Chapter 5: Under the Eagle's Gaze

Last night, I went over potential good spots where we could set up shop, each with its own perks. I quickly made myself some breakfast—just some eggs and toast—before Kai could get up. At 6:40, I left the house and made my way towards Ray's house. We had a big day ahead, so I wanted to get a head start. I rushed over to his house with a small backpack of essentials and my map in hand. Once I reached his house, I knocked on the door—not too loudly, as I figured his siblings would still be asleep. After a couple of moments, the door creaked open carefully, and Ray quietly slipped out of the house.

He looked dressed and ready to go, his normal cargo pants coupled with a plain white T-shirt and his silver chain around his neck. He motioned for me to walk a bit away from the front, likely to not wake up his siblings. He led me to the side of their house where his shed was, and that was where I saw a small wagon loaded up with boxes. I pointed out, "You loaded our stock onto this small cart? Smart thinking. We don't want to carry them around like yesterday." He smiled somewhat excitedly, "Right? So, what's the plan today, chief?" I pointed to the map with a serious expression, "I created this a while ago. It's a map of the town. Each of these marks on this map is a potential place where the Eagles have set up. I've marked down small buildings we need to scout out today. We need to pick a spot on this map and open up close enough to their territory. That way, we will directly be competing with them."

Ray asked, "Won't they just crush us before we can steal their business?" I explained, "Normally, yes, but that's a risk we need to be prepared for. We are going to choose a location based on that risk. We need a location that, if we were attacked, could attract unwanted attention to the Eagles. For example, next to one of the other gang's territories, or even on a busy street corner. We need them out in the open if they are going to attack us. I mean, a gang that pokes their head out too much will get crushed by the Reapers."

Ray nodded, "I gotta admit, I wasn't expecting such a detailed map. Did you make this last night?" I added, "Nope, I had this made last year. Call it a passion project. Last night, I marked the locations of interest, keeping in mind our strategy. These four locations on the map seem the most promising. Oh, also, we need to find out what kind of drug, if any, they are selling. That will give us a good idea of what we are up against." Ray smiled, "So, basically, today we will be gathering information and setting up shop." I smiled, "Quick on the uptake, good. By the end of the day today, we will have cleared out a location we can use. Tomorrow, we will start up our business." Ray asked, "What should we call ourselves?" I scratched my head, surprised, "A name? Can't say I really put any thought into that."

Ray slapped my back, "We'll have to think of one. I mean, we can't call ourselves 'Nameless Coffee House." I joked, "We'll tackle the name after we've brewed up some success. Let's focus on location scouting for now." Ray seemed content with my answer as he began to pull the wagon, following me as we walked into town. I pointed to the first location, "The first place I wanted to check out is close to our houses. It actually isn't too far from Tony's bar, which makes it a safer area than most." We walked over to the spot I had in mind, and we spotted the marking that we were looking for right away.

In the distance, we saw a small building with eagle wings wrapped around a dagger spray-painted on it. This is the symbol of the Silent Eagles; the dagger represents that they like to keep things covert. I pointed it out to Ray, and he mocked, "Silent Eagles? More like the 'Whispering Pigeons.' Bet they coo instead of squawk." I laughed, "Yeah, sounds like the name of a church group." We decided to go as a group into their territory. We needed to scope out anyone looking vulnerable; that's how they do their business, after all. That way, any deals they make for drugs they can keep their hands off it. I spotted a shady-looking teenager leaning against a wall nearby. He was close enough to the territory marker to raise red flags. I signaled for Ray to look, and he nodded along with me.

Seems like we got our first person to investigate. We approached him in a relaxed manner, so that we came off as unsuspecting. The teenager was a little older than us, with red hair and yellow eyes. He wore poor-looking clothes—a white sleeveless top and tattered cloth pants. Clearly, the boy had seen better days, hence why he is a good target for gangs. As I expected, before we even got within a few feet, his eyes locked onto us. The red-haired teen got to work right away with a smile, calling out to us, "Hey, you two there. You new to this side of town?" I smiled casually, "Yeah, I am. Never been to this side of town before." The teen laughed, "Yeah, I can tell. Name's Max." I offered, "Names Leo, and this is Ray." Ray nodded, "Nice to meet you."

