Part 3 guys! Woohoo! We are getting so close. Only one more part/chapter and this little short story of Izzy. This is the part everyone has been waiting for. The rescue! Izzy wakes up in and is in need of a distraction. See how she manages to get through the abuse and buy the boys time to find her. I hope you guys enjoy!
WARNING: ABUSE OF A 12 YEAR OLD GIRL. NOTHING TOO BAD BUT SHE DOES GET BEATEN UP A LITTLE. IF IT CAUSES PROBLEMS OR DON'T LIKE, PLEASE DO NOT READ. THANKS MUCH.
Izzy groans as her head aches and spins all at the same time. The soft child-like features grimace upwards as pain shoots down her body. The last thing she remembers is screaming for help before the world went black. The preteen slowly blinks her eyes open. They snap shut as the bright light assaults her unclear vision. Her body begged her to go back into a sleep like state. Izzy ignores it as she clings to what little amount of coherent consciousness she has left. Her head lulls side to side as she tries to claw her way back to the land of the living. A deep inhale starts to bring her mind back in sync with her body. The ice blue eyes open, blinking several times to clear up the fuzzy image of her surroundings. They scan the area noting that she was in a shabby, rundown building. The faint smell of boozes, smoke and body order informed her that she was not alone in the small space either. She wonders exactly where she is. Her ears could pick up the faint sound of the bustling street outside. They were, at least, still on Knowhere. Well, that was a bonus. It would be much easier for her father and brothers to find her. A winces pushes past her lips as the room begins to spin. She brings a cold hand up to her forehead, squeezing the eyes tightly shut in an effort to stop the unsettling movement.
"Where am I?" She groans out.
"The same place you were five minutes ago, on Knowhere" a baritone voice snarks from across the room.
Izzy rolls her eyes. She forces her body to sit up, focusing on the area the snarky comment came from, "Thanks for that one genius. But where exactly on Knowhere."
The man growls, turning to look at Izzy more fully. Her eyes widened every slightly as she noticed that he was the same gnarled looking man that had grabbed her in the alleyway. Addy was what the other man had called him. Izzy's face twists upwards. The man was even more ugly in the full view of the buildings lights. He had several missing teeth and those that were left were broken and even sharpened on some. It kind of reminded her of Yondu's teeth a little, but he wasn't missing any, nor were any of them black from lack of care. He had a bird-like nose that was shoved harshly to one side. It was a clear indication that it had been broken far too many times and never set properly. The jaw was defined, if not closer to chiseled, but it was large, like it didn't belong on Addy's body. It had a couple days growth on it, but the hair was patchy and scraggly at best. The vibrant green eyes narrow threatening at Izzy.
"Shut your mouth kid." Addy barks out.
"I will, once you tell me where I'm at and why your ugly mug took me in the first place."
"None of you damn business." He gruffs out, turning back to his card game with the other gentlemen.
Izzy scoffs at the comment. None of her business her ass. It is every bit of her business when they are the ones that took her. She rolls her eyes, not willing to start an argument just yet. Yondu had always told her to take in all of our surroundings before making a move to defend, escape or attack. It would allow you to think quickly on your feet and keep ya from getting killed. He had told her multiple times. In most cases, Izzy felt like it was a waste of time and it was just easier to make things up as you went along. But in this case, when her life was probably seriously on the line, she felt the need to see her options before she made a move. So, she glances around the room. She was sitting on the cold floor in the far corner of the room. The building was obviously abandoned. The roof was busted up, holes littering the metal. Even the walls had a certain desolate look to them as the paint peeled in different areas. There was no furniture. It was spartan at best with only a metal crate the two men were using for a table and upturned barrels for seats.
