The weeks had turned to months and months led to the end of what was going to be the gun-running business, it was now time to ride to the Philadelphia Docks and pick up the last of the shipment that they would be running along the East Coast. Finally, the business could be kept out and they could move forward what they needed here, it was for the best at least that is what Estarossa thought, it was time for the guns to come to an end. 

He had picked the three prospects to come with, it was three in the morning, most of the club would have been out now. It was a big business, it was time for things to end the way it needed too. He decided to lead them all there, it was a long ride and he was fine with leading the pack to their final time to see the shipment, this one had come all the way from the motherland, Russia. The one last shipment before things went to the Irish mob. 

Finally, they had arrived and Estarossa saw the two men who were here to deliver the shipment, he nodded to them before passing them some cash, he looked inside the truck they had delivered it in. He turned to face them, thanking them for the last shipment. Only they were gone, he shrugged, looking at the prospects, noticing how they nodded to him. They all drove away, with the prospects leading him to the warehouse. 

'Brother, you have to be careful, burning the Russians, no matter which leader is going to create something that you can't wash up. This move, the one you want, not the club, it's going to be something that tears it all down."

The words that Jury had told him before he had even told the club of the move he wished to make. He wondered if the man was some kind of psychic for a second but he shrugged it away, not going into that kind of thing. Only then, he noticed that the prospects were stopped as they got to the warehouse. He wondered what was going on before he noticed they were kneeling down, fuck! How did the feds find out about the shipment!?

"Mister Pavanno, step out the car before we are forced to put a bullet in you...come out slow and do not test us!"

Estarossa slammed his hands into the steering wheel, it had happened and he looked all around him, noticing how the cops were so prepared. This couldn't be happening, this one last job...that was it and his club was out of the business. His boys were going to be without him it seemed and he knew that Konnor would do well, he stepped out of the car. 

"Be easy Mikey, stand down, I'm sorry for this man but I did warn ya. Michael Pavanno, you are under arrest for the trafficking of deadly weapons with the intent to sell them to a criminal organization..."
 

And like that, Estarossa knew that the jig was up, this wasn't him dying, this wasn't him meeting Jury in the pearly halls of heaven. No, he knew what this was and all he could do was stand here, be arrested, that was it. He looked over at the few officers, all of them knew him, he had never given any of the trouble. Someone wanted this to happen, he looked across the street and he saw her...he saw Veronica Putlova, his eyes narrowed on the bitch.

'Fucking duplicitous bitch...she just couldn't let me have this and she told me that much. All for the revenge of getting back at me for something she believes I did, she has no idea that she has just signed her own death warrant in this thing of ours. Looking into those eyes though, I see now, she doesn't care about dying. She only wished to get back at me one last time, that was it. One last big hoorah before she was caught, I guess this is fate's new test for me. The one big house that changed my father and now will change me, let's hope I can get the same fucking lawyer.'

As Estarossa was put in the back of the police car, he heard the roar of the motorcycles...it seems some people who saw the commotion had made way to the nearest payphone. The entire Fallen Angels Philly Charter had arrived, looking at the scene with wide eyes. They couldn't believe their eyes, only it was the eyes of Konnor Marx that was something, there was a fury behind them. Something that seemed to be brewing for a long time before he laughed, bitter and broken, he was laughing and so Estarossa watched him....watching as the laughing turned to tears once more, his family once more breaking apart. 

'Shit brother, I am so sorry but you have to lead these guys now. I know you'll do a good job because you were taught by the best, better than me. Show these fuckers what it means to be an angel of the fall...'

The police car drove away, leaving the members of the Fallen Angels in shock, wondering what was happening before their eyes. The Prospects had been let go though, it seemed that whoever gave the cops the hunch that they had singled out Estarossa...it was a personal vendetta.

Konnor looked across the street, swearing that he had seen a familiar face there once before.
 

Estarossa Pincheel had been locked away within weeks, people were not allowed to see him and neither was the MC. It was becoming difficult for them to do business, with the shipment of Russian Guns failing. It was now up to the plentiful drugs supplied by Catalina Rey and the Cordelia Brothers to keep them going. People looked to him in the coming weeks, wanting to know what he had planned for them and their possible future within this world. 

