RE: Incident [TEXT]
05-31-2013, 08:43 PM
“I guess I should thank you. This all seems quite generous,” you say at last.
Esser shakes his head.
“I'm not doing this to save your life. I'm doing this to prevent Six from taking it.”
It's no more than you would expect.
“You said you were basing this off something that happened before - what exactly happened last time? What are you trying to prevent a repeat of?”
“Last time... last time is barely relevant. I don't know why I mentioned it.” Esser shrugs, but his nonchalance is a poor cover for his discomfort. “Six killing you is a worst case scenario. That's what I want to prevent. It's possible he's not as broken as I think, or that he'll lose interest in you once it becomes obvious that there's nothing special about you. Or that I misinterpreted his actions and motives. The probability of any harm coming to you from Six's direction was already small. My interference here and now simply means that your safety and Six's sanity are assured. You have nothing to worry about.”
“Is Number 6's sanity that much of an issue?”
“No.” He smiles grimly. “Not while I'm here.”
It's odd. You assumed Esser was just a bodyguard who carried out the occasional assassination, chosen more for the intimidation factor than anything, but this seems to be a little more. Both Number 6 and Esser clearly spent time in Riisneia. Possibly both born and raised there. Could they be related? That said, Riisneia is a big place, virtually an entire continent. It could just be a coincidence that both Esser and Number 6 have a similar accent.
Like you really believe that.
“While we're talking... what's the deal with Dupont?” That gets his attention.
“What about him?”
“Does Number 6 often kill sparkers?”
“Oh. No - Dupont is a special case. He's Myriad.”
“Does that really justify his murder?”
“Yeah, it kind of does. Six might have given you the impression that he didn't know much about the Myriad, but he's run into them a few times. Not their base of operations, obviously, but the people running it. I might just be biased because they think Six is an abomination that needs to be destroyed, but they're not good people.”
“How so?”
“They prey on vulnerable sparkers. Homeless, abused, in poverty... the Myriad sweeps along and promises to make it all better, as long as they sign a contract binding them into their service. From that point on they're completely in their power. And they do help. Every advantage that can possibly be given is conferred upon the lucky sparker, and then they're put into place to worm their way into positions of power. The Myriad has its claws in every organisation or institution with power in this city, and all their pawns are incredibly grateful towards their 'saviours'. I killed Dupont because he was one of the Myriad's headhunters. He deserved it. I only kill those who do.”
You grit your teeth. You kind of want to like this guy because he obviously cares too much about someone who isn't worth it, but you hate killers. For more than the obvious reason. And you really don't like killers trying to justify themselves as if it somehow erases the act.
“Nice try, but no. You killed Dupont because Number 6 wanted you to.”
“That's true. I killed Dupont because Number 6 asked, but I don't regret it because he deserved it.”
“What right do you have to judge?”
He laughs, but it's more bitter than entertained. “None at all. I don't have a right, but... There was a serial killer in this city, about two years ago. Do you remember?”
“Two years ago? I... don't think so.” Where is he going with this?
“Really? Odd. The entire city was in panic, and the newspapers were going wild with it. But after eight victims and two months the killer stopped suddenly, and no one knew why. The case was never solved.”
“Ah, I think I see what you're saying. You stopped them, right? You killed the killer?”
“No, but...” Esser rubs the back of his neck and looks down the alley behind him. “Never mind. I don't know why I brought it up. I should really be going. Good night, Silk. Good luck with finding the Myriad.”
He picks up his coat and dons it again. Without waiting for your response, he crouches and jumps at the wall, which he scrambles up. In a matter of seconds he's vanished from sight. All without making a noise bar, the slight rustle of cloth.
It doesn't really make sense, but you're happy to chalk it up to sparker shit and leave it at that. You want to go home.
So you do.
The lobby of the apartment building is dead when you walk in. The clock on the wall gives you a good enough reason: it's 2AM. The rest of it is kind of a haze, but you vaguely recall getting in the elevator, getting to your door, having a shower, eating something (you don't recall what and you don't care) and pulling off enough clothes before you fall into bed to sleep comfortably.
And so you sleep, briefly, blissfully unaware of tomorrow and all it promises.
