Ch.7-It’s a Little Bland TWST Mafia AU
The streets of Golden Sands were bustling in the late noon, not that Ortho minded, the sun was starting to hide behind the tall structures and the rays created a glimmer off his cobalt hair that faded into a sky blue on the tips. No one paid much mind to the eleven year old boy, despite his unparalleled appearance, but it worked perfectly for Ortho to explore different parts of the city. While the Shroud family was famous outside of Nirvana’s Steel, they were not as well known here which gave a great lift to his brothers business. Ortho happily adjusted his headphones and turned on their glow setting, the black headset shined with gold that complimented with his untamed flame-like hair, his bright yellow eyes shut as the beat of the music thrummed against his ears. He wore a white hoodie that paired with arctic blue sleeves and hood, his mouth was covered with an air respirator mask colored in black and two electronic filters on the sides, and his black jeans covered his porcelain skin. Without much care but astonishing dexterity he skated down the sidewalk in his white roller blades, swerving between people as he was heading home from another successful errand run.
Even though Ortho had been practically raised by his brother in Golden Sands district, he was never able to leave home that much for two reasons. One, he was constantly helping his brother with his work, and two, his brother was such a worry wart that everytime he left it took an extra 15 minutes to convince his brother that he would be safe. Logically, the turf wars and petty fights could get violent but his brother and a few of their friends were always careful to uphold the peace in the Lamenting streets and Golden Sands. Once he arrived at the small cement building sandwiched between two office buildings, he rolled up the side ramp and slid to a stop before opening the doors, greeted to the dimly lit room with several workers at their desks. During the day this place is a simple technician’s repair office where anyone with corrupt files, busted electronics, or wanted spare parts, can be taken care of. The employees happily greeted Ortho as he skated across the engineered-wood flooring, he happily waved to them and greeted them with a smile behind his mask. Ortho moved his headphones around his neck upon reaching a secure metal door in the manager's office, moving his left wrist over the electronic panel, the door opened with a short but loud ‘clang’ from the magnetic locks detaching and the bright eyed boy coasted inside.
Dark cement tunnels were only lit up with single strips of fluorescent tubes and the flooring slightly sloped at an angle, a line of stair rails lined both walls in case someone slipped on the ground. Ortho hummed softly as he glided down the slope, looking at the walls with boredom and thinking to himself before coming to a stop at another door, another wave of his wrist over another panel unlocked it and the ice blue light saturated the entrance of the doorframe. Inside the large room of medical and technological equipment, Idia Shroud stood at his desk and wrote quietly into his notes, Ortho smiled as he closed the door behind him and skated closer to his brother.
Idia jolted out of his thoughts and looked over at his younger brother with a gentle smile. “Ah! Ortho, did you deliver the package safely?”
“Yep! The package number 40087 has been delivered to Jamil on schedule!” Ortho replied proudly, sitting on one of the recently cleaned medical tables.
The Shroud brothers hosted a very special service to The Pride and The Coin, along with the neutral parties between the two great powers. While they did help with electronics, their other business entailed serving as a medical ward for those that had no insurance and those that could not let officials know of their injuries, i.e. the individuals that had reputations to uphold. Idia had learned about electronics since he was five, but grew just as fascinated with anatomy once he turned ten and their parents signed the older Shroud brother up for advanced online classes. When his 18th birthday came along, Idia insisted on moving out to better other places and to bring his brother with him when Ortho was six years old, the younger brother followed in Idia’s steps ever since.
Idia was an introvert through and through, completely lacked social skills and had anxiety whenever he went outside, unless it was in the dead of night when the city was dark and barely anyone walked around. The man was 23 years old and sported the same messy hair and bright eyes as Ortho’s, only that his hair ran down his back and was held out of his face by a loose hair scrunchie, and he developed dark eyebags over the years. His skin was far paler than Ortho’s but most of his skin was covered by his clothes, to which he wore an indigo trench coat, black sweatpants, white high-ankle boots, and a pair of black gloves for his work. Despite Ortho’s frustrations of not going to many places with his brother, they still found ways to have fun like playing games and watching movies back at their headquarters, the second floor renovated for their TV room and bedrooms.
