Infusco Limes Part 2

Lonely Freedom
A blurry scene of greens and yellows greets Aquila as he wakes. As he slowly raises his head in a stretch his surroundings come into focus. He lies underneath a tree with a great canopy which kept him out of the previous day's rain. He rolls out of his sleeping bag to be greeted by the cold sting in the air after an autumn rain.
Rubbing his arms slowly at his sides Aquila thinks to himself, "Well that is how I like to wake up when I think about it." He rolls up his bedding and tightly wraps it then placing it into his considerably lighter duffel bag. Noticing its size then he ponders, "I wonder if there any mushrooms to speak of in this area. I doubt there are any farms for me to buy from."
He snoops around to no avail which causes his stomach to let out a low growl pausing the rest of his packing. He finishes soon enough and slides his arms through the flaps on the bag walking back towards the road.
A considerable time passes before even noteworthy forests come into sight along the road. Aquila finally gives in to hunger when he starts to hear stir-fry sizzling in the wind. With a short pause and a bit of a grumpy look he walks off towards some fairly thick woods in hope of finding food. Not ten minutes in he finds himself a deer but lets it go, knowing it would be a waste. Just as he is about to turn to squirrels for food he happens upon a small patch of obviously cultivated land. He takes up a handful of carrots and a few potatoes at first, then grabbing a batch of mushrooms growing near-bye. He leaves the money for the food plus some for the mushrooms, which would have obviously been used on a piece of white cloth from one of his cloths that he used for washing when he happened upon a suitable place for it.
Just as he reaches the edge of the woods he spots a young man getting to the 'field' with a scythe. "Humph. I hope that you weren't planning on killing over such an obviously hobby crop." He turns back, catching himself in a sudden gust blowing his hair forward into his face. Through his hair though he spots a large truck by the likes of which he has never seen. Quickly he runs to the side of the road trying to get the drivers attention with classic hitchhiker gestures, when he sees no slowing in the trucks pace though he takes out a few bills holding them up as payment.
The driver stops a bit in front of him circling his arm indicating Aquila to come to the window. He says in a rough voice with a strong smell of smoke on it, "Where you headed?" He looks at the amount on the bills, "And where would it be that you wouldn't just take the train or a cab?"
Aquila smiles a bit as he says, "Ah but nothing beats a nice long walk through the country."
"By the looks of it your walk is a bit more then long as far as walks go. How far have you wandered so far?"
Aquila thinks briefly, "Well I'd say about 400 miles total. probably half of those by foot."
"Mercy. How long have you been on the road?"
"Two weeks today."
Still trying to get a feel for Aquila, "Well. Hop in, I'll take you to the nearest town on my route."
Aquila already climbing up into the other side pushing cans and wrappers out of the way where necessary, "And what would be the name of this town?"
Taking out his map for confirmation, "Lawrence, It's the capital you know. Capital of all of Luthenia. I'm takin' some beer for the celebration in."
"Ah for the new chancellor! I have been away from the news for the election for some time. Who was elected?"
"Gregory Thampson I believe it was, nice fellow he is. He says he's gonna bring down the taxes and redirect funds towards education and also improve the roads." With that the semi takes a rather stiff jolt from a pothole.
Aquila examining his money pouch, ".You don't think they would have any openings there would you?"
"Oh there's plenty! Heck I got this offer for body guard earlier this month." He takes out a half filled out form.
Looking at the form, "You don't think you could let me take that job do ?"
Bernie looks at him a bit oddly.
"It's right on the form. Besides if they would take former military with 3 misdemeanors I think they will take me too."
"How did you?..."
"Left arm. I haven't been in the military for a while still but that's definitely Luthenian. Hell it looks like you were special ops." Aquila pats him on the back, "I used to be a captain. Front lines though. Rather messy work."
Bernie looks at Aquila with an odd look, "You look a bit young to be ex-military and a former captain on top of that." He tries to get Aquila's name with the pause.
Chuckling a bit, "Sorry. I'm not giving you my real name. Just call me Alexiel for now. Also let's just say I have aged well."
The rest of the trip is eerily silent and Bernie's driving is more erratic. Aquila obviously notices this and many times calms Bernie down by giving little bits of information. Clich�� things like former occupation and hobbies, nothing substantial enough to correlate into any means of identification though. Towards the end Bernie is actually asking Aquila for his opinion on many aspects of his life but always gets disappointing answers like "I cannot instruct you in your life, you truly have to find your own way." Always seeing his disappointment though Aquila ends up elaborating as such "Just remember the path you walk is always your path and nobody else's. Also remember that there are others and they will be similar though. But always stay true to yourself. You can always change but hiding from yourself will just cause ingrained insecurities to grow and intensify."
When Aquila gets off he is obviously pleased to be out in open space again however cramped the station was. He stretches almost bending all the way back to the ground snapping back up eyes squinted shut. He shades his eyes against the street lights as the sun sets and says goodbye to Bernie leaving him an extra tip for not asking too many questions and a rather pleasant trip. Bernie drives off as soon as he is filled up and goes off into the middle of the city. Aquila though wanders for a considerable time looking at the city as though critiquing the layout and architecture. He finds himself unexpectedly in the center of the city at the steps of a great white and green building that looks ancient yet highly advanced at the same time. He cracks a warm smile as though he's met an old friend and promptly walks to the doors to inquire about the opening for body guard.
Morning at the Ritz
The next morning Aquila wakes up to luxurious red curtains with an overstuffed pillow crowding either side of his peripheral vision. He gets up blowing a feather out of his unbelievable bed head and rolls off his covers with a bit of effort. When he gets up he almost knocks over a hanger with a satin robe on it. With a rather perplexed look he moves it over to the bathroom door actually checking to make sure the flow of the room is right.
He walks into the bathroom hitting the glass door to a room sized shower falling over catching himself just before he hits the toilet. With a bemused manner he then feels his way to the door of the shower finding that the glass turns to bright greens and blues around his hand.
"Well. Heat activated shower curtains. How much it costs to stay here is already more then I have received for any legal jobs I've had." He pushes the glass in on an invisible crack and hinges and walks into the shower suddenly getting sprayed with warm water in rhythmic massaging waves from multiple holes in the wall and ceiling.
Lowering his arms slowly after the initial surprise, ". Seems more like something used to clean machinery then a shower. Then again I've had to go through one of these every day before to make sure I don't drop anything on the job."
Aquila walks out of the shower seeing the 'curtain' to be a tropical mural when fully shown. He wipes his face and shaves with his own razor merely out of an old habit because his facial hair was very thin at best. He dries his hair vigorously then and applies a little mousse, compliments of the hotel, to smooth it out from his hurried drying.
Walking out of the bathroom he grabs the robe only to have something across the trek to his bag. He finds his bag empty though aside from a little money and a note.
"Dear Alexiel, Your application to the opening of security guard was accepted. You will be posted in the streets though as you have little outside of your military record to make you trustworthy. The lack of any legal offences and exemplary performance in the armed forces coincided with our background check so you will receive one half of your pay now and the other half after the inauguration is completed.
p.s. Come downstairs at ten a.m. to receive instructions as to your patrol route and duties in an emergency. If you are late your service will be terminated and a professional replacement will be enlisted."
Looking at the letter and then at the money disappointedly, "Well. Sadly I hope somebody tries to kill old Thampson so I can get a bigger cut. This won't even get me out of Luthenia. Let alone across the ocean." He puts the note in his pocket and the money back in the bag still dripping from his shower. He walks to the bed and finds his clothing folded neatly at the foot of the bed and his gear to the side with another note folded over it.
"Wear this underneath your clothing. We'll pay for whatever gets damaged. Well except property."
Insulted from the untrusting and sarcastic tone of the note, "And you think I'm you say that to me. Really, if I was ex-mil. I would probably break the writers arm for that." He puts a long white undershirt on with sloping sleeves that expanded from the wrists. Put on his various bracers and the thinnest holsters for throwing knives etc. Then putting a deep blue shirt on with sharp white parts leaving triangles of seemingly empty space around the neck, sleeves and seams. He throws on plain black loose pants with multiple pockets which he puts larger containers into which hold smoke bombs etc. Then he puts on a large, stiff coat that covers the sides of his legs, all of his back and most of his upper body. It has a shiny, deep purple almost glow about it and nicely hides a medium sword which he sheathes just above his left hip.
After finishing dressing Aquila walks down the stairs stretching a bit causing a knife to fall out of his sleeve onto the floor.
Looking down at it slightly shifty eyed, "Mmmm..seam tore." Picking it up and putting it in the other sleeve he continues walking down the stairs still shaking off sleep. Even further showing his grogginess Aquila barely misses a maid going up the stairs then losing his footing and falling down the last tier to the ground floor.
Slowly rolling back onto his knees Aquila returns the many looks he is getting with an exhausted wave before getting up and sitting at the bar. Now fully awake from the cold shock he received from the wooden stool he raises his hand to order a drink. Before he can order, a straight shot of whiskey is dropped in front of him.
Looking up a bit confused, "Bartender. I haven't even ordered a drink yet." As a response to his statement the bartender just nods to a table behind Aquila. Aquila turns around to a full table of men in black suites. Returning to his usual somber look, "Well at least they were good enough to not catch my attention before. Although, that table was empty before. Guess these will be my bosses."
Aquila walks over to the table straightening his jacket and gloves leaving his drink.
"What? Don't you drink?" The man at the far side of the table from Aquila says.
Pausing at the side of his chair, "No I don't see the use in it. Why do you ask? I'll pay for the drink if you want."
The man gives Aquila a smirk despite his associate's obvious discontent, "No no. It was merely a welcoming gift." He puts his hand out offering Aquila a seat.
Aquila takes off his coat putting it on the back of his seat with a little chime of metal colliding being heard. As he sits down he notices considerable attention being given to his clothes and apparent lack of muscle.
