07-31-2014, 09:58 AM
"Do not poke the darkness. Something might come for you."
The man had dropped his book earlier and there was an image of torture. Connor thought it looked like it was from the Inquisition. Between that, what he carried in his pocket, his own paranoia and the man's comment, Connor had a strong suspicion the man was Atharim.
Fear and anger warred inside him. The man looked and moved dangerously. He was definitely a deadly man. And yet...this man was a member of the group that would have put down his son without a second thought- perhaps him and Jamie too. Atharim. They sat in judgement over humanity and answered to no one. The anger pulsed. Just like "The Holy Inquisition". Contempt roiled in his stomach. Just as blind and stupid.
The man spoke of the Word of God. What a joke. That very word condemned him and his group. He was sure there was some sophistry- some philosophy or twisted permutations of logic- that allowed the man to reconcile the two in his mind. Cognitive dissonance. But it all came down to this one simple truth. The man claimed to believe in and condescendingly admonished strangers to devote their lives to divine truths. And yet he was part of an organization that lived the opposite of that standard. There's a word for that.
His mind flashed to Aria and that night. What gives you the right? he'd asked her, boiling in rage. And she'd answered, We don't have that right. She had been Atharim but seemed to live by her own moral compass. She had shown compassion and humanity. He could only judge by his own standards of right and wrong. And she had been good. She fought and killed creatures that needed killing, that threatened humanity. And if the Atharim were just about that, he'd have no problem with them. But he remembered what Alex had told him, remembered what Aria had done to him later, what she had become. Did the Atharim do that to her? Had they discovered her unorthodoxy and somehow changed her, purged it from her? Was this man what Atharim truly were?
If he's Atharim, he amended his thoughts. He breathed. He had Atharim on the brain. That file was weighing him down. He had no idea who the man was. You could be dangerous and not be Atharim. And he had to be honest. If the man was Atharim, why the warning? Why not simply act? Had it been merely a random statement from a man who felt it incumbent on him to share his beliefs with others? There were no shortages of those in the world. He knew that all too well. All too well, he thought sheepishly, think back to his youth.
He shook his head to dispel the confusion in his mind. He realized that the young man at the table had said something, told him to be silent. Connor smiled slightly. Well at least that wasn't his imagination. The guy had been dangerous.
Indeed, the young man seemed keyed up and his words only heightened the sense of threat from the man. Connor turned his head to see where the guy had gone to. He'd been too lost in thought to remember if he'd heard the door. The anger and fear were still there, but confusion had joined too.
Life had gotten so complicated. Connor just nodded at the man's words and then looked at him. There was something familiar about the guy. His accent said Australia but Connor was sure he'd have remembered meeting someone with one. It wasn't exactly a common occurrence for him. So why did this young guy seem vaguely familiar. He watched the kid for a moment. Maybe 2 years older than Hayden had been. It was hard not to think of him as one. Gettin old I guess. But his demeanor was anything but kid like. There was a coldness and authority he'd not expect in someone so young. Usually that came from age and experience.
"Do I know you from somewhere?"
Edited by Connor Kent, Jul 31 2014, 09:58 AM.
The man had dropped his book earlier and there was an image of torture. Connor thought it looked like it was from the Inquisition. Between that, what he carried in his pocket, his own paranoia and the man's comment, Connor had a strong suspicion the man was Atharim.
Fear and anger warred inside him. The man looked and moved dangerously. He was definitely a deadly man. And yet...this man was a member of the group that would have put down his son without a second thought- perhaps him and Jamie too. Atharim. They sat in judgement over humanity and answered to no one. The anger pulsed. Just like "The Holy Inquisition". Contempt roiled in his stomach. Just as blind and stupid.
The man spoke of the Word of God. What a joke. That very word condemned him and his group. He was sure there was some sophistry- some philosophy or twisted permutations of logic- that allowed the man to reconcile the two in his mind. Cognitive dissonance. But it all came down to this one simple truth. The man claimed to believe in and condescendingly admonished strangers to devote their lives to divine truths. And yet he was part of an organization that lived the opposite of that standard. There's a word for that.
His mind flashed to Aria and that night. What gives you the right? he'd asked her, boiling in rage. And she'd answered, We don't have that right. She had been Atharim but seemed to live by her own moral compass. She had shown compassion and humanity. He could only judge by his own standards of right and wrong. And she had been good. She fought and killed creatures that needed killing, that threatened humanity. And if the Atharim were just about that, he'd have no problem with them. But he remembered what Alex had told him, remembered what Aria had done to him later, what she had become. Did the Atharim do that to her? Had they discovered her unorthodoxy and somehow changed her, purged it from her? Was this man what Atharim truly were?
If he's Atharim, he amended his thoughts. He breathed. He had Atharim on the brain. That file was weighing him down. He had no idea who the man was. You could be dangerous and not be Atharim. And he had to be honest. If the man was Atharim, why the warning? Why not simply act? Had it been merely a random statement from a man who felt it incumbent on him to share his beliefs with others? There were no shortages of those in the world. He knew that all too well. All too well, he thought sheepishly, think back to his youth.
He shook his head to dispel the confusion in his mind. He realized that the young man at the table had said something, told him to be silent. Connor smiled slightly. Well at least that wasn't his imagination. The guy had been dangerous.
Indeed, the young man seemed keyed up and his words only heightened the sense of threat from the man. Connor turned his head to see where the guy had gone to. He'd been too lost in thought to remember if he'd heard the door. The anger and fear were still there, but confusion had joined too.
Life had gotten so complicated. Connor just nodded at the man's words and then looked at him. There was something familiar about the guy. His accent said Australia but Connor was sure he'd have remembered meeting someone with one. It wasn't exactly a common occurrence for him. So why did this young guy seem vaguely familiar. He watched the kid for a moment. Maybe 2 years older than Hayden had been. It was hard not to think of him as one. Gettin old I guess. But his demeanor was anything but kid like. There was a coldness and authority he'd not expect in someone so young. Usually that came from age and experience.
"Do I know you from somewhere?"
Edited by Connor Kent, Jul 31 2014, 09:58 AM.