A/N My life is making writing seem like a chore at the moment. However, I am enjoying it, and writing this story has definitely been fun. I'm glad so many people are entertained by it! And to my reviewer: You can ask me a question, but it depends on what kind of question it is.
For this chapter there will be a little off-camera and off-show plot to it, such as my character's background and extra conversations, but it will focus a bit more on Jackie. Scenes will be a bit changed up, but it will still follow the won't be much Jade in this chapter, but I'll bring her back toward the end. I thought I'd mention, for visual purposes, that Macey's voice actress would most likely be Mandy Moore, who voiced Rapunzel in Tangled.
Here's the continuation of episode 7… "Bullies."
"You sealed your demise when you took what was mine"- Bullet For My Valentine, "Waking the Demon."
Chapter Fourteen - Bullies (episode 7, completed)
"How did this happen?"
We were standing outside of Captain Black's hospital room, waiting to hear for visitor's permission. Hospitals made me uncomfortable- the fact that I was surrounded by rooms where people had died unnerved me, even more so than being around contagious illnesses. But for Jackie's sake, I had to suck it up and swallow my discomfort. He'd been through enough and, despite his protests, I probably wasn't making things any easier.
There was a solemn glint in his eyes as he spoke. "He was injured during a robbery involving Valmont."
"Valmont?" I'd had yet to be updated on the villain world. Had a new thug come into the picture, and I'd just not noticed?
"He's the….leader...of the Dark Hand." I noticed a hint hesitation in his voice.
I frowned. Does he not trust me? Or is he just too shaken up by the news? I'd only known him for a couple of weeks, so it would make sense if he didn't completely trust me. I tried not to show my annoyance- I could be overthinking things, after all.
"Could anything demonic or supernatural be involved in the robbery?" I pondered aloud, leaning back and putting my foot against the wall for a krutch. "If the Dark Hand was with Captain Black during the robbery, why wouldn't there be? He could be using a talisman to control all of this." I was beginning to think like Jackie. I didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. "What's the next talisman?"
I didn't get a response. He was staring into space, looking at seemingly nothing, his eyes slightly widened.
"Jackie." I waved my hand in front of his face. "Jackie Chan?" Still no response. He must have zoned out and forgot to zone back in.
"Earth to Jackie!" I slapped him upside the head to get his attention. I was starting to act like Uncle, but it had to be done.
Jackie let out a surprised yelp, snapping back to reality. "Huh..wuuh?!"
I sighed. "Never mind… any notes on this talisman?"
"The Dragon Talisman causes mass destruction," Jackie said in a hushed voice. "That must have caused the building where the robbery took place to explode."
"Lovely," I muttered.
"Mr. Chan and company?" We looked up at the sound of the female nurse's voice. "You can visit Mr. Black now. He's awake and well." The blonde gave us a curt smile, gesturing to the door.
Jackie breathed a sigh of relief, and I smiled, stepping forward. "Come on, Space Cadet."
He rolled his eyes at this remark but followed me inside.
The special agent was propped against a pillow in bed, his leg in a cast and poised upright in a sling. He looked tired, unshaven, and all in all not well. Not exactly what the nurse had said. But at least he was alive.
"Jackie!" Captain Black gave his co-worker a big smile. "Come on in, sit down."
"Uh...alright." Jackie glanced around, examining his surroundings carefully as he sat. I followed suit, taking my place in the chair next to him. Through the window, I could see cars and trucks speeding down the interstate, and the sound of a distant firetruck siren.
"Are you alright?" Jackie leaned toward Captain Black, a look of worry written on his face.
"I'm fine, Jackie." The addressed agent turned to me. "And who is this?"
"Oh, this is my...friend, Macey," Jackie introduced. "She's been staying with me… us...Uncle and I...the past couple of weeks."
"Are you sure she's just a friend, Jackie?" Captain Black winked at me, and I glared at him.
"Of course." Jackie's gaze darkened. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Well, you having a girl around ya all the time is bound to attract attention," Captain Black pointed out, sitting up and grunting from the effort. "People are going to think you're together."
"Together?" Jackie's eyes widened. "As in, together...together?" A pink shade tinted his cheeks.
I burst out laughing, and Jackie rubbed his face in exasperation.
"No, Captain Black," he murmured. "She's been working with me, that's all."