Her body shifts to try to get more comfortable, wincing slightly as her ankle rolls against the unmovable object. She glances over at the two men, noting that they were the exact men who took her. Addy was obviously there, she would never forget that baritone voice, nor the bad breath, that spoke from behind her when she was grabbed. The other man was the lizard-like creature that told Addy to hurry up. He had never touched her, but Izzy could honestly say she would never forget those cold, dead reptilian eyes that had stared back at her. He had said that they needed to get her back to the boss. So, someone wanted her. But for what? She was only 12, it's not like she had warrants on her head or enemies that wanted her dead. She was just the kid of the famous Captain Yondu Udonta. Maybe that was the issue. Someone wanted to hurt Yondu by getting to her. If that is the case. . . . The girl shivers as a chill runs down her spin.
She quickly pushes that unnerving thought out of her mind. What she needed to do was give her family a chance to find her. Dad and the boys would have noticed that she was missing by now and be looking for her. It was just a matter of distracting these men long enough for them to find her before they whisked her away from Knowhere and into the clutches of God knows who. She could not outright scream at the top of her lungs. That would only serve in getting her knocked out again, which would be of no help. No she needed another way. She tilts her head back as Addy snatches the almost empty bottle of boozes from the other's grasps. He growls under his breath, taking a swig as the other narrows his eyes at him. They had been drinking. That would explain why Addy seems touchy and irritated every time she speaks. He was drunk and didn't want to be stuck here with her. Hmmm. Maybe she can push his buttons a little more. If she could get him hot enough he may forget about shoving her out the door and give her family the few seconds needed to pinpoint her location. Izzy inhales/exhales deeply preparing herself for the abuse that is no doubt to come.
"Tell me something mates." Izzy starts out, waiting for the two men to glance in her direction. "Is everyone in your little gang as butt ugly as you two? Or are you just the unfortunate ones?"
She suppresses a grin as that comment got their attention. Lizardman turns to look at her, his eyes wide in shock at the blunt statement. He flicks his eyes over at Addy who had froze in his movements. He slowly lowers the glass bottle to the table. Some of the blue colored drink dripped from his bottom lip. The green eyes flare brightly with a renewed anger.
"What did you just say brat?"
Izzy gives a half hearted shrug. "I was just wondering, because the two of you need to get laid. I can hear your whimpering and moaning all the way from over here." Izzy's face brightens as if inspiration just struck, "Oh! Is it that you can't perform? You know they make drugs for that now."
Addy growls dangerous as he slams his fist down on the table. Izzy flinches at the loud noise, but does little else to take her eyes off the now fully enraged man. He sprang to his feet with an unholy amount of speed. He rushes towards Izzy, making the young girl lean back to get away from the stampede. She hardens her face prepared for the abuse that was about to happen. Addy, upon reaching her, curls his fingers into her long hair. He roughly pulls her forward, pulling her up to her knees. Izzy cries out as her head pulses with the ripping and breaking of her hair. She digs her fingernails into his skin as she claws at his wrist. He grunts, twisting his wrist and digging in a little more. Izzy breathes heavily as she tries to redirect her attention from the pain in her scalp. Addy leans down, breathing horrible in her face. She recoiled at the foul smell burning her nose.
"Who do you think you are?" He half-way screams, spit hitting her face.
Izzy clenches her teeth, "I think I'm the one you're gonna kill with that breath of yours."
A deep growl emanates from deep within the taller man's chest. He rises to his full height keeping his fingers tangled within her hair and pulling her to stand. Izzy fumbles as her feet try to desperately find ground as he pulls even harder. She squeezes her eyes shut as the pain radiates down to her neck. The skin covering her scalp burns as fist fulls of her sandy blond hair is yanked harshly from the roots. She cracks one eye open as a silence lays heavily over the pair. Addy snarls at her as he forces her to look at him. His face twists upwards as he backhands her across the cheek. He releases his tight grip at the same moment the force spins the young girl to the floor.
Izzy groans as she hits the hard ground in a crumpled heap. The blue eyes blink slowly as her senses start to right themselves. Her cheek stings and burns. And there was a warm wetness trickling out of the corner of her mouth. The preteen slowly rises to her elbows as she wipes a hand across her mouth. She pulls it away, noting the red smeared about the light colored skin. Heavy footsteps echo off the empty wall indicating Addy's approach. Her ice blue eyes flick to the side, their sight filling with them. A deep evil chuckle radiates down from above before a boot presses into her shoulder. Izzy grunts as Addy shoves her into the floor.
