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This story is about Swan's self-discovery after the events of the film. He doesn't know what to do. This picks up a month later.


Swan Song
Chapter 1

Swan shielded his eyes from the wind. It kicked up sand, the grit pelting his body. The sun was low over the horizon, rising slowly. He sat down with his
legs extended before him. It had been a month since Cleon's death. The streets were finally calming, things were returning to normal. The hangout was always bustling with activity, The Warriors eager to get back to action. The cops had finally quit pestering him about Virgil, too.

The light bathed the streets in orange. Swan was the only one out as far as he could tell. He walked the middle of the road, peering around at the various businesses, all dark, closed for the night. It would still be a couple hours before store owners started showing up. His thoughts turned to Mercy. He hadn't realized it when they met, but she was older. She was 21 years old, and Swan was only 17. He thought she looked younger. She moved out to Coney to be closer to him. He wasn't sure really how he felt about her, or anything else anymore. Nothing seemed quite real anymore, not since that night in the Bronx. Mercy had started working in the Little Buddha to pay for her apartment. Swan was standing in front of the store, peering into the darkness through the glass. He had his eye on a giant Led Zeppelin poster on the back wall behind the counter. It was the same design as the circle sticker in the center of their albums, the landscape with the sunset behind Apollo, the Swan Song mascot.

Swan shook his head. He couldn't quite figure out why this poster jumped out at him. "Swan Song," he said quietly to himself, "The sound of a dying Swan is supposed to be the most beautiful. Maybe the Warriors is ending... maybe it should. Maybe my song should be heard on this [bad word deleted]ing island. Maybe I should take off." Swan shakes his head, and walks off toward the clubhouse.

The clubhouse was empty. The only light on was the pinball machine in the corner, casting a sickly, technicolor glow throughout. He walked over to the sofa and laid down. Moments later, he was asleep. Hours later, a voice woke him. "Get up, Warchief!" It was Ajax. He had turned on the lights. Swan squinted and rubbed his eyes. "Finally out, huh?" Swan said. Ajax nodded, "Yeah, it's about [bad word deleted]in' time, too!" Swan sat up. "A month in juvie, huh?" Ajax plopped down in the easy chair and nodded. "So what's the deal, warchief? What are we doing these days?" Swan shook his head, and said, "I don't know anymore. We've just been hanging out, lately. No one's been [bad word deleted]in' with us. I'm thinkin' of takin' off." "You can't take off, Warchief, things are finally the way Cleon wanted." "Well this stopped being fun when Cleon got wasted!" Ajax was taken aback a little. He had never seen Swan yell like that. Ajax spoke carefully, "Well maybe we ought to get revenge, huh, warchief? Avenge his death. We all loved Cleon, we're all devastated at his death. So let's [bad word deleted]in' do somethin' about it!"

Vermin and Rembrandt entered the hangout. "What's going on, guys?" Rembrandt asked. No one answered. Swan stared at Ajax who was still sitting lazily in the chair. "[bad word deleted] it," Swan said, and walked out. "To hell with him," Ajax said smartly, "he's losin' it."
Swan walked down to the Little Buddha. "Hey, you got my beer?" he asked Mercy. "Well, hello to you too, Romeo," she said back, "Yeah, I got it." Swan took it and walked toward the exit. "What's with you, lately?" she asked. He turned and said, "I don't know anymore. I think I'm gonna take off." Mercy shook her head. "Swan, where are you gonna go, huh?" she asked him. He punched through the glass door. "I don't [bad word deleted]in' know!" he yelled, and stormed off.

ooooooh, I love this! please continue soon!!!

Chapter 2

Swan was back on the beach, drinking his beer. 8 bottles were already gone out of a 12-pack. Cowboy spotted him on the sand, sitting alone. "Swan!" he yelled out. Swan waved vaguely in his direction and continued drinking. Cowboy sat near him. Swan handed him a beer, but Cowboy put it down.
"Ajax is missing," he said quietly. Swan looked at him, and said, "why should I give a damn?" Cowboy sighed, and spoke again, "damn it, Swan, we need you. The Warriors ain't nuthin' without a warchief. We think Ajax went over to Union Square to find some of those punks." "What gives you that idea?" Swan asked. "Well, me and Cochise were tellin' him about all that happened after he got busted, and he was pretty pissed off about the Punks."
"Well, if Ajax is dumb enough to go out there on his own, let him. He's an ass anyway."
"Swan, what are you saying? Warriors never turn their backs on their brothers man, no matter what."
"If you can't tell, I'm trying to enjoy my buzz."
"Warchief-"
"Kiss my ass, soldier."
With that, Cowboy stormed off. Swan took a big drink of his beer, and drained the bottle. He grabbed the case with the remaining beers and stood up, brushing himself off.