"You best not judge me by my liking for deep colors as opposed to blacks and grays. Also if the records I gave you weren't enough then just test me yourselves."
The group gets even more flustered at this but lets it go at the wave of the man's hand. "Well I guess we won't be having anything beyond a professional relationship. Besides that though, I believe I should introduce myself and so should the rest of these gentlemen." He stands up extending his hand, "I'm Kou Usaki and this." He gestures for the man to his left to shake Aquila's hand, "Is Scott Wellsing. Abdul Hanuko. George Clemens. Andrew Wellcott. and Yuuske Ooruske." The last man regrettably offers his hand to Aquila and shakes it loosely.
Aquila matches it set aback by the drastic difference to the others. ". It appears that this one is my partner."
Kou look up from lighting a cigarette, "Yes quite right. He's also a newcomer to our team. He though used to work in the former President Mayson's secret service so I don't think he will be a burden or you to him."
Yuuske looks at Aquila still unbelieving in his qualifications.
Aquila sips on some tea from a flask in his coat, "You'd best pay more attention to your surroundings then me Ooruske. Plus if you keep giving me that look I'll discipline you for negligence on duty."
" Aquila, try to be a bit more cooperative. You two are a team. Besides it's too late to reassign or resign." He looks at Yuuske with his last word. Catching the time on the wall he looks at his watch calmly, "Well gentlemen. It's time we start our patrols. As most of you know this whole room has only our personnel in it so try to leave the building only with your partner."
Aquila looks up from sipping more of his tea, "Hey I'm not that careless. Plus it's just a bit of tea to calm my nerves not anything strong." He pours the tea into Wellsing's glass making it a brownish yellow color mixing with the remaining liquid.
Taking his jacket off of his chair, "It was only a reminder to the team. and also a habit with newbies." Aquila tips his flask at Kou and closes it then putting it away.
A White Shadow
". You really sure you should be doing that?" Yuuske asks Aquila.
Turning on his heels still pursing his lips to whistle, "If we are too quiet we will seem suspicious, besides I always do this when I am bored on the job." He turns back around taking note to the puddle he is in splashing his ankles with a small grimace. The alley they are in is lined with garbage cans and pretty well covered in slime from the moss and grime on the outside walls of half decrepit buildings. "I never thought it would be so different in the industrial area then the center." Aquila says running his hand along the wall.
Looking up from some deliberation, "Ah. well it does get pretty grimy after you get beyond the markets and commercial properties."
Turning his head half back, talking through his hair, "Even the great Luthenia sees rough times I guess. Although I never thought I would see it in peace time." He takes his hand off of the wall with a slightly worried look.
Warming up a little to Aquila's concern, "Well that's why Chancellor Thampson has so much support. The recession is becoming more of a depression these days."
"But it's only showing in the small businesses and slums. That means that things are quite salvageable still."
Yuuske suddenly stops, "Hey we really should be paying more attention right now. You especially because I haven't seen anything to prove that you should have this job. Plus you." He is stopped by a small throwing knife catching the side of his ear and then half embedding itself in the dumpster behind him.
Before he can react Aquila says still facing away, "Don't bother looking around that one was mine. If it hit the dumpster could you try and pull it out for me? Cleaning these gloves is a real pain."
Yuuske, a bit shaken from not even seeing Aquila turn to throw turns to go to the knife. He finds it in a medium sized dent in the dumpster half embedded into the solid steel frame. ". What are these? They are way too sharp and hard to just be made to hit people." He grabs the thin handle trying to pull it out with the little grip he has on it.
"They are made to go through pretty much anything personnel can carry. Also you can wedge them in barrels if you apply enough throwing force which at least messes with the trajectory and if you're lucky sets off the shell inside the barrel." He looks back, "Ooruske, if you can't get it out just leave it, with how small they are they aren't too hard to replace."
Yuuske lets go a bit taken aback and confused. Only a few minutes of walking though leads him to another surprise. As he keeps walking in thought about Aquila he suddenly bumps into his back and nearly falls over.
"Hey, pay more attention to your job. If you had walked any farther you would have been noticed by him." Aquila lets go of his collar now that Yuuske has his footing again.
Yuuske looking around quickly, "Him? I don't see any." He suddenly spots the shadow of a barrel on the ground. When he looks up though he can't see anything but clouds.
Aquila pushing Yuuske against the wall and standing a few inches from it looking up. "Surprisingly intelligent, using light colors and basic E.R.C. equipment. Apparently our little friend isn't just a terrorist. Although we weren't expecting one as much as an assassin."
"We? What have you been talking with Kou more then you say or something?"
Aquila glances down at him. "No. but any experienced officer in his field should know that." Aquila spots a large door probably used for employees with a small padlock on it. "Here, you call for backup. I'm going to go see if there is anyone on the next building."
"Hey wait Alex...! Geez why doesn't he say he's going to let us take care of it, no sniper team would set up right by another one." With that he turns around and runs quietly out of the alley relaying position and situation.
Aquila already closing the doors behind him says, "I also forgot to mention they are good for cutting locks." He puts another knife away and looks at the directory on the wall. "What this is a fire escape?...this really must be old to have that not work." He looks at the lock on the ground ad notices the keyhole is a bit scratched and shiny compared to the rest of the grime built up on it. "Or maybe my guess was right."
Looking back at the directory he almost yells, "35 floors?... and I was hoping to get there before they did and save them the trouble. Except financially of course." With a sigh he starts his way up the stairs at a jog taking every third step and quickly checking around almost every corner before he goes up.
Back in the city and the parade all of the men noticeably react to Ooruske's communication and a few of them even getting called in to back up the teams who are already going in.
Up on a ledge quite distant from all of the commotion a barely visible almost opaque glove adjusts a rather large sniper. The user lies almost perfectly still and even has the barrel set off from being noticed by having it placed above some piping sticking out of the wall. Though barely visible a slight stretch can be seen along with a roll of the neck briefly. The whole figure is clad in, on the parts without camouflage, almost painfully white, almost single piece, suit tightly fitting on an obviously conditioned figure but also providing protection to softer areas on top of concealing and containing the body.
Aquila, finally reaching the last 10 floors begins to slow down and is showing a bit of sweat. He says while panting lightly, "I really hate this red light green light way of going up. Stupid snipers and their need to be up so high." He plods along up the stairs much slower then before now also only listening as he goes but also keeping a hand in his pocket.
On the other side the teams are surrounding the building and getting a helicopter ready while one team goes up the fire escape. As they near the top of the slightly shorter building they organize their plan and slow down to await the order to go. At the same time Aquila is finally reaching the top of his building quietly and with a bit of nervousness opens the door at the top.
Instantly he flies down the stairs and sees a wide pattern on the right wall of where he was. Just as he starts to get up, a figure steps into the door, shadowed against the sun. As he gets his next round off he is caught in the head by something and falls back dropping his weapon. Aquila gets up still holding his arm out slightly, nervously looking at how close the shot came to hitting him. Without a second thought he gets up the stairs and kicks the, what he assumed to be a shotgun, to the edge of the building. When he looks back at the body he surprisingly sees no blood and his knife laying flat on its side.
Hesitating briefly Aquila decides to kick the body to rouse a reaction if the person is conscious. Just as his foot hits the sniper's side though he rolls away and pulls on a thin piece of wire which sets off a bomb on top of the other building sending half of the building crashing down on the team inside. Then taking advantage of Aquila's shift in balance he grabs Aquila's leg and punches him hard behind the knee. With Aquila now almost kneeling he grabs his coat and spins up on the other hand kicking Aquila in the back of the head pushing it into the cement of the rooftop. As Aquila gets up he finds himself with a shotgun pointed right at his chest.
"Et." Aquila stands with his hands half raised. The man gestures for him to take off the coat and any weapons he has. Aquila slowly reaches and grabs the shoulder of his coat looking towards the alley. As he hears the shotgun pump he throws the coat spinning in front of him and runs towards the edge of the roof. When he jumps off he hears more clangs of the coat being shot. As he lands though he finds himself in a dumpster, still damp from the various deposits to it.
With his eyes looking most discontent, "Why do I have to land in a dumpster full of something like this." He looks at his clothes as he gets up shaking off a mix of musty alcohol and rotten food. Quickly though he jumps from the dumpster as multiple splashes send the dumpster's contents, including Aquila, onto the street. He, already in full sprint, looks for a door to get into but is almost knocked flat as his heavily laden coat lands right on his face with the majority of the external fabric torn and the framework and holsters showing. He puts it on haphazardly as he runs trying his best to zigzag in the small alley.
The firing stops for a moment though and he catches out of the corner of his eye the sniper jumping to a building ahead of him. Just as the sniper gets his bearings again and fires on Aquila though Aquila jumps through a side window, catching his feet on the bottom and having to roll to avoid the broken glass getting into his face. The sound of a clip dropping can be heard and also a louder sound of what Aquila assumed to be the gun dropping overhead. Aquila scans the room looking for a stairwell and with a little smile at the repetitiveness, finds a fire escape. He quickly grabs a handful of smoke bombs from one of the remaining pockets and begins to run up the stairs as fast as he can.
After only a few floors he can hear the tapping of the sniper's lunging footsteps down the stairs. As he rounds the corner on a flat area near the seventh floor he almost runs into the sniper. Immediately he throws the smoke bombs into him pushing him back a little. He is surprised to hear the sound of an automatic rifle though and jumps down the stairs to avoid being shot in the smoke. As soon as he sees the barrel poke out he starts to run up the stairs but is trapped as the rest of the clip is emptied into the small stairwell. Just after getting a small glance at the stairs though the sniper jumps back dropping his gun as Aquila comes almost upside down from the ceiling burying a short sword in the rifle which looks as though it were the previous one only with parts removed. When Aquila tries to remove the blade, he sees it is stuck and exclaims in frustration and surprise, "Ahhh. not good!"