"Now." He starts off, "I'm going to ask this nicely. . . "
"You call this nicely?" IIzzy grunts out, earning more pressure applied to her already aching muscles.
"I'm only going to ask once," He grits out. "Who are you?"
Izzy huffs, "I would think you would already know that."
Addy snarls deep at the smart ass comment. The pressure from Izzy's shoulder lessens considerably. Addy lifts his boot enough to bring it into a swinging forward motion. The boot catches Izzy bluntly in the ribs. The force was enough to throw her against the back wall. Izzy gasps as a snapping sound echoes in her ears. She withers and whimpers as pain shoots up and down her side. It even hurts to breathe. A cough forces it's way from her chest as she tries to raise herself on shaking arms. Addy crouches near her. He tilts his head to the side, his eyes narrowing in a sadistic amusement.
"Wanna try that again?" He asks.
"Screw you." Izzy spits out. "Why do you care who I am?"
"I don't really." He shrugs, before smiling devilishly. "But I wanna make sure that whatever reputation you have is ruined after I'm done with you."
"Good luck with that." Izzy huffs in half-hearted amusement.
Addy frowns deeply as he stalks his way over to the young girl. He nudges her over onto her back. Izzy easily falls over as her body is too battered to protest the force movement. Izzy's face furrows as a glare paints over her painful breathing. Addy grouches down, flatting his hand on her chest. His fingers twist into the fabric of her shirt. Izzy's body jars violently as it is lifted off the ground. The poor girl has barely any time to realize what is going on before Addy punches her with such force that it sends her collapsing back down to the floor. Her head bounces a little off the concert floor. The enclosed fist had made contact with her cheek right under her left eye. She could already feel the bruise forming. Izzy doesn't have any time to recover though, as Addy comes in for another violent contact. She tries not to flinch or startle each time he raises his arm. He would repeat his question to her, throwing snarling remarks in with the heat words each time. Izzy would respond with some smart ass comment that she spit back at him vemonly. It was a game that continued on for several long minutes.
As Izzy laid on the floor, battered and bleeding, she was unsure how much more she could take. Addy's blows were becoming less and less powerful; his arm growing weak with each blow, but he still had enough force to leave Izzy unable to fight. He grabs the front of her shirt again, lifting her ragged and limp body. Izzy looked up at Addy blankly. Her one eye was swollen, crusted with blood and she could barely keep the other open. Addy raises his arm with little enthusiasm. He huffs slightly as he tries to bring it higher one last time. As if deciding it was not worth his waning effort, he scowls as he harshly drops Izzy back to the floor, shaking out his hand as he rises to his feet. Izzy couches slightly, wincing as her body trembles and aches with the jarring movement. Her teeth clench together as she stares blindly up at the ceiling. The hair on her skin tinkles as a warm liquid runs out of her nose and down the side of her face.
The blue eyes blink several times as shadows pass over her. Her head leans to the side as a voice raises in a very clipped heated tone. Lizard-man was on his feet fussing at Addy. His arms were flailing wildly and he kept wagging at a finger at the ever scoffing man. Izzy forces her mind to push through the fog and focus on what was being said. She could faintly make out something about the ravager clothes she was dressed in. Possibly not knowing who she was and how it wasn't a good idea. A groan catches in her throat as a cough forces its way to the surface. Izzy clenches her jaw tightly as she forces her body to move in a direction with persistent protests. Her chest heaves with deep breaths as she tries to steady herself on her hands and knees.
"Maybe you should have figured out who I was before you took me." Izzy interjects into the men's heated conversation.
