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Eudaemon

Zerrex R. Narrius

The city is his city; and the closer you draw to his home, to his territory, the more apparent it becomes. The buildings become less stylish, less new, and less rich, despite the fact that the poverty rate here is surprisingly low - no, it's not lack of money that keeps these places looking forlorn and old, in need of restoration. It is the very air of the place, the sense of... loss, and destruction, and the fact that sorrow seems to permeate the air, dancing hand-in-hand with cruelty.

Baskin's Grove is a small place, housing only thirty-thousand people in its abodes and stumpy apartment buildings, and maybe a handful of the homeless that wander the streets and live in the park or the recessed nooks of alleys and industrial buildings. It is divided into three major sections; the industrial district to the north, sprawling but stocky, a seemingly-impenetrable catacomb of steel containers, warehouses and storage sheds, the perfect place for a gang hangout or even a mob, had the place been big enough for the latter... but even the former didn't exist within the normal scope of things. After all, he didn't like gangs or any other kind of criminal organization. Besides which, it was also too close to his territory for comfort, with one side of the triangular sprawl resting against what everyone called Comfort Town.

'Comfort Town' wasn't the real name of the district; that was Beaux Fields, another cutesy name taken from some old farming story, from what the place had once been. But the people of the city all preferred their own name for the place, because in Comfort Town, you could get a stiff drink, sex, drugs and whatever else you wanted. A regular parade of sins, even for a small city... but there was no violence, and once you looked close, you realized that the whores were all a bit too clean to just be walking around by themselves without some pimp - and then too devoid of bruises or other signs of being abused to have one - and the drugs were all moderately light, more pot than LSD or PCP. Someone was regulating this area of town... and if you walked deep enough, to one of the more rustic bars near the woods that sat on this side of the city of Baskin's Grove, you could find out why everything was so clean despite being so dirty.

After all, he was a more-than-sometimes customer of Elliot's, showing up whenever he liked and staying however long he liked; as with most of the businesses in Comfort Town - and even a few in the high-class area across the way, where the politicians and the richer people lived to get away from him and to pretend that he didn't own the town - he had one of the keys to the shop, as well as a clone of the master key of the business that would let him into any door once inside the place. The boss came and went as he chose; and no one dared to defy him or fail to meet his expectations.

It all sounds ridiculous; after all, the main police precinct for the town sat in the high-class district across from Comfort Town - and with a large wall separating it from the industrial zones, the rich would absolutely not stand for their eyes to be defiled by such disgusting sights as smokestacks - but then you had never met the Master of the city, as he liked to be called. The police were both afraid and awed with his presence, as, unlike a crime lord, he detested crime of all sorts. And the one time they had attempted to bring him in for questioning, he had taught them that he was not fond of crime, but he certainly had no aversion to using violence to solve his problems.

The boss was, in a word, dangerous. Another good word to describe him would be psychotic; another, perhaps, entrepreneurial. After all, he had spent five years here... and it had only taken him two to take over Comfort Town... install his own rules... and then the other three he'd spent lounging about the third of the city that was indisputably his while the politicians cried and made statements against him and yelled and slung mud... what little mud there was to sling that wouldn't end up having them eliminated in one of a variety of ways.

Not to say that the boss didn't do any work himself, though... he was what you would call someone who you went to when you had a problem that you needed to be fixed by other than legal means. A repairman; a mechanic. Or, in plain words, a mercenary. He chose the jobs he did... and his price was expensive... but the job was always completed to a more than satisfactory level. From scaring to killing, he did everything, and he did it well.

In short, he owned the town... and he loved his work.

The reptile sat at one of the tables, his arms on the cheap laminated wood surface as he rested back in his corner seat, his head bowed as he allowed his mind to take in the usual and soothing clutter around him that came in from his other senses; touch, the feeling of resting back against the padded, high-backed bench that was big enough to give even him some privacy... smell, cigarette smoke, booze... taste, the whisky he'd just had... sound, the soft talk of people in the bar and the click-click-click of heels from the one waitress that wandered the area.

Now he opened his eyes and added sight; with his head bowed, the first thing he saw was the half-empty bottle of whisky and the clean ashtray in front of him, then he stretched his arms out a bit to settle himself and knocked against the empty glass he'd been drinking from, chattering the ice cubes within. Then he sat back and crossed his arms, gaze roving over the area to take in the moodily lit bar, lighted from above by dying bulbs in metal hoods that reminded him of those things you put around the necks of unevolved dogs.

There were other benches against this wall, but they were mostly empty... then, at the front of the bar, across the front window, was a series of small, round wooden tables with chairs around them... these inhabited by a few patrons, including a group of students. The window itself had the glowing neon word "Elliot's" across it, but some of the light had died from the tubing, making it look more like "El ot's."

The reptile mused a bit as he sat back, then he glanced over the mostly-empty space in the center of the bar - not saying much, since the barroom was relatively tiny - and the jukebox that sat by the door leading in, to the actual bar at the back of the tavern, with the long, L-shaped counter that wove into the wall, surrounded by plain red-padded stools upon which a few patrons sat, sipping beer as they rested against the surface of the wood tabletop. But currently the reptile couldn't see Cindy or Elliot working bar... just the shelves upon shelves of booze that sat before the mirror that rested in a long, rectangular recess, and the single cash register to one side. The lizard sat back a bit, frowning faintly. It meant that both of them were in the kitchen, and he'd told them time and time again he disliked it when they both went to work in the small, stuffy kitchen at the same time... he wasn't their personal security service, after all.

But likewise, Elliot and Cindy were one of the few patrons of his fair city that could get away with ignoring him... or even, on some rare occasions, saying no. Normally, when someone said no to him and didn't have a damned good reason for it, he made sure that they never would be able to do whatever he'd ordered... generally by breaking limbs, wrecking the shop or simply beating the crap out of the person who'd defied him. But with Elliot, he just snarled and threatened, then sulked, little as he liked to admit it... and Cindy, on the other hand...

But now here she came, pushing out of the two-way door with a circular plastic tray balanced artfully in either hand, wearing her sexy, short little miniskirt, an open, short-sleeved blouse with her name on it and a tight-fitting, white dress shirt below that... but despite her choice of clothing, her smile and eyes held a strange innocence as her shoes click-clicked against the floor, walking carefully over to the party of students with her load of foodstuffs.

He allowed his eyes to gaze over her, his frown disappearing back into his usual plain, if unpleasant, poker-face... but it was hard to resist a smile as he watched her. A lizard, a Drakkaren, to be precise, like himself... with scales of evergreen that turned to a slightly-yellow - but it was a golden-fall yellow, and not a faded or ugly color - on her chest, which he knew more from seeing her in other ways than serving. Her eyes were a sparkling, intelligent blue, and her smile was radiant, which was more enticing to the boss of the city than her shapely form or good-sized but not huge bust. He knew she worked out, and he knew that she had muscle too, in that slim figure... and that was another attraction for him. He liked people who could take care of themselves, even though Cindy Delacroix was probably too nice to ever hit anyone for any reason whatsoever.

