Tragedy, Justice, and Tuesdays: Chapter 2 – Justice, Bringer of Corpses

*Concept art for the officer badge for Silas’ police department. Top “Justice is inevitable” Bottom “Death is inevitable”

Chapter 2 – Justice, Bringer of Corpses

It takes me a while to get to the junkyard because of all the police around, but I eventually do and catch two armed goons talking in front of the only entrance. Let’s hear what they have to say before I head in. Maybe they’ll get me some helpful information.

“Are you sure this isn’t a death sentence?” one of them asks the other.

“Yes, I’m sure. The mayor has ensured our protection. Besides, Silas may be a psychopath, but he’s not a complete idiot and has to know the implications of what would happen if he attacked us and our boss.”

“He took on the most powerful in the entire country. What makes you think he cares about consequences?”

“Because things will get much worse for him if he does anything. You can’t go around shooting people on your own terms forever. The police will come to our aid and the media will further villainize him in the view of the country.”

“I feel a little safer now, I guess.”

“Good. Now, stop worrying and keep an eye out. He should be here soon.”

That one goon does have a point; however, do I really care about what the world thinks of me and what they might do to me? Heh, no. I come out of the darkness shooting and head into the junkyard the same way. This reminds me of when I was outgunned by myself a time not too long ago and it doesn’t occur to me that I’m alone until fifteen of the goons are dead and none are left. Going further into the junkyard, I find a man in a suit sitting in an office who appears to have been expecting me. He has a smug look on his face and looks relaxed despite me pointing a gun at his face, which makes me hold in what I have to say. His look causes me to look and walk around the room and look outside while keeping an eye and gun on this man.

“You don’t need to worry about any traps, grim reaper. You’ve already triggered it, but it’s not something lethal in an obvious way. It’s more deadly in terms of your reputation,” the man says.

“I don’t care about my reputation. I only care that justice is served,” I say.

“It’s a brave thing to say, but you already know the consequences of such actions. Bringing me to justice will not end well for you. I have many connections that will bail me out of jail.”

“I don’t even know who you are.”

“Oh? Are you sure? Who do you think owns this quiet and beautiful resort town?”

“You’re the mayor?”

“That’s right and what do you think will happen if you try to bring me in or kill me?”

“It can’t be worse than the consequences I already deal with for already offing so many others like the president.”

“The people of America and other countries knew that most of the men you knew were corrupt, but they don’t know me. You hardly did. My crimes are more hidden than those overblown amateurs, which is why they come to me to tear certain people apart and send them in packages to their loved ones.”

“You fu-”

“Be careful with what you choose. You kill me and the country will think that you’ve really gone too far and will have to put you in prison for life or kill you on the spot.”

“I don’t care! You killed my best friend’s parents and threatened my family!”

“I’ll do more than threaten them!” The mayor takes out his phone that’s ready to call a number. “One call is all it takes to make them disappear and end up like your friend’s parents. It doesn’t even matter if I can get a sentence out. If the people on the other line of this number see that I’ve called, then they’ll know what to do. Also, if they hear that I’ve died without getting a call, then the consequences will just take longer to reach you. You only have two choices as far as I’m concerned. You either work for me and I make the rest of your life as easy as can be or you try to arrest me to no avail.”

“Looks like I’ll have to arrest you then.”

“You’ll…you’ll what? Haha, you’ll what? Hahaha! Didn’t you hear what I just said?”

That’s right. Lower your guard and put your finger away from the dial button. I relax my arms and lower my gun as he laughs in my face. There we go.

“That’s right. I’m going to arrest you. Bring you to justice.”

“Hahaha! You don’t have the authority!”

I quickly shoot the mayor and then his phone so his dead fingers don’t touch the dial button.

“I didn’t need any authority to shoot you in the face.”

Okay, now I need to get out of here and warn my family and Josh about what will-ah, hell it’s the police. Thinking on my feet, I exit the office and see a large pile of cars. I climb it then jump from it and over the walls of the junkyard. The landing wasn’t that soft so I hide get away as fast as I can and hide under a nearby bridge to catch my breath. This whole town will be against me and the mayor’s men will probably go after my parents next, so I call the people I know who are looking after my parents and tell them the situation.

