The Greater Good

[Zack Fair]

Imperial Agent Tate Schell gazed through the one-way window. Before him was a dimly lit interrogation room with all of the stereotypical decorations, such as a table, two chairs, and plenty of empty space. Seated in one chair, with his feet kicked up, was none other than Stormtrooper Abner White. The veteran Imperial was patiently waiting for anyone to walk through the door, but he was biding his time by drinking fine Scotch and smoking a cigar. The poorly ventilated room had a resulting thick, smoky haze permeating it.
 
The sight made Schell scowl in disgust. The agent was an unassuming man, he wore a simple suit and looked completely bland, with his boring haircut and unremarkable features. He was such a plain and boring looking individual that one could easily lose him in even a small crowd. But then, that was sort of the point.
 
“You were supposed to take all alcohol and tobacco from him,” Schell told the two Stormtroopers that stood behind him, emotion absent from his voice.
 
“Uh, we did, sir,” one of the Stormtroopers admitted sheepishly. “Six times.”
 
“He’s a prime. He keeps summoning more,” the second Stormtrooper clarified.
 
Agent Schell’s only response was a soft exhale. Abner had been met by Imperials at the gate from the Nexus. Of course, word had gotten out through the Empire that he was back, and that he’d met Omni, so Tate had been part of the team sent to understand this phenomenon. The burnout captain hadn’t been too useful right away, as his file predicted. He had been brought to this secure Tier 1 facility so a more formal interrogation could take place. Agent Schell watched Abner pour a little bit more liquor in the glass on the table. He would have to accept that the ideal setting would not be created.
 
“Open it,” Schell merely said, walking towards the door. A loud buzz indicated the door unlocking, and Tate opened it and entered the room.
 
Abner looked up as the mysterious agent entered the room. He grinned, even with the cigar in his mouth. While Tate slowly approached the table, Abner just took the cigar in his hand and blew more smoke into the already foggy room. Tate set several folders down on the table and took the opposite seat.
 
“I used to get two of these, once a month,” Abner broke the silence, since the spook wasn’t talking. “All I could manage, since you guys pay so damn well. It was my little reward to myself for surviving just a bit longer.” He paused, and took another drag while maintaining his smile. “Now I don’t have to settle for cigarettes and cheap beer. High end cigars and liquor with just a little bit of focus. But I’ll do the old stuff every now and again, just for old time’s sake.”
 
Schell’s face remained stoic, even as he breathed in the second hand smoke. “You’ve had quite the ordeal, Captain White. I’m Agent Tate Schell, and I’m here to debrief you.”
 
“I don’t think we’ve met,” Abner shrugged, then gestured to a second, empty glass quizzically.
 
“We still haven’t, officially,” Schell ignored Abner’s offer of something to drink. “We need to talk about your little journey.”
 
“Look, meeting Omni was sort of a personal thing, and y’all didn’t even…” Abner began to explain, but Tate very quickly cut him off.
 
“I’m not interested in Omni.”
 
Abner paused, not remotely expecting to hear that. “What?”
 
“That’s someone else’s job. Some idealist’s. I’m more concerned about the immediate effects of what you’ve done. The things that can change. The things that matter,” Schell explained himself.
 
Abner furrowed his brow curiously, and let his feet slide off the table and to the floor. He sat up somewhat straight as he studied the agent, but did not take his hands off his cigar or glass of Scotch.
 
“We need to have a very serious discussion about your traveling companions,” Schell clarified. He was entertained that Abner was now taking him a bit more seriously, but did not let that emotion show. He remained professional.
 
“That’s pretty personal, too,” Abner shrugged as he took a sip of his drink.
 
Tate wasn’t swayed, and opened one of the folders on the table. “You sent in detailed accounts of your party for the better part of week. Adventures in a temple, fighting zombies, setting up a town. Quite the read. But then, you suddenly stopped. Why was that?”
 
“Wanted at least seven reviews per chapter, if I was going to continue my fanfic,” Abner’s sarcastic response was exactly what Tate was prepared for, so it didn’t faze him.
 
