Saturday, September 10, 2011

Killer Laser Rays, Part: 25, Arizona

            Arizona pulled up and parked his new ride, underneath the awning . It was still dark and they had driven for a long time, two days nearly. Arizona was exhausted, not allowing the kid to drive so at the moment Lunar Flight was sleeping in the back. He groaned and leaned back pulling the keys from the ignition. He looked in the rear-view mirror before he climbed out of the Sienna and checked the meat in the back. most of it had started to rot but the meat on the bottom was still cold and edible which was good. He left it open then opened the back door of the car and pulled the sleeping kid out and slumped him over his shoulder before he walked over to the door and opened it and walked down the hall into the main bar room.
                He walked in as quietly as he could in his clumsy exhausted state. There were lights on everywhere, which was unusual. He soon entered the barroom and froze. He looked at the people before him. He stared back at the stunned faces before him before he remembered he had the kid slung over his shoulder.
            “Uhm, he’s just sleeping, don’t worry.” He said though his voice sounded dry and scratchy. Zebra walked up and took the kid from him before he handed him over to Ado before he started to take Arizona’s clothes off.
              “Dude you reek.” Rage said making a face. Arizona merely looked at him not speaking, not sure what to say so he just nodded. Zebra continued to strip him while Arizona pulled his goggles off and let them hang around his neck. Alabama stood and Arizona’s eyes met hers, He tried to relay how sorry he was, how much he wanted to make it up to her, hoping she would understand, and forgive him. She averted her eyes, chewing her lip, before she turned and walked away.
            He felt shocked, his teeth clenching, the muscle in his jaw jumping before he closed his eyes shutting every emotion away. He wouldn’t allow himself to get hurt, or to hurt anyone else. He opened his eyes again and looked down at Wasp, then to Zebra.
           “I’m gonna go shower.” He said before he turned and left them all behind without another word. He slipped into the bathroom and closed the door before he went into a shower stall and locked it. He finished stripping, taking his socks, pants and boxers off and tossed them over the top of the stall. He turned to the water knob and turned it on, letting the water wash over him. He stood there as the clean water washed over him. Thoughts flew through his mind, hatred for himself, hatred in what he had done, how he had hurt Alabama.
           “Bitch.” He growled then slammed his fist into the stall denting it slightly, “Bitch!” He yelled pulling his hand away from the stall, his knuckles bleeding. He forced himself to breath calmly, “This is all your fault, you dumb-ass” He mumbled before he chuckled bitterly. He grabbed the soap and poured it over his head, as he lathered the bleeding cuts in his knuckles stung but he ignored the pain. As he spread the bubbles around his head he noticed the usually shaved half of his head was longer. He made a mental note to shave it short again.
           Arizona started to rinse his hair, the soap running down his neck and cheeks. It was almost invigorating. As is swept further down his body he realized something, he couldn’t give up, wouldn’t. He had to make Alabama understand he was sorry, that the kiss that had happened between him and Solar meant nothing. And it hadn’t, it happened and it felt like nothing, nothing had happened. With Alabama his gut felt warm and bubbled, his chest would grow tight in anticipation. But with Solar nothing had happened, he felt nothing, just aggravation that she was still crying over that sleezebag.
I don’t care what it takes, I will make her see I, He paused in the lathering of his body as his thoughts dominated. I love her, I have to make her understand. He thought with a renewed sense of determination. He washed his body then rinsed off and shut off the water. He grabbed a towel and started to dry off when he heard the door open then shut. He stopped for a moment to listen.             “Arizona, are you ok?” Ado’s voice 
reached him from the counters. Arizona wrapped the towel around his waist and left the stall. 
            “Yeah, kinda.”
            “You still stink, what happened?” Ado asked wrinkling his nose.
            “I don’t want to talk about it.” Ari said not looking at Ado.
            “Brought you those pj’s” Ado said changing the subject quickly.
            “Cool. Why is it so hard to get through to a girl?” Arizona asked suddenly.
            “Don’t ask me, I got my own girl problems.” Ado replied with a smirk. 


             “Do you?” He asked interested, but not showing this.
           
“Yeah, that girl Seretonin, she, well I’m not sure, I’ve fallen for her, and I made it known, but, she is acting like I didn’t tell her. I don’t know, whatever, if she doesn’t like me, then I let it go.” He paused, “You should too Ari, you broke her heart, she doesn’t want you anymore, so let it go.” He finished looking at Arizona with a serious face.

