The southern outpost located near Bullhead Road had an unexpected visitor. Due to sudden and mysterious orders, she was brought there after completing her mission in England. Even if she was an assassin, the personnel were relaxed because she was one of the few assassins that didn’t make them tremble in fear with their presence alone. Besides, she was also very educated and amicable, unlike the others.
One of the rebels had invited her to play a game of chess while she waited further orders. She was no stranger to the game so she accepted the offer. But he didn’t invite her just to have fun and pass the time, Lionel believed that she would be open to consider supporting their hostile takeover, based on the theory that her set of beliefs aligned with theirs.
“It may be rude for me to make assumptions but, I’m sure that you are the kind of professional that only works for good and honest causes. You not only pursue the payment; you actively work to ensure the peace and order of the territories you work in. Am I right?” – His name was Jeremy, a third division operator, he was participating in the rebellion just like everyone else in his division, and was currently waiting for the order to act and fight. He suspected that once he reported back to Bonde and told him about his success recruiting Fate’s help, they would proceed with the takeover.
He for one was confident that their rebellion would be a massive success and that Darius had no idea what he was in for.
Jeremy made his move on the board and waited for Fate’s response.
She showed him a playful smile and adjusted her cap. –“You are not too off the mark, I do aspire to do something good with my work. The problem is, I really don’t care about other people’s peace.”
“Oh? And why is that?”
“It just isn’t my role in this world.” -Fate showed Jeremy the strings that intertwined around her fingers. –“These strings cut whatever I tell them to cut, they catch, pressure and cut; a weapon, so it serves no other purpose than hurting people, but they are meant for a certain kind of people.”
“What kind of people?”
“The kind that relish and thrive from exploiting normalcy, forcing it into stagnation, that grasp at it and refuse the change, breaking the natural order of things. If there was no fool trying to do something like that, these strings would not exist, and I wouldn’t have been born, yet here I am, and here they are.”
“I see. So, you do think that change is necessary.”
“…But what kind of change?” -She threw an insightful look at him. – “I’ve got this feeling we are not on the same page, you know?”
“Well I-”
“You intend to change something? …Check.”
Fate managed to put Jeremy’s king in check and he quickly made a move to put the king out of danger.
“You could say so…” -He said. –“A few others and I find ourselves…let’s say dissatisfied with how things have been running lately. We think that, the way things are going, we’ll never see our ultimate goal fulfilled. You do know that the Men of the World seek to change the world, right?”
“Of course. Kirsten told me so.”
“Ah, Kirsten…” -He had a bittersweet taste in his mouth, assuming that by that point, Kirsten would be already dead. – “Yeah, he has the right ideas, but doesn’t see the bigger picture. The way things are going, that great change won’t ever happen. So, my people and I seek to do things our way to make sure that change does happen.”
“Hmmm…” -Fate placed her hand on her cheek as she moved her bishop to capture a knight. –“To make sure the change happens…”
“And judging by our conversation, I recognize that you too want to see this great change happen. So, I was wondering if we could count on you.”
Fate yawned while moving her tower to place the king in check once again. –“…So you guys seek to appropriate this change and see it through with your own hands.” -He didn’t notice, but Fate’s strings made a small cut on his neck’s skin, only to confirm what was already obvious to her. – “See, I’m not a girl of big thoughts or insights, beyond these strings and the gifts they give me, I’m just a simple individual, with a simple background.”
Jeremy put his king back to safety once again, but Fate didn’t make her move instantly, she stared at the board, knowing that somewhere around those 64 tiles, the check-mate was one move away.
“When humans are faced with change, there are three kinds: those who embrace it, those who challenge it, and those who appropriate it.”
Fate grabbed her knight and used it to finally checkmate Jeremy’s king, finishing the game. – “These strings have revealed to me that, even if the existence of these three types of humans is undoubtable, the world could make due without one of them.”
