The day felt slow and boring. Edrimer Frye was sitting at the clerk desk in the convenience store. It wasn’t the most fulfilling job in the world, but it was peaceful and quiet. And that's all Edrimer wanted. Peace and quiet. Upon his right arm, there was a tattoo he had gotten years ago of a symbol originally known as Seditone. It was shaped as spiraling thick lines, twisting and curling all over his arm, reaching from his shoulder almost to his palm. Seditone originally symbolized growth, strength, and peace, but during the Tearful Rebellion of 2031, the rebels adopted the spiraling shape as their symbol of a peaceful, quiet life, meaning it represented the very thing the Alatarian citizens wished to achieve during that uprising. That is why Edrimer wore that symbol with pride, for that was all he ever wanted in this world. However, there was another reason why he had the tattoo. His parents, who fought in the Tearful Rebellion as rebels as died, wore the Seditone with pride on their clothes. Edrimer wore it on his skin, as a tribute and a show of respect for their sacrifice.
The foul smell of cigarette smoke soon filled his nostrils and ruined his state of tranquility. His eyebrow twitched in frustration as he turned to the old man at his side. "You really have to stop smoking that shit, old man," he said to Zachary, the shop owner and his boss.
"Why don’t you mind your own fucking business and start cleaning this place?" old Zachary retaliated with utmost spike. Edrimer smiled and got to his feet. I love that old man, he thought. Even though the two hadn’t always seen things eye to eye, Edrimer had a great appreciation for his employer. He paid well and was never too demanding of Edrimer. But more than that, the thing Edrimer appreciated most about the old man was that unlike many other OldGens, this one was not actually as grumpy, annoying or lecturing as most of them usually tended to be. Such an idiotic term that we’ve invented… OldGens and NewGens… Edrimer felt his teeth grinding as he contemplated the obnoxious way people differentiated those who were born before the 2000s and those who were born after. On top of being moronic, he felt like this issue also had a sad part to it. Usually, OldGens, who should be over 50 years old, bear names of the old generations, and since they were born at a time when crime and corruption weren’t plaguing Alataria as much as they do now, they like to reflect on those days. Sure, a time when groups like the Justicars weren’t even necessary, and names like Sunyula Trife and Jegaar Hill didn’t make kids and adults tremble alike might have been great, but I’m fed up with the stories. NewGens, who were born after the 2000s, were introduced into the poor state of the country from the start. As the years passed and poverty and unemployment grew, so did the percentage of children born of rape and accidental pregnancies. Soon enough, the population saw a significant increase in the number of children who were either abandoned by their parents for lack of financial ability to support them or simply lost them to the ever-growing criminal organizations. No wonder studies show that the overall desire for raising a family in this country is dwindling further and further.
"Well? Are you going to just sit there all day like that, or are you going to get off your lazy ass and clean this joint up?" Zachary scolded his employee. With a long sigh, Edrimer grabbed a broom that was leaning on the wall nearby and started sweeping lumps of dust from the floor. The store was quiet as a graveyard. Not a single customer was there. Only Edrimer and old Zachary.
After a few minutes of sweeping, Edrimer noticed two men approaching the store entrance from afar. Well, at least these customers can provide me with an excuse to stop cleaning this place. Edrimer couldn’t really make out the appearances of the two figures through the glass door from such a distance. He could only spot the black color of their clothes. A strange feeling suddenly overcame him. He wasn’t sure where it came from, or what it meant, but his gut was undoubtedly trying to tell him something.
He looked at old Zachary, who was still sitting in the corner of the store, smoking what could possibly be his tenth cigarette today. When he shifted his gaze back to the two men, they were almost at the door. At such a distance he could make out a lot more of their appearance, and once he gave it effort, he finally realized what his subconscious had spotted a minute earlier. Now he could see it. The golden gloves, shoes, and mask. By the time Edrimer opened his mouth to warn old Zachary, he was too late.
The two Elastics-wearing members of Men of Midas walked in with guns drawn and pointed at Edrimer and Zachary. "Hands up!" one of them yelled. Edrimer raised his hands and, under the instruction of the other member, placed himself beside his boss. Goddammit, I really wasn’t planning on getting robbed today. The light barely reflected off the rubber-leather hybrid material their Elastics were made of. Men of Midas… greedy little bastards run by Reus fucking Mallistrom. All they care about is money. Their famous dictum came to his head. A golden key can open any door. Most people in Alataria were familiar with that phrase, and its meaning was very clear. Money can get you anything and anywhere.
"Empty the register! Now!" the thug commanded.
"Alright, alright, calm down," said Edrimer. "There's a safe in the back room with plenty of money, alright? Just please don't hurt us." Edrimer hoped he was looking sincere when he begged for his and Zachary's life.