As he walked down an alley, he noticed a Warriors burner on the wall, partly snuffed out. Swan put his beer down carefully, and picked up an empty bottle off the ground. With a loud yell, he threw the bottle with all his might, shattering it on the burner. He picked up his beer and kept on walking. Vermin was with the flash dealer around the corner. "What's up, warchief?" he asked. Swan didn't even look at him as he walked by. He stopped suddenly, and dropped his beer. He turned and darted back down the alley. He walked up to the burner and inspected it. Purple paint. Moonrunners. Swan stepped back, and looked at the whole thing.

It had an odd shiny quality. He reached out and touched it carefully. When he drew his hand back, his fingertips were stained in purple. "Wet paint!" he said urgently. "Vermin!" he called out. A moment later, he came around the corner. "What's wrong?" he asked Swan. "Look. Wet paint. Moonrunners." Vermin shook his head in disbelief. "Aw fuck, man, no way. When did this happen?"
"I don't know, but the paint is fresh. Where's Rembrandt? He's in trouble. The Moonrunners have the only painter that can rival him."
"Oh, Jesus! He's in the clubhouse!"
"Good, he's safest there. Let's get moving. Find any Warriors on the street you can. Assemble a war party. Get ready for battle."
"You got it, Warchief."
"And, Vermin?"
"Yeah?"
"I get wasted, you take over."
"You got it."

Swan took off back down the alley, passing Cowboy and a few newbloods on the way. "Come on! War party! Hangout, now!" he shouted as he ran past. The other Warriors followed, shouting to anyone in hearing distance to get to the hangout. Inside, the atmosphere was jovial. Rembrandt was enjoying the pinball machine. "Rembrandt!" Swan called out to him. He stopped his game and turned toward Swan. "Rembrandt, we got trouble. Moonrunners are on our turf, snuffing out burners. I haven't heard them causing any other trouble, I think they're here for you."
"Shit, warchief! What am I gonna do?"
"You're gonna stick close by me, that's what. Any word from Ajax, yet? Anybody?"
Silence.
"Snow, go over to Punks turf and see if you can find him. Cowboy, you're my second in this war, Vermin is leading a separate war party. We're gonna find, and crush these fucks."
A resounding cheer of excitement is heard. Cowboy nudges Swan, "Hey, warlord, I been waitin' to get back in battle."
"Don't get too cocky. We don't know what we're dealing with yet."

There was a loud sound as the door in the upper level, right by Swan, was kicked in. Police poured in like there was no tomorrow.
"Sweet Jesus!" Cowboy yelled. Swan quickly grabbed Rembrandt by the arm, and led him to the rail. "We're going over, we can get out down below." Then he turned and yelled to the dozen or so newbloods, "Take 'em all down!" Rembrandt jumped down to the lower level, followed by Swan and Cowboy. Swan cracked the door open and looked out. It was clear. "Come on, let's go." He hurried out the door and around the corner, the other two following quickly behind. "Smart move," said Cowboy, "bought us some time." "10 to 1 says the Moonrunners sent those assholes," Swan said, dysmally. "Hold up a second, man," Rembrandt said, "if we can make the Moonrunners think you and me were busted, we can really take them by surprise."
"Good, thinkin', soldier. I told 'em to fight, so they'll fight until they're busted or wasted. All newbloods, they'll do anything. We can hide in Skinny Pete's car lot a while, until we figure out what to do. Ajax would help out right now too, but we'll see what goes down."

awesome! please continue!

chapter 3

"Come on, man," Cowboy was saying, "what are we gonna do?" Swan shook his head and replied, "I haven't figured it out yet. I would like to assemble a war party and hunt them all down, but that could be suicide. Damn, I wish the Fox was here." Cowboy was playing with a small, plastic cup on the table before him. "I'm going," Swan said suddenly. Cowboy hopped to his feet, "What do you mean? Where you goin'?"
"I'm going on recon. We don't have a scout, so I should go."
"That's suicide, Warchief."
"Listen to me, it's my duty as Warchief to watch out for everyone... to do what's best for the Warriors, got it? Right now, Rembrandt is in trouble, it's my job to make sure he don't get japped out there. We need to know what we're dealing with here, or we couldn't hope to win this one."
"Fine. Do what you want. But the only one gettin' japped here is gonna be you."
"That's a chance I'm willing to take."
"You stay with Rembrandt... don't go anywhere, either of you."

