Chapter Nine: A Deal[er]

Authors Note:

It's pronounced; Coh-urt

We don't give a fuck what the price is
So just leave us to our own devices
And we'll leave you alone

+44 - "When Your Heart Stops Beating"

The Junkyard's failing engine had forced Otto to make an emergency landing in one of the most hostile planets in the area; Bothsiloth. A once flourishing planet that had been taken over by the infamous mob boss Hammerhead Orglich. Hammerhead was a vicious swine whose jet black skin matched his soul. His rise to power brought forth a horrid amount of pollution that made life on the planet practically unsustainable without some sort of oxygen mask.

Upon arrival, Otto was recruited to work for the Orglich's. He didn't protest it, to him, it was a way to make money for repairs. However, it became very clear that the engine wasn't the only thing that needed to be fixed. The Junkyard had literally given up on him. Things had looked bad for the canine, and it didn't help matters when the stress was too much for him and he decided to start smoking pot. His mind was in a continuously clouded state that couldn't be removed.

However, there was a small speckle of hope awaiting him…

Otto was sitting at a table in a run down restaurant. The doors outside had been sealed shut to allow the shady patrons to be able to take off their masks that were needed to breathe on the planet. In the canine's hand was a bottle of alcohol, which he swished around and observed the liquid sloshing around. The room was smoky and not exactly welcoming, but then again, nothing on the planet was.

The canine had grown weary while waiting for his meal that he ordered half an hour ago. He decided that it would be a good time for a pick-me-up. He stood up and swiftly moved toward the bathroom, not caring who saw. Once inside, he shoved his paw into his trench coat pocket and pulled out a baggie of already rolled joints. Otto always had them ready so he didn't have to take his sweet ass time putting it in the paper, rolling, and licking it.

He took one out, and put it to his muzzle, while with the other paw, taking a lighter out and igniting the tip. He took a long drag, and held it in before coughing it out. It would be a few more hits before it began to take effect so he decided to speed it up and take another.

"You know, I could get you arrested for doing that shit…" A raspy voice said from behind him. Otto coughed up all the smoke he inhaled in total shock.

Shit, I knew I forgot something.

The canine turned around and saw a grey rat about a foot shorter than himself. An elongated red scar went across his face, making him have a bit of a tribal look to him. Otto took his joint and casually tossed it on the floor, and stomped it out.

"Happy?" He replied sarcastically.

"Hah! I was kidding buddy, I smoke that shit too." This irritated Otto, he had just wasted a good joint on a joke.

"Man fuck you, that's not cool." He growled.

"Sorry bout' that. Besides, you got plenty more."

"True…" He took out another and lit up. "Want a hit?" He offered the joint to the rat. He hastily accepted and let the Technicolor dreamscape take over him.

"So, you got a name?" Otto questioned.

"Name's Co'ort, your neighborhood junkie, at your service." He outstretched his claw.

"Otto von Hiedrich…" He was about to shake Co'ort's hand but he drew it away looking at the dog with much curiosity.

"Are you that guy who-"

"NO!" He interjected. "Well, according to them I am…"

"Explain…"

So he did, he told Co'ort all about his mission that he was given on Besdolore to save Ulrich Wurz, only to be double crossed by Michael Drescher. He tried to kill the traitor afterward but failed in doing so, and was apprehended, and banished from his home. So here he was, an outcast that was wandering the galaxy alone.

"Welcome to Bothsiloth Otto, pretty much everyone here is in the same situation as you."

An epiphany struck Otto. "Well then, I assume you know a lot of people around here correct?" Co'ort cocked his head, wondering what he wanted.

"Yes…" He nervously responded.

"Any mechanics?"

After a short walk across the Bothsilithian landscape, Otto and Co'ort had reached their destination. It was a old and rusted warehouse in the middle of an arid desert. The rat took out a set of keys and placed them in the lock covering the door. Before entering, he turned around to make sure nobody was around.

"Shut the door quickly on your way in, the atmosphere will kill the others before they even have a chance to cry for help…" With that said, he opened the door and rushed in with Otto following suit. They both pushed on the door as quick as they could and sealed it shut.

"Good work." Co'ort mentioned as he began to take off his mask. The small cup shaped apparatus was connected via hoses to a large tank of oxygen that could supply one with at least three days of breathable air. They were introduced shortly after the harmful effects of the pollution were noticed.

The sound of footsteps could be heard in the distance.

"Who's there?" A voice reverberated off the walls, making Otto jump.

"It's me! And I brought someone."

