Outskirts of San Marino, Italy
Traveling in style wasn't something that Chief Bruno DeLuca enjoyed too often, and yet he did it on a weekly basis. Even the smoothest flying aircraft gave him motion sickness. So he popped a pill in his mouth and nursed another sip of his complementary $1000 glass of champagne.
Being the Chief of the San Marino 1st Precinct, DeLuca enjoyed many privileges. But some he had to keep more discreet than others. The trip he was currently on was one of results for those types of privileges. If the public ever found out where he was headed, he would not only lose his pleasant life style, but would also face imprisonment, or even execution. So he and his associates took extreme measures to ensure his anonymity.
Was it worth the risk?
This question crossed DeLuca's mind every time he found himself sitting in that rich sheep skin leather. And every time it did, he would immediately answer himself that it was not. But he was already in so deep that he no longer had a choice. So he just kept his head down and tried to cool his pounding head with more champagne.
His craft finally lands in a secluded mountain forest that overlooks the city and coastline. The mountain itself is privately owned and closed off to civilians.
There a waiting ground attendant opens his door the moment the craft touches down. DeLuca hands him the half finished champagne and walks a red carpeted path that lead to the entrance of what looked like a Roman cathedral.
Waiting in front of the steps was young woman in a black pencil dress. Bianca Romano, one of the Heads personal assistants. Though she looked like a typical assistant, DeLuca knew she was a extremely dangerous person.
"Mr. DeLuca, I trust your trip was as pleasant as usual."
"Yeah, it was fine. Is everyone else here yet?"
"You are the last to arrive."
"Great, lets get this over with."
"Of course. There is only the matter of young master, who is going to be a little late."
"But didn't you just say everyone-"
"The young master is here, but he has a prior engagement to attend to before the meeting begins."
That kid... no doubt he getting off of something huge right now.
"Now, if you'll please just follow me to the conference room."
Despite just arriving, DeLuca was already having a bad feeling and wished he could get back into the craft and fly back into the air if it meant he didn't have to spend anymore time near this godforsaken place.
They enter the building together and the moment he did, the stench of the air was strong enough to make him puke then and there. It was the mixture of smoke and burning incense that made the lump in Deluca's throat swell. It was like it was the smell of sin itself.
This was why it was only fitting that the name of this club was Heaven's Sin.
Once a holy sanctuary, this cathedral was the center of a village who gathered here almost daily for prayers. But that was centuries ago, before the war that scarred the world. Along with much of the village, the cathedral was turned to ruble as part of the horrific aftermath.
The remaining villagers tried their hardest to restore the cathedral to it's former glory, but they were powerless. They prayed for a miracle, but instead welcomed the devil in by mistake.
When the war ended, a man, appearing to them as their friend and fellow worshiper offered them the money and resources not only to rebuild the cathedral, but make it even grander than ever before. When the cathedral was finished, it was greater than Notre-Dome cathedral before it's demise.
But now the man who once seemed like a saint from heaven, showed his true colors and became a smiling demon. He demanded an impossible sum of money as payment for the cathedral from the shattered villagers. When all they could do was beg, he took what was left of their land as compensation and drove them from the mountain.
This conman was Dante Giovanni de Benedetto II, the great-great-grandfather of the current head of the Benedetto Family, Lorenzo V.
This club runs a deep in the history of the Benedetto Family and their rise in power. By gaining this mountain, they gained access to a massive amount of untouched resources. From lumber and silver, to drugs and human trafficking, all manner of trade took place here and their influence grew across the criminal underworld.
DeLuca wasn't a fan of this story, being that he was once an upstanding cop, but that part of was now in the past. As they walked through the main hall, music could be heard from chapel room. Ahead, two huge security details, who, when Miss Romano snapped her fingers, immediately pulled the doors open to the booming festivities inside.
Even during the daytime, the club was packed. Hundreds of exclusive members of all ages from all over the world gathered here to do who knows what. Some of them were here in hiding while others just stayed for the company. Almost all of them were under the influence of the latest wonder drug.
The room was already past max capacity, but Miss Romano kept leading DeLuca forward through the crowd until they reached back where the altar was preserved with a velvet rope surrounding it. Removing one of the ropes, she placed her hand on top of the alter. There was indication that it was being scanned, but after she took it off, the alter slid back, revealing a staircase to the underground floor.
