The Jungle Chapter 5
By "Cadet Deming"
Thanks to the people that like it. This is a blending of comic and toon, but Lady Jaye has her toon personality, and Flint has more of his comic personality. I don't own the rights to GIJOE, Hasbro, Devil's Due and Marvel do so please don't sue. Rated PG-13. Strong language and adult situations. This takes place at roughly the same time as Chapter 3.
Tomax and several Siegies strode through the hallways of the Cobra compound. He was clearly in a dark mood.
"Now let's get our stories straight. We were overpowered. My brother was captured while fighting valiantly, and if Dr. Mindbender has a problem, I'll just withdraw his funding," fumed the Crimson Guard Commander.
A Crimson Guardsmen with Fred 321 printed on his pocket asked, "So we're not gonna tell him that 10 of us on Ferret 3-wheelers got our asses kicked by 4 Joes on foot because you thought it was more important to save your twin?"
Tomax turned and looked at the man like he was something that crawled out of a sewer. He sneered, "No, we're going to leave that part out, you moron."
"Dude, did you just complete a whole thought by yourself? I didn't know you could do that," the Siegie asked him.
"The name isn't "Dude" it's Sir," said Tomax.
"O.K. Sir Dude," said Fred 321, cowering, as he fell behind to blend in with the rest of the Siegies in the back.
"I'm so fuckin tired of this jungle shit man. I want to put in a transfer. Get on the waiting list to be a sleeper agent Senator in California or something," said a Siegie with Fred 323 on his uniform.
A Crimson Guard #330 said to him," You don't ask Tomax for a transfer while in the middle of an assignment after he leads a losing charge and gets forcibly separated from his brother. You wait until he disappears into a bathroom stall for 5 minutes and comes out in one of his trademark happy, hyper mood swings with white powder hanging from his nose. THAT'S when you ask for a transfer."
"Well he and Xamot keep having less and less of those happy mood swings these days. I don't know if I can hold out for the next one," said Fred 323.
"Yeah, ever since Frederica, like, disappeared. What happened to her anyway," said Fred 321.
"Who cares? Frederica was a stuck up bitch," scowled Fred 323.
"You're just pissed because when everyone found out she was banging the Twins, you lost $200 on the "What is Tomax and Xamot's Sexual Orientation" pool," said Fred 321.
"There was a BETTING POOL on Tomax and Xamot's sexual orientation? You guys have way too much time on your hands. Besides, I wondered what happened to her too, but when people disappear in Cobra you don't ask questions, or you may also wind up being neither seen nor heard from again," said Fred 330.
"Well, I think disappearin' is better than getting stuck stationed in a piss-ant Fourth world backwater jungle like now," said Fred 323.
"Doc Mindbender claims he's almost done. Do ya think the Joes have a clue what we're really up to?" asked Fred 321.
"You know, they might not be trying so hard to stop us if they did," said Fred 330.
"Ahem. Would you mind sharing your conversation with the rest of the group," asked Tomax, taking notice of the three stragglers.
"Oh..um..we we're just saying how admirable it was that you're...taking leadership in such a pragmatic manner. So....what's your plan on what do next," asked Fred 330, plastering a beaming yet fake smile on his face.
"Ass-kisser", muttered Fred 323. Fred 330 kicked him while still maintaining his smile.
"Well, so long as the Joes have my brother, if he feels any pain I'll be able to locate them through our psychic bond and.....hey wait a moment. I have an idea. We'll tell Dr. Mindbender that I planned on planting Xamot among the Joes to track them back to see if they have a base in the area! It's genius! I'm so brilliant!" said Tomax.
"With all due respect sir, what if he doesn't feel any pain? It's not like the Joes go around torturing people," said Fred 330.
Flash-Forward to later that night:
"Jesus Christ! What did they do to you," asked Lady Jaye, horrified, as she walked into the bedroom that Flint and Roadblock had "interrogated" Xamot in. He was curled up in the fetal position on the floor, his wrists still bound in front by handcuffs. Although the light in the room was dim, provided only by the moon and a small upright flashlight. Jaye could see that he was covered in bruises. His right eye was swelling, and dried blood was crusted on gashes across his skin. In the darkness of the cabin, it looked black.
