Max didn't feel guilty, not even one bit. Because of him, the entire town was suffering. If they didn't do whatever the four-armed gang told them to, they would end up like the guy with the shotgun. "Geez. I didn't think it would reach this far but yet again...." Max said to himself, then the signature *ding* rang in his head. He opened the system panel and read:
[ Your actions have consequences. The whole town is suffering because of you. Quest: Save the town from the Four Armed Gang. Get rid of them completely.]
Max rubbed his eyes and re-read the entire notification again. " How the hell am I supposed to get rid of this gang? They have two mutants on their side and I barely know what I am. Even though, I do love a good challenge. Bring it on!!" Max smiled inwardly. In the middle of his grin, another notification came up..
[ Taking down a gang is tiresome especially when alone. Start your own gang and grow stronger with it. Reward ???]
"Perfect. What better way to kill a gang than to start a gang, better yet, a rival gang? I'm going to enjoy this."
After the lady with the mask spoke, gang members went to different stores collecting either money or valuable items. For those who could spare the cash, they had no choice but to do so but for those who couldn't, their shops got wrecked.
" Oh no. My parents. What will they do to the dojo?" Sue said with a sad tone. Max looked at her and everyone suffering because of his idea and that's when he felt a little remorse toward them. Some people cried while others were beaten mercilessly. He opened the system tab again and re-read the notifications again. Slowly reading and understanding them made Max think of a plan. He needed to find a way out of this, for his sake and the sake of the town, not because he had to but because he desperately wanted to test out his power and get rid of the mutant gang filth that brought themselves to his peaceful town.
Max accepted both quests and said to himself, "This is going to be a long year," Max said as he looked at his friends. After an hour of collecting 'protection money from the stores, the gang members returned to their warehouse base and they left behind broken store owners with some having been beaten while the students returned to their classrooms and finished their work for the day. After another terrible day, it was time for the students to return home and since most of the students of Raid High were frightened for their lives, they decided to travel in groups. Lucky CJ had a ride back to his place so Max was left with Sue. Before they left, Max first pulled Sue aside and told her he had something to discuss. When all the students and teachers left, Max and Sue headed to the school roof to discuss.
" What's wrong Max? What do you want to talk about?" She asked. Max hesitated a little bit but he ignored his guilty conscious and told Sue everything about the system and the notifications he kept getting. As he did so, he got a message that said;
[ You've told someone your secret. Doing so puts you and them in danger. Be sure to trust them with your life.]
Max ignored it and continued with his story to Sue. Her facial expressions could change from surprised to happy then from sad to furious. " What the hell Max? Why didn't you keep it somewhere safe or tell the police? Now what, you're telling me you're a mutant now?" If there was one thing Sue hated, it was mutants. She hated the fact that they controlled the world simply because of their abilities but the fact that her best friend became one forced her to change her views on them.
" C'mon Sue. Don't tell me you wouldn't have looked at the briefcase too. Besides, who knows what would have happened if we took it to the police? They may be crooked cops and some would have turned us in. Come on. Trust me this will be an interesting year for us if we keep this thing, well if I keep this."
" Augh fine. I may hate mutants but I'm willing to look over it, only for you Max but why must we start a gang in order to get rid of one?" She asked. Max had the signature *ding* again and opened the system. To him, he could see the system panel in front of him but to Sue, he looked like an insane man rolling his eyes for nothing.
[ It takes two to tangle. Only a gang can stop a gang. By forming a neighborhood-friendly gang, you'll get the support of the public to take down your rivals. Doing so will earn you the respect you need and support.]
Max explained more to Sue about the gang and they finally came to a conclusion. Sue was going to do more research on what it takes to start a gang while Max would learn more about his system and how he could get stronger. If he had to kill for it, he dared himself to, that is if the person was deserving.
" Sleep on it Max. We'll have to tell CJ about this too. He's your friend after all."
" I'd rather we wait. CJ can overreact a little. Who knows what he'll do if he learns Raid town is this way because of us."
" Agreed. Let's head home. My parents will get worried soon."
Max and Sue walked to their respective residences and did as they promised to each other. Sue had her connections with people in the underground business so she did a little digging and came up with a few notes. Max was still searching on the web for fires mutants but he still got the same picture of the mutants that could only shoot fire from their hands.
" Well Max, looks like you're going to become what you used to hate the most." Max pulled out a small locket that had a picture of his dad on it. He rubbed his thumb on his dad's picture and said to himself, 'Perhaps this is a way the Lin family will be remembered. I wonder what this system has in store for me.' After an hour of searching and imagining all the things he could do, he decided to go to sleep early so that he could wake up even earlier before the annoying notifications popped up.