The stairs led to a different, more quiet corridor where every inch of the walls were lined with valuable works of art belonging to the Benedetto's private collection. DeLuca was sure each one was stolen, he's even received a few as gifts on various occasion.
When they finally reached the conference room, Ms. Romano gestured him to enter. He walks into a dimly-lit room where a large wooden conference table stood in the center. There were 13 other individuals seated around the table; DeLuca knew them as member of Benedetto's closest advisers and under bosses.
When DeLuca came in, their eyes darted towards him, but then immediately looked away. They must have been waiting a while for the Head to come. DeLuca went to find his seat which, to his surprise, turned out to be right up front next to the Heads seat at the front of the table.
At first he thought it was a mistake, but his plaque was there and nobody would crazy enough to mess with the seating order here. This could only mean that there was a matter of life or death he would be facing. But what could it be?
Aside from his usual duty to the Head as an informant and running interference, he had one other job that he didn't even understand that well.
$#!&, this is probably why it got so quiet when I got here!
DeLuca looked around the room, but nobody would make eye contact with him. It was as if a blade was dangling over his head. He felt the cold sweat drip down his neck.
They all just sat in there seats, not saying a single word or exchanging any looks with one another.
Than after what felt like an eternity, the doors opened again. A small group of individuals walked in. The current Head, Lorenzo V, was in the lead.
Everyone, DeLuca included, immediately stood up and bowed in a unified motion as Lorenzo moved to the the front of the table. He casually plopped into his chair and sat in a very undignified manner. Standing behind him is the group of individuals that followed him inside, all hidden in the shadow. One of them steps forward. Ms. Bianca Romano, who is now holding some sort of tablet, stands next to Lorenzo like a personal maid would.
"Ok guys, 'nough with the formality $%#. Just sit the %@$# down already."
As usual he appears to be hung over, but that's not always the case.
Lorenzo V is a young man who had turned 25 a few months ago. With messed up curly hair and a patch of scruff on his face, Lorenzo looks like a university student who just woke up after a night of partying. He kept one eye shut while he looked across the quiet room, but that was how his eye was since he was born.
"Today's meeting is going to be a little different from the usual situation reports and competitive ass-kissing."
This is serious...
DeLuca felt a chill from the Head's words as he spoke. Everyone else around him seem to have felt it too.
"Bruno?"
"Yes Head?!" DeLuca screams, startled at being called right off the bat.
"You got any aspirin?"
"I-I have prescription pills for motion sickness, but I'm not sure if-"
"Just give me some, will ya."
"Yes Head!"
"And shut up."
"..."
DeLuca hands his boss the capsule of pills he had in his pocket, which Lorenzo just rips open and pours the remaining directly into his mouth.
The results were almost immediate. Lorenzo wiped his head with a hot towel that an attendant had on stand by and sat up in a more dignified matter.
"Aaugh... much better. Thanks Bruno." He says, tossing back the empty pill bottle to DeLuca who catches it with a weak smile.
"You're welcome, Head."
"Where do get that stuff anyways?"
"The Precinct has a special health plan for veteran officers."
"Great, see if you can pick me up a few bottles of those when you get back."
"I'll handle it, Head."
"That'd be appreciated. Now, where were-Yes!! We have much bigger business to discuss today!"
Head of the Benedetto Family and received my father's inheritance. Before then, I was just some rich kid living off his family's fortune, no goals in life and no vision of my own. Just some punk who didn't even care if he were to live to see the next day. That was, until the day my father died and my brother and sister disappeared."
At the mention of his father, almost everyone at the table bowed their head in reverence to their previous head. Even DeLuca felt the need to honor his former leader.
Lorenzo's father, Lorenzo IV, the previous Head, died 3 years ago this month at the age of 72. He lived a very healthy life for an old man who ran a criminal empire. His priority was always about the growth of that empire before his own personal pleasure, making him capable of tripling his assets in a short amount of time. It wasn't even until he was in later years that he decided to have an heir before it was too late.
He chose 3 mistresses to bear his children, each of whom had a rare ability they'd hope would pass onto their child.
