Live on, Fight on. (Ryel Flashback.)

Already the boy named Kazimierz had done less than honorable things.  He'd left another boy die and felt only an empty nothingness in his chest.  logic told him that if he didn't run then he'd be dead as well, but even now that seemed selfish.

His mana was largely depleted by hiding in the darkness of night to move without risk.  So Kaz walked.

In his right hand was a small hatchet looted from a Point Pleasant sporting goods store.  He didn't imagine it being useful against the numerous things that had claws or breathed fire, but it served well enough as a deterrent to other humans.  Maybe there was some other use for surviving, but Kaz had not been a keen study of survival shows, so those were unknown.

A garbage can fell somewhere to his left near the edge of the Point.  A quick pivot and Kaz saw two... short things.  Almost human in shape, but they were filthy and their skin was blemished an wrinkled.  Their noses and ears came to distinct points as well.  They seemed to be squabbling over something shiny in the trash can before noticing Kaz.  The pair of what seemed to be goblins charged him and he made the wise choice to flee.

The goblins caught up quickly, but Kaz retreated into a powerless store to get out of the rising sun's rays.  When the duo arrived they found a black shadow on the ground.  Upon investigation they found that poking it with crudely fashioned shivs was fruitless, but when their backs turned Kaz made his move.

He sprung from the shadows and embedded the axe in the closer one's head.  He did not have time to dislodge it before the remaining one leapt upon him, slashing wildly with their knife.

The night was the worst part of this whole ordeal. The monsters were smarter than expected, hunting in groups and picking off anyone who was separated from the group. Ryel had spent the better part of the day finding stragglers and lost half of them before the evening had even came on. He'd managed to get 4 people to survive to this point, 2 non gifteds, a red ribbon, and a blue. He'd taken refuge in an alleyway behind a store in the town, letting the group scoop out a dumpster and hide in it to sleep while he kept watch hidden in the trash bags on the other side. Sure it wasn't glamourous, but it was something.

He was analyzing the monsters all throughout the day, trying his best to understand his enemy. They were so varied though with their behaviours so vastly different that it was going to take months to have them pinned to a cirriculum. The 4 deaths he'd witnessed today taught him valuable lessons, ones he may or may not have set up in an experimental situation.

Now he was watching a boy running away from a few of the smaller creatures, keeping an eyebrow cocked, he slunk from his hiding place, watching the group run into the store they were next to. Rookie mistake. Going into the store limited mobility, and allowed them to seal exits...

He had his duffle bag slun over his shoulder, grabbing a knife from it and taking a step back at the boy's sudden appearance and the spurt of blood and brain matter splashing toward him. Seeing him get pounced though caused Ryel to let out a breath of frustration. If he didn't need bodies, he'd just watch and study. The loss of those twins earlier had been... enlightening. So he ran forward, drawing a knife of his own from the bag, and grabbed the creature from the boy, lifting it's chin and slicing with a precision that very few civilians had enough practice to do.

The blood sprayed over, making Ryel, toss it to the side, looking down at what he had to work with...

The kid was hurt bad... Not mortally, but not great either. He'd have his uses though. One gifted was worth 20 non.

He quickly scooped him up, taking him to the hiding place and waking them all up. They were moving. Once they were hidden between some crashed cars, they tended to the wounds, using ripped up clothes from suitcases that littered the parking lot.

Ryel administered some morphine, and then adrenaline to get the boy awake.

"Your Name," he said briskly.

"Tell us your name."

But he knew the name already. This was one of his saved. The ones who had played the game and survived. This one could be of great use after all.

Kaz tried as best he could to defend himself when the creature was upon him.  Though unarmed, his flailing made the difference between simple nicks and scratches and being disemboweled more than once.  Just when Kaz felt his strength leaving him -partially from blood loss and partially from fatigue- The short creature was lifted from him.  The sight of blood spraying was followed by drifting unconscious.

When Kaz awoke there was a definite numbness in his body.  That was the first thing he noticed.  Whoever saved him had something that could do that? That was followed by the realization that there were others around him, with one asking his name.

