???: "That Nobody guy is....Weird, to say the least."
???: "And why are you calling him Nobody? Do you know his name?"
???: "Oh yeah, I do. Just...He has multiple names, and Mr. Nobody is what he likes to call himself."
???: "Oh, that's interesting....Can you tell me what those names are?"
???: "I think it was....Well, first off he called himself Lucius Grahams, then I think it was William Lidenberge, then it was...Huh, let me think...Danya Kristofyot? I don't know, something like that."
???: "I see...Well, he seems like an...Interesting individual to say the least. Did he say why he called himself that?"
???: "No clue man, he sort of just, came and go."
???: "Hah...Welp, anything else about him? Like, personality quirks and such?"
???: "Well, he was very...Eccentric, to say the least. He would constantly just blank out and stare at things mid conversation. He'd also say some edgy philosophical stuff, he'd shut up only when you needed it the least..."
???: "Ah, well, sounds like he's gonna be...A fun guy."
???: "Wait, why do you need to know this again?"
???: "I'm gonna be working with him soon...You know how things are around here, it's filled with lunatics."
???: "Ahhh. Gotcha."
.......
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................
My head hurts...Argh...
William: "Fuuuudge with caramel on top, this sucks."
I leaned back, blankly staring at the same boring and pristine ceiling, probably the only clean thing in this whole room. The room I was in was...incredibly desolate. no furniture, no chairs, not even a single portrait framed over the walls. There was nothing there but me and a bed foam I comfortably sat upon. The walls were filled to the brim with hundreds if not thousands of tiny mathematical scribbles which I had spent the time to write down.
William: "What time is it?"
I groaned, looking down upon the watch wrapped around my wrist. The time was...Who am I kidding, it's a broken watch. It's hands motionless and it's case cracked, the watch was without a doubt broken, I didn't know why I wore it for days without taking it off. I removed the watch off my wrist, easy enough considering the clasp was loose and even fell on its own crashing down to the floor shattering it even more. I took hold of the watch, tossing it away with speed enough to shatter it completely as it collided with the walls.
William: "...Man, I need a coffee." Groggily, I stood up, and remained standing for a couple of minutes, my eyes fixated upon the scribbles I wrote down. As if my eyes were incapable of looking away.
???: "Sup!"
William: "What the-"
A familiar voice spooked me, startling me and causing me to jump slightly. I turned to look at the source, and there she was—Fyor—calmly sitting down at the corner of the room, the same obnoxious loner she always was.
Fyor: "Did you just call me an obnoxious loner?"
William: "Wha-Uhh no? Why would you think that?"
....Did she just read my mind?
Fyor: "No I didn't read your mind, I predicted your thoughts."
William: "...Ok that's kinda cool."
Fyor: "So you admit to thinking that?"
William: "...maybe?"
She wasted no time, and quickly grabbed her shoes, launching it straight towards me hitting my forehead, and dropping down to the floor.
William: "Where did you even come from?"
Fyor: "I was here the whole time-"
William: "Nope, nope, that's impossible. Don't lie to me."
Fyor: "I was here the whole time—"
William: "That's BS right there."
Fyor: "Alright, fine. I just teleported here using the portal gun while you were doing...Whatever it is you're doing."
William: "I knew it, I knew it, you fudging liar."
I said, pointing my index finger at Fyor and wagging it pompously.
Fyor: "Fudging? Who says fudging? What are you—a kid?"
Fyor Replied dismissively.
William: "Yeah, yeah. Just—why can't you use the door like a normal person? Don't just go intruding random places man."I said, lecturing Fyor like a disappointed dad to his annoying kid.
Fyor: "Oh please, what would you be doing here which made it inappropriate for me to just barge in?"
William: "I don't know, I could've been naked?"
Fyor: "William, I wouldn't have came if you were."
William: "That's what she said."
Fyor promptly threw her other shoe at me without another word, hitting me directly on the chest, dropping down to the floor right beside my feet.
William: "Ow."
She stood up, her eyes scanning the room and everything in it...Well, nothing in it.
Fyor: "man, what kind of life do you live? No furniture, no portraits, random scribbles on the walls—your bed foam doesn't even have sheets."
William: "I'm a beast in the sheets and I don't like changing into one every time I go to bed."
Fyor: "...I don't have another shoe to throw."
As I noticed we were getting distracted by these unimportant, petty banters, I realized Fyor wouldn't just barge in my room out of nowhere for no reason.
William: "Ok, ok, we're getting sidetracked." I said, waving my hand dismissively, attempting to refocus my attention towards more important subjects.