And now she was serving the students, smiling all around despite their slight rowdiness, and the male reptile leaned forwards a bit, narrowing his eyes as he watched them. Then Cindy was turning away, and he was just entering the stage of relief when one of them reached out a hand and gave her a hard slap just below the tail, making Cindy cringe and jump forwards, eyes startled and teeth grit as she rose her hands in the air and the college students howled with laughter.

Her features flushed deeply, and she began to turn towards them when she caught sight of the other reptile, now glaring beyond her at the students. Her features went from flushed to pale almost instantly, and she quickly walked over to him, doing her best not to run; halfway across the room, the boss of the city caught the eye of one of the teenage students, the one who'd gotten anxious with his hands, and the reptile pointed towards the door in an obvious pantomime of get out.

In return, however, the kid just sneered, then the cat held up his hands and flipped him off, head tilted upwards and eyes glaring. The other four or five around the table turned to look... and only one of them went sufficiently white enough to let the reptile know that he was a townie - the others must be out-of-towners who'd traveled here from the high side of town for some adventure.

The reptile was about to stand, but then Cindy was beside his table, her slight five-five barely having to lean down to look into his eyes as she said urgently, sapphire eyes full of misplaced anxiety: "Zerrex... please... don't be like this, don't go off on them, you really don't have to, it was just a little nudge..."

"It was a slap I could hear from here." Zerrex said mildly, then he closed his eyes before motioning with one hand for her to sit. He heard her do so immediately, then he tilted his heard towards her and looked into her eyes with that same calmness. In her blue eyes, he could see himself reflected... and it made him pause as he gazed at her, who was staring at him with such intensity that it seemed looking into her eyes was merely looking at himself.

He was big... well, okay. That was an understatement. When you stood at eight feet and two inches, were about twice the width of most people and had muscles that were roughly comparable to tires, you were more into the category of 'huge.' His scales were a taunt hide that seemed to stretch to the point of breaking when he flexed, a lustrous emerald that was only a shade darker that his eyes... except for the scales on his chest, there being a deep navy blue that covered his masculine breast and powerful, chiseled abdominal muscles. He was an oddity in his size, and in another thing as well.

The reptile reached up to brush back his hair - one of his few untamed gestures that always made him feel strange, especially in the presence of other reptiles. After all, he had hair, and not just any hair but shoulder length, ivory-white hair when most Drakkaren had nothing up there... and then his was natural, making him nearly unique. It came from his mother's side... a biological virus that went from when she'd had her own hair implanted into her head while that was popular. But that was a long story, and Zerrex hated both thinking of his past and his family.

So instead he merely sat, looking at the female with slight irritation now but... also a strange sort of tenderness. The Master of the city was not one who was often thought to be anything but callous and cold... but with a few like Cindy, he could be gentle. Or he could try, at least, until something like this happened.

He sat back, merely looking into her eyes as his hands now smoothed out his plain blue dress shirt, left with the top few unbuttoned, and he stretched his legs out under the table as much as he could without pushing against Cindy, his polished special forces grade combat boots tapping against the ground, more lustrous than the same-color jeans he wore. After a few more moments of staring, Cindy dropped her eyes, then merely asked quietly: "Can I get anything for you then, Zerrex?"

The reptile shook his head slowly, then he reached out and grabbed the bottle of whisky, pouring a bit of the stuff into the glass before pushing it towards Cindy. She merely looked at the glass, then glanced up at Zerrex, biting the inside of her cheek before she sighed and nodded, reaching down to quietly take the glass and tip it back, drinking the half-shot as the male nodded, looking at her with seeming impartialness before he tilted the bottle of whisky back to his muzzle and took a long, deep drink of the amber liquid, feeling it spilling down his muzzle a bit as his throat worked, eyes watering a bit at the burning sensation it caused as he guzzled the fluids inside before holding out the empty bottle to the waitress.

"That'll kill you one day, sir." Cindy said quietly, then she took the now-empty bottle, marveling a bit as she always did as Zerrex sat back; she glanced at him, as she always did, to make sure and to wonder again how he did that without becoming the slightest bit tipsy... then she headed behind the counter and into the kitchens, probably to fetch her so-called father as Zerrex turned his attention back to the students.

Two of them had left... and now there were three, including the leopard that had first broken his laws and then challenged him. He didn't know that this was his court, his territory... but the Drakkaren was more than happy to remedy that as he got up and walked over to the table, taking the direct route instead of doing what he usually did, which was to wander out and wait for the offender to be alone. Right now, however, the others were equally guilty for having laughed... and for not having run, even after their friend had warned them.

One thing Zerrex had learned was that people always thought he was smaller when at a distance, not believing their eyes... so the complete shock and the sudden wilting of all three, including Spots, wasn't exactly a surprise for him. What did surprise him was when the leopard's teeth began to chatter and he fainted. This made things easier for Zerrex at least... with a look at the other two, he decided to withhold their eventual judgment as the girl and guy clutched each other like children, staring with wide eyes at the giant as he reached down, plucked up the unconscious leopard, and then threw him easily over his shoulder before walking out. The other regular patrons of the bar didn't so much as throw more than a glance at this; they, unlike the out-of-towners, had seen this all before.

Outside, it was fairly dark...not nighttime dark, but more deep twilight dark, the cracked sidewalks and old buildings lit by shades of deep navy as the reptile walked slowly down the street, ignoring passerby... as most of them did their best to acknowledge him but also stay out of his way, not speaking but more often nodding or half-bowing as they scattered. When Zerrex was with a so-called 'prisoner' - or 'prey,' as both the reptile himself and many of the other people of Comfort Town referred to the unfortunate victim as - you did your best to be as polite as possible... but you didn't stop Zerrex or do anything that would require more than a gaze or nod in return. Silent tribute was the rule with the Drakkaren.

After a few short minutes, he came to one of his favorite alleys - long, deep, but a dead end, as it came out at a boarded-up exit out of the old library - still functional, but not as posh as the fancy library in the high-class area of town, being only one floor and a bunch of rows of books with a single irritable librarian - and the local fire hall; there was no exit because both the library and fire hall used to be a single building, and there was still a connecting corridor between them from when it had been city hall, before things had begun to deteriorate in Comfort Town.

Zerrex pondered this as he walked down the mostly-empty alley, but for the few old stains of graffiti and errant trash that had blown into here, heading for the brick wall at the back. It wasn't like Comfort Town had gone into its state of depression and disrepair just because he'd shown up... if anything, he'd stalled the flow with his appearance. From what he gathered, the political corruption had started with the birth of the high-class Apple Villa district, the third part of Baskin's Grove and now the largest, with construction constantly being done by stolen government money - there was quite a bit of nastiness in this small town, which was always trying to expand through embezzlement and all sorts of fraud. From Zerrex's experience, small-town politics were almost always among the nastiest in terms of corruption, and this only added to those beliefs.

