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The 8 Platters: Chapter 1

by An0maly

An0maly Deep breath.
In.
Out.

You are a murderer. You work for us. You have been trained by us. Everything you earn will be given to us. You will go where we tell you, kill who we tell you. You are one of us. You are a Black Lily. Welcome to the syndicate.
Deep breath.
In.
Out.

You are a murderer. You work for us. You have been trained by us. Everything you earn will be given to us. You will go where we tell you, kill who we tell you. You are one of us. You are a Black Lily. Welcome to the syndicate.

***

I woke up screaming. Blasted nightmare. Rubbing my eyes, I sat up in my cot. Looking around, I made sure that everything was still the same. Same rundown carpet, same rickety table, same shaggy curtains, and of course, same old Bodhi. I smiled. Bodhi was my dog. A big, weimaraner-husky mix, Bodhi was a silver-grey dog, with equally silver eyes and a white belly. He was laid out at the foot of my twin-sized cot, tongue lolled out, and eyes drooped back. I scratched behind his ears, and he licked his lips in his sleep. I playfully poked his nose and got out of bed. I padded out of the small room that I slept in and advanced toward my landlady’s bedroom. Alma lay splayed out over a rocking chair, her flea ridden shawl wrapped around her puny, pear shaped torso. Gently closing her chamber doors, I crept out into the pantry. I opened the nearest cabinet, trying to find something to eat. Aside from a long-since-sprung mousetrap, it was empty. I opened up another cabinet, this time finding a single empty platter. I pulled it out. This was Alma’s most prized possession. An extremely rare collectible, the Sterling Platter was among 8 plates that belonged to Kannon, the god of manners and etiquette. That’s if you believed that. Alma was always a superstitious, or pious old lady, depending on how you looked at it. I carefully replaced the platter and checked the last cabinet. Nothing. I crept back to my room to check on Bodhi. He was up now, licking his paw. He looked up when I peeked in, though. I patted my thigh, and he eagerly jumped up, scrambling my bedsheets, and falling on his face a couple of times.
“You dingbass,” I said, chuckling and flicking his ear. He licked my palm in response, and we walked out to Alma’s sitting room. Bodhi’s claws clacking on the floor must’ve been louder than I thought, because as I opened the front door, Alma croaked from her room, “You dastards better not be leaving the-” I slammed the door. Alma always had a temper.

I breathed in the cold, morning air and set out for the marketplace with Bodhi at my side. Bodhi barked at every speck of dirt on the road, until I was finally forced to smack his nose. He shut up after that, but I could still see the energy in his eyes. As I walked down the road, I passed Mr. Baumann working in his yard.
He waved to me and said, “Morning there, Kasper!”
“Hey there, Mr. Baumann!” I replied.
“You gonna shut up that dingbass of a dog you got there, right?
I rolled my eyes and said, “Sure thing, sir.”
He grunted dismissively and returned to his wheelbarrow full of firewood.

As I reached Charmeine’s small, wooden gate, I nodded to the militia guard and he raised the rickety portcullis, letting me in.
I wound my way through the rural streets of Charmeine until I reached the marketplace. Bodhi had taken to barking again, which unfortunately had angered some of the ladies who lived in town. I shrugged apologetically, and proceeded into the marketplace. Several vendors greeted me on my way in, and I slickly moved through the small throng before appearing in the center of the marketplace. Bodhi, however was not as tactful. One of the vendors unfamiliar to me was scratching Bodhi’s ears, while Bodhi himself sat with his eyes lolled back. I rolled my eyes and shouted for him to keep up.

My favorite vendor, Gruff, always set up in the center of the marketplace. I walked up to his stall.

“Kasper, son!” his said enthusiastically.
“Hey there, Gruff. How are the sales this week?”
“Marvelous, my boy! What can I get for you?”
“Weekly rations. Bodhi and I.”
Gruff nodded and beckoned for me to follow. A ways out from the marketplace was a big convoy of wagons, full of merchandise. The local militia had taken it upon themselves to guard the Wagon train. Gruff walked up to the smallest one and climbed inside. I nodded to a militiaman and stood by the rear axle while Gruff got my merchandise.
“You look ragged, son. How are you?”
I self consciously tugged on my tunic. I wasn’t that ragged. I patted my smooth brown hair and brushed off one of Bodhi’s hairs from my shoulder.
“As good as ever, sir.”
He stopped stacking goods to look at me. “Not sir, boy. I’ve told you a thousand times. Gruff. Just Gruff.”
I nodded, and repeated. “Gruff. Just Gruff.”
He nodded in approval and tossed me a heavy wooden crate. I caught it, and groaned at the weight. “Sir- I mean, Gruff, this is heavier than usual.”
“Yes. And?”
“I won’t take something I can’t pay for, sir.”
“I can’t hear you.”
I moaned. “Fine. I won’t take something I can’t pay for, Gruff.”
“You’ll take what I give you. You may not call me sir, but I get respect, ye hear?”
I nodded and hefted the crate over my shoulder. “So pushy,” I thought. Gruff and I walked back to the forum. He stepped behind his stall as I set down the load so I could pay. I pulled out a leather purse. But as I was reaching in to fetch the necessary amount, a dark figure appeared in my peripheral vision. My head snapped that way, but I was too late. A hooded figure snatched my purse and took off towards the crowd. I dashed after him, but I was too slow. This guy was really fast. Bodhi dashed past me, chasing the thief. As I cleared the crowd, I saw Bodhi turn a corner back into the suburbs. I followed suit.
“Give me my money back, dastard!” I shouted.
The thief looked around and flipped me off before turning to run again. Suddenly, an idea popped into my head. I left Bodhi to chase the crook as I turned a corner, then another. If I timed it right, I could end up right in front of the thief. When I thought the time was right, I burst out onto the street.

He ran right past me.

I was able to shove him a couple feet, but he didn’t stop. I chased him down another alley before I realized something. There was a wall! I continued to chase the pickpocket until I knew I had him. I slowed down as the pickpocket stopped running. I was about to laugh, but then, he jumped. He jumped at the wall, and expertly vaulted off of it. However, he maneuvered improperly in the air, and fell right towards me. I didn’t have time to move away before he fell on me. With some effort, I rolled over and pinned the crook to the ground. I ripped my purse from a clip on his waist and shoved it back into my tunic pocket. I sat him up and pushed him against the wall before ripping his hood off.

I gasped. It was a girl. Pretty, blond hair and cool blue eyes, she looked up at me, her beautiful features twisted in anger. She took advantage of my surprise, and kicked me in the groin. I groaned, and fell over. She ripped my purse from my hands and took off. She easily jumped over Bodhi, who was just now catching up, and pulled her hood back on before turning a corner.

With my money.

I lay there for a couple of minutes, moaning in pain. When Bodhi arrived, he licked my face until I flicked his nose and staggered to my feet. I cursed as loud as I could and limped back to the marketplace to find Gruff.
  1. Mockingchu
    Mockingchu
    Are you planning on continuing this? It's really good!
    Jun 10, 2018
  2. An0maly
    An0maly
    Feb 17, 2018
    Eeveechu151 likes this.
  3. Mechanist Gamma
    Mechanist Gamma
    This looks really interesting, and it's written really well! I can tell that this is gonna be a great story already!
    Feb 17, 2018
    An0maly likes this.