The sniper grabbing a pistol from his back then goes to aim but has the pistol knocked out of his hand along with his arm flying into the divider between stairwells. Aquila also loses his makeshift club of the sniper's gun from the weight and force put into the swing and it goes flying down the stairs. While Aquila regains his balance again the sniper dives for the gun but catches a heel to the wrists which forces the gun out of his hand again and also cracks the armor along the bottom of the forearm. Aquila, being wide open on the side then, catches a stiff kick to the ribs and is pushed to the far wall. He notices, as the two get up though, that a large crack was formed on the mask of the armor presumably from when he threw the knife.
The sniper now out of firearms takes out a surprisingly long knife for Aquila to have not seen. The two pause briefly before the sniper jabs quickly at Aquila following with a hook to catch him on the throat as he is stepping back. Aquila quickly wraps his coat around the knife and the arm and steps in giving the sniper a full force head butt. Aquila though is more stunned due to the armor and has to avoid another slash from the knife before he even regains his bearings. With the next slash though he ducks underneath the blade and quickly side kicks the sniper in the back of the neck where it meets the shoulders.
Before the knife even hits the ground Aquila kicks it down the stairs with a small spark lighting off of the bottom of his boots. In the same motion then he brings the palm of his hand against the back of the man's head driving his head into the wall and does so twice more before getting an elbow to the face. Still backing up, he tries a quick kick to the head but is blocked and gets a counter jab-elbow combo to the face. Using the force of his fall Aquila then gets a heel into the snipers side then quickly spinning midair from the hit and catching the other heel into the side of the snipers knee pushing his legs out from under him. Aquila barely pauses as he hits he ground then and rolls underneath the sniper and springing into a full handstand pushes him by the solar plexus into the ceiling making a spider web like crack in the armor in front. Aquila holds the pose momentarily applying more pressure by going to his finger tips. He collapses right after though and barely manages a roll to the side of the room panting heavily also dealing with the joint pains of his last action.
The sniper begins to get up slowly but Aquila holds three throwing knives in his left hand and the pistol, which had only made it to the 3rd step, in his right pointed at him. The man then puts his hands behind his head and lays his face on the ground looking away from Aquila.
Aquila still panting picks up the sniper and pushes him against the wall forcefully. "I know you surrendered but you still have an advantage here." He takes off the mask to reveal a blonde young man who barely looks older then himself. Aquila's face shows his surprise but he quickly returns to his stern look and again raises the gun to the young man's face. ". What's your name?"
". Arias."
Aquila suddenly lightens up but doesn't show it in his tone, "Well. I'm too tired to knock you out to turn you in. and I don't think this gun will work anyway. So just toss the jumpsuit and leave the mask, so I get paid for dealing with you."
Arias looks up with a small hint of happiness and surprise in his face, ".You sure talk a lot for a body guard."
"It's Aquila. Although the guys I joined up with don't know that. Also I'm somewhat of a part timer. I just needed cash to stay on the road is all." He puts the gun on the ground and drives one of his throwing knives half way into it. ". Just a precaution." He smiles a bit and then slowly gets up extending his hand. "C'mon you have to get moving if you want to get out of here safely and even quicker if you don't want to get me in trouble. Which would mean you would have to deal with me later."
Arias gets up slowly holding his stomach lightly and begins to walk down the stairs only looking back a little and raising his hand half way before going all the way down.
"Oh yeah. Arias. If I see you doing this line of work again I won't let you go. So I suggest that you end your transaction with those people and leave with the half you should already have."
Arias stops briefly as if to look at Aquila but just keeps going slowly taking off the suit showing relatively normal clothing, although drenched in sweat, underneath.
Meeting the First Daughter
Aquila woke up with the sun setting and pouring a glowing red light through the cracks in the wall. When he looked around he found he was still holding Arias' mask. After regaining his senses fully he noticed a note in his lap.
"Alex- Once you finish your little nap come back to the capitol building for your reward and dinner with the new chancellor. Also we have taken the liberty of getting you a new coat. Oh and finally, nobody was hurt beyond a broken arm in the team on the other building. All of the debris either slid off into the alley or amassed on the stairs above. We just had to get them out with ladders is all.
P.S. We won't pay you until you go to dinner so no skipping out on us."
Aquila blinks a little rubbing his right eye, ".I always hate getting orders in the morning." He stretches and gets up dropping the note on the ground to reveal a small stack of money already in it. ". Well at least they are giving me the money to pay for my food then." He looks back at the wall groggily, "Why did I have to fall asleep there. and sitting up for that matter?"
Examining Arias' mask he begins to make his way down the stairs stopping at a crack in the wall. As he looked down from it he saw the debris that had obviously caused the crack and then at the building that had been bombed. He saw orange tape and officers still posted around it which he hoped meant he hadn't been out long. Continuing down the stairs Aquila thought to himself, ". I wonder if I really went that all out to be this tired." As he caught himself by the rail he smirked and said, "Guess so."
Around the fourth floor he was confronted by an officer.
"I'm supposed to take you to where there will be less noise sir." The officer states bluntly.
".Sir?" Aquila looks around a bit and then at the officer with a little confusion in his eyes. "Ohh. Kou must have told ya to get me or something."
"Actually the chancellor did." The officer extends his gloved hand.
"Nah I don't need help." Aquila walks past the officer silently, arms crossed, walking towards the center of the city.
Aquila lets out a sigh rubbing the back of his head loosening the hair from the back of his head where it laid against the wall. As he shakes his head loosening the rest of his hair a great cloud of dust comes out from it and stays on his face in little splotches like erasers slapped against a chalkboard. As he continues down an alley Aquila sees many leftovers of the parade and many people along with them. Some still celebrating, some talking about the accident, but in general all giving him a stare when he passes.
".This is why I hate actually being in the city." Aquila stuffs his hands in the remainders of his coat pockets and continues trudging down the alley. Looking around a bit as he wakes up a bit more he comments, "This section of town sure is depressing. So run down from this recession I guess. It's a shame." He looks at a building across the street with a condemned sign on it for a while with a face of nostalgia. He stood silent for quite a few minutes before a little girl ran into dropping her ice cream cone.
Looking down at her, "Oh I'm sorry, was I in your way?"
She gets up rubbing her face but only looks at her ice cream cone instead of responding.
".Well since I made you drop the cone. why don't I treat you to another?" Aquila holds out his pouch of money.
The girl smiles a bit still rubbing her nose on the top of her hand, ".That's a funny looking wallet you have there." She says quietly.
Aquila a bit surprised and slightly insulted, "Oh? Yeah it is a bit weird. It was more common when I was younger. I guess I just hold on to things like that."
"Just like my dad." The girl trails off at that.
"Hm?" Aquila says still holding the embroidered pouch in front of his eyes but looking at her.
"N-nothing." She says quietly.
Aquila sits thinking for a moment, ".All right whatever it's really none of my business. Anyway on to my payment." He smiles almost closing his eyes making her smirk a little.
"Geez is this what it was like to raise me?... I feel sorry for my moms then."
"Hey you were thinking about me right there weren't you?" The girl points an accusing finger at Aquila while holding his hand with the other.
"Yeah. What about it?" Aquila looks down at his hand and then at her raising his eyebrows.
The girl's face turns red and she points even more, "You admit it?"
Aquila stands looking at her blankly.
She gets closer to him putting her head on his arm, "You sure you just want to get me ice cream Mr. Ice cream?"
Aquila steps away from her a little embarrassed but more uncomfortable from her getting so close.
The girl bursts into laughter, "Even though you look so professional and serious you're blushing!" She walks ahead a bit more still laughing at him.
Aquila walks up and grabs her by the sides. "You really never know what people will do."
The girl suddenly goes silent and begins to tremble.
"Hah! Now I tricked you!" Aquila lifts her up on his shoulders.
She wipes her eyes a little, "That wasn't funny. I was really scared."
Aquila begins to jog down the street, "Well then you shouldn't take offers for ice cream from strangers on the road!"
"You offered it!"
Aquila laughing a little now, "Yeah but you accepted!... Hey what flavor do you want?" He slows down a little, "An even better question. What's your name?"
She pauses for a bit, ".Erica Thampson."
Aquila suddenly stops keeping her from falling off but still getting hit in the back of the head by her chest.
"Sorry. Most people recognize me in my normal clothes so I go out in these clothes and different hair so I can just play."
Aquila sets her down again, "No no it's not that. I kind of work for your dad is all. I was invited to dinner too. and was well. using you as a deterrent of going to it."
Erica's eyes widen, "You're the one that took out the sniper?"
Aquila looks away slightly, "Well. he actually got away. He left unarmed though and without any of his other equipment. He couldn't come back soon at least."
She grabs his hand again but is silent.
Aquila glances at her out of the side of his eye, "You know. I did stop for a reason." He motions his head to the right.
Erica looks over to find an ice cream parlor with a rather expensive look to it. ".Don't tell me you were planning on taking a twelve year old girl here."
With a grin, "Nope I was planning on taking a thirteen year old girl to the first one I saw!" He begins laughing and so does she. "Before you ask though I don't know because I watch the news and I was not informed about you, mainly because I'm not part of the team. more of a part-timer."
Looking quite happy now, "I expected you to be a hardened soldier Mr. Alexiel."
"Oh?" Aquila motions for a waiter as they sit at the table.
"Also. I expected you to smell a bit better."
Aquila gets a hopeless look on his face as he looks down at his clothes, "I can take bullet holes and burns. but rotten fruit and old whiskey is going a bit far on damaging my wardrobe. One of the problems of jumping off a roof is that you pretty much have to fall into a dumpster to make it." Aquila smiles with a bit of resentment in his face.
The waiter comes with two big bowls of ice cream filled with strawberries (with juice for Aquila), and other assorted fruits along with silky vanilla and chocolate ice cream topped with yogurt and a cherry.
Aquila takes the cherry off of his smiling at it, "I haven't had a sundae in long time. Last time I saw a cherry was 2 years ago."
