Interlude: Stories of Light and Darkness

Wade Green snarled at the paperwork in front of him. He’d let those three idiots go out, because they’d make good disposable punks. The Empire didn’t take anyone who came in the door, and they’d last five seconds in front of Hookwolf, were too dumb for Krieg or Victor, and talked too much to be trusted with anything serious.

If they’d got the Darkie, good, it’d prove they had the right attitudes, and if they got caught…

Well, after a few years in juvie around the right sorts, they’d be more dedicated than ever, and toughed up a bit—and with a juvie record, it wouldn’t be like they had many other alternatives.

“Instead, you fucking got seen walking down the street covered in your own piss because a cape happened to walk by.” The same cape that had taken down the Merchants and talked back to Hookwolf.

Hookwolf (not Brad, Wade wasn’t that close of a friend and wasn’t suicidal), had questioned the three about that, and Wade thought they’d just about pissed themselves again. Hookwolf had been furious that they were too busy cowering to actually pay attention to Orb Weaver. The news was out now that Hookwolf would pay for good information on what Orb Weaver could do.

But he’d gotten very quiet when one had remembered what he’d said.

“ I can see your past, winding down the lines of probability.”

Wade wasn’t a cape geek, but not many had the ability to do that. Thinkers they said, and the ability to read the past…

Yeah, that could be bad for the Empire. But if they got Orb Weaver thnking they needed to work with the right sort, that could be very good for the Empire.

“But first it’s time to pay back that Darkie.”

Wade wasn’t a street guy. He handled books. He didn’t handle the cops who understood that the Bay would only shine when the rightsort of people lived there. But he did handle other groups. People who also understood and did their part.

He opened his book, and made a phone call. “Hello, can I speak to Lalo Willis? He’s in the health and safety department.”

Moments later, he heard Willis’ voice. “Hey, Lalo, I hope you enjoyed your birthday gift.”

He marked the note down, the little code between them.

“No, it wasn’t a mistake. There was a little more, but my kid, he was down at a place, just disgustingplace, looked like a fire trap. I was wondering if you could set up a snap inspection?”  Wade nodded to himself. “Thanks!”

He put the phone down and made a few more notations in his book. Everyone in the apartment complex were the righttype, and the few police raids had actually been scheduled in advance. Just to ensure they found nothing, but good upstanding folks not understanding why the cops were targeting theminstead of all of Lung’s brood.

He kept working every evening after he came back from work at the auto shop, writing down notations, and making a few phone calls.  He was careful. Everything went back into the safe when he was done. He didn’t even leave it out when he had friends over or watched TV.

He was safe.

I wonder if that insurance company is gonna get back to me?Wade shrugged. If it was a scam they probably wouldn’t, and if it was… he wasn’t gonna say no to ten grand. He sure as hell wasn’t going to tell anyone about it.

*****

Mush lifted another pallet and carried it to the loading dock. The DWU driver waved at him as he put it onto the flatbed and then drove away.

Only a few days had passed, but he felt… Better. Orb Weaver called, and if his voice was creepy, it was nice to have someone call up to ask how he was doing. Once that kid who owed Orb Weaver a favor had shown up with some new clothes and some stuff for the little apartment in the old warehouse—a microwave, portable fridge, stuff that Orb Weaver had ordered.

Mush had called Orb Weaver about that.

After all, yeah, he’d only used the kid twice, but this wasn’t a safe part of town, and maybe he could find someone else.

Mush didn’t have a lot of money. He had a place to stay, all the food he wanted, and a little money, but not a lot.

Mush didn’t mind that. He remembered that whenever he’d had money before, Skidmark had told everyone it was time to have a party. Sometimes at night, he thought about that, but if you didn’t have money, you couldn’t buy drugs!

And even better… Orb Weaver knew stuff. Sometimes they spent an hour on the phone, and Mush had learned a lot about his power. He could make shields with it, a sword, even a sort of forklift thing, and he’d finally figured out how to use a fire extinguisher.

And Orb Weaver never made fun of him. Orb Weaver was a lot smarter than Mush, but when Much said something stupid, or didn’t understand, Orb Weaver just paused, and then either told him the right answer, or explained it. He never made fun of him for being ugly or stupid.

It reminded Mush, oddly enough of Mom, before she’d left that day.

The short man paused, looking around.

“Huh. It’s been a long time since I thought about that,” he said to himself, and then went to get another pallet load of scrap.

