Chapter Seventeen
"Rise and shine, Snaggletooth~!"
The door hissed open and that blinding light flared to life. Conrad flinched but did not look up. He knew who it was; that bastard Ellis. How he hated that man, with every aching fiber of his being he hated him like he had never hated anyone before. In fact, he thought he'd almost be glad to see Worth when he got out this place.
If he got out of this place.
"Guess what?" Ellis' voice said, drawing closer and closer until a shadow fell across the beaten vampire. "We're going to go on a road trip. You and a whole bunch of the Ahimsa get to go see all your little rebel friends. Won't that be fun? And I'll finally get my toy back."
Conrad said nothing and just let his head hang, eyes half-closed, wishing that the man would just go away and leave him alone.
There was the sound of boots clicking against the floor. "Sir," Anya's voice echoed into the room. "We're ready to leave. If you could just administer the sedative we'll be on our way."
"Oh, wait just a minute!" Ellis' quick footsteps and then the sound of one of the cabinets being opened. Conrad shivered and then groaned as he aggravated his injuries. There came the sounds of the doctor rummaging through the cabinet. "We still have time, I just want to try one more thing!"
There was the sound of a sigh and a tapping foot. "Dr. Ellis, please. Mr. VanSlyk and the rest of the escorts are waiting."
"They can wait a second longer. We've got plenty of time. Aha! I knew it was in here!" The cabinet doors banged shut and footsteps headed in Conrad's direction. "Look, I just want to see if silver applies to vampires like it does to werewolves, okay? Then we can knock him out or whatever and be on our way."
Conrad shuddered again, wary of whatever Ellis had planned, and another moan of pain escaped him.
"Oh, look, see?" the doctor said cheerily. "He wants to participate! It won't take long. Just a little cut and then we can leave."
Again there came another sigh. "Get on with it, then."
The only response from Ellis was an excited shuffle and then Conrad felt cold metal pressing against his arm. He jerked in his seat, trying to pull his arm away. "N-no! Stop! Don't do it!"
"Oh, please," Ellis huffed, removing the silver blade from the vampire. It still tingled painfully where the silver had touched. "What, did you want to get shot with a silver bullet instead? I think we still have some..."
Conrad gaped at him, eyes wide in horror. This man wasn't looking at him as an individual, as a conscious, living being. This man was looking at him like he was a germ under a microscope, like he was the rat in the maze, like he was a toy. And it made him sick. He shuddered and winced as his injuries twinged with pain.
"Well, I don't have all day. And besides, your friends are waiting." Ellis laid the knife across Conrad's arm again. "So let's get this over with." And he pressed down, drawing the blade across the vampire's pale skin as slowly as possible.
Conrad writhed and jerked, pulling at the cuffs still holding him to the chair, choked screams tearing at his already raw throat. He felt his own ice cold blood dribble from the deep slash, pooling underneath his arm on the steel chair, heard it drip over the side and hit the floor with a wet splash.
And it burned.
The silver on his arm burned like the Holy Water; icy hot and relentless. Conrad could almost feel it seeping into his bloodstream, poisoning him from the inside out, sickening and painful. But it hurt worst of all where Ellis was cutting him - hurt, hurt, hurt - and when the doctor finally pulled back, Conrad let out a strangled gasp of relief only to double up in the chair, stomach heaving with the silver in his system. But he'd had nothing to eat for hours and there was nothing in his stomach so he could only choke and cough, wheezing to get a breath, head spinning, injuries thudding with renewed agony.
"Oh, well, guess it does affect them." He heard Ellis step away, and didn't even care as long as the man stayed away. "Uh-oh, I think I made him sick. Do you think he'll stay alive long enough for us to trade him? Oh, hey, I wonder if vampire blood has any special traits..."
"Ellis. Please," Anya's tone was clipped, impatient, mildly frustrated. "Just administer the serum so we can go."
"Fine, fine, all right..." Ellis grumbled, and there was a clatter as the knife was cast aside. Conrad opened his eyes just enough to see and watched as Ellis dug into his coat pocket and pulled out a syringe. Terror made Conrad shiver as he stared at the needle. He didn't care what was inside it -didn't want to know what that pitch black liquid inside would do to him -he just wanted that fucking syringe as far away from him as possible.
