Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original "Ninjago: Masters of Spintizu" characters, nor do I own the original settings. I only own Katherine, Beck, Nikkei, Doctor Alan McKullan, Hydro, Chandai, Khozah and Jack Davros.
THIRTEEN — "Hey There, You Familiar Face"
Katherine and Pythor were not on speaking terms. At all. She never left her room, until the following morning. Pythor had a feeling to stay in his, knowing avoiding her was the safest card to play for now.
He heard her leave her room and rummage around outside, figuring she was getting ready to go to work. Ten minutes later, she left. Pythor gave it a couple more minutes of established silence before finally coming out of his room. Just as he thought, Katherine was nowhere to be found...except for a note that she had left on the counter.
It read:
'Do what you want for breakfast. I'll be back in a few hours. The door is locked. Go through my mail while I'm gone and I'll knock you unconscious and leave you at the nearest zoo. Try me if you think I'm bluffing.'
Pythor rumbled in annoyance. Clearly, she was still quite upset about yesterday...and he wished he could hate her for it.
He sat at the counter and sighed, rubbing his neck. Then he yawned, his eyes feeling heavy; it was hard for one to sleep to the sounds of a miserably crying female just next door. Pythor was so tired that he'd thought he already made his morning cup of tea. He reached over and took a sip of the half-full cup of coffee Katherine had made for herself when she got up.
The moment the caffeine touched his sensitive pallet, he spat it out dramatically. Although to Katherine it was a tasteful way to start her morning, to Pythor it was like he had just took a sip of muddy water. He gagged in disgust.
"Repulsive!" he spat. "She drinks this vile every morning?"
Pythor prayed that that wasn't foreshadowing to an awful day...
Katherine had met up with Nikkei and Beck at their local breakfast cafe, which now had its power restored. The three friends frequently visited it, since the cafe was always a calm and relaxing place to talk. She had sent them both a text asking if they could meet there.
Both Nikkei and Beck sent a reply almost instantly saying they would see her there.
The cafe had a special place in the three friends' hearts. The owner started it when they were all in their preteen years, around the time when Katherine transferred to the same school Beck and Nikkei attended. The three friends were the first customers the cafe ever had, and it became one of their favorite spots to spend time at.
Katherine was the first to arrive, waiting until her friends showed up to order. But that wasn't long. Almost ten minutes later Nikkei arrived, and Beck walked in two minutes after her. They ordered their usual drinks, all the while noticing how calm everything was; as if all the troubles outside were nowhere to be found in the cafe.
It was a change of environment, and the three friends happily accepted it.
Unlike Beck, Nikkei had a good idea why Katherine had asked for their company in a familiar place where she felt the most comfortable. She saw that look on her friend's face and her heart dropped...
Beck immediately noticed something was wrong as soon as he had walked in, despite being unaware of the situation. He was the big brother between the two women.
As soon as the waitress dropped off their drinks and walked away, he looked right at Katherine and hissed very quietly in a protective manner:
"What did he do, Kat?"
Katherine rubbed her forehead with her drink close in front of her. She sighed, avoiding both Beck and Nikkei's gazes. But eventually she looked at the blonde.
"...He mentioned the letter to you, didn't he?"
Katherine nodded solemnly, which made Beck blink in confusion.
"What? What letter? What are you two talking about?" he asked the girls. He hated being in the dark.
As much as Katherine wanted to shine some light on the cryptically brief exchange she and Nikkei just shared, she didn't have the heart to explain. It was Nikkei who spoke up in her place.
"Um...Kat's mom sent her a letter in the mail the other day while she was at work. Py – uh, he-who-must-not-be-named found it. I threw it out and told him not to speak with Katherine about it..."
"But he did." Katherine said, then, getting Beck to look at her in surprise. "And he even tried to make some kind of opinion about it, like he was the damn voice of reason."
Just mentioning it made her blood start to boil. She took a quick sip of her drink, trying to keep her blood pressure under control. But Beck's was just starting.
"And what did you do about it?" he asked her.
"I slapped him."
Nikkei blinked, as did Beck. He even laughed lightly, quite impressed with her. But Nikkei was the opposite.
"Kat," she went to scold, "that's –"
"That's amazing." Beck chuckled.
"No, it's not." Nikkei argued, lightly whacking Beck's arm. She turned to Katherine. "I mean, I know it was the heat of the moment, but...to slap him?"
"I'm not proud of it...anymore, anyway." Katherine sighed. "I heard the superior tone in his voice as he spoke and I just lost control for a moment. I doubt the slap even hurt him; it hurt me more. Literally. Just look."
She lifted the hand she had been hiding on her lap since they arrived, where a bruise was fully formed on the back of it. It was a deep purple, a sign that it was still quite tender.
Nikkei and Beck both fretted over it a little, gently taking her hand and examining it.
"Jeez, Kat." Nikkei frowned. "This is awful."