Izzy glares up at them as they turn to look at her. Lizard-man snaps his mouth shut, knowing that she was right. Addy, on the other hand, in his somewhat drunken state, could not think that logically. He growls for what seems like the hundredth time today. He twisted that gnarled disgusting face upwards, finding the strength within himself to take a step towards Izzy while rearing back intending to kick her in the stomach once again. Izzy hardens her face even more preparing herself for the next round of assault from the man. The kick alone would crack, if not break, another rib, but there was no stopping it. She tenses her abdomen in an attempt to lessen the damage as much as humanly possible, before slamming her eyes shut as she did not want to see the blow that was about to come.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" A voice bellows from behind.
Izzy tenses at the harsh, clipped voice. It was the same voice that she encountered when she bumped into Scarface. She opens her eyes as intense grunting and curses flutters down to her ears. She watches, in a small amount of bewilderment, as Addy, with arms thrashing and flailing, is more or less thrown away from her. The dark skinned man with the scar going down his lip, positions himself between her and Addy as he shoves the smaller man away. Addy curses under his breath as Lizard-man clumsy tries to catch him and steady him on his feet.
"You were told to leave her alone!" Scarface commands.
"Yeah well she was being smart mouthed! And she wouldn't answer my questions!" Addy hollers back, shouldering Lizard-man off.
"You have any idea who she is?" He barks harshly, jerking a pointed finger in Izzy's direction.
"No! She won't tell me!" Addy shouts exasperated.
"God! You are such an idiot Addy! She's a ravager and you don't know who she is!"
"Who IS she, boss?" Lizard-man asks, taking a step closer to the pair.
Izzy lowers herself to sit on her backside as she runs her tongue over her teeth. She moistens her mouth enough to be able to spit the blood onto the floor, "The name is Isabella." Izzy interjects, forcing the men to stop and look over at her. "Isabella Udonta."
The mixed facial expressions of Addy and Lizardman was almost comical. They looked at her in a wide eyed bewildered state. Mouths were slightly agape as they tried to mull over what she just said and whether or not to believe her. Izzy wraps an arm around her side as she continues to stare back at them with a fierce expression. The two men exchange glances as the horrifying sense of acknowledgement over what Addy had just done washes over them. They snap their eyes to their boss, looking for any sign of hope. He stares back at them, nodding his head slightly at the pronouncement. The two sets of eyes look around their boss, back to Izzy sitting on the floor. The young girl sits quietly as she witnesses panic starting to overrun the two men's senses.
"She's Yondu Udonta's kid!" Addy bellows.
"We have to give her back!" The lizard shouts in a panic while tangling his hands on Addy's jacket.
"We can't do that. We were told. . . . " Scarface remarks, before being cut off.
"If Yondu finds us with her, we're all dead." Lizard man points out, wagging a hand at her. "We need to let her loose. We won't be safe with him looking for her."
"It's too late now you idiot. He's probably already looking for her." Addy snaps matter-of-fact. "I say let's kill her now and dump her body in the streets. Udonta won't know what happened or who did it." He suggests taking a step towards her.
"We can't do that either. Ramon wants her alive and delivered to him in a few days' time." Scarface points out, positioning himself more fully between Addy and herself.
Izzy's mind races as the men start to figure out what they are going to do with her. She has to find a way to get herself out of this mess, before she DOES wind up dead on the streets of Knowhere. Always look for anything that can be used in a defensive manner. Yondu had told her. She glances around, while swallowing her own panic, looking for anything that could be used as a weapon. She growls as she comes up empty handed. There were no broken pipes, no random pieces of lumber. There was nothing but an empty room! Izzy shifts slightly, turning herself around to make sure that she did not overlook anything. She blinks her eyes questioningly as her boots scrap over something that is littering the floor. Her eyes land on the pool of blood that she had spit out earlier. It was dripping into a red puddle below, as if it was on the edge of something. She cocks her head to the side as she moves the object with her finger. It was glass. More specifically it was window glass.
