Post by samael on Dec 16, 2011 18:31:12 GMT -5
A young man sat on the corner of his home street in a small town just outside of what was once Central City. At first glance, he just seemed to be resting, taking a moment off of his feet or just relaxing in the midday sun. However, closer inspection would revel that he'd been crying, and hard. He took in a deep breath and let out a long, quiet sigh.
"Interesting place to take a load off," came a voice, rich and smooth as heavy cream, from almost directly behind the young man. He turned around to see Samael, in his casual white suit, purple sunglasses on his face.
"Who are you? How long have you been standing there?" the young man asked.
Samael smiled and took off his sunglasses, hooking them into the lapel pocket of his suit jacket. He lit up a cigarette.
"Sorry if I startled you, I couldnt help but notice that you seem a bit distraught, and I thought maybe you picked this spot for a reason - you know, cross road and all. The name's Sam."
The young man looked around himself. He hadn't noticed before, but his street intersected with the cross street at a nearly perfect right angle. "I'm Tom," he said.
"Well, Tom, sorry if this is a personal question, but what's with the teary eyes? Looks like you were spared the wanton destruction of Central City."
"Thankfully, yeah. I dunno man, don't worry about it. We all have problems."
"Worrying about it is my job, Tom. You could say my business is in solving problems. Tell me whats wrong, and we'll see if I can help you."
"Well...I want to be a musician. Like, a Rock Star. No, no, a Rock GOD. Problem is, I'm just not that good. Not good enough to convince my dad, anyway. He won't even let me TRY to further my career. He wants me to be an accountant."
"Hah, I see. Well, Tom, this is one of those many times that I CAN help. I understand how hard it can be to have a dream, only to have a parent - the people who are supposed to support you, to always be there - not approve at all. Do you think if you were a better musician, he'd let you go?"
"Definitely. He's stubborn and a jerk sometimes, but he's not all bad. If he thought I could pull it off, he'd let me go. He's just got these incredible standards..."
Samael smiled and placed his hand on Tom's shoulder. "Go get your instrument and bring it here, quickly. I'll show you a thing or two about a thing or two."
Tom nodded and after a brief moment of hesitation, ran off down the block. This was the part Samael loved the most. The moment right before a deal, when he could simply play it up however he wanted. Technically, he could just grant the wish in the same way he would use his Ki for anything else. However, there was always value in a little bit of showmanship. It made the deal somehow easier to accept, easier to swallow, especially for normal people. As Tom came running back with a guitar in hand - how typical! - Samael cracked his knuckles.
"Good hustle, kid. Now, I'm gonna show you a few tricks here, but ain't nothing free in this world. I'm gonna make you the best Rock Star you can be - your fingers will fly over those strings. Minds will be blown, faces will melt, you'll be a damn legend. But I'm going to need something in return."
"I don't have a lot of money."
"Don't worry yourself about that, money comes and goes. No, what I need from you is your soul."
"My soul?" Tom took a step back.
"That or a favor. Payment plans need to be flexible in this economy."
"What kind of favor?"
"Nothing you wouldn't be capable of. Just a favor to be called in at a later date. Think of it like credit, only if you default on your payment you lose your soul instead of your house and car and credibility."
"What do I need to do?"
"Just accept the offer, we'll seal it with a kiss, and you'll go on to become bigger than Elvis."
"A kiss? But you're a..."
"I don't make the rules, kid. Besides, if you're not even willing to kiss a dude, maybe you should just be an accountant."
Without another word, Tom grabbed Samael's face and kissed him on the mouth. Samael noted that Tom had almost seemed too eager to kiss him, and that his kiss was almost too sincere - maybe Tom was hiding something else, but that wasn't what the deal was about. Once the kiss broke, Samael smiled and took the guitar. He opened it, and played a bit. Samael knew how to play most instruments just a little bit - something he'd practiced in his many years of life. He knew his way around a guitar best, though. Most people who wanted to play an instrument always asked for the guitar. It was very popular.
Samael handed the guitar back, and in that moment reached out with his ki, touching Tom and imbuing him with an incredible natural guitar skill. He'd done this dozens of times before. It was probably the easiest deal he could make.
"Now get out of here, kid. You'll be seeing me again."
Tom ran like the wind, and Samael lit up another cigarette. He turned on his heel and walked into the cross road. Halfway through his world shifted, and he was walking out of a cross road miles away, in the ruins of Central City. While not completely leveled, the recent fighting had indeed turned this place into a ghost town. He would need to find the monster that did this and see about making an ally of him. Samael checked his pockets, finding them mournfully light. this was going to be an issue. 200 zenie didn't go very far anymore.