With that, Swan left. The street was empty in the mid-morning light. Swan crept along the edge of the buildings, watching all directions for enemies. The sea breeze filled the air with the smell of salt. Swan still had a slight buzz, but he didn't care. Walking down the middle of the street were the shapes of two guys. Swan panicked, knowing he couldn't move without being seen. He stood stock still, frozen. He could see in his mind's eye these two alerting hundreds of Moonrunners, and him getting japped by a crowd. As the figures grew closer, he could make out that they were Snow and Ajax, his own soldiers. Swan stepped out into the street to meet them.
"What's going on?" Ajax asked quickly.
"Moonrunners are on our turf, we're gonna wreck 'em all."
"Good, I been waitin' for a little rumble."
"Where you been?"
"I went and found the Lizzie's pad. Vermin made them sound great, I went for a little action."
"Get what you were lookin' for?"
"Yeah, now I'm ready for a battle. Just tell me where to go."
"Head on back to SKinny Pete's, and wait in the trailer with Rembrandt and Cowboy, they'll fill you in. Snowball, come with me, we're pullin' scout duty."

Moments later, Swan was on the roof of a building on the corner, a block down from the hangout, Snow was in the alley behind. They had made a group of Moonrunners. There were three of them, and only two Warriors.
swan climbed down from the roof and met Snow. "Wreck two of 'em, bad. We'll take the third for questioning, and hold him prisoner."
"Let's get to it, Swan."
Swan nodded, and grabbed a pipe from the ground. He moved around the corner and walked up behind the Moonrunners. The pipe made a hollow, bone-crushing sound as it cracked the Moonrunner in the head. He went straight down, and didn't move. Snow grabbed another, and choked him to unconsiousness. Swan already had the third on the ground, his face pressed into the conrete.
"You're gonna tell us what we need to know," Swan said.
The Moonrunner nodded emphatically.
"Tell me, how many are here."
"40"
"Why? What do you want?"
"Two things. We want your painter dead. He's the best in the city, ours used to be. And we want Coney."
"Well here's a message for your warlord," Swan said, then lifted the guy's head off the ground, and smashed it face-first into the concrete, spraying blood.
Swan stood. "Come on. We know what we need to, let's get back and tell Ajax and the others. Help me with this piece of trash will ya? We'll hold him prisoner."

i love it! fighting is always good.
i was so excited to see that you updated.
continue soon!

chapter 4
The Moonrunner was heavy on Snow. He carried his enemy across his sholders in a fireman's carry. Swan took point and watched out for potential dangers. Snow trudged along down the street toward Skinny Pete's. His broad shoulders were beginning to hurt. Swan fell into stride beside him. "You sure you don't want help with this dude?" he asked his comrade. Snowball nodded, "You just keep your eyes open." The two reached the trailer several long minutes later.

Cowboy greeted them at the door. "You were gone a long time, we was gettin' worried," he said. Snow plopped the Moonrunner into a folding steel chair. Ajax stood in the corner with a sneer on his lips. "Hey," he said, "I got an idea." Ajax opened a utility cabinet and pulled out a coil of barbed wire. Snow smiled. "Yeah," Snow said, "make him pay for that burner."

Snowball propped up the Moonrunner, and Ajax carefully began to uncoil the wire, wrapping it around the Moonrunner, holding him to the chair. "Let's see this faggot get out of this one, huh?" Ajax said with grim satisfaction. Rembrandt looked as if he were going to be sick. "Come on," Swan said, "Let's see if we can't find Vermin. We got all we need from this pansy. Let's go, all of us." The party moved out, all 5. Swan, Rembrandt, Cowboy, Ajax, and Snowball.

They headed down the street side by side, the group strentching almost all the way across the street. Every one of them had instinctively entered soldier mode. Their senses were on high alert, they were ready to throw down if the time came.

The sound of police sirens could be heard no more than a couple blocks over. Cowboy spotted a Moonrunner in a phone booth.

