A Year of Stories (Collection Four)

A Requiem of Beggar Dans

Altered Eight

There are few places in the Dust anyone would call "charming," broken buildings and lives litter it's cracked, concrete streets. Even in the Bowery, where the artists of canvas and of flesh ply their trade, charm is only as important as the Exchange it will buy you.

Burnt Umbrage has always been the exception that proves, and it does so because of the woman in front of me.

"I don't know you, gaikokujin..." Her World Train-lexical spoken as smoothly as a native's.

"But I know you, Priestess." My coarser words carrying all the confidence I've learned to fake over the last year.

The Silver Priestess is draped in silks – her hair sky blue, her eyes serpent cold – not a byte of AR marring her porcelain flesh.

"Many do gaijin. Now, are you here for business or for pleasure?"

Since I started this journey, I've been to terrible places, and seen terrible things, but none of them ever scared me.

"I beg your pardon Priestess, but I'm looking for someone."

She scares me.

"We are awash with someones, if you have the scrip. But you seem like a man with more specific tastes."

I wonder what her knife will feel like in my gut. No matter, I've already come this far, what's one more step?

"I want to hire Altered Eight."

The distance between us vanishes, every muscle screams out for me to run, but I know I can't.

"I've maimed people for mentioning her name, people who I like, and you want to hire her? Does your life mean so little to you?"

Her eyes flash fire, feral strength builds beneath her silks. Gone is the Priestess of this flesh mill, before me now is the Queen of the Dust.

"They call me Beggar Dans, I'm a Bounty Hunter, and I need her for a job."

Her head tilts a degree to the right.

"Is that all?"

"Yes..."

The steel in her softens, she takes a step back, and once again the Priestess stands before me.

"Who hired you, Hunter?"

"You know I can't tell you that."

"And your prey?"

"A man who deserves worse than he'll be getting..."