The Reckoning

[Raven]

Kailen shuddered. He couldn't imagine. "I'm sorry." He checked his mobile again. "Hey, walk a little faster, the bus is gonna slow down to try to catch you."

[Gifted]

"What? How?" He sped up. "You know the driver?" He noted the cell phone.

[Raven]

"Yeah. I'm on the shift before him," Kailen responded.

[Gifted]

"Wow, thank you!" He ducked his head. He didn't bow properly as he would to an epic, but it was still a sign of respect. "Thank you."

[Raven]

"You're welcome, just hurry so you don't make him too late, alright? Tell him Kailen said he owes him," Kailen said.

[Gifted]

He nodded. "He'll know. I hope I see you later then... hopefully when I can remember wwhat's real. Sometimes it takes me awhile. If I say anything mean next time I see you, I'm sorry."

[Raven]

"No problem..." How long had this kid been dealing with this for that to be his automatic response to going to meeting the guy? He couldn't even imagine being altered so many times.

[Gifted]

He nodded. "Bye, Kailen!" He waved and ran to catch up with the bus that had slowed down for him, jumping on so that he'd get to the place the Recollector was waiting in time.

[Raven]

Epics were evil, but they weren't the only ones. Kenny Villein could certainly have been considered evil before Calamity. However, the Recollector was a whole new level. Without the need to hide in the shadows for his safety, and without the slightest care about even his children, Kenny was far more brutal since he gained his Epic status. He enjoyed the public knowing what he did - he loved it when people saw him follow a girl, and grab her wrist, knowing full well his plans for her, but doing nothing all the same. The way people would glance his direction, then quickly look away. The mixed reactions of women. The younger ones were so naive, not realizing precisely the horror of becoming the Recollector's next tribute until he held their arms and pulled out his knife. Despite Rook's programming, he could always get them to dance. The ones who didn't immediately were interesting - he had to use a bit of... persuading to get them to hold his attention, but his favorite were the ones who realized that no Epic could make them okay with what was happening. The ones who fought him because they realized. Things simply wouldn't be interesting without a bit of a struggle.

And then, of course, his second favorite thing always followed to clean up his mess. His children (his playthings, really). He sent for them every time, enjoying seeing them acclimatize themselves to seeing the bodies, just like their mothers' had been once he'd found them again. On that particular day, he'd sent for Liam to help him clean up after the redheaded mess. He'd made a point of wearing a white shirt so that there would be no question about the blood - though it was all over his arms, and he could feel a smear of warmth drying on his cheek. She was pretty, and had been pale even before she bled to death. Her struggles and screams had finally died with her - now she lay on the ground motionless. People liked to say that the dead 'looked as though they were sleeping', and perhaps it was true of some, but this girl wasn't one of them. Her eyes were wide open and completely sightless, blood still dripping lightly to the concrete. Recollector reached over and ran his fingers through her hair, pulling a lock away from the rest. With his knife, he cut away that section of hair, then put it in a tiny plastic baggy that he would keep in his pocket. A souvenir from the girl. Now, where was his next source of entertainment? the boy had better not be late, or he'd have to punish him... kenny stood up, his white shirt sticking to him in places where the blood clung to his chest.

[Gifted]

Liam waved at the kind bus driver as he got off at the correct stop. "Thank you! Thank you so much!" He waved as the bus drove off. Okay, this was the right street, there was an alley right there... this was the place. Liam took a deep breath and came in.
He saw his father standing there, of course. The blood never stopped bothering him, the bodies never ceased to hurt, but he'd grown used to finding the man like this. That probably wasn't a good thing, he knew; it wasn't good that he'd started to feel a little relieved when the blood didn't pool on the ground, or that when it did his first thought was usually that he really didn't want to be forced to kneel in this girls blood when he bowed. As though his inconvenience and the uncomfortable, heavy stains on his pant legs were the biggest problem at the moment. But thinking like that wasn't something he could put effort into stopping with this Epic around, and the desensitization was inevitable when he saw this so often now.
The pool didn't seem to have built up here. He carefully kneeled on the dry ground before the Epic. "Recollector." He bowed. "I brought what you asked me for." He told him nervously. He set the box down in front of him. A change of clothes so the Recollector wouldn't have to walk around covered in blood.

[Raven]

Kenny waited a moment, long enough Liam's knees might start to ache, seemingly ignoring the boy in favor of watching the girl. Finally, he focused on his son, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips. "Well? Get the fuck up and hand them to me," he said as though Liam should have done it already. Of course, both the kids knew better by now - there were harsh consequences for getting up before the Recollector said to.

[Gifted]

Heart racing, Liam pushed himself to his feet and held out the box just as he was told to, without talking back. Was this going to be it?
That was a foolish question, it was never 'it'. But each time he did this, he couldn't stop the hope welling up inside him that he might get off the hook this time. Maybe he'd get to leave with his mind intact - just this time.

[Raven]

Kenny took the box and started unbuttoning his shirt. "Look at me," he ordered the child.

[Gifted]

Of course he wouldn’t. He didn’t have a choice but to take this order. He'd tried to run once, when he was very small. He'd paid dearly for that mistake.
Swallowing the lump in the back of his throat, he looked up at the Recollector's eyes.

[Raven]

Blue met blue, and Recollector was inside the kid's head. He wasn't ambitious or stupid enough to try to touch Rook's programming. If anything, he made it more concrete. He was inferior to Epics, they were his betters in every way, and he was lucky he had been blessed with such a flawless father. It made him better than other normals. They were beneath him, just as he was beneath Epics. Even Willow owed him respect - he was Recollector's closest legacy, he'd been requested. And the people who dared to call him a "friend" should be on their knees.

Kenny used the bloody shirt to wipe up a couple of sticky spots on his skin, then pulled on the fresh shirt, breaking eye contact. "Liam," Kenny said, wanting acknowledgment before giving his next order. It would take a second or two for the rewiring of his brain to settle.