“I knew I could count on you, but did you have any fits? Get hurt? Have any strangers try to-”
“No brother,” Ortho replied while rolling his eyes at Idia’s growing volume of concern. “I didn’t get hurt and no one even spoke to me other than Jamil.”
The older brother sighed with relief as he turned back to his notebook, his frizzy hair swaying a bit as he continued writing in his book. “Good, have you also looked into any employee complaints?”
“I did, but most say the same thing. Brother, I think we need to look into more..color? Or something to make the office brighter and not just the scheme of blue and gray. Maybe we could add posters or office plants?”
“I can look into it, but I don’t want this place becoming so jutter after some upgrades, we may have to put it to a vote so we can zone the lobby.”
Ortho shrugged, his brother's video game lingo may not make sense to everyone but he understood it quite well. “I’ll offer a vote in a couple days, I highly doubt anyone will be upset by ideas. What should we do for tonight?”
“We have been pretty slow today for business, so how about we close up early, order some food, and watch that new sci-fi movie you’ve been telling me about?”
While Ortho loved his brother their “hangout” times would always be the same, he slid off the table and skated closer to his brother before stopping at the desk and leaning his elbows on the table top. “Actually, I was wondering if we could go to the new techno-club in the Coral Center district, its neon themed and I heard it’s really fun!”
“Since when have you liked night clubs?” Idia asked with surprise as he looked down at Ortho, closing his notebook for a moment.
“Well, I don’t know, I have never really been to one, but I love techno music! So can we go and try?”
A frown crossed Ortho and Idia’s face, the young boy could see the dread in Idia’s eyes and knew what his response would be. “W-we could just set up our own techno party h-here. I-I mean clubs will be dangerous and I’m not sure you’d be able to enter one anyways-”
“I checked age restrictions, they’re ok with minors so long as I don’t go near the bar and I have an adult. Plus, I can pay for our tickets and we don’t have to be gone long.”
“B-but still I’m no good at dancing-”
“There’s a sitting area.”
“The food is going to be greasy and-”
“They have a selection or we can order our take out and bring it with us.” Ortho replied stubbornly and crossed his arms. “Brother, I want to go. But I want to go with you.”
He could see his brother flinch at his words, the taller man looked away and shook his head, expressing his apprehension. “I still don’t like the idea, what if you get sick while we’re out? I’m sorry Ortho but it’s not safe-”
“You always say that! Idia it’s not dangerous if we’re careful.” Ortho pleaded with his brother, trying to skate around him to catch his gaze. “Please? I promise we can leave after a few songs.”
Letting out a groan of frustration, Ortho felt his cheeks flare pink with anger and replied in a sharp tone. “Fine, you stay here, and I’ll go have fun!”
Idia’s gaze softened as he watched his brother skate to the east entrance to the lab. “Ortho, I just don’t want to risk it.”
“You don’t like taking risks at all, I’m not surprised.” Ortho snapped back, trying to collect himself as he quickly left the room and skated up the tunnel ramp with great speed. There were three main tunnels, one to the east that leads to Coral Central, and the west one travels to the Afterglow district, then the main tunnel that brings others underground from the office building. Ortho focused on his breathing, the tunnel stretched for quite aways which is why he grew so attached to having roller skates, it made it easier and more fun to travel around at great distances. While Idia ran the repair shop, Ortho’s primary job was receiving the distress calls and quickly receiving those that are wounded and bringing them to his brother, hence why only a couple people had access to the labs.
Because of how close all the districts lineup it does not take long to reach a new district unless you’re going diagonally from the farthest reaches. In the north rests Thorn Valley, the south holds Ernte Farmland, those two being in opposite directions take about two hours to get to each other. The Golden Sand’s district is like the heart of Nirvana’s Steel, it runs vertically from the border of Thorns Valley to Ernte’s border like a vein, and the four other districts surround the east and west of this central district. Northwest the Afterglow district connects to Thorns Valley and the Rose district, while the Rose district connects to Ernte on the southwest side. On the northeast, Pyroxene’s district connects to Thorns Valley and Coral Central, then the Coral Central connects to the ocean and a sliver of Ernte district on the southwest. It does not take as long for most to cross certain borders, especially if they have a vehicle or take the public bus system, but the development of the city did not plan for a monorail or train system so walking or driving were main modes of transportation.