They tell me, “If they know we’re here, where should we move them?”

“I don’t know back to the city, I guess?” I suggest.

“How’s that a good idea?”

“Because I have safehouses here and lots more people who are on our side. It’s the only option I can think of.”

“I guess it’s our only choice too then. I’ll see you soon then.”

“See you. Oh, before you hang up, are our lines still secure?”

“They should be. We’ll triple check it since we may have traitors in our mist if they know about your parent’s location.”

“Thank you and be safe.”

“You should be more worried about yourself, especially after what you did. You’ll need a miracle from God to get out of this alive.”

“I’m already praying for one.”

After hanging up the phone, I start to think about what my options are in terms of leaving this place. This vacation went horribly even though the bastard who killed Josh’s parents is dead. I still feel ashamed that I wasn’t able to protect his mother when I had the chance. What am I even going to say to Josh when I see him? Will I see him? I’ve just called Josh again and again he hasn’t picked up, so I put a lollipop in my mouth to calm myself down while I leave a message. Dang it. It’s apple flavor.

“Josh, please, pick up. I need you now more than ever, bro. You’re going to hear me starting up trouble in the news because I killed the mayor of the vacation town we’re in because he was the one who cut up your parents and sent them in a package to us. I’m coming back home and my parents are too because their lives are in danger. Please be safe,” I say in my message to him.

Time to leave this place. After crunching down on the lollipop, I head into town and try to keep to the alleyways and out of public sight.

“Grim reaper!” I hear a child say from a second story window.

There goes my cover.

“Keep quiet!” I say as quietly as I can.

“Okay!” the child says in a quieter voice. “Are you in trouble?”

“Yeah, kind of. Do you need something?”

“I do actually. My family is in trouble. Can you help? It’ll be real quick with your skills then you can keep running from trouble.”

“I…”

“Please! I may never see them again if they don’t get help now and the police are busy for some reason.”

“Okay, okay. Show me where they are.”

The child comes downstairs and into the alley where I am then into the town’s streets. Luckily, we get by without really seeing anyone but hang on. There seem to be fewer people as we continue and these streets are supposed to be busy, especially during this time of the year. This smells fishy.

“Where are your parents, kid?” I ask.

“They’re here,” the child says.

Many people come out of their houses and businesses, some of which are armed with guns. These people are led by four adults in suits who I assume to be the child’s parents since the child walks up to them. Damn. I should’ve picked up earlier that it was a setup. Well, I’ve shot my way out of stickier situations.

With no other option, I draw my gun and am about to shoot until one of the child’s parents says, “Do you really think you can shoot your way out of this?”

“I can try,” I say.

“You’re outnumbered and outgunned, grim reaper. We’ve been studying your methods ever since you rebelled against your chief of police and we’re beating you with something you can’t fight against.”

“And that would be?”

“The innocent people behind us who’ve had enough of your reckless killing and our child. Your faith and values will not allow you to shoot either of them.”

The child pulls a gun out of his shirt and points it at me along with the rest of the crowd. This child looks no older than twelve and already he’s being used by his parents in this way. It’s such a shame that it pisses me off in a special way.

“We’ll let you say your prayers to your God as an act of respect for your deeds,” another one of the family members says. “Today marks the day the reaper dies-”

I shoot the child and his family then the few people in the crowd who have guns. This scares the mob who are now unsure of what to do. One person tries to quickly pick up a gun, but I shoot the gun breaking it.

“Anyone else wants some?! I can do this all day!” I say.

What I say scares the crowd into running away. Well, that’s that, but what can’t I move? What are my eyes focused on-oh, yeah. The child. I’m sorry that it had to be this way…don’t look at me like that. What other choice did I have? I’ll pray for your soul and mine. I should get moving since I hear police sirens in the distance.