Their conversation was interrupted by the radar’s alarm. – “Heads up, we got an unknown vehicle approaching the perimeter.” -Announced one of the agents in charge of watching over the area.
Jeremy excused himself and stood up to see what was going on. The agents checked on the road’s cameras to determine what they were dealing with.
They spotted a single blue rover approaching from the northern path at high speed, they couldn’t see who the driver was with the sun reflection over the windshield covering his face.
“It’s a single rover, we don’t know who it belongs to. The guards on the outside will intercept it when it breaches the perimeter.” -The agent was very impartial, approaching the situation according to protocol.
Everyone at the hideout were feeling pretty confident, everyone except Jeremy who recognized that blue rover the moment it appeared on screen. It belonged to the thug they hired to torture Kirsten to death, he wasn’t supposed to be there or know about that location at all.
That order of ideas made him reach to a conclusion, whoever it was behind the wheel, he was not one of their allies, and had to be dealt with immediately.
Fate watched as Jeremy grabbed a submachine gun from the armory next door and rushed out to deal with the intruder before he could show himself to the guards.
“(The most normal people are usually the most easily corrupted)” -She thought while re-ordering the pieces on the board, and once she was done with that she got up from her chair and walked out of the lodge to follow him.
After a journey of hours that felt like days, Kirsten had finally made it to Bullhead Road, and before arriving at the Bullhead community center, he made a sharp turn to the right, driving through the unpaved road that would take him to the Night Lodge that was currently one of their many hideouts located in Canada, right under the enemy’s nose.
He pressed hard on the accelerator without caring for any obstacles or bumps that could be found on the road ahead of him, there was no place in his mind to think about precautions at that moment.
In a matter of seconds, he could see the lodge right in the middle of the wilderness, his heart throbbed with anticipation, his thoughts were in such disorder that he almost forgot about what he was going to say to them.
A couple of guards came out of the lodge and stood in front of the gateway, aiming their pistols at the approaching vehicle, trying to determine if he was an ally or a foe. Knowing that if he didn’t stop all of his efforts would be for naught, Kirsten finally slowed down and stopped right in front of the gateway.
“Identify yourself!” -Demanded one of the guards. Kirsten lowered one of the windows and showed them his bruised and bloodied hands.
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“I’m sorry. I’m-” -He was interrupted and forced to take cover as a storm of bullets flew through the windshield. Jeremy kept spraying his gun, hoping to fill him with lead after doing so for long enough.
When he emptied a mag, he dropped it on the ground and loaded another one. The guards tried to stop him but he smacked both of them in the face to get them out of his way and kept on shooting.
The bullets were flying dangerously close to Kirsten’s head as he crouched and hid under the wheel. He had run out of options, and he couldn’t just wait for Jeremy to run out of ammo. He placed the gear lever on first velocity and pressed the accelerator to the bottom, hoping to run over Jeremy.
As the vehicle advanced, Jeremy jumped out of the way, letting the car crash with a pillar near the entrance. He reloaded once again and walked up to the car to open the door and deal the killing blow, assuming that crash hadn’t killed him.
Kirsten was still alive, but now he had no other cards left to play, he was completely at Jeremy’s mercy.
“(I’ll make up an excuse later, they’ll absolve me.)” -Thought Jeremy, having faith on his rebellious partners’ loyalty, assuming they wouldn’t leave a brother behind. –“(I’ll kill him before he says anything.)”
Jeremy pulled the door open and confirmed his suspicions, Kirsten had found a way to escape his captors, but he made a bad decision going there.
He quickly raised up the gun but was suddenly forced to let go off it.
Jeremy felt a pressure around his neck that kept tightening until no breath of air could come in or out of his body. He put his hands around his neck, trying to find with his touch whatever was trying to strangle him. He felt with his finger a number of slim but solid strings tightening around his neck until they touched each other, creating a perfect knot that cut through his neck’s skin and veins, performing an imperfect but more than superficial decapitation.