The first born was Dante IV, the original heir. He showed great potential and his father gave him everything he ever wanted or needed.
Three days later, the beautiful yet fragile daughter Emilia was born. her condition was so severe that she was never allowed to leave her bedroom, which made her disappearance even more troubling.
A week after her birth, Lorenzo Jr. was born. He was healthy, but his mother didn't survive the birth. This rare occurrence left a dark impression on him, which perhaps was the reason his father shunned him.
As they grew older, Lorenzo jr. was almost entirely ostracized. He spent his entire youth abroad, where all he did was partied his life away.
Then one day he was suddenly called to come home immediately. There he found a sickly old man who resembled his father, laying on his death bed.
Out of the blue, his father told him that his brother and sister were missing and that he had no other choice but to pass his mantle to him. He died the next day and with that, Lorenzo suddenly became the the ruler of an entire criminal empire.
"It's been almost 4 years since my father's death. He was an admirable leader and business man. Almost feels like yesterday that he was still here, doesn't it?"
"Yes Head, that's very nostalgic."
"We all miss him dearly."
Many from the table gave their replies of grief for Lorenzo's father, almost as though his death was yesterday. But the mood quickly changed.
"I almost wish I could say that I miss him like the rest of you, but my old man was a far better boss than he was a father. To me, he will always be just a greedy, fat bastard."
This made them all feel uncomfortable, especially the Mr. Carson, who was personally close to the previous head as his first captain. Sure their was the new Heads honest opinion, but to disgrace their old mentor in front of his colleagues was just unprofessional.
"But if there was one thing that I learned from him, it was how to see the future. And I see a glorious future. So, DeLuca."
"Yes, Head?"
"Would mind standing up for a minute?"
"Of course, Head"
Unsure what was going on, DeLuca got up from his seat.
"Those of you who are still sitting down, as of this moment, consider yourselves relieved of duty."
At first everyone else in the room were just stoned faced from what they heard, perhaps a little confused. but After a few seconds it finally started to sink in. And the shouting began.
"Is this a joke!?"
"Unfortunately it's not."
"What!? You cant't do this!"
"I can and I will. Now all of you, please leave at once."
"You Brat!!" One of the men from the table stands up and points a finger at Lorenzo as though it were a gun. "We're the ones who run everything here! You expect us to roll over and abandon decades worth of our work on a whim!"
Everyone else began to stand up, But Lorenzo didn't seem to care.
"Yes, Mr. Carson. That's exactly what the plan is."
"Heh.. then you must be insane! Even if you're the head, you're still just a powerless weakling. Everyone here are all high ranking combatants! We could've easily crushed you any time we wanted to!" Carson looks around's to see that everyone else getting into a fighting stance.
"...It looks like now is as good of a time as ever." He said cracking a wicked smile.
"Well that's unfortunate to hear." Saying that, He snaps his finger and every man and woman around the table were suddenly smashed hard onto the tables surface by some invisible force.
From behind the Head, an oddly shaped silhouette was lifting an arm towards the table.
"UGH!!" They scream as their faces pressed hard against the wood. The pooling blood indicated that at the least their noises were broken. But their scream were muffled, with no space between their skin and the wood to say anything else.
"Honestly I wished we could settle this peacefully, but then you had shout at me so rudely. And I was just getting over my headache, too."
He signals Ms. Romano, who puts down her tablet, walks over to the opposite side from DeLuca where Carson sat.
"I guess I'll have to do things the old fashioned way. Bianca?"
"Yes, Sir."
Ms. Romano her head leans over Mr. Carson's, who begins to panic when he realized what was about to happen.
All she simply does is lick the back of his neck, but that was more than enough. Starting from that ear, his flesh begins bubbling and oozing off. He screams and convulses in agony as his entire body melts into a pile of goo.
Everyone on the table could only scream and beg in horror as their turns came one by one.
DeLuca who could barely watch, threw up over himself, to which Lorenzo patted him on the back.
"Don't worry Bruno. We still got work to do."
"Yes Head."
"What's the status of the Kharon?"
"S-she's on course, Head."
"Good. Lets get you cleaned up and have a nice talk?"
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