Ellis, of course, had no such plans. He approached the vampire, smiled that obnoxious, superior smile of his, and plunged the needle into Conrad's arm. The vampire shivered and then began to panic as an icy hand grabbed his mind. His vision blurred, faded to gray, and then black. He was still conscious, still completely aware of his surroundings, could still feel the burn of silver inside him, could still smell the thick fear in the room, could still hear the doctor and the Ahimsa captain.
But he couldn't see.
Conrad let out a wordless cry and thrashed in his bonds. It was utterly dark, and the word suddenly felt fifty times bigger than it had been, fifty times scarier, and he wished he had been knocked unconscious because that would have been better than being blinded.
He heard Ellis laugh, "Haha, that's always the funny part! When they freak because they realize they're blind. I like this stuff. We should try it on Undesirable Number One and see what happens."
Anya didn't reply, though her footsteps echoed through the room. There came a click, followed by a low hum as the cold steel around Conrad's wrists suddenly vanished. This was quickly replaced by a second, smaller pair of cuffs, recognized by the low buzz of energy. This task done, the vampire felt a hand on his shoulder. "Stand," Anya ordered.
Conrad bit his lip and shook his head. If he left the chair, something worse would happen. If he left the chair, the world would get even bigger and he couldn't see and he'd be completely lost. The chair was a grounding point, as horrifying as it was, but he knew where it was and if he left it, he'd be lost in the black.
The gloved hand on his shoulder tightened slightly. "That was not a request, vampire." Anya's voice was cold, but there was a hint of something to her tone, almost as if she was impatient to get out of the room.
Conrad clenched his jaw and then got to his feet. The combination of blindness and and injuries made the floor tilt beneath him and he stumbled sideways into the Ahimsa captain.
Anya held him steady, waiting patiently for him to gain his balance. Then came the light pressure of what was most likely a gun pressed between his shoulder blades. "Walk," she murmured.
What Conrad really wanted to do was scream, to just scream and try and run but that seemed so stupid, so pointless, because he really had nowhere to go. So he lifted one, weak and trembling foot and put it in front of him, and then the other, walking shakily towards God only knew what.
For all he knew, it could be his execution.
But as long as Hanna had made it out with the information, as long as Toni hadn't been caught, as long as the rest of his friends were alive, he figured he could handle this. Besides, the vampire tried to reassure himself, if everyone else kept fighting and stayed alive then he could deal with a little thing like death.
"Bye, bye, Lamepire!" He heard Ellis' voice from behind him, grating heavily on his already frayed nerves. "Thanks for all your help! Oh, and give your rebel friends my regards... when you see them in Hell."
The man's laughter was followed them out of the room, almost maniacal with glee, ringing forebodingly in Conrad's ears even after the door had closed.
Hanna stood alone in the middle of the road, staring up at the gate dividing the slums and the inner circle, arms dangling at his sides, sparks still sputtering out of his bracers every so often. He seemed very small standing there in front of the gate, surrounded by dying buildings and cracked pavement, and the fresh bandages around his injuries weren't really helping his image.
The redhead wanted to pace, to rock and forth on his heels, to fiddle, to move. But he was afraid to. Somehow he thought that if he moved from this spot, everything would just fall apart.
So he stood there, alone, in the middle of an empty, dead street, waiting.
God, he hated waiting.
Fortunately, he didn't have long to wait. There was a loud beep, followed by an awful, rusty shriek as the gate peeled upwards. It was clear just from this that this gate was in considerably worse condition in comparison to its inner city counterpart, but at least it worked. The ancient door, with it's many gaping teeth and peeling metal panels, almost like some sort of terrible dragon opening it's maw.
Once the beast had opened, a multitude of heavyset, armored hovercars came flying out of the opening. They floated with graceful precision into a perfect circle around the redhead, their smooth flight and near silent hum a stark contrast to the rumbling growl of the Worthmobile. Black, large and completely smooth, save for a few glowing lines running along their sides, it was hard not to feel a bit intimidated by them.
