying to sell you that bad deal. I'll be honest, I'd like to swap sides and hang with the Saints instead."

Boss considered it. "Well, I do need someone to get information regarding Ultor, just in case they try anything against us. We got blindsided by public officials two years ago, I don't want that happening again. If you can do that, I'll make you a lieutenant here and now." "Done," Speedy agreed, and the two of them shook hands. "Head for the mission house in Bavogian Plaza," Boss said, "We make our hideout in the old hotel underneath it. Ask for Gat, and he'll get you canonized then set you up with your new colors." Speedy nodded before getting in his car and driving off.

There was another contact Starlight wanted Boss to meet in Frat Row, a local science major named Lindsey. Boss was a little surprised when he saw the kid. "You look a little nerdy to be a pimp." "Never stopped any girls from signing on," Lindsey noted, "You'd be surprised how many girls in real life can find nerds sexy. It helps that I'm providing them with good employment. I organize all my john's through Meg's List, schedule health checkups at the campus hospital..."

"And get a little pussy on the side?," Boss asked coyly. "They're called loose women for a reason," Lindsey admitted, "Anyway, recently some of my clients have been wanting some rather extreme services to get off. Naturally the only thing I could think of to do so in private was organize a mobile escort service. Unfortunately I don't have my license, but the good news is I do have the capital to hire temp services to drive for me."

"Temps like myself, you mean," Boss said. Lindsey nodded. "Among others. In addition to the payout I'm willing to offer you a spell crafted by Starlight that she left in my care, a special warding charm that will make it easier to shake off the Sons of Samedi, in the inevitable event you wind up facing off against them. Seriously, that woman's like a magical girl from my Japanese anime. She's even got the right hair color for it."

Once Boss finished the favor for Lindsey, he returned to the hideout. Speedy had already been settled in, and was already organizing a scouting unit to hunt for rumors regarding Ultor. As he sat down to relax, Starlight and Shaundi walked over. "Hey Boss, I gotta show you something," Shaundi said. She got the pipe Starlight bought her and lit it up, handing it to Boss. Boss took a wiff, and got a pleasing buzz from the product.

"That's banging," Boss admitted, "Don't think I recognize the drug, though. Is it new?" "It's the Samedi's number one product," Shaundi explained, "They call it loa dust." Boss looked confused. "But you smoke it." Starlight shrugged. "Well, the Samedi aren't big on marketing. The point is college students are buying this stuff up by the pound. It's almost completely replaced koma as the number one drug in Stilwater and even cut into the Colombians' drug profits with how popular it is."

Shuandi nodded. "So I'm thinking if we can corner the market for ourselves and run the Samedi outta business, it'll make it easier to take them out. We just need to figure out how to make it." "And then sell it for cheaper," Boss realized, "I like this plan, Shuandi. How much do you think we'll need?" "I'd say three pounds," Shuandi guessed, "Two for science, one for the weekend." "Sounds good to me," Boss said, "Let's hit the campus and grab that product."

The trio took a car and drove to the university. "We should be careful going against the Samedi," Shaundi said, "They're usually more coked up then I am, but they're also big into voodoo which helps them keep their focus." "So they have Haitian roots," Boss noted. "Yeah," Shuandi said with a nod, "They even named themselves for the vodoun lord of the dead." Boss just laughed. "Shaundi, you're in a gang called the Saints. Names don't really mean much to me."

At the campus, the trio were able to catch the Samedi dealers off-guard, grabbing two pounds of loa dust. "So much for the boogie men," Boss said. "Hey guys," Shaundi chimed in, "I just got a tip that Mark Gabby is also slinging nearby. He's a major dealer for the Samedi, we take him out it'll really cut into their profit margins." Gabby was in his car driving around, but it didn't take long to track him down and kill him, grabbing a third pound of loa dust.

"Since we cleaned out so many Samedi," Boss said, "We should have our crew move into Frat Row in their place." "Sounds good," Shuandi replied, "Also, I'm starting to get the munchies. Can we grab donuts at Apollo's?" Boss shrugged. "Why not?" Before they finished up, Starlight marked the territory snuffing out one of the Samedi's tags, and looking up another of her contacts. The network started feeding information to Speedy, which might lead to info regarding Ultor.

That evening, a Samedi limo was seen driving through Stilwater. Inside were the three main leaders of the Sons of Samedi, the DJ Veteran Child, a voodoo priest called Mr. Sunshine, and a Haitian man known only as The General. General took a drag from his cigar. "Gentlemen, how was business today?" "Here's today's take...," Veteran Child said as he handed a wad of bills to Sunshine, who in turn handed it to the General.

The General hefted the wad in his hand, frowning as he noted something off about the weight. "There are many singles where fifties should be..." Veteran Child adjusted his glasses. "Yeah, about that... I couldn't get a hold of some of my guys..." The General looked angered. "These men steal from The General?" "No, I'm not sayin' they're stealin'...," Veteran Child said defensively. He then saw Sunshine speaking with General in Haitian. "Yo, Papa Shango, I'm talkin' to The General."

Sunshine turned his burning gaze to Veteran Child, making him uncomfortable. "Man, fuck off." Sunshine smirked. "On the streets you may be a popular DJ, Veteran Child... But when you're in this car you'd do well to remember your place." Veteran Child glared at Sunshine as he lowered his glasses. "My place?" "My friends, please, be civil," the General said, hoping to diffuse the situation. It seemed to work as both Veteran Child and Sunshine backed off.

Satisfied, the General said, "Veteran Child... Look into the matter of the missing money... If one of your bag boys is indeed alive, take one of his hands... I doubt he will be late again. If he is not alive, I think we have a greater problem." Veteran Child looked surprised. "You want me to cut off some dude's hand?" "If he stole from me, he needs to learn," the General asserted. Veteran Child gulped. "Yeah, that makes, um... Sense." Actually it sounded barbaric, but he wasn't about to argue the matter. Sunshine grinned at his hesitation. "Is there a problem?" "No!," Veteran Child barked out, "I mean, it's no problem, I got this..."

The next day Boss met Shaundi out near the trailer park in Elysian Fields. "I nearly forgot Starlight passed me a spell capsule before I got outta prison," she explained, "I'd like to hand it over but first I need help getting word out about our upcoming drug business through the north island. The Ronin won't like that we're doing business on their turf, but luckily I got a friend willing to let us use his attack chopper for air support. The capsule holds a charm for convincing weapon stores to offer a discount."

After Boss helped Shaundi complete the deals, the two of them met Starlight at the trailer park. "Welcome to the Elysian Fields," Shaundi said, "It may not seem like it, but this place is run by the Samedi, and they have drug labs in some of the trailers." "They all look the same," Boss noted, "How are we gonna find 'em?" Shaundi pointed to a nearby building. "The laundromat over there should have a map marking all the labs. From there we just blow them up with these."

She opened a nearby crate to reveal some satchel charges. Boss whistled in appreciation. "You really know how to plan out a raid." There were Samedi in the area, making it difficult to get to the map and then destroy the indicated trailers, but not completely hard. Before long, the Elysian Fields were smoking and smelled from the chemicals, while the Saints moved in to claim the place for themselves. A tagging spot was grabbed to mark the place while Speedy met with another contact. The Saints had only just started reclaiming Stilwater, and they were off to a good start.

SR2: Laying the Foundation

Author's Note

This chapter involves people speaking a different language over the phone. 'I normally write like this to indicate it's not a live conversation.' 'But using this to indicate translation could cause people to mistake it for a thought.' 'So instead all phone conversations that need translating will be written like this.'

SR2: Laying the Foundation

Carlos had a meeting set up with Lin and Donnie after talking with them about helping against the Brotherhood. When Lin looked around the new hideout, she said, "Shit, and I thought the church was a fixer-upper." "Good to see you again, Lin," Starlight said as the two shared a hug. "It's been way too long," Lin replied, "I don't think you guys got to properly know Donnie yet." "Especially considering we only met twice," Boss noted, "Once when I was shooting at you, and once after we killed Sharp."

"Least I know you weren't really trying to kill me," Donnie said with a shrug, "Anyway, Speedy told me about your deal with Maero, and how bad it was." "That's an understatement," Carlos snarked, "It would've been one thing if he left it open to negotiation, or at least explained his reasons, but he just demanded we take the offer flat out." Donnie nodded. "No denying he embodies the best of both Price and Sharp, but that just means he comes with all new bad points. That's why we're planning to switch sides."

"So you're coming back to the Saints?," Starlight asked. "It's been way too long since I've been in this game," Lin admitted, "Fixing up cars kept us afloat, but working for the Brotherhood and their egos... It actually made me miss the Rollerz." "And you Donnie?," Boss asked. "Lin always thought I'd look good in purple," Donne replied, "That just leaves a way of sending in our resignation, but we came up with something that'll send the message in a big way."

Later, Maero was still steaming over the Saints storming out on him. Jessica looked worried at his attitude. "Babe, just let it go..." "Who the fuck do the Saints think they are turning me down?," he demanded. "Sweetie, it's not a big deal," Jessica assured him, "Just kill 'em." Just then, a Brotherhood lieutenant burst in. "Maero, we got a problem." "What happened?," Maero asked, worried. "It's Donnie and Lin," the lieutenant said, "They've been working for the Saints. Lin had been a member the whole time."

Maero stood up. "What did they do?" The lieutenant shook his head. "They rigged some bombs up to our boys' trucks. When we went to confront them at their garage, we only found this." He held out a piece of paper, the Saints' fleur-de-lis on it and the words, "Found a better gig." "To make matter worse," the lieutenants said, "The Saints took Cecil Park while we were trying to sort things out."

"They must be trying to get us to negotiate a better offer," Matt suggested. "We couldn't have given them a better offer," Maero asserted, "If they really want to step against us, they'd better bring more than cheap tricks. Have our boys move to take back the park." "Already tried," the lieutenant said, "The Saints just repelled the attack. Seems they've also gotten some resources moving against the Samedi and Ronin." Maero narrowed his eyes. Dealing with the Saints would harder than he thought.

Later, Boss met with a frat leader named Blake out in Sommerset. "What's up?," Blake said, "We of the brothers of Theta heard you might be getting problems from the Brotherhood in the near future. We'd like to help, if you can offer us a favor." "Sure," Boss agreed, "So long as you got cash as well." Blake nodded. "Not a problem, we'll just scratch one of our pub crawls. I knew Shaundi really well before she graduated, and she introduced me to Starlight. I owe them a few favors myself."

