Game3
FATR: Hello, everybody! Are we ready to play? Good! As soon as I can afford and find a good lawyer, I'm going to try to take over Static Shock and make a fifth season, maybe a toy line. However, as that won't happen any time during this millennium, I don't own a damn thing, except Tess. I'd love to own Ultimate Otto. I'd keep him on a pretty, pretty chain with a pretty leather collar if I did, but I don't, so all I can do is dream. The game they play comes from Bash... Which leads me to the language warning. The language in this chapter is pretty intense, man, mainly because two certain characters are so mature (that's sarcasm, of course). If I ever have to move it to R, though, I'll warn you a chapter before hand. More flowery descriptions and epic comparisons, because no one flamed them. I have another planned for the next chip chip, but that's beside the point. Curtain up on chip chip 3! The scene? A city street...
X)O(X
The street lamps flicked on two at a time, in opposite pairs, puddles of light traveling up the empty sidewalks. Buildings towered over the street, staring with blank, dark eyes at the moonlit world. The stars played hide and seek among the think layers of clouds, twinkling in temporary triumph over the sun. Dark had won once again. The battle would be repeated sooner than it would have liked, but that was for another time. For now, it contended itself to spread icy fingers across the sky, across the stars, across the moon's very face. It caressed both of her cheeks with a lover's gentle touch. She glowed her ecstacy as the vaporous gray sheets were pulled over them. In no time, all the natural light had been pulled from the world. All that remained were the dirty yellows, demanding greens, and eye-aching reds. There was a pregnant stillness. The red stoplight glared assertively into the night, forcing it to wait. That was its job; forcing things to wait. It finally dropped control to its just as assertive counterpart, green. On cue, the sky burst open and rain leaped forth, chattering with excitement.
Ferret scowled and cursed his luck. He was sitting on the grounded with his back against a wall and his knees up. Between his legs was the knapsack and an open box of chocolate Teddy Grams. He had one hand in the box when the rain started. The Bang Baby stuffed one last fistful in his mouth before sealing the box and shoving it back in the bag. His stomach was pleasantly full for once, not that there was much space to fill anymore. However, fear had dug its claws into his stomach not long ago and the deeper the shadows became, the tighter fear squeezed. Though he'd never seen them, Ferret had heard rumors of nocturnal Bang Babies with glowing eyes and big teeth. Some of them, it was said, even feasted upon the flesh of other Bang Babies from time to time, just for fun. They lived in sewers and subway tunnels during the day, but at night they slithered out, or crawled, or flew... Ferret gulped, wobbled to his feet, and shouldered the backpack. It was dangerous enough being on his own, without Kangor or Hyde, but now it was night time as well. He knew he'd be an easy target for any of the more sadistic Bang Babies. The same street rules had applied before The Bang. The weak ones got picked off if they didn't have a crew for protection.
He tried to think, wishing Kangor was there to do it for him. First he needed to find shelter from the pelting rain. The last thing he needed with his powers was a cold... Thinking of the quantities of tissue he'd probably have to rip off in that scenario boosted his spirits and made him smile a little despite himself. There weren't any such things as nightmare, vampire Bang Babies. It was just a tale someone, more than likely that control freak, Ebon, had spread to keep meta-humans from going off on solo careers. So... I'll just go find a nice, dry place to sleep, and in the morning I'll feel a lot better. Heh, maybe I can even bust out Kangor and Hyde... somehow...
X)O(X
Two hours after she had shown up, her dirty clothes were in the wash and Tess was curled up on one end of Frieda's couch in borrowed, baby-blue penguin pajamas. Tess rested on the arm of the couch with her left arm curled under her head. Her raven hair formed a waterfall of night that brushed the floor. Her eyes were closed again, but she wasn't asleep. The voices were plaguing her again.
