Teuful im Detail [Lukas/Ninsianna]

THE CITY OF LIGHT
Nonsensical paperwork and endless filings. Self-surveillance, careful reporting; a man made to toe the line of his own creation, helped along by the invisible hand of progress. Whether or not he'd appreciate that would come in time, for now?

Impatience and impudent rage.

The binding on his arm itched in his sleep. Nightmares of his own hand choking the last of his life away, waking in cold sweat gasping for air. A lack of freedom left him paranoid, the pain and regrets slowly mounting into their own beast sat in his skull. Yet his effort persisted, Lukas' latest submission for appeal coming back with an actual appointment.

Ninsianna. Silver eyes darted across the page as he scrolled the dimly lit screen, location and time burning into his mind. The name rang with some familiarity, uncalled for the moment. Preparing himself, Lukas dressed and left, heading for the administrative building he had been called for, the faint taste of hope in the back of his throat.

It was suspiciously similar to vomit.

Pushing through a narrow hallway, the quincy sat across an office door, gaze darting around stark white walls. A knot in his throat, difficult to swallow as he realized the opportunity present. Glancing at his phone, the clock ticking by another minute, still ten minutes early. Impatience won him over, knocking quickly on the door, speaking through it. "Is this the office of frau Ninsianna?"

"Come in."

Ninsianna's voice was even, professional, the most textbook possible tone of a secretary. Her work as director tended not to get her many direct visitors, and certainly not visitors who came from the other departments, but she knew this particular visitor already. After all, this was one of the few she maintained a contract with for such a significant length of time, and there was likely no one in the Vandenreich more qualified to maintain this particular situation.

"What do you need, Mr. Atherisch?"

After all, she didn't exactly imagine that this was some sort of courtesy visit.

THE CITY OF LIGHT
A deep breath, eyes closed tight. Opening the door, they opened; Lukas stepping in as he closed it behind. Silver eyes darted across the room for a moment before they focused back to the woman in front of him, gears starting to click in memory. That's right. Her.

Sitting down, he paused before responding. Arms crossing his chest, the click of his teeth audible as he slowly exhaled. "I'm here to talk about the..." Lukas' left hand raised, scarred knuckles baring white from between the wrapping. "...Conditions?" He'd pause again, gaze darting across the pattern of his arm, seeking the words.

Turning back to the Administrator, his head shook. "Look, the contract or whatever we've got going on with my entire being here, I want it to change. I've been putting in the work, we took out a massive hollow in Africa, I was one of the only responders to that goddamn nightmare with the arrancar, and just-" Fingers raised to count his accomplishments, dropping as voice cut off.

"I can't stay in the Stadt like this forever. I can't keep going out into the field with a fraction of my power. I need something to change."

Perhaps it was his tone of voice, or the way he carried himself, but Ninsianna certainly wouldn't say that she appreciated the manner in which Lukas was currently presenting this. The accomplishments stated were certainly impressive, but the manner in which they were listed was less so.

"Your service in the Vandenreich has certainly been noted. However, the nature of that service is something which we continue to bear in mind."

Ninsianna could not in good conscience consider the idea of simply removing the restrictions on the man when he was, ultimately, still on release for rather heinous crimes. He was already a good deal more free than most might have been for such an action, and more independence was not something she was immediately inclined to give to someone such as that.

"What exactly do you feel requires change to assist in your duties?"

That much was rather key. Ninsianna certainly was not inclined to give time off for good behavior, least of all when 'good' seemed to be a rather relative term.

THE CITY OF LIGHT
The man's apprehension snapped almost immediately, baring instead to his more impulsive nature. A mix of long built resentment and newfound disillusionment. "I've been part of the Vandenreich for almost half of my life. Most of that service is killing people higher ups like you think are too dangerous, or don't keep their mouths shut. The nature of my service has always been the parts no one else wants to do, and I'm supposed to be punished for that?"

Lukas' eyes locked with Ninsianna's as he spoke, posture striking a fair bit more confidence in his tone. Still they'd close with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose as he collected himself. The weight of what was at stake had not yet left his shoulders, a very immediate regret for his words.