“We thought you were dead. The situation you described seemed to support such a possibility,” Tate explained. Abner set his glass down and stuck his cigar back in his mouth, then crossed his arms and leaned back. Tate carefully observed the man’s body language before continuing. “It’s amazing the level of detail you provided in your reports.”
 
“Gee, thanks. Just give me the fucking gold sticker and move on,” Abner remarked.
 
“They didn’t even know you were reporting on them, did they?” Schell pressed him a little further.
 
Abner took the cigar from his mouth again, silently letting more smoke escape from his lips.
 
Schell actually let out a short chuckle, then looked back to the file. “Anyway. We tried to fire you and you began to work like your early days. You seem to always go against the grain.”
 
“Is there a point to all of this?” Abner responded with a question of his own.
 
Agent Schell paused in contemplation for a moment. There was no being subtle and discreet with Abner, so he just dove in. “I want the rest of your summary on each member of your team. Who they are, where they come from, which ones survived,” Tate stopped for a moment to let Abner process that, before finishing his thought. “Where they went. How to defeat them.”
 
Abner didn’t answer. He knew his silence would goad Schell into continuing to talk, and he wanted the man to spill everything.
 
“Have you heard of Nippur?” Tate asked, and Abner’s response was to take yet another swig of his drink and drag from his cigar. “It’s a civilization in the Endless Dunes. Primes slaughtered each other there not long ago, on the heels of Syntex’s Dante’s Abyss and Camelot’s Colosseum Tournament. It was devastating for those who made their home there.”
 
“I feel like you might get to a point before I finish this bottle, but I’m not totally optimistic,” Abner responded in a blunt tone.
 
“Primes are uncontrollable, Abner,” Tate was blunt and straightforward, as well. “They’re dangers to all of us. And do you know who the only people capable of containing them are?” Tate slid another folder towards Abner, filled with plenty of incident reports about Primes in Coruscant, but Abner didn’t move to take it. “We are. The most decisive action against Primes has been executed by the Imperial forces of Tier One. Other cultures embrace their destructive nature, and they are rewarded with chaos and carnage. We are wise enough, and capable enough, to contain them.”
 
“Good for you guys,” Abner’s false congratulation was dripping with sarcasm.
 
“Think about it, Abner,” Tate seemed to be almost pleading. “Whatever those secondaries did to change your opinion of your home, it doesn’t change the facts. Primes are a menace to the Omniverse, and the most control we have over them is here, on Coruscant. We’re the good guys, Captain White.”
 
Abner scoffed at that notion, but brushed past it for a more important point. “What does this have to do with my team, again?”
 
“Don’t you get it?” Agent Schell shook his head. “You left as a secondary. You all did. You came back as primes. Every secondary dreams of the opportunity to be like a prime, to wield that power and that fearlessness. Now, it’s no dream. It’s a reality, and multiple primes with terrifying backgrounds have accomplished this. The story is out there, and it can be spread. If your rag tag group of misfits can find Omni…”
 
“My team of warriors and adventurers,” Abner wouldn’t let a snide comment about his extended family slide by.
 
“…then anyone can,” Schell did not comment on Abner’s assertion. “And now they’re back, and the word can be spread. Immortality has become attainable to even the most dangerous of secondaries. Do you not see the dire circumstance you’ve put us in?”
 
Abner let another long pause enter the conversation. He gave another extended exhale of smoke. Then, after the silence, he gave a short chuckle.
 
“My fault, huh?”
 
Schell again paid no attention to Abner’s sharp tongue. He had heard quite enough of it for the time being. The agent stood up and adjusted the sleeves on his suit.
 
“I’ll leave this reading material with you. Catch up on what you’ve missed. We’ll talk more about what needs to be done in a little while,” Schell said as he walked towards the door.
 
“If you guys didn’t want me to find Omni, you shouldn’t have told me to find Omni,” Abner shrugged. “Damnedest idea, I know.”
 
