Cold Silk

10. Killian

Man or a monster (feat. Zayde Wolf): Sam Tinnesz

            My skin itches with the need to shift. An almost saccharine ache in my limbs tries to take over as I grind my teeth quietly. White knuckling my way through the meeting and getting through with my usual quiet stoicism. If only they knew...

            Hours pass as the bickering and whining of the men and women congregated in the room, and through various screens only added to the inner tension coiling inside me. The inane babbling almost blurred together as they forced their way forward and only ended up twirling in circles around the issues at hand.

            "-We need someone inside the Guardia-"

            "-They'll slaughter any one of us if we're discovered-"

            "-We have no way of knowing what they're up to without someone on the inside-"

            "-We'd be risking the lives of everyone here if we send someone-"

            The voices overlap as I sigh quietly.

            "Put it to a vote." My voice cuts through finally when I've had enough. The cacophony stills and quiets their tongues for a few seconds before one of the Liaison's from across the seas, Ayame Kando, breaks it with her own quiet words.

            "Who would we send even if we could?"

            When all eyes turned to me, my own narrowed.

            "One of your elite team could make it, I'm sure." I cut the man who'd spoken with a glare, soundlessly rejoicing internally as he visibly recoiled.

            These fuckers are so pretentious.

            "There are several people in my team who have requested they not get involved with this sort of thing."

            The comment only added to the fire. Voices spilled over, piling one on top of the other. I'm the one, the final clash of the hammer when things need to be done; I'm the one they turn to when shit gets sour, and they find themselves ass deep in alligators and stuck in the mud.

            "-It's not their choice-"

            "-There are people who need to be safe-"

            "-bunch of assassins don't need protection-"

            It was the last that was the final straw. I stood. Blood boiling, power surging through the room and effectively cutting them off, until only the static of the grainy connections could be heard.

             I stand. They fucking listen.

            "This is non-negotiable. Find another solution. My people are off-limits."

            No one dared to look up, to look me in the fucking eye.

            How the fuck are these world leaders?

            I sat, cutting off the stream of power I'd released.

            The murmuring starts up again, the few situated around the table at odds with the ones on the screens above. It takes hours before it's even put to the vote that someone would be sent. Who, though, would be decided at a later date.

            The sun outside the windows sank below the buildings beyond, signaling another day's end and the conclusion of this meeting. I nod respectfully at the other factions as many shift in their seats. Those that were on the screens, speaking through what limited tech we have left, blipped out the moment they were released.