Mason Cane sat on a fancy stone recliner next to a large pool, drinking from a bottle of bourbon that he guessed must have been over $500. He took a swig then passed it to his Enchantress, Lilith. She sipped it seductively then handed it back. He stretched then took a puff off one of the Cuban cigars they'd found in the walk-in humidor in the basement.
They'd each stayed at their different houses for the first couple of weeks, only meeting up when they wanted to go on raids. But the more they raided the more their skills advanced, and for Mason that meant that his control over them grew stronger the longer they stayed within the influence of his skill. Their protective skills also gave him all the security he could need, and he really didn't want to lose that bonus by letting them go too far. He reviewed the skills with a smile.
Group Motorcycle Skills:
Synchronized Surge: Your lieutenants' motorcycles accelerate in perfect unison, allowing them to break through barriers or enemy lines as one formidable unit. Ghost Formation: While riding, they can momentarily become intangible, allowing bullets and obstacles to pass through them without harm. Shadow Veil: The motorcycles emit a cloud of darkness, obscuring your group's movements and positions, perfect for ambushes or escapes.
Group-Based Defense:
Iron Phalanx: Your lieutenants form a tight, mobile formation around you, their motorcycles creating an energy shield that deflects attacks and projectiles.
Group-Based Attack:
Steel Maelstrom: Your lieutenants circle their enemies at high speed, creating a vortex that draws foes in before launching a coordinated barrage of their individual attacks.
HIs Dominance skill had reached level three and he was hoping for some sort of advancement when it hit five.
Skill Name: Dominion (Level 3)
Type: Mental Influence
Description: This skill is a system reward based on special achievements obtained. It embeds a covert influence within the psyche of your companions, subtly altering their perceptions and loyalty. Those affected maintain their individual personalities but view you as the paramount leader, whose directives must be followed without dissent. Their allegiance becomes unshakeable, prompting them to defend you and your decisions with unquestioning loyalty.
Effects:
Leadership Perception Enhancement: Enhances your perceived leadership qualities among your followers, making commands from you seem irrefutably correct and necessary. Loyalty Augmentation: Solidifies the loyalty of your followers, ensuring their unwavering support and defense of your actions and authority.
It had occurred to him that there were all kinds of places they could stay. For as long as he'd lived in Wisconsin he'd ridden his bike through the rich neighborhoods that bordered Lake Michigan. Rich fucks whose great, great grandfathers had invented the blender or some shit and set their families up for generations. He always started those rides just enjoying looking at the houses and imagining what it must be like to live in one, but by the time he'd get to the last one there would be a heavy ball of impotent rage threatening to choke him. Fucking rich fuckers never had to try for anything, while hard working guys like me have to live in some shitbox without even the luxury of fucking central AC. Those houses always turned into the clearest examples of what he'd never have, no matter how hard he tried or how lucky he got. Even if he won the lottery he'd never get one of these houses, since they just got passed down from generation to generation. They'd boxed guys like him out permanently and he'd never get to be in their special little rich kid clubs.
Not anymore. He'd taken his crew down to the lake and his lieutenants had cleared every fucking house on the strip. It was no surprise to Mason that the rich assholes who had never done a hard day's work in their lives didn't know how to work hard enough to gain levels either. They bunkered up in their mansions with their $1000 bottles of whiskey and their $500 bottles of chardonnay, or whatever these rich fucks drank. They thought that brick walls and panic rooms would keep them safe, but no one was safe from his Lieutenants and Enchantresses.
They'd ripped through those houses like kids opening Christmas gifts and now the whole fucking lakefront was theirs. He could have given each of his lieutenants a home of their own, but he didn't want them that far from him, so they all stayed here in the biggest mansion they could find. There were plenty of rooms to go around, after all.
Yeah, life was pretty fucking good these days. Mason had finally gotten everything he deserved and he had the muscle around him to keep anyone from fucking it up. So when Blake rode his bike through the house and into the backyard with a bleeding Dante on the back Mason felt his blood start to boil. Someone was trying to ruin his day.
Mason lunged out of his chair, still holding the bottle in one hand and the cigar in the other. "What the fuck happened to you?"
Dante tried to speak but his words came out a gurgling mess that just pissed him off even more. He turned to glare at Blake.
Blake turned off the bike and waited for Dante to climb off before swinging his leg over. "Viktor and Dante were late to check in. They were out patrolling by the zoo so we did some loops in that area. Me and Rodrick saw tire marks from the zoo leading to the interstate, then Viktor's bike. We saw him," he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at the trembling Dante, "walking his happy ass down the highway like he's going to walk back here or something. Probably would have died in the night if we hadn't found him."
"Where's Viktor?" Mason asked.
Blake dropped his head. "He's dead, boss. Someone pretty much took his whole head off."
Mason's eyes went wide and when he turned to face Dante. The terrified man dropped to his knees and started trembling. "What happened?" Mason yelled. When Dante only burbled an incoherent response Mason threw the bottle at him hard enough to smash it across his forehead and send him flying backwards into the house. He whirled around to Blake, hands balled up into fists.
Blake raised his hands in what he hoped was a peaceful gesture. "Rodrick went searching for whoever did this. All we know is that they were heading south. Viktor's bike is shot and they stole Dante's."
Mason was trembling at this point. Someone was trying to take what was HIS? Take HIS shit? He was going to rain blood down on whoever these motherfuckers were.
"Take him out to one of the neighborhoods we haven't raided yet and start killing people until he levels up enough to heal. Then get his ass back here so we can have a conversation."
Blake dipped his head and got back on the bike. It started with a throaty roar and he spun it around in place in a way that would have been unnatural and impossible pre-System, then he was roaring through the house, reaching down to scoop up an unconscious Dante by the collar and fling him onto the back of the bike without slowing.