[Sodium_noir] Hell is Other People

[Liz Oleksyn]

Aurora, JB, Jack

[Jack]
Vigorously shaking his head, Jack replies. “No, no,
no, no, no, no. That isn’t true. You played a huge
part.” He spreads his hands wide for emphasis. “You
saved my fucking life, darlin’. Would have been
pushing up the daisies if not for you and your lovely
companions.”

Jack takes the cigarette between his fingers and gives
John Black the kind of serious and profound look only
much liquor can provide.

“Don’t let her tell you otherwise, my friend. Girl’s a
heroine in my book.”

[John]
John smiles, and raises his glass to Aurora.  "To the
hero of the hour.  May your Ancestors return your
generosity a hundredfold."  He takes a drink of his
beer, and then looks around for a waiter, summoning
him over for more drinks.
 
"So what will you do now?  Your life has been saved. 
You've been given another chance.  Some might resort
to hedonism, and try to squeeze as much pleasure out
of life as possible.  Looked down upon by society,
though I personally don't believe it's a bad way to
live.  Or will you become a hero yourself?  And help
others?  Then there's always revenge."
 
[Jack]
There’s a sarcastic edge to Jack’s voice as he smirks
at the man. “Hero? No, not I. Not me at all. Too
interested in the continuing preservation of my ass.
Revenge? Nope. No one to seek revenge of. Get revenge
on. Be avenged for. However you say it. That first
one? Hedonism? Yeah. There’s a whole lot of pleasure
I’d like to squeeze out of life, believe me. And the
squeezing is going to start tonight, my friend.”

Jack glances over at Aurora, managing to wink at her
and blush at the same time.

[John]
John watches the interaction and smiles sadly.  He
raised his glass in a toast.  "To new friends, and the
calm before the storm.  May it last."  He finished his
drink and set the empty glass to the side.  He paused
for a moment, as if engaging in some sort of internal
debate.  "I don't mean to pry, and normally I'd
respect your privacy and wouldn't ask, but did your
need for salvation stem from forces . . ." he
hesitated, trying to pick the right word.  Deomons was
inappropriate.  Angels was stupid.  Finally, he
settled on ". . . unknown to the mundane world."
 
[Jack]
Jack raises an eyebrow and mouths John’s words,
repeating them to himself for clarification. “Did my
need for salvation stem from forces unknown to the
mundane world? Uhm... no, I think people... knew him.
D’you mean... he was...uhm...”  

Clearly having a hard time deciphering the question,
Jack takes a deep breath and tries to access what few
brain cells he has remaining that are unaffected by
alcohol. That clarity of thought, however fleeting,
finally arrives.

“Oh, you mean magically speaking? Yeah. I wasn’t
looking for salvation. More like freedom. He owned me.
He...” Jack almost says ‘made me’, but stops short of
doing so.

“Look. The bastard’s dead now. Not by my hand, though
I wouldn’t have minded a bit of participation. You
know, getting a few good kicks in an’ all. But no one
has to worry about him anymore.”
Jack smiles, and looks around for the current location
of the nearest waiter. The mere thought of Akril and
the horrors he inflicted were increasing his need for
enough booze to suppress those memories for the rest
of the night.

(tag)

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