Anna Zirski in:

Nightwatch

Things were running smoothly for me, until one night for some stupid reason, we decided to camp out in the middle of nowhere. I suppose the distance between Zema and Kueri was a little longer than I originally thought, but I still didn't understand Rolf's reasoning here. Just because little Amy had a little blister on her toe really was no excuse for something so dangerous as lay out in the open!

Maybe the blister wasn't so little, but hell, she's a doctor, right? Shouldn't she be able to treat herself? Doesn't sound as damned illogical as everyone else makes it seem.

Hugh had assured us that only a select few of the bio-monsters were actually nocturnal. For the remaining ones, he placed some goofy emitters around the campsite Rolf and Rudo had set up and he said that they contained some compound that would be enough to repel the ones that got curious or hungry during the night. I could only hope he was right. After all, I was surrounded by incompetence. An incompetent doctor and an incompetent hunter, so an incompetent biologist really wouldn't surprise me either.

For my part, I refuse to be incompetent. I sat outside with my slasher at my side just in case. At first I felt bitter about keeping watch for these morons, but then I felt better about it when I realized that the real reason I did this was because I didn't want to die in my sleep. The landscape was lush and green and there was little evidence that those violent creatures even existed though there were a few unfamiliar sounds out there. The night was in fact peaceful. The sky was filled with stars and the brightest of our moons. I felt relaxed for the first time in a long while.

I almost dozed off after a few hours. But a strange sound woke me up. It was a click, almost completely silent but a sound I couldn't miss. My hand reached for my slasher even though I didn't really feel threatened. But when I looked up, I noticed a small orange flame as Rudolf Steiner was lighting a cigarette and gazing at a moon, standing not far from me at all.

My mentors told me that the army reported this man for going AWOL and then becoming a rouge hunter. They said that he told one of his commanding officers that he mentioned seeking out and destroying Mother Brain. As ridiculous of a statement that is, its just another day at the office for me hunting down crazies like him.

Now was as good of a time as any. I could take him down and return to my mentor early. I stood up silently and tiptoed my way behind him. I was close enough now that I could see orange embers falling to the ground in front of him, and could smell the smoke as it protruded from his mouth. It would be an easy kill.

I watched him for a moment, making sure my breaths were quiet and stable. I visualized taking my slasher and sliding it across his throat. He took a big drag, then let out a deep sigh as a storm of gray visible even in the night. Then to my ultimate shock he spoke.

"Watching me again? Do you like what you see?"

His voice was deep and somewhat horse, which surprised me even though he always talked like that. Immediately, I pulled my slasher behind my back. "Wha- What are you doing?" I blabbed, not even realizing the words that came out of my mouth.

Rudo dropped the cigarette and stepped on it firmly with his large boot. "Heh. I could be asking you the same thing. Every night I come out and you are always out here too, watching me. Is there something you want from me?"

"I'm just keeping watch!" I said defensively, not wanting him to take any satisfaction from my watching him. In truth, I had no idea he knew I was even there all those times. "You fools are too careless to realize that a night watch is necessary in times like these!"

Rudo turned to look at me for the first time. A moon was behind him and kept his face completely in shadow. I wish I could have followed his eyes… "I guess we are all fools here, but not in that sense. If we were careless, we would be dead by now. Reckless fools, maybe. Careless fools… Well that's a different story."

I tried to stick my slasher in my belt so he wouldn't become suspicious of my hidden hand. But it was snagged on my dress and I couldn't seem to move it at all, so I kept my hand right where it was. All the while, we stared at each other in complete silence for a few moments. For the first time, I could smell Hugh's emitters and they weren't pleasant smelling at all, contributing to the awkwardness. Perhaps Rudo felt as if he were the one being awkward so he continued talking to me. "I still haven't figured you out, Anna. I get Hugh's deal, and I kinda get Amy's deal too. But what are you doing here?" he asked. "I know you're a guardian and counter hunter, but…"

I yanked a little harder at the slasher, but I didn't want to pull so hard that my shirt would just rip. I wondered if he was even slightly suspicious of me. "I could be asking you the same thing!" I said mockingly although my mentor had already told me everything I needed to know about Rudolf Steiner. Besides, I couldn't tell him my reasons while I was in such a vulnerable position as this.

"OK, you don't trust me and that's understandable I guess. So maybe if I told you a little more about myself, you would feel more inclined to tell me, is that it?"

I didn't answer. I wished my slasher was free so I could just shut him up for good and kill him. He rarely spoke most of the time, so why was he being so damn friendly now?

"As you know, one can make a pretty honest living off of working in the military. Well, I spent more than a decade of my life putting my life on the line for Mota," he said. I could see his head turn to look at that moon again. "But now, I have a reason to hate everything about Mota, especially Mother Brain."

Was he trying to make me feel uneasy? I wouldn't show him anything of that sort. I pulled much harder at the slasher as he had his back to me and was "rewarded" with a small tearing noise. I gasped in surprise. I guess Rudo noticed because he turned around quickly and asked, "Are you OK?"

"Yes!" I practically exclaimed. I had switched hands as to allude his suspicion. "Now uh… What was the reason?" I asked sweetly, although I really didn't care. He was already confirming everything my mentor had told me. I could feel myself sweating a little, which is something I don't do often.

"Well… I left the military," he said cautiously. I could sense he was approaching something painful to him. He turned to look at the moon again, leaving me to yank hard at my slasher again. "Bio-monsters created by Mother Brain killed my wife and my daughter."

I stopped pulling. This was about his family? My mentor had not told me that. I found myself interested suddenly. "You- That's no way to bring them back! Going after Mother Brain will get you killed by… something or someone! Or do you want to join them in death that badly?" I demanded of him. People and their family bonds… I've never really had any of my own… I guess they aren't always a bad thing, but they often lead people to stupid and illogical action like Rudo.

Rudo stood there thoughtfully for a few moments. Maybe suicide was something he had contemplated. How foolish. "I know I'm doing something dishonorable. I just need a reason!" Rudo said, his gaze never shifting from the moon. "I'm not going to die or give up until I have that reason. So that's why I'll help Rolf, because I think he may lead me to that reason. Regardless, I'll get there, somehow."

It seemed that he had nothing more to say than this. Hugh's emitters continued to stink, I was making no progress with my slasher, and I had nothing more to say to him either. What he didn't know was that I would follow Rolf too as long as he was there, and I could prove him wrong about surviving to find his so-called "reason". After a few more moments of silence, he turned to me with his shadowed face and spoke again.

"So Anna… will you tell me more about yourself now? Why you fight with us at least?"

I said nothing. That above everything else would be avoided. After watching me for a moment, he gave up.

"Well, OK. Whenever you're ready, I suppose. Try to get some sleep. We have a busy day ahead of us after all. Whew… Hugh's emitters sure do smell bad. No wonder the monsters stay away," he said with a slight laugh.

I nodded to gain his satisfaction. He was talking too much. I wanted him to go to bed and leave me alone. He finally started to walk away. Then he turned around.

"Is there a reason your hand has been back there this whole time, Anna?"

"What do you… Uh… Nope. This is just how I stand," I replied a little shakily.

"Right," he said awkwardly. Then he finally disappeared into our makeshift camp.

Once I knew he wouldn't be coming back, I ripped my slasher from the back of my shirt. I couldn't see me back, but I could tell from the cool air that seemed touch parts of my back that used to be covered, that it was a pretty major tear. I let out a long sigh mixed with both anxiety and relief. Maybe Amy would fix it for me tomorrow morning.

Rudolf Steiner clearly wasn't a stupid man. Did he know all along? Only time would tell.