Protect and Serve

*Posted by : White\_Caribou on Mar 29, 2018, 3:12am*

- August 20th, The Sprawl, Bellmere Bazaar, Early Morning -

The morning was kind on Jessy's skin, a cool breeze sifted through the streets she walked. The meeting time caused her to miss out on breakfast but the only hunger present was the one craving answers. Why this? Why that? All sorts of them. The Sprawl was frightening and caused her to question how genuine this was, you didn't settle in the Sprawl. It just wasn't human. *But I doubt humanity is their concern.*
Her feet stopped her once she had reached the destination, though he was present at the moment. Perhaps she had made a wrong turn somewhere as navigating this place wasn't exactly one of her talents.

Enoch Solomon walked among the throngs of people that filled the bazaar. This was the commercial center of the Sprawl. It was more akin to a flea market than a proper bazaar but it was the only place many of the residents of the Sprawl could afford to shop.
Here and there Enoch saw familiar faces of vendors he knew personally.
Dark haired and dark skinned Sophia Hogbin selling her Licorice Mooncake, old and grizzly Ned Windlass and his Star Torches and the apt named Whirlwind Breeze Manipulator.
The bazaar was buzzing with the news of the explosion at the Green Docks and the death of Councilman Corbet. That and the fact that not two days had gone by since the tremors that shook the city violently.
Enoch stopped to talk to Eugene Langstaff about his new crazy invention. The young man was now working he called a Cascade Regeneration Mechanism. Eugene had big plans to clean up the Styx river and stop the dependence of the city on the water coming from Elesium.

He found Jessy at the agreed place. Just outside the great bell tower building in the center of the bazaar. Old people claimed the place ha once been a place of worship to a long dead religious sect that worshiped the One True God.
He was glad she had decided to come. He felt someone like her could be a true asset the cause.

"Have you had your morning fast yet?" he asked her as he approached her. She shook her head.
Enoch and Jessy moved to a nearby stall where he bought some bread, cheese and two portion of porridge.
They sat in a nearby bench and ate in silence.
"Do you come here much? I mean to The Sprawl?" he asked her tearing into a chuck of the dark crusted bread.

She shook her head slowly while taking a spoonful of the hot mush. "Once. I went the wrong way. It's crazy how a distraction can take you from northern Rose District to the middle of this place," she chuckled, filling another spoonful.

"Most people here hardly have anything to eat. Many are forced to give up their children, living on borderline poverty with nothing to look for..." Enoch told her looking around. It did not seem fair that so many had so little while a few lived in opulence and decadence.
"You spend sometime in Highholm and the Centrum don't you? Does it seem fair to you that they have so much and live such luxurious lives while most of these people have nothing to look forward to?" he asked Jessy.

"Well, for starters it's us who run this city." she began in reply.
"They might make the rules and force us to play along but really without us nothing would work and Dusk wouldn't exist. Those rich bastards sit on their thrones having parties and wasting food while we are left to digging in the trash and polishing their shoes. Everything here was made by a worker or two. It's bullshit. Like, what did workers do to wrong them? Sew the blankets they cover up with on cold nights? Fetch them this and that half way across the city? We made them! We are Dusk. They're just freeloaders," she managed to keep her voice down just enough so he could hear her. A sigh escaped her mouth. "We should live as one and face the same problems."

Enoch had caught glimpses of these ideals from Jessy before. It was one of the reasons he decided he should approach her.
"You are almost turning 18 are you not? Have you decided what to do when the time comes to leave Daybreak?" he probed.

"Nobody really decides where they end up, it bothers me. We should get a chance, but I haven't earned nearly enough to support myself outside so... wherever I go, I'll go. I'm sure there's a cozy rooftop somewhere." she retorted with a shrug.
Enoch smiled at that.
"What about your brother? What will happen to him?" he asked directly having witnessed her commitment to her brother many times before.

Jessy stopped swirling her spoon in the bowl and looked up to him. "Getting separated is bound to happen, but I don't plan on losing him forever. I won't leave him behind, I can't. He's my world and whatever happens we'll find each other. Be happy." Her heart raced at the thought of losing Carter.
He was one of three strings left to pull. Carter, Cerise, and Robin. Her sister's string was a thin one after being away for so long but it was still intact. If someone were to cut all three...
Jessy would watch this city burn.

He took a deep breath. And looked at her green eyes and freckled face.
"What if I told you I could help you with that? he asked her as he finished the meager portion of porridge. He looked her in the eyes.
"What if I could arrange for your brother to be adopted before you have to leave the orphanage?"

She hesitated. "I'd want to meet them. He has to be somewhere safe or he goes nowhere. But I'd appreciate that."

He saw the alarm in her face. The offer was to good to be true and she was wondering what he was going to ask in return. Men were known to approach young girls with indecent proposals. She had heard many stories of girls that just ended up working for some shady character in the Rose District turning tricks and being pimped out to the highest bidder. She had noticed how men looked at her in the last few years.
"You have access to many places Jessy. And I truly believe you are going places." he told her to try and ease her mind.
"You work at the Silken Mill, you do the odd job for Hanson's Apparel and of course you have almost daily access to Corbet's Manor and Lady Stella seems to have taken a liking to you." he paused letting her truly listen to his words.
"In your comings and goings at these places you are bound to see things and hear things that others in the city never will. And I'm a curious chap and I would love to know more about what it is your hear when you visit these places." he paused again to let it sink in." Especially at Corbet Manor."

"The Corbet's huh?" Jessy muttered. "I suppose right now I wouldn't understand why you need all that."

"Well, with time I might ask you for more detailed information, but to start with and of course if you accept my offer, we would just meet once in awhile, so that you can share what you have heard or seen." he told her truthfully. No point in involving the girl too deep yet.
"For instance, have you heard anything about Councilman Corbet"s death? How was the Lady Stella holding up? Have you seen any unusual people visit them in the last few weeks? That sort of information would do for now."

She stayed quiet to think it all over. Things had been a bit more eventful with the family than It usually had been-- oh right. There was no Corbet *family*. "If I could think about it for a bit that would be nice. Give me time to gather more...intel." Jessy held in a smirk to mask how she'd been convinced in just a few minutes. There was a lot to contemplate before giving a simple yes or no to risking your life over watered-down espionage.

"Many people think like you Jessy. That the workers of this city deserve more. And maybe, just maybe the information you give us can help bring about some real change." he told her truthfully.
He stood up. "Think about it. I will come to Daybreak next week and I can have your answer than." It was best if they did not spend more time than they had to together. "You better get back to your errands." he smiled at her hoping she took his offer.
"And no one. I mean no one can know about our agreement. Not your sister, your brother, nor your friend Cerise. No one." A steely look took over his facial expression and he hoped she understood how serious this was. Before Jessy could reply he was gone among the crowds of the bazaar.

(OOC: Joint post by Winteroak and I)