CHAPTER 10 SECRETS
An' maybe, if Gramps had anythin' worthwhile ta say, it WOULD change things enough so's I could get her an' her an' her littl' runt, outta that shit-hole an' finally let Silver Lady wipe the greasy smile offa ' Jerk- off Jones's' face. I could go back, an' this time it wouldn' be with ' talk o' dreams an', it'd be real. I knew that what ever ol' Gramps knew, hadn' done him no good, an' had only got him hunted all his life. But, I had a couple o' advantages over ol' Grandpa - first; I ran the underworld o' Mitras. That gave me power on the surface that he'd never had. It gave me ears an' eyes an' a freedom from bein' hunted from all sides, somethin' else he'd never had. Me, I only had ta 'worry' bout the Military Police, an' God knew, me an' Silver Lady could take care o' 'em. Second, I had somethin' he never even dreamed o' - I had an aquaintence with the heir ta the throne. An' come the future, Uri WOULD be king. An' if'n I played my cards right, when that day came, I'd have the power an' influence ta get him ta change things for us Ackermans. Their hatred o' us couldn' be jus' cause o' our power. 'Cause as far as I could see, not all Ackermans had that power. So's I figured that what ever he knew, could only help. An' maybe, it'd be the missin' piece o' the puzzle as ta why we were despised; change that, an' we'd be free.
This time I didn' need ta wait 'til it were completely dark ta leave for good ta ol' - Grandpa's. But ta let off steam, I found some 'good- ol' – boys that was late with their repayments, an' took out the interest on their faces. Silver Lady made such perdy patterns when she were riled! - Reckon I left 'em betta lookin' than afore I started. Did 'em a favour, I reckon.
Feelin' refreshed, I had me a whiskey, an' set off for Gandpa's. I had my scouts whistle when the streets was clear an' the ' good citizens' o' Mitras was inside their comfortable homes, with their comfortable lives. (Ignorant, smug, fat sheep, with shit for brains). An' easy as a cat, sly as afox, I made my way, keepin' ta the shadows ta the small, grey-brick house, that were his prison. Guess I really musta spooked the higher-ups, 'cause this time, even though it were still day, the whole block 'round the house were scattered with Military Police, as well as his house. I climbed ta the roof on one o' the lower buildin's usin' the drain pipe an' made my way along the roof tops, 'til I could see the entire compliment o' the Police guardin' his house. There musta been 'bout a hundred o' them. This were goin' ta be fun! I'd alredy had a hell-av- a- day, an' this'd be jus' like dessert, after a nice dinner. I rubbed my hands together, smiled an' reached for Silver Lady, an' a couple o' her friends, an' got ta work.
'Workin' in the Capital had made 'em soft. All they was used ta were roughin' up defenceless scum an' women an' children. So's nothin' in their 'defences' had any affect on me. Maybe took a littl' bit longer an' the firs' time, but not much. An' afore long, I had a nice pile o' used, bloody, Military Police uniforms - ready ta be given ta the next generation o' new recruits. Once ya took the bodies outta 'em!
Takin' the keys, I once again, let myself in.
"Hi ya, Grandpa", I said lazily as I made my way through the lounge area to his bed, an' pulled up a chair.
"Get rid of all the Miltary Police, did ya?'' he asked with a voice as soft as death.
I sat down beside his bed. "Yeah, musta been 'bout a hundred o' 'em out there this time – not jus' guardin' the house, but the whole damn block. Guess I scared the livin' shit outta them last time", I laughed. " But they're gone. We won' be disturbed".
"Found out there's some Ackermans livin' on the edge o' Wall Sina. Looks like they're tryin' ta make their way outta the capital, ta the outta walls", I filled him in.
"An I found Kuchel, workin' in a brothel. She got herself knocked up. I tried ta talk her inta getting' rid o' it, but she wouldn' listen. She's keepin' the brat", I continued as I got up an' stood by the fireplace, cold an' grey, jus' like the man that lay in that bed.
He still said nothin' an' lay so still, I began ta think, he were dead.
I sat back down again. God, I knew it'd been a couple o' years or so, an' I'd ment ta visit, but I'd had things ta do, people ta rule. Still, I didn' think he'd deteriorate so much. Maybe I'd left it too long, an' those answers would be lost ta me forever. Time, I always thought I had more time.
I leaned toward him, checkin' for any sign o' life. Faintly, I saw his chest rise an fall an' relief flooded through me. I had time after all, so' I wasn' gonna waste anymore.
"Tell me, tell me Grandpa. Why does they hate us Ackermans so much?" I asked urgently.
When no answer came, I thought it were too late, that, that breath had been his last.
Then he answered in a weak, gravelly voice," They don' hate us. They FEAR us."
I dared not question him, afraid he wouldn' continue, so's I waited.
Slowly, sittin' up a little, he explained," I was hopin' that this would die with me. I never wanted ta pass this on. I didn' tell your Pa an' I wasn' gonna tell you. Jus' hopin' that my death would put an end ta this blood- fued. But I can see that you got the power of the Ackermans, an' I'm near the end o' this fight. An' I sees that you got a need ta make some sense o' this world you live in. An' maybe ya have the ablity ta succeed where I couldn'. So, right or wrong, I'll tell ya the story o' our family.