"Don't remind me." She grumbled. "I have little to no strength in that hand. I nearly dropped my cup of coffee on myself this morning..."
Nikkei asked, "Have you spoken to him at all?"
"Nope. And I don't want to."
"You can't avoid it forever, Kat." She advised kindly. "It'll be brought up again."
"Yeah, and next time you should just reel your hand back and punch him in the face if he tries." Beck told her, getting a more firmer whack on the arm from Nikkei for it. "Ow! Well, she should!"
"So she can what? Break her own fingers? Besides, they already had one physical fight, the last thing they need is one with actual punches."
Katherine sighed, pulling her hand away. "That's not gonna happen, guys. It's not gonna become a huge bloodbath between you-know-who and I. We'll just keep going like yesterday never even happened."
Nikkei looked at her skeptically. "Just like that?"
She nodded in total certainty. "Just like that."
Nikkei and Beck wanted to argue, but they didn't see the point. They knew Katherine taking their advise was a fifty-fifty chance, especially when it came to issues about her mother. Her tendencies to be headstrong and stubborn amazed them at times, so much so that they wondered if she got an enjoyment out of avoiding issues...
It was then the three heard something from the TV hanging from the corner far across from them.
"So, Mr. Davros, you and your team claim to have found a Serpentine skeleton?"
They all turned, finding their local museum was displayed on it and in front of it was none other than the famous Jack Davros himself, wearing a proud grin.
Katherine, Nikkei and Beck turned to it. As soon as he saw Jack, Beck snorted to himself.
"Look at his stupid smug face..."
Ever since his rise into fame, Beck always disliked Jack Davros. But neither Nikkei or Katherine ever knew why.
Then Jack responded to the question.
"Actually, we have found a Serpentine skeleton." He corrected. "I was journeying through the Sea of Sands just after the Toxic Bogs and on my second day of exploring we come across a claw sticking out of the sand. My team and I dig it up and discover an entire decomposed Serpentine body." Jack's smirk widened. "And my team believes that the body I found is actually none other than an Anacondrai."
Katherine's eyes widened at that, her entire body becoming stiff. Even Nikkei and Beck were frozen with shock.
The anchorman of NGTV appeared on screen.
"And since little is known about the Anacondrai Tribe, Jack Davros is kind enough to donate his discovery to Ninjago's own museum so that more can be learned of the mysterious Tribe. And in honor of his wonderful donation, the museum is hosting a meet and greet for Jack this evening. All are welcomed, and you can pay for your stamp of admission at the museum's front doors on arrival."
Katherine couldn't explain her feelings, but she could tell there was a good chance Pythor would catch wind of this news. She drank her drink and slapped her money on the table, plus a tip for their waitress before getting up.
"We gotta go. Now." She told her friends, who acted just as fast.
They also paid for their drinks and hurried out with her out the cafe. Beck was the only one who brought a car and they piled into it. He drove straight back to her apartment. As soon as he parked it, Katherine hopped right out. She moved as fast as lightning up the steps, in front and unlocking her door at an even faster pace.
She opened the door and there was Pythor, staring at the TV with a solemn stare. He didn't look up at her, not even when Beck and Nikkei ran up behind her.
Katherine swallowed. "Hey..." she greeted, walking in. Beck closed the door behind them.
Pythor still never responded.
Katherine turned and saw he was watching the news. She swallowed again, looking back at Pythor. Before she could say anything, he stood up abruptly. The three were slightly startled by his fast movement. He picked up his empty tea cup from the coffee table and slithered over to the counter, gripping the cup tightly...
"Pythor," Katherine asked, "a-are you –"
"Don't even try to patronize me with such a stupid question!" he snapped venomously, taking his tea cup and throwing it against the closet wall. He glared at the three humans. Only Katherine was brave enough to meet it, as Beck and Nikkei braced nervously.
"No! I am not all right!" he hissed. "Why would I be all right when one of my people are on display in your museum?!"
Katherine walked up to him slowly, speaking in a calm voice. "Pythor, you need to calm down. They only believe it's an Anacondrai skeleton. Nothing has been confirmed yet."
"What difference does that make?" Pythor argued, his fuchsia eyes glowing with rage. "Anacondrai or not, that skeleton is still one of my people! And one of yours has it donated to a museum to be gawked at, when it should be in the ground – undisturbed!"
Katherine drew back at that. She had no argument against him, unable to choke up the courage to even attempt to argue with him. It felt...wrong to try to, in a way she couldn't very well explain.
Pythor moved past her, then, heading for her closet. He started rummaging through it, searching for something.
"What are you doing?" Beck questioned, dodging a coat Pythor had tossed to the side. It was clearly to small for him.
"Going to return the skeleton to where it belongs." Pythor rumbled, holding another coat up against him to see it it would fit. "I refuse to idly stand by and allow such disrespect shown to my people."
Beck blinked. "So you're just gonna stroll out in broad daylight and break into the museum? That's your plan?" he demanded.
