Misfit Mercs Saga

Rebirth Redux

Part 2

Smoke and Mirrors

By Nick Maro

The body of Eric Raymond jumped as the bullets struck it in the chest. Stormer instinctively flinched back and grabbed David's arm. She wasn't ready for this to happen. David gave her a brotherly hug and looked at Roxy. "Okay. Let's get the hell out of here." He glanced at the piece of cloth on the ground. "That should give the police enough of a false lead." He shut the apartment door and left with his arm around Stormer's shoulders.

"Nick, was that necessary?"

David pulled his half sister closer to him. "Yeah, it was. If the plan is to work he had to die. Eric knew too much about The Misfits."

"We better hurry the cops will be here any minute. I don't feel like spending the night in jail." Roxy told her two friends. David nodded his agreement and pick up the pace. They reached the van that was waiting a few moments later. He opened the door for the two women and then got in himself.

"Okay, Techrat, let's pick up Jetta and get back to base." He told Techrat who was in the driver's seat. He looked back at the shadowed form. "Are you okay?" They just nodded and David smiled at them. The person in the back thought back to a few hours ago.

The blonde woman put her hand over Eric Raymond's mouth to keep him from screaming while a brown haired man shook him until he woke. Eric screamed in surprise but the hand muffled the scream. The man put his finger on his lips and spoke softly. "Don't scream, Eric. You scream and we'll have to take you down. Nod if you understand and agree."

Eric nodded his head quickly and Roxy slowly removed her hand from his mouth. He looked at the three people in his room. He didn't know any of them. He looked the brown haired man up and down. Was he a hired goon for Scarletti? But who were the blonde and the Asian woman? "Wh-who are you? What do you want from me?" Eric was afraid that he was going to urinate right there.

The man spoke in his soft tone again. "Eric, can we trust you? It's very important that we trust you." Eric just nodded again. The man smiled at the two women. "Good. Now, this is going to sound insane but then again that's not uncommon for us. Eric, it's me, David Gabor. The blonde is Roxy and that is Stormer. We had to fake our deaths in order to find out who is trying to kill us. Do you believe us?"

"Wh-what?" Eric stammered in confusion and not understanding what was going on.

"Eric, it's true," Stormer told him in a light Japanese accent then glanced quickly at Roxy and David. "We're trusting you, now trust us."

Roxy sighed heavily in annoyance, something she had noticed was that Eric tended to bring out in her. "Listen, Raymond, we know you're scared. Why else would you be hiding in a dump like this? This is tough to admit but we need your help. I'm asking you to help us out and in return we'll keep safe until everything blows over. So will you?"

Eric thought about what he was told for a moment. He didn't know if he could trust them fully but there was something about each of them. Something vaguely familiar if he looked close enough. It was as if they weren't putting on an act for his benefit. He finally broke the heavy silence. "Okay, you promise to keep me safe?" David nodded and Eric quickly changed his clothes. He followed the three musicians to a van that was waiting and he recognized the driver right away. "Techrat, I should have known you were involved. So where are we heading?"

"Someplace safe, Mr. Raymond, everything will be explained there." Techrat watched Eric in the rearview mirror; he drove a maze of a path back to the hidden base. The hidden door opened in the side of a building and Techrat drove through. He parked the van in what looked to be a hanger and a parking garage.

David opened the door for Eric and let him out first. Roxy got out followed by Stormer and David. Pizzazz stood at the top of a catwalk where she smiled wickedly at Eric. "Today Eric Raymond you shall die!" She let out a loud evil laugh causing Eric to flinch and take a step back.

"Pizzazz quit scaring him." Clash said coming up behind her. "Eric welcome to our secret headquarters and your new home. We don't know who owned it before us but who cares, finders keepers." She turned to walk away and then looked at him over her shoulder. "Oh and Pizzazz is right. Today you will die." She gave him a sideways smile and left the catwalk.

Eric's eyes flicked back and forth between David and Pizzazz. "David, you said I'd be safe! What the hell is going on here?!"

"Clash and Pizzazz are just being dramatic. Pay them no mind. But you will die and I'll show you how." David put his hand on Eric's back making him stiffened in fear. "Relax. I'm not really going to kill you." He glanced at Eric out of the corner of his eye. "Not this body at least." Eric gave him a confused look as David led him into a small lab. "Stand right here." He did as he was instructed. "Okay Techrat, let's get this started."