The last car paused right before Hanna before lowering to the aged concrete. With a final hum the front door flipped open, folding up onto the top of the car like a metal bird adjusting a wing. It was from this that a woman stepped out, her cold gaze and official-looking uniform making it simple to deduce that this was Anya Borokov.
This was the woman who had shot Veser, and it was hard for Hanna to keep his eyes on her face when he felt so impossibly aware of the gun at her belt.
"Mr. Cross," she greeted, her tone clipped and easily carrying over the sound of several other Ahimsa exiting their cars. "Or should I say Undesirable Number One?"
Hanna clenched his fists and said in a tense, dark tone, "Let Conrad go. I'm here so just let him go."
Anya quirked a brow at this, then shook her head. "Patience is a virtue, Mr. Cross. Is the area secure?" She murmured over the hum of a multitude of pistols being drawn and pointed from every angle, leveled solidly at the redhead.
Hanna snorted, "You mean, did I bring any friends along?" The smirk that had briefly showed on his face vanished and he glared at Anya, "Why do you care? This is just a trade. Me for Conrad. No one else needs to be involved."
The brunette gazed at him for a moment, then nodded. "Very well," she murmured before glancing behind her. There came a second hum as the back door of the car opened. There was a soft thudding noise, followed by a yelp as Conrad was unceremoniously shoved out of the car.
Hanna couldn't help the gasp of shock and anger at the sight of his friend. Yes, he'd seen the video and the state he vampire had been but seeing the damage in front of him, seeing Conrad like this just made it so much worse.
The vampire was in a set of handcuffs, identical to the ones that the former agent had worn what seemed like ages ago now, his glasses dirty and one lens cracked, and his clothes were stained and ripped. Conrad's black hair was matted, his face sunken, he almost had a skeletal appearance, there were burns on his exposed skin, puffy, swollen holes were needles had been inserted, and barely healed cuts, the nastiest of which was on his lower arm, still dribbling blood, the edges of it a bright and inflamed red.
"Conrad!" Hanna cried, unable to stop that painful edge that crept into his voice. "Oh God, Connie, what did they do to you!"
"Hanna...!" The vampire jerked his head around to look as spot just to Hanna's left, "Hanna, is that... is that you! Wh-what're you doing here? Where are we!"
"What?" Hanna searched Conrad's face, confused. "Conrad, I'm right here! Conrad...?" The vampire's eyes were glazed, dull, not their usual black brilliance. Anger suddenly flared inside Hanna and a parade of sparks danced off of his bracers in response as he snarled at Anya, "What did you do to him! What the hell did you do to him!"
"What did you expect, Mr. Cross?" Abner's tone was cold as he stepped out of the car behind Conrad, a gloved hand resting heavily on the vampire's shoulder. The broken asphalt crunched beneath his heavy boots, as if the landscape were reacting to his intimidating presence. "He is an Undesirable and is dangerous. He is fortunate to be alive… were it my decision, he would have been euthanized."
Anya gave a grim nod. "Orders are orders," she muttered. "Those in the Council's labs to have a different view in regards to Undesirable treatment. But I suppose you'd know all about that… wouldn't you, Undesirable Number One?" There was a slight arching of her brow as ice blue met bright cerulean.
"Bastards." Hanna growled, "This has nothing to do with Conrad. Let him go." His eyes narrowed in anger. "Now."
"As you wish," Anya murmured before nodding to one of the Ahimsa. "Take him."
The agent in question nodded before he reached for his belt and grabbed his handcuffs, then slowly began edging in Hanna's direction. The tension of the scene seemed to radiate from the man, his occasional glance in the captain's direction betraying his nerves. Finally, when the distance between Hanna and himself was only a few feet, he seemed to overcome himself. With a sneer he closed the distance and extended the handcuffs, eyes narrowed. "No funny business, brat," he growled out, clearly trying to sound threatening.