"Well, go on." The thug hurried him to the back room. Edrimer pulled a key out of his pocket and went ahead to open the back room door, which was at the other end of the store. He entered the room with the two robbers following him.
The room was dark and barely visible, with a layer of dust covering its floor. Maybe I should have cleaned up THIS place instead. He located the light switch and turned it on, revealing that the room was nothing more than 100 square feet.
A few metal shelves with cleaning supplies stood against the right wall while the left one had a large, five-foot-tall steel safe standing against it. A security camera was watching the three overhead, and while the two criminals noticed that, they didn’t care about it. Another benefit of Elastics: keeping you safe from security footage.
After being pushed to get the matter over with one more time, Edrimer stood in front of the safe and started rotating its dial in the correct combination. God, this better fucking work. I hope I'm not sweating or anything. He finally opened the safe door, but as soon as the hinges' shriek was heard, old Zachary appeared at the door, pointing a shotgun at the two thugs. The muggers immediately raised their guns at the old man. "Put the gun down!" they yelled at him, but old Zachary was reluctant. Great job, old man. Keep their eyes on you.
There was a reason why Edrimer and Zachary were acting like that so far. In a place like Alataria, anticipating any kind of attack by a criminal organization was a common way of thinking. The Alatarian law predicted that in a case where one makes a potential attempt on someone's life, the right to self-defense can legally protect that someone for any lethal action he makes against the perpetrator. And acts like aiming a gun at someone is considered such a potential attempt, therefore legalizing anything that Edrimer or Zachary may do to the thugs at that point.
"I said drop the motherfucking gun!" the thug reiterated with his gruff voice.
The only thing that separated Zachary's blood thirst and his trigger-happy finger was the fact that even with Zachary armed, it was still a case of two against one, and both him and Edrimer knew that. For that reason, they led them to the back room, for the vault contained their winning card. They're both looking at Zachary. Excellent. Time to bend the law in our favor. Edrimer quickly pulled out the electric shocker from inside the safe and stuck it to the arm of the thug that stood closer to him, sending waves of electricity through his body. The Man of Midas twitched and palpitated, losing control of his body and letting off a shot without even intending. As soon as the shot was heard, the other thug turned his head to look at his associate for half a second. But half a second was all that Zachary needed, and he fired his mighty shotgun at him before he even had a chance to shift his gaze back. The bullets hit him all over the torso area, sending spatters of blood all over Zachary, and the man himself to the ground.
Without wasting any time, he loaded the next shell into his weapon and quickly aimed at the other guy, who by now had regained control over his body. Once he saw his friend's body lying on the ground, the golden thug tried raising his gun at the old killer, but before he could even bring his weapon high enough he was put to death the same way his friend had been, painting the walls red.
Edrimer stood there beside the open safe with a fast beating heart and a body covered with various red dots of blood. He looked at Zachary without saying a word. He felt grateful that this plan had actually worked. When the cops get here they're going to ask for the security footage, and as soon they see how they pulled on us, they'll know it was self-defense. The law sees that as an attempt on our lives. Edrimer's heart was still racing, but before he had enough time to tone down his heartbeat, the two heard someone walking into the store. Talk about timing.
Edrimer volunteered to take care of whatever customer it was that had just entered while Zachary watched over the back room. Once he returned to the store and looked at the so-called customer, his heart dropped. It was another man, wearing golden gloves, shoes, and mask. Another member of Men of Midas. A third robber.
As soon as the two saw each other, the thug drew his pistol and pointed it at Edrimer. I can't tell if I should laugh at this bitter joke or cry over my bitter fate. Time stood still for a second for Edrimer. Everything was so quiet and he felt such a strong sense of melancholy in the air that he almost thought that this was the world's cruel way of giving him the peace and quiet he wanted. Perhaps more than ever, Edrimer hated Alataria for all its flaws, at that single, everlasting moment, where he stood at the mercy of a hollow barrel, just seconds away from ending everything he knew. He wanted to close his eyes so he wouldn’t have to see it coming, and merely one second after he did so, he heard the gun shot.
At first, Edrimer thought he was having a delayed reaction to the shot, but once he opened his eyes and saw the thug lying on the floor in a pool of blood that was gathering around his head, he realized his misconception. He saw the trail of smoke coming from the gun of one of the two men who stood at the store's entrance. They wore white Elastics and were staring right at Edrimer. The Justicars…
"Are the other ones dead?" the gun-wielding Justicar asked.
"Y-Yeah," Edrimer responded. He was barely able to gather his thoughts. How did they know to be here at this exact time? How did they even know that there were more robbers than this one? His questions remained unanswered, as the two men left the store before he could even ask them, leaving him standing alone in front of a corpse, just like the ones in the room behind him. All he wanted was peace and quiet, but there could be none of that in Alataria.
