The Communist Party of Aurora City

Vladimir leaned over his desk with his hands folded in front of him. He stared at the paperwork on his desk. He didn't feel he had the focus to do them then. He was too excited for tonight. His big project. He had been planning it for months, and now it was almost time. He stood up and poured himself a scotch. He walked across his huge corner office, and stood looking out his window and out at the city below him. Pushing back his blnde hair, He took a sip.

Face low, shoulders hunched, Gorski entered the headquarters of the Communist Party of Aurora City. He'd gone through some pains to track down The Curtain, only to find he was hiding in plain sight at the chairman of the CPAC. The man was a different sort of criminal. Where Gorski prowled the streets at night, every night, looking for victim and murdering them for the sake of murdering them, the Curtain hauled himself up in a shiney office, decorated with flags and oakwood, and made pretend it was to a purpose.

Communism. Wasn't that an outdated idea, anyway?

Gorski didn't care what the Curtain believed, or why. He didn't care what anyone believed. It was all the same to him. He kept his face low as he asked for directions to Losev's office. He was a wanted criminal, of course and--though he didn't see any security cameras, and though he had died his hair dark after escaping--he didn't want to take any chances. Quietly, he thanked the person he had talked to, and made his way, following their directions. Biting his lower lip, Gorski knocked on the door of the office.

The knock on the door startled Vladimir a bit. He turned towards the door. "Come in." He said waiting to see who entered the office, sipping on his drink.

Gorski entered, his face still down. His eyes darted about the room, checking it for security cameras, before he lifted his head a little. "Hello, Mr. Losev," he said, his voice somewhat uneven and awkward. "Eh... how to put this... I have a buisness I am starting. Yes--that's it. I'm looking for some help. Making it big. Help making it big. Bigger than anything this city has seen, ever before. Some associates of mine told me you'd be able to help me."

It was evident in his manner that he was not used to talking to people--or, at least, not in a buisness like setting. Or, maybe, not strangers, or people with imposing figures.

Vladimir looked at Ivan for a bit, looking at the nervousness on his face, then gestured for Ivan to have a seat on the sofa in the center of his office. "Very well." he said sitting down on a sofa across from the sofa he gestured Ivan to. "What sort of business are we discussing. Mister-?"

"Ah. Green. Mr Green," lied Gorski. He was a wanted criminal, after all, though he didn't think Losev would recognize him, or turn him in. But, if he'd gotten the wrong name from his sources... This was risky buisness. He should have sent the Witch. Of course, she would have screwed up--he was certain she would have. "The sort of buisness is... ah, it's complicated." He sat down and crossed his legs awkwardly. "We're going into all sorts of directions. Right now we're interested in, ah... curtains, Mr Losev, and it was my understanding you knew something about those sorts of things."

Losev let out a hearty chuckle. "Curtains? Well mister green Im not certain you're quite aware what this organization is about. We're not really in the business of fabrics." He said with a smile. "Drink?" He said gesturing to the bar behind his desk.

Gorski bit hard into his lip. This wasn't working. How could his clever wording go ignored? Did this man have cement for a brain?

He glanced around the room again. He didn't see any cameras. The place probably was not bugged. Who would bug their own office, anyway? Damn the subtleties, Gorski decided. "My name is not Green. It is Gorski," he said. 'Mr Losev, I know who you are--who you are apart from this Communist Party buisness--and I would like... to recruit you, I guess is the word."

The smile disapeared from his face. He leaned in closely to Gorski. "I know who you are you moron. You don't just go into a man's office and 'recuit' them. Do you not know how this works?! Do you even have anything to offer me? huh? Who are you? Some butcher. Me? I'm a political figure in this city. You don't go into a place like mine and talk like some blathering fool!" Vladimir leaned away from Gorski, and the smile returned to his face. "So how about that drink?"

Crimson walked until she finally found the place Iron Fang was talking about. "Hmm, Fang would be awfully mad at me if he knew I was here." She shrugged her shoulders, "Oh well, I will just hang on the roof or something."

Oh what boredom could do to you.

She noticed an alley and thought she could start there, maybe a ladder to the roof would be there. She smiled when she saw a ladder once she got there, it looked dangerous but she didn't care. She also noticed that the alley wasn't creepy nor trashy. "Well that's different..."

She started to climb it, it wobbled making her almost fall. She grunted and continued to climb. She finally reached the roof and sighed with relief. "Now, which window could Mr. Curtain be in?"

After passing a few windows and almost being caught by a few people next to them, she finally found the window she was looking for. She peeked in and saw a tall man with blonde hair talking to Iron Fang. "Well, hello Curtain," she murmured and giggled.

Gorski's face reddened and he scowled, his lip lifting up into a snarl. Forcefully, the slight-framed man stood up. "What in the fucking hell do you think gives you any right to talk to me like that, huh? Like being a politician for an idea that obviously doesn't work, never has worked and never will work makes you any fuckin' better than me?" he spat. He looked like he might leap at Losev at any moment. "You deluded son of a bitch, you can go fuck yourself. Thinking you're better than me with your office and your failed idealogy, rich and arrogant. Fuck."

