Gangs

Gangs were one of the main components of the Ceres society and dominated every aspect of life in the slums. The power struggle between them was constant and was viewed as a source of gossip and entertainment for the onlookers. Top gangs had a celebrity status among mongrels, and prominent gang members were idolised or hated, or both.

Usually a gang would have a charismatic leader, someone with the strength of will that would inspire followers and multiply the collective power of their individual strengths. These groups would gather in so called safehouses when they weren't out wreaking havoc and vying for dominance in the red zone known as Hot Crack, where anything was allowed. On the flipside, the Blue Chip area of Ceres became known as the demilitarised zone where no violence was tolerated and a place where gangs could put their guard down and relax.

The legendary gang, Bison, who ruled Hot Crack under the leadership of the Charisma of the Slums, Riki, was untouchable for two years. Shocking everyone, at their peak, Riki left the gang and Bison disbanded. Having quit on a winning streak, even after years of inactivity, their ghost still haunted Ceres and all pretenders to the top would be compared to them.

## Jeeks

Jeeks (ジークス, Jīkusu) were one of the Ceres **gangs** fighting for supremacy in the wake of Bison’s disbandment. They were known as the new *regime*, a new type of gang, dubbed Hyper Kids, as their members were fresh out of Guardian, and their strength lay in pure numbers.

Jeeks members were so young, their voices hadn’t even broken yet. It was believed all of them were under 15. They were fearless kids only beginning to accustom themselves to the differences between life at the foster center and life in the slums. Their way of doing things was to track down their prey, then corner it and overwhelm it with numbers. This tactic made up for their physical shortcomings and lack of fighting skills.

Even 4 years after Bison’s disbandment, no matter how hard the other gangs tried, and no matter how extensive their influence, the other groups kept comparing them to Bison. No one would live up to them. Eventually some gangs grew tired of this and attempted to challenge the position of the top dog, the strongest contenders being Jeeks and Maddox. But despite who might win, they realised that the only way to come out on top was to crush the rotting remains of Bison and everything associated with it.

This rivalry was supposedly provoked by Jango, a feared informant in the Slums. Jango’s involvement with Jeeks was known in the slums, and the speculation was that he is fanning the flames from the sidelines, wanting to see Bison go down.

### **Jeeks vs Bison**

Jeeks were especially tenacious in their attempt to extinguish the ghost of Bison, and they made no secret of it. Especially after Riki’s return, the fear of Bison’s resurrection spurred them into action.

Since they had already previously lost a hand-to-hand battle with Riki, and realised they were outclassed in that department, they resorted to other tactics. One day, they blew up Bison’s safe house, Herma’s Crib, in broad daylight and reduced it to rubble. It was an open challenge to the retired gang.

This sparked the rumors of an open war coming between the two gangs, but most simply seemed to think Jeeks foolish for challenging Bison so unequivocally, saying that Jeeks were too young to remember how great Bison was at their peak.

However, after seeing that Riki wasn’t interested in doing anything about it, Kirie took it upon himself to flush Jeeks out of their safehouse with a tear gas bomb. Even though Kirie at that point wasn’t even part of Bison (and was officially kicked out for this action), the slums saw this as Bison’s retribution move.

### **Downfall**

After that incident, Jeeks found their reputation ruined and their lives taking a turn for the worse. With their safehouse lost, they hit out at anyone they could. Even though they’ve been considered an unruly nuisance since the beginning, at this point they were so intolerable, that the trouble they were causing was affecting everyone in the slums. Settling the score with Jeeks was the inevitable burden Bison had taken on.

> They're going down. All of them. If we do it, we do it big. We have to pay them back with interest.
>
>

If Riki was to make a move, it was going to be a decisive, finishing blow and for that they needed intel from Jango. From him they procured the profiles of all members and a head count confirmation. The members of the headless gang had been driven out and scattered, leaving them vulnerable to attack. That was true justice—a reflection of the kind of enmity that the Jeeks gang had been working up everywhere they went.

> So you're finally getting around to having Jeeks for lunch. I almost feel sorry for them.
>
>

Prepared and sufficiently motivated, Bison did everyone a favour and shut them down for good. The fate of Jeeks and the Hyper Kids stood as a lesson for everyone—that was what happened to upstarts foolish enough to trash the unwritten laws of the slums.

## **Maddox**

Maddox (マードック, Mādokku), dubbed also Mad Dog, was one of the top Ceres gangs in the years after Bison disbanded.

Four years after Bison's disbandment, their ghost still de facto ruled Hot Crack, but Maddox vied for supremacy against Jeeks for the title of the top dog. Maddox, which was fighting to retain their lost power base, was seen as the old regime fighting against the new regime of Hyper Kids. It was rumored that Jango, The God’s Grim Reaper, provoked this rivalry. In the meantime, everyone waited on the sidelines for the result, waiting for the right moment to strike, or to pick up scraps from the fallout.

After Jeeks blew up Bison’s safehouse, the word on the street was that even Maddox were running scared. But there was also speculation that that was a faint, and that they were rather waiting for Jeeks and Bison to tear each other down, and take the lion’s share for themselves in the aftermath.

## **Baldur**

A gang Bison trumped soon after Riki propositioned Iason Mink at Minos Bar.

## Creutz

Creutz (クロイツ, Kuroitsu) is a gang in Ceres whose only known member is Tom, a boy who took Kirie up on the offer to hook him up with Elites for some cash on the side, and out of curiosity.