(part three of my villain x hero saga, wherein Rhetoric finally has an audience for all this drama
beginning, previous chapter)
Phase 2: Lights! Cameras! Action!
Fluorescence is a rooftop cafe in the heart of downtown. It has doll size cups of coffee topped with cinnamon and gold foil, bloody marys with not enough spice and too many green things (dill and olives? really?), and brunch options that cost a working class family's rent. There were at least a dozen influencers there when I arrived. Perfect.
I was immediately led to a reserved table by a waiter. The man had the look of a veteran worker in the service industry, I could detect no sign of life behind his glassy eyes and plastic smile. I took a moment to glance at their menu before ordering a black coffee and brightly colored, bread based monstrosity.
I hoped the coffee would be drinkable.
According to the social media alerts on my smartwatch, the influencers were doing well at spreading the word that I had arrived. By the time I got my order the restaurant and I had been tagged several dozen posts. The stage was set. As I took a cautious sip of my coffee there was a flash of rose-gold light as Dawnstar made a dramatic entrance on the other side of the roof. A pause, for the professional rubber-neckers to start recording.
I adopted a tense expression as he stalked over to my table, looking at me in a way he hadn't for years. He was guarded. Cold, even. He was not the tallest of men, but the low metal garden seats combined with my own less than exceptional stature allowed him to loom over me. "Rhetoric," he did not precisely grow my name, but there was an audible rumble of frustration, "you've been buying up properties near the docks."
"I'm a business woman, acquiring property isn't out of the ordinary for me."
I took another sip of my coffee as his expression darkened. Anger was a good look on him, though I preferred his usual vivacious smiles. "You've been keeping this quite, and the last time you were being this cagey about buying up property you were building an illegal weapons testing site."
I sniffed and settled back in my seat, legs crossed. It takes practice, but one can give off the impression of looking down their nose at someone even when several heads below them. "I was acquitted of those charges, if you recall. And while I do have plans for the docks they are not malicious." I smirked a bit, showing a hint of teeth as I injected a some venom into my tone.
"If you had bothered to actually investigate beyond the purchase of the property then you would have seen that the construction project is for a new grocery chain."
His brow furrowed in confusion, his body language practically screaming suspicion. "And why exactly are you setting that up at the docks of all places? This kind of neighborhood is usually more your speed for your legal business ventures, not places with high concentrations of low income households."
I scowled at him. "The docks are also a food desert, which means that people will jump at the chance for access to affordable foods that won't leave their arteries looking like this city's sewer system after a mud slide." Anger then as I stood, pulled from my frustrations during the earlier years of our acquaintance. "You didn't bother to think did you? I know you have a brain somewhere in that head of yours, I know you have some kind of critical thinking skills. Yet you immediately chose to jump to the conclusion that I'm doing something wrong."
I felt my face twist with ire as I moved into his space. "You are not some naive newbie hero anymore, seeing the world in black and white. You have the capacity to think things through before making accusations." He stood firm, meeting me strike for verbal strike.
"You're calculating Rhetoric, you don't do things unless they benefit you in some way and you have a history of unethical conduct. I know you."
"Evidently not! You're the one always saying that people can change, Dawnstar." My voice was rising above my usual even tone, not quite yelling but certainly louder than I usually get in public. "I had thought we had moved past this. I had thought you had learned by now that this city is mine, and that I damned well take care of what I consider mine. I had thought, that after the Deathgames on Strorix 404 you had started to see me as something other than a monster!"
I was almost chest to chest with him, my breathing heavy as under his gaze. He was shaking, light and shadows starting to distort around him. "I can't- It was- It was simpler before the Deathgames, before I knew that you could be something other than an enemy. I know you're not a monster, I stopped thinking that even before then, but now I don't know-!" He cut himself off and took a step back.
"Don't now what Dawnstar? What are you afraid of?"
His face showed something akin to grief before he closed his eyes and threw himself over the glass safety fence with a burst of light.
I stood for a moment, watching the path of his travel across the rooftops. I quickly became aware of the voices around me. Most of the prattling sycophants were trying to at least pretend at subtlety, though they did a sloppy job of if. I took a long breath, centering myself.