Xamot coughed weakly, "Your so-called champions of law and order just felt 4 hours of beating me senseless was the right thing to do. Not that it matters because I didn't talk. But I'm sorry, you're THE GOOD GUYS".
"You may not have talked, but you certainly screamed enough," Lady Jaye's manner softened, as she felt guilty about what she'd just said. "I am really sorry. Where does it hurt," she asked, pulling out a small First Aid kit. She opened an antiseptic pad and started dabbing his wounds with it.
"My right side is the worst, but do you want me to go in alphabetical order, or start from the top and work my way down. Which would lessen your guilt more," he asked, groaning as he struggled to sit upright.
"Hey, I'm not the one that hurt you," said Lady Jaye defensively.
"Under U.S. law, if a group of people conspire to commit a crime, and 1 person carries it out, the whole group is responsible. If 5 people rob a store and 1 person shoots the store clerk, all 5 are judged guilty of murder," said Xamot.
"You seem pretty much alive to me now, and as I recall, 12 hours ago you were shooting at me with a deadly laser, remember?" asked Lady Jaye.
"My lasers were set on stun, and if it's any consolation to you it was nothing personal, just business," he said.
"My laser was set on stun. That's what they all try to tell the judge," she said.
"And what would you be telling a judge about this, hmmmm? It's OK to torture defenseless captives. We weren't in the U.S. We're the GOOD GUYS," said Xamot sarcastically.
"We ARE the good guys," said Lady Jaye through gritted teeth.
Xamot told her, "You know, when the so-called "good guys" do bad things, you cease to be the good guys. When you fight someone in close contact day after day, sooner or later you start to become what you're fighting. He who fights monsters...."
".....Must take care not to become a monster him, or herself. Yeah, I've heard that before. It's Nietzschean philosophy," finished Lady Jaye.
"A Joe who knows Nietzsche? I'm impressed. But I must admit, I've always been impressed with you," said Xamot. A beat passed between them.
"Flattery will get you nowhere," said Jaye.
"Will bribery? The going rate for turning a GI Joe agent is 10 Million Dollars" said Xamot.
Lady Jaye almost dropped the antiseptic pad at that, but quickly recovered.
"I'm not for sale," she said.
"Not even up for a little rental? You can't tell me you've been lying on the rough floor at night here wishing you were SOMEPLACE else, wishing you were SOMETHING else. Instead of being a mere government agent you could be, what, a world famous actress? I own a movie studio among other things. I could make you a star. I have that kind of power you know. Your precious boyfriend Flint couldn't even make you an officer. Or would you rather languish, wasting your life as a lowly enlisted soldier getting sent as cannon fodder on missions you can't even acknowledge exist," he said.
"I may be sleeping on a dirt floor, but at least I can sleep at night. There are things in my life I'm not crazy about, but at least I can live with them. You could offer me anything and everything, but it won't change the fact that I'm loyal to America and to GI Joe and to Flint," she said. Jaye looked away into the distance. "I'm not tempted by you Xamot."
"The biggest lies are the ones we tell ourselves Lady Jaye. I dare you to look me in the eyes and tell me you're not..... tempted," he said.
She turned and stared back at him. His breathing patterns had changed from the shallow pained sound of earlier to something deeper, more alive. Even covered in bruises and shadow, he was undeniably gorgeous. She noted his dark brown eyes locked upon hers, so different than Flint's, and yet so alike.
And then, her eyes traveled to the insignia on the front of his uniform. It was the traditional hooded Cobra head. Despite the darkness of the room she could make out the stop sign red color, the warning.
She looked back at his face.
"I....I don't want to betray anyone," she said.
"If no one else sees it, it didn't happen," whispered Xamot. He slid in closer to her. Lady Jaye stayed stock still. Xamot started to lean towards her, motioning for a kiss.
"No," said Lady Jaye forcefully, pushing him away and standing up quickly.
"Just..stay away from me..I won't betray anyone," she said running towards the door and slamming it shut behind her.
"But you already have, my dear. You already have," said Xamot more to himself than anyone else. He opened up the palm of one of his hands. When Lady Jaye had let Xamot get so close to her, she hadn't noticed that he'd grabbed a set of master keys from her pocket.
