A week had passed since Isaac found out Sally was pregnant. Starting a new job at the supermarket they went to only did so much to occupy his time, only working eight hours a day, oftentimes being allowed to leave an hour or two early on Fridays. On his lunchbreaks, Isaac usually occupied his time on reading books on what to expect with Sally's pregnancy, and the section on pregnancy complications wasn't comforting him very much. As Isaac was stocking shelves, moving canned goods, and circulating them on sell by date, one of the other employees approached him, being an old Mobian fox with gray streaks in his fur.
"Horowitz, boss wants to see you. Something about someone wanting to talk to you." He said, pointing a thumb over his shoulder towards the boss's office. Isaac put down the box, stretching out his back.
"Thanks, Reginald. Can you finish stocking the shelf for me?" Isaac asked. Reginald nodded, Isaac marching past him. Isaac made his way to his boss's office, seeing the door was ajar. Isaac knocked on the doorframe, letting Arnold know he was here.
"Come in." Arnold called out, Isaac opening the door and walking in. To his surprise, he saw Sally standing in his office, holding a brown bag lunch.
"Samantha." Isaac said. Sally smiled, holding up the brown bag lunch.
"You forgot your lunch. I came back from work early and saw you forgot, so I thought I'd come down and drop it off." Sally said, explaining her presence. She walked it over to Isaac, giving him his lunch and giving him a kiss on the cheek. Isaac opened the bag, seeing it was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and an apple. While it wasn't Isaac's favorite, it was going to be nice for lunch later.
"Thanks, Sam." Isaac said, giving her a quick kiss. Isaac quickly made his way out of the office, dropping his bag lunch in the break room. Isaac quickly ran back out, quickly taking over Reginald's stocking of shelves.
"Who was it?" He asked.
"It was my wife. She was just dropping off my lunch. Anyway, thanks for taking over for me." Isaac answered.
"No problem. Though, if my wife were dropping off my lunch, I'd make myself scarce." Reginald responded, laughing a bit.
"Why? Is she not a good cook?" Isaac asked.
"No, it's… something people joke about when they've been married for a long time. I do love my wife, no mistake about it." Reginald answered.
"How long have you been married?" Isaac asked, putting canned soup onto the shelves.
"Oh, about… forty-five years. Two children, five grandchildren." Reginald answered.
"You're a lucky man, Reginald. Just found out Samantha's expecting again. And I'm gonna be honest with you… that scares me a bit." Isaac responded.
"Scares you? You already have a daughter, right?" Reginald asked.
"Well, yeah. But… she wasn't an easy birth." Isaac lied. Reginald nodded, understanding Isaac's false concern.
"Listen, I wouldn't worry too much about it. I've noticed you reading those pregnancy books lately, and you really shouldn't concern yourself with the complications. Lot of them, you can't do anything about. And a good portion of them, they only happen during labor, and doctors are usually able to correct them. You just need to make sure she eats well, avoid alcohol, and get plenty of sleep and make it to her appointments." Reginald explained.
Isaac felt a bit of relief, at the very least knowing he could only do so much. Reginald soon left, leaving Isaac to stock shelves on his own. After about an hour, Isaac went to take his lunchbreak, walking himself to the break room. A few of the other employees were there, talking and eating their lunches. As they did this, Isaac opened the fridge and grabbed his lunch, sitting himself down at the table, opening it up.
"What you got for lunch, Issachar?" A female employee asked. Isaac pulled out the wrapped sandwich and the apple, showing it to her.
"Not much for today. I'm going out to dinner later with one of my cousins out on main street. What do you have?" Isaac asked.
She zipped open her lunch bag, taking out a salad with a small container of French onion soup.
"Looks good, Leah. Though, I don't think I'd be full just eating that for lunch." Isaac reacted.
"Well, it's Friday. That's when my roommate and I usually order takeout, so I plan on being hungry when I get off work today." Leah explained.
"Sounds smart. What kind of takeout?" Isaac asked.
"Either Indian or Chinese. We usually flip a coin when we narrow it down to two options. Sometimes, I want Lo Mein. Other times, I want masala." Leah answered.
