Thanks to these reviewers:
Who I would first and foremost want to apologize to. It is absolutely terrible that I didn't finish and update this sooner and I apologize for that. I'm sorry. And this isn't the end of Tricks of Fate, have no fear.
XinnLajgin – Hope you're still not drinking coffee and reading. It has been a long time.
njrd – yay! You picked out a quote, that makes me feel special. Yes, we almost are. Almost. You'll understand when you read through this chapter.
gbmarie – don't be worried!
IT – Do you think I could hurt Marius and feel alright about it?
Arrna – Sometimes short reviews like that are the best.
TrunksgirlBlaze27 – J/R? Me? Diehard fan.
TotallyRiddickObsessed – A sequel? My god, I'm just going to start the sequel to KF, maybe after that. No, Laiker and Rex are with Riddick, it was definitely a Bellger guy. You'll find out who, too.
lamyka – I'm glad my Kyra/Jack appeals to you, it seems for most readers. She just is a strong person, I don't think I could write her otherwise.
vinbaby19 – Your review. My god it makes me grin every time I read it.
NightmareWeaver – I can't get the link! Noooo! I want it! Email it to me or something. I liked your little dialogue, very cute. Don't worry, this chapter starts out with Marius.
Tinca – Sorry, action…erm, yeah, you get plenty of action in this chapter. Same here. This post took forever and a day.
angeloneous -"Excellent story – great characters", let me tell you, that was an excellent review to read.
KristinMarie – Sorry! Hopefully the length makes up for it.
Kookie315 – Thanks for the review, hope you like 16.
Chapter XVI
Starting Up The Real Hunt
Marius tried to make as little noise as possible when he woke up, but that was very difficult, seeing how he was in a black bag and being hung from the ceiling. His body had slumped into a very uncomfortable position and he so badly wanted to crack the kinks out of his body, but he heard people talking. Marius tried his best to focus, but he already had trouble breathing and he wondered if a few of his ribs were cracked or just badly bruised. The inky blackness of the bag didn't help, either; it was like trying to find a raven in the middle of the night that was flying overhead. So Marius closed his eyes and realized how freezing he actually was, he was going to catch a fever, he was sure. But the voices kept him alert and he listened, pressing the side of his head to the bag.
"Tha' right bitch'll be lookin' fer 'er fuckin' boy toy, right?" A thickly accented voice droned out, sounding like an angry bear. Marius repressed a shiver, disgusted of how they viewed his relationship with Jack. Oh, if only he could show them.
"Oh, she will," Marius heard the sharp intake of breath that sounded lustful, "if I could get her in bed with my beloved blades…oh the fun we could have. I am eager to see that lean body again; aren't you?"
The other man grunted. Marius now realized there were only two men in the room, which seemed large because of the echo of their voices.
"Although, I suppose, if she doesn't arrive soon enough, we could always put the boy in her place." The second voice said, still sounding very turned on and Marius was suddenly very worried. God, he wished Jack would show up soon! This train of thought was broken off by a door opening and someone walking in, their silky smooth voice hissing through the air.
"And where would that place be?" Marius was unnerved by this voice. It had this silken quality that couldn't be resisted; it was too tempting to anyone.
"He is quite the pretty boy, don't you think? That long hair would fan out beautifully on a bed and undoubtedly his young body is quite sculpted." The lustful one said, his voice almost shuddering at the thought. Marius thought he was going to be sick, where was Jack!
"Tha's roight disgustin', ye fuckin' nasty bastard. 'e ain't no princess, if yer goin' to fuck a lad like tha', ye do it in a group 'n bruise 'im up." The first one said, his deep voice rising in humor as he finished his sentence.
"You know, there isn't a boss to tell us we can't have fun with our prisoner. We're rogues now." The one who had mentioned the knives before said.
"He speaks the truth. Besides, it must be terribly chilly in that bag, hanging from the ceiling." The third one said and Marius could hear him approaching the bag. He tried not to cry as he felt the bag being lowered, the chain links clinking loudly against the steel bar that they had been secured around. He was gently let to the ground and waited, playing as if he were still asleep. Marius wished he had a weapon when he heard the man step over him, feeling a foot on each side of his body and then he squatted, so he was basically sitting on Marius, straddling him. He could tell as the man leaned forward, reaching for the zipper and pulling it down. As he heard the now unbearably loud 'vrip' of the zipper, Marius wanted to sob.
"Alright, we're closing in on their safe houses; the kid has to be in one of them. You, take a group of ten and take that house. You, take a group of six and take that one, Laiker, Rex and you other four, we're taking the large one. Let's go. Keep your radios on." Riddick ordered, his voice barely heard over the sharp wind. Jack stood next to him, her eyes trained on the large ware-house looking building that they were going to storm. They now spoke in hand gestures and Riddick moved his hand forward towards the house. Laiker and Rex were right behind Jack and Riddick as they jogged lightly through the snow, the four other hunters bringing up the back. As they neared the depressing looking building, they fell back into memory.
Riddick looked backed, semi-oblivious to Jack's plead of telling him to wait. Barely shrugging, he kept going; these power cells sure as hell weren't going to drag themselves to the emergency skiff. He kept going, listening to the wails and cries of the monsters that inhabited this hell planet. He never realized one was focusing its grey and silver hungry gaze on Jack, who wasn't close enough to anyone to be safe. Nor did he see Jack hold up her flashlight to the sky, seeing how she had heard that last starved wail was directed at her. The creature dove at her and she barely hid beneath a white rib of an unknown other creature that had died who knows how long ago.
He turned around suddenly, watching as the monster smashed its head repeatedly into the old bone, just waiting for it to crumble so it could eat Jack. But Jack didn't screech like Imam's boys had, she screamed, a scream that was determined fear. Riddick turned away, so what if she was braver then some kids, she wasn't his responsibility. He heard Carolyn trying to distract the hungry beast, but he knew it wasn't doing anything. Jack didn't deserve to be on this hell planet, that was for sure. He didn't know where that thought had come from, but it made him turn and take off his goggles.
