Crack in The Wall

[Noth Squadron]

. . .Kendrick Walter Four, Noth Squadron . . .Kaarst Drydock, Hangar #4 I've never been popular. I had tried to be a visionary once, but no one sees the way I do. The colors. The beauty. The auras. All they saw was terrorism and killing sprees. But that's okay, "pearls before swine" or something like that. Around here, there were some who could see. The burst of color that a life ending brings. The vermilions and lazurites that suffering bleeds into the air. They love it like I love it, yet, they don't accept me. I hear the whispers as I walk by. It's getting harder to tell which are in my head and which are outside. "Did you hear what he did on Stuttgart?" I poisoned the water supply of a small town with a chemical warfare agent I discovered while studying the weapons of Sol. It's a beautiful thing, that violet hue that comes from the fear of fates worse than death. That chemical inhibits parts of the brain associated with self. It's like a taste of Dementia, it lasts for months. Some say that the psychological damage it does is even worse than the effect of the chemical weapon itself. Other whispers from those with more color. "The Gardener's Pawn approaches. Leave him be, lest you be entangled in a horrid scheme." Believe me, I only play Strauss's little game to get an edge up. The devil sets up hundreds of traps in just a few words. Fighting against him directly would be helping him in the long run, and I'm not going to do that. "You will die well before you progress." We all bleed. We all die. Even you. And if you fear Shi like Kusari fears Shi, you'd best leave Four alone. And those whispers retreated back to the shadows of the hallway. My target was in front of me. Twenty-Five. A smuggler they found in Möhringen, not far off from Ludwigshafen where I had released that poison in the water. He wasn't weak, per se, but he functioned better with a crew. I could kill him if he resisted, but it would be a hassle, and it wouldn't be guaranteed. Even more unsavory is the memory that the colors that other Noth pilots bleed are less vibrant. Muted. Like the military pilots. Not nearly as wonderous as the hapless civilian. I have to ensure his mission's success. It's not necessary to keep him alive, but it would be easier to do so. I may have to lie to his endpoint. That's okay, as long as I get what I need. "Boons of War" for a war goddess named Minerva, so that I can "win favor". I studied before I came here, she's from nearly-prehistoric Sol, goddess of war, wisdom, and a bunch of other things. Suppose it's too much to ask for a goddess to descend from the heavens and fetch her presents herself. I didn't really hide. Seeing the reality of things has taught me how to hide my own reality. Silence mentally, silence physically, the exhale before pulling the trigger, extended for minutes on end. Complete stillness. And I heard everything. Screws falling, plating creaking underneath the feet of busy men and women, the tip tapping of needlessly stiff shoe soles. And Twenty-Five's grumblings to himself. He wished aloud for Five. A horror in and of himself, but my reputation was worse. I suppose the universe has a sense of humor. By the time he'd finished loading, I had decided that he should live. He had an interesting assortment of colors. The dull tones of any Noth pilot were visible on his skin, but beneath it, crawling and slithering like worms, were more vibrant colors. Greens and silvers that were chained beneath the surface. It could be interesting to pull them out. He needs to stay around. I have to announce myself. How to interact with people... Greetings, introduction, purpose, reason... what was the last part? Nevermind that, I'm already walking up to him. "Hello. Four. I'm accompanying you for this mission. I need you to succeed so that I can succeed in a different mission." "Do not resist, or I will be forced to eliminate you." But I kept that part silent, in my head, because I am very sociable and know how to talk to people. Well, so I say, but I forgot to try and shake his hand. His colors are fascinating, I can't help but try and catch glimpses of them.