Past
He blamed his work schedule for his absence at the Cyte house, instead wandering the streets dodging Immunity whenever they drove by. The angst returned in full force as the chance meeting with Vinícius and Spyrah ate away at his insides. It had been so long he slipped into a false sense of security, how the hell they ever found him was mind blowing. Not really… you do stick out like a sore thumb. For the millionth time he cursed his red membrane. Why couldn't he had been less conspicuous? He wasn't sure which of his parents was the virus but he cursed them both for good measure.
He straightened from his lean on his knees, hunched at a bus station checking the time. Edie had to be wondering where he was. He chewed his bottom lip, wrestling with whether to go or stay on the bench; not wanting to worry her won so he stood and pointed himself in the direction of home. Home.
…
"There you are. I was beginning to worry." Edie pulled him by a snoring Herb in the living room to the kitchen.
"Sorry I'm late." He automatically apologized, she waved it away.
"No matter." Her gaze became steadier as she studied him. "Though Jay told me you ran into two cells you knew the other day at the market?" Cells?What a naïve idiot he is.
Visions of throttling the cell entered his mind instantly, he had told Jay to drop it after being interrogated about the awkward scene and him threatening the two bacteria with his fiery claw. "Yeah."
"It was not a happy meeting, was it?" Her question was soft. "Is that the reason why you've been late coming home every night?"
He wanted to blast her, tell her to follow Jay's example though obviously the cell ignored his order of forgetting the two ever existed. The less she knew the better, the safer they all were from his unfortunate past. But this was Edie, no matter how much he tried the anger would not redirect onto her. That stupid bonding thing El muerte rojo supposedly have…. That thing no virus actually experiences except me. "The less you know the better."
She watched him for several quiet seconds. "You know Thrax I told you once before, your classification does not define who you are. It does not matter you are a virus all that matters is how you live your life. If you want to follow the stereotype and indulge in the criminal world, that's your choice." She paused. "Or you can be you."
"Be me." He repeated before taking a slow breath. "I won't hesitate to leave again, if it means keeping the trash I'm associated with away from you."
"You aren't trash Thrax." She looked up from wiping the counter. "If you feel you have to do that, our door is always open for you when its safe to return. We love you Thrax, like our own son."
He let her meaning sink in. "You're the closest thing I've ever had to a family… I've never tha-"
"You don't need to." She cut him off. "We already know."
…
Present
Second Lobe, Left lung
"Frank, this place looks almost as bad as the south end of our man's butt crack." Osmosis Jones craned his neck to see their surroundings better. Old abandoned factory buildings loomed around them. This is about as cliché as you can get.
"That's a real nice mental image Jones, thanks." Veins braked. "There's Scabs…" The new Precinct 2 chief had the same energy as the previous one-it made Thrax want to throttle him even without having opened his mouth.
"Why are we here?" Thrax asked.
Veins shrugged. "Innocent til proven guilty, means we don't have a right to demand this slimebag's ass into one of our interview rooms."
"Says who?"
Veins opened his door, shooting him a side glance. "Who do you think?" He got out slipping dark shades on. Thrax left the car too, turning to block Jones from going anywhere.
"I don't like this Ozzy."
"The strange meeting place you mean-?" The white blood cell paused. "Since when do you call me Ozzy?" The virus's eye roll got an apologetic cough. "It is a bit weird. Who picked this place?"
"Thought you did." Veins said pointedly to the Precinct 2 chief.
"No." Scabs admitted. "It was Anguli-Oris."
Thrax couldn't help himself. "You let a fucking suspect choose a meeting place to discuss homicides he's been committing?
"A cell of interest Virus, he ain't supposedly done anything you haven't already done."
"Thrax." Veins warned.
"Listen to your superior germ."
Veins turned immediately, pulling his sunglasses off to make his point clearer. "If you got a problem with one of my officers Jim, then you have a problem with me. Do not insult him."
Scabs scoffed. "We took a poll you know, all of us. I think maybe two or three chiefs said you would get rid of that virus on your own. The rest of us said you'd be just like Charlie."