Isaac nodded, before unwrapping his sandwich and taking a bite. Even though Isaac had only worked there for a little over a week, he had already gone and grown comfortable around the people working at the Central City Markets. But as he had worked there, he had been hearing worrying news about the conflict with G.U.N. and the Order of Honorius. They had actually been leading the campaign against the French Stronghold, but the Order has still been able to send soldiers in several attempts to flank G.U.N. platoons. This had only confirmed Isaac's worst fears: There were still unaccounted strongholds, strongholds that even Dante didn't know where they were located.
Isaac didn't have access to his knives and sword anymore, them being back on his ship, which was taken by G.U.N. to help hide their location. It was once suggested to use his Demonic Form to fight the Order by Xorelaz and Vylania, but it only made him feel sick to consider it! He refused to do so, since it would validate their actions to kill him and Lily!
Eventually, Isaac and the others for the shift were allowed to leave for the day, the weekend open to them. Isaac quickly took off his uniform shirt, putting it into his locker. He closed the locker door, seeing one of the employees behind the open door, just waiting for him.
"Oh! Hello, Ronald." Isaac reacted.
"Sup, Issachar. Hey, a few of the guys and I were talking about going to one of the new clubs that just opened up. We were wondering if you wanted to come with us." Ronald explained.
Isaac shook his head, not interested.
"Sorry, but I already have plans this evening. Maybe next time." Isaac said, politely declining. Ronald frowned at this, but he felt this to be a plight of a married man.
"Oh, come on! You could just tell the wife you're working late! Come and hang out with us!" Ronald proposed. Isaac shook his head, not amused by his suggestions.
"First off, I'm not going to lie to my wife just to hang out with you guys! Secondly, I'm going to a bar with a cousin of mine. I'm trying to catch up with my extended family." Isaac explained.
Ronald sighed, now knowing there was no changing his mind. Isaac walked himself out of the locker room, walking past the manager's office and exiting the supermarket. As Isaac walked, the early April weather being pleasantly warm, with a cool wind passing by every so often. Isaac looked at his watch, seeing it was close to five in the afternoon. Isaac soon picked up his pace, needing to get to the bar Larry told him last week to see just who is trying to keep the Bubble Bomb supply alive. And he had to get there by five, also known as 'Happy Hour'.
Isaac eventually got to the bar on Main Street, seeing it was an old honkytonk bar, country music being heard from outside of the walls. It was practically crumbling apart on the outside, a few bricks looking like they were ready to fall out from the mortar keeping them together. Isaac looked above the door, seeing a sign saying, 'The Rattlesnake Saloon'. He and Xorelaz were meeting there to confront the boss that's been harassing Horace to finally destroy the last gang that's been keeping the trade alive. As he stood there, he felt a hand on his shoulder, turning around. It was Xorelaz, smiling. But instead of his burn scars on his face and hands, they were flawless, as if he never had them before.
"What happened to your burns?" Isaac asked, confused by his healed state.
"I'll explain when we get inside. Come on, we need to get some seats at the bar before they're all taken." Xorelaz said, walking towards the door. He quickly opened it, holding it open for Isaac. As soon as Isaac got in, Xorelaz closed it, the bar having a good attendance. The walls were covered with tools that one would find on a farm, being saws, horseshoes, hammers, and a few pitchforks. There were also instruments, like violins, banjos, and guitars. A jukebox was the source of the music, using digital files at a push of a button. The floor was an old, worn wooden floor, as were the walls lined with wooden planks. Many of the patrons were wearing country clothing, such as cowboy boots, flannel shirts, worn jeans, and cowboy hats. Xorelaz hopped up onto the stools at the bar, reserving a seat for Isaac. Isaac sat down next to Xorelaz, their elbows resting on the bar.
"So… the burns?" Isaac asked. Xorelaz nodded, rolling up one of the sleeves on his jacket. His arm was unscarred up to the middle of his wrist, where the scarring was consistent the rest of his arm up.
"Vylania and I, when we go out, whatever our clothing doesn't cover, we use foundation to make our skin look unscarred. Right now, I'm probably wearing a few layers of foundation on my face to keep myself from being stared at." Xorelaz explained. Isaac subtly nodded, understanding about not wanting to be stared at because of scarring.