Riddick ran at the monster, grabbing its arms and holding it there, his strength challenged by its struggling. He saw behind the monster how Jack ran for Carolyn, maybe slightly comforted at her presence, but she looked more afraid for him then for herself. It kept on reaching down, trying to take snaps at him, but he dodged its mouth. Finally it reared back, ready to smash down in one last attempt and Riddick took the opportunity to reach for his shiv and slice the unprotected, soft underbelly of the monster. He sliced at it again and again and finally it fell to the ground, dead. Riddick wasn't convinced and he had to admit, it had felt good to snap that beast's neck. As he stood, he didn't dare look at Jack, he knew what lay in her eyes. Admiration, gratefulness and hope. Three things that had never been connected to him and he never wanted to have that. He could never understand how anyone could possibly equate those qualities with him and he would never admit that the thought scared him, so he shrugged it off and fell back into his convict-self.
"Did not know who he was fucking with."
Jack stayed close to Riddick, careful to work with his movement, not against it. She was thrilled to be working alongside him, something she never thought she would have been able to have done when she was younger and lived with him. Glancing at him, she allowed herself to fall back into memory until he signaled the next move.
"Hey, Riddick." Jack greeted him from the couch as he walked in through the front door, carrying a package. It was small and Jack knew not to ask, so she just flashed him a smile as she craned her neck forward, her hands deftly twisting and pulling up her hair into a bun of sorts. She only rolled her eyes when he grunted in reply, used to it by now.
Standing, she walked over to him and waited for him to toss his jacket on the counter. He never hung it up and it bothered her for some reason, their small apartment never staying quite clean enough. Although it could never be clean enough, in Jack's view. Someone looking for them could knock on an apartment door down the hallway that said 'Shithole B15' and they would say to the person looking for them, "No, sorry, you must be looking for 'Crap Flat H19'." She grinned at this imaginary discourse in her head and didn't realize Riddick was watching her until she moved from behind the hung up coat.
"Something you got to say?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.
"No, something you need to say?" She countered, walking towards him. She stopped in front of him, looking up at his goggled eyes. "You know I keep the lights almost fucking off for a reason." Jack sarcastically commented, reaching up and taking off the goggles. She was surprised by his tired stare.
"Depends." He replied, closing his eyes briefly. Jack was secretly honored knowing that Riddick trusted her enough to actually outwardly feel and look exhausted. She thought he believed it was a weakness to show fatigue.
"You need some sleep." She said, concern blatantly obvious in her eyes.
"Hmm." He replied, surprising her. No smart comeback? He really must be worn out.
"I mean it, let's go," she gently wrapped her hands around one of his forearms, tugging on it to make him follow her. He did so, too tired to do anything else. They walked into their shared bedroom and Jack pulled on his arm, bringing him past her and she let go, shoving him in the direction of the bed. He nearly slipped off the bed as he tried to sit down on the edge of it, but he caught his balance. Riddick was barely able to take off his boots and was almost nodding off by the time he was done. He didn't resist Jack's arms slipping around his waist and pulling him back onto the bed, but he did smile at her exaggerated grunts.
"Jeez, Riddick, lighten up on whatever you're eating. You're just about dead weight." She joked, pulling back the sheets and waiting patiently as he maneuvered his legs in. As soon as he looked comfortable, she stood up on the bed and stepped over his form, stepping down from the mattress onto the floor with a thump. She knew he was tired so she just decided to leave him be when his hand caught her wrist. Turning around, she barely registered what was happening until she found herself beneath the sheets, her back pulled up against his front and his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. Smiling softly, she snuggled back into his warm body.
"Hmm…Jack?" his voice rang deeply through her.
"Yeah?" She didn't bother trying to turn around.
"How do you undo your hair? It looks more complicated than a triple-max security encryption." He asked, making her laugh lightly. Reaching a hand back, Riddick pulled back slightly to watch her elegant fingers tug at a rope of hair and soon it tumbled loose. He spread it out by himself, nuzzling it before he fell asleep. Jack had never been happier. To think she had wanted to ask him about his job he had had last night.
Marius bared his teeth in a snarl, but it came out muffled. The cloth bit in his mouth took care of that, as did the spiked cuffs around his wrists, making sure he didn't lash out. They were in the process of tying his ankles together and had him on the floor, his wrists locked behind his back, his body arched into an already uncomfortable position.
"Don't ye be movin' too much, lad." The accented one said, shadowing Marius with his massive form. "Then we can't be bruisin' ye up 'cause we'd kill ye!" He laughed deeply and the other two chuckled along.
"He is right, you realize," the one who had mentioned his knives said, his feet on either side of Marius' body. Leaning down, he took Marius' arm and pushed him to his back, making the spiked cuffs bite into his wrists and back. He didn't dare whimper. "Hm, you are precious." He purred, taking out a blade. Marius thought he was going to gut him when instead he sliced his shirt open from the bottom up. "Ah, and a sculpted young god you are." He commented, standing up.
"Of course he is. Discard the rest of the shirt, will you Hyret?" The third one asked, appearing in view. Marius noted with some confusion that he was very well-dressed, a blue silk shirt over black leather pants and polished boots. He must've seen Marius looking him over, because he addressed him directly. "Excuse my terrible manners, my name is Panther, that is Hyret and over there, that brute is Lukan. Hyret, be more careful! Don't slice the boy!"
"He'll be sliced by the time I'm through with him." He hissed, his sharp blade easily tearing the cloth of his shirt. Soon Marius was shirtless and he tried his best not to shiver.
"But I get first round." Panther said, his gaze resting on Marius' bare chest.