“It’s fortunate you did the opposite of what we expected, perhaps. It gives us an edge,” Agent Schell’s voice was starting to get on Abner’s nerves. Blissfully, the loud buzzer signaled the door unlocking, and the Imperial spook pulled it open and walked out.
 
“Hey, leave it cracked!” Abner called after him, but the door slammed shut.
 
Abner sighed as he reached through the haze and grabbed one of the folders.
 
Figured.

[Zack Fair]

Abner glanced up as the door swung open. The old stormtrooper had made himself quite comfortable, with his legs propped up on the interrogation table. Abner was reading through one of the folders that Schell had left behind, and the other papers were scattered across the table. He’d obviously been going through them very steadily. Schell prevented himself from smiling, but it was amusing to him. Despite Abner’s flippant attitude, it was clear that the man was very interested in the workings of the world. He hadn’t completely checked out, yet.
 
Agent Schell entered the room, but stood with the door open for just a moment. It wasn’t an invite to leave, but instead just to let some of the smoke air out. Abner hadn’t slowed down his tobacco intake since Schell left, resulting in a thick fog. The Stormtrooper didn’t seem to notice, but Tate wasn’t going to suffocate over this man.
 
There was no greeting or any sort of formalities between the two men this time. Seeming to recognize the reason why Schell was standing in the doorway, Abner just went back to reading about the tournament that had taken place at the Camelot Colosseum. He took a sip of his whiskey, letting off a vibe of relaxation so strong one might think he was sitting in a leather chair in front of a warm fireplace.
 
Schell let the door slam behind him, and he entered the room. He calmly approached the table and sat back in his seat. The whole time, Abner continued to read the report, not moving his head to acknowledge the agent’s movements.
 
“What do you think?” Schell finally broke the silence by getting right back to business.
 
“Okor really picked up steam, made a great push. I’d say he’s the success story of this one,” Abner continued to be impossibly difficult, and didn’t look away from the spies’ reports on the tournament. “I think the real issue, here, is that Magus was criminally underrated coming into it.”
 
“Will you help us?” Schell was as blunt and direct as he could be. Less than sixty seconds back in this room and he was already tired of this waste of Omni’s power.
 
Abner closed the folder, and tossed his on the table. He kept his feet up and stayed leaned back, but also put his hands behind his head and took another large inhale from his cigar. Tate remained stoic and professional, even in the face of one of the more frustrating primes he’d ever seen. Primes had a superiority complex by default, and he was well versed in it. Abner, however, was supposed to be one of them. The fact that he would not fall in line was infuriating.
 
“What’s the real plan here, Tate?” Abner asked, also being direct with his interrogator. He still couldn’t help spicing it up with a little of his own flavor of wit, however. “You know I just went on a magical journey of friendship with these people. We fought zombies, braved a temple, made friendship bracelets, the usual rugged adventure story. You know I’m not going to betray them, especially after you guys tossed me into the wind and they scooped me up.”
 
“We are happy to see you’ve returned, Abner,” Schell was quick to comment.
 
“Now that I have something you need,” Abner was even faster to respond.
 
Schell looked at Abner and thought carefully for a minute, then finally scoffed and shook his head. “I assume that means you won’t help us track down these rogue primes.”
 
“Give me a corner cell, please,” Abner responded, knowing exactly where this went next. “They’ve got a little more room to stretch, I figure. I think I’ve earned that much.”
 
Agent Schell finally let out a knowing laugh, as he stood up. “You’re not going to prison, Abner. You’re walking right out of here to meet with all the other people that want to discuss your journey.”
 
Abner’s brow furrowed in confusion and surprise. “Really?”
 
“As I said, Captain White, the two of us haven’t even met. How could I throw someone I don’t know in prison?” Schell said as he walked over to the door, knocking on it once he arrived.
 
“I’ve met a lot of people in the Omniverse, and I’ve seen just about everything,” Abner took his feet off the table. “Never anyone quite like you, though.”
 