"It's all I have!" he growled at him, tossing the coat to the floor. "I'm a tad limited here!"
It was true. Pythor was greatly limited. His invisibility powers were mediocre still. He was doing some practicing behind the scenes, but even holding it for just a minute would tire him out and aggravate his injuries. There was no way he could make it all the way to the museum. He would be caught in a heartbeat.
As much as he hated it, he would need a disguise.
"That's insane," argued Beck, becoming frustrated. "Even if you find a disguise, you're gonna stick out like a sore thumb. And we don't even know if the skeleton's there."
"Then I will speak to this Jack Davros and make him tell me where it is." Pythor growled, looking for a longer coat.
Beck snorted. "Of course, because that'll go so well. You know, there will be security around, and they'll be armed."
Nikkei lightly added, "Beck has a point. Last time you ran into men with guns, it didn't turn out well for you."
"None of you understand!" Pythor snapped, turning and glaring at the three humans. "You may be used to putting your kind on display, but that's not how we remember our past! We honor our dead by building statues of them and tell our young stories of their heroism! We let our dead be at rest!"
"We don't put our dead on display in a way that you think." Nikkei defended, stopping Beck from snapping at Pythor by putting a hand on his arm. "It's our way to remember the past, too. But we're still respectable to the bones we have."
"I find that hard to believe." Pythor snorted, turning away. He kept searching the closet to find a garment that would cover him.
Nikkei and Beck turned to Katherine, since she was so quiet throughout this minor debate. But they caught her just coming out of a room with a cloak in her arms. The sound of a door closing got Pythor's attention, and he turned to see the same thing. His eyes widened at her as well.
"Kat..." Beck said, staring at her in disbelief.
Katherine disregarded him as she walked up to Pythor and tossed him a cloak. "Here, this should work. That's from a costume I wanted to wear for a party, but the seller messed up my order and sent me an XXL by mistake. If that doesn't cover you, then I don't know what will."
Pythor put it on. Sure enough, it was a perfect fit. It was long enough to even cover his tail. He shrank his long neck enough to pull the hood over his head.
"We're not that far from the museum," Katherine said, crossing her arms in thought, "so I hope we can make it there without many stares."
Nikkei noticed what she just said. "'We'?"
She sighed and nodded. "Yeah...I'm going with him to make sure nothing goes wrong."
Nikkei, Beck and even Pythor blinked again at her.
"Kat!" Beck argued. "Are you serious?"
"There's no point in stopping him." Katherine said, looking at him. "We might as well just see if Jack actually found a Serpentine skeleton. If not, we'll drop the whole thing and leave."
"But if it is?" he asked.
Katherine paused a moment. Then she looked at Pythor. "I guess that's up to you..."
Pythor studied her. He could tell she didn't want to do this. But at the same time it was obvious she knew she didn't have a choice. It was just like that first night when she found him; she had the option to abandon Pythor but she couldn't act upon that instinct, leaving her with no other option but one...
But then Beck groaned, running a hand through his black hair as his frustration grew. "Damn it, Kat. Now I gotta go, too."
Katherine turned to Beck in surprise. "What? Beck, no you don't."
He put his hands in his pockets."Yes, I do. Because not only do I have a car, I don't trust this guy to keep himself calm if things turn south." He said, the last part obviously directed at Pythor.
Nikkei said then. "I'll go, too. That way if things do south between you and Pythor, I can help Katherine break you both up."
Pythor stared at the two humans before his eyes fell to Katherine. He saw her wear the same shocked expression, until a smile blossomed on her face. It was a smile he'd never seen her show before. She seemed...happy. If not quite touched by her friends' loyalty.
Then she looked at Pythor with that smile, shrugging. "Well, scratch that...all three of us are going with you."
Pythor glanced at them...but he sighed and nodded. "Fine with me."
He didn't see the point in arguing. Pythor knew when it came to a human's determination, there was no breaking it.
Beck drove them all to the museum. There was a convenient just across the street from it. On the way, they had stopped by a cheap costume shop and purchased a few things to add to Pythor's disguise – just to sell the deal that he wasn't Serpentine...but an old blind man.
Nikkei had bought a fake beard, brought along her grandfather's cane for him to support on and black sunglasses.
Pythor sat on the back seat as Katherine tied the fake bear around his head, while Nikkei and Beck took watch around the car to make sure no suspicious eyes wandered their way.
"Now, remember, you stay close with us no matter how tempting it is to wander away from us." Katherine told him, busy tying the strings of his fake beard in a tight knot so it would stay.
Pythor rumbled quietly in annoyance, rolling his eyes. "Yes, yes, I'm aware."
"Hey," she said firmly, pulling back to look at him, "I mean it. The last thing we need is you getting caught and starting a panic with armed security around."
"You forget that I am a snake." Pythor reminded her, giving a confident grin. "They'll never suspect there's a Serpentine under this disguise."