Thrax had been about to tell Veins to let it go when he saw a small red dot danced along the back of the chief's neck. Instinctively he slammed his hand down on the cell's back, the cytokine missing and burying into a building wall a static skittering up its surface. He didn't have long to ponder before more shots rang out.
"Get up!" He grabbed Vein's hand and yanked him unceremoniously behind their vehicle. Jones skidded around the other side, pulling his gun free.
"What in the blazes-?!" Scabs and his own subordinate dove behind their own vehicle, cytokine bullets punching out the cruiser windows. Silence followed.
"Why'd they stop?" Jones whispered. "Can't see us?"
"Shhh." Thrax hissed, trying to listen for anything to give their attacker away. He glanced at the car side mirror. "This isn't your private car, right?"
Veins glanced up from readying his weapon. "No?"
"Good." He reached up and easily broke it off. Carefully he tilted it so that he could see across the small pock-marked parking lot. He thought he could just make out a figure laying on top of a broken down company truck when the mirror shattered; he dropped it.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. He's on top of that truck behind us." He clenched his left hand open and closed, for the millionth time feeling the loss of its full functionality.
"Can you get that started?" Veins nodded to his hand. "Jones and I'll cover you. Go get the son of a bitch."
Thrax took a breath feeling the fire spread along his wrist and congeal, in response his claw grew bright like an ember.
He kept low and then hoping he couldn't feel the shot of a cytokine bullet he stood and rounded the side of the cruiser. Shots immediately chewed up the ground around him until Veins and Jones fired back forcing their attacker to take cover. He sprinted behind a pile of debris.
"I know you're there virus!" The words might've made him uneasy if the cell's voice wasn't so nasally, it was hard to take him seriously. Except he's got a weapon he knows how to fire. "You think I wouldn't come prepared!" Prepared for what?
Something exploded on the other side of the debris pile, the blast lifting him like a doll and throwing him a good distance back. He inhaled in reflex and coughed, choking. "Thrax!"
Gas? What the fuck is this? Cytokine…He pushed himself up painfully, still coughing. A shadowy figure appeared, bearing down on him. What the fuck is it with me? My innards rearranged, my hand crushed, almost blown up just a few months ago….what the fuck? The answer came as quickly as the internal question. I'm built to handle this shit.
The gas was dense and thick, enshrouding everything but the alternating questions of asking if he was okay. "Thrax, answer me!" Veins yelled.
He was glad the two were cautious, didn't mean they didn't care it meant they had self-preservation. They wouldn't be able to breathe in this. I can barely breathe."
"Don't know why you didn't insist on comin' alone virus." Scabs appeared. "Explaining the death of a street cop would be a hellva lot easier than explainin' the death of a chief."
"What?" We were set up.
"You shoulda burned this body to the ground when you had a chance. You really think Phlegmming had a handle on things? You think he was the one running the show here? Nah, Stoma was and now that that stupid little hiccup involving the ehrlichiosis is ending, he's gonna be back in tenfold."
"Anguli-Oris is a sleeper cell-"
Scabs smiled widely. "You're smarter than Stoma gives you credit for. We're everywhere el muerte rojo and we know everything, just like we know there aren't too many like you left which means that fucker that got away from Todd, 's gotta be related to you." The chief paused. "You're weak. You just rolled over and played dead when Colonic muzzled you."
He was finding it harder to listen to the chief's pontification as he glanced down numbly at his membrane, slowly darkening to a reddish-grey. He's keeping me here to keep breathing this shit. Images of Daemon flickered through his head, the virus had regained usage of his hands but the greyed membrane would never go away just like the stabbing pins and needles would never fade either. He hid his claw under his coat while he waited for the heat to return.
"-It's a movement virus, we ain't got a name yet but it's a following committed to ending the existence of germs like you. Only then can Frank be completely healthy."
"Frank needs all of us to survive you idiot. He can't live with no exposure to germs."