"What'd she leave you?," Boss asked. "Some sort of warding charm," Blake explained, "Useful for losing the Brotherhood if the heat gets too much. As for the favor, our rivals in Gamma beat our step team and now they think they're hot stuff. We need someone to remind them of their place." Boss nodded. "Easy enough. You got anything I can use so they know you sent the message?"

Blake thought for a moment, then got an idea. "We did buy a new item for pledge hazing this year, a flame suit. Think you could somehow work that in?" Boss nodded. "Oh yeah..." Boss had the flame suit and an ATV lit up and drove around the campus, lighting everything and everyone on fire while heading through marked checkpoints. Once he made enough noise, he collected the spell and started having it transferred to the rest of the crew.

Carlos had Boss and Starlight meet him at the apartments. "Shaundi already mentioned how the Samedi own the majority of the University area," he said, "But they could never get a complete lock on it because of the Brotherhood. They run the entire housing section in Sommerset, using third parties to distribute whatever the college kids want. Prostitution, gambling, drugs... If we want to control the entire campus we need to evict the lieutenants overseeing the business."

Taking out the lieutenants and a mobile drug lab got the Saints Sommerset, which they marked by painting over a tag from the Brotherhood. Later, Boss and Pierce met with Johnny and Starlight at Aisha's house. Pierce was a little surprised to learn his music idol was still alive, but Boss explained how they faked her death to get her out of her bad contract. Starlight was just finishing counting the money from their earlier casino heist, which Aisha wasn't too keen on keeping an eye on.

"Johnny, how do we know the Ronin won't just come barging in here?," she asked. "Cuz the Saints own the neighborhood now," Johnny explained, "Naturally they tried to take it back, but we made sure they understood we weren't giving it up." "Hey," Boss said, "We're on." There was a news report regarding the bank heist. Jane Valderamma was the one doing the report. 'It's the most daring casino heist ever recorded in history. Although the police didn't wish to commit on the possibility, evidence suggests the involvement of the Third Street Saints.'

A security video of the four of them was shown. 'This leaked security shows the Saints leader, recent fugitive Johnny Gat, his daughter Starlight Glimmer, and local street tough Pierce Washington assaulting the casino. In light of this and other events happening across Stilwater, it's become clear that the Saints' two year hiatus is finally at an end. Recent interviews suggest that Ultor has been putting pressure on Chief Bradshaw for a quick response to this incident.' "Alright guys," Boss said after the four of them celebrated being mentioned, "We've had our fifteen minutes. Now it's time to clean this money."

Cleaning the money was easy in concept. Buying up expensive cars, jewelry, and weapons, then selling them off to a reliable fence Pierce knew and trusted. The only complication came in when the Ronin started attacking. Fortunately they picked the worst possible time to attack, right when Boss and Pierce were buying some military-grade firepower. This proved the perfect time to field test it. This left enough room for the Saints to move in on Nob Hill, where they snuffed two tags and Starlight met another contact.

This didn't sit well with Shogo, who was currently on the phone with his father. 'Tell me, Shogo,' Kazuo said, 'Are you purposefully trying to cause shame to me or is it a natural talent of yours?' "Father, I'm not causing you shame...," Shogo assured him. Nearby, a Ronin lieutenant was talking with Jyunichi. "What's going on?" "Shogo is explaining our failure to his father," Jyunichi replied.

The lieutenant shook his head. "Mr. Akuji doesn't sound happy." "That's because his son has brought him much shame," Jyunichi agreed, "Akuji-san is coming to America to teach Shogo how to lead." The lieutenant looked at him, stunned. "Is that good or bad?" Jyunichi looked at the lieutenant, the concern evident. "That depends on who you are." 'I am tired of listening to your excuses, Shogo...,' Kazuo said, 'I'll come to America, and when I arrive I will teach you how to lead.'

Shogo sighed. "Yes, father..." He hung up the phone, and one could clearly see the range of emotions going through his mind, none of them positive. He turned to Jyunichi. "We need the Saints taken care of before my father arrives." Jyunichi nodded. "What would you have me do?" Shogo threw his cigarette at Jyunichi. "Whaddya think I want you to do!? Get some of our boys and kill them!"

Boss met with Pierce and Starlight later at Humbolt Park. "So what'd you need to meet me for?," Boss asked. Pierce indicated the nearby building. "Check this out, you're looking at the Ultor Institute for Science and Innovation. But there's more to this place then your average science fun fest. Turns out, the Ronin use specific servers in this place to run their web porn ring. We take those out, it'll really cut into the Ronin's profits, and leave us free to move in on them."

Getting to the servers and destroying them was simple, though complicated with the Ronin crawling around the place to protect their interests. Not mention, once the severs were destroyed the Ronin came in with an attack chopper. But once that was done, Humbolt Park was taken by the Saints. "Looks like the Ronin don't like us moving in on their turf," Pierce noted as he marked the territory with a new tag.

The next day Boss met with Starlight and Shaundi. "What's up?," he said, "You said you were having difficulty figuring out the loa dust?" Shaundi nodded. "Yeah, that stuff's surprisingly complicated. But I do know somehow who can work it out." "It's an old friend of our's too," Starlight chimed in, "The only catch is, she's still in prison since the last time we saw her." "Wonderful," Boss said sarcastically, "We got a plan for getting her out?"

Shaundi nodded. "Oh yeah. Hey Samson!" Boss turned and recognized the demolition expert the Saints often hired in the past. He started walking over with a C4 pack. "Got the bomb rigged up right here--" Samson wound up tripped on the gazebo steps. Thinking quickly, Starlight telekinetically grabbed the detonator out of his hands before he could accidentally hit it. "That was close," Shaundi said, "If that timer had been hit there's no way I'd have gone with you guys."

They carefully loaded the bomb onto a speedboat and headed for the penitentiary. "So what's the plan?," Boss asked. "The prison is powered by an old generator underneath the building," Shaundi explained, "We take out the generator and its lights out for the whole island. Sneaking in should be easy after that." Boss nodded. "So where's the generator? It's not like I got the guided tour while I was in that coma."

"There's a natural cave system at the back of the island," Starlight explained, "They had a dock built into it for maintenance work. We'll be using that to sneak in." The plan proved to be even easier than Shaundi thought. There was only one guard in the area with the generator, and once they blew it up it caused a prison riot that made sneaking past the guards all the simpler. Once they reached the cell Boss and Starlight got a surprise. "Laura?," Boss asked, "Is that you?"

Sure enough, Laura, the duo's old drug trafficking contact from two years ago, was standing inside the cell. "Why Playa, Starlight. What are you two doing here?" "You guys know her?," Shaundi asked. "We were there when she first got into drug dealing," Starlight explained. "We're here to bust you out," Boss explained. "Oh, how exciting," Laura said. She left behind a written apology note then followed the trio out to the prison's helipad.

As they flew off, Laura said, "Thanks for getting me out of prison. I was starting to miss my husband." "I thought you were single," Boss replied, surprised. "Oh I picked up a sponsor while you were in that coma and sparks started flying between us. Anyway, if you ever need a favor, just feel free to ask." "Funny you should mention that," Starlight said, "Shaundi said you could help us figure out how to make the Samedi's loa dust. We already have some samples for you."

"Sounds peachy," Laura said, "Can you drop me off at my house first? I want to let my husband know I'm all right." As the trio arrived, Boss learned that his crew was able to force the Samedi out of Pilsen. Once at Laura's house, she knocked on the door. "You think you can figure out what's in the dust?," Boss asked. "Don't worry sweetie," Laura assured him, "When it comes to drugs or snicker doodles I'm the best."

Boss and Starlight got another surprise when Tobias opened the door. "Ain't that the truth baby..." "Toby!," Laura said excitedly as she jumped into Tobias' arms. "Tobias?," Starlight asked, "You're Laura's husband?" "Yeah, we got together almost a year ago," Tobias explained, "We shared some drug routes but with different product, so I offered to share and share alike so we could both expand. Things only got better from there."

Boss nodded. "Well I'm happy for both of you. Listen, Laura offered to help us take the Samedi's drug market from them." "Well count me in too," Tobias offered, "You helped bring my pumpkin muffin, and the Samedi have really been cutting into the market, so that's double motivation. In the meantime, could you let us have some quality time? I'd like to have a have a belated conjugal before the PTA meeting..." "Absolutely," Boss said as the happy couple closed the door.

The next day, Boss met up with Jane at Bovagian Plaza. "Jane Valderamma," Boss said, "I've heard you a few times on TV and the radio, but this is the first time we're meeting in person." "Indeed," Jane replied, "I first got to know Starlight when she offered me an exclusive interview and we became fast friends. Since she told me you plan on buying up some real estate to house your gang, I figured this is an excellent time to offer you a spell capsule she left with me. It contains a charm that'll convince the renovators to offer a discount for upgrading your 'cribs'."

"This usually comes with a favor attached," Boss noted, "What did you want of me?" "There's this nut job lawyer named Zach Johnson who's been stealing airtime from me," Jane explained, "You've probably heard of him, he's notorious for getting a hard-on at the idea of a lawsuit." "Makes Legal Lee look like an actual saint in comparison," Boss agreed. Jane nodded. "No doubt. Lately he's been crusading against media he deems offensive. He doesn't really have much support but he makes such an ass out of himself people watch him anyway just for a chuckle or two."

Boss nodded in understanding. "Hence your dilemma. So where do I come in?" "I need something big to take back airtime from him," Jane explained, "You're notorious for some pretty major rampages across Stilwater. If I can get live coverage of one such rampage, it'll be the perfect tool for kicking Johnson off the air." "Get cash, a cash saver, and rob a dick of attention, all for destroying some local property?," Boss asked, "I think I understand why Starlight considers you a friend."

Boss met with Starlight and Shaundi the next day. "I've been thinking for a bit," Shaundi said, "You know our hideout is right beneath Samedi territory. I've been trying to come up with a way to rectify that, and the perfect excuse just fell into our laps. See, after we took out their street dealers The General, that's the leader of the Sons of Samedi, decided to be a little more discreet in how they move their product."

"Not too discreet if you managed to figure it out," Boss noted. "Maybe not," Shaundi admitted, "But it is pretty clever nonetheless. See, the Samedi have converted the second floor of a nearby sex shop into a dust lab. It's an efficient system, once they're done cooking up the new product they can go downstairs and sell to the lonely bastards buying dances. All we gotta do is take out the clientele and then destroy the labs, then Bavogian Plaza is ours for the taking."

