California 2019

Zone 6 - The Diner

Party Poison looked out the window, trying to avoid eating the dog food in the can in front of him. Kobra walked up to the booth Party was in and sat down.

"Y'know what, bro? This all seems really familiar." Kobra rubbed his temples, and Party pushed the can away.

"I know what you mean, Kobra. It's like...like something I've dreamed about before." Kobra looked up, and Party glanced outside again, to see Jet and Ghoul run past. He craned his neck to try and follow what they were doing. Kobra followed Party's gaze and chuckled.

"Ghoul probably just found a new way to piss off Jet." Just then, Jet caught up to Ghoul and tackled him to the dirt, only to stand up and walk away after. They watched him walk towards the front door of the diner, and a moment later, he was striding towards them and sitting down beside Kobra.

"What the hell was all that about?" Party asked Jet, as they glanced outside to see Ghoul picking himself up, dusting off his sleeve, then shooting them all – or Jet – the finger.

"The little ass thought he could put motor oil in my shoes and get away with it." Jet smiled and leaned back, as Ghoul entered the diner. He apprehensively sat down beside Party, and reached for a cigarette.

"Goddamn!" He yelled as he opened up an empty package. "I could've sworn I had two left last night, and now..." He trailed off, looking at Party, whose face was turning bright pink.

"Party, did you take my smokes?" Ghoul asked, his tone going completely cold.

"Umm, no." Party looked out the window again to hide his blushing face.

"You bastard. You can't lie, y'know that?" Ghoul punched Party's arm, and leaned back forcefully against the seat of the booth, smacking his head in the process.

"FUCK!" He cried, and just then Missile ran in.

"Guys! Guys! Dr. D wants to see you!" She bounced on every word.

"Alright Missile, calm down!" Jet said, patting her curly hair as he stood up and walked past her. Kobra and Ghoul followed, and Party lagged behind a bit with Missile.

"Why're you so excited, kid?" He asked her as they slowly followed the others towards the back room.

"We're getting new killjoys!" She giggled, "And one of 'em's a kid like me!" She took off towards the back room, giggling and skipping, as Party stood still for a moment.

"New killjoys?" He muttered to himself, before quickening his pace to catch up with the others.

California 2019

Zone 5

"C'mon, Malice! Hurry up!" Static called, throwing her bag into the trunk of the Trans Am. Malice smiled, and Angel tugged at her jacket.

"Where're we goin', Mal?" The small girl asked.

"We're going to meet some new people, Angel." Angel looked wary.

"But I don't wanna. What if they're mean?" She asked, her hazel eyes growing large. Malice smiled, and tossed her own bag into the car, before taking Angel's hand.

"Don't worry, they're old friends of mine. They won't be mean to you, okay?" Angel smiled, and nodded, before jumping into the backseat of the car.

"Seatbelt, Angel, okay?" Malice reminded her. Angel had been hero-worshipping Static since the first few days they had been together, and since Static didn't like seatbelts – or anything safe, for that matter – Angel had been trying to avoid the seatbelt for over a week. Mal couldn't believe that they had been in the desert for almost a month now. She shook her head, and walked over to Poison, who was strapping her old satchel onto her bike.

"So, you ready to go?" Mal asked, and Poison smiled.

"Sort of. We haven't been in one place for very long since we were with Ruby and Drain. It'll be weird, but probably better for Angel." Poison turned around to face Malice.

"Well, you know Pony. And there's Dr. D – from the transmitter show – he's really nice. Then there's Agent CC, and Missile Kid. She's close to Angels' age, so they should get along." Mal patted Poison's shoulder, and turned back towards the Trans Am, where she climbed into the driver's seat.

Static climbed into the backseat, to Angel's delight, and Val clambered into the passengers' seat up front.

"So, where exactly are we going?" Static asked.

"Zone 6 – they're all at an old diner there, so we'll get to sleep on mattresses rather than the ground." Static cheered, and Angel copied her. Val rolled her eyes, and Malice looked into the rear view mirror to see Poison waiting behind them on her bike. She gave Malice a thumbs up, and Malice hit the gas.

Two hours later, an old diner came into view. Malice smiled, and Static stuck her head out the window, her multi-coloured hair streaming out behind her.

"WE GET SHOWERS!" She yelled happily, and everyone in the car laughed.