Apple Villa was separated from Comfort Town by a man-made creek, crossable only at one of three bridges - one of those roads, two of them footbridges. It made for nasty traffic jams on workdays... but even worse was the fact that the industrial area could not be accessed through Apple Villa, because of Garden Wall - a ten-foot tall wall of white brick that went from the outskirts of the town to the man-made creek, with the creek going behind it and acting as a dumping place for sewage in the industrial area, hence all the pretty colors that sometimes could be seen in the water that eventually flowed through a filtration system. The fact that there was a ten foot brick wall was bad enough... but it was made worse when you discovered that it was also ten feet thick, and with gigantic, carefully-cultivated pines lining the top. It was all very pretty to look at... and it blocked out the sounds and sights of the industrial zone... but it was another ridiculous project that merely fortified the borders of Apple Villa and separated it from Comfort Town and the industrial zone, which, like most districts, had no real border except for the imaginary lines put down by the planning committee.

It was why Baskin's Grove had been dying. The mayor and his cronies all lived in Apple Villa... and all the 'unimportant' people had been delegated to Comfort Town; with the town split into desirables - the beautiful, the rich, the micro-celebrities who lived in the high-class district - and the undesirables - the working class, the less-well off, and of course, everyone's favorite kicking boy, the impoverished - the town had been falling into pieces, with crime springing up everywhere. The corrupt bureaucrats didn't seem to notice that the more you press upon an area, the more you give to one place and take from another, the more crime you get first in the sickened place... and then those people realize just who bent them over and quickly turn around to attack the high-standing community. No matter how high a wall you build, there will always be a taller ladder... and no matter how wide a creek you make, there will always be a board long enough to topple over and bridge the gap.

The town had been in total chaos when Zerrex had arrived, with the ways only looking worse as the legal office was downsized but enriched with bribes, and the police force swelled to allow for a cop on every street, and many of them all too willing to do what their government bosses bid instead of serving the people. The reptile had been fairly quick to set up his own place in the slummier area of town and then begun cleanup... but that too was a long story of the past, and perhaps for another day as he felt the cat on his shoulder shift, beginning to awaken before he was brought back to total consciousness as Zerrex easily tossed him off his shoulder and into the wall, sending him crashing off the bricks to fall to the ground and hit the rocky cement with a groan, his muzzle bloodied from the double impact before he sat up, trembling, sports jacket askew and clothes beneath rumpled and dirty, reaching up with one hand as if for mercy, that hand dripping blood from having landed on a shattered bottle... and the reptile couldn't help but reflect what one fall would do before he lashed a foot out and kicked the punk hard enough in the ribs to break several of them and mash him back against the wall as he let out a scream of pain and crumpled onto his front, gasping and holding his chest as he began to let out loud sobs of agony. "Oh... oh please... don't... not anymore, don't..."

Then he was letting out another squall as Zerrex brought a foot up and stepped down on his head, remorselessly grinding his heel and sending down a trickle of blood from one of the feline's ears as he bucked and tried to push upwards, crying harder now before Zerrex stepped back and swung his foot in again, this time catching him in the cheek and snapping the bone there as well, causing the feline to scream again before he simply lay on his side and curled up in the fetal position, shivering and sobbing hard as Zerrex stared down at him without emotion; the weak show off in front of him was barely worth his time, after all. He'd expected more... but like so many these days, he was all talk and hot air. A bad combination when placed with an opponent like Zerrex... who was all action.

The reptile kicked the cat again, this time lightly and almost playfully, snorting as the feline twitched and curled up tighter, still bawling and giving wordless moans up to him that the Drakkaren thought were either apologies or prayer. He didn't care; for one, it didn't matter that the cat was sorry until he was taught his lesson. For another, he was remarkably faithless.

Now he crouched down, then grabbed the feline by the back of the neck and one of his biceps, hefting him up to his knees; the cat struck out at him, but Zerrex didn't even twitch as he felt his strong body battered by the weak, flailing blows from one arm as the feline kept the other against his face, crying harder, his eyes shut tight as his fingers clawed at the reptile's shirt and then tore it, making the lizard narrow his eyes before he twisted him around, jerking his arm painfully into his upper back and making the feline arch his spine and let out a shriek of pain, the new agony easily cutting through the aches from the kicks of the reptile as he felt like his arm was about to be torn off, bucking and twitching, unable to twist as Zerrex stood and forced the cat to his feet before shoving him face-first into the nearest brick wall.

There was a dull thwack of flesh against stone, then the leopard let out a low groan, knocked senseless as blood pattered from his face and muzzle, head hanging loosely forwards and body going limp in the reptile's grasp. The legs of the feline shook violently, then his bladder released and Zerrex made a disgusted face as he smelt the stench of the urine and heard it running down his leg to drip to the ground below. The reptile stepped back a bit, releasing the groggy feline's arm as he shifted his grip up to his shoulders, almost literally holding the cat up as his body trembled and he stared stupidly forwards, blood soaking the fur on his face and neck, as well as staining his shirt below.

Then he felt the feline's legs unhinged and he allowed him to drop, letting his own arms fall to his side as he muttered at the weakness of his current victim, who was now laying on the ground and twitching a bit. Granted, being slammed into a brick wall by a lizard who looked like he could lift a car if he wanted to - and the reptile actually could - was something that would do more than take the fight out of most... he just hadn't expected the feline to piss himself before falling unconscious.

But he still had one thing to do before he finished his job. Now that the prey had been beaten into submission, there was still the matter of how he had humiliated Cindy to contend with... and the idea he had was simple, but eloquent and effective in its own right. The reptile bent down, then turned the leopard over, making a face at the large wet spot on his pants and the reek of urine that rose up from it as he grasped the thin shirt of the feline, then simply pulled in two directions, tearing it down the middle. Then, with the frown of disgust still more than apparent on his features, the reptile carefully undid the pants of the leopard. He'd much prefer to wait... but he also wanted to get out of here and had no intent of being interrupted by an overzealous cop or good Samaritan. That meant he would have to kill, and killing always complicated things.

Once he managed to undo his jeans without getting his hands in the wetness of the leopard, he rolled the feline over with a hard kick to the side, making the leopard grunt... but he didn't wake up. Whatever else, the reptile guessed he'd done a bit more than given the punk a concussion... but that was good for him, bad for the asshole. Then he stepped over the waist of the cat, squatting over him and carefully removing his jacket and torn shirt to reveal a relatively scrawny frame without much apparent muscle. All bluster after all, and not just a coward...

He finished by removing his pants, carefully grasping the cuffs and pulling them off like that, avoiding any wetness again... and doing the same with his boxers, so that Spots was left entirely naked. Then, grabbing him by the arms, he'd hefted him into a sitting position against the back wall before balling his clothing up and tossing it up onto the roof of the connecting passage between library and fire hall. Finally, Zerrex stepped back and examined his handiwork.

