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He'd been gone for nearly five months after V-Day when he finally walked into the Black Prince to rescue his mother. He was Eggsy to Roxy, Merlin, and his Mum (Daisy, too, when she started talking) and Beaumains to everyone else he worked with. Saving the world had to take precedence over saving his family. He knew that, but it didn't make setting her up in Hampstead Garden Suburb any easier. It didn't mean that there weren't others he needed to rescue, others who would call him Eggsy.
***
Eggsy asked Jamal and Ryan to meet him at the Crown and Anchor near Neal's Yard. It tended to be quiet on the nights the Donmar Warehouse was closed, and he needed to talk to them both privately and in a setting that would be at least a little bit familiar.
He'd asked Merlin about how people were selected for the support jobs at Kingsman. There were some jobs which were advertised, where people were vetted so deeply Merlin probably had their sonograms on file, but many more were word of mouth recommendations where friends or friends-of-friends were vouched for and added to the roster at a very low level to work their ways up the ladder.
He'd then gone and spoken to the Lady. Eggsy liked her. She was a tough old bat who didn't brook any nonsense, but she was willing to listen and to apologize if she made a mistake. Lady informed him that they were always looking for people to do basic low-level maintenance on the cars. If they were good, they'd be sent to get certification as mechanics. If they were really good, they'd be allowed to apply for a driver position which meant learning evasive driving, basic weapons training, and observational skills. He told her about his two friends and wanting to help them, and she signed off on basic offers to Jamal and Ryan.
***
They greeted him with jokes and stories. Ryan had been injured on V-Day, but, like so many of the ones who were knocked out, survived because he wasn't moving. Jamal had been working a shift at the local grocer's he'd been lucky in the first wave and had managed to lock himself into the storefront shop alone, with the safety gates down between it and the second wave. The grocer had fired him for demolishing the inventory, but at least he'd survived without killing anyone.
When they asked Eggsy, he'd gone quiet. "I know I killed at least four people directly," was all he said. In his head, he counted Chester King, Charlie, Gazelle, and Valentine and then he added every single paid soldier he'd taken out -- about thirty, he thought, with Merlin's guidance -- and the hundreds, maybe thousands that he and Merlin were responsible for with the chip. Then he added in every single person who'd died during the second wave. The first wave, that was all on Valentine; Roxy, Merlin, and he had all done what they needed to buy themselves an hour which it turned out they didn't have. But the time he took getting back from the plane, the time he took fighting Gazelle, he figured that was on him.
His mates reckoned he had some bad memories and started back to asking where he'd been, what he'd been doing, and how the fucking hell was he working as a tailor.
Eggsy shook off his melancholy and gave an approximation of his best grin. "Now, see that's what I asked you here to talk about, right? I work for the shop, of course, but they know better than to let me near the scissors. I've been in training to buy fabrics. Get to travel a lot, but have to know how to spot quality and good bargains. Thing is, this shop gives real personalized service. They own a lot of cars, like that taxi I stole. Use 'em to deliver suits, sometimes to bring clients to the shop, often let the tailors and the people like me use 'em for our work and all."
"Yeah," Ryan said, "What you leading up to?"
"There's a couple of jobs available looking after the fleet cars. At first it's just going to be cleaning and restocking them."
Jamal said, "Restocking? What's in a black cab to restock?"
"Told you this place works posh and personalized. Cigars, cigarettes, liquor, sometimes even snacks. Got tellies in the back, though we do loads better than those shit adverts most of the cabs got these days."
"So they pay six quid an hour for us to do that, and there's a chance to move up, maybe get to twelve an hour before we retire with our watches that ain't even real gold?" Ryan didn't look happy.
"Where'd you get six quid an hour?" Eggsy asked. "Haven't even told you what the wage is and you're already feelin' hard done by."
Jamal looked between them and said, "So how much is it then?"
"You're in a probationary period for three to six months and that's only four hundred a week. If you stick it, though, it goes up to five hundred twenty a week once you're out of probation. 'At's thirteen an hour if you're countin' it that way."
"Fuck me," Jamal said, "Me dad don't even get that and he's been workin' for nearly twenty years."
Ryan said, "Just for taking care of cars?"
"Yes, that's it. There's a whole fleet. Told you, you can move up to mechanic or driver if you want to."
Jamal said, "This probation, what we gotta do to get past it?"
