Chaos: Thunder on High

Chapter Eight

(Note: This chapter is not meant to be provocative. Everything has a purpose in this story so, as always, bear with me. Still, consider yourself warned.)

Jessica woke up around six o' clock in the evening. She'd sat up, stretched, and then listened to Lucy and Isaac as they explained what had transpired over the past three hours.

"Lucy here will certainly need more time to get used to her powers," said Isaac.

"I'd rather not have to use them," Lucy replied.

Jessica punched her playfully on the arm. "Aw come on, Lucy…it's quite exhilarating once you get the hang of it."

Lucy raised her eyebrow. "So…what's happening tomorrow?"

"Bulldog and the others are going to spread Whitelight in the London Underground around midday," Jessica said. "What's our plan?"

"We have to be ready," Isaac replied, but he was talking to both Jessica and Lucy. "To that end, I'll keep Jess over at my place tonight. Lucy…you need to lay low."

Jessica gave Isaac a look that Lucy couldn't identify.

"That sounds best," Lucy then said. "I've seen more action than I care to for today."

Isaac nodded.

"Wait a minute," Jessica interjected. "Don't I get a say in this? I'm a grown fucking woman!"

"Not entirely," Lucy said. When Jessica opened her mouth again, Lucy cut her off by saying, "I'm not going to argue the point Jessica. It's smarter to do it Isaac's way."

Jessica watched Lucy for a minute, and then said, "Yeah…you're right."

Lucy nodded. "You're almost a grown woman." She looked back at Isaac. "Anything else?"

"Yes," said Isaac. "We need to leave soon." He stood and looked over at Jessica. "You'll need to be dressed and ready to go by seven. The sooner we leave this house, the better."

"It's my bad interior decoration, isn't it?" Lucy sighed, speaking sarcastically.

Jessica laughed, and even Isaac smiled a little.

# # #

Later, as Jessica was standing near the door waiting on Isaac. Lucy pulled him to the side and into her den.

"Alright," Lucy said quietly, "I know that you're probably going to think I'm mad for asking you this, but if Jessica's staying with you…are you…?

"No," He replied under his breath, rather quickly actually. "I hadn't…planned on it."

"It might be better if you did," said Lucy. "She's under a lot of stress and she needs to lose some of the tension."

"I'm not bringing her over to my house so that I can sleep with her, Lucy," Isaac said. "I know that you've been under a lot of stress yourself."

"Not as much as Jess has," Lucy sighed. "Plus…she really likes you. It might help to clear her head out a little bit."

Isaac sighed this time. "I need to go."

He walked out to where Jessica was waiting. As Isaac walked out the door, Jessica followed. They'd both already said their goodbyes.

Lucy watched them leave, grateful that she wasn't going to be a target this night.

At that moment, her cell phone rang.

"Hello?" She said into the mouthpiece.

"Lucy Johnson," said a woman's voice, "this is Doctor Harriet Lee. I'm going to need to speak with you about an urgent matter."

"Who are you?" asked Lucy, "and I don't mean your name."

"I'm a friend, and I'm trying to help you and your cousin Jessica. This is a matter of the utmost importance."

Lucy paused for a second. "Alright…I live at-"

"I know where," said Harriet, and then she hung up.

# # #

Isaac had a modest house, much like Lucy's. It was simply furnished and wasn't extravagantly decorated like Lucy's place was.

Still, the walk over had taken at least thirty-five minutes, and even with the sun setting there had been enough heat to make Jessica sweat at least a gallon.

"Damn that feels good," she sighed as she walked into Isaac's climate-controlled home. She looked over at Isaac. "Do you mind if I use your shower for a bit?"

"Go ahead," he replied. He directed her to an upstairs restroom just off of the Master Bedroom.

Ten minutes later, once she was satisfied, she stepped out of the shower and reached for her clothes. They were gone.

Don't tell me he wants to play this game with me, she thought. Isaac had already gotten a good long glimpse of her 'assets' anyhow.

Then she happened to notice a bathrobe with a note next to it.

It read:

Jess,

I've taken the liberty to wash your clothes for you. You can wear this bathrobe in the meantime.

Isaac

Jessica shook back her wet hair and slipped on the bathrobe, tying it tightly around her waist. Bet this is going to feel awkward.

# # #

It took Harriet over an hour to arrive. By then, the sun had already set.

"Okay, Lucy," said Harriet. "You and Jessica are about the only hope I've got right about now…Isaac too."

"What do you mean?" Lucy inquired as she sat down at her kitchen table.

