TeQ rustles around in an old shed in his back garden, frantically searching for something. Eventually he appears on the Street, turns an old soap box upside down and stands on it...

Ladies, Gentlemen, rabid wolves, deaf badgers and members of the insect world... Many of us have some sort of goal(s) we'd like to achieve in our short lives before meeting our inevitable end with the fishes. For some of us, it could be running our own family. For others, they want to be trained killers, the best in fact. Other just want absolute power.

Despite my bloodline's sporadic visitations to this world, WE still have goals. At what point do you start considering your own legacy and goals? Will you EVER consider your own legacy?

If - as expected - your loyalty is to your current leader, what would you do if they were to meet their unfortunate demise? Carry on in their memory or forge your own path?

If they were in a position to bless you with your own family, would it be an extension of theirs? Or would it forge is own path under your leadership?

I guess what I'm really asking is, does ambition still exist in this world?

Jaded passed by the soapbox, and almost didn't stop to listen. Not that the words were not interesting but she generally tried to stay off the streets most of the time but something drew her in. So she listened careful and then pondered for a couple of minutes before starting to add to the conversation. 

What if loyalty to your leader is the ambition? No grand scheme to get into any fancy suits, bold or otherwise. Just to remain in the background. Is that not a lofty enough goal to have? 

My line has always prided itself on being loyal to their leader, regardless of how difficult it may seem with differences of opinions or clashes that eventually led to death. They remained loyal, or they left on their own terms with their own weapon if they thought loyalty just couldn't be an option in the way that perhaps the leader wanted, or that they themselves wanted. 

When an ancestor's leaders have died it was not always the same reaction. Some kin chose to carry on, others chose their graves and some even had a passing moment of wondering if a shot should be taken, after all the leader they were loyal to laid on the ground surrounded by blood so what was there to lose really?

My goal is simplistic really. I do not aspire to the lofty roles in this world, I aspire to be valued by the family I am a part of. I don't require fan fare or fake pleasantries with people hiding their real intentions under masks. 

I suppose ambition can be viewed differently depending on the goals that each member of our community holds close to their hearts.  

I belueve there is dormant ambition in this world. Many of our ancestors achieved much, not necessarily the stuff of legends, but careerwise many of us have been there, done that.

Ambition for more of the same mechanical achievements is probably low. I suspect many of us are here for a sense of excitement, but we've build very ordinary civilian lives. We wake up in calm neighbourhoods, we insure ourself with bland lifestyles void of opinion. As if success is in our ongoing safety.

But challenge to our safety, our status quo is what makes this life interesting. I think ambitions grow when there is contest. Personally I'd be more ambitious if our society was less of a given, more shaky and with more conflict and contrasting opinion. I'd feel more relevant. And typically I wouldn't use a gun to subdue the challenge. I'd try to manage it for that feels more rewarding.

I think there is more dormant ambition like that in this world.

It was another quiet morning, and Archy was reading the newspaper at his usual table in his favorite coffee shop, enjoying his coffee and a cigarette, when he noticed Father-TeQ placing a soapbox in the middle of the street and climbing onto it. He folded the newspaper and turned his attention toward the man, listening as a few others joined the conversation. Once they had spoken their minds, Archy finished his coffee, left a few bills on the table, and made his way toward the soapbox. 

I don't believe loyalty and legacy are competing ideas, TeQ. People only treat them that way because choosing between them is easier than carrying both. A loyal man can carry his leader's principles long after that leader is gone, but eventually, every one of us must decide what we intend to leave behind ourselves. Some inherit a family and continue its traditions. Others build something entirely their own. Both paths can honor the people who came before them, provided they are followed with some sense and purpose. When BuddyBigPaw passed, nobody handed me a blueprint. He gave me his word, his blessing, and the opportunity to build something worth remembering. I didn't inherit his House. I inherited his lesson. I moved forward trying to preserve what came before me while building something worthy of standing beside it. The goal was never to replace what he left behind. It was to make sure the values he built didn't disappear with him and the gap that his absence created would be filled. Same blood, different stone. All I can do is continue his legacy in my own way and help keep Los Angeles a city that contributes something worthwhile to this country. 

Archy turned toward JadedZombiefly and offered her a small nod. 

I agree with Jaded's point as well. Not everyone dreams of sitting in the highest chair. Some want to build a business, strengthen a family, help their city prosper, or simply leave things better than they found them. A pyramid doesn't stand because of one stone. It stands because every stone holds its place. Most people remember the monument rather than the individual blocks, but neither can exist without the other. Wanting to be valued by your family instead of becoming famous in front of it isn't a small ambition. For some people, earning that trust is the legacy they intend to leave. 

Archy's attention then shifted toward TomRedford. 

As for ambition, Tom, I'd say it's very much alive. It just doesn't always look the way people expect, nor does it necessarily need the ground shaking beneath it to prove that it exists. Jaded has already offered one example. Loyalty, usefulness, and helping a family prosper can be ambitions in their own right. The successful families across our cities are proof that people are still building toward something. I do have to disagree with the idea that ambition needs uncertainty or conflict to thrive. I've built a business out of quiet rooms and careful men, and I've never needed a gun on the table to know the stakes were real. Contest doesn't always arrive with sirens and funerals attached to it. Sometimes it's simply two men sitting across a desk, each convinced he's the sharper of the pair. That's kept me plenty interested without needing to burn down anybody's calm neighborhood. 

Archy took his time lighting another cigarette. He drew in a deep breath before continuing. 

At the end of the day, loyalty is often what creates legacy in the first place. A legacy was never measured by the title a person held, but by what remained once that title belonged to someone else. Titles pass. Fortunes disappear. Families rise and fall. What remains is whether people still find value in the things you built, the lessons you taught, the example you left behind and whether they are willing to carry them forward for generations to come.