Jay's vision was blurred when he woke up. He was barely able to sit up. It hurt to move, breath, and think. "There you go, up you get." Someone was in the room with him.
Jay reached under his pillow and found Little Devil. As his vision came into focus, he aimed at the shadowy figure. "Hey, that's not very nice." The figure walked to his bed. Jay tried to fire, but his finger wouldn't move. The figure slapped the gun from his hand and pressed him back down against the bed with a single hand.
Finally, his vision cleared. Tas was smiling brightly at him, "Congrats, you're hired. Your tags are on the table. Don't worry about school today, I've already called ahead for you."
Tas left before Jay could so much as speak.
Hours later, Jay was able to do basic abilities. Walking, lifting objects less than twenty pounds, seeing clearly, and the like. The tags on the table were interesting. They looked military, silver colored metal on a chain. The letters were painted black and a strange insignia was pressed into the metal next to his name. Under that was the word Bioweapon. He didn't like it. Out of a mix of anger and fear, he threw them at the wall, neither were damaged. He left them where they lay.
After calming down only slightly, he walked into the living room and sat down
A storm moved in around two in the afternoon. Heavy wind pounded on the side of the house and rain stabbed at the windows. Storms like this make Jay want to just stand out in it like he did at home. A few hours later, a loud knock at the door caught his attention.
"Rin? What are you doing here? How did you know where I live?"
Rin Tsuchimi was standing under an umbrella with a large bag slung over his shoulder. Not just him, but the rest of his group. Rin's calm smile met Jay's cold glare. Jay gave in and moved to the side, inviting them in.
"A man in a suit came to school and asked if someone could deliver your work to you. He told us where you lived and Kaede lived closest."
"So why the hell did you bring everyone? I understand not sending her alone, but I think this is a little much."
The one called Sia spoke up, "You're the talk of the academy. A foreigner with a dark stare, bright green eyes, and a scar running the length of his arm." Jay stepped in.
"That's enough. I don't want attention. I want to get this over with. Thank you for bringing my work."
Rin leaned forward, but the little girl, Primula, pulled him back. She glared at Jay. She actually glared at him with those deep blue, neutral eyes. Judging from her ears, she was one of the two other races, meaning she could probably sense something wrong.
"What's wrong Primula?" Jay's eyes darted back and forth between Rin and Primula, hidden by his dark hair. She looked at him right in his eyes, "He's sick."
Jay controlled his breathing, but he thanked her in his mind He could tell something was wrong with him, but he just couldn't place it, "She's right. Nothing too serious, but enough that you should stay away from me. I'll be fine by tomorrow if I rest."
Rin and the other's jumped up, "I've got it! Let's make dinner for you. You can't get well without food and you're in no shape to cook."
Jay bit his tongue before he said something offensive about that and smiled, "Thank you very much, but it is unnecessary."
It was no use, they all funneled out of the room as Rin and Primula took him to his room. Rin left, but the girl stared at him from the doorway, "Do you know what it is? What's wrong with me?"
She shook her head.
He sighed, "I don't know either, but it can't be good. If you can, keep everyone away from me and get them out of my house, at least until it goes away. I'll owe you one."
She nodded and walked down the stairs. Jay lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. He didn't notice until now, but he could feel something. It was cold and painful, like jagged ice. Worse yet, it was flowing in his veins. It was moving around in his chest, flowing like a poison. It felt a lot like that vaccine Tas gave him.
Jay couldn't take it anymore, he flung himself out of bed. Not a second later, it was gone. It had felt exactly like that injection he got from Tas, so he tried to find his phone. It wasn't in his pocket or his charger. He checked the desk in the corner near the window. Ah, there it is. He called Tas, since his number was in there anyway.
"Jay? What's wrong?"
"I just laid down in my bed and it felt like I had pointed rocks in my veins. Care to-"
"Ah, that's a side effect. The vaccine I gave you had a few, but they pass pretty quickly. Moving around helps it pass quicker. If you just had the icy veins, the next is the numb arms in a few minutes. I just got over that an hour ago."
"You'd think they would iron out all the kinks first."
"They did, it used to make your organs explode or liquefy your brain."
"Holy shit."
"More like demonic, but whatever. Anyway, you have good timing. Would you prefer a dark blue or a dark purple?"