"Ye certainly didn't risk yer neck to ge' tha damn lad!" Lukan yelled, sounding annoyed.
"But I paid you!" Panther shot back and that took down Lukan's argument. But Hyret had other ideas.
"So? You aren't Bellger, you're just his whore who thought he could…I mean she could take over!" He shot back, making Panther clench his fists. Marius couldn't repress the tremors now, it was getting very cold.
"How dare you!" Panther yelled, sounding hysterical. "I was not his whore!"
"'is lovah, then." Lukan corrected.
"So you're still upset over his death! So what? Doesn't mean you get first dibs on this kid!" Hyret yelled back. Marius could barely concentrate but he did see tears in Panther's eyes and suddenly felt guilty. Jack had killed this man's lover. He knew Panther had wanted to use him, but he decided he would try to get Jack to go easy on him. He had lost not an enemy, but a life-long partner.
"If yer both so bitchin' 'bout it, why no' let 'im decide?" Lukan asked, wanting the shouting to stop. Hyret glanced sharply at him, but Panther's head was still downcast, his shoulders shaking slightly.
"Fine." Hyret snapped. Panther just nodded and leaned down and took off Marius' gag gently. "So, who do you want?" Hyret asked, his sinister voice creeping back again.
Marius opened his mouth to speak, but his throat was completely dry and his answer was silence. Yet he wasn't going to go down like this and repressing the tremors of an oncoming fever, rolled in the direction of Panther's feet. The man picked Marius up in his arms, cradling him to his silk-covered chest. No victory taunts were heard as Panther turned around and headed towards the door, toeing it open as he carried Marius through. His vision was starting to blur, but he could just take in a hallway and a few doors. Soon he entered one of them and the room was dimly lit, but very warm. He felt himself being gently laid down on a soft bed and mentally alarmed at the feeling of Panther's hand holding his hip up, but realized that the other was unlocking the sharp cuffs. He fell back as he heard the metal instrument clatter to the floor, barely able to pull out his hands from behind his back.
He fluttered in and out of consciousness and just had enough energy to open his mouth for the cup of cool water that Panther held for him, slowly tipping it backwards. Soon he was alone again, but in a few minutes the other man's body was on the bed again and he lay near Marius, but not directly next to him. Marius didn't care at this point what was supposed to happen, he rolled over to Panther's body and tried to absorb some of its warmth. A blanket was draped over them and just before Marius fell off to sleep, he looked up into Panther's eyes.
"My name's Marius."
Reports had come back that the other two checked safe houses were empty, leaving the one that Jack and Riddick were going to search through the target. Riddick ordered the other two groups to distantly circle the area, telling them to take down anyone who tried to pass through. Jack had shot him an angry glare at this order and after a moment of intense staring, Riddick ordered not to kill them, just tranquilize and hide. They still had a while to go, there were tests being done on the ship and they needed the results.
Ten samples of the surrounding ground had been brought back and they were being tested for any traces of explosives. The last thing they wanted was to walk out onto land mines. As they waited, they sharpened knives, checked guns and ammunition ten times over, took aim practice and spoke quietly to each other. Laiker was talking to Riddick and Jack was left to watch the other men in their group. Her eyes were drawn to Rex, who was gazing at their target. She walked over to him and tapped his elbow, making him look down at her.
"Some 'older sister' I am, huh?" She asked, standing next to him. "Never got to apologize about that stunt I pulled, sorry, Rex."
"It's fine." He replied, his gaze once again drawn to the building.
"What's there?" She asked, gesturing with the muzzle of her gun to the target. Rex looked down at her, obviously very confused. "I mean, you're staring at it as if something or someone you personally wanted is in there. What's there?" She was slightly surprised when Rex looked back, as if judging that everyone there was out of earshot.
"A few years ago, Riddick was still boss then, we docked here. He wanted to meet with Bellger about some half-and-half bounty. You see, there had been two men of the bounty, we had gotten one, they had gotten the other and the bounty wasn't even, so we came to compromise." Rex sighed and looked down at the ground, toeing some of the snow. "Riddick said we got one of the nights off, you know, to let loose. We had been chasing these guys for over two months; it had really worn us down. So lots of the guys went straight to the whorehouses. I…I've never been into that sort of thing and I asked Riddick if I could just wander, but stay near the area. He wasn't too keen on it at first; he liked to have his hunters be with at least another one, never alone. Hunters can always be hunted, he said. Still does sometimes."
"Hey! We get those test results back yet?" Laiker shouted at Rex, making him look up.
"Radio's silent as the grave." Rex yelled back, sounding annoyed at being interrupted. In those few seconds Jack had caught Riddick's silver glance and some knowledge flashed between them.
"Keep going." Jack said, turning her attention back to Rex.
"I wandered near this area, Bellger's territory. I was walking a backstreet when I thought I heard something, like slow movement…wasn't sure at the time. When I looked for it, I found a half-dead body beneath the snow, it was this young guy. I was in a bind, you realize."
"Yeah, you can't bring him back to the ship, he was in Bellger's territory, no way Riddick would let it slide." Jack said and Rex nodded.
"So I picked him up and walked until I found a relatively warm and livable room. Go figure it was the back of a church. I…knocked out the resident priest since he wasn't too happy about having two hunters using his rooms. Anyway, I warmed him up, woke him up and he could only tell me so much, he seemed really afraid of something."
"I'd bet you anything it was Bellger."
"I think so too. He said he had run away from Bellger, more like his bed. This guy, I mean, he was handsome, no doubt about that, kind of unique, like that kid we're here for."
"Marius."
"Right, Marius."
"What happened?" Jack asked, pushing him into telling her more.
"One thing led to another and it just seemed right. Needless to say, I had no mind to leave him with Bellger, he hated him. He definitely wasn't a hunter, that's for sure." Rex admitted, tensing slightly when Jack laid a hand on his arm.
