The Bagman's Destiny

Chapter 11

I had too many lovers who never knew me. I had too many people I took in only to throw out. I was determined not to do that with the population of Butterfly Nation. In fact, when I rule I would reclaim it as Moth Nation and we would all be Moths and everybody would be equal. Henry was too power thirsty to know what this nation needed and so I had to seduce NYCR so I could be Atlas, so I could be the new President who abolished the laws of the Butterfly life and introduced kinder ones. Controlled Moths would be there to help instead of search for crimes and airplanes would take you overseas. Actors would have their jobs back and cigarettes would not be exclusive to the Inner Wing. I had a plan; first The Moths, then America, then the world.

"You free today?"

It was my last day and I had to make the best of it. I had hopped onto Szilvia's desk and gave the puppy-dog eyes like a child. She had been tidying it up and I had made it messier. She didn't get mad though, she just worked around me. I had to grab her shoulders to get her attention. She wouldn't look at me. She seemed distraught.

"What's wrong?" I pouted.

"Some people just never change" She shrugged, still not looking me in the eye.

"Bad date?"

She shrugged again and squirmed out of my grip. Szilvia focused on putting all her papers in a file, so I sighed and decided to help. Yet as the time wore on and her desk was eventually spotless, she still seemed out of it. I assumed she didn't want to put up with my antics today.

As I was about to bid my farewells I saw Tobias and Sofia waddle over. Szilvia seemed very tense.

"Hey" Sofia smiled.

"I have to go" Szilvia rushed her words before disappearing without a trace.

"Well, some people just never change" Sofia bitterly said.

I finally made the connection but now that I had it, what was I meant to do with it? There was nothing I could do.

"Either of you free today?" I asked, considering Szilvia was out of the question.

"Why?"

"Wanna come on a road-trip to New York City?"

Both of them burst into laughter over a joke I must've missed. Sofia genuinely laughed herself to tears and put a hand on my shoulder to hold herself upright.

"You don't just go on a road-trip to New York City!" She continued to laugh.

"Are you suicidal?!" Tobias added.

"No but I'm confused?" I frowned.

"Louis, New York City is the Antennae base. It's over-run with Controlled Butterflies and Dupes and all military persona alike. You'll get slaughtered"

"It's the most dangerous place in Butterfly Nation. Statue of Liberty is the worst place probably on Earth"

"Oh" I bit my lip, "Why?"

"It's where they congregate mostly. They watch over everything from her. We don't call it the Statue of Liberty anymore though, well sane people don't, it's now the Statue of Oppression" Sofia grimly explained.

It was all very grim but there was something that was bugging me which kept me from grieving the loss of such a symbol of freedom.

"How the hell does the NYCR work then?"

"We have no idea how they operate or where they're actually located... The only thing we have is a phone number. It's not the official phone number, it's just a number"

"What does that even mean?"

Sofia didn't elaborate but instead pulled a piece of paper from the folder she was holding. She stole a pen from Tobias' front pocket and started scribbling something down. She passed it over to me.