"Working?" Captain Black was definitely paying attention now. "What sort of work?"
"Just...helping." Jackie gave him a thin smile.
"Mhm." I knew Black's one-worded statement was obviously sarcastic, but thankfully he didn't press more on the issue, instead eyeing me curiously. "Are you sure it's okay for an outsider to be working with us, Jackie?"
"Hey!" I folded my arms across my chest defensively. "I'm not an outsider. Uncle hired me to work at the store, hell-o?"
"You know what I mean," Captain Black said darkly.
I was a bit annoyed, but turned to Jackie for help.
He cleared his throat and spoke up, "She's been wonderful help. She's saved my butt more than once. She knows martial arts as well."
Captain Black's attention snapped back to me. "What?"
"Uh...I'm not very good." I gulped. "But I know enough to defend myself. I'm clumsy, that's all! I'm not some little girl who needs to be saved."
"Whoa, we weren't saying that, Macey." Captain Black raised a gauged hand in surrender. "I just meant not many people know about our work."
"Yeah," I said flatly. "It's not exactly a day job."
"Tell me about it," Jackie murmured, running a hand across his face.
"Well, we'll just have to see how much we can trust of you." Captain Black looked at me not unkindly. "I mean that, Macey. You keep it up helping Jackie out, as he says, and you could be of good use to Section 13. Just don't get killed."
I laughed dryly. "I'll try not to."
"Until then," Captain Black sighed, resting an arm on the bedside, "I wish you two the best of luck."
I rolled my eyes. "If he's well enough to be a smart-aleck, I'm pretty sure he'll be fine."
Jackie smirked at me knowingly. "You could be right."
"I'll see you two later." Captain Black winked at me, and I stood, ignoring this gesture.
"Let's go, Space Cowboy."
Jackie groaned audibly and followed me.
"Good luck, Macey," Captain Black called after us. "Maybe you'll be able to keep Jackie in line. And Jackie?"
Jackie paused, his hand on the doorknob, glancing over his shoulder. "Yes?"
"Don't take this too...personally." Captain Black smiled. "You don't have to get involved in it this time. I was the one caught up in the robbery."
Nodding solemnly, Jackie stepped out, me taking the lead, and closed the door behind us.
*JCA*
The only sound in the car was "The Joker" by Steve Miller Band playing softly on the radio.
Jackie drove, while I sat shotgun, leaning against the window and watching the highway speed by in a blur.
Unable to stand the awkwardness between us any longer, I coughed. "Uh, Jackie? You okay?"
"Just dandy…" he muttered, his gaze fixated on the road.
"Obviously not." I sighed, sitting up to face him. "What's-"
"I have to do something," he said quietly.
"Jackie-"
"The Dark Hand was able to steal the Dragon Talisman from me." Jackie avoided my gaze. "And now he used it to steal money from the United States Mint."
"I'm guessing that's a bad thing," I said flatly.
"Very bad!" He nodded. "I don't know what to do about it."
"Well…." I mentally recalled the crime shows I used to watch, such as NCIS, Criminal Minds, BONES, and even Supernatural.
"If you're looking to get the talisman, why don't we just pretend to be FBI agents?"
"FBI agents!" Jackie's gaze snapped to me. "Macey, that is a crime! We cannot even think about doing that."
"Really?" I gave him a blank, unamused stare.
"What?" He stared back at me.
"Jackie, the road!" The car swirved, causing an angry driver to honk at us in return.
"You're an agent already," I reminded him. "Why not make it authentic?" Even if it wasn't, at least he'd have a cool badge to show.
"But I'm an archaeologist, not a criminal!" His face reddened with either embarrassment or frustration.
"Come on," I moaned.
Jackie steadied his grip on the steering wheel and swallowed. "I….I...I just…" he sighed, regaining his composure. "I suppose it could work. But where on earth are we going to get fake FBI badges?"
I grinned maliciously. "I know just the place."
Jackie paled visibly.
*JCA*
"There ya go!" I slid the fake FBI badge toward Jackie. It had our real identities on it, but fake names.
"You better not lose that," I warned as he slid the badge in his pocket. "That thing took me twenty minutes to get." After this, I was never going to the DMV again. After hassling with the guy behind the counter and then going through several years' worth of paperwork and identification, I finally managed to wrestle a couple of fake (but realistic as they were) FBI badges from the main office.