He looked down to see a newspaper on the ground. The headline read Tycoon Buys World's Largest Ruby. His smile came back to his face, and he instantly knew what to do.
The next morning, Tom woke to a knock on the front door. His father had left for work early, still impressed with his son's sudden and incredibly improvement. Tom happily put on a pair of pants and answered the door to see Samael standing there, shades on, cigarette in his mouth.
"Good to see ya, Tommy. I trust it went well with your dad?"
"Yeah...listen, I don't think he'd want me to let you in. Hell, he'd kill me if he knew what I'd done. You should go."
"Don't worry Tommy, I'm not gonna be here long. There is, however, the matter of the favor you owe me."
"Oh god..."
"Relax, you don't have to hurt anybody or anything. There's this ruby that was recently purchased at auction. I want it. I've done all the legwork for you - found you the address, the layout of the building, even managed to nab a key to the joint and get you the code for the alarm system. All you have to do is get inside, grab the ruby, and get out without being seen. Then, just bring the ruby to the place where we met. I'll be there waiting."
What he didn't explain to Tom was that he'd made three new deals - one with a locksmith who'd made the keys for the Tycoon's house to begin with. He had wanted his neighbor's daughter to love him. One with an aging member of the Tycoon's private security staff. He'd wanted his youth back. The third was with the technician that had installed the non-staffed security measures for the home. He'd been the easiest. An alcoholic only ever wants another drink.
Tom didn't say a word, instead taking from Samael the key and information that had been gathered. There was a wordless farewell, and once the door closed on him Samael walked off, a tune on his lips.
Instead of just waiting by the cross road, Samael instead stopped by a bar nearby the Tycoon's home, sharing a drink and some laughs with the now-young security guard, who was more than happy with how his deal had turned out. He returned to the crossroad at midnight, to find Tom approaching quickly and as quietly as a panicked young man who'd just committed a major felony could. His timing had been utterly perfect.
"I didn't think you'd be here."
"I didn't think you'd come."
Tom shoved a black velvet bag into Samael's hands. It was heavy and cool, and when opened, revealed a ruby the size of a man's fist. Without another word Tom turned tail and ran.
"Debt paid, Tommy boy," Samael shouted after him, "Won't be seeing me again."
Tom didn't acknowledge the farewell, which was fine by Samael. Best if the kid forget. Now all he had to do was fence that ruby, which was going to be much easier than one might think - he'd made a deal a few years ago...
((Zenie, plox))
"Interesting place to take a load off," came a voice, rich and smooth as heavy cream, from almost directly behind the young man. He turned around to see Samael, in his casual white suit, purple sunglasses on his face.
"Who are you? How long have you been standing there?" the young man asked.
Samael smiled and took off his sunglasses, hooking them into the lapel pocket of his suit jacket. He lit up a cigarette.
"Sorry if I startled you, I couldnt help but notice that you seem a bit distraught, and I thought maybe you picked this spot for a reason - you know, cross road and all. The name's Sam."
The young man looked around himself. He hadn't noticed before, but his street intersected with the cross street at a nearly perfect right angle. "I'm Tom," he said.
"Well, Tom, sorry if this is a personal question, but what's with the teary eyes? Looks like you were spared the wanton destruction of Central City."
"Thankfully, yeah. I dunno man, don't worry about it. We all have problems."
"Worrying about it is my job, Tom. You could say my business is in solving problems. Tell me whats wrong, and we'll see if I can help you."
"Well...I want to be a musician. Like, a Rock Star. No, no, a Rock GOD. Problem is, I'm just not that good. Not good enough to convince my dad, anyway. He won't even let me TRY to further my career. He wants me to be an accountant."
"Hah, I see. Well, Tom, this is one of those many times that I CAN help. I understand how hard it can be to have a dream, only to have a parent - the people who are supposed to support you, to always be there - not approve at all. Do you think if you were a better musician, he'd let you go?"
"Definitely. He's stubborn and a jerk sometimes, but he's not all bad. If he thought I could pull it off, he'd let me go. He's just got these incredible standards..."
Samael smiled and placed his hand on Tom's shoulder. "Go get your instrument and bring it here, quickly. I'll show you a thing or two about a thing or two."
Tom nodded and after a brief moment of hesitation, ran off down the block. This was the part Samael loved the most. The moment right before a deal, when he could simply play it up however he wanted. Technically, he could just grant the wish in the same way he would use his Ki for anything else. However, there was always value in a little bit of showmanship. It made the deal somehow easier to accept, easier to swallow, especially for normal people. As Tom came running back with a guitar in hand - how typical! - Samael cracked his knuckles.