END OF CHAPTER ONE
Esser shakes his head.
“I'm not doing this to save your life. I'm doing this to prevent Six from taking it.”
It's no more than you would expect.
“You said you were basing this off something that happened before - what exactly happened last time? What are you trying to prevent a repeat of?”
“Last time... last time is barely relevant. I don't know why I mentioned it.” Esser shrugs, but his nonchalance is a poor cover for his discomfort. “Six killing you is a worst case scenario. That's what I want to prevent. It's possible he's not as broken as I think, or that he'll lose interest in you once it becomes obvious that there's nothing special about you. Or that I misinterpreted his actions and motives. The probability of any harm coming to you from Six's direction was already small. My interference here and now simply means that your safety and Six's sanity are assured. You have nothing to worry about.”
“Is Number 6's sanity that much of an issue?”
“No.” He smiles grimly. “Not while I'm here.”
It's odd. You assumed Esser was just a bodyguard who carried out the occasional assassination, chosen more for the intimidation factor than anything, but this seems to be a little more. Both Number 6 and Esser clearly spent time in Riisneia. Possibly both born and raised there. Could they be related? That said, Riisneia is a big place, virtually an entire continent. It could just be a coincidence that both Esser and Number 6 have a similar accent.
Like you really believe that.
“While we're talking... what's the deal with Dupont?” That gets his attention.
“What about him?”
“Does Number 6 often kill sparkers?”
“Oh. No - Dupont is a special case. He's Myriad.”
“Does that really justify his murder?”
“Yeah, it kind of does. Six might have given you the impression that he didn't know much about the Myriad, but he's run into them a few times. Not their base of operations, obviously, but the people running it. I might just be biased because they think Six is an abomination that needs to be destroyed, but they're not good people.”
“How so?”
“They prey on vulnerable sparkers. Homeless, abused, in poverty... the Myriad sweeps along and promises to make it all better, as long as they sign a contract binding them into their service. From that point on they're completely in their power. And they do help. Every advantage that can possibly be given is conferred upon the lucky sparker, and then they're put into place to worm their way into positions of power. The Myriad has its claws in every organisation or institution with power in this city, and all their pawns are incredibly grateful towards their 'saviours'. I killed Dupont because he was one of the Myriad's headhunters. He deserved it. I only kill those who do.”
You grit your teeth. You kind of want to like this guy because he obviously cares too much about someone who isn't worth it, but you hate killers. For more than the obvious reason. And you really don't like killers trying to justify themselves as if it somehow erases the act.
“Nice try, but no. You killed Dupont because Number 6 wanted you to.”
“That's true. I killed Dupont because Number 6 asked, but I don't regret it because he deserved it.”
“What right do you have to judge?”
He laughs, but it's more bitter than entertained. “None at all. I don't have a right, but... There was a serial killer in this city, about two years ago. Do you remember?”
“Two years ago? I... don't think so.” Where is he going with this?
“Really? Odd. The entire city was in panic, and the newspapers were going wild with it. But after eight victims and two months the killer stopped suddenly, and no one knew why. The case was never solved.”
“Ah, I think I see what you're saying. You stopped them, right? You killed the killer?”
“No, but...” Esser rubs the back of his neck and looks down the alley behind him. “Never mind. I don't know why I brought it up. I should really be going. Good night, Silk. Good luck with finding the Myriad.”
He picks up his coat and dons it again. Without waiting for your response, he crouches and jumps at the wall, which he scrambles up. In a matter of seconds he's vanished from sight. All without making a noise bar, the slight rustle of cloth.
It doesn't really make sense, but you're happy to chalk it up to sparker shit and leave it at that. You want to go home.
So you do.
The lobby of the apartment building is dead when you walk in. The clock on the wall gives you a good enough reason: it's 2AM. The rest of it is kind of a haze, but you vaguely recall getting in the elevator, getting to your door, having a shower, eating something (you don't recall what and you don't care) and pulling off enough clothes before you fall into bed to sleep comfortably.
And so you sleep, briefly, blissfully unaware of tomorrow and all it promises.
END OF CHAPTER ONE
Spoiler