"That's where you're wrong. Why do you think those drones were being made? It wasn't just the Ehrlichiosis they'd be carting around, they were perfected bio-suits designed to hold poisonous shit germs carry. They wander the body safely, catch a few germs and meanwhile Frank's immune system stays happy. It was the perfect solution until you got involved, you and that little hybrid bitch." Lindi. "Anyway. Enough talk." Scabs raised his weapon.
"Yeah, enough talk." Thrax was in motion before the chief knew it, his boot coming up and hitting the cell in the stomach. The air knocked out of him, he fell backwards out of the fog with Thrax straddling him, his claw pointed precariously between the chief's eyes. He glanced towards the broken down truck, Anguli-Oris nowhere to be found. "Maybe I have changed." He murmured, glancing back at his victim. "Or maybe I just found something worth living for." He jammed his hand down, the chief flinching as a jagged streak of fire lit up by his head. Thrax slowly stood. "Let's go." He grabbed the cell by the neck and hauled him to his feet.
…..
Precinct 13
Thrax made it to the bathroom before Veins was able to sic a squad medic on him. In the drive back to the Precinct his membrane returned to its normal healthy red but the internal pain didn't subside. Closing the bathroom door and locking it, he turned to the mirror seeing nothing out of the ordinary though he didn't know what he would be looking for. He coughed again, a fine misted saliva spraying the sink and bottom half of the mirror. "Damn it."
He jerked a few pieces of particle paper out of a box and went to wipe it up before freezing. The saliva was black. Shocked, he rubbed fingers along his teeth his tips coming back stained. For good measure he spat into the sink and watched in mixed emotions as black slowly slid down the drain.
A pounding on the door made him jump and regret it as his innards clenched around the pain. "Yeah?"
"You alright? Veins said you aren't getting out of seeing the medic." Jones's voice was muffled.
Thrax groaned. "I will if I leave."
"Let me reiterate-" Jones paused as Thrax yanked the door open. "-I'm not letting you leave until you see the medic. Just two minutes Thrax, c'mon." The white blood cell blocked his way back to his desk.
"I'm not seeing a medic Jones. End of story." He brushed past, locking the pain away to a place where he could ignore and almost pretend it didn't exist. "We have work to do and an epically corrupt system to try and fix."
….
Cerebellum Hall
2:15pm
Tom Colonic barely moved as the audio playback echoed in his office, the taped confession of Jim Scabs. When it ended his grey eyes switched to Thrax. "You sure you're okay?"
Being about the twelfth person to ask him in a span of two hours he wanted to snap his reply but didn't. That wasn't what you did when a friend asked about your well-being. Friend. "I'm fine."
"He won't see a medic." Jones blurted out unapologetically.
Thrax wished a look could have killed the cell. He wanted to retaliate with an insult, any insult but before he could form one Colonic looked his way. "Why not?"
"Because I don't need to." He shot his partner a nasty look, daring him to argue.
"Danny?"
Veins had remained largely quiet throughout the ride to City Hall and the meeting. "Can't force him."
Colonic sat up straighter in his chair. "You've already experienced being shot by cytokine, that's fixable. Hurts like a bitch for a while, but fixable. This gas crap that's been engineered is a different animal. Not much research has been done with it. And that conversation with Scabs wasn't a two-second thing, you were in that gas for minutes. You're seeing someone and you're not getting out of it."
Thrax kept his face blank even as the need to cough grew to an uncomfortable height, but he refused to show anything. He could wait unti he was behind closed doors to hack.
"They're finding the workers making the various states of cytokine are getting really sick, some are even dying." Leah added. "My desk is getting deeper and deeper with their complaints and copies of lawsuits."
With no suitable comeback he looked away.
"Is it true, what he said about Stoma?" Veins changed the subject. "He's getting off?"
"Yeah." Colonic rubbed his eyes.
"How? There was physical evidence linking him to the distribution of ehrlichiosis."
"Stoma comes from old money and even older influence. Short of murder he could probably get out of everything."
Veins grumbled under his breath.