"Victim of human trafficking?"
"Seems so. Now, well, now I wonder if he's still here. In that building right there. He didn't kidnap Marius, that's for sure, I would've recognized him." Rex sounded sure of himself.
"Riddick's not going to let this fly, Rex."
"I know he won't." His voice showed enough grief to make Jack want to cry. "Funny," his voice changed again and Jack looked up, "his name wasn't what he was."
"What was his name?"
"Panther."
Marius came to slowly, relieved that the shivers had stopped and he was under a warm blanket. He moved closer to the source of heat that was wrapped around him, like two arms around his waist and beneath him, a body. At this his blue eyes snapped open and indeed he was on a body, a man who had pulled Marius on top of him, had his arms wrapped around his waist and let him use his chest as a pillow. Memories came back quickly and Marius shut his eyes tightly, at least he had been allowed to sleep before he would be…used. His slight movements must've alerted the older man because the grip around his waist tightened. He lifted his head and watched the older man awaken, the long eyelashes fluttering and his breath quickening. Finally a pair of dark blue eyes looked down into Marius' lighter blue eyes and silence reigned for only a few seconds.
"I trust you slept well, Marius?" His voice sounded exactly like the silk Marius felt beneath him. He nodded in reply, not trusting his voice. He was unsure about how he felt, he didn't want to be this man's whore, not by any length, but he didn't want to be left alone.
Panther tried to move from beneath Marius but the younger man froze and seemed to feel afraid. He turned his head and watched the emotions play out in his eyes, from fear, uncertainty, resoluteness, hope and finally loneliness. He saw in those eyes a younger version of himself. Sitting up, he caused Marius to pull himself up and the blanket fall from his shoulders. Neither knew how Marius' hands had ended up on the older man's chest, but to avoid awkwardness, Panther took his hands and inspected the dried scratch marks of the spiked cuffs.
"Let me up to get a cloth and bandages to clean these." He requested softly and Marius blushed, realizing he had been holding the other man down, by straddling him nonetheless. Pulling his leg back, he let his hands fall limply to his lap as he watched Panther gracefully stand and walk into another room, presumably the bathroom. Marius sighed as he heard water running, the squeak of the faucet being turned and the small droplets of water being wrung from the cloth. He wanted to be back with Jack terribly, but he still felt guilt for what she had done. He forced himself to focus when he heard a cabinet being opened, things being moved around and the click of the cabinet door being shut. Looking up he saw the older man easily carrying a small bowl of water, a cloth, a small container and bandages. Marius moved to help him but was stopped by his quiet command.
"Stay." And he did. He watched Panther carefully set the bowl down on the bedside table, as well as the cloth, container and bandages. He too sat down at the top of the bed and motioned for Marius to come closer. He was hesitant at first, he wanted to trust this man but Jack's training kept his mind chained to reality. Biting his lip he finally decided to go with it, he hadn't been cruelly treated by him as of yet. He imagined that Hyret wouldn't have even let him sleep, much less tend to his wounds.
He sat in front of Panther who sat cross-legged, the bowl now placed like a small nest. He dipped the cloth into the water and wrung it out, the small droplets being the only noise except for the breathing of the two. Marius held out his wrists and Panther set to work cleaning them, his gentle touch and the warm water surprising Marius. Whenever he got hurt Jack would take care of him, but she didn't ever waste time on being gentle. A light kiss to the head had taken care of that every time, but now Marius couldn't even begin to oppose this treatment.
The cuts had spread farther then Marius realized, going half way up his forearm and even the palms of his hands. The white bandages attested to that and he judged Panther's perfect work as the man in question was closing the salve container and standing to put back the medical supplies. When he returned Marius was still sitting on the bed and looked up at him, not pleading or demanding. Panther sat and Marius leaned forward and wrapped his arms around the man's waist and buried his head into the silk-covered shoulder. He wasn't sure how but in a few minutes the shirt had been taken off and they laid down again, falling into another deep sleep.
They were still waiting for the test results. Laiker had finally run out of things to talk to Riddick about and Jack almost wanted to shoot him in the foot for taking so long. She approached him, not needing to make her presence known as he turned to greet her.
"Something up, Jack?" His grumbling voice smoothed over her as she stood next to him.
"Could say that. Got a request, Riddick." She spoke softly, making him face her directly. Sensing the seriousness of her question, he took off his goggles as she perched her black sunglasses on her head.
"Which is…?"
"There is a possibility that a certain man will be in that safe house that is important to one of your hunters. Feel free to kill the rest, but leave this one be." Jack said, watching his silver eyes dart above her head and she turned to see he was staring down Rex, who was oblivious to his glare. Quickly removing a glove, she laid her hand on his face and with gentle pressure, forced him to look down at her.
"I'm not making exceptions. You weren't last night." He growled, feeling suddenly guilty when her hand curled and rested on his shoulder.
"That was last night. Riddick, please, don't kill this one man. That's all I ask." Jack swallowed; she didn't want to say that he would be killing a past lover of one of his best hunters if he didn't agree to this.
A radio crackled and Rex yelled over to them that it was clear; the tests came back negative for explosives. The team started to gear up and Riddick tried to pull away but Jack grabbed his belt through his coat and held him fast. Her fingers twisted in the fur of his coat, clawed in defense. His silver eyes met hers and he knew he wouldn't be able to deny what she wanted. He raised one of his gloved hands and disentangled her hand from his coat and uncurling her fingers with his thumb, turned his head and kissed the open palm. He felt her pulse racing with anxiety over this and he couldn't have her nervous before an attack.
"He'll go free." He whispered and dropped Jack's hand. Sighing in relief, she pulled her glove back on and turned to face the team while Riddick handed out instructions.
