Part 6 (1/2)
Of course, all social movement upward couldn't be stopped. But it could be r.e.t.a.r.ded, discouraged, and made exceedingly dangerous. The way one encountered the laws and customs of Omega was through a risky process of trial and error.
Although the Antidote Shop took up most of his time, Barrent persisted in his efforts to locate the girl. He was unable to find a hint that she even existed.
He became friendly with the shopkeepers on either side of him. One of them, Demond Harrisbourg, was a jaunty, moustached young man who operated a food store. It was a mundane and slightly ridiculous line of work; but, as Harrisbourg explained, even criminals must eat. And this necessitated farmers, processors, packagers, and food stores.
Harrisbourg contended that his business was in no way inferior to the more indigenous Omegan industries centered around violent death.
Besides, Harrisbourg's wife's uncle was a Minister of Public Works.
Through him, Harrisbourg expected to receive a murder certificate. With this all-important doc.u.ment, he could make his six-months kill and move upward to the status of Privileged Citizen.
Barrent nodded his agreement. But he wondered if Harrisbourg's wife, a thin, restless woman, wouldn't decide to poison him first. She appeared to be dissatisfied with her husband; and divorce was forbidden on Omega.
His other neighbor, Tem Rend, was a lanky, cheerful man in his early forties. He had a heat scar which ran from just beneath his left ear down almost to the corner of his mouth, a souvenir given him by a status-seeking hopeful. The hopeful had picked on the wrong man. Tem Rend owned a weapon shop, practiced constantly, and always carried the articles of his trade with him. According to witnesses, he had performed the counterkill in exemplary fas.h.i.+on. Tem's dream was to become a member of the a.s.sa.s.sin's Guild. His application was on file with that ancient and austere organization, and he had a chance of being accepted within the month.
Barrent bought a sidearm from him. On Rend's advice, he chose a Jamiason-Tyre needlebeam. It was faster and more accurate than any projectile weapon, and it transmitted the same shock-power as a heavy caliber bullet. To be sure, it hadn't the spread of heat weapons such as the Hadjis used, which could kill within six inches of their target. But wide-range beamers encouraged inaccuracy. They were messy, careless weapons which reinforced careless traits. Anyone could fire a heat gun; but to use a needlebeam effectively, you had to practice constantly. And practice paid off. A good needlebeam man was more than a match for any two widebeam gunmen.
Barrent took this advice to heart, coming, as it did, from an apprentice a.s.sa.s.sin and the owner of a weapon shop. He put in long hours on Rend's cellar firing range, sharpening his reflexes, getting used to the Quik-Thro holster.
There was a lot to do and a tremendous amount to learn, just in order to survive. Barrent didn't mind hard work as long as it was for a worthwhile goal. He hoped things would stay quiet for a while so he could catch up to the older inhabitants.
But things never stayed quiet in Omega.
One day, late in the afternoon as he was closing up, Barrent received an unusual-looking caller. He was a man in his fifties, heavy-set, with a stern, swarthy face. He wore a red ankle-length robe and sandals. Around his waist was a rawhide belt from which dangled a small black book and a red-handled dagger. There was an air of unusual force and authority about him. Barrent was unable to tell his status.
Barrent said, ”I was just closing up, sir. But if there's anything you wish to buy--”
”I did not come here to buy,” the caller said. He permitted himself a faint smile. ”I came here to sell.”
”Sell?”
”I am a priest,” the man said. ”You are a newcomer to my district. I haven't noticed you at services.”
”I hadn't known anything about--”
The priest held up his hand. ”Under both the sacred and the profane law, ignorance is no excuse for nonperformance of one's duties. Indeed, ignorance can be punished as an act of willful neglect, based upon the Total Personal Responsibility Act of '23, to say nothing of the Lesser Codicil.” He smiled again. ”However, there is no question of chastis.e.m.e.nt for you as yet.”
”I'm glad to hear that, sir,” Barrent said.
”'Uncle' is the proper form of address,” the priest said. ”I am Uncle Ingemar, and I have come to tell you about the orthodox religion of Omega, which is the wors.h.i.+p of that pure and transcendent spirit of Evil which is our inspiration and our comfort.”
Barrent said, ”I'll be very happy to hear about the religion of Evil, Uncle. Shall we go into the living room?”
”By all means, Nephew,” the priest said, and followed Barrent to the apartment in back of the store.
Chapter Six
”Evil,” the priest said, after he had settled comfortably into Barrent's best chair, ”is that force within us which inspires men to acts of strength and endurance. The wors.h.i.+p of Evil is essentially the wors.h.i.+p of oneself, and therefore the only true wors.h.i.+p. The self which one wors.h.i.+ps is the ideal social being; the man content in his niche in society, yet ready to grasp any opportunity for advancement; the man who meets death with dignity, who kills without the demeaning vice of pity.
Evil is cruel, since it is a true reflection of the uncaring and insensate universe. Evil is eternal and unchanging, although it comes to us in the many forms of protean life.”