"Even with this tape?" Jones asked incredulous. "Scabs sung a good song, said Stoma is a part of the corruption."
"Doesn't matter." Colonic stood up, facing the window looking out over Frank City, his hands deep in his pockets. "I um, don't know if I have the stamina to run for mayor again. Before I took office I had this grand idea in my head to be here until the public got sick of me but that was before the ehrlichiosis-"
In the shadows, an unreadable expression crossed Leah's face as she listened with them to the mayor. "Taking office-I thought I was just inheriting a dysfunctional mess but Stan just-his stupidity blinded him and shit took over that is just too strong to fight now.
"Quite honestly, the only precincts I have complete faith are not corrupt is yours, precinct 1 and 14, down on the big toe. That leaves twelve I can't guarantee." Colonic turned back to them. "You're an exceptional officer Danny, but Ribosome's son is technically more qualified. He's schooled to be a chief, but you got the experience that's why Charlie fought like hell to get you in there instead of Ribosome and good thing he won that argument considering where Ribosome Sr. sitting currently…. The ehrlichia changed me, just like it changed you." He nodded to Veins. "Which is exactly what certain people were hoping for I think."
"Wait a minute, what do you mean?" Jones sat up straighter. "This was all planned you think? The ehrlichia sure… but creating a circumstance where you'd be weaker?"
Colonic sat. "Yes. Precinct 13 has always worked very closely with Cerebellum Hall. Some could argue that Precinct 13 is the number one place to be to get to bigger and better things. Theoretically Danny Veins as a private citizen, is the second most important being in this body, and who also has been affected by ehrlichia." Colonic fell silent, his gaze landing on Thrax again. "This means you're a target."
Thrax had only been half listening, at the mayor's words he was brought back to the present.
"Precinct 13 has always been exceptional." Leah explained. "You've made it extraordinary. Take down Danny and you, what does Precinct 13 become?"
Thrax scoffed. "I'm not that important. Maybe with Veins out of the picture the place will grind to a screeching halt for a week but not me." He paced away, wishing he could leave the conversation.
"Then why didn't Scabs just shoot you." Colonic asked softly, making him pause. Why didn't he? "You need to get your ass to see a medic Thrax. Maybe you're right, maybe you are fine… I'd rather be told that then find out differently later." Colonic stood, pulling his jacket on. "I have to go see Jim Scabs." He made a face. "-Listen to his whiny excuses for why he's committed betrayal and then make a public speech about this whole mess. Should be fun. Keep me posted."
Veins stood with him, his attention on Thrax. "Let's go."
…
Cerebellum Hospital
4:35pm
Jones wasn't ready when Thrax stopped dead in his tracks in the entrance of the ER. "Dude, let's go."
"What the hell?" The virus ignored him as he stared at a female cell lounging at the front desk.
"Thrax….hello." Jones waved a hand in his face, breaking his attention. "Are you okay?"
Thrax glanced back at the woman, seeing she was not as pure white as he originally thought, nor was her thin body being consumed by red hot flames.
"Strange isn't it….." The whisper startled him so close to his ear. "Almost as if you're losing your mind…."
He forced himself to ignore everything but the reason why he was there. "Let's get this over with." They called his name soon enough, jumping him ahead to priority though he didn't know if they did it because he had a potential airway issue or if they didn't want him hanging in their lobby.
"Alright-" A petite cell appeared. "Oh- hi." Andromeda reddened as an awkward silence ensued.
Strangely he was relieved it wasn't Grace walking into his room. They wouldn't give her my case anyway, emotionally compromised. "Hey."
"What to tell me what happened?" She set to work taking vitals.
"Was on the job, breathed in some gas I shouldn't have." His throat burned, his suppression of coughing earlier creating a hard lump he couldn't pass.
"Cytokine gas." Jones added.
"Cytokine?" Annie looked up before quickly grabbing his chart. "They didn't write that, did you tell them?"
Jones shrugged. "I guess-I don't know."
"Have you been coughing?" She directed her question to Thrax.
"Yeah."
"A lot or a little?"
I don't know lady.