After taking out the crackheads and the drug labs, the trio hit the roof and started clearing out the Samedi, including an attack chopper they tried bringing in. Once all that was done, the Saints moved in on Bavogian Plaza. This allowed the group to mark two more tags unimpeded. Laura called in to mention she was getting started analyzing the loa dust. "We have the groundwork ready to take back the city," Boss noted, "Let's make sure the momentum stays in our favor."

SR2: Sending a Message

"Any reason we're meeting on the el?," Boss asked Carlos. They three of them were on the el train, which ran through most of Stilwater. "I'll get to that," Carlos replied, "First, Donnie and Lin gave me some interesting information. Seems the Brotherhood is expecting a shipment of some kind in the next few days. Given what we know about them, I'm guessing it's some sort of heavy ordinance. But after we blew up a few of their trucks with their lieutenants still inside, Maero's decided to keep a tight lid on any more information."

"Finding out two of his best mechanics were practically sleeper agents probably didn't help," Boss noted. "So we're back to square one," Starlight said sadly. "Maybe," Carlos admitted, "But that still gives us wiggle room to send a clear message that the Saints aren't scared of them. Check it out." He pointed out the window as the train passed the nuclear power plant. Boss realized what he was getting at. "Carlos, you're a genius."

As the train stopped, the three got off. "Maero did say he had a lot of canvas left," Carlos said, "I was thinking we could add a little something special to his ink." "Of course, Ultor won't like us poking around their plant looking for chemicals," Boss noted. "I thought of that," Carlos replied, "We don't need to do much to get the Brotherhood to know it was us sending a message, so keeping things on the down-low can be a priority. First we should buy a Geiger counter from Friendly Fire, then swing by Let's Pretend and buy a few hazmat suits. From there we take a boat to and from the island. Easy enough."

Carlos' plan worked like a charm, and afterward the trio stopped by Rusty's Needle to covertly add the radioactive material into Matt's ink for Maero's tattoos. The guitarist and scrimshaw was none the wiser as he applied the paint to Maero's face. "Bro, you are gonna look like a bad motherfucker." "That's good," Maero snarked, "Cuz I was beginning to think I looked like an investment banker."

Jessica scoffed. "I'm glad you two are having fun, cuz god forbid we do something about the Saints..." Maero waved his hand at her dismissively. "I'm gonna take care of them babe..." "Sure you are," Jessica replied, unconvinced. Maero stood up in his chair. "You think I'm afraid?" "No she doesn't Maero," Matt interjected, "Now can you stay cool? I'm almost done..." He finished off the tattoo and handed Maero a mirror.

Maero smiled in satisfaction at Matt's work. "I think you should stick to tattooin' and drop the guitar." Matt scoffed. "Whatever, the Feed Dogs fuckin' rock." Just then, Maero felt a twinge of pain in his cheek where the tattoo had been applied. Then there was a sudden burning sensation. Jessica looked as Maero's flesh started boiling. "Baby..." Maero screamed in agony as the radioactive material mixed into the paint did its job.

Afterwards Boss visited Madam Wu's massage parlor in the Imperial Square. The Madam seemed a little downtrodden. "You might as well go home, we're closed." "Like for the day?," Boss asked. Wu shook her head. "Like forever. I have no girls to speak of, so I can't do my business anymore." "I'm starting to get why Starlight sent me here." Wu perked up. "Oh, you're a friend of Starlight's. Thank goodness, she said she knew someone who could keep my business afloat."

"Shit, I'd have done this even if there wasn't money and a new spell involved," Boss admitted, "This place is a Stilwater landmark. I've been coming here since Junior High." Wu chuckled. "Glad to see you so enthusiastic, though I do still plan on paying. And I have a very useful spell that Starlight left with me. It can improve one's health via regeneration. Though she did ask me to warn you that it's not perfect, and takes a moment to kick in."

After Boss helped Wu get some new business in, he met with Carlos and Starlight outside the pagodas. "Our little paintjob on Maero opened up a new opportunity," Carlos said, "He got so mad he has his lieutenants cracking down on the protection rackets around the square, which means we now know which stores to hit. We toss the stores, and shakedown the owners, and we can snag the Imperial Square for ourselves."

After convincing a few stores to start paying the Saints for protection instead of the Brotherhood, the trio tracked down the ring leader of the racket at a nearby hotel. After intimidating him into cooperating, the Saints were able to get Imperial Square. "We're chipping away each gang," Starlight said, "I'm surprised they haven't made a move on each other." "Speedy says someone in Ultor is manipulating the gangs into a stalemate," Carlos explained, "If that's true, it means we're the wild card in their plans."

Boss met with a man named Archibald Nice out near the suburbs. "Pleased to meet ya," Archibald said, "Starlight mentioned you could do a little security work." "Whatever gets me capital to run my gang," Boss noted. "Good deal," Archibald said, "I've always thought hiring gang members for security was better than real bodyguards. More expensive, sure, but then again you always get what you pay for, and money's no object if it means my stars are protected from rabid fans. Starlight left me some charms that'll let you get a discount from clothing stores. They're yours once the job is finished."

That evening, after Boss finished his work, he and Pierce headed for Aisha's house. Starlight was already there. "We got a problem," Pierce said, "Ronin are all over the north island of Stilwater looking for our hideout. Where's Gat?" "Dad went out shopping," Starlight explained, "Mom wanted him to get a few things for dinner." Just then, Johnny burst in carrying a Ronin member, slamming him against the coffee table.

"Johnny," Aisha said as she came in, "Who the hell is that?" "Just our new house guest," Johnny said casually, "I caught him riding around our turf." "That so," Boss said, pulling out his gun and putting it to the Ronin's head, "You got something you want to tell me?" The Ronin replied by spitting in his face. "Go to hell." He then found himself telekinetically lifted off the ground, throat first, by Starlight. "I find your lack of manners disturbing."

"Really...?," Pierce said, "A Star Wars reference...?" Starlight shrugged, then slammed the gang member into the nearby wall. "Now, we'll ask again... Why are you here?" "Do what you will," the Ronin said, "It's nothing compared to what Mr. Akuji will do to you..." "Oh please," Pierce said, "Shogo can't be that hardcore." "Not Shogo," the Ronin clarified, "Our real leader, Kazuo..." Johnny raised an eyebrow. "The Oyabun? No shit... When's he coming?"

"I'll die before I tell you," the Ronin said defiantly. "Well, if you insist," Johnny said, executing the Ronin with a headshot. "Johnny!," Aisha called out indignantly. "It'll wash out," Johnny insisted, "At least I didn't get any on the carpet." "Who's Kazuo, anyway?," Boss asked. "He's Shogo's father," Johnny explained, "And a major leader of the Yakuza. I heard some of the Ronin talking about him while in prison. From what I've heard of his actions in Japan, he's seen as some sort of boogie man."

"Think it's all talk?," Boss asked. "We can find that out later," Pierce noted, "Let's take this one step at a time. First we got to kick the Ronin off our turf." Aisha cleared her throat, a sponge mop in her hand. "You guys take care of that," Johnny said, "I have a little house cleaning to do." Boss, Pierce, and Starlight headed through Stilwater, taking out any Ronin that looked like they were closing in on the hideout. Once that was done, the Saints were able to grab Tidal Springs, marking it with four tags and meeting two more contacts.

Meanwhile, Shogo was in a meeting with Dane and Ultor CEO Jordan Hughes, who happened to be the oldest son of Richard Hughes, the late alderman. "Relax, you two," Shogo said, "I'll get the money back." "I think you're missing the point here," Jordan said, "We don't care about the money. The money was insured. I'm more concerned about you and your gang." Shogo looked at Jordan with contempt. "What?"

"Look Shogo," Dane said, "Ultor and the Ronin have had a very healthy relationship in the past, but lately... Well, when we pay for protection we expect to actually get protection." "Watch yourself Vogel," Shogo warned. "And you should know your place in this building," Jordan retorted, "I'm beginning think this arrangement was a mistake if the Saints keep being a problem for you." "They won't be a problem for long," Shogo said smugly, "I have my best man on the job."

Some distance from Aisha's house, Jyunichi was in his car, watching as Johnny dumped the body of a Ronin into the trash bin like yesterday's garbage. His closed his eyes in reverence for a fallen comrade, but there would time for vengeance later. Just then, his phone rang. "Moshi moshi," he said, using the typical Japanese phone greeting. 'Speak English,' came Shogo's voice. Jyunichi sighed. "What is it?" 'I'm in a meeting with the Ultor execs,' Shogo replied, 'Have you found the Saints' hideout?' "I'm about to," Jyunichi assured him.

The next day, Boss met with a female doctor named Dr. Angie Lucas. "Pleased to meet you," she said, "Starlight said you'd be able to assist. I hope you're as good at what I need without being thrown around by someone else." "This about an insurance fraud deal?," Boss asked. "Similar," Dr. Lucas admitted, "But for a very different reason. You probably don't know this, but a woman getting ahead in the medical world is a very uphill battle."

"Guess progressive times can't hit everywhere," Boss noted. "Quite," Dr. Lucas agreed, "But I figure if I can get in the Brilliant Book of World Records for most injuries treated, it would send a message that woman are just as proficient, if not more so, than their male counterparts. And luckily for what I have in mind, the record doesn't require me to treat any specific number of patients." "Sounds like I'm playing pinball in traffic again," Boss said nervously. "If it makes you feel any better," Dr. Lucas said, "Starlight left me a spell capsule that can reduce vehicular damage."

After Boss recovered from the brain rattling, he met with Pierce and Starlight at the Amberbrook Museum. "Take a look down there," Pierce said, "Seems the Ronin are setting up for some deal. I don't know the details, but with the amount of security it's gotta be something big. This is a prime chance to take a bunch of them out at once, and grab the pier for ourselves. There's a lot of them, so I'd recommend using a sniper rifle."

The trio slowly took out the patrolling Ronin from a distance, before reaching the pier. It seemed the Ronin were selling some expensive boats they'd jacked. The Saints moved in to take out the boats and ruin the deal, allowing them to move in and claim the area for themselves. While there they marked over a Ronin tag to indicate this was their turf now. They also found three more contacts to meet with.