I gave no indication of noticing the numerous phone cameras which tracked my exit from behind menus and over shoulders. The same dead eyed waiter accepted a handful of fifty dollar bills as I walked to the elevator, apparently unaffected by the drama he had witnessed. Astounding.
45…30…15… The floor number ticked down quickly. Soon I was in the underground parking area, and I took care not to rush all the way to my car. Always assume there's a camera watching. Once the doors were locked my hidden com link crackled on. "So? How'd I do? Did I get the faces right? Was the lighting ok?" Dawn bombarded me with questions as I began to pull out of my parking space.
"You did well, I noticed you managed to make sure table three got a good view of your face the whole time. Nice touch." He chuckled a bit at the praise. "Well, I noticed that they had a real camera instead of a phone. I figured that they would get the best quality shots of my angst."
"We should be trending by now, and I expect there will be some good shots of us from that angle." I felt a bit giddy, the familiar high of having a plan go right putting me in an excellent mood. I could hear him humming over the com. "Hmmm, yeah, we're trending. Ooh! That's a funny meme, I'm saving that. Looks like your acting bootcamp and my binge watching old teleseryes really paid off."
I quietly huffed in amusement. The though of him curled up, studiously taking notes while watching cheesy old dramas, was rather endearing. Though, I had little room to talk. La reina del sur has been a comfort show of mine since I was a little girl.
"So I was thinking," Dawn's tone was playful with an undercurrent of hesitance, "We should celebrate a scheme well done. You have that fancy looking kitchen in your absurdly cozy lair, and I have a killer recipe for pancit. We could eat lunch and laugh at conspiracy threads?" I hadn't even touched the sorry excuse for food that I was served earlier, so a home cooked meal sounded wonderful.
"That sounds nice. Remember to go in through that sewer entrance I showed you, and mind the poison dart traps." I switched off my com as he began to splutter about horrors of sewer gunk.
I felt a bit surprised at the warm feeling beginning to grow in my chest at the though of him actually wanting to make a meal for me, to spend more time in my presence. I allowed myself soft, genuine smile as I drove to meet him.
Being on Xianzhou, and having everyone refer to us as a short-life species. I can't help but wonder just how long Trailblazer would "naturally" live. Because if you pick the right question, you learn from Kafka that you were 'artificially created', and you literally have a stellaron inside of you, alongside the favour of a few gods for the drama.
So I wonder if Trailblazer follows the same short life-limit as others, or if they're destined for something longer due to the strange reality of their existence.
Y'know, assuming something or someone doesn't murder us first lol
You ever heard of that thing they used to do in Medieval times called Perpetual Stew? Where you’d just have a pot boiling that you’d add whatever shit you farmed/picked up in the woods that day without ever emptying the pot? Pretty interesting.
Because yeah well I do that too but instead of stew it’s my laundry and the pot is my dryer. Like some sort of cleanliness cauldron I just pull from when I wake from my stupor in the morning.
Not to mention the poor sock that’s been in there for 16 loads waiting for the heat to finally unravel its stitching so it can be free from the Hell that is Perpetual Laundry. But in the meantime it’s just like
Trans guy in media or webcomic: K...Kyaa..! I cant l-let them know i have.......a............cookie.....KYAAA >.< MY CIS BOY CRUSH WILL LAUGH ME OUT OF SCHOOL!! ..A-AND MY EMBARASSED HORMONES...!!
Trans guy irl,smoking a cigar: EY BAWSS. WANNA KNO SOMETHIN FUNNY??
Trans guy irl 2,wearing those knuckle spike things: YEAWH TONEY??
Trans guy irl ,beating the shit out of a guy: WESE BOTH GOT VAGINAS!!
Trans guy irl and Trans guy irl 2 ,beating the shit out of a guy: GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAAAAA!!!!!!!
First time I played Skyrim I was barely aware there was a choice as to who you escape Helgen with so I went with Hadvar because he was in my line of sight. Then I got attached and now I always go with him when starting a new game.
also like. why does hadvar have 200% more personality and dialogue than… ANY other character in this game?? was he supposed to be the protagonist? is he the dragonborn and just doesn’t know it yet?
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