"Pariah," Harriet went on, sitting down opposite Lucy, "is on the move. He's working to take London next, but he won't stop there. You're aware of the incident back in New York around two or three years ago?"

Lucy nodded. "I'm aware of the situation that happened there."

"Then you know that Jessica Reynolds, aka Chaos, was a pawn in the game before she grew wise to their act," Harriet told her plainly.

"My cousin told me as much."

Harriet crossed her fingers on the table. "One of my contacts, Dana Mercer, told me that the Blacklight virus has begun to appear in isolated towns across Europe. Pariah's the one behind it."

"So…"

"He's hunting your cousin as well," Harriet said. "Not actively, but he wants to draw her to him. James Heller and the others as well. We aren't sure what Pariah's plan is exactly, but it involves your cousin, Heller, and all of the other evolved out there."

Lucy sighed. "We just can't take a break."

"That's also why I've been keeping tabs on Isaac," Harriet added. She pulled her phone out of her pocket. "I've bugged his house with-" She stopped as she looked at the screen, and then looked away. "Oh dear god…that's TMI." Harriet put her phone down. "A-anyway, I've been monitoring him to make sure that no other evolved get too close to him."

Lucy picked up her phone. "You know you're breaking the law, right?" She glanced at the screen and her eyes widened in shock. She then slid the phone back across the table. "That's wrong, woman! How dare you!"

"I wasn't trying to-" Harriet rubbed her temples. "It was for his own safety. My cameras were monitoring his front door and living room."

# # #

This does feel awkward.

Jessica was sitting on the couch next to Isaac watching an evening news broadcast on the television. They were checking for any mention of the Blacklight virus or of the chaotic events that had rocked the city of London recently, but no such story was forthcoming.

She glanced at Isaac a few times, but he seemed drawn to the TV. At last she sighed. "Alright…start talking because this is getting awkward."

"What about?" Isaac asked her.

"Us, mostly," she replied. "Come on…earlier today wasn't just a spur of the moment thing…I felt it in my gut." She paused. "And in a few other nameless places."

Isaac sighed. "I knew this was coming up…"

"Aha," said Jessica with a smirk. "That's your game. You're planning on seducing me and then-"

"For the love of God!" He exclaimed, but the hint of a smile was playing at his lips. "You and your cousin Lucy are both alike. What is it…a phase?"

"No," Jessica shrugged. "I'm just very forthcoming and forceful."

"Maybe it's a side effect of your mutation," offered Isaac, inching closer to her.

"Who said?"

"I did." Isaac was only two inches away from her by then. "The Blacklight more than likely affects your mind as well as your body. I've noticed subtle changes in the way I approach things ever since I became infected."

Jessica narrowed her eyes. "You're just delaying the action so shut the fuck up." This time, she kissed him. It happened about the same way that it had earlier that day, only this time there was no stopping.

# # #

"It sounds like London is scheduled for the first major outbreak of the virus," Harriet said as she checked over several reports on her laptop.

Lucy ran her eyes over the screen. "Are they choosing isolated rural towns for a reason?"

"I'm not sure," replied Harriet. "I'm seeing at least three locations in Spain, one in France, and one in Germany."

"He's picking his targets carefully," Lucy sighed. "What are we supposed to do?"

"I'm working on that." Harriet tapped a few keys. "In the meantime, it's up to Jessica to stop Bulldog and get this outbreak under control."

"That won't be easy," said Lucy. "She's just one woman."

"She's got it where it counts."

# # #

Jessica and Isaac's lovemaking lasted for a few hours. When they were finished, she arched her back and sighed, "Damn…I needed that." She looked back down at Isaac. "So what now?"

Isaac clasped his hands behind his head. "To be honest, I hadn't really thought that far in advance."

Jessica raised an eyebrow and stood up. She stretched again and walked over to the window, looking out at the stars. There weren't many that could be seen, but she enjoyed watching them twinkle and glimmer in the darkened sky.

"Looks so peaceful out there," she said softly. "You'd never expect that we'd have to fight a war tomorrow." She looked back at Isaac. "Truthfully, this is the most advance warning I've ever had."

Isaac laughed. "Bulldog is a bit more forceful than Mercer, and he's certainly nowhere near as intelligent as Mercer was. He's made his share of mistakes."

"And Pariah," asked Jessica.

"He'll be worse," said Isaac. "I've just got a feeling that he'll be a lot worse than Bulldog or Mercer."

Jessica shook her head. "I still don't know Bulldog's real name."

"Well, neither do I," Isaac chuckled.

(Note: There will only be two more chapters to this story.)