"Alright, right now, we need to find that guy those dealers were talking about. They said he's going through withdrawal, so he shouldn't be too hard to notice." Isaac whispered. As they looked around, the bartender started tapping the counter in front of them, getting their attentions.
"Hey, if you two are going to be sitting here, you need to order something." He instructed.
"Whiskey on the rocks." Xorelaz said, the bartender nodding in response. He quickly looked over to Isaac, wanting to know what he wanted.
"I… can't actually drink. Do you have something I can drink that won't get me drunk?" Isaac asked. Xorelaz waved his hand a bit, getting the bartender's attention.
"Just get him a Roy Rogers, don't put the cherry in it." Xorelaz said, the bartender nodding. The bartender quickly got their drinks ready, handing Isaac his drink, which looked like a Jack and coke. Xorelaz was given his drink, which was whiskey and a few ice cubes in a tumbler glass.
"Five for both." The bartender said, Xorelaz giving him five rings. The bartender took them, walking over to a few others at the bar. Isaac took a sip from his drink, the sweet taste a little strong for him. Xorelaz took a large sip from his drink, whiskey being his drink of choice.
"Now, we wait." Xorelaz said, keeping an eye out for the former dealers' boss.
Two Hours Later:
Isaac and Xorelaz were still at the bar, about ten tumbler glasses shared between them. Xorelaz was moderately drunk, having drank down almost the entirety of a large bottle of whiskey throughout the two hours.
"I'm fucking… smacked!" Xorelaz said, beginning to laugh to himself. Isaac was sober as a tac, seeing that a few of the patrons were beginning to leave for the night. Isaac was beginning to worry that the boss wasn't going to come. Perhaps something had happened. Maybe he had finally succumbed to his withdrawal and died. But as he took another sip from his glass, the doors suddenly opened, a thin man and two, heavily muscled Overlanders walking in.
He was trembling ever so slightly, his eyes darting around the room. His skin was pale, patches of his skin missing, having been scratched off! He had tattoos on his neck, creeping towards his face. His clothing were loose, indicating he had lost weight since he had those clothes. Some of his teeth were showing, them being decayed and a few missing. Xorelaz momentarily snapped from his drunken state, seeing the man as the boss!
"It's him!" Xorelaz whispered. Isaac continued sipping from his glass, trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible. The boss quickly sat down at the table, pounding his fist into the counter!
"Oh… you actually came tonight. Listen, Keith, happy hour's over. And you know I don't carry your exact choice of poison." The bartender said, not wanting him here tonight. Keith slowly pulled out his gun, discreetly aiming at the man's gut. It was equipped with a silencer, indicating Keith had experience as a hitman.
"Rum… will suit me just fine." Keith said, his left eye twitching. The bartender nodded, quickly turning around, grabbing a glass, and filling it up with ice. Keith cleared his throat, getting his attention.
"No ice, Joe. Just straight rum." Keith said, discreetly pointing his gun to the bottle. He nodded, dumping the glass, and grabbing the bottle, handing it to Keith. Smiling, Keith grabbed the bottle, winking before bringing it to his lips, tilting it back. His trembling hands soon calmed, the liquor pouring down his throat.
"Two Overlanders and an addict with a gun. Our chances aren't looking good." Isaac whispered, not wanting to be exposed. Xorelaz grinned like an idiot, quickly finishing his drink, setting it down, and getting out of his seat.
"I've fought bigger before." Xorelaz said, stumbling over to Keith and the Overlanders. He quickly leaned against the bar, staring at Keith, who quickly took the bottle from his lips. He looked at the wolverine, not quite knowing why he was looking at him like that.
"Who are you?" Keith asked, feeling his heart begin to pick up its pace.
"I'm just the guy that's here to pay my regards for terrorizing my boss for Bubble Bombs." Xorelaz answered, grinning widely. Keith's eyes widened, his heart beginning to beat against his chest! He quickly went to pull out his gun, but Xorelaz was too quick, hitting it out of his hand! The gun skidded across the bar floor, the other patrons realizing that he was armed! They quickly scattered, Xorelaz attempting to take a swipe at Keith!