The silverware clattered in the drawers as Frieda jerked it open. Her pale, graceful fingers selected a small spoon (she remembered Tess disliked large spoons) and slid it under the fruit in the bowl so it wouldn't fall out. The microwave beeped. Frieda, bowl in one hand, closed the drawer with her with her hip and answered the microwave's call. There was an entire vortex of questions swirling around in Frieda's mind, chief among them were: Where had Tess been? And why did she look even more messed up than she had before she left? Chai tea in one hand and bowl of fruit and honey milk in the other, she joined Tess on the couch. Frieda couldn't help but stare at the body art on her friend's back. What had Tess called it? Gilding? The silver design, embedded in her very flesh, began between her shoulders and disappeared under the tank top. Tess had once assured her that the tissue and cells immediately in contact with the metal were thoroughly dead and it didn't hurt a bit, but Frieda was disinclined to believe she was telling the whole truth.
Tess stirred when she felt the cushions sink as Frieda joined her but didn't open her eyes. She could feel the hazel eyes on her back and smiled to herself. "What?" She croaked, knowing all too well what. Frieda helped her into a sitting position and passed her the bowl of fruit: black berries, strawberries, bananas, and kiwis. Tess grabbed it as swiftly as she could manage without being rude and began scarfing it down. The cold milk felt good on her throat and the natural sugars danced on her taste buds.
"Where did you get that?" Frieda asked, in reference to the gilding.
The bowl of fruit was gone almost before Frieda finished phrasing her question. "You always ask and I never answer."
"Yeah," Frieda shrugged, smiling, "but I keep hoping one of these days you will. If you throw a ball in the air enough times..."
"It's bound to stay up there eventually," Tess finished with a return smile.
The smile appeared forced, strangely out of place. It gave the impression that wherever Tess had been, it hadn't been nearly as exciting as she had expected. Something about that sent a pang through Frieda's heart. Tess had left in search of help, and had been so thrilled when... "You want anything else?"
The bowl clinked onto the coffee table, the spoon clattering inside it. Tess knew what Frieda really wanted to ask. However, both of the girls were afraid to broach the subject. Tess would have been perfectly content to interview Frieda about highschool and the people she knew there, maybe ruminate on the good-ol'-days, but there was an elephant in the room that had to be addressed. It was either now or later. One thing Tess had learned about pain was that it was easier to take it at full intensity for the shortest amount of time possible, like ripping off a band-aid or piercing something. But she was so embarrassed by her behavior. She didn't want to tell anyone, even her best friend, about the curse she bore. Summoning all of her courage, with the help of a sip from the mug of chai tea... It was the penguin mug, that Tess had bought Frieda for her birthday... 13th, wasn't it... Focus, Tess. Come on! "I know what you really want to ask," Tess whispered.
Frieda bit her lip and looked away. "I'm under the impression you don't want to discuss it."
"I don't," Tess admitted. "But, in the immortal words of George Carlin," she added with a cheshire cat grin, "someone has to mention the turd in the punch bowl."
Frieda laughed despite herself, "Yeah, George Carlin..." She resettled on the couch and tucked her knees under her chin. "So... What happened? You seemed so enthusiastic when you left."
Tess nodded and spoke in a hollow voice. "I was... I mean, I actually thought they could help me, and maybe they could have, but... so I ran away... I mean, they said they would, help me, but... they kind of did help me but not... in a way... they..." Tess' expression hardened with frustration. "Sorry."
"It's okay, let's start from the beginning. Who was it?" Even though whoever it was had promised to fix her, Tess still seemed just as disorganized and distracted as ever, despite the sharp, focused appearance of her eyes.
Tess nodded and answered in the same disconnected, objective voice. "Norman Osborn. He's rich, incredibly so, because he owns Oscorp. He was working on this Oz stuff..." Her eyes flashed angrily. "Damn Osborn. I hope he's suffering deep in the Labyrinth as we speak..." She returned to the objective tone and picked up where she left off before this little aside. "...with this, like, super genius, Dr. Otto Octavius. He had his faults too, Octavius I mean, among them this extreme superiority complex, but that's beside the point." She stopped and waited for Frieda's next question.