Katherine normally would have agreed, but given to how personal this mission was to him, she was a bit skeptic in his confidence.
"Let's hope. The last thing we need is unwanted attention."
"Must you worry so much?" asked Pythor. "I'm sure people will be so eager to meet the famous Jack Davros that they will hardly take any notice of us."
She sighed, moving back a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Look, just promise me that whatever happens, you'll keep your cool and not make a scene."
Pythor snorted. "I just said that I – "
"Please?" Katherine insisted, meeting his eyes.
He studied the worried expression, even tasting her apprehension in her scent. It made the proud Anacondrai pause a moment, and he remembered that Katherine was just as deep as he was in all this. Neither of them could afford to be caught tonight. Not even Beck and Nikkei.
Finally, Pythor rumbled a sigh and nodded. "Yes, you have my word."
"Thank you." Katherine replied, picking up the sunglasses. "Now, don't overthink this. You're a blind, mute old man who likes taking frequent trips to the museum. Just keep your head low and never look someone in the face. Got it?"
"I think I can mange." He confirmed.
"Good." Katherine placed the sunglasses on his face and he picked up his cane from the floor of the car.
Beck looked over at them. "Are we ready?"
Katherine nodded. "Ready as we'll ever be."
Pythor stood up, hunching himself over like he had a bent in his back, keeping his head low as he hunched over the cane. The three could barely see his face under the beard and sunglasses. It took some of the anxiety off.
Just to sell the old man disguise, Katherine had Pythor wrap his arm around hers, pretending to guide him along while he tapped his cane against the ground as they walked across the street.
Beck was beside her. "I dare say we may just pull this off..." he mumbled quietly to the group.
"Whatever we pull off tonight," Nikkei mumbled back, looking around in hopes they weren't catching stares.
"Everyone just be cool." Katherine advised. "As long as we don't do or say anything to draw unwanted attention, we'll be fine."
They got in line. Pythor did well keeping up the act. Not a single person found him off-putting when they looked at him. He inwardly sighed in relief. That was one worry out of the way...
Each person paid to enter the museum up front, getting a stamp on the back of their hand to prove they were permitted to be here. Beck and Nikkei paid separately, getting their stamps. Katherine had to pay for herself and her "grandfather", but seniors got a discount.
She was worried about the stamp, but the stamper assured her that it was obvious they were a joint pair and didn't need to stamp Pythor's hand. Katherine thanked her lucky star for dodging a pretty nasty bullet.
The four entered the museum. They weren't surprised to find it filled with people, half of which were Davros fans, and another half that were famous explorers themselves who were just as interested in meeting the man of the hour. Beck counted all the security guards in the room. Five. All together.
He swallowed, feeling a large wave of nervousness fall over him as he looked around for the man of the hour. But he was nowhere to be found.
"Davros must not be here yet." Nikkei whispered.
Beck snorted with contempt. "Leave it to that jerk to be late for something in his honor..."
Katherine and Nikkei caught Beck's tone, almost sounding a little offended. But he wasn't in the mood to address it.
"Okay, here's the plan," he whispered, gathering the group together, "we're not staying here long, so if we find the skeleton we'll think of part two of this plan. But if not, then we get the hell out and never look back, got it?"
Pythor pushed his sunglasses down just a little so he could shoot Beck a leer. "And you're in charge now because...?"
Beck shot a leer right back. "Because I'm the one with the car. Without me, you're screwed. So find the skeleton while I..." he groaned, hating to say, "while I pretend to be one of Jack's stupid fans..."
Nikkei and Katherine nodded. Both girls confirmed they would text each other if they found anything. Beck joined the group of fans that would be the first to meet Jack when he showed up, which he was hoping would never happen.
But his worst fear came true just when the dread was hanging high above his head. Jack stepped through the doors in the fanciest tux his money could by, freshly shaved and well prepared for the evening. He waved and grinned at his fans, even greeting the interviewers who flashed their cameras at him, walking to the bar area set up at the left side of the room.
"Hello, everyone. I hope you all have a great time."
Pythor and Katherine looked over at him. The Anacondrai couldn't contain a growl when Jack flashed a wink with a cocky grin at one of his female fans that was wearing a shirt with his face on it. Then he felt Katherine's grip tighten lightly around his hand.
"Shh, old man, remember?" she reminded calmly. "Old men don't growl."
"How can that smug, slave to fame walk around with a smile on his face after carelessly disturbing someone's grave like he did?"
Katherine gave Pythor a sympathetic expression. "Some people just don't care about things like you do. I guess in Jack's mind, he made a possibly rare discovery that'll make him more famous than he already is."
Pythor sneered in disgust, lowly rumbling, "And you people wonder why my kind despise you all so much..."
Katherine had nothing to say to that. She only pulled Pythor along.
