Shalimar Fox stood above the crowd at the club. She leaned over the balcony
to get a better view.
"Sit down, would you?" Emma spoke over the noise. "You're making me nervous."
"What's to be nervous about?" Shalimar turned to face her teammate and her friend. "This is the first night off we've had in ages." She smelled the air. Some smells were rancid, others were alright. She breathed out and caught a sense, as if someone were concentrating on masking his or her scent. They knew when to release it so Shalimar couldn't catch the scent. But she had. Just.
Emma on the other hand, was busy eyeing some of the members of the band playing. They had a blond woman on drums and a brunette on keyboards, but it was the men that she was looking at. There was a bald black man on the bass and first vocal, a bleach-blond man on the lead vocal, a black haired man on the lead guitar and a tanned man with blue-dyed hair on the stunt guitar and second vocal. They had started playing 'The Kids Aren't Alright' by 'The Offspring'.
When we were young the future was so bright
The old neighbourhood was so alive
And every kid on the whole damn street
Was gonna make it big and not be beat
Now the neighbourhood's cracked and torn
The kids are grown. . .
Emma noticed something odd about the man on the stunt guitar. He didn't quite seem to fit in. It could have just been his hair, but there was something in his manner, like he saw himself higher than everyone else. She was going to say something, but when she turned around, she saw that Shalimar was already staring at him.
. . .Jamie had a chance, well she really did. . .
Shalimar frowned as, to her, everything slowed as she took the scene in. In an instant, everything was clear. It was the guitarist who was masking himself from her. But why, and how.
The guitarist did a high solo that hurt Shalimar's ears, her sensitive hearing picking up the squealing that he was also causing. Purposely. She saw him look up briefly and smile as he glanced at her wincing slightly.
. . .Fragile lives, Shattered dreams.
The guitarist put his guitar on its stand and walked over to the bar, where a brunette walked over to him and started flirting with him.
"You okay Shal?" Emma seemed concerned.
"Wh. . .what? Yeah. My ears hurt a little but that's all." She continued to look at the guitarist. There was just something about him. He and the woman walked out of the club together. Shalimar shrugged and went back to her drink. She finished and went to the bathroom, telling Emma to go get the car so they could go home.
Emma got to the door and the brunette who walked out with the guitarist came running back in, bumping into Emma.
"Sorry," she said. "Forgot my bag." She headed to the restrooms.
Emma walked down the street until she stopped at an alley. A pair of legs stuck out from a group of garbage cans. They belonged to a body. The body of the brunette who had left the club with the guitarist. The brunette she had. . .just. . .met. . .back. . .? Shit! Shalimar!
Shalimar looked at herself in the mirror, flashing her eyes between their normal and feral state.
"Human. Mutant. Human. Mutant." She stopped when a brunette walked in. She stood at the sink next to Shalimar, looking in the mirror. Shalimar sighed.
"What's your boggle?" the woman said.
Shalimar smiled. "What's a 'boggle'?" she asked back.
"I use stupid words quite a bit," she answered. "It cheers people up. See?" She pointed at the mirror and Shalimar looked in it to see she was smiling. She glanced over to see that the woman had no reflection. How could she miss that? She heard stones tapping on the window. She looked out to see that it was Emma, throwing stones to get her attention. She opened the window.
"Shalimar! Run! There's a brunette in the club who's a fake!" Emma saw a flash of green, as if an eerie green light had been switched on and then off quickly.
Shalimar turned around to see the guitarist standing there. He punched her squarely in the chest. She flew out the window and landed heavily on the fire escape. A storm started and the raindrops brought Shalimar back from the edge of unconsciousness. She saw the guitarist. His eyes flashed like Shalimar's, only green, not yellow. And the area around his eyes glowed.
"Bloody good weather for it, ain't it?" He spoke with an English accent and sounded like a cockney. (A/N He sounds like Spike from Buffy but I can't pinpoint his accent and I'm from England)
Shalimar saw Emma had gone to get the car and had driven back to the back of the club. Shalimar launched away from the fire escape as the guitarist slid down the fire ladder, gracefully. Shalimar landed on the car and quickly got in. The guitarist walked over to the car and began to speed up into a run as they drove off.
"Who does he think he is, Robert Patrick?" Emma yelled (A/N Robert Patrick played the T1000 in Terminator 2 and Agent John Dogget in the X-files).
"I've got an idea," Shalimar said. "Let him get three feet from us, then brake.
Emma saw the plan. She did this. But, instead of knocking himself out, he jumped and ran over the car. He stopped a few feet ahead of the car.
"He wants to run over us?" Emma said. She revved up the engine and slammed on the accelerator, releasing the handbrake. "Then we'll run over him!"
Again, this didn't have the desired effect. Instead of running him over. He held out his hands and stopped the car dead, giving both girls whiplash. This didn't help the broken ribs that Shalimar knew she had. That was from the punch, not the landing.
He began to tip the car and the two girls dived out before he flipped it completely. He left the car upside down and walked over to Shalimar, grabbing her round the throat so she couldn't breath.
"A little message. From Carnage!" His accent had gone. His voice demonic. The rain just sliding off of him. He dropped Shalimar and left, blending into the shadows of the night. He could have killed her right then and there. But he just left.