Izzy swivels her head around, noticing the broken window behind her. The dirty blond eyebrows knit together as she does not understand why she had not taken note of that little detail earlier. She shakes her head, not wanting to waste time dwelling on that thought. Izzy keeps part of her attention on the shouting match happening between the three kidnappers while she searches the broken and scattered pieces of glass. If she could just find one that would be big enough and sharp enough to use as a weapon than she would have a better chance of getting out of here. Her eyes finally land on a piece in the far corner. She quickly curls her fingers around it, bringing it close and tucking it away in her sleeve just as one of the men approaches.
"What are we going to do?" Lizardman asks, turning back around to his colleagues. "If Yondu is looking for her he is probably closing in on us. The nabbing wasn't exactly quiet or without on-lookers."
Izzy glares at the back of the man. To say that it wasn't exactly quiet was probably an understatement. She had screamed and kicked and thrashed. There were even people who turned her way, but yet they did nothing to help her. People kept to themselves, especially when on Knowhere, but Izzy also knew how her father and brothers could be when wanting information, especially wanting information about her. She has no doubt that they would find someone that would spill their guts. She just had to distract them a few more minutes until Yondu came blasting through the door. Izzy stills herself, as Addy glances over at her. His lips were pressed tightly together into a thin line and his jaw was clenched. He had an almost wild, hated look to his eyes. Izzy gulps quietly. She has been around hardened men enough to recognize when one was contemplating killing someone. The young girl hardens her own features towards the man, not willing to allow him to see the small amount of fear she feels bubbling up.
Lizard-man runs a shaking hand over his head and down his face. He groans as he is fighting a battle of wills with himself on what to do with her. Scarface stands, arms crossed, firm in his resolve to take her to his boss. Addy, on the other hand, keeps his cold eyes squarely on Izzy. And Izzy, well she is unable to break eye contact with the man. The staring contest continues as a heavy, tenseful silence falls over the small group. It was in that silence that Izzy picked up the faint sound of a whistle. Her head cocks to the side, looking for that small glimmer of hope. She slows her breathing down as it fills her ears. Her eyes stay front and center, but she is not focusing on any one thing. She puts all her energy in focusing all her senses on that one small sound. The whistle grows in volume ever slightly. It wasn't random, there was a pattern to it. Izzy grins devilishly at the very familiar pattern. She huffs a small laugh, before it turns into an almost boisterous one. The men quirk an eyebrow at her as if she had lost her mind.
"I have one suggestion on what to do." Izzy snarks, grinning like a cheshire cat, "Run."
The confused looks deepened only for a split second more before a sharp, loud whistle cut through the air like a knife. Their bodys outwardly flinched as the golden arrow suddenly cut through Addy's body like paper. Izzy snaps her eyes shut, quickly turning her face away. The blue blood splatters outwards from the wood. A helpless, startled gurgle bubbles up pushing past Addy's lips. A loud bang echoes off the steel walls as the door is shoved open to stop on its hinges. Izzy bolsters up her courage enough to peer back around. Lizardman takes a step backwards, his face falling in a silent, bewildered panic. Scarface freezes in his movements. He hardens his stare as he tries to penetrate the darkness. A deep southern chuckle washes over the silence, the arrow hovering and darting dangerously between the two kidnappers.
"You should've list'n t'the girl." Yondu drawls, stepping into the light.
Yondu stood confident and tall. He places his hands on his hip as he gives a snarked grin. Kraglin and Peter stand on either side of him. Each of the men had a nasty look pulling on their features. Izzy could feel her body relax at the sight of her adopted father and two brothers. Scarface snarls twisting his face downwards at the sight of her family. His shoulders tense even more as his head lowers in a more or less threatening way. Lizardman frantically flicks his eyes between the three ravagers and his boss. Izzy straightens her back as she assesses the situation before her. The urge to run to her family was like a hot fire under her feet. She was having a hard time resisting it. But there was just no way to physically get to her dad. Both Scarface and Lizardman stood directly in front of her, blocking her means of escape. The preteen tries desperately to be patient. It was an intense situation for everyone. Izzy could feel her throat grow tight as she waits to see what will happen next.
