No need to thank me

I don't need a thank you at the end of a job well done. Doing my job and fulfilling my purpose is enough for me to be satisfied.

I work for a mercenary group based at the slums of the capital, I don't particularly like my job, neither do I think it brings much value to the world. My job would be essentially pointless if the cops looked for the criminals instead of looking for us who take them down.

I can't tell you my name since I prefer to keep it to myself, but its fine, no one here really knows it, they don't need to know my name if we don't interact. "So how you doin' these days?" I heard a familiar voice approaching from behind me. "I'm doing well enough, though it could be better if you'd just keep your distance..." . That's Zyx, he is a mercenary like me who works for the same group. We used to work together for a while, but we were never really close, that's what i thought at least, but he keeps trying to approach me every time we meet. It seriously gets on my nerves. "Anyways nameless fry, wanna join me for a contract I received? it seems easy enough but the reward is out of this world!" . "How much?" I asked, knowing full well I couldn't care less. "5 million Dollars" He said. "5 million? and who's paying?" "Well, we both know the contractor can stay anonymous, that's a part of the deal." . I hate that smug expression he has on his face. "Who's the target then? anyone important?". "It seems the targets are just a few thugs on 5th avenue, easy enough right?", does he seriously not see that this is a trap? and a very obvious one at that, not that it matters, it's his problem, I'm not joining. "I'll pass, enjoy the reward alone though, I'm sure you can quit with that large sum." "Well I thought I should offer, but if you refuse that's your choice, I'll go alone then." he said as he started approaching the tavern's door. "Be careful, come back when you're done!" I said. I can't help but be a little worried, but I'm sure he'll be fine. He has a habit of acting like he is the main character of some power fantasy, I'm sure he has plot armor too.

It's been a while since he has left, 5th avenue was it? I started walking towards the 5th avenue, trying to hide my presence as much as possible. I can't help but be worried about him. I don't like Zyx but I'd feel bad if he'll get scammed because I didn't warn him.

As Im reaching the 5th avenue, I pick up an eerie smell, its not blood, but it smells like a mix of iron and organic waste, it's disgusting, really. As I take a left turn to where the thugs usually hang out, I see a 5 men standing together looking at something. I look up to where one of them was pointing, there was a bird there, It didn't move its wings, but it was floating. The bird noticed me, and stared at me for a few moments, afterwards it took of and left.

When I looked back down, the men were looking at me, behind them, was a pool of blood and organs. I didn't run away, I have nothing to lose, if anything this is the first time my curiosity was picked in a few years, I should do my best to get to the bottom of this. I took out my silenced pistol and shot them all down swiftly, their blood mixing with the pool behind them. When I approach the pool of blood from before, I smell that eerie fragrance again, I look back, Its the bird. I take out my gun, It doesn't move, I aim at the bird, and it opens its mouth: "A person who first aims and then asks is as immature as a toddler, and he as the average human." . Confused, I put down the gun, and approach the bird. "What's your name" I asked. "Its rude to ask for someone's name before stating your own" the bird said, not angry, but with a bit of sass. "You know it already don't you? that's why you came down here, to torment me? state your business, not that I deal with birds anyways." The bird laughed, "You really are immature aren't you youngling. Let me tell you something, never approach a talking bird with confidence, the world around you is as fake as you are." Getting frustrated, I took out my gun and aimed once again at the cocky bird, "Fuck this, I don't need some talking bird to talk sense into me, nothing makes sense anyways damn it." "That's true, but will shooting the poor bird help anything? you know, I think, shooting yourself will do more good than shooting some random bird." "Wha...?" "Yes, even more so, I urge you to shoot yourself, you know you deserve it, you killed thousands of people, and we both know not all of them were evil." "So what?!" I said, "I never took pride in my field of work, I never tried to stand out, or be flashy, I am just doing my job." The bird laughed, getting closer to my gun, " The reason you never felt like you needed the spotlight was because, you already got your satisfaction from all those poor souls you've taken. You're a frick, you enjoy murdering those poor bastards who did some rich asshole wrong." I pulled the trigger and shot the bird, It died on the spot.

A few days have passed, a funeral was held for Zyx but I didn't attend. Sometimes I ask myself if the bird was right, well that's a lie. I know it was right. I did enjoy killing all of them, every single one of them, was for my satisfaction, a mere toy I wanted to break. I'm a frick, I'm addicted to my job, I love it, I can't quit. After a few more weeks, I find myself in prison, I wasn't caught, i turned myself in.

"No more killing" I said to myself, and to the eyes surrounding me attached to the walls of my cell. "I can't go on like this anymore, killing doesn't do the same for me any longer". I started writing, not something complicated, just some poems from time to time, a short story here and there. I find satisfaction in the little things now, things like having dinner with some friends, or meeting a nice person at the prison's library. My name I still can't tell you, but it's because there was no one to call me by that name In so long I've forgotten it myself.