"I'm Kazimierz..." the black ribbon said a bit softly.  Why did these people save him?  And why did they apply medicine to a perfect stranger?  Curious actions aside, they did just that and deserved gratitude.  "I...  thanks.  But why? if I may ask?"

That was Kaz, always cynical.  always looking a gift horse in the mouth.

Ryel looked the boy in the eyes, noting something interesting. Practicality was always such a rarity in crises. He smiled, looking at the others and then back. "I'm Ryel Mercutio, and I'm not going to lie to you, I'm helping you because I believe you can help us." He looked over the wounds, now that they were covered, the kid was going to live.

"We are going to have a lot of work to go over." He sat back, looking the boy over. "Kaz then. Good to meet you. Now, it's time that the group of us figure out a safe place. I personally believe that the city will have the most supplies. We are going to need to move underground, so the subway is going to be the right direction to take. So lick your wounds, and be ready to move. Your life is mine now Kaz, and I intend to collect."

Kaz knew he didn't have a choice in following Ryel by the tone of the guy's voice. Either he followed his savior, or he died, likely he wouldn't leave the alley in which he sat. But Kaz could value that fact. it showed planning and calculation.

"Collect away I can see that crossing you would be unwise. That is a good quality to have." Kaz looked at the leader of the group. He knew the importance of a team, and seemed to know how to lead one. Joining was the best option Kaz saw. And that was ignoring the death that awaited him if he refused.

Kaz would just have to make himself useful.

___________________Fast Forward To Present Day__________________

In the central headquarters, Ryel was leaning back in his chair in his office. It used to be a restaraunt that passerby could use, but it'd been gutted out and walled off to be turned into Ryel's own personal office and living quarters. His feet were kicked up on the bar, looking down his nose at a book in his hand. One of the exploration teams had returned it after a rough night hiding out in a library.  Funny how that worked out. The abandoned parts of the city always had such goodies if you knew which hands to pry apart. 

With a sigh, he closed the book. bringing his feet down from it's resting place, and setting them firmly on the ground, leaning on the desk and looking at the door. 

"Bring me Kaz," he said calmly toward the door, a knock on the door stating the guy sitting out there had heard him and was going to go get him.

Kaz was at a checkpoint near the surface  that day.  In the dark he'd misplaced one of his Rubik's cubes, so to pass the time and keep his hands busy the young man was shaping paperclips, tape, and corks into darts.  First he'd unbend the paperclip, then he'd make the tail out of tape, and finally the corks would be shaved into long, thin egg shapes and shoved onto the tips until they sat in just the right spot.  A quick sharpening of the tip with a tool Kaz owned and they were tosses half an inch into some cardboard with a target drawn on it. The area near the bullseye seemed like a pincushion with just under twenty homemade darts buried in it.

The recently made one whizzed just past a cohort's eyes.  It was tyler if Kaz recognized him.  In that moment they were stunned Kaz calmly asked "Do you need something, Tyler?" and straightened out another paperclip.

"What the hell, man?  You coulda hit me!"

That prompted a smirk from Kaz, who had already begun carving the body.  "Sorry, I'll aim better next time."  Tyler did not take the sass well.  His fists clenched and he muttered some obscenity but he wouldn't dare do anything.  Kaz popped the cork on the paperclip.

"The Devil wants to see y-"  Tyler stopped mid sentence.

A dart flew just to the side of Tyler's neck and hit in the upper edge of the innermost circle.  Kaz's smirk remained as he walked toward the man.  "Thank you. I will go immediately."  Once he was around the corner he heard Tyler lose his cool, but there were more important things to deal with.

A knock sounded on Ryel's door, followed by the words "It's Kaz."

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh come in come in come in," Ryel kicked his feet of his desk, standing up and holding his arms wide, waving him to step inside. He walked around the desk, flicking some lint off of his black dress shirt, a smile on his face, slightly crooked. "So, tell me all about how the last exploit went? I hear you may have a couple illegitimate kids on the way after having such a gracious welcome."

