Chapter 2: Everything Ends in Profit or Debt

It had been nearly a week since Julez' funeral, and there were no drastic improvements. I was back to work for Dylon. I was starting to save up enough money to finally get out of that inn and into the city with a house. Central, the city of chance. Everything you do in that city could end up breaking you or making you...filthy rich. My job as Dylon's personal spy payed good, and it kept me intrested. When he didn't have anything important for me to do, he'd tell me to keep an eye on Ian. A stupid request, but again, it paid good.

I walked down the stairs with more ease than usual. It was my first day off since the funeral, and I was gonna get my mind off of the whole incident. Don't get me wrong, I missed the guy, but i need time to relax. I'm only human...

It was the same routine as usual. I get my gear from Alex ( he would hold onto it for the night, inn's rules) which consited of the following: one dagger, 9 inch blade of steel, 4 inch hilt of the same, two Mauser C-96s, model 712, 13 clips, and one broadsword, 45 inch blade of pure titanium, hilt made of silver, 6 inches.

"Ya know," Alex said lugging out my equipment from behind the counter, "If you were to just sell this stuff, you'de be a lot closer to buying that houseyou're always talking about..."

I put on my stuff in a hurry. Days were short in Central, hard to keep track of time. Best to start the day as soon as possible. "True, unfortuanatly it's not mine to sell." I said strapping on my side-arms. He gave me an odd look, roled his eyes (people seemed to be doing that lately...) and went back to leaning on the counter, reading some book on herbs. "Damn guy needs to find a house already, walkin around my inn with stolen guns and blades..." I heard him mumble as I walked out the door. He was right. I did need a house, but the stuff wasn't stolen...another time.

As expected, Dylon was waiting for me, or should I say for my notebook. Every Saturday, I get the day off, and he gets any information I found, on the task I've been given, from my notebook. If he finds anything good, I get my salary and a little bonus, if not, I get my salary. Either way, I'm happy.

I toss him the notebook and wave. He catches it, waves back, and glances at the first page. He gets in his car and drives off to HQ, and I pretend to be none the wiser. Welcome to my day off.

I went to Central Market, the most talkative place on the town. Though it is my day off, I often looked foward to hearing the latest about whats-his-face and that-one-chick. Rumors never ceased to amaze me.

I didn't really have anything to sell, and no money to buy anything with. I guess I went there for the cheap thrill of gossip. Maybe I was to bored and to tired to walk back to the inn so early. MaybeI was destined to meet Russell that day...but I'm not a big beilever in fate.

"Stop! Ceize and decist now!" Yelled a police officer chasing a black haired guy somewhere about 20-23, my age, down the sidewalk. The man was clearly faster than the cop so I figured it was my turn to play good guy in Julean's absence.

"Your don't think yelling at him will stop him, really? Haven't you ever heard of the whole sticks and stones thing?" A joke as I ran past the cop and toward the man. He took a quick look to notice someone was catching up with him, and took a sharp left into an alleyway. (It still amazes me that whenever the bad guy needs an escape route, theres an alley, but when it comes to me, never.)

It didn't take him long to notice that the alley was a dead end. He turned back to me, and I saw his face clearly for the first time. The guy was scared outta his mind, a blind man could see that. He panicked. He pulled out a dagger and backed up against the wall, as if to make sure I couldn't magically appear behind him. "Stay back, I'm not going to jail!" He exclaimed.

"Shut up." I said as I put my index finger over my mouth, to show him incase he was so paniced he couldn't understand words. "Keep yelling like that and they'll be here any second."

"You're...not gonna arrest me?" I liked this guy, he was pretty smart. "Why?"

"Because I'm not my father..." I said. If I wanted to help this guy, I needed a divertion. I signaled for him to wait and he seemed to understand, seeing as he froze on the spot. I ran to the end of the alley.

Three or four cops had arrived just that second. "Hey, get back here punk!!!" I yelled as loud as I could and ran across the street into another small path between some buildings. The MPs followed, and I took a turn at the end of the alley onto a nearby street. I don't think they saw me, and if they did they chose not to follow me.

I hurried my way around the block back to the waiting theif. "You got a name?" I asked jerking my head to one side, letting him know we needed to leave, now.

"Russell." He said as we exited the alley, staying on my left, closest to the wall of the building, concealed behind me. "Just moved here from Dublith."

"Got a last name?" I asked. We were close to the inn now. I figured Alex would loan him a room for the time being. Correction, I'de have to pay for his room. I'de already used up all my free room begs.

"Why's that matter?" I noticed he was starting to get on the defensive. Of course he would, I was starting to act like an MP with all the questions. I was starting to act like my dad. Guess it was a bad habit. I'de always wanted to be like him until...another time. For now I had to get this guy to the inn.

"It doesn't, just curious. Don't meet many people around Central, hard to find friends." I led him inside and explained the situation to Alex. Took about half an hour to persuade him to let a criminal stay in his inn. Said I owed him. I always owed somebody something those days...