Her attention is drawn to the slight shuffling to her right. Lizardman was trying to sneak away. He kept his eyes fixated on Yondu, but his feet were taking tentative steps backwards. Yondu's red eyes flick over to the man. There was very little that slipped past the ever aging man. His fin grows a deeper red, his lips pursing for the whistle that follows. Izzy flinches away as a startled yelp fades into nothing. The yaka arrow exits the skull in the back of the man's head. Lizardman crumples into a twisted heap on the floor. The preteen holds her breath. This was her chance. She grits her teeth as she wills her body to move. It scrambles upwards forcing her feet to carry her over to her family in ungraceful flight. A warmness spreads in her chest as her hopes and joy rises the closer she gets. Her face falls as everything seems to suddenly drop to slow motion before stopping. Darkness creeps in on her as she feels herself being harshly yanked backwards by her hair. Izzy helplessly reaches out for her family as she is dragged away from them. Yondu's face falls as he takes a step forward. A cry forces past her lips as chunks of her hair is pulled out. A deep growl near her ear informs her that Scarface has other plans as he draws her closer to his body.
Izzy winces as her head places. She wraps her fingers around his wrist desperately trying to loosen the grip. The father and two brothers react instantly to the cry that left the preteen. Peter raises his element blaster as his brow furrows down. Kraglin's shoulders and biceps tense even more, raising his own faser. He growls under his breath as he tucks his face close to the weapon in order to take aim. Yondu's already hardened lines deepen as he stares at his wiggling daughter.
"You fire. And she dies." Scarface threatens, pressing a faser into the side of Izzy's head.
"Dad." Izzy whimpers, not being able to take the abuse any longer.
Yondu's red eyes flick to Scarface before focusing back on Izzy. He notices that the young girl was battered pretty good. A blood trail trickled from the corner of her mouth. The lip was busted and broken open. Her left eye was blackened and swollen. The skin stretched over the cheek bone was broken open and raw. Her breathing was ragged and she winced every so often when she moved, signaling the father that there was a busted rib somewhere. Izzy grimaces as the man twists his wrist, pulling on her long hair even more. Yondu turns heated eyes back on Scarface, who is more or less hiding behind the much smaller kid.
"Tell me somet'ing." Yondu starts out, placing his hands comfortably on his hips. "You in the habit of snatchin' kids or was this all a big misunderstanding?"
Izzy had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. Where she wanted Yondu to get this over with and get her out of this situation; he wanted to talk and banter. A sharp gasp catches in her throat as more pressure is placed on her heart and neck. The young girl grits her teeth as Scarface pulls back on her hair while leaning forward. He rests his head next to hers, more or less reclining his chin on her shoulder.
Scarface narrows his eyes slightly, "It was no misunderstanding Udonta if that is what you were asking. My boss wanted us to grab this brat specifically. You have a lot to answer for when it comes to him and he wants those debts paid."
"Ah." Yondu remarks as if he knew what was going on. But Izzy could see it in his eyes that he was racking his brain over who would be stupid enough to do something like this. After several seconds the older man shrugs carelessly before dangerously leveling his voice. "Well nabbing my youngest pr'bably wasn't the best way t'git my attention."
Scarface huffs humorously, "Possibly not. But I just do what I'm told to. So, we are going to walk out of here nice and easy unless you want to be scrapping this mutts brain matter off the wall."
The ice blue eyes widen as she looks at Yondu, Kraglin and Peter pleadingly. She can see the two brothers tense at the threatening words. Their shoulders draw more taunt, if that is even possible, and their knuckles turn white as they gripped their weapons. Yondu drops his hands from his hips, his own body tensing. A snarl pulls at the corner of his mouth, his eyes narrowing dangerously. Izzy makes eye contact with Yondu. There was much anger, but she could see the worry etched into the hardened features. Scarface takes a step back, forcing Izzy to mimic him. Izzy, in a last ditch effort, tries to dig her nails into the man's skin. Scarface softly grunt, but it does little to loosen his ever tightening grip. The preteen squirms uncomfortably trying desperately to pull away from him. The attempt only angers the man more. He tightens his grip even more, shaking Izzy violently in an attempt to get to see it was useless. The jarring moves the young girls arm a bit awkwardly. An intense stinging sensation stabs at her hand and arm as the forgotten object digs into her skin. Izzy bits her tongue as a yelp dies in her throat. A small amount of blood tickles the hairs on her skin as it flows down her wrist and into the palm of her hand.
