Chapter Sixteen:
Journey to the Center of Punk
Salem was helping Howard organize the shop when Vince came down the stairs, dressed as a punk and a man in a hazard suit walked in with a package. Salem gave a sigh as Vince talked about being angry at the world, and taking it out on everything. Howard picking on him for changing styles many times over.
"I don't know Howard, I think it's good for people to change it up a bit. You get to have a better understanding of the human race by reinventing yourself." Salem said. Howard rolled his eyes while Vince smiled and pulled out a dirty safety pin.
"... This thing has so many street diseases on it... bet you would freak out if I just came at you with this." Vince said, jabbing it playfully at Howard. Salem shook her head and smiled, leaning against the counter reading a magazine.
"... I'm going to be lead singer... in like, 5 minutes." She over heard Vince say.
"Three, two, one, and-" She mentally counted down.
"Hey Salem. Would you care to help me out with the lights show?" Vince asked, leaning against the counter across from her.
"Tell him no, tell him no. Just look him in the eyes and-" She mentally told herself, looking up at Vinces' big blue eyes.
"Sure." She answered smiling, losing all of her resolve.
"...Bitch..." She scolded herself.
A group of punk boys walked in, greeting Vince with a head but.
"Guys, this is Salem, she's the best light worker I know." Vince introduced. Salem smiled at the man who had head butted Vince and walked up to him. She slammed her forehead into his, causing the man to fall to the floor for a moment.
"It's nice to meet you." She said, smirking internally. The punks looked her over and nodded, going about the store, some destroying some things, others picking a fight with Howard. Salem let out a breath and looked over at Vince.
"Are you sure you can handle this?" She asked quietly.
"Of course, I'm punk now." He said, slinging an arm over her shoulders. Salem caught site of the vinyl that Howard had spent a fair amount of money on and gasped. The other punk men were throwing it around the store. Vince catching it.
"Bite it!" They chanted.
"Don't you dare, Vince." Salem said. The punks held Howard back, as Vince hesitated but eventually bit into it and dropped it to the floor. Salem shook her head, pinching the bridge of her nose.
Salem ran the lights reluctantly, she had offered to help Howard, but he had told her it was useless for her to try and that it would take a specialist. She sighed, watching as Vince practically seduced the girls in the front. His lips practically kissing the microphone.
"And now... envious of his microphone...What am I doing to myself?" She thought, knowing that the odds of ever having him to herself alone were slim to none.
"Maybe you could share?" Her mind kicked in.
"Hell, F***ing, No. It's all of each other or none of each other. I refuse to have him sharing himself with anyone else, while he has all of me..." She mentally argued.
"Isn't that how it is now?" Her mind countered.
"No... He has a great deal of me, but not it all. He would have to share the same feelings for it to be all..." She thought, leaning her head on the catwalk railing.
She stared down at the stage, noticing Vince backing up. She knew then, that something was wrong. Vince began twitching and singing scat. The punk band went silent. The crowd throwing things at Vince and the band. The other members ran him backstage, with Salem taking off down the stairs, running into Naboo and Bollo.
The Shaman lead them to the preparation room backstage, where the punks were threatening Vince, and began threatening him and Salem.
"What are you gonna do about it?" One of them said.
"Nothing, but have you met my friend Bollo?" Naboo said snapping. Bollo charged in screaming, then pulling out his inhaler to stop his asthma.
"Quick Bollo, Grab him!" Naboo exclaimed. Bollo grabbed Vince and the group ran back to the shop as quickly as possible. Bollo placed Vince on the counter. Salem took off her coat and folded it up, placing it under his head.
"He's speaking Scat." Howard said, listening to Naboo, who was explaining everything that had just transpired. Howard began speaking it back to Vince. Salem looked down at Vince worriedly, stroking his hair away from his face.
"He said, he swallowed the missing piece of my record." Howard said.
"He's allergic to jazz. He'll die if the Virus isn't destroyed." Naboo said.
"How do would we do that?" Howard asked.
"Well, first you would have to be shrunk down to a molecular level, in a submarine, then have to be injected into the bloodstream. It would take someone who knows Vince inside and out, as well as an encyclopedic knowledge of jazz." Naboo said.
"I can't do it." Howard said.
"Then I'll do it." Salem said.
"Are you crazy? It's suicide." Howard said. The record specialist, Mr. Coldcreek, sat in his portable rocker.
"Let's do it." He said.
"Salem, it's too dangerous! You could be killed." Howard said, trying to reason with the woman.
"Then so be it, Howard. If there's even a chance for him to live, whether it be the end of me or not, then I'll do everything I can do to give him that chance." She said. Naboo handed her a scuba suit.