Later that day Laura arrived at the Saints hideout. They'd managed to renovate the place to a decent and livable level, though several Saints who had knowledge of architecture were making plans to improve it even more. "Oh wow, you've done well for yourselves," Laura noted, "It could still use some sprucing up, but it's certainly lovely." "We're still doing work on it," Starlight admitted, "We've only gotten started after all."

"I see," Laura said. She then tossed Boss a pack of loa dust. "I managed to figure out the formula no problem," she explained, "Though it's still the most sophisticated drug I've ever come across. There's a lot of agents and counter-agents meant to give maximum buzz for minimum brain damage. That said, the primary ingredient is some quality grade pot. I'll give the recipe to Shaundi so you can start making it for yourselves."

"Perfect," Boss said, after making sure the drug was the right stuff, "Now the next step is making sure the Samedi can't make any of the stuff for themselves." "If pot's the main ingredient," Starlight said, "Then they must have a farm somewhere locally. It's the only way they'd be able to churn out so much profit." Shaundi's eyes went wide. "I think I know where that might be! Back in college I dated this guy who would sell for the Samedi. He said they have a farm off-campus in Pleasant View."

"Then we need to burn that farm down," Boss noted. "We can't just charge in there," Starlight noted, "It's bound to be crawling with Samedi, and they'll likely be on alert after we took out their bag boys." "You don't have to anyway," Laura said after getting off her cell phone, "Tobias is outside in the car, he's got a pilot's license. You can just have him fly you over the farm. There's bound to be some explosive chemicals you can use once you're there." "You serious?," Boss asked. Tobias walked in, wearing a pilot's helmet. "Very serious."

Tobias flew Boss, Starlight, and Shaundi over to the farm on his chopper. "It's too bad all that product is owned by the Samedi," Tobias noted, "It feels kinda wrong to destroy it." "At least you and Laura get to corner the market," Boss noted. Tobias nodded. "That's true. Speaking of which, our anniversary is coming up. Any ideas what I should get her?" "Given this is Laura we're talking about," Starlight replied, "I'd say either a baking pan or an automatic shotgun. Maybe both." "Probably even a cookbook," Shaundi chimed in.

Once they reached the farm, Starlight and Boss used the machine guns mounted on the chopper to start destroying the equipment, the explosions spreading to the marijuana field and burning it nicely. At one point, the destruction caused the nearby barn to implode from the fire damage. "That barn looked a lost less flamable from the outside," Tobias said. He then spotted something as the Saints finished their work. "Looks like the Samedi are making a run for it."

"They won't get far," Boss said, "Take us in closer." Tobias nodded and slowly lowered their altitude until they could start blowing up the Samedi's cars. With the farm razed and the Samedi lieutenants taken out, the Saints now had control of Pleasant View. Starlight marked the territory with a fresh tag, letting all of Stilwater know the Saints were in charge now. "I wonder who that ex-boyfriend was Shaundi mentioned."

Veteran Child was browsing through Scratch That when the The General and Mr. Sunshine barged in. "Everybody get out!," Sunshine demanded, but nobody seemed to listen and continued their business. The General took a drag from his cigar. "Perhaps they did not understand you..." Sunshine walked over to the nearest customer and buried his machete in the poor man's back, causing the others to flee.

Veteran Child alone stayed, but still looked nervous. "What's, uh, what's up guys?" "The Saints razed my farm," The General explained. "That's, uh, that's some shitty luck," Veteran Child replied. The General narrowed his eyes. "A helicopter mounted machine gun has nothing to do with luck." Veteran Child gulped as Sunshine seemed to hover near him. "Well how-," Veteran Child started, before Sunshine's actions became more annoying than terrifying, "Yo, can you cut that shit out? You're freakin' me out. How did they find out about the farm?"

The General stared at him. "Why don't you tell me..." Veteran Child looked confused. "I don't know wh--" "Stop lying," The General interrupted. "Dude, I said I don--," Veteran Child started, but Sunshine grabbed him and slammed him into the nearby shelf. "And he said, 'Stop. Lying.'" Veteran Child gulped "I'm tellin' you the truth man, I don't know how they found out..." The General just shrugged. While it was clear he believed him, that wasn't necessarily a good thing. "Then you are not very useful are you?"

Sunshine brushing his machete against Veteran Child's cheek like a razor, making him gulp. "I don't know how they found out, but I got some ideas..." The General nodded. "Enlighten me..." "I used to date this bitch Shaundi...," Veteran Child explained, "And there's a chance, and I mean a small fuckin' chance... That I might have gotten stoned and told her about the farm." The General sighed. It was quite the coincidence, but also plausible given Veteran Child's history. "Where is this Shaundi?"

"Word is she rolls with the Saints now...," Veteran Child said. Sunshine grabbed him by the throat and placed his machete against it, looking to The General for his order. "Let him go...," The General said, and Sunshine did so, letting Veteran Child breath a sigh of relief. "Veteran Child, you will go kill this Shaundi...," The General said, "If you fail to do this Mr. Sunshine will burn you alive. Does this sound fair?" "Uh--," Veteran Child stammered. The General smiled. "Excellent... Let's be on our way." He and Sunshine left, leaving Veteran Child terrified.

Shaundi later asked Boss and Starlight to meet her at the university. "We almost have full control of the campus," Shaundi noted, "And a prime opportunity to lock the area down just fell in our laps. Check it, every year Stilwater U has a cultural day in the student union where all these different clubs set up their little booths. The Samedi are doing the same thing in order to start a recruitment drive. We take them out, and we can drive them out of the university altogether."

After taking out the Samedi recruiters, the trio moved in on the main building, where a few more Samedi were holding out. With the Samedi dead, the Saints were free to take the Stilwater University, giving them control of the entire campus. Two more tags were painted over to mark the accomplishment. While Starlight talked with two more contacts, she couldn't help but think things could wrong really quickly in the near future.

Author's Note

BUM! BUM! BUM! Dramatic reverb...

SR2: The Pushback

Author's Note

This is the big one here. I think the only mission that won't change much is the Samedi one (then again, the only named character to die in that mission was a bad guy).

SR2: The Pushback

Starlight was waiting outside a local movie theater for Carlos, who she had a date with. As she was wondering what was taking so long, her phone rang and the ID showed Carlos' number. "Hey, where are you, baby?" 'I think I'm a little old to be a baby,' came Jessica's voice. Starlight's mood turned sour. "You'd better have a good reason why you have my boyfriend's phone..." 'First off, I should probably set the record straight. I do kinda dig the new tattoo you gave my boyfriend. Sexy, rugged, tough... So I thought I'd return the favor.'

Starlight's hand clenched as Jessica chuckled. 'Of course, I don't have access to the same materials, but I figure I can make do. Oh, and when you see your boss again, remind him that Maero offered him a chance to be partners.' Jessica hung up, and Starlight wasted no time in calling up Donnie. "Have you heard if the Brotherhood got any new mechanics?" 'I think they have a regular shop in Charlestown,' Donnie replied, 'Why?' "I need to make a visit..." The venom in her voice was obvious.

Starlight had already called Boss to let him know what was happening. When he drove up, it was clear Starlight was not happy about her boyfriend being kidnapped. She stormed out, still angry but less so. "I'm guessing you found something?" "They're dragging him around the docks area," Starlight replied, "We have to hurry." They found the car soon enough, Carlos chained to the back fender.

Boss drove up to the driver and started shooting the truck, soon enough forcing it to stop as the driver was killed and the engine perforated. Starlight jumped out of the car and quickly used her telekinesis to rip the back fender off while Boss called the hospital. "You'll be okay," Starlight said to Carlos as she applied a little magic to his face to stop the bleeding. "Motherfuckers...," Carlos muttered through his blood, "They jumped me outside the station. Jessica was there. She was talking about using this to send a message."

The ambulance arrived soon enough, and Starlight joined her boyfriend as they got the chain off and his body onto a gurney. As they drove off, Boss contacted Speedy. "I'm gonna have to put your current job on hold," he said, "We have more important matters." 'What's up?,' Speedy asked. "The Brotherhood just keelhauled Carlos," Boss explained, "I think he may just live, but the important thing is we need to let Maero know we won't be intimidated. See if you can have your crew find Jessica." 'Sure, I'll get right on it.'

Starlight's rampage through the Brotherhood's chop shop let the Saints move in on Charlestown. The doctors confirmed Carlos had survived the worst of his experience and would likely make a full recovery within the next few days, though he would have visible scars from the skin grafts for at least a month before healing. In the meantime he needed to stay under observation, which meant Speedy was asked to pick up the slack until Carlos recovered.

And as it happened, Speedy's investigations bore some early fruit. He brought Boss and Starlight over to the docks in Poseidon Alley. "Check it out. Starlight's little tussle at the shop got Maero a little nervous, so he went to check on the place. After he left, I saw him go down to the docks for some kinda deal. I don't know the specifics, but a convoy is heading there right now. All we need to do is hijack a Brotherhood truck, join the convoy, and we can infiltrate the meeting place and take out the Brotherhood there."

There were some Brotherhood around the truck Speedy indicated, but nothing the three of them couldn't handle. Once they had the truck, they waited for the convoy and snuck in line. They followed the Brotherhood until they reached a warehouse at the docks, then started shooting up the place. Once all was said and done, the Saints were able to grab Poseidon Alley, which they marked with a couple tags. They also met two more contacts.

Needing time to unwind, Boss met with Johnny and Starlight as they headed for Aisha's house. "Aisha's doesn't mind if I stop by, right?," Boss asked. "Nah," Johnny replied, "She doesn't get out much, so she always appreciates company." He then spotted something off. The front door was slightly ajar. Starlight carefully looked in the nearby window and gasped. The house was crawling with Ronin. Aisha was tied up at the dinner table, Jyunichi sitting across from her, waiting.

Starlight used her magic to wiggle Aisha's ear, letting her know they already knew about the ambush. The three of them got out their guns and Johnny opened the door. "Eesh, you home?" The idea was to make it sound like they were coming in casually, which put the Ronin on alert. Jyunichi started drawing his sword. He was disturbed by how quiet everyone, even his hostage, was being. 'Shouldn't she have tried warning them yet?' He didn't know the woman behind him was supposed to be dead, just that she was someone important to Johnny, thus Shogo wanted her killed to send a message.