"Look, Warchief," he said. Swan looked and saw. "Let's take him out," he said coolly. The 5 soldiered right up to the phone
booth, surrounding it. Ajax stood in the doorway, blocking his enemy from escape. "What are you doing, wimp?" he asked, "Callin' your friends, the boys in blue?" Ajax grabbed the Moonrunner by the ears, and smashed his head sideways into the glass, causing it to shatter. The Moonrunner was draped over the side of the phone booth, and Ajax pulled him out through the empty pane. "You're in trouble, now, fuckbag," he said. A police cruiser whipped around the corner, and Ajax threw the Moonrunner in front of it. His body was flung up into the air, and smashed through the windshield. The cop slammed on his breaks, and skidded down the street, out of control. The cruiser smashed the front of an ice cream stand. A fire broke out and spread rapidly over the car. It exploded in an orange cloud of fire. The Warriors felt as if they had instant sunburn. Ajax whooped and leapt into the air. "Fuckin' nice!" he shouted in excitement, thrusting his fist out before him. "Holy shit," Swan said, immediately worried.

More sirens tore through the air. "Let's get out of here!" Swan yelled, "Come on, this way!" He tore ass into an alley, followed closely by his soldiers. Ajax was actually singing. "See me ride out of the sunset on your colored TV screen! Out for all that I can get, if you know what I mean! Women to the left of me, women to the right! Ain't got no gun, ain't got no knife, but don't you start no fight..." the others sang along as they ran, "Cuz I'm TNT! I'm dynamite! I'm TNT, and I'll win the fight! TNT! I'm a power load! TNT! Watch me explode!" Now just Ajax again, "I'm dirty, mean and mighty unclean! I'm a wanted man!

Public enemy number one! Understand? So lock up your daughter! Lock up your wife! Lock up your back door! And run for your life! The man is back in town! So don't you mess me around!" The others joined in again, "'Cause I'm T.N.T. I'm dynamite ! T.N.T. but I'll win the fight! T.N.T. I'm a power load! T.N.T. watch me explode!!! T.N.T. oi oi oi T.N.T. oi oi oi T.N.T. oi oi oi
T.N.T. oi oi oi T.N.T. I'm dynamite T.N.T. But I'll win the fight T.N.T. I'm a power load T.N.T. Watch me explode!!!" The boys all cheered. "Good choice, Ajax! War songs!" Snow shouted. Now they are running with smiles on their faces, ready for this war.

Every one of them.




Hey, I appreciate the comments, man, it makes me feel like I'm not doing this for nothing.

TNT - AC/DC.

this was an awesome chapter.
continue soon!

Chapter 5

Vermin was up to his eyeballs in Moonrunners. "Jesus Christ, Cochise, when is it gonna end?" he yelled. Vermin's war party consisted of Cochise and 5 or 6 newbloods. "Chill, Vermin, we gonna get out," Cochise said. Vermin tossed a Moonrunner into a wall. "Come on," he said, "let's get the hell out of here, huh? Let's get out of here!" He took off, and the rest followed.

That's when they heard the explosion, and saw the fire, several blocks to their right. "What the hell is that?" Cochise asked, stopping in his tracks. Vermin stopped also and said, "Holy crap, man. Let's go see!" They headed off in the direction of the explosion. Off in the distance, they could hear shouts of "TNT!" Vermin smiled as he recognized the voices. They had lost the Moonrunners somewhere, and didn't care where.

Swan's party came bolting from around the corner in the alley. "Vermin!" he shouted. They met in the alley just behind a t-shirt shop. "Where you guys been?" Swan asked. Vermin caught his breath and spoke, "We almost got japped by the Moonrunners, but man, you know how heavy we are. You find anything out?"
"Yeah. I was right, they want to waste Rembrandt here, but they're also lookin' to expand their turf."
"How many?"
"The dude said 40."
"Ah crap, what are we gonna do, man, what are we gonna do?"
Ajax stepped up and said, "I'll tell you what we're gonna do, we're gonna wreck 'em all."
Swan nodded, "That's the idea, but we gotta be careful, there's cops all over the place, too."
"Damn it," Cochise said, "this is effed up."
The others laughed at his choice of wording.
Rembrandt voiced his concern, "Well what's next? The fuckin' Furies?"
Cowboy slapped him, and said, "Don't even joke about that."
Swan smiled slightly at the memory of lifting Cowboy off the grass in the park a month before. Rembrandt hadn't been there,

