The sun seemed to linger longer than normal, a cool breeze scattering bits of nature throughout the streets of LA. The smells coming from a curtained off Warehouse were more than enough to leave you contemplating cannibalism - as they immediately left you more hungry than you had ever felt in your life. Flashes of blue and black...lightning? could be seen, ripping by faster than was possible to process properly with the human eye. Those who had been around knew that it was Zoom, doing Zoom-y things. In today's case - he was on a very specific mission. He knew it was specific because he wasn't stopping to do random things as he usually did. 

Thanks to the combination of ralph_lombino's work ethic and his various contacts within the shipping industry, the supplies were easy to come by; copious amounts of tinfoil, grills, cutlery, in essence - the supplies to ensure the parade went off without a hitch. Ahhh, Pocket Meats! It was an idea that Zoom ran with when he had moved to LA and it had taken off tremendously fast. He had done a few soft-tests on the concept; lining people's pockets with tinfoil and then letting them fill their pockets up with as much meat as they could carry. Almost everybody who tried it had returned within a few days, asking where they could get their Pocket Meat "fix". 

Zoom was ninety-five percent of the way ready to launch the grand opening of the food-stand chain, but there had been a slight hiccup with the paperwork and thus he was forced to wait a little longer. Knowing that he had only reached a relatively small portion of the population in LA, and indeed the country overall, Zoom thought of the idea to have a parade to increase the amount of information out there about pocket meats. Zoom had pitched the idea to City Hall a couple of weeks ago, a parade dedicated to nothing but meat. There would be food stands and floats in the shape of various farm animals, and on this one time occasion, free pocket meats to all who attended. Zoom would of course be making an appearance and explaining the concept of Pocket Meats. 

Finally everything was set, the only thing left to do was line everyone's pockets with tinfoil, which was the mission Zoom was on. Though many people probably would have said no, Zoom didn't ask. He just did it. It took him mere minutes to run through the streets and line the civilians pockets with tinfoil, and indeed a few folks from the underworld as well. For Zoom had sent out notices far and wide; from the ferret Ellie over in Chicago, to his longtime family friend Wraith in Detroit, the list of people who had been invited was quite the mix. Almost all of his Philly contacts had gotten direct invites; ConstanceBonacieux, HughJorgan, JaceCorso, Arya_Stark, Indifference, Heston, Angelo_Lagusa, GavinAndTaraByrne, Isabella-Luciano, LouisMezzo, and Vincent-Alo were all expected to make appearances. Zoom would have been a fool to not invite the woman-drawing-attraction that went by HandsomeRob, and so an invite was sent there as well. Odin, Ronin, and Jemaine_Clement were all directly invited as well, as Zoom's relationship with the men had been quite solid and he knew that they would want their fill of Pocket Meats. Jemaine had asked Zoom if SuperHans could come along, but was denied. 

And so as Zoom tucked the last piece of tinfoil into the last pocket, he grinned. Go-time. He bolted back to his HeadQuarters where he found ralph_lombino sitting in a corner, reading a copy of The Bible. Zoom smiled once more and approached his long time friend. Lombino spent many hours of the week handling the incoming shipments for the Pocket Meats warehouse and somehow had still found the time to assist with getting the product(s) in for the Meat Parade. That he also found time to read up on scripture was something Zoom admired. As honest of a man as you could ever find, and a hell of a hard worker, ralph_lombino had been an integral part of the initial success their organization had been having in LA. With a simple nod towards his Left Hand, Zoom spoke,

"It is time, my friend. This is the gameplan; the two of us will be joined by Zaheer momentarily and we will shortly thereafter meet up with Nikita, Aimee, Itachi_Uchiha, Knightmare, and JackWaltz. At that point we will all head to the corner of Franklin Rd and Rossvine St - where the bands and floats are waiting. The vendors are all lined up throughout the streets, and all have pamphlets with information about Pocket Meats. Thanks to our contacts in the government, we have it on good authority that this asshole who has been calling himself the Godfather of LA will be making an appearance. Whenever we get visual confirmation, we'll set the rest of the plan in motion."

Zoom paused, trying to think of whether he was forgetting anything. After a quiet few moments, ralph_lombino spoke up.

"Yes, and we have multiple of our soldatos waiting every few blocks with those strange devices you constructed. What exactly are those for?"

Zoom chuckled and pulled a drawing from his pocket. He handed it to his friend; a picture of a tube-like device being stuffed with money, which in the next picture could be seen being blown into the sky as if fired from a gun. Zoom explained more,

"Those bags of counterfeit money that I needed you to get the other day? Well... I had Rick use those bills to stuff these money-cannons as I like to call 'em. With a pull of their plug, they will shoot the fake money into the sky with an extremely loud BANG. We have enough of these cannons and enough fake money to make quite the scene - people will be scrambling for their chance at free cash. That is when I will strike. In the ensuing chaos I will use my super-speed to grab our target and disappear without anyone being any the wiser. You and the rest of our merry band will continue with the public-face bit, greet people, tell jokes, spread the news about Pocket Meats and in general have a grand time. All of your watches will be synchronized, and I need all of you to meet me at the Warehouse between 2:00 and 2:10. Is there anything you need clarification on?" 