"Good hustle, kid. Now, I'm gonna show you a few tricks here, but ain't nothing free in this world. I'm gonna make you the best Rock Star you can be - your fingers will fly over those strings. Minds will be blown, faces will melt, you'll be a damn legend. But I'm going to need something in return."
"I don't have a lot of money."
"Don't worry yourself about that, money comes and goes. No, what I need from you is your soul."
"My soul?" Tom took a step back.
"That or a favor. Payment plans need to be flexible in this economy."
"What kind of favor?"
"Nothing you wouldn't be capable of. Just a favor to be called in at a later date. Think of it like credit, only if you default on your payment you lose your soul instead of your house and car and credibility."
"What do I need to do?"
"Just accept the offer, we'll seal it with a kiss, and you'll go on to become bigger than Elvis."
"A kiss? But you're a..."
"I don't make the rules, kid. Besides, if you're not even willing to kiss a dude, maybe you should just be an accountant."
Without another word, Tom grabbed Samael's face and kissed him on the mouth. Samael noted that Tom had almost seemed too eager to kiss him, and that his kiss was almost too sincere - maybe Tom was hiding something else, but that wasn't what the deal was about. Once the kiss broke, Samael smiled and took the guitar. He opened it, and played a bit. Samael knew how to play most instruments just a little bit - something he'd practiced in his many years of life. He knew his way around a guitar best, though. Most people who wanted to play an instrument always asked for the guitar. It was very popular.
Samael handed the guitar back, and in that moment reached out with his ki, touching Tom and imbuing him with an incredible natural guitar skill. He'd done this dozens of times before. It was probably the easiest deal he could make.
"Now get out of here, kid. You'll be seeing me again."
Tom ran like the wind, and Samael lit up another cigarette. He turned on his heel and walked into the cross road. Halfway through his world shifted, and he was walking out of a cross road miles away, in the ruins of Central City. While not completely leveled, the recent fighting had indeed turned this place into a ghost town. He would need to find the monster that did this and see about making an ally of him. Samael checked his pockets, finding them mournfully light. this was going to be an issue. 200 zenie didn't go very far anymore.
He looked down to see a newspaper on the ground. The headline read Tycoon Buys World's Largest Ruby. His smile came back to his face, and he instantly knew what to do.
The next morning, Tom woke to a knock on the front door. His father had left for work early, still impressed with his son's sudden and incredibly improvement. Tom happily put on a pair of pants and answered the door to see Samael standing there, shades on, cigarette in his mouth.
"Good to see ya, Tommy. I trust it went well with your dad?"
"Yeah...listen, I don't think he'd want me to let you in. Hell, he'd kill me if he knew what I'd done. You should go."
"Don't worry Tommy, I'm not gonna be here long. There is, however, the matter of the favor you owe me."
"Oh god..."
"Relax, you don't have to hurt anybody or anything. There's this ruby that was recently purchased at auction. I want it. I've done all the legwork for you - found you the address, the layout of the building, even managed to nab a key to the joint and get you the code for the alarm system. All you have to do is get inside, grab the ruby, and get out without being seen. Then, just bring the ruby to the place where we met. I'll be there waiting."
What he didn't explain to Tom was that he'd made three new deals - one with a locksmith who'd made the keys for the Tycoon's house to begin with. He had wanted his neighbor's daughter to love him. One with an aging member of the Tycoon's private security staff. He'd wanted his youth back. The third was with the technician that had installed the non-staffed security measures for the home. He'd been the easiest. An alcoholic only ever wants another drink.
Tom didn't say a word, instead taking from Samael the key and information that had been gathered. There was a wordless farewell, and once the door closed on him Samael walked off, a tune on his lips.
Instead of just waiting by the cross road, Samael instead stopped by a bar nearby the Tycoon's home, sharing a drink and some laughs with the now-young security guard, who was more than happy with how his deal had turned out. He returned to the crossroad at midnight, to find Tom approaching quickly and as quietly as a panicked young man who'd just committed a major felony could. His timing had been utterly perfect.
"I didn't think you'd be here."
"I didn't think you'd come."
Tom shoved a black velvet bag into Samael's hands. It was heavy and cool, and when opened, revealed a ruby the size of a man's fist. Without another word Tom turned tail and ran.
"Debt paid, Tommy boy," Samael shouted after him, "Won't be seeing me again."
Tom didn't acknowledge the farewell, which was fine by Samael. Best if the kid forget. Now all he had to do was fence that ruby, which was going to be much easier than one might think - he'd made a deal a few years ago...
((Zenie, plox))