Shades of Fear ~ 3 - Bargaining

     Upon the stage the armored man looked gigantic.   He, if that was what could call it, had an armor of bright copper and brass, only partially covered by a dark brown cloak.  His face mask looked heavily marked, like something sharp had been slashed over its face countless times.  Large dark breathing tubes came to his mouth and dropped down into his chest, for a purpose Captain couldn’t figure out.  On top of the marked face mask was an equally scratched and dented helmet that seemed old, but shone as brightly as his armor. 

     There was something about him that was off.  He seemed more machine than man. 

Even though Captain couldn’t see any eyes looking from the mask, he did have a bright silver coin in his left eye socket.   

     And there was the sound of ticking...

     “Abaddon!” shouted a muffled female voice.

     The metal soldier moved his cloak away to reveal a device with a speaker attached to it.  Then the female voice could be heard louder.

     “Welcome, gentlemen.  I have called you all here for a job opportunity."

     Captain held back the huff.  ‘Called’ was an understatement.  Papers had flew from the sky and rained every over the city a few days ago.  It said -

     Except for Captain, who got the message hand delivered to him by another cloaked and armored stranger.  With that in mind, and after talking about it with his group,  he decided that they should probably take caution with this, but had to let it play out long enough to find out what was this “easy task”.

     Murmurs started to rise up, some shouted about the job and some shouted about pay, but it all became a mush of noise from the crowd.  The armored man didn’t move, but the voice rose up.

     "My offer is simple.  I need real men to go out to the Black Road."

     The crowd went silent.

     She would have had a better chance telling them to go into the gates of hell and piss on Cerberus while you were on fire.

      Some simply got up and started to leave while others started to throw out obscenities.  Captain and his men stayed quiet, waiting for this scene to play out.

     "Your reward is an answer to one of your dreams."

     What the silence was from her last response, the roar of laughter was ear shattering.  Captain still stayed quiet and kept watching.

     Then the armored man lifted a dull copper gauntlet of a hand and pointed to someone in the crowd. 

     "You dream of a certain lady who will treat you to such delights that you are ashamed to imagine.” 

      The man who she pointed to went pale.  But the crowd still didn’t quiet down.  So the armored man pointed to someone else.

     “You dream of a wealthy fortune, enough to start your own kingdom.”   

     People started to quiet down as they started to realize something.

     He pointed again, “You dream of an army under your command, enough to be feared by all.”

     Now everyone was quiet.

     The voice spoke, “One thing can be yours.  Any ‘one’ thing of your dreams."

     That got everyone’s attention.  The ones who started to leave came back to their seats.

     The problem with a promise like that is that they are drawn from a truth, a truth that means she has the power to make any dream a reality.  A pretty powerful reward.

     And this, by all means, made Captain even more suspicious.

     The voice continued.  “I need men out on the Black Road as guards.  You will be on the search of an individual that I am looking for.  You will be well armed, and have support like Abaddon here.  And as acceptance to this deal, I will be giving one gold coin per person in advance, with any wish granted as the reward for the men who can bring me back that individual. 

     “So, will you follow me?”

     Arguments started up and the whole area became loud with noise again.  Some were excited to start, wanting to sign up right away, while other’s were wondering if it was just a trick, and getting into fights with other people around them.

     Captain was getting pretty tired of this noise going back and forth.

     He took this time to nudge Salric, who produced a gold shaped bullet from his black bandages.  Captain took the bullet, opened his new gun's chamber, and placed it in the next round.  He stood up near the stage and aimed to the sky.

     Let's see how this new gun can handle this, he thought.

     He pulled the trigger, and...

     Fire erupted from his barrel.  It made a roaring bang that caused the crowd to become silent instantly.  Some of the people nearby, except Captain's group, even covered their ears hoping to recover from that noise.  The flame was bright white, spewing blue flares from the side, and as it reached into the night sky, it disappeared leaving a smoky trail behind it.  

     Everyone's attention went to Captain.

     Captain holstered his gun and started to speak.  "There are three roads that run from the Silver City.  The White Road to the north," he pointed pass Pride Castle.  "The Blood Road to the south," then pointed pass the Coliseum.  "And The Black Road to the east." And then pointed near Main Street.

     He continued.  "The White Road is made from white sand, with lush fields and peaceful lakes... but only the guiltless and innocent can take that path." 

     Most of the mercenary already knew this.  It was a good place to find healing resources and food, but usually they had to get people to smuggle things with the Envious.  Somehow, they had a tunnel somewhere under the city that leads pass the sands and into a place where food could be smuggled into.  The Sellers were the only ones who could trade with the Envious for those items, and most people only had dealings with Sellers when it came to a rare item or such, since all but a few could pass the gate to the White Road. 

     It wasn't because there was something blocking it, it was just no one wanted to go near it.  The white sand just made you feel guilty to even look at it if you didn't have a pure heart, which sadly, not many people have.  Captain had a theory that it had to do with some sort of magic on it, but could never figure it out.

     "The Blood Road is made from sharp red rocks, with lava paths and metal caves full of monsters.  It can be harsh and violent, but livable."