Erica already beginning on hers, "That's really too bad. but you should hurry up and eat it while it's cold. There isn't much reason in pondering over a cherry Mr. Alexiel."
"why do you keep putting Mr. before my name? Just say Alexiel!"
"Just stop talking and eat it while you can." Erica says with a grin on her face.
"No. She is definitely not like me when I was a kid. Although she seems very bright. Plus I think she's hitting the age where she will start making her father worried.. or in her case on wits end." With that though Aquila smirks a little but hides it with a mouthful of ice cream.
"Oh hey Erica I never said why I knew how old you were." He puts down his spoon and pulls an opened envelope out of his pocket.
"Hey! How could you have taken that?" She says trying to get it from over the table almost falling into her sundae.
Aquila holds her up by the forehead with two fingers.
Her face gets even more gloomy, "And you put it in your dingy pocket."
Aquila looks up enjoying his most recent trick, "Nah this coat just got shot up a bunch it didn't make it to the dumpster. Plus the pockets are lined with metal so nothing could have soaked through to it." He hands it back to her. "I didn't have time to read it though.
She snatches it back quickly, "Well good! It's none of your business." She tears it up.
"Well I guess you classmate won't be getting a favorable response to that offer then."
Erica's face turns bright red again as she gets ready to have another squall with Aquila.
"I guess you don't really like to be asked out for your birthday though. It is a great time of year to"
"Shut up." Erica looks down frustrated. "I get asked out all the time and all they ever talk about is my dad."
Aquila sits listening with his spoon in his mouth and his bowl empty save the remaining melted ice cream in the center, "They are just nervous." He says with the spoon still in his mouth, "The oldest guys that are asking you out must still have yet to attend high school, so they still are inexperienced and pretty clumsy in these matters." He places the spoon quietly into his bowl and folds his napkin neatly at it's side, "Also though I think you are into older guys."
Erica looks up a little red still, ".you sound more like a psychoanalyst then an war hero. Alexiel."
Aquila looks back from the window, "I just pay a lot of attention to the people around me. There have been times in my life where I haven't had a single person to talk to for years. So being with people is rather intriguing to me." Aquila looks at his now cracked watch, "Well. If this thing is still working then we have to get back." He stands up and holds out his hand, "I assume you are attending the dinner, and that you will be changing into something more formal for the occasion." He leaves some money at the table and starts towards a crosswalk.
"Oh, the hotel is this way Alexiel." Erica pulls on his hand pointing down the sidewalk towards the center of town.
Aquila pulls his arm away stiffly, "Yes but I need some clothing appropriate for the occasion." He begins across the crosswalk.
"Wait!" Erica walks into the crosswalk and grabs his hand, "Can I just stay with you until you finish up?" It's so boring at home all alone when my dad's busy like this.
Aquila goes to pull away again but the light for the crosswalk turns red and a screeching sound is heard from behind them. As the car stops several feet ahead of the crosswalk the driver gets out shaken up and franticly looking under the car for the two.
Erica, sits whimpering with her eyes closed tightly grabbing Aquila's shirt.
".You know. I thought you said I this shirt smelled bad."
Erica opens her eyes to find herself on top of the traffic light being held loosely by Aquila. "It doesn't smell that bad when you're close enough." She begins turning red again.
Aquila looks down from the sign and then lightly jumps off landing behind the gathering crowd. "You'd best go now. You'll probably take longer to get ready then I will to shop." Aquila starts down the crosswalk to the amazement of the driver and then enters a clothing store with a model In dark loose fitting designer clothing.
Rags To Riches
Aquila walks in the door still with the dust on his face and his messed up hair and almost gets kicked out right off but he presents his pouch and empties its contents on the counter.
"Welcome to Arvas Romani's sir! We would be delighted to be of service."
"I know what the shop's name is I came here because I've shopped here before. I need to use a shower so if you would please instruct me to where they are."
Suddenly getting nervous as he begins o recognize the voice and features, "Yes sir. Linn!"
"yes?" A young woman looks up from her magazine at another counter.
"We have a regular here today who is in need of a shower, clothing and hairstyling."
She gets up quickly looking at Aquila, "Geez Mr. Forgets his name you're a mess!"
Aquila looks at her with a face that sums up all of the mishaps he had that day into one puppy dog beg to hurry up.
"Geez you really must have had a bad day if someone as serious as you could get flustered by a kid. That was pretty cool though how you jumped over that car. her it is." She opens the door to a still steaming shower room. She stands there for a while waiting until Aquila comes back to the door.
"get rid of the pants and shirt but if you could replace the fabric of the coat that would be great." He hands her the pants and shirt in a towel from the bathroom and the coat with the other hand.
As soon as she grabs the coat her hand drops half way to the floor. Aquila closes the door again and turns on the shower before she can make a comment about it. Aquila goes quickly to the shampoo selecting the bottle which seemed least used and took the bottle of conditioner of the same brand. He moved so quickly due to the hurry that by the time Linn came back with temporary clothing and a bill for the coat Aquila was standing in the hall dripping slightly tapping his foot impatiently.
Bright red already Linn almost loses control when she sees how loosely his towel is on in front. She finally manages to say, "It won't go any faster even if you want it to you know." She says still averting her eyes. "Here's something to put on for now."
Aquila tosses off the towel with it landing right in her hands as she faces the other way and e quickly puts on the clothing not even looking up to see if anyone else is in the hall.
"You really are in a rush aren't you?" Linn says gulping now as she hears him walk up behind her and turning even redder."
Aquila walks past her briskly towards the clothing section. "You know I'm surprised you are so modest when you work at a place like this Linn. You would think an employee here was used to seeing the nude body." He spots a shirt like the one on the poster and holds it up to his chest. "Does it work?"
Linn nods silently at how well it matches his eyes and hair.
"Good" he says snapping off the tag and putting it on as a replacement for the shirt. He quickly walks over to a pair of semi-tight dress pants and quickly looks at his shirt. He ends up grabbing it and putting it up to his waist, "Now I have to ask is this too club-like for a dinner party? I plan on wearing a suit over this shirt but haven't found a match yet so I might have to change the shirt color. these pants will still work with a suit though correct?"
Linn, sitting there imagining Aquila in the towel now just sits nodding her head.
". This is why I prefer to be served by men in this store." Aquila grabs a sit from a rack and places it on the counter because it is delicate fabric that might tear from the tag being torn off.
"Umm..." Another young employee stands at the edge of another hallway, scissors in hand.
Aquila walks toward her a little relaxed now that he has the clothing. "Actually", He says close by her ear, " We will just be textureizing it with a razor. I prefer my hair at about this length.
"Oh?" The girl wheels around nervously, "Then I will get that while you sit down OK?"
Aquila walks over to the chair quietly taking off the coat and shirt.
"Geez it's like you're hitting on us." The girl murmers while Aquila catches sight of her nametag. "Hey! Just what are you looking at?"
"Your nametag. I prefer to know the names of those I meet Chantell."
"Oh. well anyway." She begins spraying his head down with one hand while fastening the back of the cover around his neck. "Do you want it to stick out a bit or just ends to be straight still?"
"Straight, but do whatever you think would fit with the outfit at this length."
"Well OK but don't get mad if I mess up because you were so vague."
Ten minutes later Aquila walks out buttoning his shirt blowing his hair out of his eye. "Apparently you like my hair when it accentuates it's own length and straightness. It is good for this occasion and area though. Thank you for dealing with my situation so quickly." Aquila bows his head at her and leaves a tip on the counter at the entrance to the salon section.
Aquila walks up to the main counter to a much more at ease manager and begins counting for the payment and tips.
"Geez you got to the girls again." The manager says pointing behind Aquila. The other employees are standing on the corner of the hallway smiling at Aquila.
"All that happened is they saw me ##########." Aquila grabs the suit and puts it on giving the clerk the money needed.
Suddenly quiet, the clerk gives Aquila his receipt and shakes his head as Aquila walks out the door. All of the girls snap back to work when they hear, "Hey! I don't pay you to check out the customers get back to work or no pay for today!"
Aquila hears a faint; "Yes sir!" echo out of the still closing doors and lets out a smirk.
After he leaves the more commercial ring of the city he renews his observing of the architecture, even though he is now moving along at a half sprint. "Some of these buildings look like they have just changed size from all the new layers of paint in this town, but here they look to be up on the latest techniques and styles." He smiles as he starts to pant a little, "I guess there's no time for that though the party starts in five minutes!"
The Man of The hour. Or what's left of it.
Inside the hotel large crowds of politicians, their friends and general schmoozers can be seen throughout the whole room. The new chancellor is among these crowds, much to the displeasure of Kou, joining in on the multiple discussions.
"Ah Mr. Thampson it seems that the last guest has arrived." The doorman says holding the door open as Aquila comes sprinting in. A sudden silence hits the room as he slowly walks about the entryway still panting softly.
Aquila looks to the side a bit embarrassed at his entrance. "Well. Nobody woke me up after the incident so I barely had time to pick up new clothes and get cleaned up."
"I can also see you got your hair done though Alexiel." Kou says offering him a glass of water.
"Yeah well I wasn't going to come here with the hair I had coming out of the shower is all I knew! Plus the hair before that had some things in it I don't really think would be recognizable at that stage." Aquila scratches the back of his neck and then gulps the water down.
"Yes we noticed you had hit a dumpster or two when we saw you sleeping. The smell is what kept us from trying to wake you really." Kou looks at him with a bi of mischief in his eyes.
". and to think you're my boss." Aquila bursts into laughter suddenly. He suddenly looks up though remembering something, "Hey did Erica get here all right I met her while I was out but split with her once I hit the shops."
He is answered by a tug on the side of his hand. "You really need to pay more attention outside of your work you know."
Aquila looks down at her angrily, "It's not my fault you walk quieter then a soldier Erica."
