Lord of the Vagrants

Mark woke up to the dawn shining through his curtains.

He went downstairs and prepared a piss-poor cup of coffee. 

With silent strides, he passed the deadbeat woman on the couch.

And left the house, looking forward to the future to come. 

 "You! Stop right there!" 

A shrilly voice called after him. 

Turning around, a frown found itself on Mark's face as he regarded a woman nearly half his size yet thrice his age. 

He stretched out his mind right as the woman was about to speak. She nearly jumped back in fright. 

"Stay here. I'll deal with you later." 

Then he walked away and didn't turn back. 

There were better things to do than deal with this pain in the ass. 

Mark walked to the warehouse without a care in the world, watching the world get bathed in a silver hue as the sun passed into the clouds.

...

In the same large yet empty room, a lone man sat on a chair in the middle of the stone floor. His eyes were looking at something in the air, he seemed to be thinking of something but otherwise seemed like a casual person with no outstanding features or traits. He had black hair and was wearing a dusty brown coat. 

The man looked up and a knowing glint began to shine in his blue eyes. 

"How are your wounds?" 

Mark nearly flinched from the profoundly resonant voice. He walked to the area in front of the chair before stopping a respectful distance away from the boss and giving a curt bow. 

"They don't hurt too much, but still are annoying. However, what was more annoying was all those security checks. You'd think that three would be enough."

The boss laughed, the heartily low sound echoing through the room with the force of thunder. 

"You really would think that three checks are enough. Yet, that one guy comes who somehow makes it through them all."

Mark could hear the guards chuckle in the distance and guessed that they were probably the reason why. 

"Anyway, about where you'll be going..." 

The boss paused for a second, then eventually raised his hands and shrugged. 

"I have no idea what to do with you. Aaron was right about you being something special. Good fighting technique, calm mind, sociable personality, and even more... An overwhelming show of willpower last night was. It was skin-pricking for sure. You are perfect for this kind of work." 

He sighed, twiddling his thumbs in what seemed to be a habit. 

"As much as I'd like to put you in some high place, you have no experience working in a gang, and almost nobody knows you. It would cause some complaints if some random person were to suddenly become their boss." 

Mark watched as the man scratched his head. His blue eyes darted around, liberated from the chains of focus and freely flying. 

"It would also be a waste to have you doing some common job such as bodyguarding or patrolling." 

The boss then gathered his wandering eyes, focusing them on Mark like a laser. 

"So with that said, tell me. What should I be doing with you right now?" 

Mark scratched his scalp.

"Maybe I can stay here at the base and get to know everyone?" 

In response, the man's blue eyes lit up and began to dart around again. 

"Good, good idea."

He nodded and then went silent. 

A few seconds passed while Mark waited for the boss's response. It was weird how the leader of such a big gang was also so calm 

The boss took Mark's attention with a snap and raised his head. 

"I'll have you go work around the factories, ok? And since I want to test you out, you'll be going to a lot of different places to do your business."

Mark nodded. 

He just wanted to get food on the table, it didn't matter where he would be working as long as he got some. As the meeting continued, his impatience slowly grew like a bubble. 

Giving a curt bow to the boss, he stretched his mind and bolstered the man's confidence. 

"I won't let you down!" 

The boss smiled as he watched the young man turn to leave. 

"A few things before you go: first, don't do anything stupid. You represent the gang so if you go around in some other territory and act like an idiot, we won't help you out. Second, while you are out at the factories, try to get to know as many people as you can. It will probably be helpful to learn the names of the people you'll be working with. Lastly..." 

Watching the boss stand up and approach him, he slightly trembled. 

"Did you get anything from the Spheks?" 

Mark nodded. The guards tensed and clenched their guns.

"Well, what is it?" 

The boss went within a meter of him. 

Mark pulled out the silvery luger from the pocket of his windbreaker. He did so slowly, trying not to make it seem like he was assassinating the boss. He used two hands to offer it and the boss inspected them in turn. 

"I got it after Aaron saved me from one of the attendants." 

The boss scratched his head while the guards loosened up and started to talk again. 

"Oh. That's not too bad. Just, make sure that you don't accept anything else from them, ok?" 

Nodding, Mark thought back to the pierced coin he had got from the Spheks when he faced them off in the alley. He never got to throw it away, so it simply gathered dust in one of his pockets.

"Anyway, go to the southern side of the docks and you will see a few people outside of the factory. Good luck!" 

Mark was pushed out of the room mercilessly, then was brought out of the warehouse, and into the open world. 

The spring blew past with promise while he walked forward. 

Straight into the thickening clouds of smog that permeated the world with its unyielding cover.