By "Cadet Deming"
Thanks to the people that like it. This is a blending of comic and toon, but Lady Jaye has her toon personality, and Flint has more of his comic personality. I don't own the rights to GIJOE, Hasbro, Devil's Due and Marvel do so please don't sue. Rated PG-13. Strong language and adult situations. This takes place at roughly the same time as Chapter 3.
Tomax and several Siegies strode through the hallways of the Cobra compound. He was clearly in a dark mood.
"Now let's get our stories straight. We were overpowered. My brother was captured while fighting valiantly, and if Dr. Mindbender has a problem, I'll just withdraw his funding," fumed the Crimson Guard Commander.
A Crimson Guardsmen with Fred 321 printed on his pocket asked, "So we're not gonna tell him that 10 of us on Ferret 3-wheelers got our asses kicked by 4 Joes on foot because you thought it was more important to save your twin?"
Tomax turned and looked at the man like he was something that crawled out of a sewer. He sneered, "No, we're going to leave that part out, you moron."
"Dude, did you just complete a whole thought by yourself? I didn't know you could do that," the Siegie asked him.
"The name isn't "Dude" it's Sir," said Tomax.
"O.K. Sir Dude," said Fred 321, cowering, as he fell behind to blend in with the rest of the Siegies in the back.
"I'm so fuckin tired of this jungle shit man. I want to put in a transfer. Get on the waiting list to be a sleeper agent Senator in California or something," said a Siegie with Fred 323 on his uniform.
A Crimson Guard #330 said to him," You don't ask Tomax for a transfer while in the middle of an assignment after he leads a losing charge and gets forcibly separated from his brother. You wait until he disappears into a bathroom stall for 5 minutes and comes out in one of his trademark happy, hyper mood swings with white powder hanging from his nose. THAT'S when you ask for a transfer."
"Well he and Xamot keep having less and less of those happy mood swings these days. I don't know if I can hold out for the next one," said Fred 323.
"Yeah, ever since Frederica, like, disappeared. What happened to her anyway," said Fred 321.
"Who cares? Frederica was a stuck up bitch," scowled Fred 323.
"You're just pissed because when everyone found out she was banging the Twins, you lost $200 on the "What is Tomax and Xamot's Sexual Orientation" pool," said Fred 321.
"There was a BETTING POOL on Tomax and Xamot's sexual orientation? You guys have way too much time on your hands. Besides, I wondered what happened to her too, but when people disappear in Cobra you don't ask questions, or you may also wind up being neither seen nor heard from again," said Fred 330.
"Well, I think disappearin' is better than getting stuck stationed in a piss-ant Fourth world backwater jungle like now," said Fred 323.
"Doc Mindbender claims he's almost done. Do ya think the Joes have a clue what we're really up to?" asked Fred 321.
"You know, they might not be trying so hard to stop us if they did," said Fred 330.
"Ahem. Would you mind sharing your conversation with the rest of the group," asked Tomax, taking notice of the three stragglers.
"Oh..um..we we're just saying how admirable it was that you're...taking leadership in such a pragmatic manner. So....what's your plan on what do next," asked Fred 330, plastering a beaming yet fake smile on his face.
"Ass-kisser", muttered Fred 323. Fred 330 kicked him while still maintaining his smile.
"Well, so long as the Joes have my brother, if he feels any pain I'll be able to locate them through our psychic bond and.....hey wait a moment. I have an idea. We'll tell Dr. Mindbender that I planned on planting Xamot among the Joes to track them back to see if they have a base in the area! It's genius! I'm so brilliant!" said Tomax.
"With all due respect sir, what if he doesn't feel any pain? It's not like the Joes go around torturing people," said Fred 330.
Flash-Forward to later that night:
"Jesus Christ! What did they do to you," asked Lady Jaye, horrified, as she walked into the bedroom that Flint and Roadblock had "interrogated" Xamot in. He was curled up in the fetal position on the floor, his wrists still bound in front by handcuffs. Although the light in the room was dim, provided only by the moon and a small upright flashlight. Jaye could see that he was covered in bruises. His right eye was swelling, and dried blood was crusted on gashes across his skin. In the darkness of the cabin, it looked black.