but he had heard the stories about how heavy they were. He wouldn't admit it to any of his brothers, but those stories scared the crap out him. A bunch of silent guys in weird face paint beating the crap out of people with baseball bats? As far as he was concerned, you could count him out of that one.
"Well now what, Swan?" Snow asked, bringing everyone back to the situation at hand.
"We're gonna soldier now, and take out anybody we find. Watch Rembrandt's ass, everyone, he's the target here, remember that."
Ajax clapped a large hand down onto Rembrandt's back, and said, "Stick with me, little brother, no one will fuckin' touch ya."
Rembrandt nodded nervously. There was no hiding his anxiety, but nobody could blame him for it.
"Let's roll," Swan said. They moved out into the street, and walked in a group down the middle, looking for battle.

There were cops down on the corner, 3 cars, with a total of 6 officers. The Warriors walked casually toward them, ready for anything. The cops appeared a little edgy. "You kids just stop right there!" one of them yelled. The Warriors just kept on moving toward them. The cops drew their guns and took aim at the boys. Swan said, "Don't worry. They can't shoot, none of us is packed." The boys kept on moving, and the cops lowered their weapons, realizing what the soldiers knew. The biggest of the cops whipped out his nightstick and went for Snowball. The cop moved to swing it, and Snow grabbed his arm, twisted it, and popped it out of it's socket. "Good move, soldier, disable without too much damage. He attacked you," Swan said, "Now let's take 'em out." The Warriors moved in quickly. Ajax grabbed two cops at the same time, each by their collars, one in each hand. He cracked their heads together and tossed them over a car. Cochise rocked one in the face with a swift fist to the eye. The cop took it straight on, then hit Cochise in the neck with his club. Cochise went down. Rembrandt had his back. He pulled out a can of spray and shot the cop in the eyes, then kicked him in the nads. Another cop down. That's 4 out of 6. Vermin was holding a cop in the air over his head. He moved over to a bench and dropped the cop on it, face first. He didn't get back up. Swan had grabbed the last cop from behind, and held him still while the newbloods took turns beating the crap out of him. Swan dropped him, and let him lie. "Come on, soldiers," he said, "Let's go find the Moonrunners. Now the cops know we mean business, maybe word will get out that we're coming down."

wow, nice chapter.
cant wait to read more!

that was hella good

One of the best stories i've read on here

Indeed!!

Chapter 6

   Ajax soldiered along with the others, displeased. "Come on, when are we gonna waste some heads?" he asked, anxiously. "Ajax, shut up," Swan replied. Ajax grumbled but kept his mouth shut.

It was mid-afternoon, the sun was already beginning to wane over the cityscape, neon lights coming on all over the city. The sky started to turn to that soft purple color it gets soon before twilight. "It's gonna be dark soon," Swan said, "it's gonna start gettin' real dangerous, everybody stay on your toes." Ajax knew damn well that Swan was a good leader, he handled himself, as well as the others, very well, and watched out for everyone, including Ajax himself. The others had told him how he reacted when he heard of his arrest, but his pride kept him from accepting it.

   Cowboy felt strange, somewhere between nervous and thrilled. He was antsy, but he thought he was hiding it well. Swan tapped him, and when he looked back, he noticed everyone had stopped. Cowboy was the only one ahead of Swan. Swan put a finger to his lips, and everyone was silent. Swan dropped back a little and stood alone. He listened carefully as his eyes darted around. They all heard it now. Very distant sounds of destruction. "Let's go!" His command came quickly. They all ran for it, following Swan. Moonrunners were all over the place.

   The sounds had been coming from the Little Buddha. The Moonrunners had been raiding it."Last of an Ancient Breed" was on the radio in the back, playing loudly. Swan had considered that the most important song in his life, it described his life, and he identified with it. Not the best battle song, but it put him in the mood. "Take 'em out, soldiers!" he yelled in fury. He ran full-speed, and threw himself through the crowd, diving head-first into the store. Mercy was tied to a chair in the corner, the Moonrunners all around.

His anger got the best of him, and he raged out, hardly aware of what he was doing. "Seize this moment in your hand!" he screamed to himself as Desmond Child sang it, just as the first chorus was beginning, and Swan meant it with every bit of himself. He grabbed the nearest Moonrunner by the affro, and smashed his face into his own knee, busting the Moonrunner's nose.