Fyor: "Oh, yeah. I was here to tell you that you're getting a new partner....Wait, US rather."
I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion at her words.
William: "...So, what. It's a three people team now? Like, in naruto?"
Fyor: "Yeah, you could call it that."
Fyor walked over towards her shoes which laid right beside my feet, the same shoes which she previously threw towards me, bending her knees and lowering her posture attempting to pick it up. Seizing the opportunity to troll, I quickly kicked it away just before he could get it in her grasp, sending it hurling towards the door. Fyor shot a glare of annoyance at me, launching a quick jab aimed right towards my balls. Of course, a behavior within my expectations, I swiftly evaded her attack by stepping slightly back.
William: "So tell me about this guy who we're supposed to be working with." I said while snickering as I watch Fyor scurry to pick up her shoes.
Fyor: "He's-"
Fyor was abruptly interrupted by a loud knock from behind the door, followed by a voice.
???: "Hello? Is anyone there." The man behind the door said while knocking continuously.
Fyor: "Oh, I think that's him."
Fyor unlocked the door, grabbing the doorknob and slowly swinging the door open. As the door opened, the man slowly came into view, and he looks....Disheveled, to say the least. He wore the same black suit everyone in this place did, his hair and clothers were a mess, his eyebags were so thick and his expression so tense he seemed as if he hadn't slept for months.
Random guy: "Uhh we've met before right? Fyor, was it?"
Fyor: "Yeah, that's me." she said.
She took a step back, and gestured at me, introducing me to the man.
Fyor: "Robert this is William, William this is Robert."
William: "Hi." I said, taking steps closer towards him, extending a hand to offer a handshake.
Robert: "Oh, William Lidenberge-"
William: "You can call me Nobody."
Robert: "...Uhh Ok, Mr. Nobody. I've heard a lot about you, you're pretty famous." He replied, taking my hand and accepting the handshake.
William: "Well, infamous and famous are two pretty different things, but ok."
I pulled my hand back, and immediately licked my palms tasting whatever it was Robert had previously touched, by doing this I could tell what kind of person he is. The taste of metal, blood, and other icky stuff was palpable. Robert seemed extremely uneasy with what I just did.
Robert: "...Can I ask what you're doing?"
William: "I don't know, CAN YOU??"
Robert: "...Uhh, may I ask what you're doing?"
William: "Don't worry about it, it's a technique I use on people I meet. I touch their hand and lick my hands right after touching them, this lets me know a lot about people."
Robert squinted in confusion and unease, turning to look at Fyor for answers.
Fyor: "Oh yeah, we do that all the time."
Fyor's reply, not only was not helpful, but just added more to Robert's confusion.
Robert: "...Uhh, ok? What can you tell about me?"
William: "Well, I can tell that you're a very organized person but unfortunately you have too much work to stay organized, you had the same gooey stuff they served in the cafeteria for breakfast, you're friends with a guy named Joffrey-"
Robert widened his eyes in which I'm assuming is amazement, and abruptly interrupted me.
Robert: "Wait, woah, woah, woah. Hold on. How can you tell I have a friend named Joffrey just from how my hands tasted?"
William: "Your hands tasted slightly of ink, so I'm assuming you wrote something down in your hand, only people in the science division would need to write something down. And who'd be friends with a guy named Robert? Joffrey of course."
Robert: "...So you know Joffrey?"
William: "Met him once, yeah. Also, dude, wash your hands after you piss. I tasted it, that was disgusting."
Robert: "Wha-I washed my hands!" Robert exclaimed, raising his tone slightly.
William: "Yeah, I know, I know. Just teasin ya. Haha."
Robert seemed annoyed, adjusting his tie in an attempt to regain composure.
Fyor: "He's insufferable, I know." Fyor said to Robert, as she placed her hand over his shoulders giving it a slight tap.
William: "Well, let's spare the small stuff. We have work to do, don't we?"
Robert: "...Uhh yeah.. There's been a containment breach at facility 28, "
William: "Let's just get to know each other on the way, yeah?"
Robert: "Ok then."
......
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Several minutes later we were aboard a small space-vehicle, it's size and shape akin to that of the usual UFO you see on television or wherever. The engine of our ship was placed right at the center of the vehicle hummed and blew black smoke, light bulbs flickered on and off, thousands of wirings scattered all over the place, hundreds of small machineries embedded in the walls hummed producing various noises. The room we were in was small, the presence of these machineries only made it tighter. Fyor was comfortably seated down upon a pile of papers, with a cigarette dangling between her lips she inhaled and exhaled a puff of smoke. I was leaning over the wall, doing nothing but thinking. Robert on the other hand was seated in the pilot's seat, navigating the vehicle as we rested.
