Futuristic Reptiles (In the city under a radiation storm)

[Joyeful]

Jax shrugged. "Whatever you did, you were out of it. Almost got into a fight with someone, which, honestly, I'm not surprised. And even with just vivid dreams, I already have enough. They'd just freak me out."

She also might be more like a normal person- with all their blended thoughts and mixed emotions. Hell no. I'll pass.

 

[Jodyguru]

Reggie yawned. “Yeah, it causes temporary memory loss. Sometimes I need it just for that. Right now I just want a big sleep with a side of noodles.”

They finally reached a portion of the cave where a big muddy rock was sitting against a wall. Reggie put his shoulder against it and pushed, sliding it and revealing a small door, too small to walk through. Reggie crawled over and pushed the door open.

“Come on in. Me casa, su casa.” He said after crawling into the safe house. Once inside, Jax would be with Reggie in a dark room roughly the size of a studio apartment. The air was musty and dry. The walls were sheetmetal and the floor hard wood. There was a dusty bed and a moldy sofa. There was also a generator in the corner.

“Oh man, I hope the generator has gas.” Reggie went over and pulled the ripcord on it a couple times. The generator kicked on, and a lightbulb lit the room up. There was an electric stove there too.

“Don’t ask me how I got all this crap down here. Long, boring story.”

 

[Joyeful]

She looked over the room, wincing at the additional slime that coated her hands and knees as she crawled through, getting up as quickly as possible.

"Penthouse material, for being in a sewage pipe," she remarked, "And who said I wanted to hear a story? This is relatively dry, and I do actually want to know how the hell you managed that."

Flooded basements took weeks to empty, and this was the epitome of dirty, flooded basements with bio-hazard stamped on them. The couch was a particular point of interest, but she really didn't care about that. It was a moldy couch, and there wasn't anything else to say about the matter besides that.

The bed was also slightly interesting, but she didn't suppose Reggie had to deal with slime falling out of his skin in his sleep. Again, enough said with the fact that it was a place to sleep.

"Mind if I crash on this couch here for a minute?"

 

[Jodyguru]

Reggie chuckled and went to the counter in his little kitchen area. “Go ahead. Do whatever you like. We’re gonna spend a little time here, so rest up.”

He went to the phone on the counter and dialed a number.

“Hey it’s Snake. Get me the boss.

...

Yeah, job is done. Took a little longer than you wanted, but... yeah I was gonna... fuck... yes boss.... yes... I will... okay... I don’t know, I’ll ask her.”

Reggie turned towards Jax. “Do you mind coming to meet the boss with me? He says he has an assignment, and he thinks you’d be good backup.”

It seemed that the video footage of Octo’s brave prison escape made its way into the hands of Reggie’s employers, and they were impressed by her feats of mutagenetic prowess.

 

[Joyeful]

Groaning, Jax pried herself off the couch. "And I was just about to get into a really good dream, too. I do mind, but let me guess, I don't have a choice? Why do they want me, anyways?"

To her, it sounded like a call to bullshit, and certain death, but if Reggie was alive, she had a fair shot.

Although getting shot seemed far more likely.

 

[Jodyguru]

Reggie put his hand out. “No, sit, sleep. They’re having us come in tomorrow. I swear I’ve got two steps in me before I collapse. Boss said he thought you were super, like one of those comic book heroes. He’s a romantic. Anyways, I think you should do it to get some friends, cuz we made some serious enemies today.”

Reggie took a couple steps and flopped onto the bed, sending a poof of dust flying into the air. “Ohhh god. I forgot how good beds are.”

 

[Joyeful]

Jax gave a small smile, before yawning. "Yeah, I really need some shut-eye, decent or not."
She'd barely slept in the prison, planning and watching, and also wary of Reggie those first few days. She was used to distant noise, not the kind of noise that was right next to her, the constant screaming only becoming bearable after a few days of it.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, sticking around here for a bit. Jax just hoped she'd be able to get this done fast enough to make sure Aliya hadn't ratted out her many little troves of treasure.

