The gang finally has a name: Los Desvalidos! It means "the destitute" or "the helpless"; they chose that name to remind them of where they came from, and who they protect.

Left is Kea Smith-Trần who just goes by Casey and uses any pronouns. They grew up in an impoverished neighborhood and were raised by their mother, their father having left when they were only four years old. They got their first job as a cleaner for an art studio when they were fourteen, which inspired them to pick up art as a hobby on their own. They tried to go to art college when they graduated high school but dropped out part way through the course due to getting caught up in dealing drugs for money, since their art wasn't making them anything close to enough to pay for bills. But there are no independent drug dealers, only ones affiliated with gangs, so it wasn't long before Casey found themselves dealing on the wrong turf and being badly beaten, saved only by the interference of a couple Los Desvalidos members who drove off the other gang and brought Casey to their medic to get patched up. Once the gang leader heard of Casey's predicament, they were invited to join their ranks.

Middle is Wayland Panzer, known as simply Panzer. He was born to Oluchi, a US AFC (Army Futures Command) General, father unknown. Expected to follow in his mother's footsteps, Panzer's Tourette syndrome dashed that dream, leaving him directionless and feeling like a failure for much of his life. His Tourette's led to ridicule and exclusion from many social circles, and he grew up into a very angry, violent alcoholic. Most assume he is nothing more than a stupid brute between his muscles and his tics, but he is actually very astute and knows more than he lets on, made all the easier with his eidetic memory. Throwing himself into learning freestyle fighting and how to handle as many weapons as possible, Panzer found himself trading, buying, and selling weapons in no time; his alias, Ares, was given to him by those he dealt with, but whether it was due to his dealing in weapons of war or his temper was never made clear. Over the years he hasn't done much personal introspection, and as such has buried the truths he isn't prepared to face: that of being trans and bisexual.

And to the right is Lawrence Banerjee, who inherited the car shop of his deceased older brother, Dillon. Lawrence was in no way prepared for the job, especially once he found out that his brother had been the mechanic and car dealer for a notoriously violent gang, bringing into question whether Dillon's death had been accidental after all. It wasn't long before he found out he'd inherited his brother's debt to the gang too. As if that wasn't enough stress, there was pressure from his family to marry his brother's widow, Dr. Kajal Banerjee, her family pressuring her to do the same. In the end he married her only to protect her from his brother's poor choices posthumous, and refused to actually treat her as anything but his sister-in-law despite living with her. He slept on the couch and otherwise gently deflected her advances, figuring she's grieving and will move on soon enough. It was through her that he learned of Los Desvalidos - apparently she used to treat a few of the members in prison - and turned to them for protection, offering his services in return. He's had a mutually beneficial relationship with Los Desvalidos since, but his relationship with Kajal has only grown more complicated.

Casey deals in drugs, Panzer deals in arms, and Lawrence deals in cars; if you need anything, they'll hook you up. For a price, of course.

If you have any questions, ask away!

Art/Characters © Scott Francis