Lombino shook his head, and the pair of them set off to find Zaheer. The old man was eventually located, though Zoom and ralph_lombino wished they had knocked before entering. Zaheer was still getting used to his newfound ability; being able to bend the air around him. Zoom and ralph walked in on Zaheer floating in midair, trying to take a shit into a bucket placed on the ground eight feet below him. Zoom growled and Lombino sighed. They waited patiently for a few minutes until finally with one final push, Zaheer accomplished his goal. The man look quite pleased with himself as he floated gracefully back to the ground. 

"Is it that time already?" He asked, simply. 

With another roll of his eyes, Zoom pointed to the bathroom and waited for Zaheer to go wash his hands before they continued. They were criminals, but they didn't have to be savages. The three made an odd trio indeed as they left the Pocket Meats Inc. HQ. The group walked only a few blocks before they were met by their fellow Los Angeles upper structures. In a somewhat comedic fashion they all looked down to check their wristwatches at the same time, and each nodded to one another once before setting off towards the corner of Franklin Rd and Rossvine St. The journey didn't take long, though to Zoom it felt like an eternity. By his rough calculations, he could have made the trip a solid seventeen-thousand times by now without breaking a sweat, but he was a patient man. The folks who were marching in the parade waited for Zoom's signal. Reaching into his pocket, Zoom pulled out a flare-gun and shot a single round into the air. BANG! 

The air filled up immediately with the sounds of instruments being played. The background noise, convoluted as it was, seemed to slip away as the bands began to march. The sausages and steaks that were sizzling on the scorching hot grills added an aroma that was to die for, especially mixed with the crispness of the brisk February air. Everyone thought Zoom slightly insane for hosting a parade in February, but he knew there to be no better time to have a BBQ and by extension figured that a parade wasn't too far out of the realm of possible, especially in Los Angeles. As Zoom looked around he couldn't help but to feel content. People were reading the flyers about Pocket Meats Inc, and plenty of the pockets he had previously lined with tinfoil were being used correctly; that is to say, many of the civilians were taking full advantage of the 'free pocket meat' offer. The array of food stands that had set up were not accepting cash that day, no, anybody who walked up with a tinfoil lined pocket was quite able to take their fill of meat for free. Zoom's eyes continued to scan the crowd, until he finally saw the Would-Be "Godfather" of LA. With a smirk, Zoom flashed a thumbs up to a few key people and the chain reaction began. Multiple dozens of money-cannons exploded block-by-block in an instant and filled the air with counterfeit bills. Just as Zoom had predicted, the masses went nuts. 

Zoom wasted no time and immediately took off for his target. In less than a second he grabbed the man by his shirt and dragged him off at an incredible speed towards the harbor, all without ever being seen. The sounds of the parade were long gone, replaced by the soft rippling of water. Zoom had to give props to his prey, despite the mans obviously terrorized state, he somehow gained enough composure to put two and two together. The Would-Be Godfather spoke, softly.

"I knew this day would come. I tried telling all of them that we couldn't hope to claim this title for long without someone from Your Thing coming along and wanting it for their own. Go...Go on, do what yo-"

The man was interrupted abruptly. Zoom wasn't exactly in the mood to hear a memoir, as he had shit to do. For that reason, as the man started talking, Zoom began vibrating his hand back and forth imperceptibly. He knew that if he got it going fast enough he could phase his hand right through his target's chest - enabling him to literally rip out the man's heart. And so he did. Zoom wasn't really sure on the etiquette surrounding what to do with the heart of your foe...so he ate it. Hearing the sound of someone nearby vomiting, Zoom looked up and saw a homeless man who had appeared to have seen the whole scene. Zoom killed him too, because he was emitting a smell so foul that it was offensive. With a final glance around Zoom ascertained that nobody else had witnessed the murders that occurred. He looked at his watch which read 1:58. Just enough time to make it back to the Warehouse... 