"He hasn't coughed in a while." Jones sat up in his chair straighter. "Why, is that an issue?"
"Yes it is… the less you cough it out the more congealed it gets inside you."
"Don't bother trying to fight the pain." Genix was enjoying himself, Thrax could tell from his tone. "It's called cytokines, or at least that's what the humans call it. We like to refer to it as BAVV." He paused for possible dramatic effect Thrax didn't know or care. "Bad-Ass Virus Venom. Hurts like a bitch, doesn't it."
Genix came over, yanking his cronies out of the way, both of who were still trying recover from Thrax's self-defense. He leaned against the trunk on his elbows and hands, staring at the virus. Thrax found he wanted to kill him but he held his impulsiveness in check, barely.
"So. What are we gonna do about your little stunt here?"
"What stunt?" Thrax finally growled. "Your two lackeys attacked me first."
Genix pursed his lips, and then he gave a dramatic sigh. "True, but one you had it coming you freak of nature and two, that's not what the cameras are gonna show." Genix gestured towards the precinct where two cameras were indeed visible. "You got alotta enemies here virus. And a good most of them are more than willing to help you towards your eventual damnation."
"Yeah." Thrax tried to straighten but the pain was too great. "What's that?"
"Your damnation? Why you choking on your own fluids of course. When the mayor finally gives the green light, whenever that will be, I'll be there to see them give you the needle and I'll watch as you gag on the entrails that dissolve and spew out of your mouth."
"It'll burn you from the inside out." Annie finished. "I have to get a doctor hold on."
The memory burned in his head, as much as he tried to ignore it the dead Genix's words kept ringing in his ears. "You gag on the entrails that dissolve and spew out of your mouth." The words were louder than the memory, looking to the source of the voice Genix stood in the doorway, arms folded. "Thought you could get away didn't you. Take my girl and live the good life Virus… well not this time. Like I said, I'd be there to watch your damnation.
"Yoohoo Thrax." A hard shake of his shoulder dissolved the traitorous cell. Annie was still standing in front of him, though serious concern on her face as she watched him glance at Jones fuzzily, the blood cell's hand having been waved in front of his face.
"Are you seeing anything?" She asked but didn't wait for an answer. "I'll be right back." She disappeared out of the room.
It hurt to breathe as a coldness came over him, unable to hold back a shiver worry spread across Jones's face. "Hang on." He disappeared from his line of sight and reappeared with a blanket. "You look like shit man."
The blunt observation was enough to bring him to his senses. "Thanks Jones." He tried to sit up straighter but pain flared up and down his spine like he was forcing a limb in the wrong direction. "Think this is how it ends?"
"Ends?" Jones repeated. "What are you talking about?" He asked quickly.
"Everything eventually dies, alone, doesn't matter whose with you."
…
Past
Days stretched into weeks and before he knew it, a month had passed. For reasons he could only feel was stupid and selfish he stayed with the Cytes. Why? He didn't have an answer. He was pushing waste to the waiting transport when he heard his name being called barely above the noise of the factory. Instead of continuing to yell the foreman waved a phone. Who would be calling me?
It took a moment to navigate through the stares, flinching and muttering of insults but he finally reached the foreman on duty.
"Phone call." He handed the phone over. "Make it quick you know the rules about personal calls while on shift."
"I didn't ask for someone to call me." He snapped. Maybe it's Herb or Edie? "Hello?"
There was nothing at first, a dead silence but then a slow inhale of breath followed by- "Hello Thrax."
Vinícius
"What do you want?" He hissed. "I'm hanging up on you and do not contact me again-"
"Well that's fine… you can just pay attention to the news later then-I haven't decided if I want to raze the house or leave it as is. I'm leaning towards leaving it as is, my artwork is so satisfying to look at."
A chill spread through Thrax listening to the bacteria's words. He glanced to see if there was caller ID, he recognized the number in a sickening realization. "If you harm them-"
"Then get over here." Vinícius's tone turned harsh. "And Thrax, don't make me wait." The line went dead.