 

[Jodyguru]

The generator rumbled a bit longer before shutting off. It had been running on fumes pretty much. The safe house was dark and quiet, and they both fell asleep.

Daddy daddy, watch how high I can swing!

Easy Darla, you might fly to the moon if you go that high.

The moon is made of cheese!

It sure is, baby girl.

In the middle of the night, Jax would awaken for a moment, and hear faint whimpering sounds coming from her partner in crime.

 

[Joyeful]

She had been sleeping with a dreamless mind, thankfully, and was a light sleeper.

Oh, fuck, not a mouse. Not a fucking glowing mouse that decided it was a brilliant idea to become mutated and... I don't fucking know. Just no rodents. Please, for the love of all things holy and righteous, though I'm far from it...

But it wasn't a mouse. Nothing was glowing in the room, though it was dark, and would have easily been visible. It was coming from around the bed.

"Reggie?" she called softly, fingers extending a bit, prepared to choke anyone who decided it'd be brilliant to break in- though how they found it was a different matter all on its own. "Whoever the fuck is over there, answer me," Jax called again, shaking a bit but with a hard tone in her voice.

 

[Jodyguru]

The whimpering continued for another moment.

“Please... I’m sorry. Don’t leave...” Reggie muttered.

 

[Joyeful]

Okay, that's it.
Jumping off the couch, she stalked over to the bed. "Who the fuck is here? Answer me."

This was insane, she knew it- a thief confronting someone who had probably had sex with Reggie minutes before. How she hadn't heard it was a question she'd address later. She didn't care who he fucked, but in a safe house? Really?

 

[Jodyguru]

Reggie snorted and looked around in the darkness.

“Huh, wha... Jax? What are you yelling about?” He asked, groggy and confused.

 

[Joyeful]

"Goddammit, Reggie, don't play dumb with me. Whoever you fucked can get the hell out- this is a safe house, dumbass. Or did the Orange Blast really do a number on you? Damn, whimpering and shit, you really expect I'm not going to figure it out?"

Throwing her hands in the air, she stalked back to the couch. "Just get them the hell out, you two can kiss and make up tomorrow. Jesus, in a safe house, of all things."

 

[Jodyguru]

Reggie looked around bewildered, though Jax couldn’t see.

“Jax, I don’t know what the fuck you’re on about! I was sleeping! What woman would want my mangy ass anyway? Hey babe come over I got a rotten can of beans and bed lice to share with you. Don’t mind the sleeping lizard two inches away. You’re acting crazy.” Reggie rolled over and pulled a blanket over him.

 

[Joyeful]

"Sleeping, my ass. Talking in your sleep about Oh don't leave yet, like I believe that bullshit. I'm mutated, not stupid. But if you want to lie, fine. Tell your Jane or Joe that they'd better be gone when I wake up again."

Honestly, he believes that I'll just take the bait. The fuck you on, Reggie?

 

[Jodyguru]

There was a long silence. Reggie was racking his brain, trying to remember the dream he had. He couldn’t, but his heart was racing and he felt awful.

“I don’t... I haven’t had a woman in a long time. Not since Genie left me. My wife. I’m a rebel and a junkie according to you, but I’m not a whore.”

 

[Joyeful]

Jax paused. He sounded... she couldn't placed it. Dammit, where was that part of her that used to be so empathetic? Emotions on others used to be her strong point, or at least, she let them see what they wanted to see. Right now... oh, there was the emotion. He sounded hurt.

She guessed he probably didn't want her to be all concerned and whatnot, so she just sighed. "Keep your wet dreams to yourself, then. Or at least try."
Being blunt was fine. Jax would just try to forget about the whole ordeal. "I'm going back to sleep."

Before another painful memory left his mouth. She really, really didn't want to deal with that. Call her selfish, she needed her sleep.
The couch squished with the noise of her body hitting the light coating of slime over it, and she winced, getting comfortable.