Idia had once told Ortho that the tunnels they claimed as the Lamenting Streets, were going to be designed for a subway system, but the project fell through because of dangerous conditions while digging so the whole idea was scrapped. His brother found this place by accident when looking to set up shop, but it worked out to their advantage. Or, more to his brothers need to hide, Ortho thought bitterly. Arrival at the exit of the tunnel had connected to a small cement bunker, a single room with a locked metal gate that required the Shroud brothers code to get in or out. The small building was tucked between buildings of the neon mafia city, the light from the buildings nearly blinded the boy as he wandered out and excitedly took in the sights around him. Taking out his phone, Ortho quickly looked up some popular attractions in the area and began skating around while putting his headphones back on, successfully blocking out the sounds of cars and people around him.
While touring the city, Ortho couldn’t help but slow down with the amount of people walking around, it was far busier here after sundown than it was at the Golden Sand’s district. He let out a yelp as someone shoved into him, knocking him on the ground as the person only cursed at him and kept walking. Ortho narrowed his eyes but carefully got up and continued to skate down the sidewalk, taking a moment to look at the street for a place to cross but the street was just as busy as the sidewalk. Eventually, Ortho gave up trying to cross and continued down the path he was already on, that was until he noticed two taller men leading a man forcefully into an alleyway. It was bizarre that no one else stopped but Ortho recognized their sharp outfits as part of the mafia, he slowly followed them and listened as they threatened the frightened man.
“You’re late on payment, did you really think skipping out on us was a good idea?”
“P-please I wasn’t skipping, I was on my way to Azul-”
“Oh sure, after all Azul’s lounge is just right before the docks. Don’t make this any harder than it has to be.” One goon grabbed the man’s arm and a sickening scream rattled from the man as it was twisted at an odd angle.
Ortho slowed to a stop and called out to them. “Is that really necessary? Can’t you just take him to your boss?”
All three men looked at Ortho with surprise, the goon that was not holding the man scowled and walked towards Ortho. “Great idea brat, how about you come with us as well?”
Ortho immediately took off, the goon chasing him through the crowded sidewalk as confusion filled his mind. Didn’t the man realize who Ortho was? Maybe not, but if he allowed the guy to catch him then his arm might get twisted as well. With that thought in mind, Ortho sped up as best as he could but the sidewalks were still overly crowded, he had to remove his headphones to listen for the goon’s proximity. Escaping was his only recourse, Ortho skated off the sidewalk and sped onto the street, several cars screeching to a stop and honking loudly at the boy and the sound of metal slamming into metal rang out. The blue haired boy jumped onto the next sidewalk, the crash seemed to catch most bystanders' attention so it was easier for him to skate through the spaces between people. His heart pounded in his chest and his throat suddenly felt swollen, making Ortho cough violently into his mask respirator as he slowed down and sat on a passing bench.
Ortho curled up on the bench as he tried to catch his breath and took out his inhaler from his pocket, quickly moving his mask down and taking a breath with it before putting his mask back on and doing his best to relax. His heart rate began to slow as he sat there and focused on the sky above him, yet his gaze soon turned to a black sports car that pulled up to the sidewalk. Ortho stood ready to speed off, however, much to his relief it was only Jade and Floyd that stepped out of the vehicle. Floyd grinned as he walked to the young boy and asked in a gleeful tone. “Hey there Sea Angel! What are you doing out alone?”
“I was trying to take in the sights, but I think some of Azul’s men thought I was going to tattle on them.”
“Eh? Why would they think that?”
“They were hustling a guy and probably thought I was just a kid that witnessed their assault. One of them chased me.”