Xamot coughed weakly, "Your so-called champions of law and order just felt 4 hours of beating me senseless was the right thing to do. Not that it matters because I didn't talk. But I'm sorry, you're THE GOOD GUYS".
"You may not have talked, but you certainly screamed enough," Lady Jaye's manner softened, as she felt guilty about what she'd just said. "I am really sorry. Where does it hurt," she asked, pulling out a small First Aid kit. She opened an antiseptic pad and started dabbing his wounds with it.
"My right side is the worst, but do you want me to go in alphabetical order, or start from the top and work my way down. Which would lessen your guilt more," he asked, groaning as he struggled to sit upright.
"Hey, I'm not the one that hurt you," said Lady Jaye defensively.
"Under U.S. law, if a group of people conspire to commit a crime, and 1 person carries it out, the whole group is responsible. If 5 people rob a store and 1 person shoots the store clerk, all 5 are judged guilty of murder," said Xamot.
"You seem pretty much alive to me now, and as I recall, 12 hours ago you were shooting at me with a deadly laser, remember?" asked Lady Jaye.
"My lasers were set on stun, and if it's any consolation to you it was nothing personal, just business," he said.
"My laser was set on stun. That's what they all try to tell the judge," she said.
"And what would you be telling a judge about this, hmmmm? It's OK to torture defenseless captives. We weren't in the U.S. We're the GOOD GUYS," said Xamot sarcastically.
"We ARE the good guys," said Lady Jaye through gritted teeth.
Xamot told her, "You know, when the so-called "good guys" do bad things, you cease to be the good guys. When you fight someone in close contact day after day, sooner or later you start to become what you're fighting. He who fights monsters...."
".....Must take care not to become a monster him, or herself. Yeah, I've heard that before. It's Nietzschean philosophy," finished Lady Jaye.
"A Joe who knows Nietzsche? I'm impressed. But I must admit, I've always been impressed with you," said Xamot. A beat passed between them.
"Flattery will get you nowhere," said Jaye.
"Will bribery? The going rate for turning a GI Joe agent is 10 Million Dollars" said Xamot.
Lady Jaye almost dropped the antiseptic pad at that, but quickly recovered.
"I'm not for sale," she said.
"Not even up for a little rental? You can't tell me you've been lying on the rough floor at night here wishing you were SOMEPLACE else, wishing you were SOMETHING else. Instead of being a mere government agent you could be, what, a world famous actress? I own a movie studio among other things. I could make you a star. I have that kind of power you know. Your precious boyfriend Flint couldn't even make you an officer. Or would you rather languish, wasting your life as a lowly enlisted soldier getting sent as cannon fodder on missions you can't even acknowledge exist," he said.
"I may be sleeping on a dirt floor, but at least I can sleep at night. There are things in my life I'm not crazy about, but at least I can live with them. You could offer me anything and everything, but it won't change the fact that I'm loyal to America and to GI Joe and to Flint," she said. Jaye looked away into the distance. "I'm not tempted by you Xamot."
"The biggest lies are the ones we tell ourselves Lady Jaye. I dare you to look me in the eyes and tell me you're not..... tempted," he said.
She turned and stared back at him. His breathing patterns had changed from the shallow pained sound of earlier to something deeper, more alive. Even covered in bruises and shadow, he was undeniably gorgeous. She noted his dark brown eyes locked upon hers, so different than Flint's, and yet so alike.
And then, her eyes traveled to the insignia on the front of his uniform. It was the traditional hooded Cobra head. Despite the darkness of the room she could make out the stop sign red color, the warning.
She looked back at his face.
"I....I don't want to betray anyone," she said.
"If no one else sees it, it didn't happen," whispered Xamot. He slid in closer to her. Lady Jaye stayed stock still. Xamot started to lean towards her, motioning for a kiss.
"No," said Lady Jaye forcefully, pushing him away and standing up quickly.
"Just..stay away from me..I won't betray anyone," she said running towards the door and slamming it shut behind her.
"But you already have, my dear. You already have," said Xamot more to himself than anyone else. He opened up the palm of one of his hands. When Lady Jaye had let Xamot get so close to her, she hadn't noticed that he'd grabbed a set of master keys from her pocket.
