Post by Lord Zasham on Mar 5, 2015 23:27:37 GMT -5
Willie would not be home long; a mission beckoned him across the galaxy. It would take months so he needed to tie up loose ends quickly. His life as a Deliverer was all but over, with his work for Zex now dominating his schedule. Now he had to end it, officially, by talking to the Librarian. It all sounded so silly, so strange, these terms and what they represented. But yet here he was, on one last delivery. Conditions, everything in life came with them. I will treat your mother, if you can pay for the medicine. I will save your mother, if you become my agent. I will literally destroy your life, if it begets an end I desire.
“If you want out of the job, then you know the rule,” the Librarian was no doubt called such for the litany of books that filled his office. Every nook and cranny had a shelf filled with them. Yet it was all ordered and extremely tidy. A façade within as the outside were the crime ridden streets of Alpha Prime, a desolate and crowded place, a cocktail of infrastructure that created a most hideous abstract piece. The boy just stared out the window as his hands gripped his jeans. He was tired of this game.
“What if I don’t want to play by the rules, the man I work for now… Wields more power than you dream of in your wildest fantasies. He wants me out and it would be a fool to stand in his way,” William did not lie; Prometheus would crush anyone who stood in his path. However the boy was bluffing and as he stared out the windows to the deviousness below the other laughed. Neat and tidy, just like his office, the Librarian looked and meant business. As he laughed he looked down at the boy through his glasses.
“Boy if you indeed worked for such a person then why not reveal their name? Either you’re lying or they are in no position to help, regardless the rule stands,” he said resolutely. Opposite his perfect posture Willie slumped in the chair, he was still recovering from everything that happened; helpless as Ninjin and Celeh perished. All he wanted was to tear the man apart and burn down everything he had built. But they were darker instincts, one he could not listen to, for fear of the demon’s voice return. Plus it was unwise as he had connections to every criminal mastermind in the system.
Prometheus could not intervene on William’s behalf; Zex was clear that he was to be a covert agent and that no one was to ever know he worked for the Lord of Alpha Prime. Not yet. The boy knew he had a reason, he always did, but he dare not fathom what evil it entailed. Regardless he could not name drop and thus he was left to face the rule. The Librarian had called his bluff. “Well then… What are the details,” the boy muttered with a sigh as his gaze lingered.
A Deliverer is an anonymous individual with no ties to any criminal organization in the Omega Collective. Their soul job is to deliver packages containing expensive information. The Librarian was the bookkeeper, the one who ran the Delivery system. With all the spies and sabotage amongst the criminal element, it became necessary for a third party to come in and relay delicate information. The Deliverer does not know who they are delivering for or who they are delivering to, and they never look at the contents. Knowing too much could mean death, as did a non delivery.
The only person a Deliverer ever met was the Librarian, or one of his lackeys though they did not speak other than to relay the commands of their master. The only thing they ever knew was where and by when. It was also a dangerous job, as the rival organizations all want each other’s vital information. If they found out who you were and what you were delivering even if they did not kill you the Librarian would for failing to deliver. It was a hard job but paid well, none more than the last. But as all others, it had rules though few and direct.
Rule one, if you don’t deliver the package you die. Rule two, don’t ask questions. Rule three, never look at the contents of the package. Rule four, if you want be “discharged” then you have to do one last job for the Librarian. The last one had haunted William for years, what would it entail? He always imagined it was more than just a simple delivery; not that they ever were. Yet here he was, atop the Librarian’s building, waiting. When he asked for details he was simply told to wait on the roof and the delivery would be given shortly. Though still he doubted it was just that.
He had never heard back from a Deliverer who had asked out. From what he imagined they were sent on the most dangerous mission available, probably information the Librarian sat on for just such an occasion; expendable assets and such. Speculation of course but given the amounts promised upon completion of their final delivery, William had cause to speculate. Enormous sums he had heard, more than twice the highest ever offered. Then the door to the stairs opened and one of the bookkeeper’s regulars stepped forward, small package in hand.
Without a word he handed the package to the boy, its drop off location detailed on the parchment wrapping the item. With an out of place smile the goon retreated back within the building as William looked out across the city. It was somewhere he had never been before, though that did not surprise him; far side of the asteroid near the fringes of civilization and space rock just outside one of the areas recently quarantined by none other than Prometheus himself. How peculiar, William thought, as none of the gangs every dared getting near Zex’s assets. There was a clear pecking order; Lord of Alpha Prime, then everyone else.
Leaping off the roof he quickly made it from to the other with ease, making good time despite a continued lack of flight. Traversing Prime was second nature to the boy now; he knew nearly every street, every merchant. Having a conscience which was part magic, part machine did not hurt either, but he knew them well even before the absorption. Thus a location on the outer fringes was not too difficult for him to access, despite much of the area being closed off, though it did not hurt that he worked for the man that had closed them off in the first place. Slowly the towering infrastructure gave way beneath his feet, growing smaller as he reached the borders of the life zone. Then there was only the building, far removed from the others and just at the end of safety.
With a slow walk William neared the building, looking about as he did so, paranoid as he believed he rightfully should. He saw nothing; it was just a normal size house. Strange that it looked akin to something back home on Earth rather than the usual space age drab. It had that homey feeling, despite being surrounded by dead earth. Arriving at the door he was surprised to find no receptacle. Normally there was a compartment on the door, which a Deliverer knew how to find, so they could drop off the package and be on their way. However Willie found none and when he pressed on it, hoping for some secret pressure plate to unlock something, it simply opened.