"Where did this happen?"
"New York City... not really in the city part, but you know..." Her gray eyes went to the ceiling as she thought. She put one hand out palm up and made a circle gesture over it with the fingers on her other hand. "Sort of in the... outskirt thingies, I'll call them suburbs, around the city."
She gave Frieda the patient look again. "So, what happened? Why'd you run away?"
Tess put her head in hands and closed her eyes. Her voice was muffled by her palms but the weariness remained painfully obvious. "Aw, fuck, it was nothing like I thought it would be... I tried twice, finally escaped... finally made it back... I won't bother you with the gory details."
The auburn-haired teen smirked. "Aw, come on, I can take it." Her friend's head snapped up, eyes full of urgency and desperation. It was almost frightening, and probably would have been to someone who didn't know Tess.
"No. No, you can't, no, please don't ask... Please don't ask me that..."
Frieda held up her hands and leaned back a little. "Okay, okay, I promise." Tess nodded slowly and stared straight ahead, perfectly tranquil once more. When Tess turned her head away, Frieda turned sideways on the couch and crossed her legs. Her pink, glittery nailed fingers laced together in her lap and she slouched forward. Tess gazed through the TV at some unknown point deep in its gray-brown depths.
She watched the figures and forms Frieda couldn't see flitting across the screen in chaotic patterns. As she watched, one stopped long enough to press what passed for its hands against the glass and cock its head at her. A long black tongue lolled out of its mouth and its yellow eyes glimmered before it darted away in a blur to rejoined the surging masses. Tess sighed and set her gaze back on her friend. "Maybe Octavuis really did want to help me overcome all this..." Tess made a spiraling, all encompassing gesture with her hand, "shit. I'll never know now, so it's a cow's opinion, but he was... I knew he couldn't resist... I mean, I was more of a lab rat, a biological oddity, than anything else. You know?" When the other girl nodded, Tess continued. "So that sucked, and Osborn only wanted my... con... atten... I'll call it concentration... fixed so he could use my powers for... fuck, I don't know what. Something. I didn't want to find out. Winter, last year, I ran away, and here I am," she finished with another catlike grin.
Hazel eyes widened as Frieda stared. "All on your own?"
Tess leaned forward and reclaimed the tea with an unsteady hand. The liquid sloshed in the cup and almost splattered onto the floor. The dark-haired teen balanced it with her other hand and brought it to her lips. It was only lukewarm now, but that didn't bother her. "Yep," she answered matter-of-factly. "For the most part, details are a little sketchy, though, 'cause I didn't pay a whole lot of mind to the whole thing... I'll tell you about it later. So..." Tess offered Frieda a sheepish smile. "Could I have a... a peanut butter and onion sandwich? I haven't had one in ages, and I'm still starving..."
"Ew..." Frieda laughed. "You haven't changed at all! Next you'll be wanting Oreos and ketchup..."
Tess' eyes widened and flashed with excitement. "You have Oreos and ketchup?"
"I'm sorry I mentioned it," but Frieda's voice was saturated with amusement. She really had missed Tess. Tess made everything so much more interesting. Granted the girl was just a little unstable, but that eccentricity was part of what made her so entertaining. Once Frieda had broken through the stammering, disjointed speech barrier, her and Tess had been just about inseparable. They had even dyed their hair together once. Maybe they could do that again some time, along with all the other things they had wanted to do before Tess suddenly up and disappeared.