Robert: "Why couldn't we just use our portal gun to get there? That'd be way faster." Robert asked with turning back to look at me.
William: "Thought this would give us some time to bond?"
Robert: "Bonding's a big word."
Robert's dislike of me was restrained, yet somewhat palpable in his tone, mannerisms, and how he replied.
William: "Do you hate me?"
Robert: "No, I just don't like you."
William: "Is there a difference?"
Robert: "Yes there is."
Robert let out a small sigh, scratching his head before continuing.
Robert: "I don't like people in general. But I don't bare hatred towards one guy specifically."
William: "Oh, so you're like, introverted?"
Robert: "Yeah, something like that. But I'll talk to people who I'm working with, not cuz I want it but because communication is important on the job."
I paused for a moment, trying to think of a way to prolong the conversation with this guy. And not long after, a thought came into mind.
William: "How's Joffrey by the way? Last time I met that dude was at a bar, he was whining about his relationship with his sister."
Robert: "He looks like sh*t. He got into a fight with an arbiter, got his ass beat."
I widened my eyes in shock, and leaned forward so fast I nearly fell down upon hearing the news. Who picks a fight with an arbiter?
William: "Woah, woah, woah. Which arbiter?"
Robert: "Red."
William: "Damn. Geralt of all people? Was he drunk?"
Robert: "Severely, yeah. What sober person would pick a fight with an arbiter? Oh, which reminds me, you're an arbiter too right? Along with Chrissonfield over there."
He said, gesturing at Fyor. I leaned back, placing my hands behind my head, using it as a cushion as a laid down on the cold metal floor.
William: 'I've been an arbiter for a long time man, I still don't know what we're even for."
Robert: "Really?"
William: "Well I do, that was just sarcasm."
Robert: "...So, what's it like to be an arbiter?"
William: "Ahhh....You know, it's not really any different from your jobs."
Robert: "F*ck off, at least you're not an afterbody, whose corpse gets recycled for further use the moment they stop being useful."
William: "Doesn't mean we have it better man. By the way, how did Joffrey even survive an encounter with Geralt? I saw that guy kill someone for breathing too loud once."
Robert chuckled slightly as he remembered the event.
Robert: "He got punched in the stomach once, shat himself, and then the arbiter left because he lost motivation cuz of the smell-HAHA! Oh man, that was hysterical."
I burst out an uncontrollable laughter upon hearing Robert's words, I laughed so hard I accidentally bumped my head on the wall. Fyor herself giggled slightly.
William: "AHAHAH-Ow! Ahahaha! That's the funniest sh*t I've heard to day!"
Fyor: "Literally!"
Robert: "...You know, since you two are both arbiters, I was thinking you'd be really intimidating. I mean of course aside from Chrissonfield, who'd slit my throat for breathing wrong, you—Mr. Nobody, are pretty...chill, I guess."
William: "Well, arbiters are pretty sh*t people. I don't know where those guys get their arrogance from—it's probably from the fact that it's a super important role they're filling out. "
Robert: "...So, tell me more about yourself—Lidenberge. How can the anathema—the most abnormal of the anomalies, be an arbiter at the same time?"
William: "Oh...That?"
I composed myself after laughing hysterically for a good couple of minutes. Clearing my throat, deciding to get more serious for a change.
William: "You know what SAS—the anomalies I mean—are right?"
Robert: "I know they're like pests eating away at the script, giving us more over time, yeah. And I've heard you're one of the most dangerous one. Why's that?"
William: "...I'm sure we can find something nicer to talk about."
Robert: "Oh, come on. Dodging the question?...Alright, tell me, you're a man with multiple names, Lucius, Danya, William. What's up with that?"
William: "...Ahhh, that. Yeah. It's....Symbolic, you know? Those names are like organs."
Robert: "Organs? The hell does that mean?" Robert asked, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion.
William: "...You ever feel like you're drowning in misery? Like, there's no light in the tunnel, asking yourself 'aahhhh woe is me, what is all this pain for?' Like, you're genuinely lost, and don't know what to do anymore?"
Robert: "I've never met anyone who hasn't, actually."
William: "Yeah, that's what I'm getting at here. I think of myself as a dying body, desperately clinging to something—anything at all to stay afloat..."
I stared blankly at the ceiling, observing it in fine details, as hallucinations began to appear. Dream-like hallucinations, of contorting and bending clouds which shaped and formed skulls and spirals.
William: "And those names...Are three selves, personas I created trying to find truth in this world...Three organs of a dying body..."
Robert: "That is...Probably the edgiest thing I've heard all day."