A metal arm came down and a small screen rotated all around him. The process was over in minutes. Techrat moved to another control panel and flipped a few switches. In a matter of minutes an almost perfect clone Eric stood before him. Eric's jaw dropped for the second time that day. "H-how is this possible?"

"It's a construct of a pseudoplasm," Techrat began to explain, "I used it to create the bodies the authorities found in the rubble of the Gabor Estate. I had used all of it to make perfect clones of them but I found the formula to make more. I have just made an exact copy of you, Mr. Raymond."

"That's amazing, Techrat. So you're going to kill the copy. Ingenious." Eric inspected his duplicate. He looked deeply into the copy's blank eyes. "Creepy."

Clash entered the room and inspected the duplicate herself. "Looks like the formula is working, Techie." She then turned to Eric who looked at the synthoid in awe. "Now it's time for a make over, Eric. We can't have a corpse running around, now can we?" He followed Clash out of the room and was guided into a large bathroom. He sat in a make shift barber's chair and Clash went to work on changing his look.

An hour later she was finished Eric looked at himself in the full length mirror. He now had gray hair, light blue eyes and looked to be in his sixties. "Amazing." His voice was now aged by the voice modulator.

"A character trait might help a bit."

"Like what?"

Clash thought for a moment. "How about a limp?" Eric tried a limp and agreed that it would work. "C'mon, let's show the others. I heard the David was holding a training session down in the practice hall." Clash led Eric down to the training room while showing him different areas they had discovered on the way. David was teaching Roxy how to use the bokken. "David, Roxy here's the new Eric Raymond." Eric walked into the training room and Clash cleared her throat. "The limp?"

"Huh? Oh!" Eric started doing the fake limp. "Sorry, I'm not good at acting."

Roxy walked up to Eric and smiled as she pulled the wooden practice sword back and brought it down as hard as she could on his left knee. The bokken shattered in two as Eric screamed in pain. "Now you don't have to fake the limp, Eric dear." She began walking towards the shower room. "I've had enough for today, David. Catch you later when we're ready to go."

David watched Roxy disappear around the corner and turned to Eric. "Knee isn't broken is it?"

"No," Eric said through gritted teeth. "But I should have expected that reaction. I didn't expect The Misfits to accept me with open arms." He wrapped his arm around David's shoulders and slowly stood.

"How does it feel?"

"It hurts but I can move my knee. That's a good sign."

David helped him to the hallway. "Maybe you should get a cane it would also add to your new identity." He agreed and David left him in the hallway and returned in a matter of minutes. "All I could find was this staff. We'll pick you up a cane at an antiques shop later." He looked at his watch. "We better go. The plan is to have Jetta on a building across from yours and shoot the body. We need to make sure that you're discovered quickly." They walked in silence for a few minutes. "By the way, I just learned that you owned Can't Dance Studios once. What happened?"

"Gambling debts," Eric mumbled under his breath. "I sold Can't Dance Studios back to Harvey Gabor to pay off my debts. I should have learned my lesson. Ah well, that's the past and my old life. Today I begin anew."

"That's a good attitude to have, now let's make it a reality." David helped Eric get into the van. Roxy loaded the duplicate of Eric in after them. The others followed them into the van and Techrat drove off.

The van arrived at the decaying apartment complex quickly. Techrat had dropped Jetta off a few blocks from where they were. David, Roxy and Stormer got out of the van with the duplicate of Eric while the real Eric stayed in the van. The three friends brought the pseudo-Eric upstairs and put it into the bed. Stormer gave the signal to the waiting Jetta. They turned to leave and Roxy let a piece of cloth slip out of her pocket. It was the common stylized cobra symbol that was all over the base. Pizzazz figured it would be a good idea to lead the cops on a false trail. After the three left the room Jetta assassinated Eric Raymond.

Eric came back from his memories as Jetta climbed into the van and gave him a smile. "Well, luv, now you're dead. How does it feel?"

"Strangely liberating, I know this disguise will only last a week but I feel like someone new. I wonder if this is how movie stars feel when they get into make up and character." Eric shifted his knee and groaned in pain. He glared at the back of Roxy's head.

"Looks like your knee still hurts, there should be some painkillers at the base."

Eric sighed. "No, I need the pain for the limp."

Jetta laughed under her breath. "Suit yourself, luv. I was just tryin' to be friendly." She smiled in a false friendly manner, leaned back in her seat and started to drift to sleep. Eric groaned softly and rested his eyes. He slipped into a light sleep.