"And it's not my fault that you're deaf." She laughs at him a little.
Aquila looks up hopelessly again to bring his face right up to a smiling Chancellor Thampson.
Clenching his teeth a little, "I guess. I should apologize to how I was to your daughter before."
"Before what?" Thampson asks.
Aquila looks down at Erica just to see her with hands folded at her lap looking down. "You didn't even tell him where you were?" He thinks to himself.
"Well?" Thampson looks at him in the eyes.
"I was. Talking about how I was arguing with her just prior to speaking with you sir. I apologize for being so rude at a party I am a guest of." Aquila bows his head.
"Now now, no need to bow, I'm a chancellor, not an emperor."
"I believe any figure of authority and or respect deserves an effort of formality from those around him is all sir" Aquila says after returning to standing. He loosens up a bit then, "Plus because of you I have some money to spare again!"
"Well that was a slightly long winded way to put it." Erica says now at her fathers side.
".She never quits does she?" Aquila thinks squinting down at her.
"Hey! Hey! Enough talk lets go to the food our friend here hasn't eaten since before yesterday!"
Aquila's stomach growls almost in response to Kou's sudden statement from behind him. "Oh yeah. I kind of lost track of meals with how busy I've been.", Kou just responds by putting his arm around Aquila's neck sucking on an unlit cigarette smiling with a little redness in his face.
"How did you make it to head of security anyway Kou?" Aquila says taking Kou's arm off as if it were infected and snatching his cigarette and tossing it into the garbage.
Kou takes out another one and bites down as if to keep it there this time. "Well how did you make it as a war hero when you forget meals for almost two days?"
Aquila's face loses it's humor, "I can't eat without remembering certain things Kou. so sometimes I just deal with hunger because it's easier."
The chancellor and Erica's faces lose a bit of their happiness and look at Aquila with worried eyes and dry, shallow frowns.
Aquila suddenly brings his arms up as though accused saying, "Whoa it's not like I ever ate one of my men or anything! I was always stationed in urban areas at the worst. Other then that I had plenty of food."
Erica asks wanting an explanation for Aquila's prior statement, "Well then why do you do something as stupid as disliking eating?"
"Erica!" Thampson grabs her arm to reprimand her for her words.
"Don' worry it is a strange thing Chancellor. Especially because it isn't related to war." Aquila spots Kou taking another drink at the bar, "Anyway. I think Mr. Usaki needs some company aside from alcohol." Aquila turns towards him and away from the chancellor and his daughter, "I think I'll try to keep him from drinking anymore tonight." and at that he walks away sliding past the couples and waiters almost knocking the glasses out of a few hands.
"Crowds are the worst." Aquila says under his breath on his way to Kou, who is still pounding down shots.
Aquila sits down next to him ordering a cup of strong green tea from the bartender. "You really have something that's that worth drinking over?" He asks looking at Kou out of the side of his eye.
"It's my anniversary." Kou says drinking half of his fifth shot before putting it down, "Well. The anniversary of my daughter's death. and of my divorce a year later."
Aquila smirks a little at the irony, "Divorcing on the same day your sister died. How the hell could she do that?"
"It was just how it happened."
"That applies to a lot of things." Aquila says now resting his back and elbows on the hard wood of the bar.
"Heh. You're the first one not to ask me how she died."
"Because it's really of no consequence. She died and you are grieving over it even though it happened years ago."
"How did you?"
"Your ring finger doesn't have the indent a married man's would, or a newly divorced one." Aquila grabs his tea from behind him and sips it, "So at least your hand has forgotten those days. Your mind hasn't though so the hand tries to make it forget by drinking them out." He puts money on the table for the shots and his tea, "It's enough for some coffee, If you get another shot I'll throw you into the pool." He smiles a bit and then walks away looking tired.
Kou just looks at his drink though. For a long time doing nothing but blinking. Finally, he raises his hand for another, but instead asks for some coffee and water. "Geez I can't believe that guy is only twenty-five. He doesn't even look twenty but acts like he's past my age. Maybe that's why he made it through that war like he did." He takes a drink of the water already feeling refreshed from the caffeine and pureness of the water. Finishing off the coffee and then the water he goes to one of the security men for the door and tells them he's done for the night and for them to take over.
"We are way ahead of you sir." The doorman says smiling at his boss's still red face.
"You better lose that grin or I'll cut your pay for negligence on thee job." Kou says with a smile.
Aquila walks back to the chancellor still holding his tired look.
"Was he troublesome for you?" Thampson asks holding out a handkerchief to Aquila.
Aquila takes it and wipes his forehead. "No. It's just hot back among all of those people and I was drinking some hot tea too." Aquila pats his pocket, "It seems I have already spent half of what I was given in advance heh."
"Oh but don't worry you will get bonuses for your efforts."
Aquila looks around for Erica, "Oh you mean for baby-sitting your daughter?" An apple flies out from the crowd and hits Aquila on the back of the head sticking and running juice all over the back.
"Well no I didn't think I had to worry about her."
Aquila lies on the floor rubbing his head, ".I guess not."
"Ah it appears my daughter still wants you to sit next to her though Alexiel."
"Uh. really?" Aquila stands up brushing apple bits out of his hair frowning at the drying juice's effect, "This girl is either annoying me or helping me loosen up. Which one I can't understand though."
"About time you sat down!" Erica says arms crossed looking at Aquila.
"Well dinner wasn't scheduled for another ten minutes." Aquila says in 'a matter or fact' way.
Erica just raises her fist to hit him but Aquila a flower up to it like some feasible counter.
".Don't tell me you just got that from the arrangements at this party.."
Aquila smiles opening one eye to look at Erica, "You think I had the time or want to go to a flower shop? It was hard enough getting new clothes in ten minutes when I had my hair styled and a shower in that time. Not in that order of course."
Chancellor Thampson sits down at the table at the head across from Erica and next to Aquila. "Well" he says gesturing with his arms, "The table is set, the food is here. All that is left is to dig in." With that people start to recive servings of meat, rice, pie and pretty much anything that could have fit on the table. Aquila though only takes some half of a steak, a serving of rice and some milk through the whole dinner grabbing vegetables as they come by.
"You sure don't eat like you haven't eaten in two days." Erica says looking at Aquila's small helpings and her own.
"Or maybe I just don't feel the need to eat so much." Aquila says showing his figure off as much as he can through his clothing.
"I am quite healthy and fit if I may say so Mr. Alexiel!"
Aquila looks down with half closed eyes but looks up again saying, I guess you'll just call me mister when you're mad now won't you?"
"Hmm." Erica puts her hand to her chin, "We'll just have to see how often I get mad at you!"
Aquila puts down his fork on his now empty plate, "You really should be talking to the other people here. A lot of them are family and friends. Either yours or your father's."
"Yeah but I can always talk to them. It's much more fun to talk to a war hero."
Aquila just sits silently for a moment before catching a question from the end of the table.
"Yes but why is it that. and. that?"
Aquila just looks blankly at the person who asked the question and then asks for a refill on his beverage.
"Hey what's wrong your whole. oh what is the word."
"I know what you're going to ask so the word doesn't matter." Aquila says looking at her with an increasing weakness wearing into his face. "There are just too many things I've done to be a hero." With that Aquila excuses himself from the table and goes upstairs to his bed, falling asleep without even getting under the covers.
Midnight coincidence.
".Ugh." Aquila waves his arm at the light shining into his eyes, "Fell asleep with the light on." he says to himself as though it were a revelation. Rolling out of bed, Aquila walks towards the switch slowly being stopped by a large briefcase at his feet.
"They even walked into my room while I was asleep?" Aquila looks around for any recent disturbances in the room. ". I guess I just didn't notice on the way in." muffles out from between his fingers as he kneels down to open it with the other hand.
"I wonder if it's that coat they said they'd buy me." and the case opens to reveal two neatly folded coats. As Aquila's eyes he sees one to be the now fixed purple coat of his. He turns on another light to look closer and finds that it is now covered in jet black leather instead of the almost acrylic purple.
". Well now it just flaps a lot more. and weighs about five more pounds." He puts it to the side and moves on to the next coat which is made of a much lighter fabric that has a creamy, light tan color to it.
". Well it's light and." Aquila inspects the inside, "Probably warmer then the other one." He stuffs the heavier coat into his bag and goes to close the case when he finds that his payment is also stashed inside it behind the mesh.
"Well I guess this is the value of the chancellor of Luthenia's gratitude. It's much more then I had hoped for but still much less then what he would have to pay just for a team to have handled the job I did." He takes part of the money and rolls it into his pouch, placing the rest in a metal case full of sharpening tools and stuffs that into his bag.
"Well. I'd say after a shower it should be about time to leave." Aquila looks down at an unopened note at the bottom of the briefcase addressed to him, "Things have become way too friendly." His footsteps slide across the carpeting into the bathroom leaving the case open and the letter sitting there as if it could rot before he returned. The loud hiss of water and a loud slap of tile is heard as Aquila enters the shower, getting a shock from the heat of the water.
Aquila again sits on the floor in front of the briefcase and after a moment of thinking he finally puts the letter in his pocket before closing it up and leaving it on the dresser top.
Out in the hall Aquila becomes even more enlivened by the hushed cold that sweeps through the hallway from the ventilators in the ceiling. He walks without a sound despite the obvious weight of his bag down the hall with the sound of his keycard rubbing against the letter sounding like it were the only thing in the world.
Aquila is stopped though by a door opening and a dim light pouring into the hallway. For just a second Aquila feels like he can see his breath in the contrast of light and dark. Soon after the door opens a girl walks out in a dress and, from what little Aquila can tell, her hair up.
".Is she going to a party or a club?... but why would she be here then?..." Aquila thinks to himself as she looks both ways down the hall. As he is about to begin down the hall again she spots him, waves and runs up as quietly as she can.
She says in a nervous whisper, " read the note?"