"Alright, Rex, you have the floor plans of this house?" He asked, and the tall man nodded and, taking out what looked to be a normal black radio, fiddled with the dial and a 3-D holographic version of the floor plans flickered into view. "Good. There is only one floor to this place; so, we split up into four groups. You two, take quadrant one, you two, take quadrant two, Rex, Jack, you're together, take quadrant three and Laiker, you're with me, we're taking the fourth quadrant. Team one, you have mostly open space, but it's a mechanics room so watch out, lots of things could be hiding there. Team two, you've got computer rooms and the like, once you've cleared those take these discs and take anything you can from their files." Riddick tossed both of them a few discs. "Team three, you've got living quarters. Don't move anything around and stay as silent as the grave. Once you get in your perimeter, shut your radios off and use only hand signals. Laiker, we've got open space but that doesn't mean we're off easy. I bet a few guys will be hanging around and if there are any chases, they'll run to the open space. Any questions?"
Everyone shook their head.
"Good, finish gearing up, check your weapons and we move out." Riddick said, his now-goggled eyes watching Jack as she released and closed her bugnucks a few times. Rex took down the hologram and clipped the radio to his belt and tightened the straps to his gloves. The other four hunters were already ready and Laiker slung his favorite rifle over his shoulder. "Let's get this going. Once you find the kid, send a vibration message. Jack, you've got a word?" He said, raising one of his eyebrows in at her.
"Kill everyone except for Marius and this one guy, his name is Panther. Somehow get the guys names before you kill 'em, if you find a Panther, tranquilize him, knock him out, whatever, don't hurt him and don't kill him. If I find one scratch on Marius or him, all y'all will be speaking eight octaves higher for the rest of your life, is that clear?"
A few nervous chuckles answered in the affirmative.
"Hyret to Panther, Hyret to Panther! Come in Panther!" Hyret's near hysterical voice came in through the radio, waking the sleeping pair. Marius groggily sat up, barely taking in Panther leaning over and snatching the offensive radio off its charger stand.
"Fuck, Panther! I know the kid's pretty but-"
"Panther here." He nearly snarled into the radio.
"We've got a situation." Hyret stated, making Panther roll his eyes.
"No fucking way, you crazy shit. What's-" he was cut off when yells and the easily identifiable rattle of machine guns were heard. Marius was wide awake now and felt nervous when Panther suddenly looked serious. "C'mon, we're getting out of here."
"No, wait!" Marius scrambled to hold Panther down on the bed. "Please! I know these people, they won't hurt us!" He tried in vain to reason with the older man who just sadly shook his head.
"They're here for you, not me." He sighed and pulled on another shirt, something that looked warmer than the silk one he had been wearing not long ago.
"If I just talked to Jack, she would understand! I'll tell her that you didn't hurt me and that you're different then those crazy bastards out there! Please Panther!" Marius stood now, his bandaged hands holding onto one of Panther's arms, who wasn't facing him.
"No! You don't understand, they, she, whoever! They won't let me live!" Panther rounded on Marius and the younger man let go and backed up, wishing he was armed. "Who will protect me when they come for you? Your words cannot! And you are far too weak to even consider physically fighting them! Tell me, who will protect me?"
"I will." A new voice thundered deep into the room, making Marius and Panther snap their heads towards the door. Rex stood there and Marius instantly saw the flash of recognition between the two. The larger man was shoved aside and Marius easily recognized the few choice curses as a figure barely squeezed through the doorframe and the man.
"JACK!" He shouted and she looked up and smiled. He ran into her open arms and hugged her tightly. She hugged him back and kissed the top of his head, taking a moment to pet his hair and familiarize herself with him again. Stepping back, she immediately inspected his bandaged wrists and hands and glared at Panther.
"No, Jack, he didn't do it. These other guys put spiked cuffs on me and he bandaged me, he's a good guy, really he is! Don't let Riddick kill him, please!" He spoke very quickly and Jack just smirked at him.
"Let's get you dressed." She said, shouldering off her pack and rummaging through it, giving him a shirt and thick sweater to wear. The shirt had extended gloves that Marius could use and she was glad she packed that specific one.
"Panther's really-" he was silenced when Jack's hand covered his mouth and then forcibly turned his head to where Rex and Panther were standing. Marius saw the shy touches, hidden smiles and tender glances. He smirked and Jack smacked the back of his head.
"Leave them be, c'mon, we should get going. Rex! We're moving out!" She shouted and they jumped apart, but still stayed near each other. Jack marched past them and Marius followed behind her, grinning when she tossed a shiv back to him. He checked to see that Rex was behind him and he was, with Panther in tow.
"You sick fuck." Riddick hissed, teeth bared in a snarl as he circled his opponent. This guy was a real nut job; there wasn't any beast in him, just pure insanity, plain and simple. This was the one type of guy Riddick hated to deal with, above the whiners in business suits, the wannabes in leather and the sex-driven inmates; it was the real psychos that he hated. He hid a shiver as the other man curled his tongue around a particularly long blade, too long and thin to be a dagger and too short to be a cutlass.
"Oh, how you pretend we don't relate, but we do! Our love for blades, indeed, this is no lust, but something within you does. Ah, is there a flash of recog-" he was cut off by a flying shiv that sliced deep into his shoulder.
"There's your flash." Riddick snarled, noting with internal joy how the other man flinched as another shiv appeared in his hand. Then, in a dramatic show of pain, he wrenched the shiv from his shoulder and Riddick heard the tear of muscle and tendon.
"So quick, so quick. Just like they say." He laughed aloud and flicked the shiv to the floor and it spun across the floor until it stopped short right beneath Riddick's boot.
"Stop talking and start fighting." He requested, not picking up his blade. He had seen hunters fall after touching another's blood. It was a gradual victory for the enemy, a victory through blood transmitted disease, but it was a loss to Riddick all the same.
