Rabbid Guy

Jerry Speaker

Do not fall for the lie.

There was a mental sickness, a sort of snap in behavior some people got under significant stress. It messed with their judgement and understanding of reality, sometimes causing them to act strange or even violent. When they broke the law, they were arrested and brought here for questioning, but during their nervous break, it was common for them to lose the ability to speak clearly. Their voices distorted and slurred into nonsense. Patient detectives could decipher what they meant to say with time, but Jerry Speaker could do it better.

Jerry Speaker had been a part of the translation team since he was three years old, which had initially scared him given the subject matter. He'd rather be doing anything else with his time, but his parents insisted he continue the job out of moral obligation since he was so talented at something so necessary. Being the only one who could instantly translate important information came with always being on call for urgent situations. He had no idea how much he was going to do. Everything was on Hellen's time.

Going down the elevator with Hellen Swartz, Jerry stood by her heel just as she had taught him when he joined the team. He stood as tall and proper as he could, but he always felt silly next to her. He was short, hairy, with rabbit-like ears, all clear signs of his condition, but without his goofy appearance he wouldn't be there. If only his condition was just skin deep. Besides the obvious bodily deformities, his brain had the miraculous ability to understand all voices. No matter what anybody said, and no matter what language, if Jerry was close enough to hear it, he knew what it meant.

Any voices unfortunately included the nonsense rambling of the criminals he was tasked with translating, but such a valuable skill wasn't without drawbacks (besides the obvious). Jerry could understand just about anything, but he couldn't speak the languages, and he couldn't write them out either. This fact tended to frustrate people who didn't sign like he did.

It wasn't that he was stupid or didn't understand the task, but that everything his brain wanted to do, his mouth and hands were consistently unable to express. Despite this neurological disability, he could always nod for yes and shake his head for no, and he could smile when he was happy and frown when he was sad. He couldn't convey meaning with alphabets or his larynx, but he was always able to emote and gesture, and over time they taught him to turn those simple gestures into signs, and then into sentences, signing with the vocabulary of his parents and classmates and coworkers. The same vocabulary he used to sign to Hellen what he heard.

The elevator door opened up to the third basement level of the facility. Rooms made to interrogate and restrain stood before them. The low light and lack of decorations was a subtle reminder of the attitude he had to hold. Jerry sighed. He could see the door to the room they were heading toward. Beyond it was going to define his night.

Hellen opened the door for him and they both went in. Bare bones seating and recording equipment, as well as a few verminators were already inside. Being the best translator, Jerry didn't have the luxury of interrogating non-violent perpetrators. A metal wall separated the room in the center, a reinforced vent was the only way for organic sound to travel through it. Jerry couldn't see them, but a dangerous criminal was on the other side. He was thankful for the separation, to hide his identity as well as to keep him safe in the immediate situation. Some people were stronger than they ought to be.

Hellen picked up her mic. There were enough chairs for herself, the recorder, the security officer and Jerry, but she preferred to stand.

"Start recording," Hellen told the recorder.
"Testing... Testing.. I think we're all good to go.." the recorder said.
"Are we all clear from the other side?" Hellen asked. They waited a moment.
"That's an affirmative. All ready to go," a verminator officer on the other side said. A dangerous criminal wasn't without their escorts. Hellen nodded to Jerry, signaling to her that she was about to get started. Jerry nodded back.