Zoom arrived moments before anyone else, but sure enough by 2:03 the whole group was there. Nikita, Itachi_Uchiha, JackWaltz, Aimee, Knightmare, Zaheer, and Ralph_Lombino all entered the Warehouse for the first time and were slightly blown away. An enormous section of the building seemed to be dedicated to butchering animals and preparing them to be made into Pocket Meats. Another section had been converted into a makeshift BBQ area - presumably for quality control testing. Just as the group had started to split from one another to go explore, Zoom approached them. He first spoke to them as a whole,

"My friends, my family. The deed is done. That impostor Godfather Chairman has been handled and I can now assume the position - this is an honor I have been looking forward to since I first heard of our move here to Los Angeles. It absolutely couldn't have been done without all of you and your relentless efforts to better our fine city. I know, undoubtedly, that we will all continue to do our best as this city grows. I will never forget the amount of work and love that you each have pumped into This Thing of Ours so far and I hope that you each remember my door is always open for any of you. In a few minutes, I will need you all to follow me once more out into the Streets to rejoin this parade - I have one more public announcement to make today. But, first..."

Zoom reached into his pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper that was labelled "ralph_lombino". 

Zoom watched as his Left Hand Man opened the letter and read the quick one-line - "Ralph_Lombino has been promoted to Don." 

A grin broke out on lombino's face and he sprang forward to hug Zoom. While Zoom was not normally a fan of human contact, he allowed it. The note was passed around and the others joined in on congratulating the newest Don to LA. After a few minutes Zoom motioned towards the door and they all set out towards the Pocket Meats Parade.

It was a bit of a task to find the most populated area - the streets were absolutely packed with people looking for their free Pocket Meats, and quite a few people were still on their hands and knees searching for unclaimed money from the money-cannons earlier. Figuring this was as good of a spot as any, Zoom grabbed the flare-gun from his pocket and fired it into the air repeatedly. It was followed by a brief moment of semi-silence in which Zoom took the chance speak loudly to those nearby.

"ralph_lombino, get your ass over here!" 

Zoom's Left Hand raised an eyebrow and walked over, looking confused.

"What," Zoom said, "you thought your day was going to be over with a simple Don promotion? No... No my friend. You have worked long and hard for us here at Pocket Meats and I think it's time you were rewarded in the grandest of fashions... That's right, my friend, the time has come for you to run your own family. I have no doubts that you will succeed - especially with as much business as we're likely to get after this parade. Congratulations, ralph_lombino!"

Zoom hugged his brother-in-arms and clapped the man on the back before he stepped off to the side to let lombino reply.  

Ralph stood still a moment, still trying to comprehend what he had heard. Zoom, fresh from the death of the Godfather of LA, had just said that He was going to be taking over as a captain in LA. Ralph picked up his jaw, squared his shoulders, and stepped forward to stand with Zoom.

“Sir...A part of me can’t believe that I’m standing here, doing this. It’s been a royal hell of a run to get here, from philadelphia, to LA, to now the port of Los Angeles. I guess I never thought I’d find myself running a crew. But now that I’m here, the only thing I can do is my dead best, and hope to make you proud.”

Ralph turned to the other members of the LA leadership standing there.

“Nikita, Aimee, I’ve enjoyed working with you as Zoom’s hand, and look forward to doing so as a captain. I hope that you’ll join me at the new business for dinner tomorrow to celebrate the expansion of Los Angeles, and the ascension of Zoom to the Godfathership. The new kitchen is ready to go, and the expansion of the activities available walking down the pier are all prepped for opening. I think you’ll find that the Port area is no longer just a dingy space full of grimy coveralls and shipping containers. It is becoming a vibrant, New, fresh area where people can enjoy an evening, or do some business.”

With a flourish of his own, Ralph pulled a sign from behind him to show the others.

Los Angeles Shippers Consolidated

“A new division of Pocket Meat Inc. is ready to open for business.”

Tara grinned at Zoom and ralph_lombino as she shook their hands. Gavin followed in suit, clapping both men on the back as he listened to his sister speak.

"Congratulations to both of you on your new positions. From your time in Philadelphia to your new endeavors here, your hard work is evidenced by your success. I wish you both the best as you move forward here in the city of angels."

Bowing her head, Tara pulled back from the crowd- just as Gavin tugged on her sleeve.

"So... the meat..."

"Goes in your pocket."

"Which is why they call it..."

"Pocket Meats."

Gavin smirked.

"I'm getting one."

He wandered off into the crowd, stopping to pickpocket a chicken wing from someone's meat pocket.

The recent weeks were filled with one project or another for the City of Roses as well as Downtown Los Angeles.  Nikita and Itachi_Uchiha had been fervently working on clearing out the scum in Pasadena, plans laid out and getting close to crunch time when she had received the urgent call from Zoom.  He needed assistance and Nikita didn't hesitate to send over the troops.  It didn't take much for people to listen, and it was an odd feeling at times that a single command from her lips was instantaneously performed, no questions asked, just simple nods and agreement. It never failed to amaze her though how close they were on the west coast, recent gang affiliated invasions proved that very well.

