Guns, Jewels, and Choccy Milk

Chapter Two: The Rivals

"Long time no see, sis." Gavin smirked.

"Cut the shit, Gavin." Quinn retorted. "What do you want?"

"I want an alliance." Gavin said, wasting no time. "The Gangster Gang and the Purple Vipers. The Purple Gang!" Even he cringed. "No, the Gangster Vipers. Uh- the Purple Gangster Vipers Gang. The Gangster Purples! Wait..."

He threw his hands in the air. "Whatever! So, will you join me?" He finished.

"I'll join you when hell freezes over." Quinn replied, coolly. "What are you up to?" She asked.

"Can I kill her?" One of the people behind Gavin said.

"Not yet, Rogue." Gavin said, his eyes still on Quinn.

"The second gangster behind Gavin was a girl with dark black hair pulled into a tight, high ponytail. She pulled out two knives and fiddled with them. Val could tell that she wanted to fight. They placed their hand near their holster.

"I just want an alliance, that's all." Gavin said, not very convincingly.

"I know you too well, Gavin." Quinn smirked.

Gavin went to say something but before he could, Rogue pulled out his gun just as Val grabbed theirs. A bang echoed through the saloon. Val dove behind the counter. Dozens of people were pulling others behind them in order to get out of the saloon. The bartender screamed and ran out a back door. Val looked back to see Alyssa trying to wrestle the gun out of Rogue's hands, Sofia throwing a knife at the girl next to Gavin, and Gavin holding Quinn in a headlock. Val put their gun away and raced to the middle of the lounge where Gavin and Quinn were. They jumped over a barrel on it's side, ran across the bar and jumped onto Gavin's back.

"What the-?"

Gavin released Quinn, and tried to shake Val off his back. A knife missed them by an inch. Val looked over and saw the girl with the ponytail ready another knife. Val pushed Gavin to the ground, leapt off of him, and soared through the air spectacularly. They pulled out their gun and pointed it at the girl's head.

BANG!

"ANNIE!!" The scream was so terrible it was hard to imagine that Gavin could make such a sound. He flew at Val, desperate for revenge. Val covered their head with their hands, waiting for the hit, but it never came. They looked up and saw Gavin unconscious on the floor, and Alyssa holding a beer mug over him.

Val got up and looked around. Everyone had left. "Annie" was crumpled on the ground, and Rogue was too, although his chest was rising and falling.

"Well..." Val said, swinging their arms. "That happened."

One hour later, they were all back in the wagon. Gavin and Rogue were tied up in the middle, back to back. Alyssa and Val were sitting outside, keeping guard, because there was no room for them in the wagon.

Val took out a packet. They offered a cigarette to Alyssa, who shook her head, "No thanks."

Val took a cigarette and blew into it. They fondly watched the powder evaporate. They unwrapped the gum inside and popped it in their mouth.

"Val!" Quinn called. "He's waking up!"

"Great." Mumbled Val, stepping up into the wagon.

"Rogue!" Gavin hissed, looking back. "Rogue!"

"Gavin." Val said, plopping down on the floor. "Let's talk."

"Release me and I'll talk!" Gavin said stubbornly.

"You're not in much of a position to make threats, you know." Alyssa told him, walking over.

"Gavin, tell us who hired you and we'll let you go." Quinn said.

"A rival gang." Gavin spilled. "There are four of them, just like you guys. They want to kill you so they can be the Purple Vipers. They're currently known as The Pink Cobras."

"How original," mumbled Quinn.

"Where are they now?" Alyssa asked.

"Not too far." Gavin told them. "They recruited me a little west of here, in a small town."

"How much did they offer you?" Sofia inquired.

Gavin hesitated, then told her, "They had taken over that little town. It was a mining town, and they had a huge stockpile of diamonds and gold. They had taken all their food, and they placed a tax on the community water well. They told me that if I could kill y'all, they'd give me half the gems, half the food, and I could control the entire town."

"So you wanted power?" Val said, popping a bubble.

"I wanted power so I could grow my gang." Gavin answered. "All I had was Rogue and two others." He swallowed, before continuing. "And Annie."

"Okay!" Val said, standing up. "Well, what should we do with him?" They asked the others.

They thought for a minute, before Alyssa said, "I have an idea. Let's make a deal, if we stay out of each other's hair, we can just go our separate ways. That's it."

Gavin thought about it, then said, "Deal."

Quinn and Val untied Gavin and Rogue, Rogue still unconscious. About an hour later, Rogue woke up and the two of them started south with their horses.

Val and Quinn watched them ride off into the distance before heading back in the wagon. It was 10:00 by that time, and Sofia was still cleaning the blood off the knives. It was Val's turn to keep watch. They sat up in the front and opened another candy cigarette. Val decided that the following morning, they'd leave this town and head west. They'd find the Pink Cobras and show them that they were messing with the wrong people. On the way they could test out Sofia's theory that gangs might stop them if they looked wealthy. Val wondered if the Pink Cobras were also mostly female. Gavin hadn't specified. Val pieced together a plan as the sun's final rays fell over the horizon.