   Ajax was in his element. He was violent without the anger. "Come on, pussy, get up!" he yelled at his downed opponent. He grabbed a sliver of glass from the floor and jammed it into the Moonrunner's temple. "Let's see you get up now, asshole," he said with satisfaction. Swan caught it from the corner of his eye and came back to himself. "Ajax!" he yelled, "kill only at necessity!" "Hey, it was necessary, warchief, this [bad word deleted]er's on our turf, remember?" "I [bad word deleted]in' mean it, Ajax." "Alright already!" Cochise kung-fu kicked a dude in the neck. "Everybody was kung-fu fightin', sucka!" he yelled.

   Swan worked quickly to untie Mercy,  and ran with her out the back door. They were in the alley. "You still drunk, Warrior?" she asked. "No, my rage pretty much killed the buzz, thank you. Now come on, will you?" "Hey, where we going?" she inquired.
"To the train. You need get out of Coney until it's safe."
"I wanna stay with you."
"You're not a Warrior."
"No, I ain't no Warrior, but I am your girl, ain't I?"
"Yeah, and that's why I want you safe."
"And it's why I wanna stay."
"It's dangerous, don't you get it?"
"I get it, warlord, but I been hangin' around gangs my whole life."
"I hope our kids aren't as stubborn as you."
"Our kids? What are you sayin', Swan?"
"Nothin', forget it. Just get the hell outta here, will ya?"
"I ain't goin' nowhere."
"Fine, but it's not my fault if you get japped."

   He turned and went back inside the store, fuming. Mercy was disappointed. She thought she had seen a new side of Swan, but he had gone and said something that changed it. She didn't quite understand him anymore, but she was sure he didn't either.

   Inside, the scene was chaos. The pinball machine had been torn apart, it's leg was off, and as far as he could tell, wrapped around a Moonrunner. Glass was everywhere, and so was blood. The radio DJ was talking now. "Alright babies," she began, "here's the scene today. It looks like the Moonrunners went whiney and started workin' with the cops down in Coney to try and get rid of The Warriors. They're upholding their turf so far, with a few minor explosions from what I hear. Keep on boppin', Warriors, those sissy Moonrunners won't last long. Now here's a little hit with those Moonrunners in mind." Love Gun by Kiss began. "[bad word deleted]in' A!" Ajax shouted, "nice war song!" Snow sang the chorus as he rumbled. "No place for hidin', baby! No place to run!"

   Rembrandt had a Moonrunner in a headlock, and was repeatedly bashing his face against the counter. "Come on, little girl," he was saying, "quit your cryin'!" He slammed the Moonrunner into the ground, and lifted the cash register off the counter. It came down hard onto the Moonrunner's back, the cash drawer popping open. Rembrandt quickly collected all the cash, and stashed it in his satchel.
   
Vermin picked up a lava lamp, and smashed it over the head of a nearby Moonrunner, then used the base to burn a circle into the guy's face. The lamp had been on all day, and was hot as hell. Ajax was in a group of Moonrunners, swinging away. Just where he loved to be. "Come on, ya buncha wimps, gimme a challenge!"

   Cowboy was being held by two Moonrunners, while a third pounded his bloody fce. Swan moved quickly, and grabbed the Moonrunner from behind by the throat. "Why don't you fight fair, bitch?" he said in a tone that frightened Cowboy. Low, but mean, sick kind of, like Norman Bates would act. He turned swiftly, flinging the Moonrunner to the side, into Snow, who he knew would take care of him. Swan hit the guy on the right as hard as he could, knocking out a couple teeth. Cowboy was still being held by the other, but Swan had freed his other hand. He used his free hand to pound in the Moonrunner's nose, then smashed it upward, causing the Moonrunner to collapse, limp as a rag doll. The Warriors all stood
among their fallen enemies, none were standing.

   "Good job, Warriors," Swan said, "Now let's go see what's up in the hangout."




Chapter 7


The Warriors moved down a back alley on their way to the hangout. ?I don?t know what we?re gonna see when we get back,? Swan said, ?So let?s be prepared. Rembrandt, time to put your plan into action. Me, you, Cowboy, and Ajax are all gonna hide out a while, make ?em think we ain?t here. And we?ll sneak in through the back and start wreckin? people.? Ajax piped up, ?So we?re actin? like wimps?? Rembrandt shot him a look, and said, ?No, but we can take the Moonrunners by surprise, you?re the meanest warrior there is, and Swan is a close second, we give ?em a false sense of security, then burst in and shock ?em, we can turn the battle in our favor.? Cochise laughed, ?Hey, listen to Mr. Booksmarts over here!?