Floyd’s eyes darkened as his grin grew, moving his left hand to his right shoulder and massaging it a bit, a common reflex Ortho noted that Floyd was ready to start a fight. “Is that so? Well, I’ll make sure to teach him a lesson, he’s probably one of the new guys.”
“Come now Ortho, Azul wants to see you.” Jade said politely, opening a door to the back seat where Azul sat inside.
Ortho gladly skated over before climbing into the car, greeting Azul with a wave as he buckled up. “Hello Azul!”
“Hello younger Shroud. Care to tell me why you’re out alone?” Azul questioned with a smile and leaned back in his seat.
Jade and Floyd got into their seats as Ortho explained the evening's events, the car driving aimlessly for sometime before slowing down into the VIP lot of the Monstro Lounge. Even after they pulled up however, Azul insisted he and Ortho would go to the office and they were not to be disturbed, the mafia leader led the young boy to his office and locked the door. “Ortho, I should be honest here, I went looking for you after your brother called me.”
“Oh..so he’s angry isn’t he?” Ortho questioned quietly, sitting on the linen amethyst couch in the room.
“On the contrary, he was extremely scared, he feared you were trying to run away.”
“What? I would never do that to him! I just..I got a little upset.”
Azul replied, sitting next to Ortho and chuckling softly. “You’re a smart boy Ortho, I know you can handle yourself, but considering your condition you cannot be surprised that he would freak out.”
Only Idia and Azul knew of Ortho’s condition, being diagnosed with emphysema as a baby was something that always gave Idia great anxiety. His brother made his inhaler himself to maximize the medicinal and oxygen intake, the mask Idia created and updated for Ortho to cancel out bacteria yet provide plenty of oxygen passage. It really showed how much Idia cared for his little brother, providing all physical therapies as well to help strengthen his lungs. Ortho gave a melancholy look to Azul, his hands fiddling at his hoodie as he said. “I worried him a lot, I just wanted a chance to hang out with him outside of our home..”
Azul’s calculating eyes watched Ortho’s form and smiled a bit as he stood up. “Come with me Ortho, I have a reasonable compromise.”
Ortho tilted his head curiously but followed Azul out of the office, as they entered into the main lounge however the place was packed and the younger Shroud noticed a familiar figure at the bar. “Brother?”
Idia, who was talking with Jade for the moment, turned and sped to Ortho to wrap his arms around the small boy. “Ortho! I was so worried about you! I-I didn’t know what to think when you-”
“It’s ok big brother, Azul found me and I only used my inhaler once.” Ortho soothed with a smile, hugging his brother in return. “Azul said he had a compromise though!”
“Compromise?” Idia looked at Azul with suspicion and the mafia man just let out a cordial chuckle, moving his right hand over his heart.
“Seeing you both so worried and considerate to each other I think I have a good way for you two to safely enjoy Coral Central. Perhaps once a month I can offer you both VIP seats in whatever club, restaurant, or other amusement facility of your choosing. In return, you would just need to help cover expenses and I am not providing a free ride. That way Idia would not be overstimulated and Ortho will have his chance to try new things.”
Ortho’s eyes lit up with delight as he tugged at Idia’s coat. “That sounds good, right brother? Can we take him on his offer?”
Idia bit his lip a little before looking at his brother and pursed his lips. “I..I suppose that would be a good offer. If that’s what you want Ortho.”
“I just want to make new memories with my brother.” Ortho replied softly, nuzzling Idia’s stomach. A gentle smile crossed Idia’s lips and his attention turned back to Azul for a second to speak with him, Ortho didn’t listen though, just simply enjoyed his brother's embrace until a soft patting on his shoulder gained his attention again to Idia.
“Ortho, why don’t we sit here and have dinner? Azul said we could sit in his booth.”
“Really?! Thank you Azul!”
“Think of it just as a small token of my benevolence~” Azul replied, giving a smile towards the brothers before leading them to the booth. “Oh and Ortho, Floyd found the new guy that gave you a scare. He wanted to know if you had a punishment in mind?”
“Let him know cornering someone in the alleyway is just dumb, of course someone is going to notice them!”
