City of Fire and Ink

A murderer of the Church

"Was that your first kill?"

The door to the waiting room opened. Red stilettos handed me a fresh pair of clothes and directed me to a hotel suite inside the bank. The tint of Carys's blood still marked my skin, and no amount of scrubbing has been able to get it all off.

Someone with a red buzzcut stood in the doorway. They were about my height, with delicate facial features and very fair skin. "I'm Reed. Kendra said she found you in the elevator covered in blood."

"I've never killed someone before." Those were the first words I said out loud since I killed Carys. "She was trying to kill me first."

"I kinda figured that. Elevators don't make the best assassination spots."

"Who are you? Did the Lourdes send you to kill me?"

The person scoffed. "If I was working with the Lourdes, you'd be dead already. Besides, they don't know yet. You're safe for now."

They sat down next to me, looking me up and down. "I'm head of security for Mizrahi. How did you get tangled up in Lourdes business?"

"Stole some money and am currently refusing to give it back."

"Do you have a death wish?"

"Well technically it was my grandad that stole the money and then they killed him," I snapped back.

Red buzzcut startled. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know." They took a seat next to me. "So you kind of got roped into it?"

"Yep." I didn't have the emotional energy to sit here and spill my life story. "What are you here for?"

"From what I saw over the cameras, you've never been in a fight before. And because it happened on Mizrahi property, it's now my responsibility. I train people to fight, and I'm offering to train you."

"Do you have a death wish?" A fight trainer was good, but you didn't just get involved with someone else's gang business out of the kindness of your heart. "The Lourdes will come after you."

"I'm an ace. So no, they won't."

"Ace as in asexual?"

"Oh so you don't know any of the terms then. Guess I'm teaching you more than just fighting. An Ace, in gang terminology, is a dealer. Aces train people who get caught up in gangs, provide weapons, and emergency medical care. We're strictly neutral, but because we help all the gangs, we're as safe as you can get. They don't attack Aces because they know that without us, they'd be nothing."

"So what did you mean when you say it's your responsibility?"

"I was closest in proximity to you when it happened and I'm in charge of this establishment anyways so either way, the responsibility of training you falls to me. If you want it. A lot of people back out at this point. My help is strictly optional."

"And then after you train me? What next? Do you just stick a gun in my hand and say go off kid?"

"Basically."

"So why don't you run the city then?" If the Aces had this much power, then they could overthrow the Consulate, easy.

"The gangs and I rely on each other. Without them, I have no power, and without me, they have no resources It's a mutually beneficial relationship."

"How many Aces are there?"

"About a thousand give or take. Aces training is far and away harder then Red Army Basic and most people don't make it past Stage 1. But once you're an Ace, it's your life. There's no backing out till you're in the hospital, or you're dead.