The New task Force(chapter 95)
prevously in chapter 94
Late at night, Luke stood in front of a large pond, breathing deeply, the tension thick in the air. The man behind from him sneered, his voice filled with disdain. "What are you doing here, nigga?" he spat as he held luke at gunpoint. Luke's eyes hardened, but he stayed calm as he removed his hood and his earphone, as the young man said again "I'm not gonna ask you again" that is when luke said, " Young man... I've had a long day. I'm tired. But I'm not tired enough to ever let nobody call me that word." He turned around, his presence imposing. "You see a nigga standin' in front of you? Across the street from a building named after one of our greatest heroes?" The young man's response was cold, his gun cocking in his hand. "Yeah, a dead one." Luke exhaled sharply.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 95
Inside a police office, Scarfe's voice cut through the silence. "You're doing it again. I hate it when you do that." Knight glanced up, her gaze intense. "Hate it when I do what?" Scarfe sighed, gesturing to the photographs spread across the table. "Stare at the photos like they're about to start moving." Knight shook her head. "They are talkin' and movin'. You just have to be still enough to hear what they're sayin'." Scarfe rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Knight. A clue is a clue, no matter how small. This was deeply personal." Knight nodded, agreeing. "Well, money invites the beast. There's nothing in Chico's jacket to suggest he was capable of that type of violence." Scarfe leaned back, thinking. "I don't think he has the stomach for it."
"Stomach?" Knight echoed. "There was vomit found at the junkyard. Inside it were fibers consistent with that of a winter mask. One of the robbers didn't have the heart to go through with it. My guess, it was babyface Chico." Scarfe looked skeptical. "Uh, he was the last man standing. You mean to tell me Benjamin Franklin was wrong?" Knight shrugged. "Well, in this case, it was all about the Benjamins either way." Scarfe scoffed, a cynical smile on his face. "Always is. Somebody got jacked, and somebody got pissed... And somebody got dead. This ain't over yet."
-scene change-
In a barbershop, the atmosphere was lighter. Luke and Pop discussed literature, their voices mingling with the hum of clippers and the buzz of conversation. "I just never got into Donald Goines," Luke admitted. Pop looked at him incredulously. "Are you crazy? Donald Goines was a street poet." Luke smiled. "I didn't say Goines isn't. But Walter Mosley, George Pelecanos? Boom." Pop chuckled. "I bet you're into Richard Price." Luke nodded. "I dig Price. Dennis Lehane, too." Pop leaned forward, curious. "What about Chester Himes?" Luke's eyes lit up. "Without question."
Pop's expression turned serious. "My biggest beef with Donald Goines is that he wrote about criminals and he died like one." Luke chuckled. "You don't have to get all Fox News about it." They laughed together, "Goines invented Kenyatta, the best black hero this side of Shaft," Pop said proudly. A customer, Victor, interrupted, thanking Pop and Luke. As Victor left, Pop resumed the conversation. "So you're saying Kenyatta is better than Easy Rawlins?" Luke shook his head. "I ain't saying all that. I'm just saying Kenyatta's my favorite. He took the fight to the man in the streets by his self. Just like somebody else could if he wasn't sweeping hair and washing dishes." Luke sighed. "Don't start, Pop."
The shop was abuzz with the latest gossip. "The whole neighborhood is yapping about how Zip and two goons got the beat down at Genghis Connie's last night," Pop mentioned. Luke laughed. "Hmm. I heard it was four guys." Pop eyed him knowingly. "I knew it had to be you. No wonder you came into the shop so light on your feet. Either that or someone finally gave you some trim." They both laughed, the tension easing.
-scene change-
Back at his hideout, henry sighted while also spying on Luke Cage flirting with Misty Knight, "I gotta give it to him, he's got game," he continued to water his plant, but from the corner of his eyes, he saw Terry trying to take a bite out of one of the herbs. "Damn it, stop eating my herbs, you saltwater toad!" he said as he chased Terry away, who was snapping his beak as if he was saying, "Saltwater toad, you say? Coming from an alchemist who thinks wisdom can be bottled and sold, that's rich. At least when I consume these herbs, they gain a touch of true magic. Perhaps you should worry less about your garden and more about your laughable potions." But then again, Henry was lucky to not understand turtle language as he turned towards another monitor, which was in Matt Murdock's room, Matt being Daredevil of Hell's Kitchen.
He was currently talking to someone, that someone being someone high up in the Hand's ranks. "I am closer to the source of those dragon bones," he thought to himself as he already had plans for the bones, especially his plants. Henry plans to use rare resources and essences to mutate plants and animals, then using the animals or plants to multiply it, therefore conserving the rare resource, and in theory having an endless supply of it.
-scene change-
Beneath the Midland Circle of Hell's Kitchen, at a Hand facility, the place was heavily guarded, patrolled by figures wearing black ninja suits. They all seemed highly trained and seemed to be guarding a giant black steel door. The place was huge, with several rooms and corridors. At the main entrance, there was a door that was suddenly burst open by a purple rhino, three to be exact. The entire place was silent for a second as they registered what just happened, and when they did, the ninja immediately attacked the three conjured-up rhino, which immediately charged towards the four charging ninja, who were obviously impaled and trampled on before the rhino disappeared.
That is when a figure entered through the doorless door, clad in one of Henry Crow 01's battle suits. Given the powers of the figure, it was obviously Crow 4, who had the ability to conjure up animal constructs. Crow 4 then looked around as more ninja came, but she didn't seem to mind or care as she made a circular motion with her finger, conjuring up three eagles that attacked a Hand ninja. But while she was busy, a Hand ninja managed to sneak up on her and attack her with a katana, but the moment the katana came in contact with the battle suit, it made a clanking sound as the katana bounced off with a burst of sparks. Crow 4 then looked at the stunned Hand ninja before backhanding the ninja, sending him flying, and she did so effortlessly.
Crow 4 then moved like a shadow herself, her reflexes honed to perfection as several ninja came at her. The first ninja slashed at her with a swift diagonal strike. She sidestepped with ease, her movements a dance of lethal grace. Her arm shot out, seizing the ninja's wrist and twisting sharply, forcing the katana from his grip. A conjured tiger, ethereal and glowing with an inner light, leaped from her side, its claws rending the air. It tackled the disarmed ninja, a snarl reverberating as it clamped its jaws onto his shoulder and flung him aside like a ragdoll.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/N: Crows, I like them. One of the areas I'm not great at is writing a story or fanfic with multiple MCs, and guess whose novel has 10+ MCs? Anyway, who knows, maybe I can play with that idea in my next novel, the HP one, which I haven't worked on in a while.