Jeremy fell on his knees feeling the blood escape his body, trying to stop it with his hands, but the stream was too big and too intense to stop it. The strings let loose, but it was already too late. Jeremy’s eyes bent backwards as he dropped to the ground surrounded by a crimson puddle.
Kirsten raised up his head, surprised to see that his would be executioner had died before finishing his job. As the smoke dissipated, they both recognized each other, Kirsten couldn’t be gladder to have met her in this place; truly, the world could be very small at times and luck could bring us the greatest of blessings.
“Oh, so it’s you!” -Said Fate. – “I guess it was the right move to take care of this guy.”
“Charlie…what are you doing here?”
“After my job was over, I was sent here. People have been very cool, so it’s been great to hang around here.” – She looked at her hand as the strings swiftly interlaced around her fingers. – “But it’s safe to assume that you didn’t come here just for some small talk.”
“Right…no, I didn’t.” – He replied, wanting to laugh a bit, but his ribs would resent him if he did so.
Help came shortly after, they dragged Kirsten out of the vehicle and took care of Jeremy’s body.
While Kirsten was being tended to inside the lodge, he asked the agents to bring him a phone to report his findings. Everyone aside from Charlie were surprised to learn about the betrayal of such important members of the organization and went to work to spread the news immediately throughout all channels and sources, making sure that everyone knew to the very last agent.
Soon enough Kirsten found himself alone inside a spare bedroom they had inside the lodge, giving him enough space and silence to do his job, he sat on the edge of the bed and grabbed the phone.
He kept on dialing, hoping it wasn’t too late, but no matter how much time it passed, no one would pick up the call. Slowly but surely, he lost all hope and concluded that Lionel and his people had already made their move until after the 4th attempt, Darius finally picked up the call.
“Hello?”
“Boss! it’s Kirsten! I found the traitors! Lionel and the chief operator are all involved, section 3 is compromised. They plan to take over and eliminate you, you have to move ASAP!”
Kirsten didn’t know what reaction he was expecting from the boss, but he surely didn’t expect him to react with such apathy.
“Huh…is that so?” -He said. – “So Lionel has forgotten his place. Why does he want to destroy all I’ve worked for, I wonder? Doesn’t he realize that killing me would set off the living time bomb that is this society?” -Kirsten was glad to know that Darius had reached the same logical conclusion than him. – “You say he’s already on the move…”
“That’s right, sir. He may be coordinating an attack right now.”
“Knowing that man he must have lots of adepts.” -Kirsten could hear through the line how Darius pressed the intercom’s switch to contact his secretary. – “Maria, please, send a message to reaper, tell her to come immediately…I’ll make preparations if that’s the case, I’ll compensate you properly after all of this is over, Kirsten. For the time being, keep yourself alive. I don’t need to be a genius to know that this is only the beginning of this death game.”
“Right. Take care of yourself sir.”
“Same as you.”
Darius ended the call, he’d know what to do to protect himself, but Kirsten couldn’t relax just yet. He dialed to another person he needed to warn about the peril her life was in. He trusted Butcher would be able to take care of the problem on her own, but she may have better chances to survive if she was warned beforehand.
Unfortunately, as his call was responded, he realized it was too late for a warning.
“Butch-!” -He wanted to call out her alias, but was suddenly welcomed by an ear-piercing scream coming from the other side of the line.
He could hear slashes, blunt noises, gunshots, screams and a dozen voices all at the same time.
“Suppress her, don’t let her breath!”
“My arm! My fucking arm!”
“I’m blind, someone help me!”
He recognized one of the voices, it was Harold Kane. Kirsten wasn’t surprised that he was involved in this conspiracy too.
Kirsten listened as air was being cut swiftly, then cringed when he heard a loud impact, a rifle shooting on full auto, succeeded by the sound of bones and cartilages breaking apart. Someone went up flying and landed over his partners, pushing them to the ground.
“What kind of freak you are!?” -Yelled Kane, there was an unsurmountable terror in his voice.