Izzy cools her features as she wiggles the small weapon into her open palm. She does not want anyone to know what she is possibly about to do. The shard of glass was sharp enough to slice through her skin as if it was paper. She doubts stabbing Scarface with it would do anything but make the man more angry. The only advantage that he has is that he has a hold of her long hair. It was obvious what the preteen had to do. Izzy closes her eyes as she calms her racing heart. Her facial features scrunch up as she quickly swipes the glass upwards into her hair. Scarface had the fine strains pulled taunt enough that the sharp object easily sliced through most of her hair. Izzy swallows hard, the remaining strains being pulled from her scalp, as she falls forward.
Scarface blinks his eyes several times as he stares in bewilderment at the wad of hair in his hand. Yondu wastes no time as the opening presents itself. He whistles, commanding the arrow to slice through the hand with the faser. Izzy flinches as Peter's element blaster goes off, hitting the man in the shoulder. She quickly claws her way to her feet, scurrying the short distance over to her family. A hand reaches out grabbing a hold of Yondu's side. Her momentum alone, spins her around clashing into his back with great force. Izzy buries her face into the stiff leather fabric, fists clutching at it in a vice-like grip.
Yondu does little more than grunt at the impact, having planted his feet firmly when she came near. He fixates on the man before him. Scarface breathes heavily, applying pressure onto the wounded hand. The brown eyes ignite with a hot fire as he precedes to keep eye contact. Yondu cocks his head to the side, his fin glowing even brighter than before. Without so much as an inhale, the arrow positions itself between the man's eyes. He jumps and skips closer forcing the much bigger man up against the wall. Now it was time for some business.
Kraglin swings his gun around his back, once Yondu starts to question Scarface. He crouches down, placing a heavy hand on Izzy's bicep. The startled yelp that leaves the small girl does not go unnoticed from the older brother as he spins her around to face him. Kraglin's heart aches as he looks at the fear and hurt in those big ice blue eyes. The skinny man smiles weakly, before beginning his scan for injuries. He cups her checks, turning her head side to side, looking for anything that was not so obvious as the ones littering her face. Kraglin feels the young girl sigh and relax under his touch. She closes her eyes, almost going limp as she relents to the normal inspection that the men did whenever she had gotten hurt. The older brother nimbly runs his hands down her arms to her finger tips. They come back up, moving to her torso and pressing gently into the ribs. About the 3rd one down Izzy draws in a sharp breath, flinching away. Kraglin keeps his grip on her, not allowing her to back away from him. He curls his fingers around the hem of her shirt, lifting it halfway up in order to see the angry black and blue bruising forming in the area. The eldest growls dangerously, placing his hands on his knees intending to rise to his feet. He stops suddenly when small arms wrap tightly around his neck with an inaudible whimper. The taller Xandarian sighs heavily, before continuing on his way gathering the thin child into his arms.
Peter's face falls at the sight of his baby sis clinging to the taller man. He has no idea what occurred here in this small room, but she was beaten pretty badly, and that is what led to the almost uncharacteristic display. Izzy was a loving child, but she was also 12, and she did not hug and cling to the men as she once did when younger. It was only on rare moments of terror, sickness, and overly tired did she show the little girl they had come accustomed to always being at their side and wanting to be held. Peter shakes his head sadly. He observes the small girl tense a little when Yondu raises his voice in irritation. The young adult moves over to the pair. He waits a beat for two big ice blue eyes to gaze up at him. The look broke his heart. She was exhausted and overwhelmed. The older brother smiles weakly as he rummages through his bag.