Aquila's hand goes to his pocket, "Erica?... Why are you out so late?"
Erica suddenly loses his nervousness and excitement. ". Could you give me the letter that was in the briefcase sent to your room?..." She holds out her hand weakly.
Aquila pulls out the note slowly, "Here."
Erica takes it and looks at it for a while before tearing it in half and then in half again. crumpling what's left into a ball and throwing it into the garbage chute in the wall making a loud slamming noise which makes her jump when it closes.
Aquila stands looking at her, his face showing faint signs of worry. Erica can only see blackness though except for his shoes which reflected the doorway and the light around it almost perfectly.
Aquila hears what he thinks is a sniff. "Hey. are you."
"You're leaving then?" Erica asks calmly.
Taken off guard by her interruption, "Well." He puts his hand behind his head, "Yeah things were getting too close and friendly. So I thought it was best to just leave before I get really uncomfortable." He looks at Erica expecting an insult but she just stands there with her head now against the wall.
"Just going because things are getting to friendly?" Erica asks still examining a crease in the wall.
"It. It's a long story." He looks away when Erica looks up at him. ".One. I'd rather not tell. Or remember for that matter."
Erica opens her mouth to yell something but before she can Aquila walks past her putting his hand on her shoulder briefly, letting it slide off behind him as he goes.
Aquila walks down to the bar now feeling chilled by the eerie stillness of the hotel, save a few men playing cards at the far table and a woman flirting with the bartender at the bar.
Aquila sits down looking at her and the bartender trying to get the bartender's attention. "Hmph. She comes down here to flirt with him. When I saw her with an older man at the party." He sips a glass of water which the bartender slides to him, "She was wearing a wedding ring then too." Aquila looks away from the two and leans back in the stool holding himself up by hooking his toes under the edge of the bar. As he looks towards the stairs he catches a glimpse of Erica looking at him before she runs back up the stairs and to, he assumes, her room.
Aquila slaps his due on the bar and stands up with eyes that obviously long for bed. "I guess I can stay until she feels better. Once something weird happens though I'm leaving." He walks back up to the room, grabbing a water bottle from a vending machine beforehand, and walks into his room not noticing the footsteps behind him as he closes the door and locks it.
Single, Double, Triple
A loud bang on Aquila's door brings his eyes to a unfocused stare at the ceiling. Another gets him out of bed and at the door with his pants and one sock on. As he walks to the door Aquila trips on some clothing and kicks it off onto the bed causing the covers to shift and light brown hair to pop up from under the covers.
Aquila opens the door with the chain still fastened, "Yeah?" He says looking at the clock in the bathroom bleakly.
The chancellor's face, equally tired and droopy, asks almost through a mist, ".Did Erica happen to come visit you last night?"
Aquila remembers his encounter with her last night and rubs his eye thinking, "Why is everything happening in the first few hours of my days here." Still looking back from the chancellor, "I saw her when I went out and got a drink. She was."
"I already asked the bartender and he said you had your bags with you. Were you planning to leave as soon as you got payed."
"Originally that was the plan." Aquila says with a grin, still squinting against the morning light.
"That would be why I heard a shower last night then?"
".Yeah. I don't get where this is going." A rustle from behind Aquila startles both of the men.
"What was that?" Thampson asks sarcastically.
Still not getting it, "Um. Let me go check it out." Aquila closes the door and walks back to his bed to see Erica rubbing her eyes in a light purple nigh gown.
"Y...yo..you." Aquila stands staring wide eyed at Erica, a bead of sweat falling down his cheek.
"Heh. sorry." Erica looks down at her hands. "I got locked out of my room so I snuck into yours so I didn't have to wake anyone up."
"A, and you couldn't have told me when you did that? I would have slept on the floor then!"
A muffled voice calls from behind the door, "Alexiel? What was it?"
"It was your daughter!" Aquila yells back angrily.
Erica looks at Aquila, "It was cold. so I." She stops and looks down again.
Aquila just stares at her as he puts yesterday's shirt on and looks at the clock. "I'm giving you twenty minutes to clean up, dress and get out of here OK? I'm going to the north end of town to visit someone."
"Are you really that mad?..."
"Yes! Do you have any idea what can happen to me? I'll probably have my picture in all of the tabloids!" He grabs one of his older watches and begins to fasten it, "If I'm lucky your dad won't have me arrested. for obvious reasons that we don't have to get into." Aquila walks out the door to a flustered chancellor who then yells at Aquila for letting such a thing happen. Erica quickly comes to back up Aquila, who is merely standing tapping his foot while the chancellor talks.
"Well. At least you gave me a way out Erica." Aquila quietly walks away from the two as they fight in the doorway to his room and then quickly rounds the corner still hearing their argument clearly. "She really is getting to be that age." Aquila runs to the nearest stairwell and descends to the reception desk asking if he had received any messages.
"Yes Mr. Alexiel but I will require proper identification before I can."
"I'm in a hurry so give it to me if are going to!"
The clerk gives him a little smirk, "Sorry, I was just trying to get your autograph or something." He hands Aquila a small envelope similar to the one Erica tore up last night.
".I definitely won't be able to take what this says from what just happened this morning." Aquila stuffs it in his pocket, "Maybe I'll get lucky and this one will get ruined too." He lets out a little chuckle. ".Knowing my luck whoever was it?... His employer must have sent something out on me. Whatever." Aquila steps out into the damp morning breeze, "The worst that will happen is that we'll wreck a building or two and then I have to skip town to avoid the payments!" Aquila almost bursts out laughing as he turns onto the sidewalk and walks between a mixture of gaping and scolding people all along the way.
"Yeah yeah. Whatever people just let me walk without." Aquila winces and shades his eyes from the flash of a camera. "." Aquila walks over to the man who shot it and grabs him by the collar, "You know. It's a bit early for flash photography."
"But the light is just so perfect and."
Aquila stares at the man keeping the crowd away with his pure feelings of anger and frustration. "No. It's too early in the morning for me to have a light flashing in my eyes. If you want a picture don't use the flash and don't get in my face." Aquila puts him down.
"Y..yes sir. I'm very sorry sir."
"Ex-military don't get called sir unless they're egotistic raisins clinging to their old glory. My name is Alexiel Steinbrook so just call me by that."
The man looks at him more scared then anything his mouth moving but no words coming out.
Aquila rolls his eyes in frustration and walks away muttering under his breath.
"Oh. Wow town really goes downhill quick as you go north. This is almost pathetic." Aquila stands with blaring bars on either side of him, lights and laughter in front and a horrible collage if cheap paints chipping off of their surfaces.
"Well at least I'll be able to be alone here. in a way."
Walking down the street with an extra swing in his step, Aquila begins to draw considerable attention in his obviously expensive clothing. As he goes to round a corner into an alley he hears light footsteps behind him accompanied by the jingling of a chain.
".You were rather slow in approaching me." Aquila turns around letting his coat slide off of his shoulders into a slump on the ground. "I had really hoped I would not have had to wait so long."
One of the man in the group says out of the side of his mouth, "He seriously came to this part of town just to pick a fight?... What kind of dumbass pulls some shit like that?" The rest of the men look at him strangely then having their attention drawn again to Aquila as he taps his boot against a trash can with impatience.
"Well." Aquila says with an annoyed tone as he picks up a piece of plastic from the can. He then throws it at the crowd following through until his hand is all the way to the ground. As it hits one the others move away and towards Aquila as the other sits with his face to the ground holding where it went through partially.
"What the hell is your problem?" the man closest to Aquila says swinging at him.
"Hey now." Aquila hits him in the chin with an open palm sending him back a few steps, "You were planning on mugging me right?" Aquila then buries his foot under the man's ribs. As another comes down the small alleyway he simply catches him behind the head with his heel crashing his face into the wall. Finally when only the last two are left one pulls a gun and points it at Aquila.
"Well. It looks like you stopped talking." He cocks the gun. "Lost your edge?"
"Shoot. I don't care because you'll miss me."
"Like hell I carry a gun because I can use one." His face suddenly contorts in pain.
"Yeah but you talk to much." Aquila takes the gun from his hand still twisting his arm with the other under his shoulder. With that the gun fires a few times hitting the walls and then the can once letting the built up moisture drain out in a brownish liquid.
"This place is dirty around almost every corner." Aquila thinks to himself as he feels a pop go through the man's arm into his followed by a short yelp at the pain.
"Well." Aquila says again loosening his grip on the now dislocated shoulder, "I pretty bored with this now which means I got rid of it. So I guess you guys get off with just that." He still kicks the man in the side pushing him to the wall even after saying that and then merely pushes him over by his head. Aquila walks away looking amazingly loosened up and back to his quiet self as he walks down the street now dusting off his coat.
"I wonder if they noticed when I got my coat back." Aquila says to himself with the remnants of a smile on his face. "Now though. I think it's time to let something hot and loud wash out my thoughts." He eyes a descends looking bar, ". Might as well."
Aquila walks into the roaring calamity of drinks and smoke with a sign of disgust on his face as he quietly exhales in the door. The immediate customers give him a quick glance before returning to their former conversations creating a rift of silence around Aquila as he walks through the gap through the tables towards the bar.
"Quite a crowd today isn't it?" Aquila says to the bartender, now sitting down in a stool.
"Well Thampson is still in town. Plus the news about that sniper."
A newspaper opens loudly at the end of the bar with only two pairs of shoes on the table to be seen in front of it.
".With that news about the sniper a lot of folks have come in. Honestly if they don't cause a ruckus it's all good business."
Aquila sits smiling as the bartender grabs him a mug of hot tea. "I would assume the same applies to me then."
"Yes it would." He puts the glass down, its vapors overwhelming the stench of alcohol in the room.
"I look that uptight?"
"Just that someone like you is here at all means you're stressed out. Since you were going to order it anyway though, you still have to pay." The bartender says cleaning a glass.