"Why would she do such a thing?" Howard sighed and walked over to Naboo, taking a scuba suit as well.
"The answers easy Howard. She's in love with him." Naboo said.
Mr. Coldcreek sat in his rocker, Howard sat at the controls and Salem sat near the back of the submarine, her head hanging low. Naboo hit the buttons and shrunk them.
"Head towards the brain." He said.
"Talk a bit softer." Howard said.
"Oh, right. Sorry. Head for the brain. That's where the Virus will be going." Naboo whispered, injecting the odd trio into Vinces arm. Salem looked out the window at Vinces blood cells, while Howard searched for the virus. They were stopped by a group of white cells. The men in front of her talked, while she readied her gear, making a few last minute adjustments.
Howard and Salem left the submarine, swimming towards the wall of white cells. Salem listened as Howard tried to reason with the cells.
"Please let us through, as Howard said, Vince will die if we don't stop the virus." She begged, while Howard told Mr. Coldcreek to let them back in. The submarine shot backwards.
"Salem, is that you?" One of the cells spoke.
"Yes, it's me. We're trying to help." She said.
"Well, why didn't you say so. You're always welcome here." It said. The other cells began questioning who Howard was.
"I'm Howard moon. Vinces' best friend." He said. Salem sighed at the small argument going on between the cells and Howard.
"Alright, let's take them to the brain." Another cell spoke.
"This is as far as we can go, but it's the optic nerve. It'll take you straight to the brain." On of the cells spoke, before they all swam away. The duo entered the nerve and began walking. Removing their masks, they entered what looked like an lobby.
"Hello, I'm Howard Moon and I need to see the brain." Howard said. The secretary looked up at him.
"Do you have an appointment?" She asked.
"No, but it's imperative that-" Howard began.
"I'm sorry, but I can get you one in January." She said. Salem sighed, having had enough nonsense for one day and walked past her desk.
"Security... Security to the brain please." The secretary called over the phone. Salem kicked down the door, Howard in tow and approached the brain cell.
Howard took over, trying to reason with the brain cell while she kept watch over the door. The brain cell making things a bit more difficult.
"Listen closely. I'm only going to say this once. There's a virus coming here to kill you, and when it does, all that is Vince, will be no more." Howard said. The cell sat down, shock and panic taking it over.
The secretary came over the phone, Howard telling her two minutes, knowing it was the jazz virus. Salem pushed the cell into a closet, Howard finding a hat like the cells head, sat in the middle of the room in the chair.
The virus burst into the room, ranting about how he was going to take over. Howard turned in the chair, trying to be smooth about shooting the virus, only to discover that he had the wrong container. Salem smacked her forehead with her palm. The virus noticed the girl, eying her up and down.
"Well now, what have we here?" He said, licking his lips. Howard and Salem shared a look and ran throughout the lobby and into the optic nerve, the virus chasing after them. Luckily for them, the submarine was waiting for them. Howard and Salem led the virus into the submarine locking it in the bottom section.
Salem climbed the ladder, grabbing the gun and ignoring Mr. Coldcreek and throwing it down to Howard.
"Where are they? They only have 10 seconds before they get big again." Naboo said, checking the many machines and Vince.
"Here they are. In the tear duct. We can get them out but we need to make Vince cry." Naboo said.
"Vince, Jagger has a bald spot." Bollo tried. Vince started to sniffle. Bollo tried again, and Vince started to tear up.
"Vince, Salem is going to die." Naboo said on a hunch, Vince began to scream and cry. Naboo took the syringe and sucked out the tear with the micro-submarine.
"... I feel weird." Vince said, blinking his eyes, rolling his head to the side just in time to see the submarine return to its original size.
The small group of people made an exit, along with the virus that was seen after the submarine disappeared.
"Howard what have you done?" Naboo said. Howard tried to explain how they were related, with the virus confessing to it all being a lie. The punks pushed through the door, all coming after Vince. Salem placed herself in front of him, while the virus wrapped them in his tentacles one by one, killing them all. Vince grabbed his safety pin and ripped it off his jacket.
"Howard, here, stab him with this." Vince said, throwing the pin to Howard. Howard missed it, the pin being caught by the blind elder instead. Howard took the pin and stabbed the virus. The virus stumbled back.
"That really hurt me." He said, continuing to stumble before dropping dead in the doorway. Salem let out a sigh of relief, turning to see a pale Vince.
"You idiot..." She said. A sad, but relieved smile crossed her face as she wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed. He returned the gesture and smiled into her hair.
"... don't ever scare me like that again." She said with a sniffle. She released her hold on him and backed away, heading up the stairs.
"What's her problem?" Vince asked. The other men ignored his question, figuring it was better for him to come to realize it on his own.