     The mercenary's nodded to each other and smiled a bit when hearing that.  Any mercenary of his worth had been down the Blood Road many times in their life.  It was a land full of monsters and minerals that were plentiful for the picking.  Most people went in groups to hunt or resource.  You could die there, but if you were strong and smart, you could become powerful in no time.  Captain had noticed last year that every time he went there for a job, that the land seemed quieter than each previous time.  He wasn't sure if it was a sign of something going on, or just his imagination. 

     Captain spoke loud.  "But the Black Road is different.

     "It's a simple road leading into the Shadow Lands, an empty desert canyon, with wooden street lights illuminating a black path.  It used to be quiet and just full of darkness and shadows.  But when the King disappeared, things started to live in the darkness.

     "The kind of things that made monsters terrified.

     "The shadows became unruly, ripping and tearing at anything that had any sort of essence to it.  As long as you stood in the light of the streets and didn't have a shadow, you were fine.  But if anyone stepped off the road for too long without light, they came.  They will rip, slash, and destroy everything that is in that darkness."

      "And if you had a shadow, things would be so much worst."

     The older mercenaries knew all to well of the stories that came from the Black Road, while the younger mercenaries started to yell out.  

     "They say if the darkness doesn't kill you, the long trek without any nearby food or water will," shouted one of the young men in the crowd.  Mumbles started to rise

     "And how about that weird rain that blocks light that comes and goes?" shouted another, causing even more stirring.

     "They also say the Dead Man is there," said a quiet voice. 

     And the crowd burst into arguments again.  Most people still remember the last time that Dead Man came into the city and caused havoc at the Coliseum.  It took weeks to clean up the mess and for people to heal from their wounds.

     Captain raised his gun again and the crowd instantly went silent.  He smiled and pulled the trigger to the sound of a dull click.  The crowd sighed in relief.

     Captain turned to the large mechanical creature holding the speaker and spoke towards it.  "Going in groups into the Black Road is usually not a good idea.  It's easier to task the darkness with a torch or fire magic around, but if one person steps out of line, then everyone gets drawn into danger.  So I'm going to ask you this once, lady.    

     "Are you out of your mind?"

     Abaddon gave no reaction, and Captain could only hear the slight ticking coming from somewhere inside that armor.

     Then the voice said, “You must be Captain.  I’ve heard the stories about you.”

     “I’m sure you have.” said Captain without pride.

     “So what problem do you have with my offer?”

     “In all my years, the most suspicious thing a person can do is say that they have an easy job for a king’s pay.   Why?  If you have such a power to make dreams into a reality, why hire us?  What kind of individual are we suppose to capture?  The only things besides monsters that come from the Black Road are broken people and nightmares.”

     The voice paused and said with care, “A girl.  I need you to bring back a single girl.”

     Captain gave a puzzled look.  “Why?”  

     “Are you trying to question me?” asked the voice in a cold tone.

     “As far as I can tell, I don’t see any reason why I should even trust you.  You send this metal behemoth to act as your spokesperson and hide behind it like a puppeteer screaming at us to ‘not pay attention to the person behind the curtain’.  So then, why should I believe that you can grant wishes?  If you don’t mind, I don’t care enough to be apart of this.  Lady.”  He did a small bow and started to walk off, with Salric and his group getting up behind him.

     “How about your name?” asked the female voice.

     “It’s Captain.” He said without stopping.

     “No, I mean your real name.  Wouldn’t you like to know?”

     Captain froze, and then slowly turned around to show an expression of pure anger. 

     “Don’t,” he said thru gritted teeth.

     “How about your memories before the Burning Man incident?  Wouldn’t you like to know why you are called Captain?  That must get tiring sometimes, wondering what you use to be.

     “I could get them for you.  Those memories.”

     Captain grabbed his gun again and was about to charge the stage, but Salric put a bandaged hand on his chest and said, “Wait.”  Captain paused and watched as his group of men gathered together and whispered a bit.  After some time, Salric came back, he answered to Captain. “We’ll do it.”

     Captain looked at him in shock.  “What?!”

     Salric, as tired as he usually looked, spoke without hesitation.  “Sorry Captain, whatever you decided, we will follow you. But we talked about it and came to the conclusion this is too good of an offer to not think this thru.  Just ask for time and think it through.  What could be the worse to happen to us?”

     On the Black Road, everything.  Captain thought this, but didn’t say it aloud.  But as he looked at Salric and his group of men, he gave in and walked back to Abaddon. 

     “My… associates have advised me to ask for time to think this through.  Would that be alright?” 

     “Is that your attempt at bargaining again?” the voice spoke with an arrogant tone.

      Captain offered his hand to Abaddon.  “I don’t like making deals with people who know me but I don’t know them.  Got a name, lady?”

     Abaddon looked at Captain’s hand, and after a few seconds, lifted his metal gauntlet and grabbed it.  He didn’t shake it, but Captain felt a strong cold grip and could even feel the ticking pulsating on his skin.

     The voice finally spoke, "Emilia Hekate." 