He felt it was done fairly well... it hadn't taken him too long and he'd left the leopard in a fairly compromising position... but there was something that didn't feel entirely right. For a few moments, the Drakkaren mused as he looked at the vulnerable Spots, then he finally smiled and nodded before leaning forwards, smile turning into a slight sneer as he kicked one foot outwards and forwards, digging it into the gut of the feline with enough force to cause him to snap awake as the breath was knocked from his lungs and his supper disgorged from his stomach.

Zerrex looked at him with a feeling of mild entertainment now, crossing his arms with a disgusted snort as the feline sat, shivering, a pile of his vomit between his naked legs as he looked up at the reptile with fear, body quaking as blood and other substances leaked from his muzzle, before he finally asked: "Why all this?"

"Because this is my town," The voice of the reptile was cold but calm; frightening because of how civilized - if distant - it was. "And because you needed to be taught a lesson. We don't do things like that to girls like Cindy... she's eighteen, but she's an innocent eighteen. A year ago, if you'd done it, I would have killed you.

"I don't like rudeness... I don't like arrogance... and I don't like people like you." Zerrex paused as the leopard's trembles increased in strength, tears streaming down his face now as he opened and closed his muzzle slowly, fear emanating from his body in waves as he looked at the looming form of the giant before him, the reptile who spoke with all the casualness and cordiality of a chance meeting on the street with an acquaintance. "When you find your way home, you should ask your friend about me. He seemed to know at least a few of the stories... and if you ever enter that bar again, I'll kill you. I've given you fair warning now, so please don't be stupid and don't bother with the police. They'll put it on their list of 'improbable crimes' and ignore it. I don't control them, no... but they don't bother me for a variety of reasons." He stopped for a moment again, then nodded and turned away, not bothering to look at the cat as he finished: "My best advice is to leave town. Now."

Then he was walking away, leaving the cat to fester and fear in the alley as his combat-boot clad feet carried him away from the scene and left him only with that mild amusement he'd felt at the end. He'd done his own variety of justice, which was swift and cruel retribution... but Cindy probably wouldn't want to know or appreciate what he'd done so thoroughly. She'd ask, of course, next time they met in the bar... but she wouldn't want to know the details. Just the basics. And it was always best if she found out a few days later, rather than right away and then attempted, for whatever naïve reason, to find the person and apologize, of all things. Zerrex didn't understand her... but still...

He cleared his throat as he walked through the deepening twilight, glancing back and forth as he walked the few blocks towards his home. It was a bit further out than most of the other houses, on the edge of the forest, with a wide lawn and the adjacent, seemingly-empty lot all owned by him. He'd bought that, among other things, with the money he'd received after he'd been 'let go' by his past job... Captain of a secret military elite team. The money he'd received had been both his last pay - extremely substantial by itself - and an incentive to stay silent on what exactly had been going on.

Zerrex smiled a bit as he looked up at the moonless, cloudy sky, unable to see any stars but instead going back to what were strangely enough, fond memories of his. When he'd been sixteen, he'd enlisted in the military reserves... done training... and then at eighteen, taken on full-time service as a basic soldier. After five years of service, he'd been noticed because of his exceptional strength and endurance... and then had been sent on a special, year-long training exercise with a hundred other soldiers. Of those, only ten had made it through, and Zerrex at the top of the class... and then these ten graduates had all spent a month apart, on separate solo missions, and again Zerrex had finished first merely because of his brutality and remorselessness.

At the time, he'd been a Captain and the secondary commander of Platoon 3192 of the Kane Regiment. Once he'd completed his new training, however, and then his month of excruciating, less-than-legal solo missions in and around what had at that time been an enemy country, the reptile had been directly transferred to a new, elite unit - the Goth Legion.

Although he thought the name was stupid and it brought to mind a bunch of face-painting effeminate morons in black clothes and trenchcoats, the reptile had gladly accepted the transfer into the Legion, and had found himself all the more intrigued after training had begun - not only did every paycheck provide him with comfortable wealth, they were an entirely secret, separate military group under the control of one commander who kept himself equally silent and secret, communicating only through scrambled radio transmissions and coded letters after initial contact, and who hired only a few trustworthy but less-than-honorable ex-military for the necessary training. The reason? The Goth Legion had been formed for one purpose - killing the enemy, by any means necessary.

It was composed of ten people who all showed some exceptional talent, including things that seemed either extra-sensory or impossible, like telekinesis or precognition. Or those who could be stabbed and continue to move totally unfazed, even if run through by a knife or bayonet. And all of these ten people were also of a specific mindset; bloodthirsty, lustful, with violent tendencies and a sadistic streak.

This had been carefully nurtured by their teachers, taking away whatever aversions there might have been to any activity deemed illegal or heinous, until they could all rape, torture, slaughter the innocent, steal from the poor, kick puppies and kill babies without any hesitation - even with pleasure. Then they had selected a leader for their team, which had been somewhat difficult as everyone there had at least the rank of Corporal and several Captain or Secondary Commander. So they had tabulated the marks... put them through several more physical and mental tests... and then, the final test had placed each of them in their own hometown for a period of twenty-four hours and they'd been told to do whatever suited them most; even if they were caught, the military would make sure there was no legal action taken against them and they would be reaccepted into the Goth Legion, although it would mean an instant failure for their attempt at Commander. In short, they wanted to see who would be the most bloodthirsty but would set off the fewest alarms.

Zerrex had passed every test with flying colors, except the last; and that was only because it was too hard to describe the chaos Zerrex had caused in the small town he had lived in for the first eighteen years of his life before transferring to full time military and moving to live at a military base in the neighboring city. 'Flying colors' simply didn't do justice to what he'd done; what he'd done was more like caused a big bang effect all by himself.

Zerrex had raped thirteen people, killed twenty-four, blown up most of his former high school, taken hostage a classroom when the police had responded, then strapped homemade explosives to the back of everyone there and marched them in all directions with a message to the police that not only did he have a detonator, every bomb was on a ten minute timer. The cops had gone crazy attempting to round up the children Zerrex had sent running in every direction with there being two bomb squad people and only forty police officers in the whole of the small town able to respond to the school crisis with all the other cops dealing with the other chaos the reptile had caused, and left him alone long enough for him to escape through the basement.

He had gone home laughing, broken into his old house, and taken his kill count up to twenty-six with the couple there, stopping in to shower and wash himself before stepping out and stretching. He'd been told he had to last from midnight to midnight... which explained how he'd caused so much trouble by the time it was now, four in the afternoon. All the rapes had occurred from midnight to six, of various ages, with various amounts of people... and he'd done it by breaking into house after house and simply killing all the occupants afterwards, leaving almost an entire block deserted and ghostly. At ten in the morning, he'd gone out to a construction site and stolen some blasting explosive, then used that to level roughly half his high school... and he'd definitely been lying about the timer on the bombs and having a detonator. He'd set the explosive off by dropping harmless looking boxes around the school in a row so that a domino effect would occur, then he'd lobbed a Molotov cocktail through a window and the resulting explosion had been enough to set all the other bombs off.