"Look. I just want some more freedom. Take leave somewhere. You can do whatever surveillance or shit you want, lock me back up if it goes south." His tone shifting back towards reasoning from anger, a tired look peering out from behind his eyes. "Everything I've done has been for the sake of the Vandenreich."

The accusatory tone of Lukas' voice made Ninsianna raise a single eyebrow ever so slightly, if only to convey how she felt about it. Personally, she wasn't especially concerned with how the Vandenreich had been run prior, but she understood that it had hardly been handled well. That, however, was barely relevant so far as his sentence had gone.

"My only concern with regard to the older Vandenreich is correcting their myriad mistakes. But you are not held in prison for having served in unsavory ways, Mr. Atherisch. 30,000 civilians killed is not a small crime, and I imagine that there are many in the Vandenreich whose own experiences would make them far less accomodating to your freedom in the first place."

Her voice was curt, professional, but at least a touch more personal than it typically was. Considering the situation for a moment, she then spoke again, having already considered any greater consequences that would be possible.

"Very well."

A contract formed itself on her desk, terms for leave laid out plainly and with purpose.

"Requests for leave will be maintained on record for surveillance purposes, as well as your intended destination. Travel outside of this intended destination with a grace window of 5 kilometers, or failure to return to the City of Lights in a timely manner with a grace window of 1 day, will result in immediate termination. This penalty is subject to reconsideration at a later date."

Ninsianna didn't actually much care for using death as a punitive measure in her contracts. Ideally, it wouldn't have been necessary. But she was already extending a rather significant increase in trust to the man by allowing him these leave windows in the first place. The best that she could do was make it clear that she would change that penalty when she felt it appropriate.

THE CITY OF LIGHT
30,000 non-Quincy. Big fuckin' deal. This time, the man had enough wit to bite his tongue. Lukas, for the moment, would listen with bated breath. A skipped heartbeat, nearly sighing from relief - catching his hopes as he pulled the contract towards himself.

Not much of one to care for terms, conditions, or anything approaching legal-ese, Lukas barely glanced across the paper as he nodded. "Okay, yeah. I can do that."

Little care or attention was brought to the idea that he was literally signing his life away. After all, he had no intention of actively breaking the terms of the contract. Regardless of what limitations the woman would place, there was a definitive joy in the idea of leaving the city. Reaching forward, Lukas locked eyes with the woman once more. "Where do I sign? And do I need to submit the info to you, or is there going to be another hurdle of paperwork?"

Despite the flood of positivity, there was still a tinge of disdain to the man's words.

"Simply sign at the end."

Ninsianna doubted he would feel particularly compelled to read the contract in full, but the nature of the contract meant that it wasn't hugely relevant whether he did or did either way. Not because it could blindside him, but because any attmept on her end to include something outside his knowledge would void the entire process.

"Submit the paperwork directly to me. It will need to come by my desk regardless, so there won't be any need to send it up the bureaucratic chain."

It was more a matter of efficiency than anything else, though she imagined he would probably prefer things being that straightforward. Just as well.

THE CITY OF LIGHT
Without a moment of hesitation, the man's signature was poured onto the page. Nodding along to her reply as he did, the pen dropped to the desk with a click as Lukas pushed the paperwork back to her side of the desk. Without missing a beat, he'd reach into the inside of his jacket, a half crumpled form appearing in his hand. "In that case, here you go."

Half scribbled, half properly filled out was a requisition form for travel, requesting for a stayover of a week and flight permissions. Where there had once been a massive stamp claiming DENIED was a dried clump of whiteout, lettering poorly drawn back over it. The destination being Feldburg, a forested mountain range bordering France from Germany. A specific address was crossed out and re-made a half dozen times, finally ending with several question marks in its last iteration.

"I, uh, don't really know if it has a strict address. It's within whatever range of distance you need, though. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere?" Half question half statement, he pushed the page towards Ninsianna, lips pursing in impatience. "There should also be an account to pull from for any funds. Its rights got signed over to your department for travel and missions expenditure on my... Incarceration."