Swan spoke up again, ?Vermin, you?re war chief now, lead ?em in. Alright, let?s move.?

Vermin led the rest in, Snow, Cochise, and the new bloods. They hauled ass and burst through the upper door by the TV. All hell broke loose immediately. The Moonrunners had trashed the place, stuff was everywhere. Vermin smashed a Moonrunner?s head through the TV screen. Snow was taking people out left and right. Cochise was landing kung-fu kicks to heads. The scene was insanity.

Vermin broke the railing and grabbed a large stick of wood from the debris, and used it as a war club. He smashed an enemy in the nose, causing his crimson blood to splatter every which way. Cochise lifted the round table and smashed it down over a Moonrunner?s head, knocking him out instantly.

Outside in the alley, Swan and his party waited restlessly. Swan had crawled inside himself, and was searching his mind. He thought about the Warriors, and considered leaving, wondering how much better his life might be elsewhere. Memories flooded his mind. The murder of his mother, which had led him to a life in the streets to begin with. He still hadn?t gotten revenge, much as he wanted to, but he still wasn?t as strong as he felt he should be. Before joining the Warriors, he had been a crack addict, which was why he was so wiry and thin. He had even pulled away from Cowboy, and began spending all his time and money with LC. LC stabbed him in the back, which opened his eyes to the ways of the Destroyers, which he realized was a scene he wanted no parts of. He got back with Cowboy, who shared his opinion, and the two left together. He learned a lot of skills while running with the Destroyers, how to fight for one thing, which he naturally excelled at, becoming one of the best soldiers around. He was also brilliant, book smart, which went unappreciated in the streets. But it was this intelligence which Cleon saw in him, which made Cleon ask him to join up. Swan took him up, knowing that Cleon had a good heart, a soldier though he was. He had been clean since that night, quit doing crack. It was in Turnbull turf where his mother was killed .She had worked in that area. Before that had happened, Swan was a clean-cut school house nerd. He still kept his school work up, but was focused on soldiering. He thought about school, knowing he could be anything he wanted, even a doctor. He considered finishing high school, then going on to college, somewhere far away. Making himself a good life, maybe with Mercy.

?I?m sick of this crap! When are we goin? in!?? Ajax said loudly. Swan came back to himself. ?OK, let?s move,? he said quickly. They entered the old warehouse on the level below, and moved up the stairs in a close group. Ajax ran in and started busting heads without hesitation. Cowboy picked up a wooden plank from the floor, and started swinging it. A Moonrunner charged at Swan, who ducked and flipped him over the edge onto the concrete floor below.

Ajax landed a heavy blow to the face of one, and an elbow to the one behind him. Both went down. He turned and nailed one in the throat, who fell, unable to breathe.

Chapter 8

Cowboy felt hot blood running from his brow, and was blind in his right. It was filled with blood. His whole head hurt, and the world felt as if it were spinning. He was quickly losing consciousness. He saw Snowball near him, as he threw a foe into the sofa. That was the last thing he remembered.

Ajax was holding a Moonrunner up by his collar as he landed blow after blow into the wimp?s face. When he was sure the Moonrunner wouldn?t be able to stand on his own, Ajax let go, and allowed his enemy to collapse. ?Alright!? His fists were beginning to hurt, but he didn?t mind the pain, he reveled in it.

Swan was slapping a few of them around, using a thick wooden table leg. He whacked the last of them in the head, which gave birth to a sickening crack. The Moonrunner went down, bleeding from his skull. ?Come on,? Swan said, ?let?s go find their war chief and see if he?s ready to surrender. If not, then we?ll make him wish he had.? Ajax grinned ?I?m hopin? for choice B.?