Nikkei took one side of the museum while Katherine and Pythor took the other. He held her arm as she walked around, tapping his cane against the floor, fuming with anger in silence. He needed to find the skeleton while Beck bought them all time.
Jack had a martini in one hand as he stood by his table with his merchandise, shaking his fans with his other hand. All he needed was one hand to sign autographs and take pictures with, never putting his drink down to even pose for a picture. But Jack got tired after ten minutes, whispering something to his security.
They nodded and backed off his fans, telling them he needed to double check the merchandise to make sure there would be enough for everyone.
But Beck watched Davros grab another martini from the bar and walk off to another part of the museum, somewhere quiet so he wouldn't be disturbed...or so he would assume.
Beck didn't think twice about following him, quickly sending Nikkei and Kat a text to let them know his plan. He was hoping to buy them at least twenty minutes...
Jack wandered off to the animal exhibit, which displayed fake and stuffed animals that roamed Ninjago. There was no one in sight, which was a relief to him. He sighed and took a sip of his drink.
"Since when are you a martini guy?"
Jack spun around, surprised to see Beck approaching him with his hands stuffed in his pockets, his default position when he was uncomfortable or upset. He blinked at him, studying him up and down as he walked up to him.
"No way," Davros chuckled, giving a small smile, "Beck? Is that you, man?"
Beck nodded lightly at him, not returning the smile. "Yeah, been a while...Eugene."
Jack quickly shushed him, pretending to put it off as a "joking" manner with a fake smile and chuckle. But Beck noticed he was looking around the room to make sure no one heard him. "H-Hey, c'mon, Becky. I got a reputation to maintain, man. Don't need people knowing my real name."
He shrugged. "Sorry, I just can't get over the name you've made for yourself, I guess..."
Jack nodded in agreement, yet his proud smirk was bold. "Yeah, took a while for me to get used to, too. And I'm the one who came up with it. But 'Jack Davros' has a nicer ring to it than 'Eugene Burkins' ever did, if you ask me."
"And people really believe that's your name?"
"They believe what I want them to believe." Jack said, taking a sip of his martini again. "That's the beauty of fame."
Beck nodded, remembering he'd said those same exact words years ago, back when he still went by Eugene...
"Guess it's nice living a total lie."
Jack chuckled at him, impervious to his little jabs by now. "Good old, Becky. Still as pissy as ever. You'd think being a construction worker would've loosened you up."
"Honestly, Eugene, do you really travel all around like everybody says you do, or are you just lucky enough to have a crew of cameramen who think to bring a car wherever they go?"
Jack leaning against a wall. "Don't overthink it, Becky. Making a TV show isn't rocket science."
"And to find the time to sit down write your own survival manual..."
"Man, you really know how to kill a man's buzz." Jack remarked, chugging down the rest of his drink. He then set his glass down on the floor beside him so he could pull out a cigarette from a secret pocket hidden under his tux. He offered one to Beck, but he turned it down.
Being a construction worker helped him with his tobacco addiction. After a year, Beck had little to no need for it anymore. But he was quite surprised that even living in the lap of fame wasn't enough to sway Eugene from his smoking habit.
"I'll take it you're not here to congratulate me for all my success." Jack pointed out, as he lit his cigarette. He then took in a puff and blew the smoke to the side, looking at Beck and waiting for his response.
"I'm a little more curious about those Serpentine bones you dug up." He said, putting his hands back in his pockets. His hand fell over his phone...
"What?" Jack asked. "Think I faked it?"
He shrugged lightly. "Not necessarily. But it was kind of you to donate your possibly rare discovery to the museum."
"What can I say? I'm a nice guy. It's what I do."
Beck could tell Eugene had developed a nasty habit of ego-stroking throughout the years. Yet another ugly thing from his rise to fame.
"Plus," Jack added, "those snakes creep me out. I was happy to be rid of it. This museum had more use for it than I did. Apparently, they're in the process of adding an entire section here solely devoted to Serpentine history and what-not. They're taking anything that has to do with them."
"Is it even in the museum?" he asked Jack.
Jack took another puff from his cigarette. "Yeah, they have it in storage."
"And they're sure it's Anacondrai?"
"Positive."
"...Mind if I see it?" Beck asked, then, casually.
That prompted quite a surprised look from his once old friend. "Seriously? You expect me to just waltz you down to storage with you and show you the skeleton?"
Beck gave an earnest shrug. "I'm not expecting it, no. But if you want to prove to me it's not fake, then why not? It'll be like when we were little kids and playing explorers."
Jack raised a brow at him.
"...And I'll buy your merch if you prove it's real."
That earned a grin from Jack. He put out his cigarette with the bottom of his shoe and threw it in the trash, followed by pulling out his phone. "One minute." He told him, before calling somebody.
The second he turned, Beck pulled out his phone and group-texted Katherine and Nikkei. He quickly typed:
'Got Jack to take me to where the skeleton is.'
Nikkei's reply was the first to pop up.
'Seriously?'
