HEARTSTRINGS: INJUSTICE NO MORE

G'day New York. A larger update from a new brand of stories here on Loose Ends. Heartstrings, which will cover typically major events in NYC, and be worked on by several members of the Loose Ends staff at the same time. Today we've got a story about cruelty, standing up for what's right, and relying on each other to help keep this city safe.

Following Bump-in-the-Night Day there were a few things (necessarily) overshadowed by the hopeful recovery of New York's hero, Bump in the Night. Most notably was an officer who had been roaming the streets of NYC, typically by Times Square, enacting his sense of Justice and "The Law" however he saw fit. Ironically, his name was Sergeant Law, Sergeant being his NYPD rank, and Law being his name. Sergeant Law was a topic of contention for his use of excessive force, unjustifiable arrests, and overall imposing presence. A few monikers the people gave him were "Officer No-body-cam" and "Cassius T..." I won't say the last name, if you know it already, you heard it in your head when I said the first name and last initial. Sergeant Law was a long-time member of the force, about as long, if not longer, than the current chief of police Jace Parker. For a long time he was an outstanding officer with a reputable history and great standing with the NYPD. There was every so often the rumor of him being anti-mutant, and his aforementioned long-time coworker Mr. Parker did go on record saying that, "Assuming his personality, I would not put it past him." However, he did also say he hadn't even heard of the rumor until asked about it in that same interview, so while possible it is purely a thing of conjecture.

After "Night" day, Officer Law had been reported several times for excessive force, unlawful arrests, and overall unruly conduct befitting an officer of the NYPD. Given his history, he was given some grace in the face of those accusations, but that all came to a head the night of June 4th, 2030. After MANY repeated reports, Chief of Police Jace Parker conducted an investigation into Law's misconduct, and took his badge, promptly terminating him for these offenses. Officer Law left in a poor mood, and was later recounted as roaming around the streets muttering about justice and even attacking civilians. NYPD was dispatched, and Mr. Parker asked Law to stand down and come to the station peacefully so they could handle this without conflict. It was then that all hell broke loose, and Officer Law began to attack. He fought both cops and civilians alike that night, running through the trainees in just a few hits each. Though the odds were many to one against him, he showed no visible sign of going down. Only Mr. Parker and his deputy were able to keep in the fight consistently.

Officer Law kept on attacking people in his path when he presumably realized he was greatly outnumbered and slowly dwindling down, but the NYPD wasn't faring much better. Another well-known officer, Officer Rand, arrived on scene as backup. Or so was thought. Officer Rand had been working with Officer Law for some time, and in a shocking turn of events joined the former Officer Law in a revolt against the NYPD. With the NYPD barely being able to hold it together against Law alone, many of the trainees were battered until they were unconscious and in lethal danger with their forces now split between Rand and Law.

Thankfully though, in a showing of immense heroics, several civilians joined the conflict. They did not engage directly with Officer Law, but they did their best to help other officers carry the wounded yet brave trainees who were incapacitated during the brawl. One such man, by the name of Dante. Though Mr. Dante was concerned he'd be arrested if he joined in the fight and came to blows alongside the NYPD, he felt moved to action and couldn't just go on doing nothing with people in potentially mortal danger.

With a bit of extra help from the city's people, Law turned tail to retreat. He had run from Dreamer Cafe, near where the fight started, towards the clothing store before engaging in combat again. The fight, admittedly, still could have gone either way. In the distance though, a man in red and blue swung through the city on what can best be described as laser wires. NYC's own, Vestige, had arrived to help out NYPD.

He instructed the officers to clear out and focus on detaining Officer Rand, who, while threatening, was not nearly as much of a challenge for the combined force of the NYPD and its trainees to handle. As such, he was subsequently incapacitated and arrested. Meanwhile, Vestige and Law began sizing each other up with their fists.

This fight, however, was decidedly NOT close. Vestige was reported by more than one person as using Law's face as a surfboard through the asphalt street, and hitting him hard enough to literally BOUNCE him off solid concrete. It is either a testament to the capabilities of the human physique, or nothing short of a miracle that Law was even able to stand up after such a thing, though Vestige knocked him out with one immediate decisive strike after, successfully incapacitating the vindictive former sergeant.

Afterwards, Rand and Law were both brought to the station and taken under NYPD custody. The chief gave a statement thanking Vestige, and recounting the events of the day. Chief Parker went on record with a regretful tone saying, "We had tried to resolve the situation peacefully. Apparently, that was never an option to him."

As the deeds of a superhero never stop, we weren't able to get with him for very long. But we did manage to get a few words with Vestige the following day. When asked how he knew NYPD needed help, he said: "Just know someone's always watching... Last night it was me..."

It's an optimistic thought, to know that even when you're the little guy staring up at insurmountable odds there's someone who sees you. Maybe they won't always be able to help. But they see you. We see each other, New York, we see the hurt, the love, the laughter, the joy. We see it all, and we're here for you.