Konnor wasn't prepared to lead them, he wasn't meant to step in and be a leader. Only fate decided to play with him today, so many people, so many men and so many women now looked at him. What was next for the charters and the Fallen Angels? Little did Konnor know that the Presidents from all the charters were already on their way here, to inform him of what was going to happen. 

Soon though, the presidents did arrive and inform me of what was going to happen. Bad times had fallen on the club, they now believed it right for him to assume the position of leader, the new National President so to speak and it was what led them to this moment. Something that would forever change Konnor Marx in the eyes of the other MCs and Presidents out there, many of them would begin to respect him as well. 

"We cannot have a single President leading us, a National President is not the standard. I state here and now that we reinstate the Kings, a three-point power of presidents. Already I have put this up for many people, and I state it proudly right now. If you would have it, then allow me to move forward with it."

No President voiced their disagreement for now. They believed that he was still a little kid from the looks of things, only when he sat in that chair, just like the rest of them, they could tell that he was different. Maybe it was a good different, maybe things were meant to be this way. Konnor didn't know but he was ready to enact his vision for the MC, not the ones of his predecessors, he would have to be different to be better than them. 

"For the first king, the Pennsylvania, Philadelphia charter President, myself. For the Ilinois, Peoria charter President, Galen. For the New York, Albany charter President, Givern. These are the people that I believe can help move the new era of our club, there are some other things as well that needs to be discussed."

Now they paid attention, passing power to Albany and Peoria, two of the most experienced and loyal presidents of the MC, it would give Konnor men that he could trust to guarantee his own life within the club to make sure that it didn't meet an unfortunate end like many others before him. 
 

"You may have heard that we, the Philadelphia charter wishes out of the gun-running business, even after what has recently happened with the former president, Estarossa Pincheel, we are not moving out of the gun-trade. We are moving on from our work with the Russians, we will no longer be moving weaponry for them if some of you didn't know."

Many of the presidents perked up, not even knowing that Philly wanted out of the gun-running business. Lin and many others though, they simply wished for him to continue. Knowing that he had some important news to share, something that was effectively going to shake the foundation of the club.

Konnor breathed in, it was one of these moments, the moment where anything and everything could change for a single club and here he was about to put one of those moments into action. Where he would have to go back on his word and give these esteemed Presidents different words, he had plenty of things to do today and he knew which some of these had to get done today. 

"We, the Philadelphia charter will not be moving out of the gun-running business. We will begin a different style of doing things as I have told you now, we will be working with the Irish Mob, the O'Leary Faction in which he will now be apart of the Society. Joined by the Russian Syndicate as an advisory role in which they will receive a fifteen percent take of all profit on the Irish side of things."

Now, this was indeed a turnaround, many of the presidents, including Lin looked pissed off at not getting the trade now. Something that was supposed to elevate each of their respective charters. Now they would lose it once more, two of the three kings looked at Konnor, raising their eyebrows in surprise but nonetheless, would support his decision. 

"My brothers, tell me, which one of you think that you can handle talking to Devlin? A man who was known to work with the Pavanno family only, he's as loyal as the whole of the Philly charter. He would talk to none of us, it wouldn't matter if we had the patch on our backs. Deep down you know this as well, allow the Philadelphia charter to move forward with this and we still see the same profit as before, nothing has changed...that much."
 

Ever the voice of reason, Galen managed to get most of the presidents on board with this. He knew that the Kings would be discussing this later, it was just what came up now and there was still much to discuss. Many deals that would have gone through, they would no longer be upheld due to the departure of Estarossa. Things would have to be talked through with many of the gangs, a new outlaw was in tone and he was ready to deliver a new brand of what he saw as justice.

"Other than that, we have other things to worry about. Many things that concern the forces outside our jurisdiction, such as Ohio...The Tribe and their way of doing things may backfire on us, we have the Path of Blood...and we have enemies in New York who wish to hide behind the Rod Kingsman Company. We will have to prepare for what is to come, I want all of you prepared brothers, I am not going to lose one of you yet. This is what I need to make sure that you're safe, stay safe and be vigilant. Fly High and into the arms of the angel."

Many of the other presidents had since left, it was only Givern, Galen, and Konnor. All three of them sat around the table, at the head, sitting uncomfortably was Konnor. His eyes on the older men before him, both of them looked at him strangely, almost like they were studying him to see when he did something different to the others but all he did was match their gaze. Making sure that he kept it up, he was not going to lose whatever test this was. 