Hanna made a dissatisfied noise, glaring angrily at the Ahimsa before holding his wrists out silently. His arms trembled, fingers curled into fists, but he said nothing, blue eyes intense with the rage and hatred he seemed to be aiming at every single member of the government in the area.
There was a click as the handcuffs clasped around the redhead's wrists. With this motion the agent seemed more emboldened, as he smirked and tightened his hold on Hanna. "Well… that actually worked," the man commented, eyebrows raising as he and Hanna began walking toward Anya and Abner. "I'm surprised, I thought for sure you wouldn't come alone."
The redhead let out a harsh bark of laughter, "You really think so, huh?" A horrible snarl crept over Hanna's face, an angry, twisted expression that seemed so wrong on him. "You hurt my friend. You didn't just piss me off this time...you pissed everyone off!" And he kicked out with a booted foot, heel slamming into the Ahimsa agent's kneecap and shattering it with a sickening crunch as azure light flared around him.
At the same moment, a series of explosions ripped through the quiet air, rocketing shrapnel and dirt and fire up into the air, along with the majority of the armored cars hovering around Hanna. Metal and glass and clouds of dust cloud flew into the sky, the earth below sporting charred holes of black, smoke choked the air, and from somewhere, someone shouted a wild, wordless, charging cry.
There was a flash of blue as Toni leapt through the smoke, paws thudding across the earth. She cleared the debris of the cars with ease, speeding into midst of the coughing soldiers while most were still shielding their eyes or yelping in pain from shrapnel wedged in their limbs.
She was followed shortly by Veser who rocketed over the smoking wreckage on his hoverboard with another whooping war cry, brandishing his harpoon with one hand, terrifying teeth bared in an eager snarl as the green light spilling from his board vanished into sky, mingling with the flames.
Anya's reaction was quick. "Fire!" she called out even as she ducked to the ground, her weapon already in her hands.
The air was instantly charged with gunfire, glittering blasts lighting up patches of smoke as they arced through the air. This was punctuated by shouts of agony and animalistic snarls as Toni and Veser tore through the fray, blurs of teeth and flashing metal punctuated by the occasional burst of flame from the half-Selkie's bombs.
Meanwhile, Hanna had leapt over the Ahimsa screaming at his feet, ducked low to the ground, and set to racing across the battlefield through the smoke, flailing bodies, and ruined vehicles. His blue eyes were focused on one goal and one goal alone.
Getting Conrad out of there.
He skidded around the flaming remains of an armored car, paused for a moment as a thick wave of smoke rolled across his path, and then leapt forward, aided with a burst of energy from his bracers. He raced across the ruined pavement of the slums and dodged a shot from the vampire hunter who was guarding Conrad, cuffed hands reaching. His fingers closed on the front of Conrad's shirt and he yanked the vampire away from Abner with all of his strength. Conrad let out a cry of fear, his own cuffed wrists banging against the redhead's back as Hanna ran with him towards the cover of some heavily smoking wreckage, letting out little bursts of energy to keep his speed up.
Abner spun to try and stop them, leveling his gun for a perfect shot at Hanna's exposed back. Unfortunately for him, he wasn't the only one with decent aim.
The shot seemingly came out of nowhere, striking the hunter in the arm and forcing him to drop his gun as he let out a cry of pain. Dark lenses glinted as Abner turned his terrible gaze on one of the rooftops, but it was already empty, his attacker vanishing just as Hanna had.
Hanna, unaware how close he'd been to being shot again, ducked into the shadows of the buildings, bracers glowing in the gloom. Conrad was still struggling in his grip but Hanna ignored him, blue eyes searching for the familiar figure who was supposed to be waiting for them.
"Energetic as always, I see," the ex-agent's low voice rumbled as he emerged from the shadows, jogging to Hanna's side in an easy stride. He reached out and placed a hand on Conrad's shoulder, steadying him. "Conrad, relax, it's us. You're safe now."
"E-Eli...?" The vampire froze, eyes wide even as he stared sightlessly in the ex-agent's direction. "What's going on? What's happening?"