It was strange how not being around Skidmark and all the Merchants made it easier to think.

****

“Madison Clements, good girl, cute girl, and… candidate for the Slaughterhouse Nine.”

Madison flinched. Didn’t he know anything!You didn’t joke about the Slaughterhouse, everyone knew that Shatterbird could find you through a mirror!

“I’m not—“

The man sitting on the other side of the desk raised his eyebrows.

“Like them? Not in degree, certainly. But in kind…”  He glanced at her, then held up a paper, the photos of the locker.  Then he held up another folio, this one labeled: Email messages.

“God Taylor, when I heard about your Mom, I felt bad, but now I know she’s happy. After all, she doesn’t have to see you anymore. Are you sure she died in an accident?”  He paused. “Sent from an email traced to you, the email itself sent from your home.”  Another paper. “Can you stop being disgusting and leaking all over the place?”  He raised an eyebrow. “That email came after you and Emma had stolen Taylor’s sanitary pads after PE and convened a group of girls to keep her from using theirs, forcing her to walk to the office while she was… well you said it.”  He leaned back. “I could go on, but we only have a few hours and it would take days to read all the messages you sent.” He paused. “And we don’t have days for that. Because I’m the one, that when it comes time for your sentencing, is going to be standing there and providing the report on your mental state and what progress you have, or have not, made.”

“I—I’ll do anything, I can’t go back—“ Madison started to babble.

“Can’t? Can’t go to Juvenile hall, where suddenly you’re a short, weak kid, the target everyone else can laugh at?”  he paused. “Can’t go to Juvenile Hall? Taylor Hebert said something like that, according to the interview with her father when this blew up. ‘I can’t go back to Winslow.’  The only difference is, unlike you, she didn’t deserve it.”

The man was short, a little tubby, but his eyes were like pieces of flint as he gazed at Madison. She couldn’t meet them. She’d always known that the best way to get away with a lie was to meet someone’s eyes, but she couldn’t meet them.

“Aren’t you supposed to be a doctor?” Madison asked.

“Yes. But see, here’s the problem. You’re not sick with a medical disease. You haven’t been Mastered. You are simply someone who has somehow lost their sense of empathy. I read your confession when you happily sold out your compatriots. You claimed that you did it because you didn’t want to be a target, which is a lie a five-year-old could see through. Oh, you didn’t go as far as Emma and Sophia, but you certainly didn’t scruple to pause your own little torments. They were fun,weren’t they?”

“I…”

“Like I said. Degree, not kind. With the kind of mindset you had, I could see you, if you had real power, doing the kinds of things you can’t imagine right now, because why not? It wasn’t like Taylor’s pain was real to you, was it? Just a little joke. Just something fun to do.”

“So I’m going…”

“Maybe. Interesting that even now, the only thing you seem to cycle back around to is what might happen to you. Not what happened to Taylor.”

“But she’s okay now!”

“No. No she’s not. In addition to losing two years of her life. I expect that Taylor Hebert will never trust quite as much as she should. A gift to her. Your gift. But we’re not here about her. You see, Madison, you’re in trouble.  Emma islegitimately psychologically damaged. That’s why she’s in an institution. You aren’t. You, and Sophia, did this with no extenuating circumstances. The court is going to ask me how dangerous you are, and whether you’re likely to re-offend. Do I see any signs of real remorse?”

“I’m sorry!”

“For what has happened to you. That doesn’t cut it.” He leaned back. “After all, it’s not your fault Taylor couldn’t take a joke, right? That’s on one of these papers.”

Even though he didn’t raise his voice Madison shrank at the tone.

“Or you could decide to not do this again. After all, you know where that leads, so just keep your little cruelties within… the legal boundaries. Make your coworkers miserable, or tell the joke you know will hurt. Nothing worse. As far as the law is concerned, that is about the most we can hope for because then you won’t be a problem, well, as much of a problem.”

“I won’t do it again!”

He sighed. “Or you might come to understand whatyou did. Just how transcendently cruel you were, and how many lives you touched and made worse. All the things you did that can never be made right, even if you live a life of virtue from this day on. Not many do, but if you do…”

I could get out! He could tell the court I was better. “Yes?”

“You may find yourself wishingfor Juvie, Madison Clements, because that will be the worst day of your life, bar none.”

Madison didn’t say anything. She’d have to convince him, but he was wrong. Nothing could be worse than Juvie.