Then came Kat's message not a second later.
'How the HELL did u manage that?'
Beck quickly replied:
'He's an ego maniac. We're in the animal exhibit. Follow behind.'
Beck put his phone away the moment Jack hung up with his call and turned around. "All right, I told my agent what's going on and he gave us one hour...oh, and I have some of my merch picked out for you, if that's all right?"
He flashed him a smug grin just to anger him.
Beck flashed one right back. "Wonderful."
The two started on their way, and Nikkei, Katherine and Pythor kept a distance behind. Jack found the first STAFF ONLY door nearby, pulling out a key card from his pocket. He put it up against the scanner and the sound of a buzz followed.
Beck entered right behind him. A door stop laid right next to the entrance, giving him an idea. He quickly hooked his jacket pocket around the knob, pretending it was caught.
"Ugh, crap!" he faked, acting to "free" himself so he could push the door stop in the way.
Jack rolled his eyes. "That's what happens when you wear baggy clothes, Becky..."
"Shut up." He grunted, finally getting his pocket unstuck.
The door closed, but not all the way thanks to the stop. Katherine, Pythor and Nikkei quietly went inside. Their eyes widened at how big the storage unit was, filled with aisles that needed to be turned with a wheel to move. They saw Beck and Jack from a distance and followed behind.
As they kept their distance, Nikkei asked in a very quiet whisper, "Does anyone else think it's weird Beck is not only alone with Jack Davros, but that he's willingly showing him to his major discovery?"
Katherine shrugged as the group stopped so they wouldn't get too close. "Who knows? Beck has a way of getting at people. Maybe he antagonized him enough to prove that the skeleton's real."
"I believe that." Pythor said.
Even he had to admit, Beck using his powers of aggravation was quite an effective tool at the moment. He hoped it would last...
Past the storage chambers was an area filled with crates and boxes. Jack checked the labels, until he came to one that was very large in height and length.
"This is it." Jack said, grabbing a nearby crowbar. He jammed it under the lid and started prying it open.
The other three hid behind the storage cabinets while the Beck and Jack were preoccupied. Pythor removed the glasses and beard, raising his long neck so he would get a good view of the skeleton. His head came just over the top of the cabinet.
Jack gave one final pry and the lid popped off. After tossing the crowbar, he slid it off.
And there it was, preserved in shredded paper. Beck's eyes widened at how...real the skeleton was. From the fanged skull, the clawed hands and incredibly long spine. There was no doubt it was Serpentine...and no doubt it was real. The detailed ingrain of the bones made his stomach churn, almost making him sick. He swallowed, taking a step back unconsciously, as if he was afraid the corpse was going to spring back and attack him.
Even Pythor's eyes widened. He recognized the long tail and jawline.
Anacondrai. There wasn't an inkling doubt in his mind.
Jack turned to Beck, noticing his trepidation. He got up, wiping his hands as he looked back at the skeleton.
"How's that for fake?"
Beck gave him a brief look before his gaze drew back to the skeleton like a magnet. "Yeah, that's...yeah." He numbly nodded. When it came to death, Beck wasn't a fan. Anything from a funeral to the skeleton laying before him now would make him tremble.
He had to look away.
...But Pythor couldn't. A feeling from long ago began sinking in, a feeling of dread and apprehension. It kept whispering to him for some reason...and a name popped into his head. He couldn't explain it. And he had a feeling this was going to be too colossal to ignore.
"You said you found this in the Sea of Sands?" Beck asked, starting to feel a little sick.
"Yup. In an unmarked grave all alone. It was preserved in something that looked like a casket. But it was too rare of a discovery to pass up."
All eyes went to Jack when he said this. Nikkei, Katherine and Beck's gazes were filled with shock – but Pythor's was a glare of absolute hatred. It was an unmarked grave! This bastard disturbed someone's final resting place!
And all for the sake of fame!
His claws dug into the metal as his hand slowly clenched into a fist, leaving marks in the process. A growl rumbled in his throat. Katherine noticed, looking up at Pythor in concern.
Beck stared at Jack, totally caught off guard. "And...you just thought that that was okay?"
"There was some debate about it for a while, but we eventually came to the conclusion that there's need to be more known about the Serpentine." Jack explained. "If they pull another stunt like last time, we can be more prepared than before. That attack wasn't on the city, but on us as humans."
Pythor's growling deepened. It startled Katherine. So much so that she went to reach out to him, but he hesitated. "Easy with the growling." She tried to sooth.
But he shook his head. "The first chance I get I'm taking that corpse out of here."
"Pythor -"
"I am!" he harshly snapped, flashing that glare at both Katherine and Nikkei. They were surprised he stayed as quiet as he was. Had he been some over emotional half-wit, their cover would have been blown.
Then Jack's phone went off. He checked it and sighed. "We need to get back. The crowd is getting antsy out there."
He placed the lid back on the crate.