     "Mrs. Hekate."  Captain let go and nodded to the hulking robotic beast, turned, and walked over to his group as they left the area.  As soon as they left, all the mercenaries who were hypnotized by the scene of Captain seemed to wake and charged the stage to accept the offer.

     As the group of mercenaries started to line up in front of the stage, Emilia spoke low to Abbadon as he watched Captain walk to his group.   

     "Send them Asmodai and give them the box."

     Captain felt tired after that.  Something about dealing with that metal man and voice just upset him fiercely.  He met up with his group, who were waiting for him by the corner of the Main Street.

     Captain turned to Salric, who already stood out from the group, as he walked forward to face Captain as he asked. “What’s going on?”

     Salric spoke out. “The men believe that if what she is saying is true, then you can finally find out about yourself.  And, if I may speak for the group, we believe that is something worth fighting for.”

     “I didn’t ask you to…”

     “You didn’t have to sir.  Each one of us can tell a story where they met you or were saved by you.  Each of us owe our lives to you and this is the least that we can do.” 

     Captain held back the sigh, and then looked at all of them as he spoke out.  “You asked for time and so you will have it.  Meet back here in twelve hours.  Do as you like until then.  If you want to change your mind, then don’t show up, I won’t think less of you for it.  Dismissed.”  Captain turned on his heels and walked away without looking back.

     "What kind of shit is this?"  Horace said as he looked at the gun through his hood.

     "That's what I should be saying.  If I used another bullet in that thing, it wouldn't have fired."  Captain noticed that when it gave that dull click instead of the sharp click he was use to hearing from his old gun. 

     "It should have fired more than a thousand bullets and not even sweated, but this looks like you put this thru a volcano.  The firing pin is melted... and that shouldn't be possible!  What the hell did you...?”

     Captain threw the gold case and Horace caught it in awe.

     "Dragon's Breath?!  You have Dragon's Breath bullets!?  Why didn't you tell me?!  I would have used a different..."

     "Just give me my old gun back."

     "I can't, I’ve already used the parts from that gun to this one.  I can fix it, but give me a few hours.  Also, even after I fix this and upgrade it some more, if you use those type of bullets they will break the gun again.  Don't use them constantly or..."

     Captain raised his hand.  "I know, I know.  Besides, I only have a few left."

     "Where did you get them?"  Horace asked as he started to grab his screwdriver kit.

     "Won them in a card game from a friend."

     "Fine, don't tell me."  Horace said in a pout.  "When you shot it, was that the loud noise and light I heard an hour ago?"

     Captain shrugged, "Probably."

     Horace lifted his hood and smiled with a full set of piercings in his mouth.  "Fucking awesome."  He took the hood off and started to undo the gun right away.

     A few hours later, Captain turned in his bed and stared up to the ceiling as he heard Evita in the shower. 

     “Sally says she’ll think about it, as long as he remembers to bathe before hand.”

     “Thanks for doing that for me.  I didn’t get to ask earlier, but how was the rest of your day?  Anything exciting since…?”

     “Since you rescued me from a scumbag client?  Nah.  Business has been slow for me lately.”

     Captain didn't mind her job.  With her being a Lusted, her sex drive was over the roof and it could be very tiring sometimes to try and keep up with her.  And he also didn't mind her sleeping with other men or women.  She told him all about it every time, which have lead to more hilarious stories than jealousy. 

     “Sorry, that’s probably my fault.  Since the men have found out about us.”

     “Of course it’s your fault!  You couldn’t keep a simple secret.”

     “I couldn’t help it!  It slipped out!”  Captain said with a smile.

     “Poor Jeramy.  He came to me in tears after you called him ‘Bubbles’.”

     Captain didn’t hold back his snicker as he replied, “Bubbles, ha!  He’s lucky I didn’t call him ‘cocksucker’.”

     “Captain!”  Yelled Evita, but followed quickly with an uncontrollable laughter.  

     I needed this, Captain thought.  Being around her just made him feel better.  

    After a few minutes and the laughter calmed down, she continued.  “Anyway, I think after that, no one wants me because they figured out I was your girl.”

     “Or that you tell me everything and they all are embarrassed about the stuff they would like to hide.”

     “That as well.”

     The shower stopped and Captain heard her grabbing a towel. “You already for round four, then?” she asked.

     “Sure, sweetie.” Captain said with a smile.  But then...

     "Is something wrong?  Something seems to be on your mind." she asked.

     "It's this recent job offer.  The lady says she has the power to find my memories again."

     Evita stopped drying her hair and asked, "What?"

     "I don't think I can trust her, but the guys are saying I need to take this opportunity to..."    

     Suddenly she strode out, naked and wet, without a blindfold.  She jump on top of Captain and with her pure green eyes she stared right into Captain's eyes and in a whisper said, “Don’t go.”

 End of part 3 ~

Phew, this took longer to get out than expected.  I have plans to edit this more when the rest are completed, like introducing more characters of Captains group... I just could do it now cause...

I don't know.  I haven't made them up yet.

Been busy with work, but planning another tribute over another character I believe should be noted.

More story to be revealed later.  Next time will be about Evita, the group, Asmodai, and the dreaded...

Box.