X)O(X
The pounding rain echoed through the pitch. A slumbering figure twitched and rolled over, hugging his knees to his chest with a shiver. Nightmarish creatures chased him down the corridors of his mind, gnashing razor teeth and glaring with yellow eyes. Ferret thrashed in his sleep again, groaning. He was backed into a corner, unable to run anymore. Heavy, clawed paws thudded and clicked through the rubble as the salivating beast stalked in for the kill. Ferret crouched down and crossed his arms in front of him. He couldn't see it, but he could hear it. Its rasping breath, its guttural snarl, the clatter of a beer can skittering across the floor... Ferret jerked awake in the dark and sat up straight. Had that been his imagination? Some lingering phantom from his subconscious? He sat still as a prairie dog, snuffling the hair. That was his primary defense against trouble: sniff it out while it was still miles away and hightail it in the other direction. Damn, he hated having to be such a coward. He smelled mildew and old piss, but other than that... Wait, I definitely heard something that time. He could also smell something like smoke, now. It was only faint wisps, probably days old. There was a lot of drug abuse going on, and...
"...t this!" Pause. "Anal Wrangler!"
Mirthful laughter bubbled through the gloom from one of tunnels that honey combed the bowels of the city. Ferret was sure he could smell smoke now. Aw, man... flitted across his mind as he pressed against the wall. Maybe they would pass him by, miss him in the dark.
"No, no, no..." Another voice choked out between guffaws. "Anal Discovery."
More giddy chitters followed by, "Wait, wait, this is a great one: Anal Samurai."
That last comment proceeded the most explosive outburst of laughter yet. The rodent Bang Baby could now see violet light, molded into a arch by the curve of the ceiling, moving down the crumbling tunnel. Ferret backed up slowly, feeling his way along the wall for a side passage. There! He turned to run down it and stepped on an old glass bottle. It rolled forward, his foot kicked out from under him, and he thudded onto his back with a grunt. The laughter stopped dead and so did the light. Ferret laid on his back, trying decide if he should retrieve his breath or hold it.
"What was that?"
"Dunno."
He heard sloshing footsteps approaching his tunnel. His eyes grew large as the nightmare flashed through his head once more but he remained still and silent. Maybe they wouldn't look down this passage, maybe... If he closed his eyes they wouldn't see him, or...
"Well, well, well, looks like we've got us a rat problem." The sadistic voice belonged to a carmine haired youth in a flame colored shirt (pulled tight over his muscular physique). This agent of Aries stood with his feet apart and his fists planted confidently on his hips. There was white hot fire in his eyes and an ever-present scowl tugged down the corners of his mouth. His temper was both quicker and hotter than the destructive element he commanded. This often incinerated any limited capacity he may have had for logic or reason in the blink of an eye, making him one of the last meta-humans one would want to encounter in an underground tunnel.
The youth accompanying him wore an entirely different expression: a manic, ear to ear grin. His indigo goatee and matching spiked hair left one with the impression of a satyr. This earthly embodiment of Dionysus possessed a nearly immortal air of levity and a psychotic zest for life. However, the Greek god represented both the positive and the negative aspects of wine. There was the fun loving, playful side that lived for the sole purpose of a good time and went with celebratory drinking. There was also the violent and insane frenzy that went with drunkenness. While the light-wielding Shiv meant well more often than not, there was an edge lunacy and instability that made him almost as dangerous as Hotstreak. Almost more dangerous, for one could predict Hotstreak's outbursts and work to avoid them. Shiv was little more than a six-shooter with one loaded chamber. He held the purple lantern over the spreadeagle Ferret to get a better look.
"I'm a ferret," Ferret grumbled as he stumbled into what passed, for him, as an upright position. They knew each other in passing. They probably best remembered him as the one who was too cowardly to join up with Joker. At any rate, the look in Hotstreak's eyes was hardly hospitable. Shiv's eyes also glittered in an unnerving way.
"Yeah," Shiv giggled, "a ferret." He pulled his top lip up to expose his front teeth and made mocking, squirrelesque click/squeak sounds.
"Same difference," Hotstreak responded with a sneer. "They're both scraggly rodents." He shoved Ferret's tattooed arm with a searing hand and the smaller meta-human stumbled back a step or two.
A red, almost distinctly hand shaped burn marred his shoulder. Ferret resisted the cry of pain, knowing it would only encourage them. He also resisted the urge to clutch his arm. "Aw, c-come on you guys..."