“You just hate what you cannot be, darling.” -It was Alicia’s voice, but it was somehow different, livelier. – “If you thought you had us completely figured out, you have no idea how stupid you are. Here’s a little thing you didn’t know, my sister is the one with the prodigious aim and straight assassination techniques, she says that she doesn’t see the charm in prolonging things; She keeps it straight and brief. Me though? I love fighting. Every trick I have makes sure I have lots of fun every time! And there’s nothing more fun than fighting in such a narrow space.”
“Ugh…! We’ll take you down no matter what!”
“Keep trying bucko! Don’t give up! You only lose when you give up!” – Kirsten heard a pin being pulled and the distinct sound of a smoke grenade releasing its cloud. “Now I’ve got some to think. Who is it?”
Kirsten gasped. – “Butcher, it’s me, Kir…”
“Ah, Kirsten! It’s good to hear you again. What? Are you calling to taunt me? that’s ok, it won’t make a difference.”
“Wait, what? No, Butcher, I-”
“I’ll give you this, this contract was entertaining, and your people really know how to party, but honestly, I would’ve been more surprised if you didn’t try to cross me at all. We had something good, you know?”
“It’s not what you think!”
“Sure it isn’t…” – Alicia reloaded her rifle. – “*Sigh, I was hoping we could be friends, real friends, you know? But it is what it is…Sit down and relax, before you know it, your lights will go out, there’s nothing stopping my killstreak. So until then, enjoy the game!”
There were more cuts, cries and explosions of noise until the call was ended abruptly.
Kirsten left the phone fall down next to him. He was capable of deducting what was going on in his mind, Lionel had stayed true to his plan and attacked Alicia, and just as expected, she was proving to be a pain in the ass, and as a consequence, she thought they were all involved, including him.
They should’ve known better than cross one of the most dangerous killers alive, he had faith that she would survive, but now the situation was harder to reconcile.
“Sounds like someone is in a lot of trouble.” -Commented Charlie, Kirsten hadn’t noticed that she was in the room, sitting next to him.
“Did you hear all of that?”- He asked.
“Most of it. That must be the butcher I’ve been hearing about this last couple of weeks. She must be a very strong individual; I’d like to meet her and her sister soon.”
“…I didn’t even know she had a sister.” -Said Kirsten, reviewing everything he knew about her. Not in a single page was ever a sister mentioned. He found it strange that they had skipped over such an important detail. He kept on rationalizing this hole in his information, ignoring the deep secret that sentence hid within.
“You didn’t know? I thought that you were the expert and knew everything about us.”
“That girl is full of surprises…she’s really a wild child.” -Kirsten laughed sourly, ignoring the piercing pain he felt around his ribcage. – “…Working with her is already proving to be lots of fun.”
“I’m eager to work with her on our first cooperative operation, maybe even bring Silencer and Spectre along the way too, assuming she doesn’t stay an enemy, of course.”
“Soon…pretty soon, I’ll make sure of it.” -He and the other loyal handlers were preparing something, an operation that would be the equivalent to chopping off the elites’ right leg; a crippling declaration of war.
But before making that mission a reality, they had to deal with the rebellion first, and then rebuild, and only God knew how long that would take.
“I know the situation looks bad, but she’s more rational than people give her credit for. I know that if we find her and talk to her, she’ll come with us.” -Kirsten sighed, trying to comfort himself.
“You have a lot of faith in her, almost as if you’ve known her for a very long time.” -Said Fate, raising her hand up to her chin.
“…In a way, she’s altered my life in ways she wouldn’t ever be able to imagine.”
Kirsten knew that their enemies wouldn’t waste this chance to eradicate them, but the possibility didn’t scare him anymore.
If his team and him were the only thing standing between the Men of the World and total annihilation, he would fight to the last breath.
Kirsten was quickly inspired by Butcher’s relentlessness, and deep within his heart, he wanted to make sure that ravenous flame wouldn’t fade away.