He'd lazed around until five, then someone had come knocking with a petition about increasing the crappy police force... and Zerrex had grabbed her, silenced her, raped her twice, then snapped her neck and burned her body and the house; in the chaos that ensued, he'd hopped the fence, gone out and entered the neighbor's house through the back door while everyone was gaping, then he'd waited for them inside. Bored of the idea of rape but still with his sadistic, power-hungry streak in him, he'd waited for the couple to come back inside before grabbing them both and knocking them out with a few well-placed blows, then he'd tied and gagged them while he disabled their phones, made sure that no one could see inside, and barred one of the doors so that only one place was open for travel in and out of the house before he'd leaned down as they'd both awoken, then explained slowly to them that he was going to untie the boyfriend. If he didn't do exactly what he wanted, then he was going to hurt him, tie him up again, and rape his girlfriend until she died... and when the reptile had grinned, they'd both seen that the lizard really could do it if he wanted to.

So then he'd spent his time there until ten, laying naked on the couch just because he could and it made him feel a bit more important, more excited, as he attached leash to the girlfriend and then untied her as well, making her sit with him and cuddle with him and touch him, but not bothering with any sexual favors; he'd had enough of that for now. He preferred laying back and having her feed him as her boyfriend fixed food and was forced to massage his feet or shoulders.

Then, at ten, Zerrex had tied the boyfriend back up and taken the girlfriend into the bedroom, tying her down on the bed and then leaning over her body, not bothering to gag her so her boyfriend could hear her screaming as he gently traced kisses down his neck and let his hands massage over her body... but that was all he'd done. For whatever reason, he hadn't felt much up to sex... and instead, finally, he'd reached down and slapped her, silencing her before asking in a strangely-gentle voice if she knew how lucky she was.

She hadn't responded... and Zerrex had made a face before saying she didn't, then he'd leaned down and whispered all the events of his day into her ear. She had spasmed, looked both horrified and disgusted, but the reptile had shrugged and winked before telling her in a calm voice that he was going to leave now, and then he'd walked out to where he'd left the boyfriend with his legs tied and hands duct-taped behind his back, given him a hefty boot to his stomach to knock him over, and then the Drakkaren had pulled his clothing on and simply left before ambling towards the checkpoint until a police car had appeared, rolling slowly down the street and scanning the night with a spotlight.

The reptile had frowned at this, knowing he was an easy target... so he'd done the first thing that came to mind: walked out in front of the police car and held his hands out. The car had stopped, then the reptile had immediately sprinted towards it as he saw the pair of cops in the car look shocked before they both began to fumble in the vehicle; one going for the radio and the other the gun.

Before they could manage either, Zerrex leapt up and kicked outwards, sliding forwards across the hood and smashing in the front window, making both officers yelp and cover their faces as the reptile's legs shattered through the glass, then he lashed one boot forwards and into the temple of one officer, sending up a horrible crunching sound as he collapsed bonelessly against the door, then the other cop started to scream before Zerrex's heel swept back and down into his neck, shattering his collarbone and cracking his spine, and he fell forwards against the wheel of the vehicle, spasming a bit.

The Drakkaren had made a face before pulling himself free, wiping bits of glass from his pants and shaking his boots to make sure that there was nothing in them before glancing down the street and going into a quick jog, figuring that the patrols would be radioing in every so often... or that there would be a second patrol car to back up the first. Both of these were quite possibly strategies too complex for the tiny town he'd grown up in, but it didn't matter; being prepared came first, even if it was ridiculously so... and it was simply standard procedure.

By eleven, the reptile had reached his checkpoint: an empty farmer's field on the outside of town. The farmhouse nearby, however, had been too much of a draw for the lizard... and within ten minutes he'd shown up at the door, peering into the darkened windows of the house before finding a window that he could push up and let himself in through, then wandering the house before heading upstairs and finding a farmer and his wife sound asleep in bed.

Zerrex had stared at them for a short time, then he'd glanced to the side to see a digital clock with the number 11:29 glowing in the darkness and muttered under his breath; he'd need at least ten minutes to get back in time, so he'd have to be quick. Thus, the Drakkaren had snuck silently up beside the male and snapped his neck without any fuss, then he'd done the same to his wife before turning their lights on and going through their things, pocketing the loose money he found and taking one thing that had definitely interested him - a silver medallion, what he'd later learned to be an old heirloom.

Then he'd glanced at the clock, muttered at the loss of seven minutes, and walked quickly through the house, checking the other doors: there was a small boy, but he hadn't bothered. He didn't like killing children... it was too messy. But then he'd stumbled across the daughter's room, and then he'd felt the stirrings of lust as he looked at her, laying asleep in bed with only her nightgown on... but she too had a glowing clock by her bedside that served to remind him he had little time left.

So what had he done? He'd walked over to her... then grinned a bit before hefting her up in his arms. She put an arm around his neck even, and she'd mumbled in her sleep... and the reptile had grinned wider before running out, heading down the stairs and this time letting himself through the front door, leaving it open and unlocked before heading back into the field to the middle of the tall grasses... and there, he'd lain her down, undone his fly, torn off her gown as she'd begun to wake up, and then raped her.

He'd heard the helicopter coming before he was done, one of his hands clenching the muzzle of the canine shut to muffle her screams as she bucked and shoved at him, trying to stop him, and he'd ended up snarling and then bad-naturedly slamming one powerful hand down into her ribcage: the force of the blow had shattered her ribs, and then a follow up punch had collapsed her lungs and sent pieces of bone into her heart and other vital organs, causing her to go limp and release a final, burbling breath as he released her muzzle... and then he'd pulled out, disgusted, and turned his back on the helicopter and waited, arms crossed and pants still half down as he waited for his erection to fade away, then he'd tucked himself in once flaccid enough - being big had a few disadvantages, it seemed - and spent the last few seconds before the helicopter came down fidgeting and twitching, his fingers clenching and unclenching before he grabbed the rope ladder that they threw down and hauling himself up.

It was true... he had done all of that, under orders to cause as much chaos as possible. To hurt as many as possible... and he had done all of it. But despite the total lack of honor and remorselessness... it was still a good memory for the reptile, who'd changed his ways somewhat but still did what he wanted... raped when he wanted... killed who he wanted. He laughed a bit as he came out of the memory long enough to readjust his course towards his home, turning the corner to walk the last block that led to the plain, unmarked road that would take him to his house on the outskirts and would eventually lead through the woods and out of town if he followed long enough.

He'd been crueler than then he was now... he'd hated everyone and everything... he'd been in a lot of pain and unable to deal with it. Then the military had told him he could do whatever he wanted, so long as he did it for them... taught him how to ignore those few scant feelings of guilt... taught him how to really hurt someone, how to kill people in whatever way you wanted, how to please everything from his sexual urges to his power needs in one quick rape... how to be one with his own inner darkness and spread that through the world.