"'C-come on y-y-you guys...'" Hotstreak teased cruelly before grabbing the straps of the stained undershirt in both hands. "What's the matter? Little weasel doesn't want to play?"
Ferret could almost smell Hotstreak's dementia. In fact, he could smell it in the nearly invisible purple smoke curling from the other's back and lungs. Hotstreak's breath smelled sour, too, like onions and ketchup. Ferret clawed the hands away and took more steps back. "Ferret," he corrected, trying to maintain some degree of control over the situation. It wasn't working. His eyes were so focused on the injured and enraged Hotstreak that he didn't notice the other threat. Before he knew it, Shiv had circled behind him to cut off his escape.
"Uh, uh, uh," Shiv scolded, wagging a finger. "It's not nice to pop into someone else's house uninvited then leave without so much as a howdy do or a hidey ho." He dropped his arms to his sides with his fists sticking out slightly to the right and the left. A luminous, violet scimitar shot out of each hand, blocking Ferret's escape. Shiv, empowered by the near imperceptible gulp his toy took, lifted his arms until the tips of the blades touched the wall and took a few steps forward. The blades shrieked along the bricks, throwing off purple sparks.
"Uh... howdy... do?" Ferret managed to squeak. This time he backed into Hotstreak and jumped around with a yelp.
"Yeah, you really shouldn't be down here." The red-head loomed maliciously. Light from Shivs's weapons cast eerie shadows across his face. In the dark, the infernal red blaze in his pupils was blatantly obvious. "Really shouldn't be down here."
"And why n-not?" Ferret knew he was losing control of the situation rapidly. Then again, did he ever have control of the situation? Did he ever have control of any situation since becoming a Bang Baby? I wish Kangor were here... "I've got as much a right to..." He trailed off. Those had clearly been the wrong words.
"Do you have any idea where you are?" The pyro hissed and narrowed his eyes. One would have thought it would be impossible to intensify his previous glare, but he managed it all the same. "You got a lotta nerve showing your piece of shit face around here, especially without big-foot and leather face."
"Yeah," Shiv piped up merrily. "You're in Ebon's territory now. Where is thunder-foot, anyway?" The swords winked out as his eyes landed on the stolen knapsack. He curiously delved into it and his smiled widened, if that were at all possible. "Ooh, Teddy Grams..."
"I... I... I..." Ferret stammered. Crap. He should've considered that before...
"You, you, you," Hotstreak mocked and grabbed Ferret by the scruff of the neck so the rat couldn't bite him. Though Ferret was little more than skin and bones, Hotstreak's fingers sunk into the pressure point at the nape of his prey's neck. This elicited the yelp of pain the red-head had been seeking. Even with his pyrokinetic abilities, there were times he preferred to fall back on brute muscle. "What?" He shook the smaller figure, for the first time noticing the angry red welts on his face.
"...didn't know," Ferret whimpered. "Kangor... He usually does the thinking..."
Hotstreak threw Ferret against the wall and cracked his knuckles. Sparks flew off of them and flames shot up. "You know what we gotta do, now..."
"C-come on..." Ferret pleaded from his hunched position on the ground. "I'll... I'll go... you'll never see me again, I swear!" Knives reappeared in place of Shiv's hands as he joined Hotstreak. "You can keep the Teddy Grams!" Ferret randomly threw out in a strange moment of desperate delirium. Hell, though, it was just random and off the wall enough to appeal to Shiv. There was no use appealing to Hotstreak. That was crystal clear.
One of Shiv's knives flickered away and he stroked his beard, actually seeming to consider it. Then he shook his head, causing his earrings to swing. "Nah. I'd get 'em either way, and Ebon told us," here his hand reverted to knife form, "to eliminate intruders on sight."