Eric awoke several minutes later inside the garage. Groggily he exited the van. "David, I'm gonna need a room. That's the one thing you didn't give me yet. So can I take whatever one I want or did you want to assign one to me?"

"Uh, I'll show you your room." David walked slowly so Eric could follow. He led Eric to a door furthest away from the rest of The Misfits. "Here you go. I'm going to rest up myself but I want to discuss some stuff with you when you get up. We're gonna need all the information on all the gangs you've used in the past."

"I figured as much." Eric yawned wide. "I have a few ideas of my own that I want to bounce off you." He opened the door to his quarters and flipped the light switch on. He quickly looked at the small room from the doorway. "Well, it's better than the hole I was just hiding in." He turned back to David. "I just wanted to thank you again." He shook David's hand and entered the room, closing the door behind him.

A soft knock came from the other side of Jerrica's office door. She looked up from the financial reports she was going over. "Doors open," she said looking back at the reports.

The door opened with a soft creak and Kimber walked through. "Hey, Jer, I was in the area and decided to drop by." She sat on the edge of Jerrica's desk. "Actually I have a big favor that I wanted to ask you." She had a hopeful look on her face.

"Okay, what do you have in mind?"

"Well," Kimber started speaking slowly, "Hitomi and I were talking last night about having a concert in honor for The Misfits and David. They deserve some kind of tribute." She looked at her feet and felt tears starting again. "They were my friends." She wiped the tears from her eyes and looked at her sister. "Anyway, I wanted to know if you and The Holograms will take part in this. I'll even perform a few songs with The Holograms." She tried to smile to hide her sadness.

Jerrica put her arm around her younger sister's shoulders. "I think I can speak for The Holograms this time. Yes, we'll do it. When did you plan on having this tribute?"

"Next Friday. I just got done talking about this with Evelyn and Suzaku is going to perform along with The Stingers." Kimber glanced at her older sister again. "By the way, Eric is missing. I talked with Riot this morning and he said he hasn't heard from him in a few days. He wouldn't admit it but I could tell he was worried. He tried to hide it in his voice, but I could still hear it."

"I'll have Aja call Craig up. I'm sure The Blue Bloods will perform." Jerrica started putting away the reports. "What are your plans for tonight? Anything special?" Kimber shook her head no. "Why don't you call Hitomi? Invite her, Suzaku and Evelyn over for dinner tonight. We can discuss the tribute over dinner. Does that sound like a plan?" She tried her best to cheer up her sister.

Kimber thought it over for a minute and nodded. "Okay, I know Hitomi will go for a good home cooked meal. I'll give them a ring now."

Jerrica stopped her before she could get her phone out. "They can wait, Kim." She sat Kimber on the couch and took a seat next to her. "I know you've been avoiding this but how are you holding up. With David's death and all I've barely heard from you since the funeral."

"It still hurts," she said after a few moments of silence. "It's been almost three weeks and the pain is still as fresh as it first was." Kimber put her head on Jerrica's shoulder. "I feel guilty because it feels worse than when mom or dad died. I wake up everyday crying." She began to sob softly again.

"Let it out, Kimber. Just let it all out." Jerrica rocked her sister as she cried on her shoulder. "They were my friends, too." She felt her own wave of sorrow begin to hit as well.

Pizzazz entered the briefing room and stopped short when she saw Eric standing there with David. She cleared her throat to get their attention. "You wanted to see me, David?"

Finishing his conversation with Eric, David turned to his twin sister. "Eric has brought something to my attention. It's a small detail really but it makes sense. We've been driving around in the same van all over the place. He thinks we should get a second vehicle so we can search even faster. I've been looking through the classifieds for a cheap van and I have a few good leads. We wanted to know if you wanted to come along."

"I guess. Maybe I can find one that looks a bit like my old van." Pizzazz sighed to herself. "I miss The Misfits van." She looked up from her thoughts and smiled at David. "Count me in."

Together they exited the briefing room and headed to the garage bay. "Just so you know, Pizzazz, Suzaku made sure that they got The Misfits van. It's in very good hands," Eric said softly as he opened the van door for her. She quietly thanked him while he opened the sliding side door and got into the back. David sat in the driver's seat, started the engine and pulled out through the garage doors.

Pizzazz looked over the ads that David had circled. "Shouldn't we have brought someone along who knows something about cars?"