The last mission was a scouting and ambassadorship at a village under plague. Kaz had been sent in to set up the negotiations for payment and delivery of supplies in order to gain 20 recruits come next season. They had been grateful of the help of course, but losing so many people hurt their chances of survival enough that Kaz and the other men had almost been thrown out by a mob.

"Need a drink?"

Kaz waved off the offer of a drink with one hand.  It was undeserved with his failure "It could have been better.  One of my men got a rock thrown at his eye as we left and I had to hear about it the entire walk back."  Kaz said with a shrug.  "Jokes aside that group might be a lost cause at this point.  They are... Displeased."  The subordinate 's eyes drifted to the floor as he collected his thoughts.

"I am sorry I don't have better news." Kaz's eyes looked back up to Ryel.  "Perhaps if sending someone more personable would be better."

Kaz had proven to be a good negotiator when it came to deals.  Often his black-and-white manner of thinking got the most for the least possible.  That was only once he made it past interpersonal hurdles though.  Often he'd step in only to close deals assuming the other party wasn't trapped into agreeing.  That was his usual style.

Ryel chuckled to himself at the man's ramblings about what happened. "Bet it was Samuels..." His voice was low, amused as he said it. At Kaz's beating up of himself, Ryel poured himself some of the amber liquid sitting on the lit bookcase behind him. Taking a sip of it he listened to the boy continue to berate himself.

"You really shouldn't hold yourself so accountable..." He sipped it again, looking the boy over. "We all have our mistakes, we all have our place in this place. We push, we receive what we need, we pull, we get what we need, we only push when there is a pull, only give when there is a receive. Without this system it would all collapse like twig under a boulder."

He placed the drink beside himself looking at the boy. "You see... It's funny. I sent you over there to give... Life." He was now sitting on his desk, looking at the other, "sit."

His glass raised to his lips, he let a smile grow on his face. "The people didn't want to give payment, and as I recall it was the job of Samuels to collect, correct? Of course, he's the muscle, you're the intellect... We both know this. It's not your job to hold the knife to their throat. You see, intellects like us need to know how to truly... mix the market... so to speak. So I'm giving you Samuels' title. Congratulations Captain Kaz... You're now head of collection. Captain Kaz, Captain Kaz... I like the sound of it, don't you?"

"Innnnn these troubled times however, tenure is a hard thing to come by, and we've been together for some time... I'd hate to have to let you go like our poor Samuels..." He stood up, walking over toward a broom closet that was built into the wall.

"Shhhhh Samuels is in there in timeout." While smiling at Kaz, he pulled a .357 from his waistband and without flinching, unloaded his clip into the door.

BLAM
BLAM
BLAM
BLAM
BLAM
BLAM

The gun hung loose in his finger, swinging back and forth, before he placed it on his desk, looking at Kaz.

"I like you, always have. So I'm taking a big risk in making you collect for me. I'd hate to lose you. So. Do better than Samuels. Your first job? Go collect 20 lives from that village, either in tow, or in the ground. Questions?"

Kazimierz's face remained unchanged from both his promotion and his predecessor's execution. That was not the first time he'd seen a failure of a superior get relieved of duty. Of course, it was now him in a position of power to fail from. "This is an honor." Kaz said with a small bow, "Might I take Tyler? He could use some lessons in diplomacy, and if I recall the combat skills he boasts of are... untried." That felt as if it was asking quite a bit, honestly.

There was a pause as Kaz considered everything. "If Tyler does not make it... I will end an extra five." Part of Kaz hoped for that turn of events. Tyler was a recent acquisition to the Advocates. He was old enough to think he was a big shot, but had not been with them long enough to understand the kinds of things Kaz had seen. That formed a bit of a divide between the two. Regardless of whether Tyler hardened up through this experience or found himself face down in the dirt Kaz's life would be easier.