"We're rescuing you, Connie!" Hanna replied happily before he thrust his arms out towards Eli. "Hey Nefarious, can you take care of these handcuffs? I kind of need to go kick some ass."
His partner quirked a brow at the nickname, but raised his pistol. With a quick shot, the handcuffs burst off, clattering to the earth in a brief rain of metal and computer parts. "Be careful," he murmured, mahogany eyes meeting bright blue for a moment.
Hanna smiled, a genuine smile that lit up his eyes. "Don't worry about me. Just keep Conrad safe." The redhead turned his back on the former agent and the vampire, hands curling into fists, "I'll pay those bastards back ten-fold for what they've done." And then, in a burst of blue, he was gone, back into the fight.
The former agent watched him go for a moment before gently taking Conrad's arm. "Are you all right to walk? We need to move to a safer position."
"I...I can't see," the vampire murmured, shivering, so tense he was like stone, "D-Doctor Ellis, he... he put some stuff in me and now I can't see!" His voice peaked and cracked and he hunched his shoulders as though ashamed of his own fear.
"You're fine," the ex-agent said, his voice solid and reassuring, like grabbing onto a rock. "We used to use that drug on captured Undesirables, it's only temporary. You should regain your sight in a few hours. Just stay close to me until then and you'll be fine."
"C-can you get these handcuffs off?" The vampire asked hesitantly, eyes searching sightlessly for the friend who's hand still held to his arm.
The former agent made a hum of confirmation before he moved Conrad's arms in front of him. "Hold very still," he ordered before the shot went off. There was the clatter of metal, then a tugging motion as the agent lead Conrad away. "Come on. We need to get to a better position to help Hanna."
"Help him? H-how?" Conrad stumbled after him.
This got a grim smile from the former agent as he turned a corner. "Backup."
Hanna, meanwhile, had leapt back into the fray.
The dust and smoke that had clogged the battlefield were dissipating, despite Veser's avid use of explosives, and the Ahimsa were still holding their own against a half-Selkie and a werewolf. But adding Undesirable Number One to the mix was a different story.
Hanna was everywhere; he tore through the ranks of the Ahimsa, a deadly combination of magic, energy, and vengeance. He was a blur of madness, knocking enemies to the ground, crushing their guns, cat-calling, blasting down anyone who stood in his way. They had hurt Conrad - they had hurt his friend - and they were going to pay.
The redhead was a lance of movement, striking where he saw an opening, dodging the gunfire, ignoring the shots that clipped his tiny frame, aiding Toni and Veser where he could. The half-Selkie was a madman, skidding through the melee on his hoverboard, slicing through the Ahimsa with his harpoon and flinging his bombs with deadly accuracy. Toni was just as fast as Hanna, a whirl of snarling teeth and slashing claws that mowed down their enemies with just as much force as the redhead. The trio made a surprisingly deadly force, taking down the Ahimsa's dwindling outfit with the strength of people who have more at stake then anyone could ever know. Wherever any of them left an opening, the ex-agent was there, his shots ringing through the air with deadly accuracy.
After several minutes of battle, it became increasingly clear that while the Ahimsa outnumbered the rebels, they were no match for their tenacity. Even Abner's precise shot was of little use in the chaos, his injured arm crippling him for the moment. Add this to the damage caused by the bombs, and it was no real surprise when Anya finally called out for retreat, her clear voice echoing over the chaos.
"Let them be!" she called out, her lower jaw working as she edged for one of the few still working cars. Her eyes spoke of an obvious agitation, but it was clear she knew when to cut her losses.
Dark lenses sought out ice blue. "Captain, are you certain?"
The woman gave a curt nod. "Orders are orders. If the target has reinforcements, we are to retreat."
The hunter gazed at her for a moment, then finally gave a nod. Though his mask and goggles hid his face, it was clear from the tense set of his shoulders that he wasn't happy with the idea. However, he did as he was told and made for the armored car with the others.
Hanna skidded to a halt at the edge of one of the craters, watching with brilliant eyes as the cars shuddered into the air, some of them smoking slightly and several lights cracked.
