Chapter 54: 57. Superior Violence Part 3

Angelidis keeps pulling Shaula farther and farther away from the crowd. The two children are taken away by the city guards. Shaula feels seething rage as Angelidis keeps  dragging her away. She doesn’t resist though. She instead puts her mind to more productive concerns.

Angelidis may be stopping her now, but maybe in hindsight her actions were a bit rash. What would have happened if she had gone directly into the fray and attacked those cops? The kids could have been hurt in the crossfire. Other pigs might get involved. 

What she should do now is think of the safest way to incapacitate the two officers and free those two kids. She can do that much and the kids can get away from this place like they should have done already.

Those two cops are probably walking towards carriages at the edge of the festival. They’ll likely put the two in the carriage, and one (or both) of them will take the kids away. They’ll probably then go to a guard's station with a jail somewhere. What can she do to disrupt this future?

Intercept the guards in the middle of the transport? It would be dangerous to do so while the carriage is moving. The kids could get hurt. Catch them right before they leave from here? She’ll undoubtedly be seen. Keeping a low profile would suit her and Ajax a lot better. Catch them when they arrive? There’ll be a lot of–

“Shaula.”

“...”

“Shaula… what were you about to do?” Angelidis asks. Her tone is firm, but slightly wavering. She is afraid. Both for her and of her.

“Forget it. We need to figure out a way to free those two kids.” Shaula stares up at the sun while considering the best course of action that will let those kids not sleep in a dirty cell.

“...Shaula, those are city guards.”

“Duuuhhh, the fuck? You think I’m a fucking idiot?”

“Shaula…”, Angelidis lowers her voice to a serious whisper. Currently, they’re waiting beside the crowd, Angelidis, Shaula and Ajax. Ajax is holding his fingers to the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed in anger. The crowd next to them is getting louder and louder.

Those two kids being arrested must have really angered both the original counter protesters and the festival attendees. It’ll be hard to distinguish the two groups if their anger continues climbing. Angelidis takes a deep breath while hearing the anger. She feels it too.

But, she cannot let her mind go to that place. Not here.

“You can’t confront them like that.”

“...Why not?” Shaula asks, her voice eerily even. “You just saw how those fucks handled those two kids, didn’t you? You know how many petty criminals I’ve beat up over the past few weeks? Those two armored scumbags deserve what’s coming to them at least as much as any of those other shitheads…”

“Shaula, you can’t do that!” Angelidis shouts. Shaula steps back for a moment. Neither Ajax nor she were expecting such a sharp response. Her scream was properly muffled by the angry crowds nearby so only the two of them noticed. Angelidis takes a few deep breaths.

“...If you try to escalate things with the police, they’ll bring their hammer down on all of us. Normally at one of these things, they’ll arrest anyone who disrupts the peace or pisses them off in any way. Those two kids won’t be hurt, they’re not stupid enough to kill them or harm like that. They’ll be kept overnight as a way to harass the parents.”

“Jelli, those two don’t have any parents!” Shaula shouts in frustration. She can at least tell that there are no parents waiting for them anywhere. They only have each other. Will they even be allowed to stay in the same jail cell? 

“…Still, fighting the guards in public will make them escalate things and search our neighborhoods for people that match your description. They’ll harass and arrest more demihumans on the street, rape more of us, they’ll even start cracking down harder on prostitutes and pickpockets like me. Like our friends!” Angelidis’ lip quivers in fear and anger.

She has some history with the guard’s and their retaliation. There have been times where she killed people in the past. Each time she did so, there was a reaction from the guards. Especially when there was a human involved. Her streets, both where she walked and where she worked, became more dangerous.

Cops never like being humiliated or shown that they’re ineffectual in public.

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There were times where her friends were close to being arrested and charged with the crime of prostitution. When the police are willing to throw the book at prostitutes, they become prisoners with long sentences. Shaula sucks air in sharply.

“...So, you want me to do nothing?”

“No. No, that’s not what I mean. Just…” Angelidis takes a slow breath. “Just be mindful of the time and place. When you fight one cop, you fight them all. The cops in this city are territorial and they stick together. Unless you have a plan to get rid of all of them, all at once, you’re inviting a hard retaliation. I can tell… You’re strong enough to get away with beating up one or two cops. Maybe a dozen of them. Maybe even all the cops attending this event. But, most people aren’t. When those fucking cowards can’t lay a finger on you, they’ll come after those of us who can’t fight back.”

Shaula looks down at the ground while Ajax looks over at her. He is uncertain whether Angelidis is right about this. He had no qualms with Shaula confronting those two bastards. He can see now though that Shaula’s eyes are trembling.

She can tell that there is truth to what Angelidis has said. She knows that even when Ajax and she went burglarizing those houses, the cops escalated things. Considering how the cops operate in this city, that must have ruined at least one or two lives. One or two more people taken in for pickpocketing, for something petty…

The lives of people she didn’t see…

“Jelli…” Ajax speaks up.

“What is it?” Angelidis asks, with her eyes downcast.

“Those kids… They don’t have anyone. Nobody will care if something happens to them. Are you… Are you sure that those children… won’t be abused? You saw how those two armored guys acted in public, right? What if they beat those kids in private where nobody can see them? Are they known for doing something like that?”

Angelidis knows that they are. In private, they’re capable of anything. City guards have raped women in jail and none as far as she knows have been arrested. The stories about the city guards’ conduct get around in her profession.

“I… don’t know, Ajax. That might be a risk you’ll have to take today. I-I can tell that both of you are strong. I have a gut feeling that I’ve learned to trust over my life. One that tells me who or what I have to fear. I have to fear the two of you… I know that… But, if you act rashly, you won’t be the ones affected. It’s our community that’ll face the punishment.” 

Shaula considers Angelidis’ plea. It is true. Ajax and she aren’t here in this city, on this planet, to wage war against all injustices. Fighting the guards of this city is fighting this city itself. First, it’ll be beating up one cop. Then, there’ll be a dozen cops going around searching for her, harassing demihuman neighborhoods to do it.

What if she tries confronting all of them? She could incapacitate a lot of them. But, then what about the heroic noble ruling this city? Wouldn’t a large-scale confrontation with the guards force him to intervene? She doesn’t know if that’s a fight she and Ajax combined can win.

She is only after a way home, she’s not here to solve everyone’s problems.

On Earth, she might be willing to go that far. She would be willing to sacrifice her life to make sure that the police hurt even one less person. But, Omicron is a waypoint. One day, she’ll leave this place. She’d be willing to stay on Earth to protect everyone forever. That’s her home. 

She can’t make that commitment for this world. She’s just not planning to be here long enough to affect anything in the long term.

“Fuck…” Shaula crouches down and puts her head in her hands.

Angelidis crouches next to her and places her hand on her shoulder. She smiles with a wide grin. Her sharp, draconid teeth are clearly displayed.

“I can tell that you’re a good person, Shaula. From being around you the past weeks, I know that you have a sense of right and wrong. It’s not like we can only solve things through violence, either.”

Shaula looks at her smile.

“What is it?”

“I’ll show you what we can do to help people in a place like this. I’ve been to a statue march before. I’ll show you what I did those last times to help even one more person.”

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