"No drugs. Not even the odd spliff, because they will pull random piss-tests. Punctuality's a big thing. Keep the swearin' down, but that's prolly not a requirement. Follow the dress code. Yours'll be a lot easier than mine."
Jamal grinned, "We don't get one of those sharp suits?"
"Tell you what, bruv, you make it to either mechanic or driver, and I'll have one made for you."
Ryan said, "Don't know that I go to that many funerals."
Eggsy bought the next round and let the two of them talk while they were being pulled.
Over this pint, they talked about the old neighborhood, East Enders -- who'd done some really good story lines after V-Day -- and the fact that their new King was only three years old.
When it got on for ten o'clock, Eggsy said, "I need to go home. Got work tomorrow."
Jamal and Ryan glanced between themselves and nodded. Jamal spoke for them both. "Do we got work tomorrow, too?"
Eggsy grinned. "You'll start on Monday. I'll meet you at High Barnet Tube Station, and we can get the bus out from there."
"Ain't you on Savile Row?" Jamal asked.
"Yeh, my office is there, but where do you think we can park a fleet of cars? There's a big country place for that."
Ryan said, "Makes sense I guess. Um, 'bout that piss-test? How long's it hang about, you know a spliff or two?"
"Not really sure. Check the internet. If it's more than three days, let me know and you can start the following Monday, all right?"
Ryan smiled. "'Fanks, bruv."
***
He'd run into the Lady after a mission and asked her how his friends were getting along. According to her, they both seemed to do well, but that Ryan was a little weak on his attention to detail.
Eggsy promised to have a word with him and went back for his check up.
Three weeks later, he got a call from Jamal. "Eggsy, wanted you to hear it from me rather than the bosses. Ryan was fired. Got caught in a random test and failed it. No way back, they said."
"Fuckin' hell. What do you reckon, should I call him?"
Jamal said, "I just tried. He's fuckin' pissed on something at the moment and mad 'cause I didn't walk out when they drove him back to the tube. But, I like the job. I'm doing good at it."
"Know you are. Asked the division head a couple of weeks back and all."
The line went silent for a moment. "Eggsy, before I left work today, they called me in -- said I was bein' taken off the probation an' that I could start trying for me certificates."
"'At's great, bruv. I'm that happy for you."
"Yeah, but, I feel fuckin' awful 'bout Ryan."
"Maybe we can figure something out for him later, but we can't help him 'less he wants to be helped, y'know."
"I know, bruv. Hey, me dad's going to be happy 'bout the bigger pay packet. We been saving up. Found a flat in Church End. It's on the Northern line so Dad can take it into the city for his job and I can take the High Barnett line to mine."
"'At's great, bruv. Y'know Mum's down near East Finchley. You could pop round."
"D'you pop round to see her?"
Eggsy said, "Sunday lunch if I'm in town and usually take Daisy off her hands on Saturday. Sometimes I can give her a mid-week break, but not as often as I'd like."
"Well, I'll tell Dad and maybe we can take her out to the pub one night, for old times." Jamal said, "Look, I just wanted you to know 'bout Ryan and thank you and all for my job."
"I just got your foot in the door. You did the work. See you soon, bruv."
***
After the weekly meeting of the table, Merlin asked if he could see Eggsy for a few minutes.
"Eggsy, we're about to start a new cohort for mechanics and drivers. Your friend Jamal is among them."
"Yeah, he told me and all."
"What you may not know is this is the point where they'll find out, well, what Harry told you from the start, that we're an independent spy agency. Now, I've already vetted the entire group. It's a fairly small one, but one of the things that will be done is to show pictures of the current knights, so that they know to obey one of you instantly should they meet you."
"Do they show you, too? Warn them that you're their big boss and all?"
"Yes, and the Lady, too. Now about your friend…"
"You think I should tell him in advance?"
Merlin said, "If you want to or… we've asked agents who were in similar situations to come and talk to the group, explain what we do to them. That way, when they take a break, you and Jamal can talk directly."
"You likely to be there, too? Or are you too busy with the candidates?"
"I am too busy with the candidates, but I can leave Roxy supervising their hand combat. It tends to lower the testosterone levels a little when someone who's five foot two and in a sling can still wipe the floor with them."
Eggsy laughed. "She'll enjoy it and all. She's been like a fucking bear about that sling."
