Swearing softly, Poison led them back out into the heat. They couldn't go running into this situation blindly, that could be exactly what Better Living wanted them to do. Running his hand over his sweat slicked forehead, the leather of his glove stuck to his skin slightly, he tugged it back and shook his head. "Alright, we're going to get some coffee, decide what we're doin' next," he said, sighing heavily. This shit wasn't usually his style, but they were already one man down and had no idea how many they could be up against. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Poison leaned on the door to the diner, pushing it open with his body. Once his men were in they slumped into the nearest open booth in silence, brows furrowed, all deep in their own thoughts.
Were D and Pony alright? Were they even alive? Kobra swallowed, they could always head out and check on them, see if the Transmitter was actin' up again. But if they were ambushed, one could imagine that Korse and his goons were waiting for them to show up and get their heads blasted in. The thin man closed his eyes and stroked his chin gently. But if the men were okay, then they could help get everything fixed up and back on track, or help them if they were captured… but with Ghoul hurt, the odds were not in their favor.
The waitress from before greeted them where they sat, "Coffee, I take it?' She arched a brow, her cheap looking press on nails drumming against her order book. The men in front of her looked like hell, pretty beaten emotionally, the red head nodded weakly and she headed to get them their fix, there was nothing a decent cup of coffee couldn't fix.
Poison slumped back down tugging at his locks before pulling himself together, he was the leader, he had to think of something. Without him the entire thing would fall apart. Smoothing back his greasy mane, he sighed. "Alright, we have two options here, we stay here and wait for a response… Or we go in, and pull those fuckers out," his voice was deep, eyes sweeping along the two other men, darting back and forth seriously.
Jet was the first to speak. "We can't," he replied coldly, "It'd be a suicide mission, if D and Pony are…" his voice broke off "It's no use to anyone if we're all dead…simple as that." As harsh as it sounded to say it, it was obvious, if D and Pony died for this cause, they died. It was the risk everyone took with this lifestyle, they were grown men…
A different opinion popped up with Kobra. "They would do their best to come and help us," he added and gave Jet a bit of a look. "If they are hurt I need to get to them right away, they need treatment. We have to do it, and need to go n-"
"Kobra, we'd be outnumbered! It could just as easily be a trap," Jet snapped back harshly with a glare. "Ghoul's already hurt, if we die out there we'd be abandoning him too! Leaving him here with no one, and he could just as easily be turned in!' The older man hissed under his breath, glancing back up as their waitress came with three mugs of steaming drinks on her tray. Each tapped against the table as they were placed in front of each man, the three nodding in thanks as she walked away.
"They could just as badly need medical attention, and I sure as hell am not gonna wait around and risk letting them croak if they do!" He hissed back, grabbing his mug and sipping the drink, giving Jet a long hard stare. "What's the point of this charade?" he shot toward Poison. "There should be no question in your mind! We need to go out there this instant!" he said, slamming the cup down. Some of his coffee splashed onto the table.
Poison stared at him with a small frown. "We can't," he finally spoke, firm and sure. The look of shock on Kobra's face was enough to make him take a breath in. "I swore D a long time ago that if anything like this happened that I wouldn't head back for him, it's the same with us. Shoe on the other foot? They would wait, and if there was a report on us goin' through the waves they'd know… If not he'd assume we'd gone AWOL…" closing his eyes Poison shook his head weakly "We gotta keep this going, even if it means we're on our own," he grabbed his cup heading to take a sip when Kobra grabbed onto the cup.
"How the fuck can you say that?" Kobra glared at his brother, tears forming in his eyes. "How… How can you..." he swallowed thickly and closed his eyes, as much as he understood it, he refused to believe it. His eyes opened again, looking up. The hazel orbs were shining, holding back tears. Closing them, Kobra managed to fight them off and gripped his coffee mug. The heat clinging to the glass burned slightly but it was better than breaking down.
Poison swallowed and shook his head, sipping his drink in silence; a heavy moment came over them all, a moment of mourning. The mindless chit-chat of the wave heads behind them was white noise. Not really words, just babble and bullshit. The door opened yet again, most likely another hollow person coming in, no one even looked up till the familiar whir of a beaten up motorized wheelchair came in, paused and was soon followed by the sounds of 'click clack' on tile, soft whispers in an argument no one needed to know about.
Poison's head was up like a shot, his eyes fixed on the two newest patrons, it seemed everyone was staring. The slender man in polka dotted tights was trying to push an older man's wheelchair. The older man was glaring up at him and smacking his hands, his own calloused hands and thick knuckles coated in dirt and sweat.
'An- I told ya for the millionth time I don't need yer help!" he growled to the younger man, dark eyes fixed on Pony's fiercely. The younger man gave him a stern look back, jutting his hip out and crossing his arms, fingers tapping against his dry elbows as he sighed rolling his eyes at the man. The looks soon fell onto him and he flushed slightly.
"Come on, you old goat," he mumbled, ignoring D's heated protests he gripped the handlebars and rolled the chair over to the three men sitting still as stone with shock on their faces. Pony rolled his eyes and scratched at his head, some sand falling loose as he sat next to Poison pushing him over with his hip. "Hey big butt," he flashed one of his big smiles and looked around, "So, is there like a reset button or something?" he arched a brow waiting for a reply.