Doing so for such a reason didn't sit well with Jyunichi's honor, but if she tried something stupid like ignoring his warnings it would have given him the right excuse. As he was contemplating this, he suddenly felt weightless as Starlight grabbed his sword out of his hand, then threw him against the wall. Boss and Johnny came in right behind her, shooting any Ronin that was nearby. Starlight got to Aisha and used the katana to cut her free. One Ronin came in with an overhead slice, but Starlight blocked it and then shot the man point-blank.

Johnny got disarmed by another Ronin, but he countered with a throat punch then stole his blade. Jyunichi, having recovered, pulled out his other sword and started dueling Johnny while Starlight kept Aisha out of the way and Boss continued killing the other Ronin. Once they were all gone, Boss noticed he had a clear shot at Jyunichi. "Johnny, outta the way!," he called out. Johnny turned to look at him, only to get impaled by Jyunichi while he was distracted.

"Johnny!," Aisha called out. Johnny fought through the pain, slamming his hands against Jyunichi's head, causing him to let go of the sword and start running out. Johnny collapsed as Boss looked at him, then called for an ambulance. As they waited more Ronin decided to show up and finish the job, but Starlight and Boss started holding them off. The ambulance seemed to be taking too long, but luckily Pierce was driving along the area and noticed the commotion, shooting down a couple Ronin lieutenants as he approached.

"Shit, why are the Ronin stepping on our turf?," he asked. "We'll explain later," Boss said, "We need to get Johnny to the hospital." Pierce nodded as Johnny was loaded into his car, Aisha right next to him. Pierce hit the gas and got driving as the Ronin chased after him, only to get blasted by Boss and Starlight using the rocket launcher in Pierce's trunk. Finally, Pierce pulled in front of the hospital as the Ronin finally gave up.

There was much commotion as Johnny was rushed to the operating room. For starters, a lot of people recognized Aisha and were shocked to find she was still alive. Second, with the Ronin so busy trying to take Johnny out, that left a lot of room for the Saints to take Filmore, and they let everyone know by taking another tag. At the hospital, Pierce shook his head. "Gat wasn't looking too good. What happened?"

"The Ronin swarmed his house," Boss explained, "I tried to take out their lieutenants, but I only wound up distracting Johnny, causing him to get stabbed." "Least the doctor's say he'll make it easily," Pierce noted, "The katana missed his vitals and he didn't lose nearly enough blood to be in any danger. So what now?" "Now I want you to look into Kazuo Akuji," Boss said, "He's supposed to be coming to Stilwater, and I wanna know when."

Boss and Starlight headed down into their hideout where Shaundi was checking on their loa dust production. "First they target my boyfriend and then they target my mom," Starlight muttered, "What's next, my best friend?" As she said this, they heard someone call out, "Bitch!" They hurried down to see Veteran Child, having just knocked out Shaundi. He noticed them, then grabbed here and a gun to her head.

"Back off, man!," he warned, "Back the FUCK off!" He slowly walked up the stairs as the duo tried to move in closer using cover. "You really think you're walking outta here?," Boss asked. "Unless you wanna bullet in this bitch, you're goddamn right I am," Veteran Child warned. "You're probably planning on killing her anyway," Starlight noted, "We've got nothing to lose by trying to shoot you."

Veteran Child's eyes widened as he realized Starlight was right, so he switched tactics and started firing to keep her and Boss at cover while he moved to escape. "Do you know who the fuck I am?" "Before long it ain't gonna matter," Boss quipped as he started to get close. Veteran Child quickly shot an overhead fire pit, causing it to drop and nearly hit Boss. Veteran Child used the chance to escape.

Boss and Starlight quickly followed him outside, but he had already driven off. However, he soon called Boss up. "If you wanna see Shaundi again, you better come to Cocks." He then hung up. "I think that was the DJ Veteran Child," Starlight noted, "There have been rumors that he runs with the Samedi. Looks like we just confirmed it." "His bosses probably only wanted Shaundi dead," Boss said, "Guess he thought he could also take us out."

He quickly called up Lin. "Lin, Veteran Child kidnapped Shaundi and he wants us to meet him at Cocks." 'It's gotta be a trap,' Lin noted. "No doubt," Boss agreed, "But for now it's the only lead we got. Can you find any other place VC would take our girl?" 'No problem,' Lin said, 'I'll have it for you by the time you're done.' As they drove off, Starlight took the time to call up Veteran Child. "Bad move leaving your number on our ID."

Veteran Child sounded smug. 'You think I'm scared of you?' "I was once called a witch by the crazier of the Lopez brother," Starlight noted, "And with good reason. If you're not scared, then you're even dumber than I thought." There was some nervousness in his voice, but Veteran Child nonetheless said, "You think you can intimidate the triple platinum Veteran Child?" Starlight snickered. "I'm betting your bosses do it all the time."

Sure enough, there were only Samedi at Cocks. Once they were done, Boss called up Lin. 'Good timing, I just got word that Veteran Child was scheduled to spin at On Track tonight. If he's holding Shaundi anywhere, that's it.' "Thanks Lin," Boss replied. He then called up Veteran Child. "Is a bunch of coked up college kids the best you got?" Veteran Child was clearly freaked. 'Shit...' "You'll have it all over your pants when I see you at On Track," Boss quipped, "Hope you wear 'em brown."

Veteran Child was waiting at the lower floor of the club, still holding Shaundi hostage. However, Starlight expected this, and came prepared with a few flashbang grenades. Using them to blind Veteran Child and separate him from Shaundi, Starlight then flung him across the room and put a quick bullet in his head. With the DJ dead, Boss helped Shaundi. "You okay?" "I'll be fine," Shaundi said, "But my ex-boyfriend's a dick."

"I can't believe you let him get the drop on you," Boss noted. Shaundi scoffed. "I hardly 'let' him. He planned it out so I'd be alone and off-guard. I wasn't expecting trouble in our hideout so I didn't have any guns. Also I'm a little higher than usual, so..." As they left the club, Starlight noted The General's limo passing by. She smirked and waved at them. She had a feeling they were upset at losing their biggest dealer, and it was only the beginning.

Early Years: The Mishap

Starlight had everything prepared. Ever since Twilight Sparkle and her friends had ruined her chances of proving that talents got in the way of friendship, she had wanted revenge. But she also knew it would take time to perfect. After all, Twilight was an alicorn princess. A new one, sure, but if what she had seen earlier was any indication of her power, Starlight was not about to face Twilight head-on so soon.

She instead took the time to study Twilight and her friends; Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash. And then she noted something interesting. In looking up the history of these ponies, Starlight had discovered something. That when Rainbow Dash had gotten her Cutie Mark while performing the legendary Sonic Rainboom, she had inadvertently allowed the other five to earn their Cutie Marks.

That got Starlight thinking. If she could somehow remove that factor, it would tear apart their friendship. Sure, it would mean they wouldn't be around to prevent a number of catastrophes from befalling Equestria, but surely they weren't needed. Not with three older, more powerful alicorn princesses available. The real trick was finding a way. And then she discovered a scroll containing a spell from Starswirl the Bearded.

It seemed the perfect irony, since Twilight practically idolized Starswirl. But then something happened that Starlight didn't expect. As Starlight prepared to use the spell, Twilight quickly fired a spell blast at her. Starlight grabbed the nearest thing to block the shot, which turned out to be the spell scroll, causing it to disintegrate while the time portal was open. That got Starlight worried, since she could no longer be certain where or when she might wind up.

She barely had any conscious thought after that. She felt smaller, younger. A lot younger. And she could barely make out words. She also had the sensation of being held. Also, her body felt more than a little different. "Look at her Johnny," came a woman's voice, the accent difficult to place, "She's not gonna survive out here long at that age." "Yo, I understand Eesh," came a more masculine voice, Johnny presumably, "But we're just out of college. Where are we gonna get that sorta cheddar?"

"Well," the woman, Eesh presumably, "There is that contract offer I got from Kingdom Come Records." A bit of a pause, before Johnny sighed. "I guess it'll do. But that still leaves me the one to take care of her." Eesh laughed. "Johnny, didn't you ace that child-rearing course back in high school?" Starlight could feel herself being passed off into a different set of arms. As she looked at the new face, her juvenile mind came up with one word. "Papa..."

Johnny chuckled. "And there goes the wall around my heart. And here I thought my girl Aisha was the only one who could do that." Even in her infant state, Starlight's mind still worked like her adult form. She realized "Eesh" must have just been a nickname for Aisha. She turned to the woman next to Johnny. "Mama..." Aisha cooed as she gently tickled Starlight's side, making her giggle.

Johnny then noticed the birthmark on Starlight's stomach, her Cutie Mark having been shifted due to her new form. "A star trailing down a curved line," he noted, "Like a glimmer of starlight." Starlight blinked at him and smiled. Johnny quickly caught that. "Wait... Starlight... Glimmer... Is that your name?" Starlight gurgled happily, and Johnny chuckled. "Kinda sounds like something outta MLP, but what the hell. I happen to be a brony."

He and Aisha walked back inside their apartment. "Well, for better or worse Starlight, your new home is here on Saint's Row. And one way or another, we'll make sure you grow up as safe as possible." Starlight just yawned and curled up and she drifted off to sleep, worn out from the excitement and the magical burst. She hadn't even begun to comprehend her new, human, form.

"I'm telling you Ben," Julius Little said, "Working legitimate business is going to bite you in the ass." Benjamin King, who had long been friends with Julius, sighed. "Look, I feel ya Julius, I really do. And I know you blame yourself for what happened to my sister Angela..." "Damn right I do!," Julius said, "I let her get too deep into the gang business. This shouldn't be the sort of thing family gets involved in."

Benjamin shook his head. "Look, we've done good work running the Carnales outta Stilwater. We've taken action, so now's the time to build. To make sure they stay gone." Julius frowned. "Bullshit! We start mixing the wrong business with a criminal empire, and the Lopez family will swoop in to take advantage of that weakness!" He took a deep breath. "Listen Ben. We may have managed to take out Alejandro at the cost of a few of our own, but his two sons are all but ready to take over the family business."

"And we'll deal with the two of them when the time is right," Ben assured his old friend. "No, Ben, not we," Julius said, "Just you. Well, you and your army. I can't be in this anymore. Not after what happened to Angela. I'm dropping my colors here and now." Ben looked sad, but nodded in understanding. "If that's what you need to get closure, then I won't stop you. But if you ever need a favor, be sure to look me up. I'm never gonna be too busy to help a friend."