A grin split his face and he danced on the spot, "Suck it, yeah! We won!" The redhead pumped his fist into the air, Veser's whooping cry of victory adding to Hanna's shouts, "that's right, run back to the Council with your tails between your legs! Go on! Get out of here! Hahahahahaha!"
Toni came to a stop at the redhead's side, limping slightly but otherwise seemingly fine. Blood coated her blue muzzle as she glanced around, furred chest rising and falling with heavy, warm breaths. "I wouldn't be so sure," she muttered. "Doesn't this seem a bit too easy to you?"
Hanna looked around at her, raising an eyebrow, "No. We've always been more awesome than the Ahimsa. Right Veser?"
"Hell yeah, we have!" the half-Selkie cackled, kicking his hoverboard off and slinging it over his shoulder with a grin that showed all his dagger sharp teeth.
There came a weak, terrible cough from the ground. "You really think so, don't you, halfbreed?"
Veser's large eyes narrowed and he glared at the Ahimsa agent bleeding across the cracked pavement, raising his harpoon in a threatening manner, "You wanna call me halfbreed again, you government bastard?"
"Veser, stop," The werewolf growled out, great furred form moving between him and the agent. Her glowing white eyes went to the agent, narrowing. "What do you mean?"
At these words the agent let out another weak chuckle. The man was a mess, blood blooming across his formerly white shirt, teeth knocked out, his legs like mangled wires. However, a proper squint at this pale face revealed him to be the same agent who had placed the handcuffs on Hanna and now had the fortunate privilege of dying with broken kneecaps and a punctured lung. "Y-you really thought you were special, didn't you, Undesirable Number One?" He blubbered, crimson spittle staining his chin as he spoke. "Thought this was all about you?"
"What do you mean?" Hanna stepped up beside Toni, blue eyes locked on the man dying before them. "Is it Conrad? What did you do to him! Answer me!"
The agent gave a snort and shook his head. "That vampire doesn't mean anything, you really should know better." Pained, dark eyes sought out Hanna's, so similar in color to the redhead's partner that it was almost eerie. However, it was ruined by that awful grin and the words spoken next.
"You weren't the only one we wanted."
"Who did you take!" Hanna shouted, crouching down and grabbing the front of the agent's shirt, "Tell me! What did you do! Tell me!"
He never got his reply, as the agent let out a final, shuddering chuckle before falling silent. His eyes dimmed and glossed over as he slumped in Hanna's grasp, head lolling to the side.
The trio stood in silence before the dead agent, seemingly at loss for words. Finally, Toni spoke, a sense of horrified realization in her tone. "Hanna… have you heard from Worth over your communicator at all?"
Hanna froze for a moment and then his fingers slipped from the dead man's shirt and he pressed his bloodied fingers to his communicator: "Worth? Worth, are you there? Worth! Worth answer me!" The redhead spun around, looking up at Toni with a desperate expression on his face. "Toni, I can't get him! He's not answering! He's not answering!"
"Maybe he's just in the bathroom," Veser threw in, but there was an edge to his voice that didn't make his words believable.
"Toni!" Hanna cried, "I can't get Worth!" He fiddled with his communicator again. "Worth! Worth, answer me! WORTH!"
He never got an answer.
This was stupid.
Worth was well aware of that. This was stupid, plain and simple, and that was something he'd sworn to avoid when this whole mess had started. After all, it had all begun from his mistake, and one giantass, life-changing mistake was more than enough for him, thanks.
Thus far, he really felt he'd done a decent job of avoiding such things. Sure, Hanna had his whole ridiculous rebellion thing, but it had been interesting enough that Worth had been willing to jump on board. After all, knowing Hanna, he'd need someone to run things behind the scenes and keep it from being a bit too ridiculous, so Worth was happy to oblige. It gave him something to do and people to boss around, and well, fuck, that was all he really needed besides his cigs and booze, right?
So he'd kept the ship running for years now, arranged all of Hanna's little close calls and ordered their little band of misfits around and that had all been fine. It was dangerous as hell, sure, but if Worth was smart about things, he figured he could keep things going long enough. Besides, it was interesting.