"I-I... yeah," Poison coughed out "The fuck are you guys doing here?" The leader was clearly shocked at their sudden appearance. "Why the fuck didn't you leave something on the station, o-"
"Our goddamn signal went down," D hissed back, his fingers impatiently tapping against the seat of his wheelchair, dirty, gritting nails causing gold specks of dirty to fly onto the padding. He grumbled and motioned the waitress over. "Gimme a cup of joe, Crash Queen." The violet haired woman nodded, quickly returning with two more mugs for the newcomers. Dr. Death Defying took a long swig of the drink as Pony sniffed it appreciatively before taking a much smaller sip and set the cream colored cup down with a gentle clack. D ran his hands through his long greasy hair before he sighed, continuing. "Been working on that fuckin' thing all morning, the goddamned cock sure just won't do it." He grumbled a few more swears under his breath and shook his head.
"We did our best to find you guys," Pony added softly, rubbing his dirty knuckles. "It just took a while because someone decided not to listen to me," He rolled his eyes and a small smirk stretched on his pink lips, snickering at the sheer thought of D's eyes from under those shades. He knew he was getting a look, but who the fuck cared, he couldn't do anything about it!
D grumbled a bit more, words slurred together although the swearing was obvious in his gravely cracked voice. "So you came here," Poison added with a small sigh. He slid down into the booth, closing his eyes and shaking his head, a flurry of red danced back and forth in the gleam of the light. "Well, we should probably take you in to see Ghoul, he's…he isn't in the greatest state," Poison quietly admitted and closed his eyes yet again.
Pony frowned softly at this. "Well did you get his chair set up? Maybe getting out would help 'im some?" He offered, but his face fell further as he saw the matching grimaces on Kobra and Jet's faces.
"That isn't the best plan right now," Jet replied smoothly. "He can hardly hold himself up, let alon-" The tall man cut himself off, shaking dark curls and starting over. "We aren't gonna push him right now, his ego is already imploding on itself… he just…just…" A groan came from his throat and Jet tugged at the knotted waves in his hair.
The blond shook his head in agreement. "He's losing it," Kobra added simply with a sigh before sipping down his bitter drink, wincing slightly he moved to add sugar… another sip, it was just the bitter taste of failure in his mouth, clenching a fist he stared into the dark abyss that was left in the cup, his face an unreadable mask.
D's heavy brows furrowed. "That bad eh?" He grumbled, adjusting hismelf in the old ratty thing he called a chair. "I'll talk to the young'in, see if I can get him to snap the fuck outta it," he rasped out, leaning against the back of the chair. Dr. D took another large drink finishing the rest of his mug and arched a brow at Pony till he refilled it, coughing a few times before he spoke again. "I know how it can feel," he patted his bum leg and looked up to the four men looking his way. "It's hell on earth sometimes."
"Well it's upstairs and we don't got all day," Kobra managed out and looked up, a smirk now playing on his lips as his brow arched. "Are we gonna sit here talking about this shit, or we gonna do something?" The group turned to him fighting shock, it was creepy when he changed moods like that, and nonetheless everyone began shuffling out of the old booth, Poison throwing a few carbons on the table for their waitress before heading out of the doors. Briskly walking to the other side of the sandy road, Kobra laced his fingers through his stained blonde hair, resting them on the back of his head. He half smirked as they kept their pace, he wasn't gonna sit around and fuckin' mope over the woulda coulda shoulda's. He would fucking change this shit or die trying.
Jet jogged ahead once they were inside, it would be easier to bring Ghoul down than it would be to force D upstairs. Marching up the creaky stairs in a matter of seconds he burst into the room to find Ghoul laying on his side weakly staring at the wall, the dark circles under his eyes amplifying the mood he was in. "Hey man, come on!" Jet called as he folded up the chair and swung it over one of his muscular shoulders. "D and Pony came out here and the old man wants to see ya!"
Before Ghoul could protest he was swept up in the older man's arms and headed for the door. Letting out a soft noise of protest as he was jerked slightly, Ghoul eventually just gave in and sighed, leaning back against the other man. He shook a bit; form rocked to and fro as they headed down the stairs, the rickety handrail putting him on edge, a sigh of relief passed his lips when they were finally on the ground. Nodding a hello to the two new men as he was set on the couch, Jet started setting his chair up.
Exerting a grunt of force onto the old material Jet grinned a bit to himself when the metal finally locked into place with a loud 'click'. Taking the smaller man into his arms, he placed him in the seat, a grin still on his lips.
"Well, well, well," Dr. D began shaking his head slightly. "The fuck did you get yourself into this time, Ghoulie?" He arched a brow and pulled the cane from the bag slung over the back of his chair. He gave the boy a quick tap on the head and laughed as Ghoul scrambled to rub the spot, lips pouted slightly as he looked over at D. "Oh get over it, it's not like I haven't done it before, and I sure as hell am doin' it again!" D laughed, a booming sound that echoed through the room.
"Hey, I'm injured and-!" WHAP. Another blow to his forehead, Ghoul's face twisted as he grabbed the offending cane about to come down on his forehead for another blow. "Stop that!" He hissed and jerked it back into D's chest.