Keith dodged the drunken Wolverine's strike, him instead hitting one of the Overlander guards! The guard grabbed his wrist and threw him across the room, Xorelaz's back hitting the jukebox, switching the song that was playing! The song that began to play was 'Word Up' by The BossHoss, Xorelaz quickly getting up, sobered up by being thrown across the room! Shaking his head, he quickly charged for the Overlander that threw him, grabbing a large beer mug from one of the tables, leaping up and smashing it across his face, causing him to stumble back!
Isaac quickly got out of his seat, stretching out his neck, knowing they had to fight! The other Overlander marched to Isaac, throwing his fist towards him! Isaac quickly grabbed it, stepping to the side, flicking his wrist! The ulna bone snapped from it's correlating tendon, a surge of pain shooting up the Overlander's wrist! Isaac, still keeping a grip in his wrist, grabbed him by his shirt, throwing him over his shoulder towards a group of tables, smashing upon impact with the Overlander's immense weight!
Xorelaz was still fighting the other Overlander, the Overlander proving a challenge for him. He quickly threw a punch, Xorelaz ducking, the Overlander unintentionally striking another patron of the bar! The bystander hit the floor hard, his buddies quickly rushing the Overlander, hitting him over the head with pool cues! Xorelaz quickly pushed himself behind the Overlander, balling himself up, the Overlander backing up, tripping over him, and falling down, his head bouncing off of the floor!
Isaac was making his way to Keith, needing to take him down before he could use the fight as a smokescreen to get away! Keith quickly dove for his gun, pointing it at Isaac! He quickly pulled the trigger, a bullet exiting the chamber! Isaac's reflexes didn't fail him, Isaac deftly dodging the bullet, the bullet smashing the liquor bottles behind him! Isaac quickly tackled him, wrestling him and back onto his own feet, his hands secured on the collar of his shirt!
"Who still supplies you?!" Isaac asked, using fear to make him talk! Before Keith could say anything else, a bar stool hit Isaac over his back, smashing on impact! Isaac let go of Keith in reaction to this, Keith quickly pistol-whipping Isaac, smashing his gun across his jaw! Isaac fell backwards, the Overlander he threw into the tables looking down at him, sneering! Isaac quickly used a right jab, his fist hitting him in the groin! The Overlander bent over, grabbing his crotch in pain! Isaac grabbed both of his wrists, using it as leverage to bring his legs up, slamming both of his feet into his face, sending him stumbling backwards, this time over the bar and behind it!
Isaac quickly leaped up, Keith staring at him in disbelief! Isaac ran towards Keith, grabbing the half of a mounted keg from the wall! Keith proceeded to use his gun on Isaac, this time, Isaac using the keg to deflect the bullets as an impromptu shield! After three shots, Isaac spun around, throwing the keg half at Keith, spinning like a discus! Keith moving his armed hand towards it as an attempt to shield himself! The keg half not only knocked the gun out of his hand, but also broke his wrist, causing a clean break in the radius bone! Isaac leaped up, smashing his fist down into Keith's face, knocking Keith down onto the floor!
Xorelaz sent a swift punch into the orbital bone of the Overlander that was remaining, knocking him down and out! The Overlander hit the floor, shaking the bar! Breathing heavily, Xorelaz stretched out his back and arms, the immediate threat over with. Joe slowly peeked out from behind his bar, seeing the damage. Besides a few broken furniture and some smashed glasses, it wasn't something that insurance couldn't take care of. He saw Isaac and Xorelaz walking over to Keith, Isaac picking up the gun. Isaac looked it over, the name of the gun somehow popping up in his mind.
"Glock 19. 9x19 mm rounds, 4.02 inch-barrel, fifteen round magazine capacity, trigger pull: twenty-eight Newtons." Isaac said, listing off the schematics of the firearm.
"Didn't know you were a gun enthusiast." Xorelaz observed. Isaac blinked his eyes a few times, not really knowing how he knew about this firearm.