And so they'd made him Captain of the military team... of the Goth Legion. That was the only real ranking in the whole team, anyway... you were either the Captain and the boss, or a grunt. Then, they'd all been given new names - not just codenames, or titles, but names that they were expected to keep as their own. Zerrex had become Captain Ravenlight... and for five years, that was all he had been. The killing machine Ravenlight, who killed everyone in his path, dominated everyone around him, and had a taste for extreme rape and sadistic sex... and these tastes were always encouraged in mission by the others and their commander, as they killed people inside and outside of their own country, tortured for information, and served their country and its masters well by sacrificing all for their nation. Including that nation's people and the innocence of even children, stooping to all lows to complete the mission... but always enjoying what they did and the hells they caused.

Then, as suddenly as they'd begun, they found themselves in a classroom with a suit-clad agent before them, telling them about the mistake that had been made - them. The Goth Legion, however, could not be tried before private military court because they had been created by a private military source, showing a distinct issue with conflict of interest... and the politicians and military council alike was frightened of what could happen if they went public. So the only choice was to honorably discharge them from the military for their years of valiant service - and at this point, Zerrex was the third-oldest of his team at thirty-three. The two oldest soldiers were tied at thirty-four. Easily, the reptile could have continued serving until he was eighty without any issue - the lifespan and longevity of a Drakkaren, after all, is vastly different from many other evolved beings - canines living mostly to ninety or a hundred, many lizards to one-twenty, and Drakkaren up to a hundred and fifty years, only hitting middle agedness around seventy. They weren't like humans, the race that had all but died out now from their constant race wars with the other species and peoples of the world - those savages only lived for about seventy or eighty years before they died, and most dying sooner because of their attacks on other peoples or their inherent violent qualities. Zerrex had often felt he wouldn't be surprised if the secret commander had been a human.

In any case, they'd been given money in vast amounts for their services... and Zerrex had been given the most. He was, after all, not only the feared and quasi-legendary Captain Ravenlight... he was also the most violent, the most unpredictable, and who was said to be able to take down his own military team single-handedly. But that wouldn't be so hard now, as there were only seven of them... three had died in mission, and one had indeed been killed by Zerrex, for attempting to defect to another nation for want of money. A newbie recruit who had bolstered them from ten to eleven for a short few days. Greed, at least, had never been one of Zerrex's sins... just sexual lust, sadism and power. And he always swore it was only because the bastard had tried to defect, and not because he had been a homophobe who had constantly made fun of Zerrex's blatant bisexuality... although the reptile had admitted that the fear in Ghost's eyes at the end, when he'd said he was going to rape him before he killed him, had made him extremely happy... despite the fact he'd had to kill him before he'd been able to. Ghost, after all, could do something called astral projection... send his spirit out of his body to look around, at the cost of leaving his body vulnerable... but unlike the fakirs or psychics who could do this at will, Ghost could also touch and move things while out-of-body, so long as it was something he could move while in physical form as well... but, unlike when in his physical body, he didn't tire when moving things around as a spirit, meaning that Ghost could lug a body around through the air and even float several feet off the ground with it... making him useful for sneak ops.

But no, he had been killed by Zerrex, through Zerrex's specialty: melee combat, specifically swords. Although the reptile himself had no 'special powers,' like many of the others, he was far stronger than most thought possible... he could endure almost anything, and had on more than one occasion had things like sharp metal poles pierced through his body... only to be torn out and used to kill the offending enemy... and not only did he heal extremely rapidly, his body was also able to ignore most poisons and other things that would either sicken or hamper him. Plus, with his lifelong training in martial arts and his talent with melee combat techniques, it wasn't surprising that Zerrex had been deemed leader - in war, strength is what matters. And the Drakkaren had strength in both offense and defense in the rawest, most brutal sense.

So he'd been given so much money that they had given him an all-but-empty briefcase for show with ten specially-signed and verified checks inside, which he had immediately deposited into his account... then he'd transferred that account's money into a different, private one, so that the military had no record of exactly where the money had gone. After that, he'd wandered for a year before finding this chaotic little town... and for whatever reason, he'd felt compelled to settle down here. Maybe it was because in this place, he could do his mercenary work without worrying about repercussions - after all, he still had to tend to certain urges that he had - or maybe it was that the inherent chaos, the way that the city had been set up, was like one secret guerilla war... and despite all that had happened, he was still attracted to battle and warfare. Despite the fact that directly after that influx of wealth, the military had forced them all through a ten day counseling session on 'why it was wrong to hurt people,' in their words... he still wanted to.

Now, Zerrex was walking down his driveway - his empty driveway. He couldn't drive a car... but then he glanced at the garage with a faint smile. He did, however, have a military-class assault motorcycle tucked away in there... modified and customized, of course. He didn't have to worry about a lack of wealth anymore... but he was still relatively conservative, except with well, stuff he really liked or wanted. He laughed a bit at himself and his own weird reasoning, reaching up to brush his hair back before he reached the door and let himself in - he never bothered to lock up... no one, after all, would be stupid enough to break into his home.

But once inside, standing on the little square of tile where he neatly kept his hiking boots and combat boots side by side, with the closet to the right for his several leather jackets... he merely stopped and leaned back against the door after he closed it, letting his eyes slip closed as well. This house had been built with that money... and every little attachment, nook and cranny... and taking that money hadn't bothered him. Had never bothered him. And nothing else that he'd ever done bothered him... in fact, the idea that he had so much power, that he could kill and rape again and again, even get paid for it, it made him happy. And perhaps that was exactly what was bothering him.

He laughed a bit as he glanced down, leaning against the door still and musing quietly to himself. Yes, once out of the military force, he'd stopped. He had raped seven people in his first month off... which was actually extremely good for him. The second month, he'd realized that the police were looking for him actively, and he'd moved from the military base area where he'd been transferred to all the way back to near his home... and there had been three rapes there in that second month, but it was enough to put the cops on high alert when they paired it with sightings of a big green reptile. So Zerrex had moved again, never buying a house but only staying at a cheap apartment rented for a month or so, raping whenever he felt he could safely to get his power fix, trying not to do too much else but, as always, he did end up violently beating people who even spoke to him rudely and he killed thirteen people in that first year of moving around, before he'd found Baskin's Grove.

He stayed a month in an apartment, as he did everywhere else... but within the first week, he'd raped a girl and found... there was too much chaos for people to show surprise or even really care enough to show sympathy or empathy for the female in question. That had made him lean towards settling here... but what had really done it was when he'd been sitting in Elliot's... and he'd seen a young female sitting on the counter, her feet swaying back and forth, and she'd smiled at him... fourteen year old Cindy, had smiled at him, and Zerrex had blinked before smiling back faintly... and then he'd been approached by Elliot for the first time.