The Ackermans, long ago, were once a family o' nobles. One o' eight noble families that served an' advised the King. Long ago when King Fritz, bought his people ta Paradise an' used the power o' the Titans ta build the walls an' wipe the memories o' his people, we Ackermans were one o' two noble families ta disagree with the King an' turn our backs on him. The other noble family was the Orientals, and their line is now almos' non- exsistent in Paradise now. Despite the turnin' o' our backs, the King used his power o' the Titans ta wipe his subject's memories, but because we were nobles, he couldn' wipe ours. An' it's because we remember, that the King, that ALL the Kings are afraid of us. We are the one peoples that they can't contol, so's they want is ta erase us all from Paradise completely, just like they've done with the Orientals, or just about done."
It didn' make any sense. Were he senile? What the fuck were he talkin' 'bout? Titan powers?! Wipin' memories? It were gotta be ramblin's from an ol' man's dream, 'cause I were supposed ta be an Ackerman, an' I couldn' remember jack-shit! That's why I were here for fuck's sake!
I opened my mouth ta question, but he continued," You see, Kenny, all the people inside the walls, well , the King – every King has, and always has has the power to wipe their memories an' keep 'em docile as sheep inside the walls. They know no differen' an' they don' care or question. The are jus' content ta go about their small, every day lives as obedient as lambs. They can't remember nothin' about why they're here, inside these walls, or if there's anythin' outside the walls, or about our people's history. An' they don' really care to. Aaawww, occasionally, someone will get curious, an' that's when 'accidents' happen. But mostly, the people are content jus' ta live their lives the way they think they always have done.
But us... the Ackermans, we're not content, an' we're not docile, especially once the Ackerman power has been woken up. Mos' every Ackerman has a moment when he ,or she, has an overwhelmin' strenghth flow through 'em an' time seems ta bleed inta itself , an' they jus' knows. An' that's why we're persecuted. We're the ONLY threat ta the throne, but we still got a will ta serve it, somehow. But, we're dangerous, 'cause we never did bow down ta the King. Not when we thought he was wrong. An' that's why they're afraid of us, " he finished, collapsin' back down inta his bed, his face as grey as his hair an' beard.
My mind were tryin' take it all in. Titans? Did he mean like the Titans them freedom scouts or whatever their name were, went lookin' for outside the walls? Were they even a real thing? Did the King control them? Is that what Gramps ment when he said the King had the power o' the Titans? An' if he did, then why did them freedom scouts go out lookin' for them? Why didn' the King jus' make 'em do what he wanted them ta do? An' how did a Titan erase everyone's memories, anyway? An' if the Ackermans were so special, then why didn' I remember a past outside the walls, or know any o' this? An' obviously my Pa hadn' known any o' this, 'cause he said he hadn' told my Pa.....But...
Oh sure, he were right 'bout the Ackerman power. 'Bout havin' a moment o' jus' knowin'; where time did jus' bleed inta one, where the past, the present an' the future became unified an' clear. An' 'bout bein' so strong, it were like I had the speed an' strenghth o' a hundred men.
But the rest o' it? It didn' make any sense. Sure, the King's heir were a curiousity ta me, but I NEVER wanted ta serve the Royal family! Not after what they'd done ta us.
"Remember your family", his raspy voice broke inta my confusion.
I turned ta look at him, as he continued, " It's yours now. You have the blood- feud o' generations o' Ackermans, you must attone for", he whispered.
I walked 'round the room, pacin' back an' forth, then turned ta him, ta ask for answers ta the questions that buzzed 'round my brain. Openin' my mouth ta speak, I looked at him. But this time, there were no mistakin' it. This time he were dead.
I sat down, beside him for a long time, my mind swimmin', as I tried ta make sense o' all he'd said, tryin' ta see if any o' it rang true. I thought back ta when I were jus' a littl' 'un. Did my Pa have his moment o' knowin'? Lookin' back, I don' think he did. I knew that Kuchel didn', an' even me, it took nearly twenty years worth o' shit afore somethin' jus' snapped. Maybe that were it. An' it were ta save Kuchel. Maybe if those sons-o'-bitches had threatened ta kill me an' Kuchel instead o' Pa, maybe his moment woulda come an' Ma an' Pa would be alive today.
Maybe that power is only woke up when it's somone else ya gotta save, an' not yourself. Maybe that's what the ol' guy ment when he were talkin' 'bout 'the will ta serve'. But, I never wanted ta serve Kuchel, I jus' wanted ta protect her. An' I were certainly NEVER gonna serve no king!
Maybe, that were why it seemed I were the only one that could see people for what they was. An' this world for the sewer full-o'-rats, Hell-hole, it really were. An' maybe that's why it didn' hurt me none ta be Kenny the Ripper; garbage collector, jus' takin' out the human trash.
The Titan bit, though, that I couldn' make sense o'. Were it jus' some fairy story he had stuck in his head from when he were a child? I ain' never heard o' 'em. Could be 'cause I'd spent the last eighteen years or so, in the Underground. But still, ya think that somethin' that big, that powerful...Well, ya think they'd be whispers......
Or is that what he ment by the King controllin' people's memories?
I needed a drink.
I looked 'round the sparsley furnished room, an' surprise, surprise.... No whiskey.
So's, I got up ta leave. Takin' my hat off I saluted the ol' guy, an' walked, still deep in thought, out the front door.
A lead weight pushed my face inta the dewy, wet grass, as hands grabbed my arms, tyin' my wrists together an' takin' Silver Lady from her holster, while at the same time more hands tied my ankles together, searchin' for Silvey Lady's friends. Findin' them an' relievin' me of 'em, muliple weights held my body down. All while a gun were shoved hard inta my temple.