"This will make it easier for us to bust the Dark Hand and get more talismans," I said, climbing into the back seat.
"Wonderful," Jackie muttered, starting the car up again.
"What was that?" I raised my voice purposefully.
"They already know about us!" He narrowed his eyes. "FBI badges will not matter with the Dark Hand."
"True enough," I agreed thoughtfully, "but it'll help us get more talismans. We can get the job done quicker then."
Jackie was flustered.
*JCA*
A hiss and snarl combined curled around Valmont's voice. Either way, he was clearly ticked. "The arrogance of that over-sized lawn ornament!" Although amusing, the annoyance behind the reference to the dragon statue was genuine.
"Valmont!" Finn grabbed Valmont's attention by holding up the twinkling, red object.
Valmont gawked at the talisman in Finn's hand. "You actually did your job? Imagine!"
"You're not stoked?" The thug looked up at Valmont with a mixture of hope and disappointment, like that of a child who wanted to please his parent.
"I'm absolutely giddy!" Valmont bellowed. The white-haired villain yanked the object out of Finn's hand and threw it against the wall, causing it to explode.
The rest of the Dark Hand stared at their leader in shock.
"Valmont, you are the bomb!" Finn cheered. "Pun totally intended," he added playfully, with a smirk.
"He-hey, ain't ole' dragon breath gonna start wondering where his rock is?"
"Pity," Valmont muttered, recalling the heist interrupted by Captain Black."It's doing wonders for our cash flow."
"One more heist, Big V?" Finn proposed, a mischievous glint in his eye.
Valmont bit his lip, partially hiding a smirk. "One for the history books."
*JCA*
JACKIE'S POV
The building in front of Jackie was bigger than he had expected, with towering windows and a height unthinkable.
"Is this where that dragon guy is?" Jackie jumped at his niece's voice.
"Jade," he said crossly, turning around. "Where's Macey?"
"Nice to see you too," Jade retorted sarcastically. "I thought you might like this." She held up the desired object: the red Dragon Talisman.
Jackie's eyes widened in surprise. "Jade-! How did you get that?"
Jade shrugged. "Talent. And a little help from a friend!" She stepped aside, allowing Macey to appear. The blonde-haired girl was sweating, a strand of hair sticking to her forehead. Her black sweatshirt was slightly wrinkled.
Jackie smirked. "Macey," he said simply.
"Jackie," she mimicked in a mocking tone. She took the talisman from Jade. "This should put a hole in that dragon guy's chest. He's immortal, but somehow it's so powerful it'll work."
"What?" Jackie stared at her, puzzled.
"I know," she replied. "It doesn't make sense to me either. Valmont had had it infused in his hand- which had to hurt, by the way- but Jade and I managed to pull it out."
"How-" Jackie sputtered, staring at Macey and Jade, aghast.
"Well, I took it out," Jade boasted, leaning against Macey. "She just helped."
Macey looked at Jackie and gave a sheepish shrug.
"You really go for the gold, Chan."
Jackie turned around, facing his enemy. He felt a sense of anger overcome him- the same anger that had arisen upon finding Captain Black injured. This was the criminal that had injured his friend/co-worker.
Jackie glanced at Macey, who appeared somewhat worried, but spoke to Valmont. "You know, Valmont? I was wondering, what is one of these worth?" He held up the gold brick.
Macey gasped. "Jackie- where'd you come by something like that?!"
"I'll explain later," Jackie hissed, then turned back to Valmont.
"An all expenses paid trip to Melvin World?" He tossed the brick into the nearby river.
"You'll pay for that!" Valmont growled, fury obscuring his face.
"What about these?" Jackie chucked more gold bricks into the water. "A new Ferrari?"
"Chan!" Valmont yelled, at the same time as Macey, "Jackie!"
"A summer home?" Distaste rode Jackie's voice. "Your own private island to build it on? A robot butler for that home?"
"Jackie, calm down!" Macey's eyes widened.
Valmont screamed as Jade threw the Dragon Talisman, blowing up both Valmont's ship and the building.
Macey pulled Jackie out of the way, avoiding the rubble by just a hair, the two cascading across the ground and finally coming to a stop. Jackie and Macey laid against what was left of the building, Macey gripping onto Jackie's shirt collar and gawking at the sight in front of them.
"Blast," Valmont snarled.
Literally, Jackie thought dryly.