Getting to the shipyard, I discover that all the ships are gone. They probably won’t be here until tomorrow morning. It’s probably a good idea to hide in a shipping container until then. The police will be looking for me all night, so I find the shipping area, and lucky me, the guy watching the cameras is busy watching videos on his phone. Just to be safe, I knock him out and then try to find a safe container to hide in. That is until I hear someone nearby. Looking into who it is, I find a drug deal going down, and to my surprise, I act without thinking and kill the drug dealers with the knife’s end of my gun since it’s almost out of juice. Oh, yeah. I have to give my gun a recharge.

I find the nearest guard outpost and see that the guards are all asleep. Using this opportunity, I use their gun chargers and take their ammo. Damn revolver is supposed to be better than a standard one, but only when I need it set to stun or when I need a more powerful shot both of which can only be done when it's fully charged, but using the functions make it drain fast. While waiting for my revolver to recharge to a good level, I finally look at my bloody hands and remember the face of the child and the people I’ve recently killed. Why has it taken me so long to feel the impact of killing a child? Why did it take so long for me to think about the consequences of shooting people who were just afraid of me? Why did you put me in this situation, God?

There are so many eyes watching my actions, not just those in Heaven. I’m not an inspirational leader or a peacemaker. I’m just a guy with a gun and a want for justice in this world, but people treat me like I’m the angel of death that has come down from Heaven or up from Hell. What am I supposed to do? Have I even been doing the right thing? I can only hope that I find an answer soon because I keep being faced with big decisions at the drop of a hat. Tch, there’s no way to get any answers now, so I’ll have to wait till I get back home. My confessor should have some answer or maybe Josh if he snaps back to his normal self.

After that horrible bit of self-reflection, I see that my revolver is charged up to seventy percent. This’ll be good enough to get me through the rest of tomorrow, so I take it, find a shipping container to break in, hide in it, then sleep in it until tomorrow morning when I hear a boat’s horn. Going outside, I see that this boat is the same boat that brought me here. Thank God. I’ll be home soon. I go on the boat only to find the police all over the place. They probably knew that I’d take the easiest way out of here though it’s at this time I wish I knew how to drive a boat.

“Search for him! He’s around here somewhere,” an officer says.

Come on, come on. Please get here faster. There are so many cops around here. Don’t mind me. I’m just another face in the crowd. Please, don’t make me shoot anyone who misunderstands me. Almost here…almost…okay! Without thinking, I rush forward with everyone in the crowd. I’m home free-

“There’s Silas!” I hear someone say from behind me.

Dang it! I rush forward and into the boat. Before I can find a place to hide, the boat suddenly starts moving. Why did it leave so suddenly? Looking behind and around me, I see that the cops haven’t managed to enter the boat. I can even see from the deck of the boat that the cops are still at the dock. That was a miracle.

“Looks like you're still helpless without me,” I hear a familiar voice say from behind me.

Turning around, I see Josh with a smug smile on his face and his mini-submachine gun on his hip.

“Josh, you ass,” I say as I give him a hug, “Where you the one who got the boat moving?”

“Yeah. I thought you’d get caught by the police here, so I forced the captain to start the boat as soon as you got on board. Couldn’t be bothered to change your clothes, could you?”

“Of course not. You know how much I love my cowboy hat and long gunslinger coat. We should get the civilians to safety. The police will probably chase after us with their boats and helicopters.”

“There’s no need to worry about that. I have our people coming to meet them right now and distract them and people on our shores.”

“I hope I didn’t start a war between our home and the town.”

“No, but we are the inspiration for a bigger change that’s happening right now. The country will be different for the better if we set a good example to follow.”

“What about all the misunderstandings that turn good people against us? What about the radicals who deliberately pretend to be like us but pervert the good reasons that we fight for?’

“That happens with all movements as far as I’m concerned. Just leave all the planning to me like you always do and the rest of it in God’s hands.”

“Thank you. So, how did you get your spirit back?”

“Prayer and my wife beating my senses back into me. Oh, and those messages that you left for me. It all reminded me that I can’t let the cycles of tragedy and justice get to me. We can’t make this world perfect and there’s a chance that the next generation may ruin it when we’re gone. Regardless, we have to do our best and like I said, leave the rest in God’s hands.”

“You’re right. Thanks, brother.”