The lights came on, temporarily blinding the canine. When his eyes readjusted, he found in front of him three other people. On Otto's far left was a black lupine who looked to be in his early twenties. He wore a old and ratty blue shirt and some jean shorts. Half hidden behind some machinery was a swine who had seemed to have a major eating problem, being of a heavy build. The pig wore a white tank top and jeans, giving him a mafia look similar to the men he worked for. He snorted loudly as he examined the new visitor. And lastly, was a red vulpine that seemed to be the oldest of the group. There were some nasty bags under his eyes, making Otto assume he hadn't slept in some time.

"Who's the new guy?" The wolf asked.

"This is Otto guys, and I believe that he needs our assistance." Co'ort replied. The wolf and pig quickly talked amongst one another.

"What kind of help?" The pig questioned, once again snorting after completing his sentence.

"Can you build a ship?"

"Yeah, but what's in it for us?"

"A chance at freedom, and revenge…" Everyone looked at one another for a moment, thinking about what the hound had just said. After some nodding, the pig spoke up again.

"We're in…"

Once Otto had been able to settle into his new home, he was able to find out more about his new found friends. The black wolf's name was Teveroth Sparks and was the youngest member of the group at only twenty one years of age. He ended up on Bothsiloth due to an unmentioned technicality that left him with no money. He also revealed that he was once a part of the army on his home planet of Yaidvin- a planet that just like Bothsiloth had become a corrupt planet, filled with nothing but death and anarchy.

Lars Harburg, the obese swine had lived on Bothsiloth before it went to hell. Contrary to Otto's belief, Lars was not a member of the Orglich family, he truly despised them and the work they did. He recalled a peaceful world with people that seemed to be content with everything. According to him, the changes that occurred were almost instantaneous and fatal. Apparently over half the population was killed from the changes in the atmosphere, he survived due to the fact that he was able to find small pockets of clean air until oxygen masks were handed out. Since then, he's been hiding from Orglich's goons after a confrontation with one of them.

The last one in the group was Andre Cooker. The vulpine was a native of the farming planet of Natsumir. He seemed to be the quiet one of the group, always keeping himself rather secluded from the rest. Co'ort told Otto there was no reason to suspect anything from him, he was extremely trustworthy and along with Lars, was one of the founding members of this group of nobodies. The rat also noted there were four previous members that were all killed by the mob. They seemed to hold a grudge against these guys, so Otto thought that he should keep his mouth shut about him working for them.

And since he didn't really know much about Co'ort, he decided to find out a bit more about him. Turns out that the rat ended up on Bothsiloth a somewhat similar way as Otto. He was double crossed in a drug trafficking ring that spanned the galaxy and was forced to flee on his own. To this day, he remains paranoid that they're still watching him. It was more or less likely the drugs fault for that.

"So guys, how long should it take to get everything set?" Otto asked while searching through some rubble for spare parts.

"Well first, we need to get everything, which could take weeks, and actually building it could take months depending on how large you want the ship to be." Lars said.

"It needs to fit all of us if that helps you at all…"

The pig chuckled and took out some large sheets of paper. "Well that's pretty vague." He began to sketch some designs for the ship. "I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks…"

Otto walked away from the swine, wondering how this would all work out. Orglich would eventually wonder where he was and hunt him down. For now, that wouldn't be a problem. When the time did come however, he wanted to be sure that he would be prepared to fight them off. But what if his new friends found out about him working for them? This was what he feared most. If he could keep that a secret at least until they left the planet, then he would be able to sleep easily. While on the outside, he didn't show any signs of strain, the inside was the complete opposite. These were people who had extremely dark stories to tell and would not hesitate to kill him if they knew he worked for their adversaries.

So instead of crack under pressure, he decided to take a breather and hide his fears deep inside of him with a simple piece of rolled up paper filled with green herbs. He breathed the fumes in and let them carry him away from the world he knew.

Corneria City

Falco sat on the steps of his beach house, which he had recently gained full control of after renting it for a decade. The true effects of his actions were now coming at him full force. He knew that he had done wrong, but he wasn't prepared to say sorry. His stubbornness had once again consumed him. He picked up his phone and began to dial a number. After putting the receiver to his face, he waited as the phone rang.

"Pick up…" He muttered.

…

A laid back female voice came from the other end of the line. "Hey, you've reached Erika Hawksmund's phone, I'm probably on a mission or unavailable right now but if you leave a message I'll see if I can reach ya soon."

"Fuck…"

There was a beep.

"Hey, Erika it's Falco. I was at the party in Zoness. I recall you saying that you would be in Corneria this week so I was wondering if we could hang out sometime. It's kind of important, I have no one else to go to. Call me soon okay, talk to you later…"

The avian hung up and walked into his home, looking defeated for the first time.