The two of them shook hands. "I'll take you up on that," Julius said, "And if I ever feel like you're getting in too deep yourself, I'll do all I can to stop you." Ben chuckled. "You'll need an army of your own for that." "Maybe," Julius said, contemplating, "But I won't build one just yet. It's too soon after quitting. Maybe a few years down the road, if my gut proves correct." And with that, he took off his yellow vest and walked out the door. "See ya around sometime."

Author's Note

I hope this is a good start. I have a lot of ideas for this story that I hope to get off the ground. This is my first story on this site, so I hope I did a good job.

Saints Row: Finish Line

With the Rollerz just about ready to throw in the towel, there seemed to be enough breathing room to get in another favor from one of Julius' contacts. This one was a strip club owner named Jack. He was found seated at one of the tables counting his cash. "Glad you two could make it," he said when saw Playa and Starlight, "Julius tells me you've done the sort of work I need before. Here's the thing, some of my more prominent clients often want a little more than a lap dance, which I don't mind if the girls are comfortable with the john in question. A little extra cash, a private VIP room, and they can bust their nut all they like."

"But it doesn't always happen that way, does it?," Starlight guessed. "Glad to see you understand what my favor entails," Jack said with a nod, "Some of the clients have weird fetishes you just can't satisfy in a classy joint like mine. So we hook 'em up with a girl in a private limo with tinted windows and have someone drive 'em around. And that's were you come in. Just make sure the johns get their privacy as you drive them around, and I'll slide you some major cash for your trouble." Keeping away from the news vans proved easier with the wide open airport nearby, and soon enough all eight johns left happy.

That night the duo joined the rest of the Saints at the church. "Sharp's death monopolized the evening news," Julius said, "This'll provide a blow to Alderman Hughes' campaign, not that it matters to us so long as Stilwater's safe from gang violence." "And we've pushed back the Rollerz to a single territory," Starlight noted, "We could probably wipe them out with one final push." "We'll have to take a rain-check on that," Troy said as he came in, "Our scouts just spotted Price getting the Rollerz fired up for an attack on the Row. He's planning on all-out war."

"Guess he's done sitting there while we fuck up his boys," Lin quipped. "His mental state can't be good with Donnie off the radar and Sharp dead," Julius noted, "Troy, get as many of our boys on intercept points to stop Price's war band. I'll go after him personally and try to stop his assault. Starlight, Playa, I could use some back-up." "Count on me," Starlight agreed, and Playa nodded in confirmation. The three of them got into Julius' car, with Starlight driving, and headed for the suburbs.

It didn't take long to spot the convoy racing down the freeway. Starlight put her driving skills to work while Playa blasted the vehicles from medium range with the RPG, he and Julius breaking out the submachine guns to take out the drivers directly if they got within that target range. Eleven cars were taken out this way, until only Price was left. "I can see Price," Starlight said, "Get ready." Julius and Playa leveled their guns, but Price caught Starlight off-guard with a side-swipe, sending Playa flying out of the car and causing Starlight to pull over.

Bruised but otherwise unhurt, Playa got up and dusted himself off, spotting Price driving away, though it was clear he was giving up on the Row for the time being. "That's why you always buckle up, even in a drive by," Julius said with an amused tone, "Shame Price got away, but we'll get another chance. We took out his convoy so we have some breathing room to plan a counter-attack." "Why don't we take some time to finish Miguel's list?," Starlight suggested, "The more things we can check off, the more we can focus on the real fight." Playa nodded. They proceeded to grab a Destiny, Slingshot, Bootlegger, and La Fuerza to finish off the list.

The next morning, Lin got in contact with Starlight. 'We need to make sure Price can't pull this sort of stunt on us again. Luckily, I happen to know when his favorite car is at his mansion, and where he keeps his keys. Steal the car for yourself, and we'll send him a clear message. This'll be his last chance to back out, or we take him out.' The mansion turned out to be crawling with more Rollerz, which Playa and Starlight had to take out as they went after the key. But from there it was easy to swipe the car, hit a Forgive and Forget to lose the heat, and claim Misty Lane for the Saints as a result of their actions.

As the day wore on, Playa and Starlight performed a few more tasks to tick off the boxes. There were a couple more hit list targets, Bill in the factories with a molotov and John with a McManus sniper rifle. The latter one was a helicopter pilot in the police, so Playa had to go on another rampage to draw him out. They also an FBI, a type of police van, for Sampson. They capped off the recreation time by grabbing some tags and CDs in Black Bottom and Stoughton.

As they finished up, Troy gave Playa a call. 'Word just reached us. Price is calling you and Starlight out. You're to meet at the Foreign Power dealership in Misty Lane. Me and Lin are on our way to back you up, just in case he pulls any tricks.' This turned out to be a good idea, as the first thing Price tried was running over the Saints in a Goliath semi towing a car carrier. "Shit!," Lin called out, "Let's get after him, this could be our only chance to take him out!"

As they pulled up to the semi, Troy called out, "Starlight, can you throw that thing aside or cause it to skid? Anything to slow it down." "I've gotten up to lifting military-grade vehicles," Starlight confirmed, "But a semi-truck with carrier bed is a little above my weight class." "How about the individual cars?," Lin suggested, "That should lower the mass enough." Starlight nodded. "Sure, but they'd need to be cut loose first."

Lin and Playa popped out of the windows just enough to start shooting at the locks holding the cars in place. Once Starlight saw a car come loose, she tossed it aside, trying to aim for the tops of buildings. Once the carrier was empty, Troy pulled up alongside it and started shooting at the coupling. Once it started to come loose, Starlight finished the job, then hit the semi hard enough to pop the tires. The resulting skidding caused the semi to crash and explode, killing Price. Shortly thereafter, Julius showed up.

"You could see and hear that explosion all the way from the Row," he noted, "Bit excessive, but it got the job done. What's left of the Rollerz are dropping their flags or taking up ours. They're finished. But there's one thing that still bugs me... Those buyers Sharp was talking about." "Oh yeah," Starlight realized, "We never did figure that out, did we?" "Donnie said it had something to do with Sharp's deal with the Alderman," Lin admitted, "But he doesn't know any more than that. Price and Sharp must've kept him outta the loop." Troy nodded. "Considering his loose lips helped us take out the Rollerz, I'd say it was justified."

"Clearly there's a bigger picture here," Julius noted, "And we don't have enough pieces to put it together yet. For now let's redouble our efforts against the Carnales and Vice Kings. With the revenue from the Rollerz chop shops we have more resources to work with, but it's still only a third of Stilwater. You doing okay, Playa?" "I nearly got run over by a semi!," Playa replied incredulously, "How do you think I'm doing!?" "Pretty poorly if that's your attitude," Julius said with a shrug, "I'll head back to the church. Swing by when have time. This fight is only beginning."

With Price's mansion now under Playa's ownership, he was able to plan out the side tasks he and Starlight had to do more efficiently. First up was a club owner named Reno. The man had already been told the famous duo was stopping by, so the doorman man showed them in. "Glad to see you could make it on short notice," Reno said, "Here's the deal. There's a new cop just transferred into the Stilwater PD." Starlight nodded. "The sort who doesn't get how the city works, right?" "That's the type," Reno agreed, "He's been in here and giving me all kinds of lip, saying how he plans to run me outta business."

"So where's our part in this?," Starlight asked. "It's simple," Reno explained, "I got a little ace in the hole the Uncle Tom don't know about. A few cops on a personal payroll. They've already told me when he plans to raid the joint. What I need you to do is go out and cause as much damage as possible to distract the cop while I hide anything he can use against me in a more private location." "We getting hazard pay?," Playa asked. "Absolutely," Reno replied, "After all, it's a dangerous job I'm having you do. It'd wreck my reputation if I didn't compensate ya."

After the cops were sufficiently distracted by all the mayhem, Starlight and Playa moved on to meet a dealer named Tobias who lived on Fox Drive. When they found him he was angrily shooting a man prone on the floor, who from the looks of it had already died several shots ago. "YOU THINK YOU CAN STEAL FROM ME!?," Tobias was asking in an angry tone, "YOU THINK YOU CAN ROB ME!? YOU STUPID! FUCKING! BACKSTABBING! PIECE OF SHIT!" Each exclamation was emphasized with another shot.

Tobias spotted the duo and calmed down immediately. "Sorry for the mess." "And the tantrum?," Starlight asked. Tobias nodded. "I'm usually a lot more calm cause of all the weed I work around but Billy here thought it'd be a good idea to skim off the top, and well..." He shot the corpse again to prove his point. "Let's just say he was wrong." "You even have ammo left in that gun?," Starlight wondered. Curious himself, Tobias turned on the gun's safety and pulled out the clip. "Doesn't look like it. Guess I was more mad than I thought. Anyway, about the job."

He walked over to his van. "I need someone to watch my back while I'm doing my deals around the area. As you might expect, the Carnales aren't exactly thrilled about small business competition. The job used to be Billy's but..." He looked back at the corpse. "I doubt he's gonna make it in today. If you can keep me alive until I finish all my deals, I'll cut you both in on the action." Tobias' assertions regarding the Carnales was an understatement, but they still managed to finish all the deals without too much trouble.

Looking to cap off her city racing career, Starlight went to Brighton to check the races there, Playa following along. They met up with Ty, who was orchestrating the races, and seemed to be having trouble as he talked on the phone. "Hey Starlight. Your rep proceeds you, which could be good for me. See, last week one of the racers took out some kid on a turn." Starlight winced. "They both okay?" "Kid's still in the hospital," Ty admitted, "The racer got off by paying the bills, but no one's seen him since and it's getting everyone worried. I need one last racer for this set to go down. Think you're up for it?"

Starlight nodded with a smirk and got in her car. Soon enough, it wasn't long before she won all eight races, officially naming her as the street racing queen of Stilwater. The Saints were bragging about it back at the church. "Nice racing out there," Julius said, "Best part, it's getting our name on the streets. We keep this up, and we'll have the Carnales and even the Vice Kings running scared." He would have loved to see the look on Ben King's face when they started in on that tussle, but Playa and Starlight seemed eager to take on the Carnales next. 'No matter. I've waited this long to settle things with Ben. Another week or two won't kill me.

Author's Note

The Rollerz are finished. Next chapter we started on Los Carnales. Look forward to it.

