A Fundamental Difference

A Bar, Somewhere in The City

A relatively young man that could only be described as a "typical" businessman stood at the entrance, wearing a decent looking suit possessing numerous wrinkles, along with a pair hybrid working-dress shoes that had their bottoms devoid of any traction from all the walking fine within them. Though the most visible features were the large bags under their eyes, even larger than the standard within the City's many office jobs, and the large strands of his hair that were greying far too early for his age.

Gerard Gunman was his name, an IT Specialist was his job, being a member of The Old Guard was his pride, and being a Luminary was his life. Though at this moment, he was just a man looking for a certain someone to have a drink with.

Well, it certainly isn't the worst place in the world.

Gerard thought, as he walked into the bar. His eyes were shifting around, almost unconsciously looking for agents of The Dark and his target. He had his Regalia ready to expand at a moments notice from within his suitcase, but luckily that particular eventuality wouldn't come to pass. Thus, his target was spotted without any issue.

In the corner of the bar, an empty pint of the cheapest beer available along with several empty shot glasses surrounded a particularly pale man, with skin just as white as the leftover foam from the ale. He wore a cheap, stained t-shirt with some corporate logo or other printed across their back, a pair of stained jeans with rips and patches strewn about, with his unflattering attire ending in half-untied sneakers with stained (formerly) white strings that were were falling apart. Though the most striking and obvious feature the man possessed was a the almost impressive frown upon his face, perpetually sustained through both locked facial muscles and never-ending surges of negative emotion.

Gerard pulled up a chair and placed it across from the visibly depressed man. The frowning man's face rose up, his eyes faintly glinting with recognition.

"Gerard."

Gerard looked back into the man's eyes, sitting down once he didn't get an outright rejection of his presence by the other (now former) Old Guard Luminary.

"Louis."

Though upon closer inspection, Gerard raised his right eyebrow as he noticed something that shouldn't be there. A blush and a buzz was across the now named Louis's face. That shouldn't be possible, Luminaries are protected from outright supernatural toxins, let alone something as mundane as alcohol.

Gerard though he might as well ask then, it seemed like a good enough tone-setter as any.

"So Louis, what'd you put in your drink?"

Though the eternal frown didn't leave his face, Gerard could've sworn he saw the slightest twitch of his lips trying to form a smirk.

"Oh this? A Biomancer owed me a couple favors, made me this fancy compound that can even get us a proper buzz. Don't worry, it'll filtrate out with time as my defenses kick in."

Gerard made a mental note to get to whoever Louis's contact was later. Though the seemingly fun tone of the interaction immediately went down the drain as whatever sparks of a smirk that remained were flushed away as he began to speak once more.

"Questions about drinks aside, why are you here? I didn't take the Old Guard for therapeutic interventionists."

Gerard had a long sigh at that. The fact was that suspecting an ulterior motive to re-integrate Louis into the Old Guard, even if it did seem overly cynical, was indeed a rational assumption to make. Louis Finnegan was still one hell of a potential asset against the Dark, even as a hollow shell of the Luminary he once was.

Though Gerard shook his head and gave a small but friendly smile, as he couldn't care less about Luminary affairs at the moment.

"Would you believe me If I just wanted to have a talk with my friend? Outside of Luminary Affairs?"

Louis wasn't convinced. Nor did he particularly care about what Gerard was offering.

"Co-workers at best. I buried my friends. "

Gerard kept his positive attitude despite the adversity, something that he humorously reflects has come to define his entire life. Compared to what he sees and/or fights on the daily, keeping a smile upon his face and as jovial a tone he could muster trying to cheer up a frie-....co-worker, was something he could do with ease.

"Well, I don't suppose we can change that status over a drink?"

"No. I don't suppose."

An instant rejection. Gerard expected that. Though he didn't expect what Louis would say next after a short pause and a sigh from Louis.

"How do you do it?"

Gerard merely raised an eyebrow at that vague question, clearly signaling a request for clarification.

"Hope. Everything you say, everything you do, its suffused with it. Some unshakable belief behind your eyes that this hell of ours is going to end."

Gerard kept his eyebrow raised at that statement for a bit, blinking rapidly in his confusion and thought . He certainly didn't see himself as some beacon of the Light like some within the Myrmidons or the Luminous Knights. Sure, he fought the good fight but it was nothing special, and most of it was what out of what he thought to be half delirious "righteous fury" to beat up monsters. Had Louis truly deprived himself of any sort of positivity, isolating himself within his own psyche to the point where anything backed with positive connotations was something special?

Gerard stopped himself before he got too lost within his own thoughts. Too much thinking for your own good could lead you down some dark places, something Gerard suspected Louis was all too privy to. He had to give an answer eventually instead of awkwardly fumbling about in his head, so Gerard just chuckled and said,

"I just don't suppose I can't find any reason not too."

Now it was Louis' turn to have a blatant look of confusion upon his face (it still didn't overtake the prevalent frown). To go through the files of his mind to find a response to that.

What Gerard said was...illogical. Irrational. Childish. Insultingly naive. There was a large part of Louis that desperately wanted to argue against it as a knee-jerk reaction. To "passionately" give all the various reasons that the Dark had its tendrils irreparably wrapped around the world with no way out, and how their fighting was pointless. Though it was deemed immediately pointless as a calmer head prevailed. Afterall, Louis knew for a godamned fact that the man sitting himself in front of him knew, had seen, and had been through just as much shit as he had, even if it was debatably less or more in some regards.

Louis just gave a sigh of resignation after the mental gears stopped visibly turning. He still firmly believed he was right, but that there was no way to currently convince Gerard of letting go of his irrational perspective.

"I believe that both of us can find plenty of reasons."

Gerard gave passing a nod at that.

"Fair. I guess you do have to be a bit crazy to put up a fight against the taint that pervades through very fabric of society."

A dismissal. Like it wasn't even truly worth arguing about.

,Gerard knew about as much as Louis did when it came to where his seemingly unbreakable optimism to fight the Dark came from. To him, it was like asking someone why they breathed, or why their heart beat. It could technically be explained, but in the end it was just something so very fundamental to him, and likely every other Luminary. Hell, its probably why he was flung into this war into the first place all those years ago as a young man. To see someone who had lost that spark of hope...it was alienating and almost frightening to witness on a fundamental level, like someone not having a heartbeat. Most of all, it was reasonable, healthy even. A path that any could take, to separate their minds and body's away from the horrors of the personal hells they found themselves in in their war against The Dark.

Louis wasn't disappointed, nor mad. much like the previous statement, it merely served to underline the fundamental difference between them in his mind.

Gerard Gunman was a Luminary. An almost mythical warrior that relentlessly fought against The Dark without hesitation nor fear both within and without a suit of magical armor.

Louis Finnegan was just a man. Someone who lost too much, and couldn't fight anymore.

Though all this existentialism made Gerard a bit thirsty.

"You know, since I'm in a bar and all, I'll get us a round of drinks while I'm at it. Perhaps you can use whatever fancy drink enhancement to take the edge off."

That was the first thing that Louis could 100% agree on since Gerard got here.

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Pub: 01 Aug 2025 16:19 UTC

Edit: 04 Aug 2025 04:52 UTC

Views: 51