Of course he'd known it couldn't last forever. They all did. It was inevitable that the Council would find them eventually, inevitable that one of them would be captured. Circle of life in Varuna, really. You were born, you lived your little life, then the Council swallowed you whole. Typical.
But Worth'd be damned if he wasn't gonna go down kicking and screaming.
So while he knew the whole operation to save Conrad had been stupid, he'd taken it anyway. It was possible that it was all a trap, that there would be far too many Ahimsa and their whole group would be overrun. It was possible that that captain and her little vampire hunter pet would take Hanna and years of running would be for nothing. It was all very possible and there were too many variables for the doctor to even consider, and had it been for anything else he would have said no. In fact, a part of him still insisted he should be saying no.
But he was sitting there in the tech corner anyway, headset on and eyes glued the monitor, smoke filling up the room like a security blanket. He lounged in that chair and he stared at the single black and white image of Hanna pacing at the appointed meeting place and he tries to ignore that voice- so much louder than usual, that says he may have just sent that kid to his death today. He tried to ignore it and focus on the task, because he didn't have a choice.
After all, as much as he tried to fight for something else, he was well aware their little group runs on heroic stupidity.
It was while he musing on this that his phone rang, breaking his concentration. The doctor blinked, then cursed as he snapped up the aged, battered phone from his desk and flipped it open. He'd recognize that ringtone anywhere and he had a bone to pick.
"So what fatass, now's the time you decide to pick up?" The doctor had barked into the phone without formalities. "I'm kinda fuckin' busy with the Goddamn crisis I was calling you about earlier, so unless you're fucking dying you-"
"Hi Worth!" Lamont's voice came over the phone, almost overly cheery. "How are yyyyooooouuuu~?"
"Uh, considering Fagula's been fucking kidnapped and we're in the process of rushing to the tallest room in the highest tower t' save his ass, not so fucking great," Worth had growled out.
"Yeah, yeah, that's fantastic. So listen, aheh, um, the cheese is in the microwave. Just thought you should, heh, know that." Lamont let out a nervous laugh.
There was a beat of silence. "…Are you drunk?"
He received a flustered sputter from the other end of the phone, "The cheese is in the microwave and - oh, shit - the basement's flooded with potatoes!"
"…Right."
"So, the thing is, aheh, you need to come help me with boxes." Lamont's voice dropped a little bit, taking on an uncharacteristically dark edge, "You really need to come over and help me because, you know, that's what you do all the time, you being all such a nice guy and all. 'K, Worth?"
Lamont had hung up without reply and the blond was left sitting there in the dark, illuminated solely by the flickering screens as he gazed down at the cell phone in his hands and practically felt the wheels turn.
He knew what that ridiculous babble had meant, and it wasn't good. At the beginning of this entire mess, back in the days when it had just been him, Hanna and Lamont, he and the dealer had made a pact. They'd seen enough action movies to be well aware that if either of them were captured or in trouble, they were on their own. Neither were the selfless hero types and it was more pragmatic, so that had been that. They'd been drunk at the time of making their little code words, but well, whatever worked, right?
The code had certainly worked, and that meant his best friend was in trouble and there was no Hanna here to save the day.
So the blond is left sitting there in the dark, eyes glued to the screen with Hanna all by himself and those flickering rolls of information as the words of Toni and Veser ring in his ears and he hears some confirmation about the bombs. All he can think is how he should have been more suspicious about Lamont not answering his phone, but, fuck, Worth had just figured he'd been busy, and, oh, he knows a rat when he sees one and damn, is that ever annoying.
Because, rather suddenly, he knows that the trap is not for Hanna, but he's going to be playing anyway.
That was how he found himself crouched behind one of the usual warehouses a good ten minutes away from the factory, grumbling to himself because, Goddamnit, this was Hanna's job. But still, here he was, back pressed against too-warm concrete, dark eyes occasionally flicking to the dark clouds above and well, shit, he hoped if it rained it wouldn't be acidic because he really liked this coat. There was Lamont in the loading bay, bound, grimacing at the gun pressed between his shoulder and surrounded by more guards than Worth would have liked. And well, that was just what was in sight, given that there were far too many angles thanks to the ancient semis and rotting crates placed haphazardly around the loading area.