There were few options now that didn't involve some form of flight. All of them were most attractive at the moment. Ferret knew for a fact he was faster than Hotstreak. Shiv, however, was an entirely new puzzle. He was amazingly nimble, even without his powers. Then again, Shiv was also the least likely to inflict bodily harm. He had, after all, been on the verge of disregarding Ebon's orders for a few assorted boxes of Teddy Grams. The buck-toothed meta-human scrambled up the wall, pushed off with his sneakered feet, and landed behind the other two meta-humans. Before they even turned around, he was off like a shot, running more or less like a human.
"What the... after him!" Hotstreak's body became engulfed in flames and he lifted off the ground. Propelled by the flames in his hands, he rocketed down the tunnel after Ferret with Shiv close behind.
Shit, I didn't know he could do that! Ferret dropped to run on all fours, panting, sweating, and exhausted. He pulled ahead... fell back... pulled ahead... Just as he dared to entertain the theory that he might have escaped, three somethings whizzed under his arm and tacked his shirt to the wall. Shiv flipped over his head and stuck the landing with the grace of an acrobat. Each movement flowing into the next, Shiv leaned back, cocked his arm, and hurled three more ninja stars. Ferret found his shirt tacked to the wall on the other side as well.
"I got it! I got it!" Shiv beamed proudly.
Hotstreak alighted, the flames shrinking and collecting into a ball in his right hand. He tossed in lazily up and down. "Trapped like a rat..."
"What now?"
"Target practice?"
"No!" Ferret squealed and crossed his arms over his eyes. Heck, if he was going to be burned, he wasn't about to be blind as well.
The fireball swelled to miniature sun status. It was an astounding mass of swirling platinum, gold, and ruby crackling with a voice and life all its own. This sphere was smokeless and left a ghost trail behind it when its creator tossed it up and caught it again. "Batter up," Hotstreak grinned.
Shiv pulled out the purple bat, tapped the bottoms of his shoes with it, and experimented with a few swings before assuming the position. "Let's see the wind up..."
"You guys!" Ferret pleaded, almost allowing himself to think they might be joking. "Kangor and Hyde just got thrown into lock down! I'm on my own, here! Can't you..."
"Darwin's laaaawww," Shiv chuckled in a singsong voice without taking his eye off the ball. The pyro pitched, the light-wielder swung, and there was a blinding flash when the ball and the bat connected. In fact, the miniature sun burst into several stars which spattered and scorched the wall all around Ferret. However, with the luck that only fools and super-heros possess (or perhaps by some scheming and careful aim on Shiv's part), Ferret remained essentially unharmed.
Ferret's shell shocked gasp was accompanied by gleeful laughter from the two more unbalanced Bang Babies. The wind from the miniature bombs had actually rustled his hair, and the heat had been almost unbearable. This was far more than serious. Ferret wrestled his fear, desperate to reassert logical thought before it was too late. His stomach was in knots of terror but he couldn't think of that now. The wall around him was scorched and smoking, but he couldn't think of that now. Ebon couldn't possibly be this callous. He wouldn't just murder another meta-human for walking into his territory, would he? Meta-humans had to stick together... "Look, I've got no one! Let me... let me join!"
Hotstreak, who'd been molding another miniature sun, paused and stared contemplatively into its roaring depths. Shadow demons danced across the lines of his scowling face, giving him a hellish appearance. After a long, tense silence he burst out laughing. "You've got to be fucking with me. Listen, buddy, that ain't my area-"
"But... but you have to... let me plead my case to Ebon... right?" Ferret tried to sound assertive but it came out more hopeful than anything else.
"I don't have to do anything," Hotstreak warned.
Shiv, however, moved closer to inspect the specimen. He stuck the bat under his chin and lifted his head for a better look. After some intense scrutinizing he shrugged and the bat fizzled away. "You've gotta admit, though..." He turned to Hotstreak. "It isn't our place to decide who joins and who doesn't."
Hotstreak grudgingly realized the clown had a point. What Ebon doesn't know won't hurt anyone but Ferret, briefly flitted across his mind. However, Ebon had eyes in the shadows. Who knew when he was watching and when he wasn't? The pyrokinetic growled in frustration. He threw the ball down and kicked the wall but didn't speak out against the idea. "Aw, fuck, get him down and bring him along..."