"Wait, What?"
"Answer or you get pink."
"Blue! Why?"
"You'll see, I'll be over in a bit. Oh, you may want to take a very hot shower to fix your arms."
Tas hung up. Jay placed a hand on his chest to see if his heart was still beating. It was going faster than a hamster on steroids. How does someone calmly said 'your will lose feeling in your arms in three, two, one'? He could feel the ice coming back already. He put his phone on the charger and walked out of the room.
"Oh, just in time. Dinner's ready."
Oh come on! Rin was there, blocking his way to the shower. How could he take a shower if he had company?
"Listen, Rin, I really appreciate what you're doing, but I gotta take a shower as soon as possible. If it isn't too much trouble, you can take the meal and go home for today. You can all come back some other time, okay?"
"Are you sure you're going to be okay?"
"Trust me, it could be way worse."
"Well… okay, but I hope you feel better tomorrow."
Jay thought about what happened last night when Tas showed up, "If I don't get any more visits, I should be okay."
They left just as Jay lost feeling in his left arm. It was a creeping feeling, starting in the fingertips. It crawled up the arm like a fire, burning where it touched before all feeling vanished. Jay was just able to start the shower before he lost the use of his right arm.
This wasn't anything close to numb! He lost the use of his arms completely. They just hung there, unable to move. He couldn't even make his finger twitch.
He did have to give it to Tas, the shower really helped. After seven minutes, feeling started to burn its way down. Just as it had hurt to lose feeling, it hurt to get it back. Soon enough, he had full control.
He walked downstairs in a pair of pants perfect for sleeping in. He already told everyone to go home, so he could walk around shirtless.
"That's pretty bold, don't you think?"
Jay sighed as he turned to see Tas on the couch. Jay jumped over the back and landed on the opposite end, "It's my house, I'm allowed to be. Anything good on?"
Tas flicked through a few channels, labeling them as he went, "Shit, Shit, News channel?"
"Is it as negative as the news in the U.S?"
"Not quite."
"Let's keep going."
"Shit, Anime I don't know of, and another, and another, back to shit, a game show I can't understand, and an horror movie."
"So nothing good?"
"Nope."
Tas turned off the TV. Jay and Tas sat in silence for half a minute. Jay then put two and two together, "What the hell just happened?" Tas seemed confused too, "I think… Did we just hang out?"
"I think so."
It was quiet yet again before Tas pointed to the hall, "Want to go to a café down the road?"
"Uh… sure, I guess."
"Drive or walk?"
"Walk."
Tas and Jay walked out and continued down the road. Tas's black duster and matching shirt and pants made him look like a cross between an official and a thug. They went to the café Jay went to the other day. That reminded him about the umbrella that he gave Kaede. They recognized Tas instantly, "Ah, Mr. Rose. Your usual table is ready."
"Thank you, my dear."
Jay and Tas sat at a table against the window of the front of the shop, giving them a good view of the street. As soon as the waitress left, Jay erupted into laughter, "Rose?! That's your last name? Jeez man, no wonder you use first names only."
Tas was smiling, "Yeah, shut up. You know, you seemed to warm up to me pretty quickly."
"When a guy can walk into your house whenever he pleases and has a few strings here and there, you waste time if you hate him. Besides, what good would it do? I'm still angry about last night though."
"Ah, so true. Luckily for you, our security measures have tripled because of the break out last night. We won't need your help for a long time."
"Good, I don't even know what I did. Oh yeah, that whole Bioweapon thing on those damn tags you left me?"
"Oh that, It was either that or list you as a soldier, meaning you would never relax again. It doesn't mean anything, but it does give you some authority in Blackwatch and with the local law enforcement. Just don't abuse it."
"I don't think I'll ever need it."
Tas set the menu down, "Let's get serious for a second. First, the big question. Yes, your parents are fine. They're being treated well and cooperating with us. Second, You and I are in deep shit."
"What?!"
"Calm down. Do you trust me?"
"No, but I have no choice. What do you want?"
"Just your trust and for you to wear your tags. Under your clothes, in plain view, I don't care."
"So you're doing this because you want me to be part of your organization?"
