Syx frowned softly and picked up his drink, sipping it and closing his eyes as he enjoyed the taste. He let himself get far too worked up over this sort of thing.
“Lots of things… most of the places I own are in the ghettos and run down neighborhoods. Low rent housing, corner stores, food banks, shelters… that sort of thing. Usually built on the site of a recently destroyed building as part of the city’s Disaster Repair Plan. Somehow the money and the blueprints just magically appear while I’m conveniently behind bars,” he fluttered his lashes innocently.
“Honestly, my Uncles run the vast majority of it. I’m just the face. If you ever walk into a shop that has my signature in the window or graffiti on the walls, it’s mine. Under my protection. Which basically just means that if someone robs it then either me or one of my Uncles pays them a visit and lets them know why they shouldn’t do that again.”
He held up a hand, “No it’s not a protection racket. The only thing I get out of it, especially when it started, was just people willing to actually sell to me and Minion. By the way, Nancy down near Evil Lair, she has an amazing butcher shop. Top quality from local farmers. She deals in other things too, but that’s where Minion buys all our meat and fish. Just never cross her, she’s mean with a butcher knife,” Syx laughed, though he blatantly realized gallows humor might not be best, “And uh… welcome to my inner circle? Only Anna and the Blues know all this… and now you.”
Harrison chewed on his bottom lip as he listened. He had asked, it was only fair. And honestly, none of it sounded that bad. It seemed like what Syx had told them when they first met and Harrison smiled softly at the memory. He’d thought that day that this little villain was quite the hero, even if he knew Syx would never admit it. Some of the more illegal aspects still gave him pause….. but at least he knew Syx was standing up for what he believed in.
“Thanks for letting me in,” he finally said, extending his hand across the table for Syx’s. “I can’t say I entirely understand this criminal underworld, but if you’re willing to be patient with me…. I want to understand you. You’re a much better man than I think you give yourself credit for.”
Sliding his hand into Harrison’s Syx chewed on his lip, blushing slightly as he can down from his rant. He was really living up to the villain cliche of monologuing…
“I wish the word was different. I can’t even begin to tell you all the times I tried to dream up a different version of the world… it’s not uncommon you know? In the community… there are tiers of villainy,” he opened his mouth again, then thinking better of it, closed it again, “It doesn’t matter… I just hate how the world works. Sometimes I still get so angry at this rock of a planet… then I remember the people that live her that I love. And that love me back.”
Looking into Harrison’s eyes, he squeezed the man’s fingers, thumb running over his knuckles, “I just want the city to not be the same monster that chewed me up and spit me out. To be Metro City and not Metrocity,” he purposefully made the distinction in the name as he said it, rhyming the slurred name with atrocity, “For the next generation.”
RP backup 