Izzy furrows down her brow a little until he pulls out the bright yellow walkman. Her eyes widened in surprise, as she had thought she would never see the old player again. Peter flashes her another smile while he places the headphones on her head, covering her ears as the conversation between Yondu and Scarface grows in intensity. Izzy feels Peter's fingers brush through her hair a little as he adjusted them to fit more comfortably. He opens the player, checking on the cassette inside, before snapping it shut and pressing play. The soft melody of Fooled Around and Fell in Love drifts into her ears. Izzy relaxes at the beloved tune. She presses her body further into Kraglin, more or less sagging into him. Izzy halfway recognizes Peter handing the player to Kraglin to hold before closing her eyes. She allows the music to drown out the world around her.
Kraglin adjusts the small girl in his arms. She was not asleep, but she was turning to more of a deadweight as she relaxed and became lost in her own head. He could not help the anger and rage that continued to boil and bubble in his chest at the abuse that these men dished out on Izzy. Izzy was smart mouthed at times, a fighter, and just didn't know when to stop, but that gave no one any right to beat a kid over it either. The older Xandarian glares menacingly over at Scarface still backed up against the wall. Yondu had positioned himself close to the man by now. The two had been bickering back and forth for several minutes now. Kraglin had paid no mind to it, drowning it out really, as his soul concern was checking up on his little sister. But now that she was taken care of, Kraglin could see the tense and angry body language of the Captain. His shoulders were tense and drawn tight across his back. The arms were crossed over the chest, puffing out slightly as he drew himself up to his full intimidating height. The signs of the conversation not being to the older man's liking was all there. Kraglin instinctively wraps his arms tighter around Izzy, cupping the back of her head to keep it resting on his shoulder. There was no doubt what was going to come next if the Centuaurian did not get the answers he wanted.
Scarface scoffs, "You are as arrogant as they say Udonta. You have no idea what Ramon will do once he gets wind of this."
Yondu shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, "Worse things have been said about me. And he is more than welcom'd t'try."
"You can't hide from him Udonta." Scarface threatens in a last ditch effort to keep the upper hand.
"I have no intention to. But my family will be safe from the likes of you." Yondu remarks, whistling sharply.
Kraglin pushes Izzy into his body even more as the arrow slowly pushes into the flesh and bone. Scarface grunts with clenched teeth as it painfully slices through the meat. Peter leans back, grimacing slightly as his own head hurt from the painful show. He glances down to see Izzy squeeze her eyes tightly shut despite not being able to see the outcome of the argument. The arrow comes out the other side, hovering in the air. Scarface stares with dead eyes before collapsing to the floor. Yondu snarls as he tilts his head back at the scum. He calls the arrow back into its holister, making sure it was tucked away before turning around to look at his three kids. The two boys had features that were drawn down in disgust. Neither one of them would be sorry for what just happened to the man that hurt their little sister. Yondu has to admit that even he does not feel any remorse over the situation. He waits a second for the boy's eyes to turn away from the dead body on the floor and focus on him.
"Time t'go home." Yondu states matter-of-factly.
The two men could not agree more. Kraglin hoists Izzy up a little more comfortably, before turning to walk out of the damp and dark room. He was sick of Knowhere at the moment and would do anything to get off this floating head. Peter gazes at the three men sprawled out on the floor one last time before turning on his heels and following after the oldest. A heavy sigh leaves Yondu as he stands there alone. He glanced back around as he stood in the center of the carnage. They had made a horrible decision in taking his youngest and they had paid for that decision. He would not worry and fret over his choices and think of what might have been. No, there were much bigger things to concern himself over. Like how Ramon even knew where Izzy would have been and had hired someone to specifically target her to get to him. Yondu hates this, but he was going to have to be more watchful over her, keep her closer than normal until this matter is resolved. The older man shakes his head, running a hand over the red fin embedded in his skull. He takes one last glance, before turning with a swish of his long leather jacket and following after his children to make their way back home.
to be continued. . . . . . . . .