He grabbed my arm as I tried to walk away. I gave him a shocked look. I didn't know if he had changed his mind or what, but I was gonna find out.

"You forgot your package." Alex said. He handed me an envelope from, "Sherry Kilde at 1285 Forest Rd." Fake name, fake address. Dylon would send different contracts to the inn and deliver my money under a different name and address every saturday. I put the envelope and stuffed it in my pocket.

I walked Russell up to a room. "You're gonna be staying here, paying me, got it?"

"I'll do no such thing! Why the hell should I pay you?" He asked in a louder tone than I liked. He was gonna find that out fast.

"BECAUSE." I yelled loud enough for the entire inn to hear, grabbing him by the collar and slamming him against the wall, and told him my reasoning as fast as I can in a library voice, "Because-I-just-saved-your-ass-and-I have-to-pay-for-your-damn-room-and-sorry-to-tell-you-this-but-everything-ends-in-debt-or-profit-and-you-got-the-short-end-of-the-stick. UNDERSTAND?" I asked as I realesed him, letting him land on his feet making us eye-to-eye again.

"As long as I'm not going to jail, I guess." He said walking toward the bed and slumping down, seeming to fall asleep instantly. I turned toward the door and got out of the room.

"Hey Charles!" I heard Alex yell up the stairs. "Ya got a visitor. Hurry up and get down here so he'll leave!" He proclaimed with an all-too-serious tone.

"Real nice Alex..." I heard Seth say in a low voice. That was just what I needed. A trigger happy freak in my day off. I walked down the stairs to the mechanic. He mesured up to about six feet even, about 2 inches above myself. His short blonde hair resembled that of a homeless person, not really groomed in anyway, but it fit him. He was fairly built, and wore clothes that were too big for him, saying it helped him move easier. Despite his looks, he was fairly rich, enough to run and own his own shop, one of the top five in Rush Valley.

"Hey, Charlie-Boy, I guess something to talk to ya about." He said with a huge smirk. I knew right then, this wasn't going to be pleasent. "Let's go up to your room. Private discussion." He said it just to piss Alex off. I knew it, he knew it, Alex knew it. Seth loved to piss Alex off. Worst part is he was good at it.

"I thought you already went back to the Valley." I said shutting the door behind him as he came in.

"I did, then I came back. I got an idea Charles and I thought you might like it." That really translated to, "I got an idea that I like but I can't pull it off on my own, and I need your help." Seth always had ideas that were indeed good, he just lacked the man power.

"Go ask Lance, he'll might help." I said it more as a joke than anything.

"He already is, and so is everyone else man! That's what makes this so exiteing!!!" That's when I thought one of the seven words I'm not supposed to say, which one I will not mention. when Seth gets exited things go baaaaaaaaaaad. At least for everyone around him, things go fine for him.

The fact that he had got the group together for a meeting of some sort, that was a first. It really might be exiteing. "So tell me this idea of yours..." I asked lighting up a cigarette and placing it between my lips.

"Well, I was thinking, 'What could we do to remember Julean' when-"

"When you realized, 'Wait a minute, funerals have already been created, damn'?" I couldn't resist, I wasn't the comic relief of the group for no reason y'know.

"Ha ha ha. No smartass. I figured, why not hold a tournament in his honor? We could charge fifteen-"

I snapped, simple as that. I pulled a Russell, grabbing his collar and slamming him against the wall. "You bastard, you're doing this just for a profit! Your just using Julez' name as honey for flys!!!"

Seth had a really calm expression on his face. He looked me straight in the eyes and he said the following, "Isn't it you that always told me that everything end in profit or debt? Isn't that your little philosophy? Look I'm really sorry the guy died, but life goes on..."

I held him tighter at first, then realized he was right, I had that before, so I really couldn't complain. "Fine. You win, so anyway, what type of tournament is this?"

"It's an alchemist's tournament! I've placed posters all over Rush Valley, and I've got friends that I called placing them everywhere else! Anyone who's anyone-"

"That's a shame..." I said taking a deep drag, "'Cause we both know I don't use alchemy anymore."

"There's the kicker!" Seth said, pulling out a rolled up sheet. It was one of the posters, with weapons and alchemy circles all over it.

"Pretty pictures." I said as I chuckled a bit.

"Look here, it says, 'those who have no alchemic ability may still join'. Dylon Can't even USE alchemy and he'll be there!" He almost seemed to be begging me to come.

I exhaled a large puff of smoke as a let my head fall, "Fine, I'll be there..."

"Great, well I gotta go, posters to place, people to tell!" He walked out of the room in a hurry and rushed toward the door. "Later!"

"Later." I said waving, as I watched him exit the inn from my room up the stairs. I turned to go into the room and head in for the night when I heard a voice.

"Charles!" Alex yelled up.

"What Alex?" I asked in a very annoyed tone.

"Keep slammin' people against my walls, and they're gonna break. I won't be paying for that, understand? Stop try and stop, 'kay?"

"I can try."