The room fell silent, striking D even in an indirect way always meant you were getting your ass kicked. No one in the room so much as took a breath for the longest time, Pony slowly prepared to brace D, waiting for the explosion sure to happen… A soft noise came form D's throat, sure to be a growl, it soon became throatier and more broken… suppressed chuckles...? The bearded man soon burst out in another round of booming laughter. "That's the pipsqueak I know!" He managed out through his loud round of guffaws and broke for a few moments, harsh coughs coming along. "Now see you ain't got nothing wrong with ya, I know it's pretty fucking shitty to feel useless but if you 'an stop me, hell you shouldn't have no problem kickin' some mother fucking ass... " He smirked slightly his plan laid out.
"Or maybe you're just getting old!" Ghoul snapped back earning him another couple bonks on his head gripping his dark locks he groaned. "This has to be some form of assault," He whined with a moan.
Jet rolled his eyes at Ghoul. "Well, at the very least its good to have you back," he grinned and ruffled the man's hair chuckling as Ghoul blew a few wayward strands from his vision arms weakly crossed and giving Jet a slight glare.
"What is this, pick-on-Ghoul-day?!" Throwing his hands up in an exaggerated statement of angst proved to be a bad idea, within seconds he was gasping in pain and clutching his side, doubled over and wincing in pain. Four sets of arms rushed forward ready to catch him, he managed to pull a hand away to weakly wave them off, still wincing, as beads of sweat began to form, the taste of bitterness was on his tongue, forcing his jaw to move he ground the herbs up and swallowed looking to Kobra in a weak gesture of thanks.
Kobra nodded, the bit of hope now extinguished from that one wrong move. But that's all life was anymore, that double edged sword… No. Kobra opened his eyes with a determined look, he said he wouldn't let himself fall apart because of this, and he sure as hell wouldn't. "Come on man, let's get you some coffee and shit," He spoke, voice firm. He took the chair from Jet and rolled the injured man to the diner across the way.
The remaining men watched blinking for a moment before Poison shrugged jogging after his brother, Jet on the other hand stayed behind, frowning. "So why else are you here?" Despite the distractions you didn't have to be an idiot to know this wasn't a social visit. The look the two men exchanged proved his thoughts and he frowned heavily, deep lines lining his large lips.
Pony sighed and pulled a few scraps of wrinkled coffee stained papers from his tank top. If Jet didn't know better he could have sworn Pony's hand was shaking a little bit, snatching the crumpled wads he did his best to smooth them out eye scanning along the faded lines and various damages. Jet's eyes widened and he managed to swallow weakly, dark orbs darted up to meet D and Pony's soft sad ones. "Where did you get this?" He managed out in a shaking whisper.
Pony shook his head solemnly. "It was out in the papers," he began, closing his eyes. "Tommy got ahold of an Intel van… they were under the seats when he was stripping for parts…" Pony's face hardened as he met Jet's shocked gaze head on. "They're only copies," he began again, "So the original files have to be..."
"At Better Living headquarters," Jet finished and swore softly gritting his teeth and clenching the paper up in his grip, wadding it up, but he removed it, careful not to tear it. "I gotta tell the guys," He hissed a few more curses passing his lips, a gentle touch was placed on his shoulder. Surprisingly it wasn't Show Pony, but Dr. D, the sympathy on his face was almost painful.
"I know you liked 'er, kid," he started and sighed shaking his head, "But you all can't afford the distraction right now, both you and I know it..." he shook his head again carefully withdrawing his hand and closing his lids. "'Specially Kobra, he can't handle this shit," D added sadly and gave Jet a 'you-know-I'm-right' look.
Jet frowned and nodded, looking back to the crumpled paper, staring at it for a few moments before heading to the empty fireplace across the room. Kneeling, he threw the paper inside and produced a lighter from his jacket pocket. With a quick flick of his thumb and the click of the lighter he touched the bright flame to the paper, it caught right up into flames, the last thing he saw of the print was the black and white photo of a pretty girl and the name 'Molly' written across it, a proclamation of another member of the killjoy scum alliance that had been taken down, glaring at the papers as it curled into deep black then broke apart to ash, no one had to know... And no one had to suffer.
He turned around to the men who both nodded sadly, Jet's fist was still clenched, he didn't have the strength to follow his teammates right now, instead he opted to sink into the couch and pull out the bright colored charm, that he had recovered on their last run, he stared at the neon printing on it for a moment and swallowed clutching his hand back into a fist and lowering his head in mourning.
Across the way Kobra had finally managed to get Ghoul set up at a table, he was fussing and fighting all the way, Poison slumped to Ghoul's right, it was odd being back so quick but hell, coffee was fucking coffee and it was good at any time. Leaning back, the red-head looked to Ghoul and grinned weakly as the faint tap of heels hitting tile approached.
"You boys back so soon?" Revenge stood there, fresh coat of hot-pink lip stick smack in the middle of her face, she jutted out a hip and arched a brow. Her blue eyes darted from each man and set on Ghoul for a moment, he sneered up at her slightly and she rolled her eyes in response. "Three coffees?" She offered, and headed back at Poison's nod.
Ghoul glared as her form retreated into the kitchen. "Man, who knew there were so many hookers in this town," he joked with a filthy grin. "Hell maybe we can round up a few an-" the look Kobra gave him caused his mouth to snap shut, he shot him a glare back and frowned. "What?"