Beck looked back at the group while his back was turned and nodded them out the door. Nikkei and Katherine ducked back down but Pythor eyed the crate, as if waiting.
"We have to go," Nikkei whispered at him.
"Then you both leave." He refused. "I'm staying."
"There's nothing you can do in your condition." Katherine told him. "You'll have no way out of here. You'll be a sitting duck."
"I'll figure my way out." Pythor argued.
"Yeah, unless the person who finds you hauling out a skeleton is armed! What then?"
Pythor wanted to argue again, but the sound of Beck and Jack walking away got their attention. He judged the distance and took a chance, ducking from his cover and slithering for the skeleton.
"Pythor!" Katherine hissed. "Pythor!"
But he wasn't coming back.
"Crap!" she cursed, fighting the urge to slam her fist into something. She turned to Nikkei. "Go with Beck and keep the door stop there. I'm gonna try and talk him out of here."
Katherine had been determined from the start to take the heat if she was ever caught, but she would sooner rot in prison the rest of her life than drag either Nikkei or Beck with her.
Nikkei was hesitant, but she could tell Katherine knew what she was doing. She left, unable to keep from looking back before she opened the door and made sure the stop was in place.
Pythor threw the lid off the crate, gazing at the skeleton with utter sympathy. The name kept repeating over, over, and over in his head. He looked around, trying to find another exit.
Katherine ran over, then, taking his arm. "Pythor, please, I know you're upset but there's nothing – "
"Don't!" he hissed at her, pulling his arm away and standing in the same second. "Don't say there is nothing I can do! There is! There is – I know there is!"
"Keep your voice down!" Katherine hissed back. "We need to leave before somebody –"
The sound of footsteps got their attention again, footsteps that were coming their way. Without thinking of Katherine, Pythor acted. He concentrated as hard as possible and turned invisible, disappearing right before Katherine.
Her jaw dropped in total shock, but before her brain could register what had happened, someone shouted:
"You, young lady!"
Katherine turned to two security officers approaching her. Their suites intimidated her, freezing her to the spot.
"What are you doing back here?" one of the officers demanded. "Do you have authorization to be here?"
"N-No, I-I –"
The two officers closed in on both sides of her, like two tigers surrounding a baby gazelle.
Pythor silently backed away, doing everything to maintain his invisibility. He just needed to hold it for at least three more minutes, then he could think without having Katherine nagging at him.
"You better tell us why you're here, young lady, or you can be in serious trouble." One warned her.
Katherine swallowed. "I-I was just looking for my-my, uh, grandfather..." It was the only excuse she could think of.
Of course, neither one of them bought it. One grabbed her by her arm and started dragging her along with him.
"You're coming with us." He said, but Katherine couldn't help but struggle.
"H-Hey, please, officers! I-I'm not lying, please!" she tried to beg.
But they wouldn't listen, trying to pull her along with them by force. But as strong as Katherine could be, she was no match for a well built officer. He pulled her with them no problem.
Pythor watched as they started taking her away, no matter how much she pleaded and struggled. He finally reappeared, crouching in front of the crate. Ignoring the pain, Pythor looked around for another exit, one that he could sneak through with the skeleton and return it to the grave she – it – was robbed from.
Without meaning to, Pythor met Katherine's pleading eyes. Normally he would have looked away easily...but he found himself unable to this time. There was something stopping him from moving, stopping him from thinking about the one thing he cared about for these past two hours...now all he could think about was Katherine's well being.
He started wondering what would happen when the officers pulled her through that door. Where would they take her? To a small cell below the museum? Or would they throw her out of the museum? Would it be that simple? What if those security officers phoned in their higher authorities? What then?
All these questions, with no way of knowing the answers...and he hated it.
In the blink of an eye, Pythor was back under his disguise. Loudly, he called out in his best elderly impression:
"O-Oh, e-excuse me? Is someone there?"
The officers stopped and turned, blinking in question at the "old man".
"Katherine?" Pythor called, tapping his cane on the ground to sell the act. "Are you there?"
Katherine glanced at the officers before pulling her arm away from the one who had her. "I'm here, granddad." She replied, walking over to Pythor and taking his arm.
"Is the tour over?" he asked her.
"Afraid so, granddad." Katherine said. "I don't know how you got away from me. You're sure fast on those old legs of yours."
She turned to the officers. "We were on a short tour group, but granddad here accidentally slipped away from me."
They both kindly nodded. "Sorry for the misunderstanding, ma'am." They apologized. "You and your grandfather have a nice day."
Katherine nodded at them, before she escorted Pythor out of the storage area.
When they were out of sight, she looked over at him...but Pythor had nothing to say. He didn't want to meet her eyes again.
They made their way back to the lobby, where Nikkei and Beck were waiting. Katherine blinked when she saw him covered head to toe in Jack Davros merchandise, even holding a mug with Jack's face on it.
"Don't ask, please." He said, obviously quite bitter over something. "Can we leave now?"