"I'm… I'm not. I don't know how I know about it. But… this is a beautiful piece of Austrian craftsmanship." Isaac said, eyeing the gun. Isaac held it in his hands gingerly, a feeling of familiarity washing over him. He suddenly twirled the gun in his fingers, the trigger guard spinning on his index finger. Isaac held it up, the silencer pointing towards the ceiling.
"Except the fucking dumbass put a silencer on it that doesn't even go with the fucking gun!" Isaac exclaimed, uncharacteristic of his personality! Isaac grabbed the silencer, ripping off the silencer out of the barrel! Isaac quickly turned the trigger, firing pin and drop safety on, tucking it into his inner jacket pocket.
"Hey, uh, if you two boys are here for the drug lord, just let me call the cops and I'll make sure you two don't get into trouble!" Joe said, walking over, traipsing over the broken glass.
"Not yet. First, we need to get some information out of him!" Xorelaz said, picking up Keith. He hoisted him up onto his feet, Keith breathing heavily! Xorelaz walked him over to the counter, slamming his head into the bar! Keith groaned, the pain in his wrist consistent with his growing headache!
"Now, before we decide on if we should make you into a cadaver or not, you're going to prove your worth to us. Who is still in the Bubble Bomb business?" Xorelaz asked.
"FUCK OFF!" Keith exclaimed, not wanting to give an answer. Xorelaz grinned, part of him hoping he would be resistant against their interrogations.
"Alright, then. Hey Joe, is the deep fryer still on?" Xorelaz asked, getting a hard grip on the collar of Keith's shirt. Xorelaz dragged him behind the counter into the kitchen, getting him dangerously close to the deep fryer! Keith quickly stopped his face from going in by gripping the edges of the fryer!
"Woah, woah, woah! Wait! I c-can tell you what you want! Just wait!" Keith begged, causing Xorelaz to pull his head back from the boiling oil.
"Who's still in the business?" Xorelaz demanded. Keith gulped, knowing he wasn't going to get out of this unscathed.
"Listen, these suit pricks came by and offered us a shit ton of money a few months ago, alright?! I wasn't even on the fucking Bubble Bombs then! But when they offered it to me… I decided to dabble a bit." Keith admitted.
"You look like a half-chewed caramel! That's not fucking dabbling! That's being consumed!" Xorelaz exclaimed, noting towards the patches of the skin on his face being scratched off.
"Thing is, we were doing well with weed, you know? Low-risk, only real crime we could get tacked on would be selling and distributing without a license. But when they told us we could get millions in a month… we just had to take it!" Keith explained.
"Why the offer?" Xorelaz asked.
"I don't know!" Keith answered. Xorelaz began pushing his face towards the oil, getting incredibly close to making contact!
"Aaahhh! Alright, wait! They said something about needing everything to get out of hand! Something about it being the key to making a shit ton of money! Pharmaceuticals, yeah! They were from some kind of pharmaceutical company!" Keith exclaimed.
"Bubble Bombs were made to be a detergent booster! Not a recreational drug!" Xorelaz exclaimed. Keith looked confused, not knowing this miracle drug was some kind of cleaning booster.
"Really? I've been taking a fucking detergent? What the hell is in it?" Keith asked, confused how it was so addicting.
"It's probably the additives Horace uses to make them smell nice. But once it dissolves in water, it becomes inert. That's why it was used for washing machines. And you sure as hell don't look like a washing machine." Xorelaz explained.
"Listen, you don't really have a reason to believe me, but I've been trying to get clean, you know? But me coming here is to just get away from the boss for a while." Keith said. Xorelaz was confused, pulling Keith all the way from the oil.
"You're not the boss?" Xorelaz asked.
"What?! No! Hell, that gun you took off of me, today was the first time I actually fired it at all! Why? Who told you I was the boss?" Keith asked. Isaac and Xorelaz groaned, letting him go.
"Some of your gang members said the boss could be found drinking here." Isaac answered.
"Well, normally they would've been correct, but the boss is hurting for a fucking fix! He can't get himself out of the hideout, his withdrawal keeping him there. But it would be suicide to try to go there right now! We just got a shipment of military-grade weapons. They would cut you down as fast as you would get inside the hideout." Keith explained.