He cursed himself for accepting the job; he did not care about the huge sum he was promised. Working for Zex would save his mother and pay well. The boy was not greedy. But he was also not the demon that lied within, and could not just kill the Librarian and everyone who would come after him because of doing so. He had to believe that he could just complete the mission and be done with it all. A belief which blew away as the door creaked open. Unsure of what else to do he entered, looking back as the door slammed behind him. It was all darkness for a split second before light surrounded him…
{To Be Continued...}
[Zeni]
“If you want out of the job, then you know the rule,” the Librarian was no doubt called such for the litany of books that filled his office. Every nook and cranny had a shelf filled with them. Yet it was all ordered and extremely tidy. A façade within as the outside were the crime ridden streets of Alpha Prime, a desolate and crowded place, a cocktail of infrastructure that created a most hideous abstract piece. The boy just stared out the window as his hands gripped his jeans. He was tired of this game.
“What if I don’t want to play by the rules, the man I work for now… Wields more power than you dream of in your wildest fantasies. He wants me out and it would be a fool to stand in his way,” William did not lie; Prometheus would crush anyone who stood in his path. However the boy was bluffing and as he stared out the windows to the deviousness below the other laughed. Neat and tidy, just like his office, the Librarian looked and meant business. As he laughed he looked down at the boy through his glasses.
“Boy if you indeed worked for such a person then why not reveal their name? Either you’re lying or they are in no position to help, regardless the rule stands,” he said resolutely. Opposite his perfect posture Willie slumped in the chair, he was still recovering from everything that happened; helpless as Ninjin and Celeh perished. All he wanted was to tear the man apart and burn down everything he had built. But they were darker instincts, one he could not listen to, for fear of the demon’s voice return. Plus it was unwise as he had connections to every criminal mastermind in the system.
Prometheus could not intervene on William’s behalf; Zex was clear that he was to be a covert agent and that no one was to ever know he worked for the Lord of Alpha Prime. Not yet. The boy knew he had a reason, he always did, but he dare not fathom what evil it entailed. Regardless he could not name drop and thus he was left to face the rule. The Librarian had called his bluff. “Well then… What are the details,” the boy muttered with a sigh as his gaze lingered.
A Deliverer is an anonymous individual with no ties to any criminal organization in the Omega Collective. Their soul job is to deliver packages containing expensive information. The Librarian was the bookkeeper, the one who ran the Delivery system. With all the spies and sabotage amongst the criminal element, it became necessary for a third party to come in and relay delicate information. The Deliverer does not know who they are delivering for or who they are delivering to, and they never look at the contents. Knowing too much could mean death, as did a non delivery.
The only person a Deliverer ever met was the Librarian, or one of his lackeys though they did not speak other than to relay the commands of their master. The only thing they ever knew was where and by when. It was also a dangerous job, as the rival organizations all want each other’s vital information. If they found out who you were and what you were delivering even if they did not kill you the Librarian would for failing to deliver. It was a hard job but paid well, none more than the last. But as all others, it had rules though few and direct.
Rule one, if you don’t deliver the package you die. Rule two, don’t ask questions. Rule three, never look at the contents of the package. Rule four, if you want be “discharged” then you have to do one last job for the Librarian. The last one had haunted William for years, what would it entail? He always imagined it was more than just a simple delivery; not that they ever were. Yet here he was, atop the Librarian’s building, waiting. When he asked for details he was simply told to wait on the roof and the delivery would be given shortly. Though still he doubted it was just that.
He had never heard back from a Deliverer who had asked out. From what he imagined they were sent on the most dangerous mission available, probably information the Librarian sat on for just such an occasion; expendable assets and such. Speculation of course but given the amounts promised upon completion of their final delivery, William had cause to speculate. Enormous sums he had heard, more than twice the highest ever offered. Then the door to the stairs opened and one of the bookkeeper’s regulars stepped forward, small package in hand.
Without a word he handed the package to the boy, its drop off location detailed on the parchment wrapping the item. With an out of place smile the goon retreated back within the building as William looked out across the city. It was somewhere he had never been before, though that did not surprise him; far side of the asteroid near the fringes of civilization and space rock just outside one of the areas recently quarantined by none other than Prometheus himself. How peculiar, William thought, as none of the gangs every dared getting near Zex’s assets. There was a clear pecking order; Lord of Alpha Prime, then everyone else.
Leaping off the roof he quickly made it from to the other with ease, making good time despite a continued lack of flight. Traversing Prime was second nature to the boy now; he knew nearly every street, every merchant. Having a conscience which was part magic, part machine did not hurt either, but he knew them well even before the absorption. Thus a location on the outer fringes was not too difficult for him to access, despite much of the area being closed off, though it did not hurt that he worked for the man that had closed them off in the first place. Slowly the towering infrastructure gave way beneath his feet, growing smaller as he reached the borders of the life zone. Then there was only the building, far removed from the others and just at the end of safety.
With a slow walk William neared the building, looking about as he did so, paranoid as he believed he rightfully should. He saw nothing; it was just a normal size house. Strange that it looked akin to something back home on Earth rather than the usual space age drab. It had that homey feeling, despite being surrounded by dead earth. Arriving at the door he was surprised to find no receptacle. Normally there was a compartment on the door, which a Deliverer knew how to find, so they could drop off the package and be on their way. However Willie found none and when he pressed on it, hoping for some secret pressure plate to unlock something, it simply opened.
He cursed himself for accepting the job; he did not care about the huge sum he was promised. Working for Zex would save his mother and pay well. The boy was not greedy. But he was also not the demon that lied within, and could not just kill the Librarian and everyone who would come after him because of doing so. He had to believe that he could just complete the mission and be done with it all. A belief which blew away as the door creaked open. Unsure of what else to do he entered, looking back as the door slammed behind him. It was all darkness for a split second before light surrounded him…
{To Be Continued...}
[Zeni]