"So, Estarossa is in jail and you immediately do everything over, Kings, Guns, and the works. You have to be prepared for the backlash, having power between three different men is what caused the wars in the first place. No, I am not talking about the recent one, we've seen plenty of presidents Kon. We want to see one where he knows what he wants and wants to give this club the best chance."
 

He looked at Givern as the man spoke with a passion that none of them had ever heard come fro him. Galen too seemed a bit surprised but gave the kid a nod, they wanted to see something different, both of them patched in the same club together and now here they were. Leading their own charters, making sure this was a stable and ready group of brothers. 

"Why do you think I chose you both as the Kings to rule beside me? I know you won't fill my head with bullshit, I want something that I am willing to put time into. This is it, this club has been my home for a long time and I am not going to let it die with the likes of hungry men looking to make some extra cash."

Now they looked at him properly, Konnor had been in two regimes already, one with Estarossa Pincheel and another with Jury Whit. Both were short but gave him something that the others lacked in certain scenarios, it gave him control. 

Now he had to lead these group of brothers into the new dawn, he would need to have his wits about him. This was not something that would and could be passed off, it was a role of succession, he was the man in charge now. A man who had to put the needs of the club before his own, it was a way of life, something that he knew already but with his role as President, it was amplified. And many of his brothers would want to see how such a man would do now.
 

Konnor now sat alone as some of the brothers listened to music, others grilling some burgers and simply enjoying themselves for now. It was a day where everything was changing. Estarossa wouldn't be getting a trial, he had been ratted on and Konnor had a feeling on who it was but he wouldn't let that get him now. He needed to keep his head straight and on the game that was on today. 

"Brother, you got a minute?"
 

Joel walked up to him, staring him down and he knew the man wanted to know what was next for them. With a charter of 5 members, with 10 hangarounds and 3 prospects, shit had to start changing. The votes would have to happen now, otherwise, they would be a weak bunch of brothers. They had to survive the anarchy and soon church would be called, a patched member of the club would have to be placed with them. 

"Go on, I have a couple of moments and then we all have to get to church, decide what we're going to do about the deals that Estarossa made."

Joel sat down, sitting opposite Konnor and both of them enjoyed the silence for that moment. Enjoying themselves for a while, soon they started talking about the future with Joel leading it there. 
 

"We need to talk about the future of this club. Half of the brothers wanna transfer, the other half want to see what kind of leader you'll be for them. I'm here brother, we have five brothers left, we got the prospects and you know what happens here."

Konnor knew what happened, they were weak and both the guys had been doing exceptionally well. It wasn't their fault that they were caught. Konnor lit his smoke soon enough, allowing it to flow into his lungs and out again...enjoying it immensely. His eyes narrowed on Joel. 

"Besides the brothers, we need a new operating system, the Police, Feds, any other agency out there will be fucking watching us and we're going to be in deep shit. The angels of death have waited long enough, patch over. They've earned their due, tell Hayes to go through with it and the Indian Hills charter of the club can move forward on the west coast perfectly."
 

Joel smiled, it was good business for the club and could be used to further expand their territory. It was known that the Tribe had a charter up there. With the money, guns and it would hold a permanent presence for their club. The tribe would learn to back off by force if necessary, both of them did hope that it didn't come to such a thing though. 

"Besides that, we have the moves with Terrence that needs to be put on hold, especially with our need for a porn studio not needed anymore. Unless we wish to expand into that, it's legitimate and we can gain a private subscription type fee. I'll look into that, maybe Esta was onto to something, we just didn't need to lose the guns to do it."

Joel nodded there, noticing that in the distance, many of the other charter members were talking in hushed whispers, looking over at them with a bit of disgust in their eyes. It was clear that the stance Konnor took was a surprise and not one that was entirely welcome, they had their opinions, something that was entirely welcome in such a society as theirs.

"I'll see you inside, get the rest of them as well."

Konnor sat at the table, his gathered brothers all sat around him as well, neither of them had taken the left or right-hand seats by his side. He had yet to decide but this is what he needed to decide with all his heart, something that would allow him to gain people who could guide him like Givern and Galen. Experienced members of the club, it would have to be those that unlike him, could lead with their heads and not their hearts.