This wasn't his job. But hey, with all the time he'd spent fixing everyone else's mess, Worth figured he was allowed at least one painfully stupid act of his own.
And so, with that in mind, he sent a scalpel flying through air, nailing the guard holding Lamont with a level of precision that would have made a paid surgeon jealous. He may not have been out in the field as much as the others, but he could handle his knives well enough, thanks.
The reaction was immediate. There was a general shout from the guards and the area was filled with gunfire, flashes of light raining down from corners that had seemed deceptively empty minutes ago. The occasional agents dropping like flies from knives or small darts only seemed to frighten the veritable battalion remaining, as they couldn't see the scalpel-tossing monster in their midst.
The monster in question finally appeared in a blur of white from behind the small group holding Lamont, a flash of steel the only warning before a knife was jammed into the throat of the latest poor bastard holding the dealer. "'Lo, Cuntface," Worth's greeting was almost cheery as he grabbed Lamont and jerked him backwards from the guards surrounding them.
The dealer stumbled and then caught himself, shooting Worth a glare, "What the hell, Worth! I thought we had a deal! What're you doing here!"
Worth rolled his eyes as he jammed the blood-coated knife into another guard, sending him tumbling to the ground. "Saving your ass, the fuck does it look like!" He snapped as he swung the knife, sending a crimson arc through the air as the guard in question crumpled. "Ya could be a bit more grateful, y'know."
"You idiot!" Lamont shouted. "Don't you know what this is! Don't you realize why I told you to stay away!"
He received a smirk in response as Worth spun to face him, grabbing his arm for a moment so he could pick at the handcuffs on his wrists. "You really expected me t' listen? Come on Monty, you know better than that," he breathed out as with a jerk of a scalpel and a few taps on some buttons the handcuffs popped loose, dropping to the concrete with a loud clang.
Lamont flexed his wrists, scowling, "Okay, okay, thanks for saving me, now get the hell out of here!" He swung a punch and knocked a guard to the ground. "Hanna's gonna pitch a fit if he finds out what's going on!"
His friend gave a low laugh as he jammed his scalpel blade into the palm of the poor sucker going for his neck. "Don't he always? After you, guido."
With those words, the two were running, dodging a hail of gunfire and weaving through a maze rusted truck beds and rotting boards. Even injured, Lamont could certainly hold his own, and with Worth's seemingly endless array of knives they seemed to be doing well enough.
The doctor couldn't help thinking it was a bit too easy, and he was right.
It was when they reached the exit that their luck finally ran out. There was a strange gunshot, a crack like thunder, and then, quite suddenly, something heavy slammed into Worth's back. The shot was akin to being hit with a live wire, and the effect was the same, sending a bolt of electricity throughout the doctor's body. The force of it sent him tumbling to the concrete with a shout of pain, long body thrashing as numbness arced up and down his spine.
"Shit!" Lamont skidded on the spot, turning around to grab his fallen friend.
"The fuck are you doin', you idiot? Go!" Worth barked over the sound of thudding boots.
"No way!" The dealer shouted back, grabbing Worth's wrist and attempting to haul him up, "There's no way I'm dealing with Hanna bawling his eyes out 'cause you got kidnapped!"
The blond grimaced as another shock shot through his body. "It'll be worse if it's both of us, moron. 'Sides, it's me they want." Dark eyes sought out Lamont's for a moment, and the blond forced a grin.
"Gotta fix my own mess somehow, right?"
Lamont stared at him for a moment, hesitating, and then let out a groan and let Worth go, let his friend fall back to the pavement. He took a step back, stopped again, and then turned and ran, vanishing into the looming stakes of crates and abandoned vehicles.
He didn't look back.
Even when he heard the guards yelling, heard Worth's curses, knew what was awaiting him once he got back to the factory, he did not stop. Because Worth was right; both of them getting caught would only make things worse, and if Worth wanted to play then fine, let him play.
But he had better come back alive.