"No, but a high ranking official is on his way right now. The breakout has called the wrath, you could say. We have a device that can pick out people who wear our tags, so we avoid problems with ourselves. If you wear those tags, you'll save yourself a lot of trouble. I'm going to try and make all of this go away and get you to your family. I don't know what the higher ups have in mind, but from what isn't covered in black ink, it can't be good. If you screw up, they'll kill you, your family, and anyone who knows you. If I screw up, the whole city could get nuked. Literally."
"I… uh… what… I can't think right now."
"Then let me continue. I can handle the political bullshit and the paperwork, but I need a view on the public. Blackwatch has done some messed up things in the past."
"Like the claw dude you told me about?"
Tas smiled, "You're very quick. Yes, like that. I may have a moral standing, but almost all of Blackwatch are heartless demons who would sleep peacefully on a bed of innocent corpses. I'm sorry to say this, but if this doesn't work itself out you and me will be spending a lot of time together. Do you understand everything?"
"I… I think so. A ruthless force of baby killers is going to be watching everyone closely, so you want me to tell you if I see anything weird. If I wear these tags, I can observe them and not be at risk. If either of us slip up, this city and everyone in it is screwed"
"Yes. You won't have to do it right away, about two weeks or a month until the official can set up shop. So relax and make some friends. Maybe even find a girl. You'd be amazed what you could do when fighting for someone you love. When the time comes, though, you will have a choice to make."
"Like what?"
"This mess will continue on for a while after the ordeal with your parents is solved. You don't have to choose right now, but the time will come eventually. Will you go home and live your normal life, or will you stay a while longer to help me save this place? I can't offer much right now, but I will pay my dues in the end."
"I said I'm no fighter last night and you knocked me out! What's to stop you from doing that again?"
Tas sighed loudly, "Last night… I turned you into a savage with that drug. It increased your strength, your endurance, and your healing rate. Whether you agreed to help last night or not, we wouldn't have killed the target without you being like that. He turned himself in after a fight with you, where we killed him."
"I don't understand. I can just barely grasp that I have to help you with something like this, but I cannot fight and will not."
"I know, as I said, we won't need to do that again. You did, however, put up a good fight. That's why you were so sore this morning."
"My head is… hurting now. Can we not talk about this right now?"
Tas sighed as the waitress put two desserts on the table, "Yes, now that that's all said and done, we can eat."
Not two bites into the dessert, Jay had regained his composure and sanity. How could he accept what he was just told? The thought of such a thing scared him every single time he thought about it. He didn't want to be apart of it, but now that he knew about it, he couldn't just leave it be. Tas said he needed his help to prevent the deaths of everyone out on that street and in the entire city. Then again, what could he do? It might be better for him to head back home once he can. It seems that whatever happens will only happen here, to back home should be safe.
This must be what it's like to look at hell before you dive right in, he thought.
The weight of the world wasn't on him, but a city like this was pretty heavy for just two guys.
Tas perked up, "Oh, that reminds me, I got you a new phone."
He slid the dark sapphire colored smart phone across the table to him. It had to have been what that weird color question was about they had earlier.
"I already transferred everything in your old phone to the SIM this morning, just had to get the actual phone."
Jay stared at it for a second, letting it soak in, then smiled like a deviant, "So, how were your side effects today?"
Tas reeled back, "Dear god, they were horrible! The icy veins came in when I was in a restaurant down the road and people thought I was having a heart attack."
Jay was laughing, which was a massive relief to the tension.
"You think that's funny? Well, prepare to laugh until you pass out. The whole can't-use-my-arms thing came around while I was on the toilet."
Jay nearly choked on his dessert. And laughed so hard his ribs hurt.
"No seriously, have you ever had to do that without having to use your arms? It was, in every sense of the word, Hell!"
The two of them enjoyed the rest of their evening before they parted ways for the night. Tas… may not be as bad as Jay thought.
What will happen now? Tas and Jay have warmed up to each other even though Tas dropped one hell of a bomb. But is it all there?
HITS: Well, I hope this lives up to expectations. Especially yours, sir/ma'am who wrote the first review. I did read it and that's why I wrote this one up quickly. Sorry it was a bit bland, but this is where it really picks up. Oh and I finished watching the rest of the series this morning. Pretty good, in my opinion.