"I will bring you the right ears of the slain. If it comes to that, of course." Kaz added. He was not going to make a great effort to stop that from happening, but it was still a possibility.

"Tyler? The pup that got brought in last month?" His hand touched his chin, wiping his smile from his face and leaving him looking a bit satisfied, like a man who'd just got laid. "Yeah sure," he said, his voice a bit lower. Sitting in his chair he, swirled his drink, looking the other over and tilted his head.

"So. You really think they'd rather die than come join. Fine. They refund us the life we've given them and all is forgiven. Our numbers are a bit thin though, so if any try to join up don't turn them away. We've just cleared 3 new openings and we are going to need guards on them."

His feet kicked up, studying the other. "With such a sunny disposition it's amazing to me you haven't found a special someone to line your bed at night Kaz. These other men, when they get down, I just send em to the pleasure chambers, you ever go there? I get a massage every now and again... Wish the other patrons would keep it down. Barbaric..."

He leaned on the desk, wanting some sort of rise out of Kaz. It'd been years and it seemed the new world and Ryel's tutalege had had some real effect on the kid's psyche. Truly his best work of art yet.

"So!" he said clapping his hands together. "What will the new captain do now?! How will you impress? I'm looking forward to seeing what you do. Oh! Here."

He pulled out a piece of paper with names on it. He made a long line, muttering "don't need him anymore" A little scribble here, "and Tyler goes here now..." a satisfied look over later and he turned the paper toward Kaz. "These are the 20 men in your platoon. Take as many or as few as you like. Get it done."

Kaz wasn't the biggest fan of Tyler, but the fledgeling had skill that needed to be refined.  And if he proved too skillful to the point of replacing his captain...  Then something unfortunate would occur.  The conversation shifted before all the possible permutations of that could be thought out.

A difficult topic.  Kaz's nonexistent sex life was a wonder to much of the gang.  It was just something that struck them as odd in this world, especially with the lifestyle.  In reaction to Ryel's quips about the subject Kaz sat up just that much straighter.  The foot closest to the exit turned to point to the door as his hand caressed  the side of his neck.  For diplomatic reasons Kaz remained silent.  Really he couldn't speak with what felt like a knot in his throat.

The silence lasted until Ryel thankfully changed the subject.  Kaz parroted a quiet "twenty men."  That seemed odd to suddenly be in charge of a portion of the gang.  It was rewarding, that was certain.  But still, that meant one wrong command and lives would be lost and Kaz would be to blame. The wrong lives, that is.  Twenty people were about to be killed and it was most certainly not going to be his twenty.  he picked up the list to read.

"Thank you, sir,"  Kaz stood to leave.  "I'll return with results."

The asphyxiating knot in his throat was beginning to lessen.

Ryel downed his drink, smiling to himself at the uncomfortable situation he knew that the boy was in. Command was not something that came cheap. Keeping it was even more so.

"Cheers, we'll talk more about your romance life when you return eh? Hopefully with more men than you left with too?"

A day followed while Kaz informed those under his command of the change and let that sink in. But at maybe two hours before sundown on the day that followed Kaz, Tyler, and one other man stood before the leader of the town in the center of it all. (The third guy was familiar, but Kaz never spoke to him before. Kaz also called him by Richardson, but he preferred Ricky. It seemed more intimidating than a nickname.)

The first words from the far taller man were "We aren't negotiating." That alone seemed enough reason not to try, but Kaz decided he'd negotiate just to stall until sundown when the massacre would be less risky for him.

With a face unmoved Kaz simply said, "I'll see what I can do about that. Let us speak more privately." He noticed the eyes of the man looked over the team's equipment. True, they looked more like conquerors than negotiators.

"Fine. But we will not be intimidated."

As well they should not. At least from what they saw. While attention was on Kaz and his vest that bore the Advocates' sign another two slipped out of the subway entrance. One was a man who could conjure flames and the other could turn himself invisible along with whatever they touched, sans a slight distorted shimmer when they moved. Those two would be the fall back for when Kaz's half hearted diplomacy failed.