"As you wish." The wounded man bowed low then slid up into a fighting stance, Riddick simply going into stance. The quietest whisper could have been heard as they waited, waiting for the first move.
Finally the other man leapt at Riddick, who ran at him and ducked at the last moment, sweeping his shiv up in an arc at the exposed belly of his opponent, who twisted out the way and landed into a crouch. Riddick readjusted the grip on his shivs as he watched the other man move, he had been anticipating that Riddick would use that move. He wasn't distracted by the vibration alert on his belt and wondered if he could just slice the guy's head off. He knew this would take a while otherwise.
"Come on, this way!" Jack motioned behind her as Marius, Rex and Panther lined up behind her. She looked in and saw that Riddick was fighting with another man and wasn't doing a good job by the looks of it. He wasn't wounded but he looked tired, Jack could tell.
Riddick suddenly turned, sensing Jack was near. His beast roared in warning but he was more caught in the moment of seeing Jack and at the last moment she appeared in front of him and took the blow. The blow that slashed her skin open from just above her collarbone and diagonally across to just above her chest and she staggered briefly.
"And who the FUCK are you?" She snarled, immediately discarding her pack and coat. Riddick knew this wasn't a good idea but the glare Jack sent him told him otherwise. He backed up and went back to the group she had abandoned.
"Why thank you for asking. I would be Hyret, a natural virtuoso with blades." He bowed deeply and Jack just snorted in disgust.
"Name's Jack and I've got a bone to pick with you." She said back, spinning a shiv in her hand. With that she fell into fighting stance and spit onto the ground, the old natural feeling of fighting in the streets resurfacing.
"You act like an experienced fighter and I am left to wonder if it is true." Hyret commented, talking as if they were kindly conversing over a bottle of aged and valued wine. If they were, Jack would have just grabbed the bottle by the neck, down it all and smash it across Hyret's head. He stumbled back, surprised by the quick movement and blow of the hilt of her shiv to his head. Riddick was fast, but this one was a little faster.
She was out of arm shot by the time he recovered himself and stood not far from him, her eyes calculating any possible moves and most likely subconsciously preparing any moves she might use to defend herself. Shaking his head slightly, he inwardly smirked at his next strategy. He was simply putting an old fighting wolf out of her misery, she was already wounded. But she paid no attention to the wound and just watched him. This bothered him greatly but he didn't show it.
In a few graceful leaps forward he jumped high into the air to come down onto Jack and she easily blocked both of his knife fisted hands, but he tensed his left arm muscle and a blade shot out from his sleeve and slashed the tendons in her right forearm. She cursed and tightened her already vice grip on his fists and pulling him back through the air, released her boot blades and jumped, lifting her feet back to stick the blades into his head. One sliced part of his ear off, the other nearly gouging his eye out. Letting go, she stumbled forward, holding her arm close to her stomach. She wasted no time in tearing part of her undershirt as a bandage, wrapping her arm quickly in the makeshift bandage. She tied the knot with her teeth and the entire time Hyret had barley moved from the ground.
With any other opponent she would've approached him and with a few last sarcastic words, killed him. But this was a rare fighter, one who would fight to the gates of Hell, so she stayed back and waited. By the time she had regained her normal breathing, he was pulling himself up from the ground. Finally he stood and she unsheathed her bugnucks and slid into fighting stance.
"Truly your lover's equal." Hyret managed to say, wiping the blood pouring from his ear with the back of his hand. She couldn't tell if the eye that her blade had narrowly missed was working, but she assumed it was. "Your creativity makes up for his ability to see in the dark, does it not?"
"I'm not here for an analysis." She replied and they suddenly both ran to each other and Jack painfully moved her body to make it look like she was going to jump and he countered it by barely lifting off the ground to gut her, but she fell to the ground purposefully. Sliding on the concrete, she lifted her bugnucks and going right between his legs, slashed the inside of his thighs to ribbons and then catching her hands on his ankles, spun around. Stopping, she also brought down her claws on his Achilles tendons, not caring when he cried in surprised pain as the muscle was snapped. He instantly fell to the ground and she backed up and stood, wanting to stay away from him.
Riddick stood from afar, watching with morbid fascination as Jack took Hyret out, each move carefully planned and executed. He had growled when Hyret had used a hidden blade, something that was common in slams but in hunter fighting was usually deemed as a dirty and low way to injure the opponent. Marius stood beside him, not behind him as Riddick would have expected. He knew that the younger man was mentally going through the same movements that Jack could have used or was going to use. For a moment he felt the sting of jealousy, Jack had clearly spent all of her free time with him to train him to be near flawless, all of her time on him. Another male.
Panther stood next to Rex, the two touching but no affectionate gestures between them. Panther's mind was still reeling from the good fortune that had been bestowed on him. Of all things to have the one man who had truly cared for him to suddenly reappear and promise to protect him. No wonder Marius had had such strong faith in his mentors; they were not bad people as he had thought them to be. Yet he wasn't familiar with Jack and still thought her to be a bounty hunter of sorts, but not many bounty hunters have a child tag along with them. He also did not know that Jack and Riddick were lovers, but the comment Hyret had made just minutes earlier made him think twice.
"Riddick?" Marius asked, his eyes now searching the high steel rafters.
He grunted in reply.
"Where is the rest of your team?"
"Went back. Some injured, got some prisoners, we could deal with this psycho by ourselves." He replied, snarling out the word 'psycho'.
"Yeah, ok, so who's that?" Marius didn't point but Riddick followed his gaze to one of the steel beams that supported the massive structure of the warehouse. A very large man stood, watching the fight between Jack and Hyret and holding what looked to be the same rifle that had shot Jack earlier.
"Rex. Watch the kid." Riddick ordered and moved back, sinking into the shadows. Marius turned to follow but Rex's massive arm stopped him and turned him around.