Kobra just studied him for a moment until his glare began to fade and shook his head. "Dude, just chill, we don't need you startin' fights with anyone out here and gettin' someone to call them. We can't afford to move you right now," His voice and eyes became stern. "So, simply put, don't piss off the locals," he finished, jabbing a finger in Ghoul's direction when he stuck his tongue out in defiance.
Poison rolled his eyes and chuckled softly. "Good to have you back, Ghoul," he mumbled and gently patted the man's back. "It's nice to see Kobra gettin' butt hurt over you and not Jet," a few laughs hung in the air as the coffee was served. He took another mug graciously and began sipping it, helping Ghoul get his prepared exactly how he liked it.
Ghoul sunk back slightly and managed to bring the steaming cup up to his dried out lips. He smiled as the warmth and sweet taste flooded his mouth and let out a happy noise of comfort, coffee was good. Oh god how good coffee was. He parted with the ceramics and sighed happily. "Oh coffee, how I missed you," bringing the cup up to his cheek and twisting his form back and forth weakly he beamed, "I'll never leave you again, never ever."
Kobra rolled his eyes and chuckled, not that he was much better, but he just wasn't so… upfront about his reunion. "Well we can see you and the cup need some privacy, should we leave the room?" He snickered and looked to his brother, brows arched in jest. Poison simply smirked back refusing to part from his drink, he only pulled back for a moment to wait on a refill for his drink. Once Poison got his wishes he laughed softly.
"So, where to next?" Ghoul's face lit up like a kid's on Christmas, but the look soon fell as he saw the look the two men exchanged, "I mean, I can move now… We… We're leaving, right?" His brows furrowed as he took a long sip of his coffee. That's what they said, right? As soon as he could get out they… they would go back?
Kobra frowned heavily, the crease between his brows a dark brown eruption in a sea of tan and red. "Ghoul…we can't risk moving you yet, we haven't been attacked so far here and… It's a few hours back home, the risk of us getting attacked with you in that chair," he broke off, shaking his head, taking a long drawn out sip of his coffee and sighing. "It wouldn't be worth it man, I'd rather wait around here and be sure than go running out when we don't even know the situation… we're stayin'." he added firmly giving his brother a 'this-is-a-doctors-order' look.
Ghoul's face fell and he stared into the muddy liquid in his now shaking mug, "You… You're joking, right?" he whispered softly, the waves of his drink crashing from wall to wall of his cup. "We… We're… We have to go home!" He finally snapped, drawing the full attention of the diner, the clattering of silverware and small talk ceasing as all eyes fixed on the three.
Poison frowned heavily at this and sunk a bit lower in the booth, glaring the man directly into his eyes. "You're not fighting this, Ghoul," Poison hissed at the younger man. "Stop acting like a fucking toddler throwing a fit in public, some things just don't go your way and right now I agree with him, I'm not gonna risk all of our necks because you won't sit the fuck still for a week!" He set his drink down with a loud clack as he straightened back up. "And that's a fucking order!"
The glances and mumbles in their direction seemed to stop, the patrons going back to their own conversations and business. Kobra let out a small sigh of relief, shaking his head he pinched the bridge of his nose with his forefinger and thumb. He wasn't really in the mood for this shit. "Well then, it's settled," he finally mumbled out and sighed, refilling his coffee with the last bit in the oversized pot. "Mother fucker," he swore as the last unwilling drops splashed into his mug, letting out a groan of annoyance he flagged down their waitress. "Can we get more?"
The woman shrugged and headed into the back, grabbing a freshly brewed pot and walking back out at her own slow, bored pace. Reaching the table again, she refilled their drinks to the brim and placed the container down for them. "Drink up," she sighed and left them, wiping her hands on her dirtied apron.
Ghoul was frowning again until she left, but he drank his mug up greedily nonetheless. Sighing, he shook his head, "So what's there to do in this hick town anyway? Any fights? Drug ring? Maybe the big bad bosses have a summer cabin?" he was just throwing ideas out there for the sake of easing his own boredom, he would go mad if he was stuck there much longer, short attention spans, gotta love
em.
"Sure, then candy will fall from the goddamn sky, and it'll rain for forty days and forty nights, swimming all the radiation away and bringing forth a new era of peace and green much." Poison muttered sarcastically with an eye roll for extra effect. "This isn't no fairytale, princess-boy. And it sure as hell doesn't have a happy ending," he all but spat at the younger man, every single word laced with as much venom as a rattlesnake's bite.
Kobra blinked and frowned heavily. "Jesus, man, fucking cool it, I didn't know it was bring your diva for drink day," he muttered and downed the rest of his drink, smacking his lips a bit, he frowned, his brows meeting. "Is this decaf? It tastes off." The bridge of his nose crinkled and his upper lip rose in disgust. He hated decaf. HATED.
Another eye roll came from the man in the wheelchair. And he complained about Poison being a diva, must run in the family, Ghoul snickered slightly at the thought of infants being born with feather boas and cigarettes snapping their fingers and demanding caffeine laced beverages. Smirking slightly, he grinned at the men. "I pity your mother," he teased slightly, ignoring the questioning looks he received. No, this was his own personal joke.