With the meeting underway, the plans were established, and the idea of a parade Nikita thought was a perfect distraction to further keep her own brewing trouble unsuspecting of their future.  Nikita had joked with Zoom ever since she had moved to the west coast that she didn't have pockets on her person, often arching an eyebrow at Zoom then to her Chanel suits, so she would compromise with enjoying the meats on a plate instead.  The parade proved to be a bit more challenging not to be bumped into by hungry people at the allure of 'free foods'.  Nikita couldn't deny the aromas floating around the air were delicious, but they had work to do first.  Franklin Rd. and Rossvine St. is where they all met up with Zoom, and hearing the excitement in his voice as the plans were laid out to everyone present, made Nikita wanna chuckle somewhat. It was a mutual feeling it seemed as she glanced to the other faces from Pasadena.  JackWaltz, Aimee, Knightmare were nodding as the plans were being discussed, but their eyes held the humor there.  Itachi's expression was indifferent as always.

The new location was the warehouse around 2:00.  Nikita wasn't exactly thrilled of dividing up from Zoom, but understood the need for him to handle business on his own.  The small group had disbanded, leaving Nikita, Itachi and Jack heading over to the warehouse around 1:55 to be ready.  Aimee and Knightmare followed in the car behind them, all of them arriving shortly after Zoom.  They all awaited the news, and the moment they all entered the warehouse, she relaxed once she saw Zoom was already there, yet she showed nothing outward as they moved further inside the warehouse.  Being around where the meats were processed was killing her appetite a little as she imagined the work done there.  Once Zoom regaled them of the events that had just taken place, well that cinched it.  Nikita was no longer hungry, but she managed to get out a congrats to the new Godfather Chairman before he continued onwards with the meeting.

"Zoom you've managed to accomplish something magnificent, and we are all proud to work alongside you.  It is an honor for us as well to be here with you for this journey.  We all look forward to continuing the journey with you, and to see how prosperous the cities of angels and roses bloom and soar together.  The goodness doesn't stop on the west coast."

Nikita smiled to the new Godfather Chairman of the west coast, but the news didn't stop there as he retrieved a piece of paper handing it to ralph_lombino.  She turned towards Ralph offering a congrats on his new venture.

"It is great to see Los Angeles continue to grow and expand.  Good luck and congratulations Ralph."

Itachi was tired. He was also more exposed lately than he had been in awhile. He was getting used to operating from the shadows but it was originally his idea to be seen mingling among people as much as possible. Only problem with this was there were a lot of known criminals in the vicinity even if some posed as businessmen like he did. Itachi knew he was ever illusive though, he even stole his own FBN file from the Philadelphia branch once. Cops and other organizations tried as hard as they could to catch him but none had found any success yet. 

Itachi was nothing if not careful. He wouldn't remain untouched if he didn't take extremes to keep himself that way. Once Nikita's car with him and Jack arrived, Itachi made sure to mingle in with the civilians as much as possible. Most people didn't know who he was but he presented himself to them as the owner of a consulting company. In a way Itachi was blending in and also making contacts at the same time. He was always working even at a celebration. 

As he saw Nikita get closer to approaching the newest Godfather Chairman he slid through the crowd, blending in like a normal civilian all the way until he was near Nikita's side once more. Ralph was also over there as well with Chairman Zoom as he had been given a new position to set up under and carry on day to day operations on his own in Downtown LA. Itachi hadn't really had much of an opinion on either man before they all joined forces in LA. There was no deep relation or history but both men were definitely to be respected, if for nothing else, staying alive as long as they had and surviving in their world. Of course anybody with their ear to the streets like Itachi had would've heard of the two men at sometime but Itachi didn't really begin to pay attention until they all made the move to California. These two men definitely deserved the positions they were taking, the same as his own leader. 

Itachi waited until Nikita finished speaking with the two as he dared not interrupt his leader when she was speaking or the conversation of three of the most important people in the city in their world. He took another look around taking note of the people who were around. Katsumi wasn't here with Itachi this time so it was up to him to do his own reconnaissance and remember the faces of people invited to this thing. 

He recognized some people who were also apart of their underworld here as well from different states and cities respectively. He was impressed with the relationships the new Chairman had with people across the country. It spoke well of his new status and complimented it as well in Itachi's opinion. 

Once Nikita finished up Itachi approached next. He gave a bow before shaking the hand of the man named Zoom himself.

"Congratulations Chairman Zoom. Your promotion is well deserved and well earned. If I'm allowed to say so, Los Angeles is in good hands for as long as you lead us. May your reign be long and successful." Itachi said in his even voice before giving another bow of respect.

He then turned to Ralph and gave him a respectful bow of his own. 

"Congratulations to your own new status Don Lombino. Your promotion is well earned as well and I hope there is a many great things in your future, your crew's future and the city's future." Itachi said shaking the man's hand. 

Once he finished he made sure to step back and leave the two men with a respectable amount of room. Once their conversation wrapped up he stepped back to allow other well wishers to approach and speak to the two men themselves.