Freelancer II
“I should’ve never given in to you, and forgotten who I am”
Outline only.
This story is a direct continuation of the first Freelancer graphic novel.
As shown at the end of the first book, Lucy decides to start a business making stuffed toys, which she sells at a local shop. Her creations are weird - misshapen, and unappealing - and are not particularly popular. Lucy is downcast, and withdraw within herself, too proud to admit this new direction isn't working out.
Meanwhile, Pru, her flatmate, is going from strength to strength with her accounintg work, and moots the idea of moving out to find her own flat. Other people around Lucy are also doing well - including the musician turned mascot from the first book. Lucy tries to be supportive, but feels her life falling apart - she worries about being left behind. Out of desperation, she decides to finally go straight, taking a job she finds in the newspaper. She throws her teddy bears in the bin, and heads off to "become an adult".
Lucy is initially overjoyed with her new job, which requires her to sit at a computer and do almost nothing. Her boss, a huge, stooped woman, is a little strange, but Lucy is able to placate her by creating endless pointless busywork throughout the day, and complaining about how she’s “rushed off her feet”. Everyone in the office is “rushed off their feet”, too - though they don’t appear to do anything.
As the novelty of full-time employment fades, Lucy feels the itch for monster hunting again, and begins to take on freelance work after-hours. This leaves her exhausted, and she struggles to concentrate. Still - the "real job" requires only the bare minimum. However, with time, we see her visibly age, growing wrinkled and grey. She struggles in her monster- hunting work, but puts it down to over-exertion. During the day, Lucy's new boss grows more aggressive and controlling, and our hero begins to suspect that something is wrong at the office.
One day, while the boss is busy, Lucy decides to snoop around the office. She discovers that the boss is a monster in disguise, and it is feeding on the workers' time to make it more powerful. Lucy tries to summon her sword in order to fight the creature, but the flame sputters out. She catches sight of herself in the glass of the door - she has now become an old woman, drained of all of her energy by this place. There is nothing she can do against the monster,
Back home, she struggles with low energy. With all her teddies gone, she has no source of solace - "this is my life every day now - until I die!" she thinks.
The next day, Lucy is trudging through her commute, another drone like all the rest, when a mother and child catch her eye. Lucy can't believe it - the little girl is clutching one of Lucy's wonky soft toys! "It's her favourite" says the mother. "She won't go anywhere without it". Lucy realises that even if only one person cares about her creations, it will have made a difference. The crowd of commuters pour around them. Where did she lose her way?
Lucy returns home, pulls on her old clothes, and is about to dash back out the door when she runs into Pru. Pru notes Lucy's sword, poorly disguised in a gym bag: “You don’t have to do this Lucy – you have a pension now!”.
At work, the boss berates Lucy for being late. The pretence has been dropped now; the mask dropped, and the monster is visible to all. The workers have all turned grey, sucked dry, and unable to do a thing. Lucy looks inside her head, and finds the spark of childish, belligerent anger which has carried her through so many previous indignities. Her sword jumps to life in her hand, and she slices her computer in half: "bye bye sick pay" she laments.
Some of her youthful energy regained, Lucy fights the monster, de-aging further as the continues, until the monster is finally defeated. Lucy is her old self again - almost: one streak of grey in her hair is a reminder of the wasted time.
Lucy returns home. All of her buddies, including Colonel Fluffykins, are hanging from pegs in a series of washing lines which snake around the living room. Lucy can’t believe it. Pru explains that she found the teddies in a bin, and hadn’t got round to cleaning them yet – she knew Lucy would come to her senses eventually.
Lucy is overwhelmed by the gesture, and asks Pru not to find a new place to live just yet. Pru is surprised - she didn't think Lucy liked living with her! Maybe things can stay the same - at least for a little while.
The story ends with Lucy sitting on her bed. Making the buddies is meaningful, but there's no money in it, so now what? A thought strikes her.
In his office, Lucy's freelance boss, the owl, answers his phone. Lucy: "I'm thinking of making my own monster-hunting agency. You in?"
END