Return of the Children

[Leo]

Shadows Linger

It was late aboard the station only known as the "Barrier Gate Station" in Coronado. The mercs and random bounty hunters had either tucked in for the night or gone out on some late night missions. The blood never stopped pouring with those guys. It was like a ritual with them. I remembered the night well because I was there when the strange man limped into the bar, thudding into the wall and resting there for a few moments before sitting down at the bar.

He didn't do much of anything, he didn't even order a drink, he just stared at the bar top. Before long, other patrons that were in the bar started to get wary of the man. Some later admitted there was something familiar about him...like he had been there once before a long time ago. The man looked up, ocular implants clearly peaking out on either side of his right and left eyes. It was clear he had sufficient work done as far as implants go. This guy didn't seem like a joke.

"Whiskey." he said. His voice was deep, reminded me of an older man who had probably seen life's horrors and then some. The bartender put the drink down near the man gently and requested to be paid. The man didn't answer at first, he turned to the bartender with an irritated look. Suddenly he reached in his pocket and withdrew a credit chip worth close to a hundred-thousand credits. The bartender gaped. The man grabbed his drink and approached the tables. He smiled and looked behind him. "Don't lose that tab this time, Toby."

---

Why the crazy ones always sit with me I won't know, but I'm glad this guy did. He didn't give me his name at first, it seemed like he continued to think that saying it would invoke some kind of reaction from everyone in the bar. He settled with "Guy" for the time being, that's what I came up with to call him before he told me who he was. Only once did he look me in the eye while he talked, and god I wish he hadn't. The rest of the time he focused primarily on his glass as he sipped it's contents.

"So, Guy, what brings you to Barrier Gate?" I asked stupidly, like any man in his right mind would give me a straight answer out here in this part of Sirius.

"Looking for old friends." he said with a hint of a smile. "Trying to get the old gang back together. Drift out into space and take some marks for our own. Make some credits you know."

"So you're a mercenary?"

The man laughed and swirled his drink. "Something like that." he replied with another smile, almost like he knew a funny secret but wasn't telling. "Maybe you've seen them around. I'm looking for a skiddish fellow named Vadim Petrov, a hard-ass named Daniel Schneider, a partial humanoid robot named Render Beleren, and beautiful little flower named Jasmine Keller. Seen them around?"

I gaped. Those were some of the men apart of a mercenary group named the Children of Conviction. Mind you, they weren't around much when I was here, they were before my time aboard this station. I had certainly, however, heard and seen some of their legacy aboard this flying heap of junk in space...the only name he didn't have was...but that's not possible, he was dead.

Jacob Keller, their leader. One of the most ruthless, evil, and terrible men that had ever come through this station...minus that of the Joker, naturally. No one had ever truly seen his face. He vanished shortly after going on a patrol in the distant Omicron systems.

"I-I haven't. No one has for years, sir." I replied, trying to keep my wits about me.

"Hrm, those slackers probably went off somewhere to get stupid drunk." he mused to himself. "Then again...maybe they've just gone to ground." He continued on like I wasn't there. It went on for a few minutes before he stopped and looked directly at me and smiled. "Say, you looking for a job, kid?"

"Er...depends on the job, sir."

"You any good at flying a fighter? Anything really."

"Not really, Guy, I just stick to the bars and hop bases every once and a while."

"...are you at least literate?"

"One thing my mother made sure I had, smarts."

"Good, you're coming along with me to find these people. I need someone to record our little adventures."

"I'm not going to like these, 'adventures' am I?"

"Depends on how good your stomach is..." he offered his hand out to shake. "What's your name, son?"

"William Daniels, sir. Friends call me Freckles."

"Ha, I see why. My name is..." and in a whisper. "...Jacob Keller. We're going to have some fun."

I wish I'd have just continued knowing him as "Guy"...I about pissed my pants.

---

You fear oblivion. Yet you forget. The universe remembers every atom of your being. Even dust hums your name in the dark.

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Starlight Research Consortium | The Banished Legion | Astral
[OOC]Junker Gameplay Loop Suggestion | [OOC]Boneyard Mining Suggestion