Oops

Kalaakiota Office of Applied Psychomanipulation
Caldari Prime
11/20 YC 114

The director was seething.  He hadn't risen to the position of director only to be questioned and ridiculed by some no-name asshole who he'd never even seen before.  He had had Dr. Tobit killed because he was an embarassment and because he had threatened his employer, Kalaakiota.  What was so hard to understand about his decision?  Why was he being questioned and insulted in his own office?  Who was this man questioning him?

The man was slight of build, his eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses.  He wore a dark suit, nondescript in every way.  His hair was short and dark, and he was clearly a Deteis, mid-thirties, and his mouth seemed to have a perpetual sly grin, almost a smirk.  He seemed smug, self-assured, and there was something about his demeanor that implied a casual attitude toward extreme violence; a tiger poised to strike at all times.

The man spoke. "Who gave you the authority to kill Dr. Tobit?"

"I did.  I'm a goddamn director.  I can make those decisions in my department." He tried to sound authoritative.  Somehow, his voice seemed to ooze uncertainty.  This man was unnerving.

"I see.  And why did you feel it was justified?"

"He promised results and didn't deliver.  I told him we were going to shut his program down, and he became irrational.  He threatened to go public." Damn Silas.

"No results?" The man stood, passive, but his voice dripped with contempt.

"No results.  Mr. Krennel continued to be just as he always was.  Dr. Tobit's experiment was a total failure. There's no denying that." The director didn't understand why that was hard to understand.

The man laughed. "Oh, but there is denying that." He shook his head. "You're not in the habit of actually reading reports, are you?  Particularly the initial project proposal and Dr. Tobit's many reports stating that the changes would take time, for instance."

The director gave a dismissive wave with his hand. "Every idiot scientist says that nonsense when they fail.  They always say it's a matter of time and you end up waiting and waiting and then, guess what, nothing."

The man shook his head. "Then what do you make of Mr. Krennel's newfound religion?  Or perhaps you think his recently obtained Knighthood in the service of the Amarr Empire as something totally within the bounds of his personality?"

The director was shocked. Could it be true?  Could Silas have been right? "I... I hadn't heard about--"

"Yes.  I'm sure you'd have missed it in your complete dismissal of Dr. Tobit's research offhand.  I'm also sure that when you had the majority of his research materials destroyed, you didn't actually bother to read any of it."  He shook his head again. "People like you are the reason the State has been reduced to the point it has.  People like you, Mr. Director, are a plague, a weakness, a cancer on our Nation."

"How DARE YOU!"

"How dare I?" The man actually laughed.  "Do you know who I am?  Of course not.  Allow me to explain.  You see, I am society's retribution against itself.  I'm the violent solution to the failings of our State.  My purpose is to eradicate those elements that hold us back.  Are you beginning to understand why I am here?"

A cold shiver ran down the director's spine.  "Kalaakiota wouldn't dare allow this!"

The man smiled and removed his shades. "Kalaakiota wouldn't dare stop it." 

The director barely saw the movement.  The man was unbelievably fast.  His death was not quick.  It was not painless, but he was paralyzed, incapable of screaming.  Still, as his insides burned, he could hear his screaming inside his mind.  The last thing he saw was the strange man smiling at him as he succumbed.

The man watched until the director had finally died.  He wondered at what such pain must feel like, only vaguely understanding that it defied explanation.  He smiled to himself as he stepped out of the director's office, straightening his suit as he did so.