The Warriors soldiered out into the street, where they met a small group of Moonrunners. They stood with their hands in the air, no weapons. Swan stepped up, motioning for Ajax to follow. Swan spoke softly to Ajax. ?Listen to me, I?m trusting you right now, for the first time, ok? Don?t make it the last. Don?t lip off, and don?t swing unless I give the order. I want you on my back in case it?s a trap.? Ajax nodded with a cold glint in his eye.
The two made their way to the group. Swan spoke first. ?Where?s your leader?? One Moonrunner stepped forward, and nodded. ?I?m the leader. You Warriors are pretty heavy. I?d tip my hat to you, only I ain?t wearin? one.? Ajax sneered, ?Yeah, no one messes with us. When they do they go home in a sponge.? Swan shot him a quick, cold glare. Ajax narrowed his eyes, but stepped down. The lead Moonrunner reached into his jacket pocket and produced a pack of smokes and a box of matches. He reached out and held the smokes in front of Swan, who took one, and put it between his lips. He then turned toward Ajax, offering him a smoke. He took two, put one between his lips and the other behind his ear. ?Ajax,? Swan said with a look. The Moonrunner spoke up, ?No, it?s no problem, he can have two.? The Moonrunner then lit each of them up, and lit up his own. ?The name?s Gil. I?m prepared to surrender, if you?ll accept it.?
Swan eyed him up. ?On what terms?? Gil exhaled a large stream of smoke. ?We?ll spread the word of your rep. And we won?t mess with any of your guys.? Swan nods. ?OK, fine. I also expect taxes. On whatever rackets your run, drugs, gambling, whores, whatever. I want a 10% tax on everything, got it?? Gil shakes his head and sighs. ?You got it, Warrior. I can?t really say no, I guess.?

Swan takes a long drag of his cigarette and blows the smoke out. He speaks again. ?Once a week I?ll send a group out to your turf, tax collector?s. They see all your books, do the math, and get 10%, every Friday night.? Gil nods. ?OK, every Friday night. But I wanna know who?s comin? and I wanna meet these dudes. And I wanna know I can trust ?em, I wouldn?t wanna have to tell the Riffs you?re rippin? us off.? ?No one?s gonna rip you off, I?ll make sure of it. So here?s the group, a group of 3, Vermin, the bearer and treasurer. He takes care of our dough, he?s good with numbers. Ajax, heavy muscle, for protection when we?re making our way through enemy turf. And myself, to make sure nothing funny happens. Fair enough?? Gil nods. ?OK, Warriors. Terms of surrender accepted?? ?Accepted.? Swan drops his cigarette and stomps it out, Gil follows suit, Ajax smokes up the other half all in one long drag, then throws it down and follows suit.

Gil turns and walks away, the Moonrunners follow. Swan looks to Ajax. ?You need some work, and a little more discipline? but I think you?re gonna make a pretty good second in command.? Ajax rolls his eyes and starts to walk away. Swan grabs his arm. ?Hey,? he says. Ajax stops and turns. ?Listen, I don?t know how much longer I?m gonna stick around, ok? I might need a replacement? I wanna know I can trust you.? ?Sure, you got it, man,? Ajax says, then walks away. Swan moves in the opposite direction, heading toward the beach. He stands out on a pier, staring out over the water. He hears quiet footsteps behind him, and turns. Mercy is moving toward him. ?So how ?bout it, Warrior? Them Moonrunner go home??
He stands still, staring out over the water. ?Yeah, they?re gone. War?s over.? She moves closer and puts an arm around him, he doesn?t move. ?Hey, c?mon,? she says, ?what?s the problem?? He sighs deeply. ?I don?t know. I don?t know where I belong, I don?t know what I should do. I got another year left of high school, then what? I can?t be a Warrior forever. And my mom?? She looks up at him. ?What about your mom? And when the hell am I ever gonna meet her?? Swan stares down at his feet and shakes his head. ?You won?t get to? She?s been dead for 3 years. She got wasted up in Gunhill. The AC?s took her out one night after work, she was coming home last one night, they tried to rob her, we didn?t really have any money so she wouldn?t give it up, and they killed her, right there in the street, and took it all. That?s why? all this. The Warriors, the fighting, everything, that?s what I?m doing here. That?s why I?m on these damn streets night after night, working out, fighting, building up my skills. I want revenge, retribution.? ?I?m sorry? I never knew she was dead.? ?Hey, it?s ok. I mean, I?m older now, and I can take care of myself. I have direction, I have a life now. I?m somebody, I have a rep. And I have a responsibility. I am a Warrior, I will always be a Warrior, it?s where I belong, it?s who I am. I am a Warrior!?

The ocean waves crashed around them out on that pier, and the breeze blew in from the ocean and cooled their moist skin. He put his arm around her, and drew her in close, and the two stood there, gazing out over the ocean. ?I am, a Warrior.?


OK everyone, that concludes my first ever warriors fanfic. Lemme know what you guys think.