Aquila smiles holding it to his forehead in a half cheer, "I think this is the only stuff I've drunk for the past three days." He drinks half of the glass turning his face red with the heat.
As the room dies down suddenly Aquila finishes his drink exhaling the fumes into the room. "Man that one was strong!"
Suddenly the room goes quiet and two hands crash down on Aquila's shoulders.
"Drinking tea in a bar?... What kind of thing to do is that?" The voice comes from well above Aquila's head.
Aquila sits stirring the contents remaining on the bottom of the cup, "Why do I have a feeling that this is going to be a repeat of Arias."
"Hey." A head pokes out from behind Aquila on his right almost touching it's nose to his face. "You high or something?"
With that Aquila takes his stool out from under him and breaks It over the man's head.
"." Standing just the same with some wood splinters in his hair the man asks, "What was that for. I hadn't even done anything yet."
"Exactly. Yet." Said Aquila tightening the metal covered gloves he was still wearing. "Plus carrying a sword that big is nothing but obvious even if it's an instrument case." Aquila stares at the warped casing for a now unrecognizably shaped string of some sort.
"Dude. You're wearing a coat worth more then my whole outfit!" The man uncrosses his arms to show an orange vest and slightly baggy black pants with red stripes running down the side.
Aquila begins to walk outside.
"Hey I'm not done with you yet!" He grabs Aquila by the back of the head his fingers wrapping loosely around Aquila's neck. As Aquila struggles the grip tightens and his feet leave the ground as the man carries him straight-armed out of the bar.
"Nicholas. You better pay for his drink if he can't when you two are done."
Nicholas cringes at the statement, "How many times have I told you not to call me that!" He turns his head to Aquila again, "Especially after." Aquila kicks Nicholas in the stomach again getting out of his grip and bouncing forward.
"Ha. Not too bad, even if it was a cheap shot." His remark is answered with a flat footed kick to the underside of his chin sending him a foot or two into the air.
"He calls that cheap while he could have broken my neck because he attacked me from behind." Aquila takes a step back ready for Nicholas to get up.
As expected Nicholas does indeed get up and even with a smile on his face.
".Why am I always at a disadvantage in this town." Aquila thinks to himself watching him get up like he had just tripped in the street.
Rubbing his neck Nicholas says, "Just that you could get me off the ground is impressive." He takes off his vest and lets it fall to the ground with a clang.
"Well that's nice. You don't have time in the day to train so you just wear weights? That isn't good for flexibility you know" Aquila takes off his coat tossing it onto the handle for the bar where it hangs caught right under the latch.
As soon as it hits the door Aquila is at Nicholas trying to land a hit as he just leans out of the way and takes the lower hits. Aquila's face contorts with frustration as Nicholas' lights up with excitement blocking a kick and throwing Aquila into the far wall upside down.
"Is that all that you can do?" Nicholas asks still standing in a ready position, "Because if it is this is the easiest twenty I've ever made."
Aquila gets up rubbing the back of his head slowly, "Well at least I know why you're fighting me now." He examines the blood on his fingers that rubbed off from the tangle of his hair, "Whoever hired Arias decided to just send some bait out into the streets."
"Well you are right about that I guess. but nobody could turn down an offer like that. Take out one man for twenty-thousand. It's a pretty sweet deal really." He scratches behind his ear.
"Twenty-thousand. I guess he didn't say much. and I haven't caused enough trouble." Aquila takes his shirt off and his sword, still scratched from the encounter with Arias. As it catches the mid-day sunlight Aquila's attention seems equally torn between the blade and Nicholas.
"You'd best pull yours out or you won't be able to block so easily." Aquila looks up blood now running down the back of his neck.
Nicholas calmly twists the case around to the front, the tip scraping the ground loudly, "Well I hope you know how to fight against larger swords because I'd prefer not to kill you." He undoes the clips and straps producing a sword that looks as though it were a slab of scrap metal.
"You just prefer to deliver my body to your employers to do it for you?"
"Hey man I have bills to pay." Nicholas starts to argue with Aquila.
"And I have to keep running!" Aquila yells at Nicholas with a tone, tired though by an unknown memory.
"Running?"
Aquila looks to the side at the gathering crowd on the sidewalk, "it's not important." A knife barely misses Nicholas' eye sticking into the door of the shop behind him.
"Hey don't fight as to get others involved!"
Aquila throws another knife from his pocket not even at Nicholas shattering a window and sending those near it sprawling to their knees. "Don't tell your elders what to do."
"Like hell! I'll tell you to do whatever I want!" Nicholas runs towards Aquila swinging his sword diagonally across dragging it through the pavement.
"Anger." Aquila's mind thinks only this as he blocks the blow slamming into the wall again on his feet this time. Taking what he can from the hit then Aquila jumps straight out from the wall slashing at the top of Nicholas' head.
"Shit!" Nicholas drops his head hearing the buzzing wind from the blade in his ear.
"Foresight." Aquila brings his foot to Nicholas' face hard taking Nicholas with him through half of his 'flight'.
"What's with all of the random words?" Nicholas says getting up with his sword blocking the majority of his body.
"Identifying weaknesses." Aquila says pulling out another knife.
"Dammit stop analyzing and fight!"
Aquila throws the blade at Nicholas' eye, "Sight?."
Nicholas catches it inches from his face with blood dripping onto his foot. ". This guy is way too weird. Even for the description."
"Guess not." Aquila kicks Nicholas hard in the side his head almost to the street, arms almost touching his forehead for balance. As he falls down Nicholas uses the momentum to spin his sword up along with his body slapping Aquila with it like a fly down the street almost hitting a parked car.
"######## me." Nicholas sits up examining his bloody nose and lip, "If he's not out I'm out of here."
Aquila's hands moves slowly along the pavement dragging the nail along the smooth divider line, blood streaking along it turning it orange. "Past." He gets up spitting a large mix of saliva and blood onto the street and hobbles away from Nicholas.
The bartender walks up behind Nicholas, "Well. Aren't you going to get him?"
Nicholas looks back at the bartender and then Aquila from the sides of his eyes, ". I think one of us would be dying then."
The bartender's eyes widen a little and then soften again, "You're such a softy kid. The only thing keeping you in this line of work is." Nicholas looks down, his eyes dark, "Well we all know why. so we don't need to talk about it." The bartender says trying to pat his shoulder.
Nicholas winces, "easy old man he hit me in a few more places then it looks." His shoulder shows the beginning of a large bruise, already turning purple and green.
".When did he do that?" One of the women, still holding her drink asks.
".I dunno maybe when he hit my head he caught me with the other foot too."
"You don't know?" She asks about to cal him stupid.
"Shut up Clara." He snatches the smoke out of her moth and smashes it in his fingers. "Honestly though." he thinks to himself, "I really only know how half of these aches happened." He looks again at the now empty street and the small streak of blood on the road from Aquila. "Anyway. that guy is just. creepy."
The only one in the bar now, the feet with the newspaper sit listening to the conversation looking through a side window showing a bit of blonde hair. "Way more then that." The paper folds and Arias walks out of the bar towards the outskirts of town. "I think I should distance myself from here for a bit. and him if possible." He puts on a light coat and hat shading his face from the sun, "He just seems to have way too much in his past for him, or anyone else, to handle." He grabs a toothpick out of his pocket and candidly bites down on it, "God, whoever invented mint flavored toothpicks deserves a medal."
For a while he walks behind Nicholas chuckling at his complaints now and then before turning off to the main highway while Nicholas takes an alley to the new Northern Slums. "This town is really falling apart these days." He thinks to himself tripping on a crack right before an overpass. "The whole Eastern Hemisphere is like that though." He says quietly looking down on the busy roadway naming the different brands in his mind. "All of the old cars are disappearing. but nobody can afford the new ones." He thinks to himself still looking down on the five lane highway with the majority of the cars in the two leftmost lanes. "All leaving in a hurry." Arias looks with cloudy eyes up the street, a sad smile on his face. "Leaving the rest behind to deal with the problems." His eyes slowly close as the sun sets behind him turning the road and trees to the color of blood.
The Lights and the Moon
Aquila leans against a wall, his whole body relaxed and bending uncomfortably to contour the wall from his leaned position. His eyes though search the streets and the lights of houses in front of him, shining with the moonlight so brightly that it almost seems like they were taking it in.
Aquila sighs pushing off of the wall, "I guess I have to leave her a goodbye, otherwise. Well maybe not, my conscience is full enough with bigger things." He turns around to go along the northwestern roadway that lay only a few blocks behind him. "Hopefully you will decide to like someone normal next time Erica." As he begins to walk though, he hears lighter footsteps running towards him. His eyes narrow with sudden fatigue and his face slacks with distaste, "What is it?" He says not looking back at who he knows is Erica.
She gives no response still panting from her run.
Aquila looks back his eye almost glowing through the parting in his hair that has become stiffened with his dried blood. "If you have nothing to say then neither do I." He starts to walk off again.
"Did you find who you were looking for?" Erica asks looking down, hands behind her back. "Also. who was the person you were looking for?"
Aquila puts his hand on a streetlight, "Actually it was two people. One was formerly. well you could say stationed with me."
Erica looks down with disappointment at the sound of she. ".So. what was your relationship with her?"
"There wasn't one she just took a bullet for me once so I though I should look her up." He swings on the pole and backs against the wall, "But she's been dead for two years now. Not like it's anything big though just a comrade in arms." He looks at Erica's face now becoming blank from the coldness Aquila is referring to death with. "Well then about the other one. She was one of the last direct relatives of someone I used to be with."
Erica's face grows sad she just looks down as though being punished.
"She's dead too." Aquila begins to walk down the street again. "Both are dead actually, probably had a good life though. They both got married to decent men, at least from the economic standpoint." He looks back at her and sees a tear fall off of her cheek. "I don't know if you are crying for them, yourself or me but none are worth tears."
Erica just stands wiping her eyes as Aquila walks off farther down the road.
