JINX

Few ever knew there were benefits to loud noise.

It had the benefit of keeping a person awake.

Of turning a dull environment into a bearable one for some work.

And of drowning THEIR noises, especially now as she tried to put some more Chompers together.

The way back home, the old shutdown mining vent engine, was pretty much easy for Jinx. Despite the explosion of the Council and coming off wet, it still took a while before people would start looking for her, so picking a way, especially one without any of Sevika's thugs (whose intelligence pretty much matched her competence...) wasn't a problem. Even the gunshot wound wasn't a problem to heal, though she was still feeling the pain.

The real problem was them. They got more and more annoying since she came back, especially the Mylo.

The Claggor was a bit more reserved, but was still there, trying to reach her.

And, of course, the Vander, whom was stashed away until sister called to him at the worst hour of her life, and now was back and trying to get her attention.

The loud gramophone was doing it's work, and yet, somehow, it wasn't enough.

As she tried wiring the new rocket for Fishbones together, suddenly a flash hit her, where she could see the Mylo's figment, shrugging at her, to her left. She brushed him off, trying to focus on her work. Anything but having to face all that happened. The recent events were still too fresh on her mind to talk it with them.

The Mylo appeared again. Just like the jackass he is. She brushed him off again as she glanced at him with bare teeth, with her googles still on.

The next one, this time, was the Cleggor, to her right. She groaned and brushed him off, too.

Then it was the Vander, and his sad face, something quite frequent in him ever since childhood. She didn't need this. She brushed him off, groaning louder. Of all the times for them to show up...

Just focus on the pain. The patched-up pain on the shoulder, that should do the trick. She groaned a bit on that, but still smiled. They'd leave her alone. They had to.

Both the Mylo and the Cleggor now went back, both at once. It wasn't working. She let out a shout, brushing both away.

The flash came up again and she immediately went to slap it off, hitting the air, having had enough.

It was the new face that stopped her on the spot. His face.

The Silco. Simply standing there, staring at her.

It was clear they'd have words with her, no matter the noise, the brushing, anything.

"ALRIGHT! Fine!", Jinx snapped, anguishing angrily, taking her googles off, rushing to the gramophone and punching it off, killing the noise, and then heading to the chair by the cracked, shot-up mirror, taking a breather and sitting down. She let out a cry, frustrated. That she had to deal with that, of all hours.

'Let's give one for Jinx, everybody.', the Mylo's voice banged in her head. 'Silco's dead, sister's gone.'

"Well, better that way!", Jinx snapped, her shout echoing across those caves. "Sister, I mean! Silco... Silco was an accident, and- yet, he... he forgave me. Who else ever did that?"

'She could've been back to us...', this time it was the Cleggor's.

"She and her stupid Cupcake deserve each other!", she retorted. "Let'em frolic all they want!"

'She still wants Powder back.', the Vander said.

"Well, boo-hoo-hoo, Powder's a goner.", Jinx replied. "Maybe now she realized that..."

A jolt of pain came up from the shoulder. From that shot both Jinx and... 'it'... knew should've been a straight hit, either head or heart. But, of course, sister had to get in way. All for the sake of trying to save that which was gone, what *had* to be gone. As what she once heard, the fear of pain could no longer control her. The pain, *that* pain, was just too much.

'Everyone betrays us, Jinx...'

Jinx sighed, nodding and agreeing to that voice. His voice. The one she'd ever bother to heed, all out of respect for him. He knew what she was, who she was, something everyone else didn't.

Her old 'brothers' just saw her as a useless burden, and they still did after death. The evil Cupcake saw only a crazy girl, killing and blasting whenever it hit her to do so. The sister saw only the old, idealized Powder, whom screwed things up, couldn't throw a punch and had to rely on her big sister to cover her. Sevika and everyone else in Zaun saw her as a Loose Cannon. The enforcers just saw another Zaunite troublemaker.

Silco was the only one whom ever saw her for what she was. Perfect. And now he was gone, but she made sure she'd always remember him. She needed him to drive her.

Jinx could then feel the lightness, the dizzyness she always liked coming up as it soothed her memories, and simply started letting out a snicker as she slouched at the chair.

So be it. Let it just be her against the whole world. They needed armies, people, resources. She had Fishbones, she had Pow-Pow and the Chompers, and that was enough.

It was just like he said, when he told her of the deal topside had forced.

"Yeah...", she muttered. "Alrighty, then... They can all burn... we'll show'em."

'We will.', the Silco started. 'But we must know. Zaun never sleeps. The Chem-Barons might be plotting something.'

"Sheesh, really? Now?", she asked. "All they do is yapping and yapping..."

'And yet they can pose more danger than the bombs ever did. It's just-'

'Just stay and mope all night long, at least that you don't screw up.'

Jinx, in an instant, opened the drawer, grabbed her spare sidearm and fired at the couch where the Mylo effigy used to sit, clearly pissed. "Don't. Ever. Interrupt him! AGAIN!", she roared, before smacking the gun back on the rack and resting her back on the chair.

'It's just us now. Ignoring them won't make them go away. Who knows how they're planning to get to us, Jinx? Set us apart?'

Jinx shrugged, seeing some sense. For a bunch of people whom just talk, they really did some things that decided pretty much what was what in Zaun, and Silco had to deal with them just to keep himself on the top. Pretty much as what she had to do with all those stupid Pilties just to be able to do everything for him. Well, the Pilties, the stupid Firelights, pretty much everyone.

'We must know.', the Silco insisted.

'We must lay low.', the Vander got in the way. 'You blew a building-'

"As if I'd ever heed you, you sell-out you.", Jinx retorted. Of course the almighty, all taller Vander trying to be a voice of conscience, when he had no right. Hell, Vander barely had any time for her, too focused on sister.

'We must know, Jinx.', the Silco kept going on.

Jinx sighed, finally getting up from the chair. "Alright, alright, I'll do it...", she said, starting to walk towards her belongings, to ready herself for a trip upwards. She took a stop, staring at the Silco figment before her. "For you.", she added, with a soft tone, resuming her way.

'But I wanted to stay home.', the Cleggor whined.

"Yeah, me too...", she dismissed him, grabbing Pow-Pow and strapping it on her shoulder. Same with Fishbones.