Kobra shook it off and kept drinking until the container was once again emptied, it may not have gotten him hyped up but hell they paid for it and it was better than cactus juice. That shit was nasty, especially the time that Ghoul thought it would be a good idea to cut a leaf open, mix coffee grounds with the water and let it sit in the sun until it heated up- they were sick for weeks and Jet even got a bit high off it. 'It's the quenchiest!' He would never forget that line, Jet was running around in circles and screaming it, must've ripped it off that old cartoon about the kid who controlled elements, man that shit was cool. What he'd give to control them. Like a superhero. Stroking the fine hair forming along his jaw line he pictured it. 'Super Kobra!' No… no, that's not it, maybe 'Kobra of the Night!' … Nah, too DC…WAIT! 'The Snake Charmer!' Yeah, that would be the shit! Mindlessly he hummed a little jingle to himself, patting a beat out on the table, not even noticing his brother trying to get his attention until- WHAP! He jumped and looked up at Poison.
A look that was about a fifty-fifty mix of confusion and worry was on the red-head's face. Kobra had all the sudden started swaying back and forth and hummed the tune to the batman theme song… for fifteen minutes straight. He was actually concerned he was like… going freakishly catatonic! "We're going back to the inn, come on," he hissed. Man, he did not want to know what was going on inside that man's head…
Ghoul snickered at the pain inflicted on Kobra, frowning and flinching slightly as the same smack was placed on his gloriously greasy, sweaty head. Muttering obscenities under his breath, he leaned back and crossed his arms, while Kobra pushed him out the door. As soon as the hot wind hit him in the face, the sunglasses went down and the bandanna up. It was one of those quick sandstorms they got. Hot air, grains of sand and rock hitting your open mouth sucked, getting them stuck up your nose, now that was a problem!
"It's gonna be a day," Kobra mumbled, tugging his jacket up and pulling his own cover from his pocket, sighing. He hated these storms, they always made his allergies flare up, making him miserable. His eyes would get red and swollen, and his nose would be running one moment then stopped up the next, usually he just wanted to curl up and stay on base on days like that. Though he rarely got the chance, instead he got by on grossing the other guys out with snot rockets… Unless it turned into a competition… It usually did. In the end he would get Ghoul's snot on his shoe or hands and it would turn into a wrestling match… They were fairly evenly divided on wins with those.
Sniffing the runny liquid that was forming, Kobra pushed the man across the way as fast as he could, praying the old woman wasn't burning incense. Unfortunately for him it was all over, groaning internally he looked at the papers set out for him and sighed turning to Ghoul. "I'll get Jet to carry you up," he swore at the work on his list. Fix the pipes? Unclog the drain? Carry all the boxes down from the attic, great… more dust… more allergies… and more snot.
Jet heard the stomping up the stairs, face falling; of course it had to be Kobra. He sucked it up and just headed downstairs, swooping Ghoul up much to his discomfort, one armed. The wheel chair locked in his other muscled limb. Setting the man down on the bed he pushed a plate of Mexican food toward Ghoul and folded up the chair, he'd already finished his work while they were gone, and wished Pony and D good luck on their way back.
Slumping down on his half of the bed, he sighed, staring at the textured ceiling. It was one of those that looked like it was made of popcorn, he always hated those as a kid, always worried it would fall apart and drown him in those little rough beads and he'd never get out. Seemed silly now but… Isn't that what they all feared, never spoken, never even hinted at. But losing their beings, drowning in pills, or loss? Jet shook his head, he was being ridiculous.
A few hours later, a very dust covered Kobra entered the room, sneezing and rubbing at the red rims of his swollen eyes. Poison followed, trying not to snicker every time Kobra would sneeze and jump back a bit, bits of snot and spittle flying everywhere. "Cover your mouth," The leader teased, heading for the bathroom, another hot shower, another good day.
Kobra glared as the man passed him, and headed for the empty bed. He tugged his bandanna out, coughing into it. "Fucking dust," he managed out between his disgruntled noises. "I hate that shit," he coughed out again, wiping his nose free of the dripping. "D and Pony leave?' he asked, looking to Jet with slightly arched brows.
Jet simply nodded, staring intently at the wall. "She's probably going to make us redo these old ceilings. I haven't seen any like this since I was a kid," He mumbled weakly, and started pointing out places where it was beginning to rot through, some small beams of light from the attic peeking through, various cracks ran the length of the room, he hadn't really had a chance to lay back and notice them before. They were almost like a design though, every inch of debris was a sign, a medal almost. This place survived the wars, the fights, it was sill standing, it had the same feel as the old woman.
Jet frowned and sat up with a jolt, heading out of the room without another word. He stomped down the stairs quickly, his legs almost a blur. Between the loud bangs and creeks it was like playing a horror movie soundtrack on fast forward. Finally approaching the woman's door, he rapped his knuckled on the cracked old maple.
Shuffles and soft steps were the only response for a minute, but sure enough the door creaked open slowly, the old hinges protesting the movement with a high pitched screech. Mrs. Palafox looked at the large man, her amber eyes staring softly, the grey mane she called hair was partially braided, some of the beads she had laced into it slipping out and hitting the floor with small cracks. She slowly and painfully knelt to get the offended, but Jet beat her to the punch, looking at the small wooden decorations with a frown on his lips.
"What's your story?" he finally whispered, and looked to her. "Why didn't you turn us in? You know who we are. Coulda collected that bounty and paid someone to rebuild this place for you..." he wasn't stupid, just confused at this point. She stood there for a moment like a deer caught in the headlights, but frowned, the deep wrinkles in her face exaggerated until her face relaxed, back to it's aged wisdom.