"Sit down, would you?" Emma spoke over the noise. "You're making me nervous."
"What's to be nervous about?" Shalimar turned to face her teammate and her friend. "This is the first night off we've had in ages." She smelled the air. Some smells were rancid, others were alright. She breathed out and caught a sense, as if someone were concentrating on masking his or her scent. They knew when to release it so Shalimar couldn't catch the scent. But she had. Just.
Emma on the other hand, was busy eyeing some of the members of the band playing. They had a blond woman on drums and a brunette on keyboards, but it was the men that she was looking at. There was a bald black man on the bass and first vocal, a bleach-blond man on the lead vocal, a black haired man on the lead guitar and a tanned man with blue-dyed hair on the stunt guitar and second vocal. They had started playing 'The Kids Aren't Alright' by 'The Offspring'.
When we were young the future was so bright
The old neighbourhood was so alive
And every kid on the whole damn street
Was gonna make it big and not be beat
Now the neighbourhood's cracked and torn
The kids are grown. . .
Emma noticed something odd about the man on the stunt guitar. He didn't quite seem to fit in. It could have just been his hair, but there was something in his manner, like he saw himself higher than everyone else. She was going to say something, but when she turned around, she saw that Shalimar was already staring at him.
. . .Jamie had a chance, well she really did. . .
Shalimar frowned as, to her, everything slowed as she took the scene in. In an instant, everything was clear. It was the guitarist who was masking himself from her. But why, and how.
The guitarist did a high solo that hurt Shalimar's ears, her sensitive hearing picking up the squealing that he was also causing. Purposely. She saw him look up briefly and smile as he glanced at her wincing slightly.
. . .Fragile lives, Shattered dreams.
The guitarist put his guitar on its stand and walked over to the bar, where a brunette walked over to him and started flirting with him.
"You okay Shal?" Emma seemed concerned.
"Wh. . .what? Yeah. My ears hurt a little but that's all." She continued to look at the guitarist. There was just something about him. He and the woman walked out of the club together. Shalimar shrugged and went back to her drink. She finished and went to the bathroom, telling Emma to go get the car so they could go home.
Emma got to the door and the brunette who walked out with the guitarist came running back in, bumping into Emma.
"Sorry," she said. "Forgot my bag." She headed to the restrooms.
Emma walked down the street until she stopped at an alley. A pair of legs stuck out from a group of garbage cans. They belonged to a body. The body of the brunette who had left the club with the guitarist. The brunette she had. . .just. . .met. . .back. . .? Shit! Shalimar!
Shalimar looked at herself in the mirror, flashing her eyes between their normal and feral state.
"Human. Mutant. Human. Mutant." She stopped when a brunette walked in. She stood at the sink next to Shalimar, looking in the mirror. Shalimar sighed.
"What's your boggle?" the woman said.
Shalimar smiled. "What's a 'boggle'?" she asked back.
"I use stupid words quite a bit," she answered. "It cheers people up. See?" She pointed at the mirror and Shalimar looked in it to see she was smiling. She glanced over to see that the woman had no reflection. How could she miss that? She heard stones tapping on the window. She looked out to see that it was Emma, throwing stones to get her attention. She opened the window.
"Shalimar! Run! There's a brunette in the club who's a fake!" Emma saw a flash of green, as if an eerie green light had been switched on and then off quickly.
Shalimar turned around to see the guitarist standing there. He punched her squarely in the chest. She flew out the window and landed heavily on the fire escape. A storm started and the raindrops brought Shalimar back from the edge of unconsciousness. She saw the guitarist. His eyes flashed like Shalimar's, only green, not yellow. And the area around his eyes glowed.
"Bloody good weather for it, ain't it?" He spoke with an English accent and sounded like a cockney. (A/N He sounds like Spike from Buffy but I can't pinpoint his accent and I'm from England)
Shalimar saw Emma had gone to get the car and had driven back to the back of the club. Shalimar launched away from the fire escape as the guitarist slid down the fire ladder, gracefully. Shalimar landed on the car and quickly got in. The guitarist walked over to the car and began to speed up into a run as they drove off.
"Who does he think he is, Robert Patrick?" Emma yelled (A/N Robert Patrick played the T1000 in Terminator 2 and Agent John Dogget in the X-files).
"I've got an idea," Shalimar said. "Let him get three feet from us, then brake.
Emma saw the plan. She did this. But, instead of knocking himself out, he jumped and ran over the car. He stopped a few feet ahead of the car.
"He wants to run over us?" Emma said. She revved up the engine and slammed on the accelerator, releasing the handbrake. "Then we'll run over him!"
Again, this didn't have the desired effect. Instead of running him over. He held out his hands and stopped the car dead, giving both girls whiplash. This didn't help the broken ribs that Shalimar knew she had. That was from the punch, not the landing.
He began to tip the car and the two girls dived out before he flipped it completely. He left the car upside down and walked over to Shalimar, grabbing her round the throat so she couldn't breath.
"A little message. From Carnage!" His accent had gone. His voice demonic. The rain just sliding off of him. He dropped Shalimar and left, blending into the shadows of the night. He could have killed her right then and there. But he just left.