"In that case," Merlin said, "I'll see you here Monday at 8 a.m. We should be done by half ten."
***
Jamal was a few minutes early and was able to grab what he thought was a good seat. All ten tables had sealed information packets on them with a note stating not to break the seal until requested.
The rest of the tables filled up quickly, and, at eight on the dot, a woman in her mid sixties walked in.
"Good morning and welcome to Kingsman. How many of you think Kingsman is a tailor's shop?"
Jamal raised his hand a little tentatively because, yeah, there were an awful lot of taxis and other cars for a small shop on Savile Row. Most of the others in the room had their hands up, too.
The woman pointed to the two who hadn't raised their hands. "And what did you think it was?"
One said, "I don't know, but seemed a lot like the army."
The other said, "I have a cousin who works here. He told me once the probationary period was over. He said it was all right."
She nodded. "Your cousin's fine." She turned back to the room at large. "My name is Myfanwy Rhys, but my code name is The Lady of the Lake, and I'm usually just called Lady. Every single one of you is ultimately answerable to me. Now then, having mentioned a code name, I want you to know what you're signing up for from here on out. Kingsman is a confidential organization. We are beholden to no government, nor police force, but we have been called in by both to handle delicate situations. There are nine knights -- agents, if you prefer -- whom we support in their missions world wide. Each knight has a code name. In addition, there's an Arthur, who heads the table, and a someone who is my boss and, in the event of the death of an Arthur, head of the whole organization as an interim. At this point, you have a choice. You can sign your name across the band on the packet in front of you and walk out of here. We will give you a good reference and help you find other work. As long as you never mention Kingsman as anything other than a tailor shop, there's no issue. You don't want to work for a secret organization, you don't have to. I will remind you that you've already signed a basic confidentiality agreement before you began to work here.
"Or, you can break the seal on your packets and sign the confidentiality agreement and other documents inside. You have fifteen minutes to make your decisions."
She left the room.
Jamal sat there staring at his packet. He wondered if Eggsy knew all about this secret shit, and then he shook his head. Of course, Eggsy knew. He knew and he trusted his friends to be part of the secret. He thought about Ryan for a moment. Thought about his dad and brother, too. And, he thought of his pay packet. The money was important, but so was the chance to learn skills. If secrecy was the price he paid, he could live with it.
He broke the seal on the packet and read the confidentiality agreement. It was as tough as he'd expected, considering they were spies. Jamal signed it and the three other papers underneath. There was a second sealed packet behind them.
The Lady came back. Only one person had left. "Good," she said. For the next half hour she explained the organizational chart of Kingsman. Learning to be a good mechanic for them meant knowing a hell of a lot more than the difference between a carburetor and a distributor cap. Being a driver meant learning all types of driving skills in addition to the knowledge and how to handle bleeding wounds and a radio. From her description, Jamal wondered if he was expected to handle them all at the same time.
"The inner packet," Lady said, "Has pictures of all of the Kingsman knights. If one of these people gives you an order, you obey it implicitly. Report it to your superior as soon as possible, too, but an order from a Kingsman can be superseded only by Arthur or Merlin. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Lady," came out in perfect unison.
"Good. Merlin will handle the next bit with the help of Kingsman agent Beaumains. If you recognize the real name of a knight, please do not share it with anyone else. You put them and their families in danger. Within Kingsman, you know only their codenames. Am I clear?"
"Yes, Lady."
A tall bald man with a clipboard in his hand came in with Eggsy in a suit and wearing glasses coming in behind him. "My name is Merlin. The gentleman to my left is our newest knight, Beaumains. For the next twenty minutes we will answer any questions you might have. Sometimes that answer may be, 'I can't tell you,' but it will be answered. You may open the folders and review the identities of our senior colleagues."
Jamal looked at the man in his mid fifties identified as Arthur. Eggsy was next with the word Beaumains across the bottom of the photo. Caradoc, Dinadan, Erec, and a blank sheet with the word Galahad. He raised his hand.
"Yes?" Merlin said.
Jamal held up the sheet. "No Galahad?"
Eggsy answered. "Galahad was killed just before V-Day. While you're in training here, you'll see a group of people being trained. One of them will be the next Galahad."
"How does someone get to be a knight then," one of the other people asked.
Merlin glanced at Eggsy and said, "Each knight brings in a candidate. They are tested physically and mentally to be certain they can handle the responsibilities and duties of an agent."