He lost track of how long he stood there holding the phone. It wasn't until the foreman returned he numbly came to his surroundings.
"You getting back to work or not?"
"I have to go." He passed the cell.
"Excuse me? No you will not!" The cell made the mistake of grabbing his arm. Thrax whipped around and sent him spinning into the office door. Before he could recover, Thrax was gone.
…..
The house looked normal from the outside, Vinícius keeping his word for the moment of not burning to the ground. He stayed on the sidewalk until the remembering of the patrolling Immunity got him off it before a cop decided to stop and ask him his business for being in the neighborhood. They'd never believe I live here….
Slowly he approached the front door, each step up onto the porch making his feet feel like they were encased in plaque balls. The door was open, the house silent. He crept through the dining room listening for anything to give away the bacterias's presence but there was nothing. Maybe they left? Maybe the Cytes aren't home? He was prepared to use lethal force if it meant ridding his adopted family of the danger he brought with him into their home. Inexcusable.
A small drop of something laid on the threshold of the dining room and kitchen, he stopped an unmistakable smell reaching his senses. No….please no. He moved forward, not caring about being quiet and rounded the kitchen island.
His hard life had forced him to grow up fast, there was no situation he couldn't handle like an adult but the late teenage mentality came crashing back in as he took in the sight of the second she-cell to care about him. The plasma was congealed and washed the cabinets and floor. She had fought hard, that much he could tell. He sank down next to her, grief freezing him though almost immediately it melted into something he could understand. Rage. He reached out, his hand shaking and gently closed her eyes and stood. Spyrah was in the doorway, her face blank.
"You know how he is Thrax." Her gaze went from Edie's body to him. "You never learn, you don't push Vinícius. He will always find the thing you care most about and rip it to shreds."
He scoffed, his breath hitched still. "Is that your way of apologizing? Because you fucking suck at it."
She remained quiet at first. "I suppose… considering he did the same to my husband and my daughter-" He hadn't expected her confession and she knew it. "I just learned how to turn it off… otherwise it eats you from the inside out." She disappeared with the expectation of him following her. Hating himself, he did, his mind reeling at what he would tell Herb, tell Emilia. I'm the cause of … her..
Slowly he approached the living room, his thoughts on Herb's reaction and subsequent actions dying in his mind.
The cell was still alive but his normally blue membrane was quickly ashen to the sickly green color of Vinícius. His eyes rolled as saliva cakes the side of his face and the floor under him, tremors shook him.
Vinícius stood nearby. "Didn't I tell you…" He repeated. "Look at the damage you've created." He tsked. "Such a nice couple too. She was a fighter that one, in case you wanted to know."
Thrax barely heard him as he watched Herb struggle to breathe. The cell's eyes had widened at the sight of him. He's still here enough to understand who I am. Yet he refused to show emotion in front of his tormentors. My tormentors? He's their's too."
An evil smile lit Vinícius's thin face. "I'm going to freshen up darling, join me." He towed Spyrah to the stairs. It was then Thrax realized plasma was still on the bacteria's hands, leaking everywhere.
He breathed out, sinking down to the doctor's level, sorrow hitting him all over again. He wished there was a chance to fix him, at least save one of them but Vinícius was poisonous. Poison almost always led to the point of no return. He reached out, laying a hand on the trembling cell, recognition beginning to fade as the bacteria's venom was spreading to the cell's head. "I'm sorry." His left hand ignited and he jammed it into the doctor, wishing the final death to be quick. He got his wish as within seconds the fire consumed the body, leaving only a blackened imprint on the carpet.
Footsteps down the stairs told him the two bacteria returned but he didn't look at them. "Wow…" Vinícius stepped forward. "I didn't think you had it in you."
Thrax swallowed, his eyes landing on his still ignited weapon. Closing his eyes, something snapped within him. A coping mechanism drawing up steel walls around the pain of everything that had fucked him in life. Within moments the raw loss and pain was gone, locked away so he wouldn't ever feel that way again. He stood up.
"Course I did."