He turned with energy and started toward the door with furious, quick steps. Fuckin' commie bastard.

Vladimir chuckled. "Uppity? aren't you mister Gorski? haha." He grabbed Gorski's shoulder and turned him to face him and leaned in close to him, smiling all the while. "How about me and my failed ideology call the police? Huh?"

"How 'bout you'd be dead before they got here and it'd be a moot point, huh?" hissed Gorski. His hand was in his pocket, and it was lifting something stiff, pointing it at Losev. A knife, maybe, or a gun. He hadn't come unarmed. Who goes anywhere unarmed in a city like Aurora? "I don't like your laugh. I don't like your stupid Russian face. I don't like this office, or the smell of your breath, or your goddamned holier-than-thou attitude. Fuck off and just let me leave."

Crimson rolled her eyes when she saw Iron Fang hissing at The Curtain. "And he said I would mess this up!" She continued to watch, ready to break through the glass if Iron Fang needed her assistance, which he probably wouldn't need.

"You came to me Ivan. May I call you Ivan? Anyway, Ivan, I think you should not assume you could kill me so easily." The smile left his face again. "So how about you calm the fuck down and fucking take a seat." He said gesturing to the couch. "And tell me why you came to me."

Gorski snarled. He didn't like being bossed around. He tapped his fingers on the gun in his pocket. He had half a mind to just shoot the Russian bastard. But he didn't have a silencer and it'd be a very messy situation after that. He didn't want to go back to prison... He didn't do well in prison.

"I'll stand," he said roughly. "I am forming a group--the Syndicate of Murderers--to take down the Society of Crusaders. Totally and painfully." Outside of the window he could see their tower. God, it was like it taunted him where ever he went!

Vladimr chuckled again. "Really? Lofty goal. don't you think?" Losev sat down at his desk. "Why should I risk myself? I mean at the moment there is no pressure on my organization. What do you have to offer me?"

"At the moment there's not. But how soon will there be? They're right outside your window, after all. They're watching you. They're examining your weaknesses," said Gorski. "But, nevermind. If you're so stupid and complacent to just accept that, I don't want you after all. Good day, Mr. Losev. I look foreward to seeing your mugshot on in my morning newspaper."

"You're a complete idiot aren't you?" Said Losev cherrily. "You think you have the upper hand in this process? You truely think that don't you? I mean i'm quite skilled, and my skills should come with certian nicieties. Comitments. You see what I mean? Right now even if you kill me, you'll be the one on the front page of tommorrow's morning edition. And I know both of us wouldn't want that." Losev starred out the huge front window, and let his good disposition wash away slowly. "And if you don't agree to provide any incentives for what would be a (at best) unnessary movement on my part, I could make sure you and your beautiful confidant's dispelased faces appear on every front page and special bulletin in this city."

Gorski was already out the door. He'd had enough of Losev and his attitude and his condesending comments and his belittling. He was the idiot--not Gorski. Gorski knew how it was. Never mind all this buisness--he'd find some better muscle. Much better.

As he stepped into the daylight outside the CPAC, he wondered where the witch was. He'd told her to stay at the Fortress, but he was certain she hadn't.

"Yeah, he screwed up." She laughed and looked at The Curtain. She made a flirty wink at him and walked away from the window. "Time to go find, Fang. I bet he is in a bad mood." She walked back to the ladder and started to climb down. "Yeah, is going to take it out all on me. Hmph." She made an irritated face and hopped off the ladder once she reached the ground. "I know he hates me, I would probably get on his nerves anyway."

Vladimir took a sip from his drink, and let out a half hearted sigh, seemingly due to formality. " He truely is a moron." He stood up and walked over to his window and opened up the top where the air came in. "Would you like to join me in the office miss? Or would you rather stay on the ledge?" He said still starring out. "Gone huh? Oh well."He set his drink down on the table, grabed his coat and walked out.

Gorski started for the docks, shoulders hunched, hands in his pockets, cursing under his breath. "Fuckin' Commie. Fuckin' Crusaders. Fuckin' Crimson Witch. I hate all of them. Bastards," he muttered, staring at the ground as he walked.

The Crimson Witch saw Iron Fang muttering once she walked out of the alley. She disliked the look on his face, maybe it would make him happier if she helped? She turned right around and climbed the ladder again, maybe she could persuade The Curtain to join? She sat on the ledge, out of breath from climbing the ladder again. "God, Fang, can't ya just cheer up for once?" She was a bit nervous to go back to the window because The Curtain looked quite mean once he got irritated at Iron Fang. She knew that she irritated people easily, but she wanted Iron Fang to be actually happy of what she had done for once. Yet he might be even angrier if she persuaded The Curtain to join. Maybe he now hates The Curtain's guts like everyone else in the world. She huffed and spoke, "In love with a lunatic, what are you doing Crimson?" She had no idea what to do. "Dammit! I'm so confused!"

Vladimir briskly walked back into his office. He had forgotten the paperwork for tonight, if those went unfinished he would have never forgiven himself. He then slowly walked to the table and grabbed his drink. He had a new easiness to his him like something new was on his mind. He slowly made his way to the open window. "Come back to talk my dear?"