"We're here to discuss the prospects and their continued year with us, here at the club. All three have shown that they're ready to prove themselves to the club and are ready to go out there and become what we need them to be. Brothers. Now, we've had some rough times and we have more ahead, I need you to vote with the confidence that I expect you to have in the club leaders and myself. Voting in the three prospects, yay."

The vote could not be a majority, every brother had to be sure that they could trust these guys. It was not going to something that a majority even voted on like this, every brother at this table had to vote the same way. It was a matter of trust, the brotherhood that they all believed and it was up to one person now, Grim. A man who had the most experience with these prospects, besides losing the shipment to the feds, they now had no guns for the month but would be able to make it up with the drugs, keep Devlin fed with that cash for now. 

"I like 'em, even though they're a bunch of nosey fuckers sometimes, they have good senses of right and wrong, even for this club, it's a yay from me."

That vote had changed those prospects, they had elevated the numbers of the Philly charter from five to eight. It was a good move and one that would surely see some benefits come in for the club soon. For now, though, the newly elevated patched brothers enjoyed the company of numerous women while their president sat down, nursing himself with a glass of vodka. His eyes a bit hazy as he noticed a figure sit down next to him. 

"Ronnie...what the fuck do you want!?"

Ronnie Putlova now sat by his side in the clubhouse area, she watched his newly found brothers enjoy their time before turning her dark beady eyes onto him. Her smile was wicked, it was obvious that she was enjoying this moment for what it was. No one was touching her right now, they had no idea what she had done and who was going to believe the word of a president locked away in prison? Oh, Ronnie had planned this carefully and she knew now that she had the new president under her thumb. 

"I've given you what you desired. The presidency, Estarossa Pincheel is locked away, Jury Whit is dead and now no one stands in your way for what you owe me now, friend. I wonder how your associated brothers will act when they found out that you betrayed your brothers for the perceived greater good, you couldn't let go of the guns I understand but to have me snitch to the feds, that's a mighty gamble, Kon."

And so it was revealed, Konnor didn't even look fazed, his eyes narrowed before his lips thinned. He didn't enjoy what he had done to his brothers, they had wanted something that would have destroyed everything they had been building. It was the only way to do this and now Konnor knew what was going to happen, only he had other ideas in mind, Ronnie was no one right now. She relied on him and he would make that clear. 

"Who's going to believe you though? Do you think that they would believe a word you say? You're a fool, Ronnie, you rely on me and we both know that. I suggest keeping your mouth shut, who would think that I had something to do with betraying Estarossa? Such a gamble but it paid off. I suggest you skulk to wherever you come from and you stay there until I give you a call, we'll see about giving you a nice little cut of my earnings. Maybe then you can truly see what I have in store for this club."

Konnor stood from his seat, walking away with his head held high. He knew what he had done was a power move, one where he knew that he was in the position due to his own luck and planning. He had been with Estarossa since the beginning, only to realize that the fool wanted to wipe away their work with the High Society, that was a no go and so he had been in talks with Ronnie. Using her own hatred for the man himself against her and here they were now. 

'Brother, I will not apologize, for I did not kill you. I put you away for your own good, you were leading this club down into disaster and now I will bring it into the era that it should have been with you. An era of expansion and money-making, we will control a lot of business soon and it all starts with the casinos.'

"You want to what?"

Konnor spoke with Terrence Knox in the local diner, the new president of the FAMC eating an apple pie casually. Drinking his glass of milk to wash it down, noticing how odd people were looking at him. He enjoyed the local diner, Franny's always had the best pie and here they had it now. Still, it wasn't about the pie...well...mostly. It was about the chance of re-opening the classic casino known as The Tops. 

"I wish to re-open the Tops Casino, right here in Philadelphia. I know that Estarossa promised you a big PR Stunt with some investors, we've changed that now. We've acquired a gambling license and we have one to open up shop right here in The Tops, with you backing us, we should be able to swing this as a legitimate casino."
 

Konnor continued eating his pie as Terrence watched him like a hawk, there was something he didn't like about the new president. Many it was frame and way of doing things or maybe because he was now cut out of a deal that promised him a promotion. Opening up a popular casino in Philly, with his name on it, hm, it would provide him with some nice benefits and some possible PR, depending on how well it did. 

"Do I get a minor stake or some cash from this casino Konnor? It would help me, I'd like to see some kind of income, I know from Charlie Pavanno that the money in these things is quite...lucrative and having that kind of share would allow me to move forward with some good ideas for the community."