 

[Jodyguru]

The next day, Octo and Snakebite emerged from the sewers and walked down seven blocks to reach a small restaurant with old wood varnish in the entrance way. A pair of goons stood nearby, plugging their noses as to not smell the offensive odors the two had attached to them.

"Just cool it when you talk to the boss, okay? These guys take disrespect pretty seriously."

Sitting at a table with toast and eggs in front of him and two plates across was Reggie's boss. An elderly man with thin white hair, clean face, and a round belly pushing into the table. He wore a gray suit and had a neutral expression before catching Jax's eyes.

"Ah, so this is her? You are much taller than you seemed in the videos" the boss laughed. "You may call me Signor. Its Italian for sir or mister. Please, sit down and eat. You must be starving."

 

[Joyeful]

Jax blinked, almost shocked that she was being treated like... and actual person?
Is this what they get to deal with every day? Lucky bastards...

"Thank you? Signor? But I wouldn't want to ruin these, uh..."
What's a good word for gaudy things that look like trash but cost more than a city?
"Very expensive seats of yours. I smell like sewage, and I've heard that transfers easily."

Besides, starvation wasn't exactly something she was foreign to. She ate well enough, for a mutated human.

 

[Jodyguru]

The boss chuckled. “No, I insist. I’ve smoked so many cigars I can’t smell er taste a thing.”

Reggie leaned in. “Signor works with a lot of mutants. We are really-“

Signor raised his hand and Snake stopped talking. In fact he started to choke. He flopped on the table, face first into the eggs.

“Be quiet, Ricardo. The lady and I are speaking.”

“My names not-“ he choked again. Signor’s face was twisted with an angry puss on his face. Once Reggie became quiet, his frown quickly turned back towards Jax and became a smile.

“Please, sit.”

 

[Joyeful]

Jax did as she was told, almost immediately. "Well, I'm honored that you called me here."

What a lie. This guy reminded her of the person that she had worked under before Aliya got her out, just a little more... calm. One would hardly be able to tell that this man seemed to be a mutant as well, possibly.

I mean, who else would be able to stuff Reggie's face into the eggs like that? He's usually not one to be pushed around, even with the telepathic back at the prison.

"If I may ask, why exactly am I here? He never said."

 

[Jodyguru]

Signor sucked his teeth a few times and shook his head at Reggie, who sat down and rubbed his windpipe.

“Ricardo I am very displeased with you. I raised you better than this. Leading our friend through the darkness like you’re the only one with eyes.”

Reggie didn’t reply.

“Well, when one of my sons breaks a neighbors window playing ball, it’s only right they apologize. I’m sending him to Talon Headquarters, and Id like you to help him. You’ll be given anything you want in return. A favor for a favor?”

 

[Joyeful]

She paused. "We're... apologizing to Talon for making a prison break?"

Oh hell nah. Not Talon. Not apologizing to those bastards, ever- and did this guy imply he has a son? Or does he mean that he treats his employees like his offspring?

Jax glanced around the room, before her eyes landed on Signor again. Okay, play this smart. Don't dive off a cliff before checking your parachute, right?

 

[Jodyguru]

Signor shook his head. “No. We are apologizing for not taking them seriously when they stole my boys!” The boss’ voice grew louder.

“I want those ugly bastards to suffer like they did to all those boys in the prison. It’s not right. It’s not right to treat us like lab experiments. Ricardo is very talented. I trust you to keep him safe, get him back to me in one piece. Can you do that?”

 

[Joyeful]

Jax wanted to run, but she felt like she was glued in place. Maybe because she knew he'd probably break her neck if she tried escaping, though she wasn't bad at it.
"So, torture them? That's what they did to... to us. Right?"

Fuck.
She didn't care if it was the right or wrong thing to say, it was a question. Her old job had called for it. Brutal, her boss. Maybe not bipolar, like this man seemed. But from what she was getting, she was going to have to torture someone again.

Sorry, Adam. Guess I'm going back to my roots.
Fuck. She had told herself not to talk about Adam. Not to say his name. Ever. Adam was gone. All promises or bets and whatnot were off.