Eggsy met Jamal's look and Jamal realized that Eggsy had never considered him for a seat at the table. He was going to need to talk to him about it. He saw Eggsy nod and knew they'd be meeting up soon.
Someone else held up a picture of Lancelot and asked, "Can I get her phone number?"
Eggsy chuckled and said, "I could give it to you, but then Merlin would have to kill us both. That's not an idle joke, by the way. As agents, we do get into lethal situations. If you're my driver, you may need to defend yourself or someone I have with me in the car. Consider that carefully if you're considering becoming a driver."
Merlin added, "As mechanics, you may be around prototypes for new types of engines. Not all experiments end well. You're less likely to be in a deliberately lethal situation, but anyone working for Kingsman is at some risk."
There were a few more questions before the group broke for elevenses. Merlin and Eggsy led them to the cafeteria and Eggsy flirted his way through the line with Jamal behind him.
They found a table together. "So, that Merlin bloke, he seems kind of quiet. Has he really killed people?"
Eggsy closed his eyes and nodded. "And before you ask, I took out a lot more than four people on V-Day. Kingsman is the group who stopped it. Merlin and I still don't know the final count on the number of people we killed, but my best personal estimate is thirty eight that I shot, stabbed, or killed bare handed."
"Jesus, bruv, that's fucking…"
"Awful?"
"Yeah."
"I didn't think of putting you forward as my candidate. Even in preschool you was the nice one. Didn't see you being able to handle the death counts."
"Ryan?"
"Couldn't trust him not to like a smoke better than a job. I'd hoped that he'd straighten up if he were given the chance, but…"
"He couldn't even maintain cabs. Fuck me, that's pretty ruthless, bruv."
Eggsy said, "Yes. It's one of the things Merlin is looking for in the training, ruthlessness. But he also looks for a lot of good traits, too."
"Like bein' the kind of mate who'll risk eighteen months in jail rather than grass on his mates."
"That was … Galahad. He's the one who saw something in me. It weren't easy, and it was Lancelot I was trying for."
"So if you didn't make it?"
"Killed Valentine. Put an end to V-Day, didn't I? I mean, couldn't have done it without Merlin's plan and computer skills and, fuck, just being Merlin or Lancelot being brave enough to go to the edge of the atmosphere to take down a satellite. But, at the end, I killed that bastard."
Jamal nodded to himself. "Good. I'm glad you did. But you're right. It couldn't've been me."
"Which do you think you're going to go for then?"
"Driver."
"You'll have to be able to handle weapons. I was serious back there. It might not be just yourself you're defending until backup comes."
"Yeah, bruv. I get it. Still want to be a driver. Be fun to chauffeur me old mate on occasion, or maybe that fit bird will give me her number. Might like a bit of rough."
Eggsy laughed loudly at that one. It was startling enough that Merlin came over.
"Is there anything you want to share, Beaumains?"
Jamal looked up at Merlin with wide eyes. "I just said that maybe the posh bird at the table might like a bit of rough, which I know is dis…" He caught the twitch of Merlin's lips and shut up.
"You referenced a private joke between Beaumains and Lancelot from their training."
Eggsy took a sip of water, "He did and all. Sorry 'bout that."
"Besides, I just checked the time. You're due for your fitting at the shop in half an hour."
"Of course. Wouldn't do to keep them waiting." Eggsy rose and held out his hand to Jamal who took it.
"We ain't never shaken hands in our lives, bruv." He pulled Eggsy forward into a half chest bump, half hug. "See you on Sunday? Your Mum invited us to lunch."
"See you, bruv." He walked out with Merlin beside him and Jamal sat down heavily. His friend was one of the toffs, big enough to give orders to anyone in this organization. Well that was a kick in the head and no mistake.
***
Jamal elected to start as a mechanic, but he talked with the department heads and made it clear that he wanted it to be a step toward being a driver, and not just one of the taxi drivers who delivered suits. He wanted to be cleared to drive for agents on missions. The department heads discussed it and approved. He was given a list of extra requirements he'd have to meet, including PT and weapons work.
***
Eighteen months later, Jamal drove Eggsy and Lancelot to a couple of undercover meets and ended up pinning Rotti to the pavement. His grin was wide. He was doing a job he loved, getting paid well, and helping to save the world. It was more than he'd ever asked for.