Katherine nodded. "We're done here..."
Beck drove Katherine and Pythor back to her place. It was late at night when they arrived, ten o'clock no less. There was no person in sight.
She hopped out of Beck's car, with Pythor right behind her. He slammed the door as hard as he could, rocking the vehicle a bit with his Serpentine strength.
Beck would have snapped at him, but he didn't have the heart to.
Pythor started slithering off somewhere, ripping off the beard and whipping it somewhere to the side, same with the sunglasses, which shattered upon impact of the wall he whipped them at.
Katherine watched him and sighed. "Thanks for everything, Beck. I'll see ya later."
He nodded. "Goodnight, Kat...and good luck with him."
She was gonna need it.
Katherine hurried after Pythor, going down the same ally she had found him those couple weeks ago. "Pythor – "
"Stop following me." He told her, as he started looking for a way underground. But Katherine didn't. He heard every footstep.
It wasn't until he stopped that Katherine finally did, but he still never looked at her.
"Do you ever listen to someone when they ask something of you?" he growled, becoming frustrated.
Katherine crossed her arms. "Only when I like somebody – which we've both established is not a mutual feeling between us. Now, let's go inside, please? It's been a long day."
Pythor bitterly chuckled at that. "You say that like you're the one who saw one of his own in a museum..."
Katherine sighed at that and frowned. Despite everything, Pythor was the one suffering. Being sarcastic wouldn't make him feel better. "I'm...I'm sorry you had to see that. I doubt it was easy..."
"Are you really sorry?" Pythor demanded at her, then, taking Katherine aback. "Are you? If you were actually sorry, you would have left me back there and let me do what needed to be done!"
Katherine became defensive. "Hey, do not pin what happened on me!" she retorted. "You were being an idiot! I'm sorry that I was worried about you getting caught!"
"Why worry?" he snapped. "I didn't ask you to worry about me! And thanks to you, one of my own people is stuffed in storage and waiting to be put on display!"
"There was nothing you could do!"
"YES THERE WAS!" Pythor roared, turning to her with a glare of rage. Katherine drew back from him. "THERE WAS SOMETHING I COULD HAVE DONE!"
She froze when she heard the crack in his voice. It caught her off guard, and she took the chance to study him. His eyes were heavy with emotion, one of them was anger, another regret...and then there was guilt.
Katherine fell silent.
"Do you have any idea how many of us there are anymore?" Pythor snapped, trying to fight back the emotions trying to surface. "We're becoming extinct! And at this rate it will be soon! Do you know how that feels?"
Katherine only shook her head.
"Exactly!" he spat cruelly. "Look at me and tell me you're sorry now!"
Katherine met his glare. She swallowed and said without a hint of sarcasm or mockery: "I'm sorry."
It was a genuine apology.
But Pythor snorted. "Are you? Are you truly sorry...because so am I!" he shouted. "I had the chance to help but I failed! I screwed everything up and I can never have that opportunity again!"
Katherine reached out to him, but Pythor pushed her hand away in refusal. It was so unexpected. She never did those things. Her actions puzzled him for a moment until he felt something fall from the side of his cheek. He wiped his face, stunned to find he was wiping away a stream of tears.
Pythor sniffed, but he couldn't stop them. It only made his turmoil worse that he was crying – showing weakness – in front of a human. He turned away, wiping his face again.
"I was supposed to protect them and I failed." He sobbed. "I let them down..."
Katherine reached out to him again. "Pythor –"
Once again he pushed her hand away. More hot tears fell from his face.
"I am supposed to think of another way when things go wrong and I couldn't..." All his pent up anger and self-hatred that slowly built up became too much. Pythor reeled his fist back and slammed it into the brick wall beside him, letting out a roar. Then he slammed his fist again, and again, and again, and again – until Katherine finally stopped him.
She threw herself at him from behind, wrapping her arms around him from behind. She held him tightly, trying – hoping – she could get him to stop.
"Stop," she softly whispered at him, "just stop, please. Just stop, stop..."
Pythor didn't even try to push her off this time. He gave into his weakness and sobbed miserably, like a helpless child. Clenching his now bleeding fist, he cried against the wall. Katherine never once let him go.
"...You did everything you could." She told him, her voice gentle. "What happened in the museum was no one's fault. And I'm sure whoever that Serpentine was once appreciates the effort you put into today."
That made more tears fall down Pythor's face.
"Stop beating yourself up for things that can't change, okay? Bad things happen, and sometimes they're out of our control. But we just gotta make the best out of them...that's all we can do."
Pythor only sobbed...and then a thought, one that Pythor never would have believed he'd ever have, voiced itself in his head for just a heartbeat.
Where were you before this whole mess happened?
He wasn't sure where that thought came from or why it happened...but Pythor was tired. That must have been why. He was emotionally and mentally exhausted. Those two things could make anyone have strange thoughts.