Shiv beamed and the ninja stars disintegrated. Ferret gave him a timid, sideways glance as he rubbed the back of one hand nervously. With hunched shoulders and dragging feet, he trailed off after Hotstreak, who lit the way with a half raised right hand. Shiv brought up the rear, to make sure the intruder wouldn't run off. A close observer would have seen a light bulb pop on over his head to accompany the mischievous glint in his eyes. He stealthy put his hands together and drew them apart. Link by link, a chain appeared between them. Shiv flicked it at his target with perfected accuracy.
"Hey!" The indignant Ferret's hands flew to the collar now around his neck in a futile attempt to pry it off. A flick of Shiv's wrist caused the chain to bite into his back like a whip. He arched his back away, winced, and opened his mouth in a soundless squawk. Bang. Loaded chamber. Hunching over even further, he shot Shiv a clubbed baby seal look. The light-wielder didn't seem to notice.
"Hey, where were we, anyway?" Shiv asked the red-head.
Hotstreak frowned and his eyes drifted upwards. "Uh... Anal Samurai," he finally answered with a grin.
Shiv cackled until tears glittered in the corners of his eyes. "What about this, what about this... Anal Gremlin!"
"Anal Pulsar," Hotstreak countered, barely able to keep his face straight.
Ferret glanced from one comedy enraptured meta-human to the other. "What is it you're doing, exactly?"
Every shred of glee melted from Hotstreak's countenance in less than a second and his eyes flashed. However, Shiv seemed positively enthused by the prospect of spreading this childish game as far and wide as possible. Between bursts of exuberant laughter he choked, "You take the names," snicker, "of cars, right?" Snerk. "Then you," giggle, "add the word 'anal' to the beginning of them!" He burst into more laughter. "Like... Anal Jamboree!"
Hotstreak lowered his head and slapped his left hand to his forehead. His face was screwed up with repressed laughter. "Aw, man..."
Ferret thought he might see an opening to establish himself as one of the group. It was worth a shot, at any rate. The level of maturity surrounding this game was essentially nil, but he'd stooped lower for the sake of survival. "What about..." A dozen car commercials flashed through his head. "Anal Bug?" Shiv flashed the consummate idiot grin but, as usual, Hotstreak seemed bent on holding Ferret in even lower regard then he might a cockroach smeared on his sneaker.
"We got that one already," he growled without even bothering to visually acknowledge the rodent between him and Shiv.
Ferret gave up and turned inside himself. It was probably wiser to save his strength for negotiating with Ebon, anyway.
X)O(X
FATR: This was a long one. Okay... Thanks for the reviews Glamek Stalker, Jill, Gear's Girl, and red turtle. Stick with me a little longer, I have some comments to address to you.
Glamek Stalker: I read some of your stories, even though I don't think I reviewed. I read the one with Ferret and Static... "Small Talk" I believe it was called. I particularly loved "Nothing." Anyone into tragic, angsty fics? Go look that one up. At any rate, I looked over the list of characters in your profile, and rather than email you again, I'll just ask here. I'd like to use Button. Is that cool? I also wanted to ask, as pertaining to "Nothing": Naming Ferret Luke was a personal touch on your part, right? No one knows his real name? If that is the case, I'd like your permission to use that name, if the issue arises, and would like to know if you came up with a last name too. Heck, if not, I can always make one up.
Jill: Heh, I love Hottie Hotstreak, too. Aren't we just the same? I think you'll like... nah, I won't give away any of my plot bunnies yet. You'll just have to keep reading /mischievous wink/.
Gear's Girl/Devious laugh/ If only you knew...
red turtle: Always glad to satisfy two readers with the same element. I'm glad you like the descriptive language, too, because it looks like there's more on the way. I'm going to try my hardest, at least, to keep it up.
Penguin Peace until next chip chip!