"Eric went to an automotive school before he discovered that he had an uncanny talent for being a shrewd businessman," David explained as he drove to the first location. "Upon discovering this he dropped out of the school and entered a fairly reputable business school." He looked in the rearview mirror at Eric and then looked at his sister. "He really wanted to open an auto repair shop when he graduated but instead he landed a job for a now defunct record label. Emmett Benton hired Eric from his reputation as a good businessman after the label went under." David looked in the mirror again. "Did I forget anything?"

"No, that's pretty much it. That was a good Cliff Notes version though."

Pizzazz now looked at Eric in the mirror and started to see him in a different light. She still wasn't ready to forgive for what he did but she was starting to respect him. "David, slow down, you're about to pass the first address."

David parked the van and each of them got out to inspect the first vehicle. It was in working condition but needed too much fixing up for the amount being asked. The three went off to the next address David had circled. That van looked like it was headed for the junk heap. They politely left and headed to the third and last van on the list. From a distance it looked to be in pristine shape. David walked up the owner and shook his hand. "Hi Fred, nice to meet you, I'm Nick, this is my sister Tricia and our Uncle Alex. He'd like to look the van over first. Do you mind?"

The blonde haired man shook his head. "Of course not, let me get the keys." He turned to his house and shouted. "Daph! I need the keys to the M Machine!" He turned back to David and smiled again. "I'm going to tell you now that she has a lot of miles on her but I've kept her tuned up to perfection."

A young redhead came out of the house and handed Fred the keys. "Here you go." Fred made the quick introductions and handed the keys to Eric who immediately began inspecting the engine. While he looked the van over, Pizzazz began to wander the grounds and looked in the backyard. David, Fred and Daph made small talk.

"We'll take it." Eric said after closing the hood to the green and teal van. "The van is in great shape." Fred and Eric went in the house to make the deal final. Daph followed Fred as David went to get his sister.

Pizzazz ran up to David when she saw him coming up the driveway. "I heard Uncle Alex make his decision." She looked at the green van. "We're gonna have to repaint it. That green and the big flower sticks out too much and could give us away." Eric limped out of the house and handed the keys to Pizzazz. "Okay, I'll drive this van and you take Uncle Alex, Nick."

David nodded and walked to the other van as Eric waved good bye to Fred and Daph then got into the van himself. Pizzazz followed David back to the garage and parked the new van next to the old one. Eric walked up to Pizzazz as she got of the van. "So how did it drive?"

"It was a nice smooth ride. Nothing wrong from what I could tell. David will have to take you for a ride later." She started walking down the hall to the kitchen when David joined her. "So what's Eric doing?"

"He's looking the van over again. Where did you take off to while I was talking with Fred?"

She handed him a can of iced tea. "Oh, I was talking with their roommates and playing with their Great Dane. Smart dog. Could've sworn he was talking to me at times. But that's silly, isn't it? A talking dog?"

David chuckled and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure it's just the stress of everything that's been going on. I'm actually so stressed out that I can't really meditate very well. I just want all of this to be over so we can get back to our lives."

Pizzazz sat on the counter in silence. "I'm actually starting to finally respect Eric, too. I'm still not ready to forgive him but after hearing his story today, I have some new found respect for the man." She slid off the counter. "I'm going to the training room. See you at dinner."

"I was searching the internet today for rumors surrounding our deaths. It turns out that Pizzazz was engaged to Flint Westwood." Stormer told Jetta who immediately started laughing hard. "Yeah and Roxy was thinking of quitting to start her own band. Seems that she was getting an ego from the time she stopped the robbery." Stormer chuckled at the thought.

Roxy leaned over the table so she could hear Stormer better. "Where the hell did you read something stupid like that?"

"The Cool Trash website."

Jetta snorted her disdain for the magazine. "Lousy rag. I wonder if we can sue them for bloody slander when this is over." Stormer just shrugged. "And where in the bloody hell are Eric and David? They called this damn meeting ten minutes ago."

As if on cue the briefing doors opened. David and Eric walked through and turned to everyone at the table. David stepped forward and spoke first. "Eric and I have just finished making a list of all the gangs that he's hired over the years and their common hang outs. Friday night we begin to find out who did this with our first target being The Skulls gang. They hang out at a bar called The Elbow Room. We're going to strike hard and we're going to strike fast. Any questions?" No one spoke up and David explained the strategy to his friends.

TO BE CONCLUDED IN "DANGEROUS KROSSINGS"

PART 3 OF REBIRTH REDUX