"Oh one thing though." Aquila turns around walking backwards now, "Alexiel is also quite dead. I know because I ended up killing him. I did work with him though so that's how I knew all of his identification codes." He smiles at Erica when her head snaps up, eyes wide. "Anything else about me though isn't for open conversation, so you might as well just go back because I'm leaving."
"Without your things or the money?"
Aquila looks down the road, "I have a feeling that our new chancellor read me at least a little. I did give him plenty of hints anyway." Aquila's slight smile flattens to it's original expressionless position, "It was pretty much just luck for him to chose the right road with all that happened though." Aquila walks quickly away from Erica ignoring any further statements from her. "Just shut up girl you becoming attached to someone who'll be the end of you."
On the outskirts of town, outside of the reach of it's lights, Aquila finally comes upon the parked car. As he walks past the driver's side a window rolls down and Thampson's voice states calmly, "I was wondering when you would leave."
"I would have gone yesterday but your daughter made it a little complicated." Aquila follows the driver who is no directing him to the trunk.
"You're a man who worked closely with Alexiel and yet you try to not hurt a girl's feelings. It's surprising that I never heard of you."
Aquila grabs his bag, taking some money out for his pocket, "Family friend or something?"
"Something like that." Thampson hands Aquila a note through the window. "I don't know if this will make things even more complicated."
Aquila opens it lethargically and looks sideways at it resenting just having opened it. Aquila, after having read the note, just crumples it up and tosses it on the ground.
Thampson just smiles watching Aquila crumple the note. "Well." He looks at Aquila about to ask him his name, "Well I guess it is best that I don't know your name. I guess anyway, would you like us to take you a bit farther from town?"
Aquila shifts his bag on his shoulder, "I prefer walking."
"You know you are pretty moody for a former officer."
"And you're pretty strange yourself mister chancellor." Aquila's face shows the degradation of his willpower. ". From time to time. I find myself sympathizing."
"Sympathizing. what?"
"That line wasn't intended for you." Aquila waves and the car turns around and drives back to the city.
Aquila takes out a lighter and absentmindedly and lights it saying, "I wonder how I managed it back then." Slowly he pockets the lighter and walks northward along the road.
Midday Reflections
The door to a small apartment rattles with the loud bangs of a neighbor. "Hey! How did it go yesterday man?" Nicholas opens his door to a young man's face. "Exactly how I told you when I came back Chris." He says with an annoyed face.
"Uh. You didn't tell me last night Nick."
"I did. You were just too drunk to remember."
"You idiot you drank more then I did!"
"I have forty pounds on you!"
"And I have two years on you!" Chris tries to grab Nicholas's collar.
"Apparently two years lost in the wash." Nicholas opens the door to let Chris in.
"Lost in the. You know. You should just stick to the idioms you know Nick."
Nicholas' puts Chris in a headlock, "Well excuse me if I don't understand the sense in most of them and mix them up! You know memorization isn't one of my fortes!"
Chris stops trying to get free and gets serious suddenly. "You know. Messing up that last one. We won't be able to pay rent this month. Also no other reqards have shown up. also no jobs have opened up, I checked."
"Jobs?" Nicholas looks at Chris with a smirk. "Don't tell me you're that desperate.
"I prefer to call it realistic." Chris flips through his dwindling funds. "Honestly we'll barely make it through next week on groceries, even if it was all instant." His whole body shows how nervous he is getting.
"Well. if you're going to blame it on me do it."
"Well even if it was your fault, which it is, it wouldn't matter. Right now we just have to think of a way to fix it."
". Why not just pay how much rent we owe right now, sell the stuff we don't need and skip town?"
"I'm asking for a realistic solution idiot, not a nomad's pipedream. Also what is this we stuff? Your things would be plenty to sell to make it to next month."
"Well honestly I'm getting sick of this town."
"You just moved into a nice apartment three months ago and now you say you're sick of this town? I'm glad we're not roommates man."
"Yeah well I guess I could sell my stuff."
"And live with me then? I have a tiny ass room for two guys."
"Same size as mine!"
".Good point. Anyway I'm going to go out again. You. Just don't eat all of the food."
"Kay." Nicholas walks closes the door and walks into the bedroom, a bag sitting half filled on the bed. "I guess all that's left is to is to wait for the guys to come pick my stuff up." He fills the rest of the bag with clothing and a small wad of money. "Well at least holding back with that other job ended up doing some good." He grabs the beaten case for his sword and opens it. "I guess I could give you a once-over before I go." Nicholas grabs some chemicals from under his sink and fills the tub halfway full with them laying the heavy sword down into the mix with rubber gloves on. "I'm going to get yelled at again by the landlady for this." He says as he scrubs the sword with a large stained cloth sopping with the solution. A few minutes later the tarnish on the sword is gone and the markings both written and accidental reflect white into his eyes from the sun gleaming through the top of the window. "Never get used to how bright that is!" He shades his eyes with his hand now draining the tub through a hole drilled in the back pouring the contents into a bucket that extends several feet from the tub to the wall. "Well, they should be here by the time I get back from dumping this off so I guess I might as well." Taking the large bucket over his shoulder Nicholas walks out onto the small balcony in back looking over the edge for a dumpster.
"There's one!" He says playfully tossing the 'bucket' into it spilling much of the contents onto the semi-bleached road. "Good thin it calcifies and just makes some carbon dioxide in the sun, otherwise I'd be in some serious shit later.: He looks to his left and right anyway as though he's doing something wrong and catches a elderly man staring at him.
"Just tossing out the bathwater!" Nicholas says trying to make an excuse.
"You idiot they stopped doing that centuries ago! Think of a better way to get away with being lazy!" The man yells back.
"Lazy? You think you could do that old man?" Nicholas yells back showing off his muscles.
"You idiot anyone could have done that with the machinery these days! There's plenty of inventions that."
"Stop calling me an idiot!"
"Oh I'll call you an idiot all I want! You were messing up my street with that guy who broke my store's window and got it all shot up!"
Nicholas gets a confused and worried look on his face, ".Did I do something like that again and forget it?..."
"Well whatever kid just stop making so much noise!" The old man walks away still a bit angry.
"Well that's a great going away memory for this town." Nicholas says going back inside looking back when one of the dumpster's wheels breaks off, his eyes filled with surprise and amusement. "That's a bit better." He coughs a little from the remaining smell of the chemical, "Man that stuff reeks after a while!"
Nicholas then goes out the door to wait for the people to come pick up his stuff. "Now I'll be leaving without any debt!" He says smiling but then the weight on his back shifts, "Well almost none." He readjusts the strap for the case over his shoulder. "Stealing a custom work from an already looted store isn't that bad is it? I paid for part of it anyway right?"
His thoughts are suddenly interrupted by a group of men in dingy green jumpsuits. "Oh hey you guys finally showed up! Go on in and. do whatever it is that you do to assess how much I get." Nicholas' hands turn slightly sideways as he says this and his face goes into a half frown.
"You didn't even read the whole terms of service sheet did you?" An midlle aged man asks holding a clipboard.
"Nope!" Nicholas says almost proudly.
The man hands a sheet to his nose soaking the middle with his sweat, "It's only two paragraphs long so just read it and sign it."
A few seconds into reading Nicholas screams, "What? The cost of services is deducted from the total sum of my payment?"
Calmly the man replies, "Well we have to get our paycheck somehow, there is a bit of time between us buying the furniture and someone else buying it or us selling the recyclable parts you know."
"Plus a lot of it probably never gets sold, especially when it's older." Nicholas says still looking like a two year old who had his toy stolen. "But it's still a gyp I say!"
"Look, if you don't want to do business then you shouldn't have called. Plus you should have read the terms of service agreement."
Nicholas thinks to himself, "What's with everyone older then me giving me a hard time today?" As he signs the paper and hears cluttering behind him.
"We'll pay for that, so don't worry!" The men say standing around a small table with now three legs.
"Well there's two-hundred off the bat." The man checks off on the clipboard. "I'll go in and see what they have to say now so you can get your money sir." The man walks through the door to a clamor of voices that Nicholas assumes to be the men giving their opinions. "As long as I can break fifteen-hundred." He thinks hopefully.
"All right we decided on the price according to the condition of your furniture excluding the table which would have been about fifty originally." he catches Nicholas bring his arm to his shoulder as if he scored. "With the damages in mind the total comes to twelve-hundred-fifty- two and eighty-five calculating the tax."
Nicholas' mouth drops, "Only that much? I'll be broke before I even catch up with that Aquila guy!"
"Aquila?" The man raises his head while he counts the money.
Nicholas sweats a little, "Ah. Nothing I just remembered someone I have to call is all."
The man takes out a cellphone, "Go ahead I'll just take it off the payment."
Nicholas' face shrivels up at the words, "Why does he have to be so cold?" He thinks.
"Well if you aren't going to call, here's your money and we will be back later today to pick up your furniture. Just don't let anything happen to it or you'll have to pay us back and deal with the authorities!" He says walking back down the stairs to the ground floor.
"Authorities my ass. Last time I had a run in with them they dropped the case on account of the almost impossible litigations. Then again this one would be pretty easy to peg me with heh." He swings his bag over his shoulder and closes the door leaving a note flapping in the mail slot. "Come on in guys, I'm out for some business but if there are any problems deal with the man who lives in apartment C218. Also give him this money from me." A roll of money slightly larger then what Nicholas was paid sits acting as a wedge under the flap of the mail slot keeping the note propped up almost below eye level.
"Man the big city doesn't suit me." Nicholas says half laughing at the idea of living where he did. Then with elongated steps he walks northward away from the apartment complexes and onto the road, his obviously decrepit hat shading what parts of him that were under the remaining bits. He smiles a bit pushing his hat up as it slips over his eyes matting his hair into them and continues to walk down the road into open wilderness whistling absent mindedly as the occasional car passes him.