Interlude: Two Years

Time seemed to pass slowly as Starlight wiled away in her cell. She got visits from her mom, in disguise of course since Aisha was still supposed to be legally dead. It helped her know just how much was changing. Their old home in the Row was gone, the entire area renovated by the newly rising Ultor corporation. Instead Aisha had moved into a new home in Misty Lane, ready for Johnny and Starlight to move in if by some miracle they ever got out. Which would be difficult as Starlight had a life sentence while Johnny was on death row. But Aisha wasn't Starlight's only visitor.

"For the last time," Starlight said, "I don't care how much of my sentence you're willing to shave off, Dane. I'm not gonna become a human guinea pig." Dane Vogel was the Director of Special Projects for Ultor, and had taken an interest in Starlight's special telekinetic powers. The Board of Directors was also interested, and asked Dane to liaison with Starlight in an effort to gain control of those powers.

"I can understand your misgivings," Dane assured her, "But with the rise of the three new gangs causing havoc in Stilwater, the board wants a new soldier for the fight." Starlight scoffed. "You don't want a soldier, you want a weapon." "The board wants a weapon," Dane clarified, "But for my plan to work, I need a warrior." Starlight glared at him. "Why do you care what happens to the gangs anyway?," she asked, "Aren't you pitting them against each other? You even have a deal going on with the Ronin."

Despite Julius' last words to Playa, it seemed gang violence had risen once again. Three new gangs, the Sons of Samedi, the Brotherhood, and the Ronin. Dane sighed at Starlight's words and nodded. "And I'd be lying if I said that arrangement hasn't been profitable for Ultor. But no business ever lasted long by thinking only about the bottom line, and my estimate is that the escalating gang violence will be bad for Ultor in the long run. My plans for a rebuilt city will be meaningless if no one's left alive to live in it. I need someone who specializes in dismantling such gangs."

"So you need the Saints," Starlight noted, "After all, I can't exactly do it without a crew behind me. And with Julius missing and Playa..." She grew quiet. Sensing her sadness, Dane said, "Actually, Playa was retrieved from the river where the Alderman's yacht exploded, alive but comatose." Starlight perked up upon hearing that. "Where is he now?" "In the medical wing of this penitentiary," Dane explained, "Chief Bradshaw insisted he be kept on life-support, certain he would wake up again."

"All the more reason I stay here," Starlight said, "So Playa will see a friendly face when that happens." Dane sighed. "If you insist. So long as Stilwater still has its population and infrastructure when the dust settles. And once its done, I hope the Saints will be willing to accept Ultor's business arrangement in place of the Ronin." "One step at a time there, Dane," Starlight replied. She then realized something. "I just realized, you mentioned Bradshaw. Would that be Troy Bradshaw?"

"Yes in fact," Dane replied, "He was promoted to chief of police due to the death of Monroe and in light of his efforts to clean up Stilwater after the Saints' dissolution." He got up. "I hope the next time we meet, it won't be inside a holding cell." Starlight nodded. Dane had seemed to consider some things about himself after Starlight noted his personal theme song, "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Tears for Fears, was made to mock people like Dane. She smirked at the thought of Dane changing just because of that, though he was an intelligent and calculating man.

Some months later, Starlight got a surprise in the form of a new cellmate. She raised an eyebrow when she learned it was a Latino man. "Isn't it dangerous to have co-ed cellmates?" "Don't worry," the guard said, "He's our most well-behaved inmate. Besides, if anything I'm more worried what you'll do to him than the other way around. You two behave now." The cell was locked, and the Latino sat down on the opposite bunk. "So," he said, "Are you really Starlight Glimmer?"

"Sure," Starlight replied, "But I don't think I know you." "Oh, you don't," the man said, "But you might know my brother. He was a member of the Saints." Starlight shrugged. "Sorry, I only remember my fellow lieutenants, plus Playa and Julius. The rank and file kinda blended together. What's your name?" "I'm Carlos," he replied. Starlight nodded. "You look like a recent transfer. You got any news from the outside? Like what happened to the other leaders in the Saints?"

"A little," Carlos said, "Lin and Donnie started a small mechanic's shop together. Unfortunately, its regulars are all Brotherhood soldiers, though I'm sure they'd drop the red and go back to purple given the chance." Starlight chuckled. "Donnie was never a Saint. Though I am glad to hear he managed to hook up with Lin. What about Dex or Julius?" "No idea what happened to Julius," Carlos admitted, "But Dex accepted a job offer at Ultor. Still, there's a rumor he's been gathering information on the three gangs. I got some people on the outside I can contact easily if you want to learn more." Starlight smiled warmly. "Carlos, this could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship."

Starlight and Carlos grew close over the next year, to the point they eventually became lovers. They never went further than kissing, and even then only in their cell. Starlight secretly wondering if Troy was behind something like this being allowed. There had been speculation among the Saints that she and Playa were an item, but in reality he was several years older than her and she preferred someone closer to her age, which Carlos happened to be.

One day Starlight got word. It looked like Playa was finally starting to stir, meaning it wouldn't be long before he'd wake up. As the two of them were wondering how to sneak over to where he was, the cell opened to reveal another inmate. He sneered. "I paid off a guard to let me in here. I've been eyeing you, girly." Starlight smirked. "Well, when opportunity knocks." The inmate got a surprise when she telekinetically threw him against the back wall of her cell, knocking him out cold.

Carlos was stunned, even more so when Starlight pinned his back to the bunk and started undressing. "I think I know where you're going with this," Carlos admitted, "But are you sure you wanna take it this far?" "Gotta make it looks convincing," Starlight noted, "Besides, I've caught you staring." She leaned in for another kiss. Once their love-making was over, Starlight did her best to look disheveled while Carlos got the unconscious inmate's shiv, then sat back down and positioned the shiv above his thigh. "Time for the hard part...," he muttered as he brought the blade down.

Author's Note

So yeah, Starlight hooks up with Carlos. Don't worry, this story won't go the tragedy route. I'm all about drama without the trauma. Also, while I did list sex as one of the tags, it's only meant to be implied, so nothing explicit (it's still a teen-rated story). Next chapter starts the Saints Row 2 arc.

SR2: We Won't Back Down

Author's Note

The Ronin mission here contains a bit of Japanese that the wiki has yet to translate. Yeah, I've been using the wiki up until now to make sense of what people are saying in different languages, since the subtitles in the game just say (speaking Spanish) or (speaking Japanese). Well, since I don't know the translation, I'll just make my own dialogue. I more or less know what the gist of their speech is anyway.

SR2: We Won't Back Down

After all that happened, the Saints decided to take some time to relax over the next few days, lock down their turf, and make sure the other gangs knew to stay away from it. It was a few days later. Johnny was moved out of intensive care, Carlos had managed to recover thanks to facial reconstruction surgery, Starlight's healing spells, and a quick touch-up at Image As Designed to get his face back to normal.

Shaundi didn't seem affected by the kidnapping attempt, but Boss could somehow tell how traumatic the incident was and suggested she hang with some of her friends from outside the gang. She was outside the Savings and Loan with them playing hacky sack when a bright red car nearly ran her over. "Christ," came a woman's voice, "Are you trying to get killed?" "Sorry...," Shaundi said, trying to place where she'd seen the woman before.

Said woman was on the phone as she got a briefcase out of her car. Double-checking the contents, it looked like it was full of cash. "Sorry baby, I almost dented my car on a hippie chick. Maero, I'm fine... Look, I gotta go, I'm about to make the deposit. Once we do that, we'll have enough to cover the shipment. Then the Saints won't stand a chance in hell." Shaundi realized she was looking at Jessica, Maero's girlfriend from the Brotherhood. She tossed the hacky to her friends and called Boss.

A few moments later, Jessica was making the deposit when a gun was held to the back of her head. "'Sup, bitch," came Carlos' voice. "You're still alive?," Jessica asked, shocked. "No thanks to you," Starlight said, walking in front of her, "Guess your boyfriend forgot to tell you. I know a thing or two about telekinesis. I'm strong enough to lift tanks off the ground with just my mind. Pulling a chain off a truck? Easy as snapping a toothpick."

"We heard you were visiting this bank," Carlos noted, "And we know the Brotherhood is expecting a shipment to come in." "Don't expect me to know anymore than that," Jessica taunted, "Maero made sure to keep a tight lid on the facts just in case of something like this. I'm just handling the money." "Just as well," Starlight said, pulling out her own gun, "Now, I don't mind a little bit of revenge. And since you decided to try sending me a message by killing my boyfriend, I think we'll let Maero know the time of day."

Jessica chuckled. "You think you're getting out of here? My family owns this bank, and by now the silent alarms been tripped." "Then I guess you'll just have to shut it off," Carlos noted, herding her to the security office. "And how am I supposed to do that?," Jessica demanded. "Bad time to play dumb," Carlos noted, "You just got through telling us your family owns the bank, so I'm guessing you have the security codes. And the sooner you turn off the alarm, the fewer pieces we deliver you to Maero in."

Boss smirked as Jessica was led out to her car, Carlos tossing him the keys. "Bad luck for you," Boss said, "That 'hippie chick' was a member of our gang." Starlight and Carlos stuffed Jessica into the trunk, then got in the back as Boss took the wheel. "Now where to?," Carlos asked. "The Culex Stadium," Boss replied, "Maero's participating in a monster truck rally there. I've arranged for the Saints to donate an additional car to the lineup."

The trio looked on as the rally got started. Jessica was no doubt screaming for help and banging against the trunk, a futile attempt given the roar of both the crowd and the engines. Maero pumped his fist in triumph as he revved up his truck, then hit the gas when the signal indicated. Before long, he reached the end of his run before his opponent, not realizing that his last jump caused the full weight of his trunk to land on his girlfriend's car, crushing it.

Not realizing what he just did, Maero got out of his truck to revel in the applause, then he heard three more distinctively slow claps, and turned to see Boss, Starlight, and Carlos. Maero growled when he saw them. "I'm gonna kill you here and now..." Boss smirked. "No, you're not." He threw Jessica's keys to him, making Maero's eyes go wide when he realized what he was handed. "By the way," Boss said, "When you check the trunk, just remember... You could've offered better than twenty percent."

Maero's torment over having been tricked into killing his girlfriend left the Brotherhood wide open as the Saints moved against them and took Ezpata, where they grabbed another contact. Afterward, Boss met with Richie, an ex-boyfriend of Shaundi's and also a cousin of Tobias. "What's up?," Richie said when he met with Boss, "I heard from my cousin you're the man to see about personal security."