"Who is that?" He asked again and realized he wasn't going to be answered. Snorting in annoyance, he watched the fight, but was more focused on the dark shadow that was Riddick, moving up the wall and towards the other viewer.
Jack had been right, this man was a fighter until his ashes were re-burned and scattered to the far edges of the known and unknown universe. He couldn't run or even barely walk, but he was still able to throw knives and Jack was beginning to believe his body was made out of blades. Diving, ducking, just keeping enough balance to make it back up again, Jack was beginning to tire. And she knew this is exactly what he wanted. But it was very hard to get close to him to take him out and throwing a shiv wasn't as nearly as easy as it sounded. So she had to either get close enough with her bugnucks or a shiv and both options were getting harder by the second. She wasn't backing down though, and finally decided to go in for the kill.
She had been dodging in a rough circle around him but now she ran in a circle around him, getting closer and closer every step. In one sweep of her claw, she mangled one of his hands. Closing that claw she did a half cartwheel over his form and balancing on one hand, tore apart his other hand with her other claw. Flipping back, she stood and saw that he was unable to throw knives by hand, but it didn't mean he had never practiced throwing them by mouth. But he was dying and they were clumsily thrown, so she barely had to move to duck them. He pulled himself up on his ruined hands, his breath ragged and pained. A once-strong and proud beast dying in dishonorable battle.
She walked to him, unafraid of his now defenseless self. He lifted his hands and clutched to her, incoherent insane pleads of torture spilling from his mouth. Stepping back, his hands fell from her and his head downcast, his tears and blood mixing as it the pool grew around him. Jack stepped directly behind him and sheathing her claws, gently held his head in her hands.
Marius shut his eyes tightly and still looked away, but nothing could've prevented him from hearing the 'crack' that echoed around the steel room. He was surprised when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder and pulled him back into another body. He looked up to see Panther behind him, a sad smile donning his face.
"He was a right bastard anyway." Panther said and that served as Hyret's words passing into the next life.
But not all life was lost.
Riddick prowled steadily on a beam, watching the larger man begin to raise his rifle. The snap of Hyret's neck had been heard just seconds before and Jack was beginning to walk away. Approaching behind, Riddick slid a shiv into his hand and waited until the perfect moment. The moment when he would be so involved in his target there was no way he could hear Riddick approaching him from behind. Riddick only wished that Jack knew what was going on.
Just feet away from him now, he raised the shiv to slit him from behind, across the throat. The man had his rifle comfortably resting against his body, his body not nearly as tense as a sniper's should've been. It was clear this man was practiced at this. As his finger began to near the trigger, Riddick moved into action, grabbing the man's face and twisting his jaw to the side and ripping open his throat with the shiv. But he had seen Jack stop and look up over her shoulder, eyes widening as the still fired bullet raced towards her. As the lifeless body fell, Riddick watched in unbelievable horror as Jack froze in place. There was nothing he could do for her and he couldn't even move. Jack didn't see it, but Riddick heard Panther's shout as Marius tore himself away from his grasp and headed straight for Jack. He leapt through the air and with all his body forced Jack to the ground, the bullet missing both of them by mere inches. Just a second later the limp body of the rifleman hit the ground, his blood quickly spilling onto the cold concrete.
Minutes later found Jack in the fierce embrace of Riddick, his nerves still on edge at the thought of losing her. Breathing deeply, she tightened her grip on him, still calming down from the adrenaline rush of what was one of her most challenging fights and almost being killed. But her throbbing arm and chest brought her back to reality and she looked up, her exhaustion evident.
"Thank you, Riddick." She spoke clearly, adding a tired smile. He kissed her forehead in return and turning away from her, slipped an arm around her waist and held her to him. He addressed the remaining people, the tint of relief just audible.
"Alright, this isn't over yet, we've got to get back to the ship. Keep a watch for any trip wires, lasers, anything that could endanger our return. Jack, Marius, you're with me, Rex" he stopped short and glared at Panther, his distaste for the man obvious. "You can go with him."
"Marius. Go with Panther and Rex. I give you full permission to kick them in the shins if they start making out in front of you." Jack said, her voice weak. He wanted to argue, to put down his foot and insist that they not be parted but he wasn't about to argue with Riddick around.
They started ahead, giving Jack and Riddick a moment alone. Her body shuddered as she took a deep breath, making Riddick watch her closely as she walked to where she had discarded her coat and pack, gathering both up in her hands. She made a point not to wince or hiss in pain as she shouldered on her coat and tossed the pack over her shoulder. Her front was still slashed, the diagonal line down her shirt raggedly torn, the bloody injury easily visible.
"We should get going, Riddick. Sooner we get back to the ship the better." She said, breaking him out of his close observation of her. Nodding, he followed her as she made her way out of the scene of carnage that she and Riddick had caused. He could sense she was tired, but he realized that she was naturally a hunter. She didn't need to work to keep her footsteps or breathing quiet, no matter the injury. She made no sound as she walked forward, but he could sense her exhaustion and walked faster to keep in pace with her. Glancing at her sideways, he wasn't surprised to see her eyes closed, her body guiding her, possibly following the sounds of the others footsteps. She started when she felt his hand on her back, propelling her more accurately into the direction of the exit. Jack smiled softly at him, leaning into the touch. She was about to speak when she heard Marius curse.
"Fuck! Jack! Problem!" He yelled, making her break into a jog. Riddick was right after her, staying quiet. They quickly got to where the other three were standing, right before the exit. A small pane of glass in the door gave view of what was outside.
"What's up?" She asked and Marius pushed her to the view.
"Shit. Good thinking looking out there first." She looked suddenly very angered. They had gotten this far and now this to deal with?
"Jack?" Riddick asked, still standing behind them. He inwardly winced as he saw her grim face. This wasn't good.