“Trust me, you haven’t seen anything, yet,” Schell responded as the door buzzed and he pulled it open. “Knock when you’re ready to leave.”
 
Abner watched as the Imperial spook vanished out the door, just as mysteriously as when he’d arrived. Ominous words to ponder, but there was nothing he could do now. He knew how to read between the lines, though. They’d meet again.
 
He may have been free to go, but he wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to get into the top secret files. So, Abner grabbed his glass of whiskey and the next folder, and got back to his reading.
 
The Empire could wait on him for a change.

[Zack Fair]

Home.
 
It seemed like ages ago that Abner had last gotten the opportunity to sit in his cozy reclining chair in his small, poorly lit Tier Three apartment. Sure, as a captain in the Stormtrooper corps he could afford a better living space than he occupied, but he really didn’t see the need or reason to do so. He was always  happy to simply sit down and smoke a cigarette and drink a beer in his chair. The feeling of being home was the simple joy that no amount of Omnilium could create. It was something that came with time. Time with, and time away.
 
Abner had had plenty of time away, so he was beyond overjoyed to walk into his living quarters and peel the sweat soaked vest off of himself. He discarded the protection on his kitchen table alongside all of his weapons, and grabbed the remote and turned on the television. He had a lot of catching up to do on various sports. Declining to take the time to summon something with his newfound powers, Abner instead pulled a beer from his refrigerator and made his way towards his favorite chair. Just before he could sit down, the doorbell rang.
 
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Abner grumbled, making his way to the door.
 
He flung it open to find none other than Tate Schell standing at the doorway, with a piece of paper in his hands. Abner grunted once again. He didn’t expect they’d meet again this soon. He was also out of both pleasantries and sarcasm for the mysterious Imperial Agent.
 
“What?” Abner asked right away, hoping to hurry this along.
 
Schell merely presented the paper to Abner, with a sly grin. “You’ve got mail.”
 
They exchanged blank stares for a moment before Abner erupted into laughter. Agent Schell was very surprised by this reaction, and could tell it was genuine laughter, not some fake job to throw him off. He stared in disbelief while Abner snatched the letter from his hand, and managed to contain his mirth after a minute.
 
“You’re right, mailman Schell,” Abner was still chuckling. “I ain’t never seen anyone like you. What the hell is this?”
 
Schell ignored Abner’s taunts. “It’s a letter from Karl Jak, requesting your help in the Danteverse.”
 
“Karl Jak?” Abner read over the letter. “Who’s that?”
 
“He’s the one who set up Dante’s Abyss last year,” Schell crossed his arms as he explained, then looked down the hallway. “Can I just come in?”
 
“No,” Abner’s reply was fast and dismissive. “I didn’t watch a lot of it, last time. Who’s Dante, then?”
 
“I don’t know, Abner,” Schell’s fatigue was beginning to show. “But we need you to investigate this.”
 
Abner frowned as he continued to read it over. “’Smooches.’ No thanks. Not interested.”
 
“This is an order coming from above both of our heads,” Schell took a firm stand. “You’re clearly a person of interest to him, and we need to know more about the Danteverse. The safest hands are…”
 
“Yea, yea,” Abner interrupted. “You gave me this speech already.”
 
Schell gave another knowing smile. “Word is that Christa will be there.”
 
“What?” Abner suddenly looked up.
 
“She was spotted in Darkshire,” Tate looked casual and collected now that he was back in control. “She’s going. Maybe you should check on her.”
 
“How did you…?” Abner started to ask, but immediately shook his head to dismiss the question. He was clearly stuck in a hard place at this point. He didn't like it, but that wasn't anything new. He'd have to accept it. “Fine. I’ll check it out.”
 
“Excellent,” Schell replied. “There’s one or two other Imperials that you-”
 
Abner slammed the door in Schell’s face, and stepped away, looking over the letter. He knew more about the Danteverse than he let on, but still not much. The last thing he wanted to do was test his new immortality in that hellhole, but there was certainly a compelling reason to risk it, now.