He was a fairly chunky feline, a cheetah who was a realist but still kind-hearted and generous, despite the cruelty of the world. His fur was unkempt and lacked luster, perhaps a bit too short or just too pushed to cover his entire body to even try to look... pretty, for lack of a better word. He wasn't fat... but his belly did bulge, hence his status as chunky and not obese. His eyes were plain, kind brown... and he generally wore a white dress shirt and brown plain pants, with a red antique vest overtop, looking like a classic barkeep, although the fact he always wore sandals never helped the image very much, and on this day, Zerrex had met him while he was in quite different wear than usual - jeans and a plain, sweat-stained tank-top, from constant work in the kitchens instead of serving booze. The grille had been broken that day too, the reptile remembered... and Elliot had come out, seen Zerrex and Cindy looking at each other, then he'd told Cindy to go back and mind the burner in the kitchen before coming over to Zerrex and placing his hands on the table - the table that would soon enough become Zerrex's reserved seat.

"You looking at her kinda funny, stranger." Elliot said gently; the words implied something nasty, but the reptile found his tone said something else entirely... so instead Zerrex settled before looking at him coldly as he crossed his arms before he blinked, thrown off guard by the next comment. "You her father?"

"Somehow I doubt that..." Zerrex said slowly, frowning a bit as he looked at Elliot, who sighed and nodded, stepping back and putting his hands behind his back, looking tired and out of shape. The reptile watched him, sizing him up, then he motioned around the mostly empty bar, in which people were mostly eating instead of drinking. "Why? And what's up with this town? Everywhere I go I see something broken or some other form of crime."

That was certainly true back then. Everything had been defiled by the street mobs, by petty crime, and the constant tax hikes had been killing the general and even the private public... at least, in Comfort Town. Elliot had looked at him with those strange eyes, and then the Drakkaren had clicked in on what it was; that was pure, untainted misery, and the cat had sighed as he leaned back before the cheetah gave the story of the town, told of the corruption, and of how he had found Cindy.

It had lasted half an hour, but Zerrex had summarized it in a few quick sentences. The crime was because of the corruption. The crime couldn't be controlled by the police because the police were only concerned with Apple Villa crime. Comfort Town was dying. Cindy and her mother had lived here for a decade, and Elliot had been on good terms with her - good enough to be named godfather, and to discover that poor little Cindy had been born of rape, although he'd never gotten the description of the father. At this point, Zerrex realized he was supposed to feel offended... but then also realized that would be hypocritical of him, from the fact that he had indeed raped plenty of people... but he would've been about twenty at this time, and there had only been maybe a dozen rapes in that period before he was enlisted into the Goth Legion... and only two or three of them had been fellow Drakkaren, keeping most of his rapes other species to avoid the chance of pregnancy, which was another unnecessary complication, like killing. And in this case, it contained both of those complications, because Cindy's mother had been found, raped - again - and brutally murdered, while Cindy was out at school.

In any case, Elliot's real interests lay beyond what he was saying, which was something that Zerrex picked up on pretty quickly from his nervous twitching and the careful choice of words he was using, to avoid mentioning why exactly he thought that Zerrex was a rapist. The reptile merely lounged back after a while and let the cat's words flow over him, nodding every so often before finally asking in a calm, somewhat bored voice: "What do you want me to do?"

The cheetah blinked, looking both taken aback and embarrassed to be seen through so easily, then he fumbled with his words for a little bit longer before finally coughing and glancing down, leaning forwards to speak quietly: "Listen, sir... I know that... everyone who comes into town, I keep track of. You've been here for a short while but... let's just say that for a devoted person, following your backtrail isn't too hard. And you seem to have... like... you have had... encounters in the past, haven't you?"

His words were fumbling, but easy enough to figure out, and Zerrex smiled slowly. This was a new idea to him... and from what the feline was saying, it sounded like he was going to be an interesting job. "You know what I'm picking up? I'll say it plain for you, since you seem too nice... but I think what you're trying to ask is: 'mister big scary lizard, there's this person, and I want you to go and rape them for me.' Isn't that right?"

"Holy fuck, I..." the cheetah's eyes widened in alarm as his head reared back, then he glanced quickly back and forth before sliding into the bench across from Zerrex, coughing and then flushing silently as he looked at the table with what seemed like shame. "Cindy... some fuck from Apple Villa came over here and tried to rape my poor Cindy... he said he wanted revenge on... on all the sluts over here... and it just... the injustice, it's sickening and just... I... I'm tired of it and..."

"You want retribution, in short." Zerrex laughed quietly as his emerald eyes glinted, half-shadowed by the fall of his hair as he examined and sampled the shame and other warring emotions on the face of the feline. These were exotic emotions to him, after all... he'd never felt shame or regret for what he did. Yet for whatever reason... this cat did for just hiring out a mercenary... and that was when the idea struck and Zerrex's look of amusement turned to a full-out, predatory smile. "Well then. Perhaps I'm interested in this... so I'll do it for a discounted fee from my usual. I have to say though, I am expensive for a mercenary..."

"A mercenary?" Elliot blinked and looked up at him, not contemplating what the reptile was saying as he lounged back and crossed his arms, then snorted quietly.

He shifted a bit, then shrugged. "Well... I don't plan on leaving here anytime soon... and this place seems like it'll be good for business." the reptile paused, then added slowly: "I'm ex-military, and war is what I do best... this place is at war. Now listen to me, cat. I can be your best weapon, or I can be the enemy's. To me, money is money. I don't need it, but it's fun to collect, and I'm sure I'll find some good use for it." He stopped, then glanced up and felt something in him soften as he saw Cindy walk out of the two-way door from the kitchens and head towards her godfather... now her guardian. "I'm a very bad person... but let's just say that if it comes down to it, I'd prefer to work for you. But you'd best offer me something good, if you can't give me money."

Elliot looked up, then he glanced at Cindy before turning back to Zerrex and then forcing a smile as she came up to him and stood politely by... an innocent, polite and quiet girl, she was. Then the reptile blinked as the cheetah looked at him squarely and said softly: "Mister... why don't you come by for dinner then, huh? I'm sure you'll love what Cindy here can cook. She's wonderful in the kitchen."

"Elliot!" Cindy smiled warmly, but blushed a bit as she tossed an embarrassed glance at Zerrex... a glance that was half-searching, half-shy. Zerrex looked back, then he coughed before reaching up to smooth his hair back and nodding, standing up and then extending a hand to the cheetah, who looked surprised.

"Zerrex Narrius." the Drakkaren introduced himself cordially, squeezing the cat's hand as he took his, perhaps a bit too firmly so the cheetah knew he was accepting the terms on more than just politeness. Again, the cat looked surprised... then he smiled with more warmth as he squeezed back and shook.

"Elliot Meral. And this is my... daughter, Cindy Delacroix." Now Elliot nudged Cindy forwards, and she held out her hand, looking up at him quietly with wide eyes as Zerrex released Elliot's hand to gently take hers, then he smiled before half-kneeling and raising her small hand up to his muzzle, gently kissing the back of it and surprising all three of them - Zerrex that he pulled it off, and the other two because he looked more the role of violent giant than honed Victorian.

"Memories." Zerrex murmured in the present, then he laughed dryly and shook his head as he kicked off his combat boots, and walked into his home. "Some good, some bad. All are equally useless."