"Snipers. There's a man down but we can't recognize who it is. We walk out there and we're just target practice for them. We could wait until it was dark, but if that guy's alive out there, he won't be if we wait." Jack reasoned, looking up at Riddick.
"First time I've heard that." He mumbled, stepping forward to see who was down.
"What do you mean?" She asked, her eyebrows furrowing.
"C'mon Jack, 'wait until it's dark'?" He replayed back to her and she smirked slightly. That would've been the last thing to do on that hell-planet. Her smirk disappeared when Riddick cursed, his fisted hand pounding the wall next to him.
"Who is it?" Rex asked, concerned.
"Laiker." Riddick hissed, turning back to his hunter.
Time slowly passed as Riddick decided what would be done. There was no way they could take out the snipers, maybe a few but that wasn't good enough to get everyone across that open space. Maybe once they got into the smaller streets it would be safer, but that run was easily long enough to get killed in one shot. They all leaned against the walls or sat, thinking madly themselves. Finally, Marius spoke up and he thought Riddick was going to kill him through glaring.
"If they are snipers, then they've got some sort of computer GPS on their guns right?" He asked, looking at Riddick.
"Yeah, they would, to keep in perfect coordinates for their target. A few feet would mess them up entirely." Rex said, raising his eyebrow. What was Marius getting at?
"And they are all Bellger's men?" He asked.
"Yes, we stopped letting hunters in after Bellger was killed. No one else would be up there sniping for a dead leader." Panther supplied, glancing at Jack who didn't notice at the time.
"All Bellger's men, all using his weapons?" Marius asked.
"Look, I don't know what you're getting at but you'd better hurry the fuck up cause-" Riddick snarled, silenced by a smack on his arm from Jack. They all realized he was touchy about not being able to help one of his hunters.
"I can do it. Take me to the computer rooms." Marius said, scrambling up from the floor.
"What?" Riddick asked, suddenly curious.
"They would only get their coordinates from these computers. So, their hard drive chips are in connection with these computers. If I can shut down the program that keeps the GPS updated, I might be able to jam their systems long enough for everyone to run, pick up Laiker and keep going." Marius explained, walking hurriedly towards the rooms. Jack followed him in, growling.
"And you?"
"I'll manage. I can sneak through the shadows. Dusk isn't that far off, by the time I get this, it will just be too dark to see, so they can't hit me."
"Heat vision." Riddick snapped, leaning against the desk that the computer Marius had seated himself in front of was on.
"Fuck that." He snapped back, breaking into the system.
"No, don't fuck that, Marius. You're the reason we're here, so you do have to come back with us. Is there a way you can remote control it?" Jack asked, glancing at the computer.
"Nope. Take way too long." He replied, scanning lines before picking out a few. Riddick watched as he copied, pasted, dragged, decoded and god knew what else.
"I lived in the street the better part of my life, I can run." He commented, stopping for a second while something loaded.
"You didn't have snipers trailing you on the street." Jack muttered, rolling her eyes.
"True." He replied, clicking on a few more things. "Ok, it's almost ready. I'll radio you when it's good to go. Or you can radio me."
"Wait up; we still didn't decide what was happening with you." Jack said, glaring at Riddick as he pushed himself off the desk.
"I'll meet you at the ship. Promise." He said, looking up at her. "Jack, let me do this, please." He asked sincerely and she couldn't refuse this. Growling, she rested a hand on his shoulder and leaned over, placing a kiss on his head. Stepping back, she ruffled his hair.
"Alright, let's go." She said, turning and walking through the door, the automatic sensors closing it after her. Riddick leaned over Marius' shoulder; his breath right on his neck. He wasn't distracted, his eyes flickering back and forth, the screen's bright light reflected off it.
"It doesn't matter that we don't really like each other." He started, but Marius barely acknowledged his voice. He continued all the same. "But we both like Jack. In our own way. In parting, don't fuck this up." He said softly, standing up and walking out the door, his coat sharply flapping as he rounded the sharp corner.
"Yessir." Marius mock-saluted the air and put on the finishing touches, his hand hovering over the 'enter' key.
"Jack, you there?" Marius' voice spoke from the radio on her belt. As she un-clipped it, Rex quietly noted his lack of knowledge on radio-speak. This only earned him a glare from Jack, but he smirked and shrugged his shoulders.
"Here, you ready?" She replied, holding down the transmission key.
"Ready when you are." He replied.
"Ok, Riddick, you're going to get Laiker, we run for the nearest small street. One moment." She pressed in for the radio connection again. "Marius, how long can you jam the GPS?"
"The jam itself will only last for some twenty seconds, but if I can re-jam it, the system should crumble, leaving the rifleman to reboot it. That could take maybe a minute, or more. I think you've got time." He explained, sounding sure of himself.
"Good, can you zone in on where they all are?" She asked, glancing at Riddick. He had his eyes trained on Laiker's unmoving form in the snow.
"No one beyond the street you're aiming for." He confirmed after a few seconds. Jack sighed in relief.
"Just what I needed to hear." She let go of the transmission button. "Alright guys, suit up, prepare, we're doing this."
They all readjusted themselves slightly, Riddick's hand trained over the open key for the door. They were silent for a few moments, mentally prepping themselves for this.
"Jack!" Marius' voice came in over the radio. "Look, I just researched the GPS rifle they're using, there's no way I can rejam it after I did it once. You've got once chance for this."
"Alright. We're still doing it." Jack gritted her teeth; they had to do this now. Dusk was settling in, it would be getting too cold for Laiker, if he was still alive. It would also be too dark for Marius to run, the heat vision on the rifles would work better and he would be less able to see.
"We're ready, Jack." Riddick confirmed.
"Good. Marius?"
"Here."
"On the count of three, jam it." She instructed.
"Ready."
"One, two…three."