Murder City: Chapter 2
The city wasn't always like this. Like every city, it had its crimes, but it also had its police department. There used to be a balance in Hoffning. If furs were bad, they were sent to jail. At least, that's how it was before Onyx came around.
Onyx is a dirt-bag, plain and simple. He was originally just a petty criminal, doing pick-pockets and things like that. Soon, like everyone, he got tired with his daily bitch-crime, and he wanted to move up in the world. He bought himself a ski mask and some acting lessons with the money he snuck from the city-goers and planned out his first bank robbery. Hoffning was never the same since that heist.
Onyx was the first to ever have gotten away from the police, the lucky dog. I guess the acting lessons really paid off. He gained a sort of cult following, causing a few websites and social networking groups to pop up; his popularity only grew with the more heists he pulled off. All the while, he was roaming the underground, trying to find others that were looking to join his evil cause, and no doubt looking for people that could make him stronger.
He found a renegade scientist trying to get back at the institute that fired him. It was something about unethical testing, which doesn't surprise me. No one knows his true name; we just called him Dr. Hypno. He could whip up a few nifty gadgets for the Rottweiler, but that was about it. The dolphin wasn't much help for Onyx, so he needed to find a couple more lackeys for his band of evil-doers.
His next recruit was, fittingly, an ex-convict. He used to be a cat burglar, but the cops caught him in the act. The foul feline could pilfer anything that wasn't fused to the floor. Now out of prison, the only reason he wanted to get back into the world of crime was to see if he could do it without getting caught. His name is Midnight, a panther with fur and a heart to match the name. Now, all Onyx needed was some brute force.
I'd left my door unlocked. Fuck.
I lit a candle and cracked open a book as I sat in a corner of my room. For the time I was awake, I just stared at the pages. The cane lay in an opposite corner of the room.I wake up, my neck stiff, almost burning. I try to rub out the pain as I groggily stand up and head to the shower. The warm water pulsed against my chest, drenching my fur. Steam curled around me. Taking a large gulp of thick, warm air, I started to unwind, preparing myself for the day before me.
Ever since the over-taking, need for certain jobs changed drastically. Janitorial positions, for instance, tripled. Of course, law enforcement was needed now more than ever, but I guess our cops decided to flake whenever real danger lurked. Since I'm not the type that begs to be shot, I took up cleaning as a hobby. The job was easy, the pay was decent, what more could I want?
I kept the walk to work brisk, curtly nodding to the other passing walkers. When I got to the office, I clocked in, got my supplies, and left to squeegee the buildings. My first stop was the building I came across the other night.
When I got to the tagged wall, I spotted something very interesting. Before me lay my wallet, exactly where I threw it the other night. I knelt down to pick it up. Inside were the contents that I had previously inserted, completely un-mussed. There resided a simple, solitary white card where my old library card took residence. On it was a scribbled address, for what, I don't know. I shrugged it off and started to get to work.
Soaping up the sponge, I decided to survey the artwork before doing away with it. Surprisingly, it was beautifully done. A wonderful display of blues and greens and yellows were presented before me. The beautiful bubble letters spelled out, "Welcome to Murder City." Below it, a rose was drawn. It seemed to be wilting before my very eyes. I stood there for a moment, taking in the image. I moved on to the next tagged building.