“And thank you for bringing justice to my parents’ killer.”

What Josh says brings tears to my eyes as I can’t help but cry. Josh also cries for his mother whose remains I say we’ll get back eventually to give a proper burial with her husband. For the rest of the ride home, we talk about old times over a couple of drinks. Not long after, we arrive home to find a crowd of our officers holding off a crowd of scum-I mean journalists. Looking at them and hearing their many incoherent questions gives me the idea to give them a reminder about why I fight. Of course, I have to ask Josh if this is a good idea. He agrees and then gets this event set up. Once everyone is calmed down, I stand in front of the crowd to talk to them.

“Before I start, I’ll take one question,” I say.

About a hundred hands raise up along with many other voices. I pick one random hand out of the crowd, and I’m pretty sure the person who stands up wasn’t the one I picked.

“How do you justify your recent actions? What is your inspiration for it?” the reporter asks.

This is actually a great jumping off point, thanks be to God.

“I’m glad you asked that. My inspirations are my conscience and what I know to be right tempered by my faith and my interpretation of what God wants me to do.”

“So, you’re saying that your God justifies your violent acts?”

“Yes, and my acts are right and just. What Americans forget is what makes our country special. It was founded on the people fighting for their God-given rights against their oppressors who had more power and resources than they did. We must remember that even though God has given the presidents, kings, and bosses of the world power over many things, God is the one who gives power and He gives us, the people, the low class scum of the world to overthrow our leaders if they prove to be corrupted by their power and their vices.”

A reporter tries interrupting me by saying, “Sir, I don’t think you know your history well-”

“Shut the hell up. I’m the one reminding you why I do what I do and I’m under no obligation to answer your questions.”

“What then do you think of the Civil War?” a reporter asks.

“Oh, I like that question because I was going to get to that part, so I’ll honor you by answering it. During the Civil War, the south and the north had their disagreements with slavery being one of the reasons. Regardless of the reasons, we must remember that righteous order has its place just as much as a righteous revolution when the opposing side fights for something that is unjust and must be brought to justice.”

“What if someone justly thinks that you’re unjust and must be brought down?”

“Then bring it on. If I’m wrong, I’ll gladly suffer for my sins. So, does anyone want to do the honors?” I say with nothing blocking my body and my arms out.

Looks like no one is brave enough to shoot me. Part of me wishes that someone did because of how guilty I feel for my recent actions.

“That’s how it’s going to be, huh? If so, then it looks like it’s time for me to get back to work. Don’t forget or skew what I said today,” I say.

My officers surround Josh and me as we make our way through the crowds of reporters and civilians some of which are on my side and others who aren’t.

“What’s on the agenda for today, boys and girls?” I ask my officers.

“The usual reports of violence and theft,” an officer says.

“There are also the officers for the vacation town you were at who want answers and your head on a platter,” another officer says.

“Tell them to get in line. I’ll explain myself to them later. First, I have to take care of the trash in my home so move to your stations and clean the town of crime.”

“Yes, sirs,” my officers say as they get into their police cars and drive off.

“What should we do?” Josh asks.

“It’s Silas, the grim reaper! The first one who claims his head gets the prize,” a crazed person with a gun says.

This crazed person is followed by many of their friends who come out of the crowd and around us.

“Here’s our job for today,” I say before Josh and I take cover.

“Why do you get a nickname and I don’t?” Josh asks.

“Because I look cooler and do cooler things while you don’t?”

“Without me, you would’ve been dead years ago.”

“I can’t argue with that.”

We start shooting the criminals and take many of them out. Some of our supporters take out their guns to help us. In addition, a few of my officers come back to help, however, more crazies come out to fight.

“Well, this is a mess. I bet you wish you were still on vacation,” Josh says.

“Oh, please. This is just another Tuesday. We’ll go on vacation later,” I say.

I then put a lollipop in my mouth and make sure it’s root beer flavor. After I kiss my cross necklace and cross myself, I step out of cover with Josh to get to work. Today is another day of injustice and justice, sin and redemption, but it’s also another day to make a difference. In other words, it’s a day like any other.

The End