Isaac and Xorelaz became frustrated by this, their hopes of destroying the Bubble Bomb trade fleeting. As they thought on what to do, the sounds of police siren approaching the bar became apparent. They quickly ran towards the door to get out, running out of the bar and making distance from Main Street. They soon stopped at a staircase for the underground metro train system, seeing the police cruisers park in the front of the bar.
"Too damn close! But I have to admit, it was kinda fun to get caught in a scrape like that! I haven't been in a bar fight for thirteen years!" Xorelaz exclaimed. Isaac shook his head, not caring about the fight.
"I could care less about it. Right now, we have no idea where 'The Flaming Skulls' are located, the Bubble Bomb trade is still going strong, and since they're probably the only ones in the city that are selling them, that'll make them the only ones to be responsible for the drug staying on the streets. And the longer the drug is out on the streets, the more the Demon is going to want to attempt to collect souls!" Isaac surmised.
"Yet… if they have Bubble Bombs to sell, why doesn't their boss take from their selling stock to get his fix?" Xorelaz questioned.
"Unless… if what Keith said was true, that they were introduced to Bubble Bombs by a pharmaceutical company, that would mean the company would have the opportunity to set up how distribution is set up, potentially eliminating the possibility of the boss getting any of the supply to ensure none of it becomes his own personal stock." Isaac suggested.
"And the deal with Horace… that could've been their boss getting desperate for a fix." Xorelaz added.
"Now, we need to figure out what pharmaceutical companies would benefit from the drug being out on the streets. Maybe one of them is trying to develop treatment drugs for addiction." Isaac said, giving them a priority.
"Maybe… and if they maintain the presence of Bubble Bombs on the streets, that will mean the drug for addiction treatment would continue to be profitable. People would be getting clean, reintroduced to the drug, and then getting clean again. A non-stop cycle of treatment, relapse, and profit." Xorelaz deduced.
Isaac felt a fire in his stomach, feeling anger building up inside of him. No matter where he goes, he always found himself involved with some conflict caused by a company! And this time, this affected far more people than just himself and his family!
"Is it right for us to attempt to do this ourselves?" Isaac asked, feeling as if they were out of their reach of influence.
"Well, you killed the competition for these guys, and they threatened my employer with castration. We're all in this together." Xorelaz answered, walking down the stairs to the metro.
As they walked down the staircase, the Subject was on his hoverboard glider, analyzing them from a distance. Running their I.D.'s through the public records, he could not find much on the wolverine, but there was an entire military record on Isaac, being identified as Issachar Horowitz.
"I have a positive I.D. on the hedgehog, my lord. Issachar Horowitz. No information on parentage. In and out of several foster homes during his youth. Married to a Samantha Horowitz, maiden name Ross, at age eighteen, joined G.U.N. shortly after. First child born April 12th, two months before their marriage. Served for four years, before being medically discharged. Current occupation: Central City Markets." The Subject read; his voice digitally distorted.
"Anything on the wife?" Francis asked over his communicator.
"Originally Samantha Ross, born and raised in Westopolis. Mother and father are listed as deceased, cause of death: Vehicular manslaughter. Married to Issachar Horowitz at eighteen, eight years ago. Went through law school and earned a degree at age twenty-one. After her husband's medical discharge, she became sole source of income, eventually being relocated to Central City by her law firm. Current occupation: Civil Lawyer." The Subject read; bringing Francis up to speed on their records.
"Any resemblance to our targets?" Francis asked.
The HUD brought up sample pictures, analyzing them. While they were obviously the same people they were looking for, the software found several discrepancies in the pictures, being computer-generated scars and markings that G.U.N. intentionally put in their I.D.'s to make it more difficult for facial recognition software to recognize them.
"Inconclusive, my lord. They have resemblance to our targets, but the software is finding markings they didn't have. Further study is recommended, my lord." The Subject informed, Francis sighing at the complexity of this mission.
"Just make sure you don't let them see you! We can't have them being aware. If you find Issachar to be Isaac, his name already being suspicious, terminate him with extreme prejudice!" Francis ordered. The Subject nodded, repositioning his footing, the hoverboard speeding him out of the area!