"Come, I tell," She whispered and motioned him to the furniture in the main room, shooing him into sitting down in the large pleather armchair as she took a seat on the loveseat. She stared at her gnarled fingers for a moment deep in thought, unsure where to begin, finally she sighed and took in a deep breath. "I had daughter," she started in her heavily accented broken English. "She very beautiful, sought by many man, she had…" breaking, she mouthed the words to herself silently and sighed, "Six children. All as beautiful as her. When fires start, she die," The aged woman's relaxed mask broke into one of pain and mourning, tears glittering in her dark eyes at the memory. "I took kids, when... When better living come along... Tell me they want to help." Her voice broke again as a few of the crystal tears fell down the ridges of her defined cheekbones. "They take, they kill… all of them," Wiping her face with her hands, she not only rid herself of the tears but the pain as well.
Horror. That was the only way to describe the look on Jet's face. Lips slightly parted and dark eyes bugging out in shock, it took him a few moments to look away, cough and revert his face to normal. He knew BL/ind was cold, but to kids… and, he shook his head, it all made sense now. She kept them around… didn't rat them out because she had some false hope of revenge… or justice, whatever it was, they couldn't promise it to her.
"I keep you safe," She whispered softly, back to her even tone. The gravel in her voice still there, but it was if it were to show that her entire calm mask would break again and the hurt woman would shine through, totally fall apart in front of his eyes. "You keep me safe," she added at the end with a firm nod, starting to get to her feet.
"They hurt you too didn't they?" Jet finally looked back to her. "Your hands... they usually look that way then the bones are broken and not set…" He wasn't a doctor, but he'd lived a while on this earth before it ended. The woman weakly sat back down, the material of the loveseat making an odd squeal from the pressure and movement. "They hurt you and the kids in front of you…?" it was only a guess, but…
Swallowing heavily, the woman shook her head. "No… I tell them no take," she started weakly and closed her eyes, the pained woman shining through again. "They take something else from me," she whispered as she looked to the large knuckles in her hands. "They drive over," she finally mumbled after a few more moments of silence, Jet's face twisting in agony at the thought.
Worst of all, Jet could see the scene playing out in his mind. The sun beating down on everyone as two men in vampire masks held a woman down. The kids placed in her care trembling between a circle of men in identical garb. How they would tie her hands out, kick her in the side roughly until her squirming stopped, the names they would call her, the threats given if she tried to run, what they would do to those kids... If there was a fate worse than death, it would have to be the experimentation cells in the basement of Better Living. He could almost hear her terrified screams, the crack of her bones as those tons were forced over her aged bones. Her cries of pain when they rolled off and the feeling returned to her misshapen hands. Did the kids try to run? Scream? Cry? Even help? Was that why they were killed? His mouth was too dry to ask, even if it wasn't he had a feeling his voice wouldn't give into what he wanted.
Staring at the woman with a different view he just sat there for a moment, unsure if his brain was even connected to his body any longer, if he had the ability to move his legs, to run far away and not look back. But even at the thought he could feel his legs go limp, there would be no running from this problem, and that would never fix it, she was afraid for herself too… Having three body guards staying with her. Of course…
Nodding softly, the woman silently rose, her old bones making soft pops as her joints moved. She left the room and returned minutes later with a dark rust colored drink. "Sip," she demanded, putting the small cup into Jet's hands. They shook slightly as the cup was placed into them. He did as she said slowly lifting his arms and drinking, it tasted like… Raspberries and… sherbet..? No, that wasn't it. But it was close… he kept sipping until the drink was half gone, even that took him a few minutes, his mind spinning, stomach reeling from her gory tale.
By the time he had finished the cup his mind was detached, floating almost. He stared at the wall, sighing softly for a few moments before looking back to the drained cup. A few dark leaves were stuck to the white ceramics. Running his finger around them, he popped it into his mouth, sucking the residue off and sighing. He'd begun to let his cares flow out the window since he finished that concoction, it was only now he looked up and noticed Mrs. Palafox was back in her room, door shut. Frowning, he blinked and looked at the clock, it'd been three hours! He sat up quickly, the shock giving his legs strength. As he looked around, sure enough the sun had gone down and the temperature had cooled.
But, he only sat there for a minute! Five max! Sniffing the cup he had his answer. Groaning, he smacked his hand over his eyes, he could smell the pot from here, he should have known! The dark leaves floating in the cup, the strong sweet flavor as an overlay! She drugged him! Sighing, he glanced at her door again, that pain she must've been living through… She just didn't want him to feel it too; shaking his head sadly he placed the cup down with a tap and headed back upstairs into the darkness of the upper level.
Everyone else was already loudly snoring, he could make out Ghoul mumbling in his sleep to himself, shaking his head and discarding his jacket he moved to slump onto his side of the bed and fidget until he was in a comfortable place on his side, closing his eyes he headed into a world of nightmares, screaming children, blood and death.
It felt like his eyes had only just shut when the sun was already blaring down in Jet's unwilling face. Letting out a groan of displeasure, the man rolled over with a small noise, burying his face into the pillow and sighing softly, last night's images still flashing through his mind, yet another secret he would probably keep to himself, it made his stomach churn. Slowly he rose from his bed and stretched out, Poison was leaning against the wall tugging a boot on and the shower would be heard echoing in the room.