"I have dabbled in the business in between gang actions," Boss admitted. Richie nodded. "I hear ya. I also know about your friend Starlight. I have a spell capsule she was planning on leaving with Toby, but he was busy with his honeymoon, so she left it with me. Check it out, she crafted an XS-2 Ultimax shotgun... That never runs out of ammo." Boss whistled in appreciation. "That'll be really useful. So, what sort of security do you need?"

"Here's the thing," Richie said, "These suitcases over here are filled with the sort of things that would never get past customs, if you catch my meaning. The ones behind you are filled with clothes and appliances. We don't worry about the second group." Boss nodded. "So, you basically want me to do the same thing I did with Tobias. No problem, any excuse to put the hurt on more Brotherhood is a good one."

After the deals were finished, Boss met Carlos and Starlight at the hangars. "Seems Richie had a little more to offer," Carlos explained, "He and Shaundi had been meeting earlier to reminisce about old times. Seems she's had a lot of exes, and Veteran Child was the only one still sore about the break-up. Anyway, Richie said that he spotted Maero talking with some out-of-towners about some deal involving some serious cash. Maero must still need money for the shipment, so he's getting it however he can. Shaundi's coming with us to wire that money to the Saints' account, then we'll seal the deal by taking out a few Brotherhood vehicles just to say hi."

The trio had to protect Shaundi while she wired the money, but it didn't take long to complete. After that they blew up a few Brotherhood trucks just sitting around. Finally, they spotted some planes carrying Brotherhood members and the dealers they were talking with. Boss got out their RPG and used it to take out the planes. Now the Saints had control of Wardill Airport. The territory was marked with two more tags, and two more contacts were picked up.

Out in Quinbecca, Boss met with Katie, one of the producers for the popular show Fuzz. "Thanks for coming," Katie said, "Starlight said you'd be willing to perform the actions we need for this feature." "I'm a little surprised you need me to pretend to be a cop for national television," Boss admitted. "Well, our usual for the series wound up in hospital," Katie explained, "It left the slot open for this favor."

"So what sort of work do I need to do?," Boss asked. "Well if you've seen the show you know Fuzz isn't about making the Stilwater PD look good," Katie explained, "You'll still need to stop minor crimes, but you'll get to do so in any way you see fit, though the cameraman may ask you to use a specific weapon for more exciting footage. You'll get paid good money for each completed episode, and I'll throw in a warding charm from Starlight that'll help you shake the police easier."

Getting to see the front end of the police cruiser was certainly fun, as was the fact that the police apparently had procedures for a chainsaw massacre, called a "Code Texas", or a fight between pirates and ninjas, referred to as "The Battle of the Century". Once the studio had enough footage, Boss returned to the hideout. Pierce came in as the Boss got comfy, handing him a passenger manifest. "Wasn't easy," Pierce noted, "But I was able to find out when Kazuo's arriving. He booked every first-class seat on this flight, which means he's traveling with friends."

Boss nodded. "We only need Kazuo." "One small catch," Pierce said, "The Ronin are crawling all over the airport in anticipation of his arrival." "Are you serious?," Starlight said, "The fact that we own the airport aside, Wardill used to be a Brotherhood territory." Pierce shrugged. "They are named after the concept of the masterless samurai. And despite their Yakuza roots, they seem more in line with the bosozoku biker gangs. Clearly honor is in short supply among these guys. But we can worry about that later. Kazuo's plane is due to arrive soon, so we need to hurry if the Saints are gonna welcome him to America."

In spite of the Saints efforts, it was all for naught. They were able to take out a lot of Ronin, clearing the way to take Quinbecca, picking up another contact in the process, but Jyunichi had spotted the trio as they came in through the loading bay to bypass security. He was now sitting in his car, Kazuo in the back, looking sour. As Jyunichi watched the Saints leave, no doubt dejected by not finding Kazuo, the phone rang. "It's your son," Jyunichi said to Kazuo. Kazuo scoffed. "I do not wish to speak with him."

Jyunichi nodded, but answered the phone nonetheless. 'What happened Jyunichi?,' Shogo said, clearly having heard about the attack at the airport. "What happened is that you left your father to die," Jyunichi replied. "I didn't ask for your opinion, Jyunichi" Shogo snapped, "What happened?" "I went to the airport to safeguard Akuji-san's arrival," Jyunichi explained, "Once I saw the leader of the Saints making a move towards the terminal I made my way to the plane so I could evacuate your father. His entourage willingly gave their lives to ensure his safety."

Shogo sighed. 'Let me speak to him.' "No," Jyunichi said simply. 'What?,' came Shogo's irate reply. "Your father made it quite clear that he doesn't wish to speak to you," Jyunichi explained, "Anything you have to say to him will go through me." Shogo didn't sound please. 'You ungrateful little--' "Sayonara," Jyunichi said, cutting him off before hanging up the phone. He was certain the Saints' days were numbered now that Kazuo had arrived.

Starlight wanted Boss to check up on one of her contacts in New Hennequet, a real estate broker named Javier. "Thanks for meeting me," Javier said, "I'd like to get right to the chase. Stefan is having another one of his soirees today, and I'm not missing his poolboy this time. Anyway, I've been trying to sell real estate in this area for a month, but the property value is too high." "I'm not exactly the type for aggressive negotiation," Boss noted.

"Oh, don't worry about that. I had a better idea in mind," Javier assured him, "See, my cousin runs a septic company. I asked him if you could borrow one of his trucks, drive around the neighborhood, and I think you can connect the dots from there." Boss looked disgusted. "Are people really gonna buy from you when I'm done with this?" "It's really hard to find cheap housing in Stilwater," Javier noted, "Starlight left me a spell that will improve your weapon accuracy. I'll toss it in with the payout once you're done."

After covering most of the area in septic sludge, Boss and Starlight outside the Marshall Winslow Rec Center. "Still can't believe what happened to Winslow after I tried to save his ass," Boss said. "And now the Ronin are dragging his name through the mud," Pierce replied, "In the most subtle way possible. Kazuo decided to reopen the Ronin's gambling operations, but in a more discreet matter under the rec center."

"How'd you figure that out?," Starlight asked. "One of my boys has been staking out Ronin territory," Pierce explained, "Making sure they don't try anymore invasions. He saw a group of Ronin going into the rec center and discreetly followed them. That's when he discovered the gambling ring. With the whole thing underground we can move in and trash the place without the cops on our backs."

The trio met with the contact and were led into the gambling hall, which they promptly tore up while cutting down a number of Ronin. After trashing a number of slot machines, gambling tables, and other such items, they entered the counting rooms and broke open the cash boxes, grabbing some more dough for the Saints. After clearing out the Ronin from the first floor, the Saints now had New Hennequet. They marked their victory by spraying over two more tags, while Starlight met with another contact.

Out in Shivington, Boss was pleased to meet with Lee once again. "Good to see you again," Boss said. "Always a pleasure," Lee agreed, "The last time we met like this I offered you advice on insurance fraud." "Assuming you don't count the debacle in the courthouse when I was springing Johnny," Boss noted. "Well we really didn't meet per se, did we?," Lee countered, "But this is neither here nor there. I was hoping you could help me with a little favor." "Well I do owe you for helping my gang out back in the day," Boss said, "What's the deal?"

"I got a couple of ongoing cases against the Stilwater PD," Lee explained, "I could use some leverage. I heard you did a bit on the hit TV show Fuzz, and I was hoping you could do something similar to show the viewing audience a side of the police they aren't used to." Boss smirked. "And naturally you won't object to how I do my job." Lee smiled in exchange. "Oh, of course not. I have nothing but respect for our men and women in uniform. Oh, and Starlight wanted me to give you a special Kobra pistol she crafted, which holds unlimited ammunition."

Later, after Boss was finished filming for the show, he and Starlight met Shaundi at the local frat, where she was doing a beer bong. "What are we doing here?," Boss asked. "Hey, if I can drink for free, I'll meet anywhere," Shaundi explained, "My ex Blake had some information for us." "The frat president?," Boss asked, "How many exes you got?" Shaundi shrugged. "I lost count." She led them down to where Blake and his frat brothers were enjoying some pipes.

"Hey," Blake said when he saw the trio, "Good to see you again." Starlight just shook her head. "When you said you knew Shaundi well, I didn't think you meant this well." "So Blake," Shaundi said, "You said you had some info?" Blake nodded. "Earlier today I was in Shivington getting party favors for tonight. During my buys I spotted the Samedi loading chemicals into the nearby building."

"Chemicals?," Starlight asked, "As in for their dust?" "Definitely," Blake replied, "I know a drug lab when I see one." The trio went out to destroy the drug labs. The first two went smoothly, but at the third the Samedi hid inside a locked room, so Boss shut down the ventilation. After the fourth, the explosions were enough to set Shivington ablaze. Once the Saints took out a final Samedi lieutenant, the Saints were able to take Shivington, where they met with another contact.

On a nearby rooftop, Sunshine watched the blaze. "What are you thinking my friend?," The General asked as he walked up next to him. "It's beautiful," Sunshine replied with a smile. The General frowned at the destruction. "And expensive." "More money will come...," Sunshine assured him. "You had best be right," The General said, "Between the farm and this fire, we can not afford to have anything go wrong with our next shipment."

"Don't worry General," Sunshine said, "The shipment will be safe..." The General took a drag from his cigar as he looked at the burning neighborhood. "These Saints are proving themselves to be quite the nuisance..." Sunshine nodded in agreement. "Then perhaps it's time we speak to their leader..." He had heard the news about how the Ronin and Brotherhood had made things personal with the Saints. The General wanted to keep their turf war professional, and this seemed the best way.

Shaundi brought Staright and Boss out to Sunnyvale Gardens. "This is where Ben and Julius grew up," Boss noted, "I've been reading up on Ben's autobiography, Regicide." "I have some good memories of this place too," Shaundi admitted, "Back when me and Veteran Child were still dating, we'd come out here to Spackle Fishing Industries just to stuff the frozen fish full of loa dust. And the Samedi are still doing that."

"I was wondering how they could still be moving product," Starlight noted. Shaundi nodded. "We can cut a big hole in their operations if we take out all the fish, then destroy the fishing boats they're using to move the product." A good number of Samedi were around, making things difficult, plus the chemical fumes made it difficult to see. But after all was said and done, a small bomb tossed down the fuel chute of a giant freighter used by the Samedi gave the Saints Sunnyvale Gardens. The Saints were taking back a lot of territory, and reclaiming their glory days.