Max smiled like he got a hit on a fishing rod, "Right, so if you're new here, you might not know, but this town has stuff you might not have seen before." I asked in a dumb manner, "Oh really? Like what?" Max reached into his pocket, pulling out a small little bag, "We got them wonder drugs, man. You two dabble?" I played him up, "Yeah, sure. We were both looking for a fix, right Ray?" Ray smiled a bit awkwardly, "Damn right. Seems like we're in luck." His acting could use some work, but he did well enough to sell our act. Max patted me on the shoulder, "Look no further, fellas. I got you hooked up right here."

He sounded like a used car salesman. Whatever they were offering him, it was good enough to make a fool of himself. I lured him to reveal some information, "What you got for us?" Max pointed to the bag, "This right here is a marvel of modern times, my friends. You heard of magic mushrooms? Weak compared to this lab-grown shit. This stuff will mess you up to the moon and back, my friends. It's called mind blooms." I acted surprised, "Damn, you really got the good stuff. How'd you even get this stuff here?" Max, looking like he already won, gave us a winner's smile, "Connections, man, connections. So, you looking to buy?" I shot back, "Absolutely. How much, big man?" Max looked at me like a bird looks at a worm,"For you, my friend? How about 20 bucks for a few grams? Just to get you started. Trust me, once you try this shit, you won't settle for regular stuff anymore." I nodded approvingly, "Alright, deal's a deal." I pulled out a $20 bill from my wallet, "Here you are, my good man." He pulled out a small baggie and sorted out approximately a few grams. Max smiled once the trade was done, "Pleasure, boys. I will see you again soon."

We walked away from Max with my bag of mind blooms. After we got far enough away, Ray nudged me. Ray asked, "Why'd you buy them?" I tapped my forehead, "No reason. We need him to just think we're customers. Say someone came by and asked him if he saw us. He would be less inclined to think of us, given we made a deal. You see, if we decided to walk away after he told us about the drugs, he would single us out in his mind. Plus, I wanted to have a look at our competitor." I pulled out a few of the mind blooms; they had brown caps and were long in origin, but otherwise looked like any old mushroom. I added, "Don't you see, Ray? I had to make sure they were just mushrooms. I am the type that needs to see it with my own eyes. We can't afford to make any mistakes. These little mushrooms have signaled their downfall."

Ray asked with wide eyes, "What do you mean?" I answered, "Mushrooms on their own aren't very addictive. The addiction is more psychological than something like meth or heroin. This little fungi won't beat our coffee. Our caffeine, I really didn't want to admit it, but in terms of addiction, it would lose to any real hard drug. This fungi though? We can win." Ray smiled, "Dump that shit in the trash then, and let's find a spot to set up then." I nodded and approached an outside trashcan, dumping the mushrooms in. I added, "Let's go to our next spot; that small building won't really cover as a place of operations." I pointed to a place to the North of us, "This spot next. I remember there being a decent-sized place somewhere around here."

Ray started pulling the wagon again behind me as we walked a couple of blocks to our next spot we would have to scope out. I explained, "No need to question anyone else; we got our information from Max already on the drugs." I pointed to a decent-sized building near their spray-painted Eagle icon. I suggested, "That building is about the right size; let's scope it out. Stay vigilant; more than likely, their gang uses it as one of their hideouts." Ray seemed to grab his bat a little tighter as we approached the small building.

I would imagine at some point it might have functioned as a small house. However, now it was spray-painted to all hell; the paint had long faded away. The outside was unmaintained, and the grass had grown unimaginable. Vines had started poking into the windows; this place was something we'd need to fix up for sure. Otherwise, though, it had a unique charm to it; all it needed was some love really, and it'd be good for our needs. With that thought, we both stopped dead in our tracks; voices could be heard from inside. Ray whispered, "We got company." I sighed, "Fight them or leave. What to do?" With that final thought in the air, we weighed our options as we carefully approached the building, assessing whether confrontation or retreat would be the most intelligent course of action.