Closing his lids yet again, Jet sighed and froze. "Oh, shit, before I forget," he walked over to Poison tugging a slip of paper from his jacket, resting on the nightstand. "We got a mission today, Zone 5 from the looks of it, three raids, not sure if on our side or neutrals but I was told the corpses are piling up." He handed the paper over to Poison who took it with a small frown, brows furrowed and eyes scanning the slip for the coordinates.
"Then let's pack up, we gotta move," The leader barked at his team pausing for a moment and jabbing a finger at Ghoul. He stared at the red-headed man like a lost puppy. "No," was all he firmly stated, "stay here and rest up, you'll need your strength for the next time we go out." Smirking softly he chuckled and tugged on his bright blue jacket, the leather exhaling a sigh of sweat and dust smell, he really needed to get that thing cleaned one day.
The three able bodied men headed downstairs and out of the inn, glasses on and a purposeful stride in their walk the descended on the Trans. Poison couldn't help but smirk softly, it would be nice to get outta here for a while, slipping into the driver's seat he felt at home, the engine roaring to life loudly, he sighed happily, revving it again just for the sweet sound of that baby's engine. Stroking the steering wheel his grin grew wide as she slammed onto the gas, the car lurching to life and spurring them down out of the town, back onto those roads he called home.
Sighing softly, Kobra looked out at the horizon, sniffing slightly, his allergies were still throwing a fit from the day before, wiping at his nose with his jacket's sleeve he leaned back and looked to the mountains in the distance. Chewing on the inside of his cheek, Kobra sniffed again. "Hey man, have you heard any incoming calls for m-…us?" he arched a brow waiting for his brothers habitual snap at what he was hinting at.
"If you mean if the Bli-Bitch has called, no, she hasn't," The leader tensed just at the thought, good mood long gone and tone harsh. He hated that fucking bitch, shoulda dusted her when they found out what she was, but nope Kobra had to 'help' her. Like fucking always, just wanna move on with whatever they need, look out for themselves… their team, and Kobra has to help anyone who so much as looked their way. "Maybe she finally showed her true colors and went back to working for them, then everything you told her is in the hands of Kor-"
"SHUT UP! She would never do that! Not to us! Not to me!" Kobra snapped back, his innocent question turned into an all-out war, he couldn't even imagine… She would never betray them… Even hinting at that made bile rise in his throat and anger tear through his heart, his veins were burning and his heart rate increased. "Don't fucking say that," he panted out and looked over, eyes furious.
Poison shot his younger brother a heavy glare. "Well Jesus fucking Christ, she leaves the group, goes missing, stops calling you all together, doesn't even give Pony and D the time of day… We both know she'd rather live, if she was cornered she would throw you under the bus like that," he snapped his fingers for a cruel emphasis. "She would do it to all of us. Hell, I still say she was a fucking mole, they sent her out here to get to you an-"
The man's rant was quickly cut off by a swift jab to the cheek. The Trans swerved off the road into the soft sand, tires sinking in as Poison countered with a rough uppercut to the man's jaw line, a sickening smack when his fist connected with his brother's flesh. That asshole hit him! Over telling him what they all know about that fucking bitch! She was a traitor once, and she always would be. People like that would never change, he knew it, hell they all did! Even fucking Kobra…
The seat belts were soon flying off in the air, the two men lunging at each other fairly poorly in the confines of the car. Their jerking and twisting only landed maybe five punches before Jet leaned forward grabbing both their shoulders and slamming them back into their own doors. He didn't say anything just gave them a long fierce stare, those idiots should know better than this by now, you'd think they were still five and fighting over a fucking toy one had!
Kobra panted for a moment and gave Jet a look back before slowly nodding, still trying to find his breath he turned back to Poison. "I know you don't like her," he hissed out between his gasps, "But she would save you if it came down to that, she would protect you like she's done many times before," pausing to catch his breath he continued. "And the fact of the matter is… something's wrong, Poison. I have no idea where she is and she wouldn't just pull this on us, and yeah I mean us. She cared about the entire group…"
Poison shot him a heavy glare back and turned to the wheel forgoing the seatbelt and taking off silently simmering as they headed for an unnamed route. He was gripping the wheel so tightly his knuckles looked bleached, hands shaking and he couldn't think straight, he knew he was right. He always was when it came to shit like this, Kobra was just blinded by his emotions, couldn't see what was going on right in front of his fucking lovey dovey face. That girl was using him, hell she was probably using five other guys, making them think she cared, getting to know everything about them and then throwin' em to Bli when she was done with their stupid asses.
Glaring over to the blond again a frown tugged at his chapped lips. Tongue snaking out to sooth the cracked flesh his hands readjusted their tight grip on the steering. He wouldn't let that happen to Kobra and until that bitch turned up… he wouldn't let this shit get to him. No matter what, she was dead, if she came back to them he was shooting her, no questions asked, he'd been considering this for a long time and it just had to happen. The was no room for love out here, and those foolish enough to fall into it might as well head on back to Battery and give themselves up for torture and death. That would be kinder.