With that, the reptile moved into his home, glancing back and forth as his clawed feet tapped quietly against the hardwood floor that covered most of the house. The walls were plain white, with an open archway leading into the living room on one side of the reptile and the other a wall that was inset with two plain oak doors; one led into the bathroom, and the other the Drakkaren's bedroom.

Now, however, the reptile turned and walked through the arch instead of continuing down the L-shaped hall that would bring him to a storage room, and then past that the entrance to the basement. Right now, he wanted to sit down... which was what he did, muttering under his breath as he collapsed into the plain, old couch in the living room.

The place had the air more of a waiting room than a living room, with the mildly-comfortable couch beside the entrance to the kitchen, the long table in front of it scattered with papers and old drink cans, a television with a video game system sitting beside it on top of his video disc player, and the scattering of games that sat beside it. The reptile let his eyes rove over these objects, then the shelves that sat in the corner of the room and on either side of the archway, filled with both books and various other objects before he turned his attention to the window, which had thick storm curtains drawn before it to block out all light inside and out. The reptile didn't think it would matter very much, anyway... he could be standing out in his yard raping someone and everyone would walk by without so much as a twitch in his direction. Alright, maybe they wouldn't walk, they'd quite possibly run, but that wasn't the point, now was it?

Zerrex smiled a bit to himself now as he examined the last few furnishings in this room; the plain, tall lamp with the circular cover that sat beside an old, comfy chair he'd found, and then the half-sphere of glass that sat in the ceiling with the too-strong light inside... hence the reason he had the lamp there. When night came like this, the reptile preferred to sit in the semi-darkness or a moodily lit room rather than one lit with all the intensity of a floodlight.

Which was probably why he sat here now, in near-total darkness with the curtains closed... but hey, that was how he liked it. Besides which... he sighed as he glanced at his bare wrist, muttered at the lack of knowledge, and then got up and walked out of the living room area to the doorway that led into his room, now reaching out to flick on the weak, covered light in the ceiling. He had to get up anyway, nice as it was to just sit down for a minute or two.

The reptile glanced around at the plain room - this was barely furnished. It had a bed... a dresser... and a beaten-up table on broken wheels with an old wood chair sitting in front of it. The table itself had his laptop sitting on it - the laptop was a piece of crap, despite the money Zerrex had dumped into it - piles of papers and a plain booklet that he doodled in, and a small laser printer. In the single drawer of the table could be found a combat knife, an old military-issue handgun, and a variety of pencils; the reptile thought he was most dangerous with the last in his hand.

His bed was another marvel. The reptile, out of sheer irritation at the fact his sheet always popped off the bed, had duct-taped it to the mattress. Then there was a fluffy mink-fleece blanket with parading animal designs all over it and a handmade quilt sitting in a pile with his pillows, giving it much the look of a nest. He made a face at this, then turned his attention to his dresser, upon the top of which sat his digital clock and a very-illegal oversized switchblade.

It was almost eight now... which the Drakkaren figured was a good thing. He glanced around his room again, then up at the wall, making sure one of his more prized positions was in place.

Hanging on the wall in two special, dragon-head shaped holders was a greatsword; a ridiculously huge weapon with a blade that was six feet long and a handle that added another full foot to the monstrously-large sword. The hilt was made entirely from black steel alloy, ending with a ruby for the pommel and another ruby carefully inset into the T-shaped hilt. This was the extent of ornament on the weapon; the blade was plain, if half a foot thick and made from some carefully-polished alloy that never seemed to dull. Blackheart was one of the few more expensive treasures Zerrex had allowed himself to buy, although he could afford at least a thousand of the same weapons without even halving his fortune... and this sword had cost him far more than even the building of this house... and of the extra little addition he was on his way to now.

Zerrex wandered out of his room, not bothering to turn the light off as he moved down the hall, hitting another light switch to turn on the plain hanging lights in the ceiling and fill the hallway with semi-brightness. He turned down the arm of the L, going past the first doorway, then he pulled open the next in line, a plain white door that opened upon a flight of wooden stairs leading down deep into the earth.

The reptile hit the switch to turn on the fluorescent lights in the basement, then he descended the stairs to step off into what looked like a plain, massive basement; giant-size freezer sitting against one wall with a dryer and washing machine to one side of it, a long counter built into the wall opposite that, going from one side of the basement to the other and covered in various tools and equipment, a huge wooden worktable dominating the center of the room with several stools around it... and a set of tall bookshelves across from the reptile, full of various texts and other objects.

It was this that Zerrex approached, walking around the table and heading for the middlemost shelf; when he reached it, he grasped the side gently, then pulled and swung the entire, carefully-designed construction open on a set of hinges to reveal a massive steel door, wide and tall enough to easily accommodate the reptile, and recessed into the wall so that the steel bindings and plain handle didn't push against the back of the fake bookshelf and make the secret passage noticeable.

The reptile loved it himself... he always got kick out of the fact he had a real secret passage in his house; especially one that, once the door was opened - as Zerrex did now, reaching forwards and pushing the heavy steel door back - you came out into an earthen, rounded passageway, no longer a place with cement floors and walls but just hard dirt, carefully sheared up with strong wooden timbers placed at intervals.

Zerrex walked down this long, dark hallway, which was lit now only by the faint light that came in from the door he'd left open... but he didn't mind the smell of the earth, or the darkness. They drowned out other, less desirable things, the reptile found... and there were certainly smells and sights he didn't want to deal with in his private place up ahead.

Another heavy steel door winked in the darkness, inset into a plain cement wall... and once Zerrex drew close enough, a motion detector caught his movement and automatically flicked on a light in front of the building. The Drakkaren smiled a bit at the simple and economic design, then he reached forwards to grasp the handle of the door and pushed it open, revealing a plain-tiled, short hallway with lights that automatically flashed on the moment they detected the reptile's presence. Same design as outside, but now with motion detectors throughout the area... except for the room at the very back.

The design of this building was simple; there were three rooms, being Zerrex's private office, his trophy room, and a cell for anyone he might have to kidnap or bring back to interrogate. The cell was rarely cleaned... the only thing he did was remove the prisoner. The splotches of blood on the walls and floors always seemed to provide a much greater incentive for whoever was currently locked in to talk... and that made the reptile's job easier.

For now, Zerrex opened the red-oak door to his office and stepped inside, finding himself once more surrounded by shelves and a jumble of papers, weaponry and books. The room was fairly small... and extremely cluttered, with a large oak desk, a plain leather chair, a small table with a safe on it, and not one but two weapon lockers at the back of the room, the latter objects against the back wall. The shelves, meanwhile, were pressed against the side walls and stuffed to the point of overflowing with all variety of paperwork.

The reptile looked back and forth thoughtfully, then he shrugged and sighed before walking around the desk and sitting down. He hated number crunching but it never hurt to keep a record of how much he was making... and besides which, he had to realign his schedule for the new jobs he had ahead...