Slow Burn (Updated Weekly)

Part 3

Part 3

“Not like you ever really had a home,” said a voice. I had been sitting in the room for hours. During that time I felt anger, sadness, depression, I prayed to God that this was all a dream. I hit myself over and over and I even assembled the rifle. I could still feel my hand shaking from the moment I loaded a clip into it. I had thought about taking my life. What life would I have here? What good is a freelancer without any work, without a war. I was a loose canon and if people were waking up it would be easier to take my own life then to starve or suffocate. The voice wasn't coming through a comm. Someone else had crept into the room with me. 

“You think they would at least do something about that smell,” said the voice from the corner of the room. I grabbed the rifle from the table. I felt my training kick in and my hands stop shaking. I was ready to pull the trigger. “You don't need that,” the voice said. I felt like I was tracking a ghost. I could have sprayed my clip around the room, it would have been impossible to miss. 

“Elyse, twenty seven years old, freelancer, seems you use to be a member of a special forces, a squad 13 for the Hegemony, the indirect government that controls most of the Earth's nations as well as the Terran Military. I also see here that you are the single survivor of the Caleuche. I'm sorry about what happened to your squad but you might be interested to know that Reynolds, the commanding officer that sent you into that hellhole and the reason that you left the army and became a freelancer... he's the Captain of this ship,” the voice said. 

Before my very eyes appeared a man. He slowly took off a cloak that made him invisible.

A cloak covered in cameras that reflected everything that was behind him. I had worn one once. It was something of an unfair advantage especially in such a dim lit area. 

He smiled at me. He had a soft frail appearance with black curly hair. He looked like he hadn't shaved in a few weeks but his beard was well kept. 

“We spoke earlier. I thought his time I would visit you in person for some one on one,” 

I didn't say a word. I kept my rifle held up pointing at him.

“Yes, the collar, I'm sure you have been wondering about that, you might want to lower that weapon though, any hostile action against me or any of my subordinates and you'll be a bloody mess,” he said walking towards me and putting the tip of his finger against the top of my rifle. He slowly lowered it down moving closer to me until we were only inches apart. I could smell his breath, his body, his hair. He smelled like sweat, copper, and iron much like the rest of the ship only there was a small scent of lavender. 

“The two of us have a problem. Yours is that collar strapped around your neck, mine is Reynolds. He wants to see me dead. Now, I truly believe that I can help you with yours. I might just have a key to that collar lying about somewhere here or there but I just can't seem to find the time to look for it thinking about how Reynolds wants to put a bullet through my head,” he said.

I finally spoke, “If Reynolds wants you dead, I'm sure he has good reason,” I said. 

“Sure, I may have done some regrettable things in my past life but I'm not that different from you truthfully.”

The man opened a wallet and pinched out some money, printed on crisp new bills. “Slut,” he said, “meaningless amount of matter, do you know how much of this there is on the Erebus, I may very well be the richest man here, I had more then enough back home to carry myself out of orbit, more then enough to buy a new identity, and more then enough to have that face registered as a full fledge crew member. I suppose some of that gets skimmed over by the Sons of Sol whatever they are but for the most part I am here like many others to be a part of something new, I even brought along a crew of my own men, each proficient in flying dropships and starships back home, I doubt they would have much of a problem figuring out how to drive this whale.” He threw the money at me, “and now I have bought you.”

The next thing I knew he had tossed my rifle to the ground and pushed me up against the wall. I could feel him grinding his body against mine as he wrapped his arm around my neck. I wasn't about to let him have his way with me. I shifted my weight and pushed against him as hard as I could knocking him back against the table. I moved around and pulled his neck against mine. 

“Blow me,” I said knowing that if my collar went off this explosion would take his life at this range. “Yes, yes, you are exactly what we have been looking for, I think I love you,” he laughed. I let him go slamming his head against the table. When he got up he was laughing touching his broken bleeding nose. 

“The last elevator to the hangar leaves in about an hour. Your friend was on that one...” he paused. There was no hiding, this wretch whoever he was had a mission in mind for me and the cost was my life. “Chances are good that he'll still be in the terminal when you arrive,” 

“I hope you keep your word, my life for his,” I said. 

He almost smiled but gave up halfway through. Slowly he changed his posture and the impression on his face transformed from one of a frail man to that of someone of power. He stood up straight. At the very least he was six feet tall. Taller then I thought. He was playing games with me. He let me have my way with him. If he wanted to he could have raped me or killed me easily. 

Suddenly the look on his face turned to anger and then quickly back to normal. I felt like I was watching two people simultaneously battle it out with one another inside one human body. One moment I felt like the man was going to laugh and the next I thought he was going to rip my head off. He tapped his ear. An earpiece probably.. Someone was talking to him and he didn't like what they were saying. I felt sorry for whoever it was on the other end. Perhaps they too had a collar around there neck.

“Hmm.... might have a problem,” he said looking me up and down.

“What problem, I said I would kill for you,” I said. 

“I have just received word that Reynolds is already on the planet, looks like things really are falling to shit around here, will make it easier for things on my end but I still need you to do what you do best,” he said putting his hand against my lip and brushing my hair. 

“You owe me for this broken nose,” he said, “and I always collect my debt.”

 I felt sick. If I didn't have this collar around my neck I would have gutted this degenerate.