Finally the car slowed, swerving slightly as they drove off the road back onto hard sand. Poison always preferred the sand to the road, he liked the dust cloud that formed behind him when he sped off, as long as he didn't get caught into the soft sand, one time he took Kobra's bike out for a spin and didn't see the patch up ahead, the front wheel got caught in it and he went flying over the handlebars face first. Sand was coming from his nose for weeks and none of the guys would let him forget that one. No, soft sand fucking sucked.
The site of the raid was harder to find this time, they must have spent a good three hours aimlessly driving through the heat, windows down listening to the waves for any hint of where the fuck they were going. No abandoned campsite, no unattended cars, and no corpses. Just the eerie silence of uninhabited desert. Normally when this would happen Poison would suspect a trap… but they'd been driving in circles this whole time, no trip wire, no alarm, no white car rushing at them for all it was worth. It was just them and whatever indentations their tires left in the sand as their tracks.
The sun was beginning its descent down behind the mountains and their morale seemed to follow, the tension from earlier mixed with an inconclusive mission turned them sour and bitter. Poison had been hoping to vent his frustrations out on some dumbass Dracs, Kobra hoped there would have been someone to help, someone to save and explain what was going on out here. There was nothing, why were they so set on raiding?! Jet…well Jet just wanted those two to get over their petty little bitchfest and move on, acting like they adults they were supposed to be. Even the role-models that they were made out to be, right now they sure as hell weren't even close.
Heading back for their base was only logical; Poison turned the Trans around causing a dark cloud to form behind them, almost chasing them away from here. Nighttime in the desert was always creepier, the chills set in, no light, it made a man see things, things he didn't want to. Usually within himself, why does introspection always occur in the creepiest places?
The drive was well undisturbed, Kobra kept himself hunched over his blaster ready to pull it at a moment's notice the entire time. It was just too odd. They were sent to a recent hit…this should have been a huge hot spot, crawling with Dracs. Cameras should have been all over em and they should have been hunted down like usual. He shook off the thoughts as his eyes scanned the horizon, no lights, no movement, swallowing thickly he closed his eyes for a moment and sighed.
Poison's eyes narrowed as they came upon the faint lights of the town, no drop ins… nothing. Something about this situation made him feel sick to his stomach, it was like if you jump into piranha infested water and you're not getting your ass chewed to hamburger meat, it means there's a shark around. Gripping the wheel tightly again he slammed on the gas pedal the engine roaring in protest as they flew forward, effectively slamming Kobra against the dashboard.
"Man, what the fuck?!" Kobra snapped as he jerked his head back to face him, eyes furious. "I get it, you're fucking pissed off at me, but Jesus fucking Christ at least say it instead of slamming me against the-" His voice dropped off seeing Poison's expression.
He wasn't angry, glaring or about to say something thoughtless that he would regret later. There was no raised fist or gun, nor was he about to slam on the breaks to chew him out. Poison almost looked sick with worry. That's right ladies and gents, the Party Poison, leader of the fabulous Killjoys, was worried. His eyes were narrowed and his skin almost glowed in the night it was so pale. Sweat was forming and streaking down his face and neck, his knuckles bright white. But the thing that tipped off anyone who knew him well enough… was his mouth. His lips were pressed tightly together bits of blood peeking through the thin chapped flesh he was pushing them so hard.
This made Kobra's stomach churn so loudly it was actually making squish noises. Something was wrong and something was about to blow up in their faces, The car swerved back into it's spot in front of the inn, Poison said nothing retrieving the key from his ignition and darting inside, Kobra followed, oh god, what if this was all a trap?! They were lured away and left Ghoul completed unable to protect himself! He could have been taken! He could have been killed! If anything happened, Kobra knew it would be his fault and even if nothing happened it would STILL be his fault for what COULD have happened. He was the one that insisted Ghoul stay…oh god. He gagged softly as he ran up the stairs and down the hall to the door sitting slightly ajar.
Seeing his brothers back the man fought off rising tears as she curved past his body to see…Ghoul sitting up against this headboard magazine in hand and plates of food all around him, bundled up in what looked to be freshly washed sheets and his feet soaking in steaming water. "Hey guys," Ghoul sighed with a dreamy look on his face. "That Mrs. Palafox sure knows how to heat a footbath," he grinned and slumped back, resting his wet feet on top of the blankets. "Ahh, yeah," he sighed again.
Jet came rushing in, the same thoughts purging his mind, seeing the man he frowned and tugged at his hair. "I don't wanna sleep on wet blankets because of you!" He groaned out and moved to flop on the bed; his muscles had grown stiff from the drive and being stuck still. Clean blankets made him sigh softly; they felt like the perfect caresses for his tired form.
Poison rolled his eyes and chuckled as he began to strip down, heading for the other made bed. It looked nice, you know maybe the old bat wasn't so bad after all, they got the occasional meal, clean sheets, and they hadn't been sold out yet. This was a nice break form scourging by in the desert. He sighed as he lay out on his back and stared blankly up. How long would this last though, when would he have a chance to go to his real life? He shrugged off the question, it was unimportant; the fact was they were stuck here until Ghoul healed up. Every day he seemed to do a bit better but, how much of this was an act. He knew Ghoul was just as antsy to get outta here as he was. If Poison was in the same place he would probably fake as much as he could to get the hell out, not be the one to drag the rest of the team down and deal with the disappointment, the failure.