            “I can’t.” Arizona said with a nonchalant shrug.
            “What do you mean? You fucked up.”
            “Yeah, and I know this, damn it, I went out to find her, I literally went through hell to look for her, to make sure she was ok. I get back, and she blows me off, and I still want her. I
can’t give up Ado.” Ari said with a sigh, he rubbed his face and grabbed the change of clothes. “There is some meat in the trunk that hasn’t gone bad, it needs to be cooked like now, and there is some fruit too, make sure none of it goes to waste, I need some sleep.” He told him as he entered a dry stall to change. 



             “You might want to wait on the sleeping. The Big 4 are here, and they want to see those plans.” Ado said standing up from the counter.
            “Are you shitting me? No, I need sleep, I haven’t slept in almost a week, tell them to fuck off.” He said angrily as he left the stall in his to small pj bottoms.
            “They wont like hearing that, but alright.” Ado said before leaving him. Arizona dried his hair before he left the room and sneaked into the mattress room where he managed to find an empty mattress away from anyone since he still stank of the dead he had spent so much time with. He lay there for a moment, but was unable to sleep. He tossed and turned for nearly and hour before he was tapped on the shoulder. He rolled over to see Seretonin leaning over him.
            
“Here,” she held out a hand with little blue pills in them. He eyed them skeptically. “They are sleeping pills, I’m tired of hearing you toss, Neon gave me some a month back, you will sleep but not dream, so take them please?” She told him, her eyes pleading in the dark. He thought for a moment, then took them. She handed him a glass of water and downed the pills. 
             “Thanks” He said.
            “Welcome, and I suggest another shower or four when you wake up.” She said before she tip-toed away. Ari laid back down and in almost thirty minutes he was asleep. A dreamless, dead sleep, just as Sere had promised.

How to Survive Zone 1, Chapter 7: How to keep Party from Getting his Ass Kicked


Party drove fast enough to melt your face off the entire ride, flooring it to get there as fast as humanly possible. I couldn’t blame him, I mean, I was worried too. Too many people knowing means too many people panic, and when too many people panic, they charge into Battery City and get themselves killed trying to play the hero. We needed to get there and quell the excitement before anything got out of hand.
I eventually became used to the perpetual face-melting and fell asleep quickly, curling into a ball on Ghoul’s lap. It was fitful, but needed, and i awoke to Ghoul shaking me a few hours later.
“Terror, time to get up.” He shook my shoulder gently. The sun had disappeared, replaced with rain so heavy there was barely any visibility beyond four or five feet around the car. I was surprised the noise hadn’t woken me up in the first place, considering it was loud enough to drown out an air horn. I blinked a few times, clearing the sleep out of my eyes and looking out. In the distance, I could make out the faint lights of our destination. We neared, and I jumped off of Ghoul’s lap, quickly ducking under the overhang of the diner. The guys piled out a few seconds later and filed inside quickly, Space Nuke bringing up the rear. I grabbed his wrist and pulled him aside just as the guys went inside.
“Hey, what-” He started to ask.
“Listen to me, okay?” I cut him off quickly. “People in this area can be a bit judgemental and don’t exactly... trust the whole Drac Recovery Program. For now, at least, keep your tattoo covered and don’t talk to them, okay?” I looked in the window quickly before heading toward the door. “And Party’s in a mood, so don’t say anything for now, got it?” He nodded as we both walked in the diner to stand with the guys. A short, dark haired woman I recognized as Warzone Wasp, the clan head and outpost leader. The guys were shaking hands with a crowd of people. I’d heard about Wasp’s huge new clan, but I didn’t realize it was THIS big. There had to be at least 10 people here. And I thought my clan was huge...
“Is this everybody?” Party asked.
“Except the two youngest girls, yes.” Wasp looked tired, but was still in charge.
“So who’s the one with the plans?” He was expectantly examining Wasp.
“He’s having a hard time getting here, he’s on his way.” She nodded.
“So basically, your clan has become drama-filled and petty and you let them run all over the desert doing whatever they want?” Party Poison was looking down, pinching the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb. He looked up, waiting for Wasp’s answer.
“Well now-”
“I just drove halfway across the second Zone in the pouring rain in the dark at 120 miles PER hour to rush over here for these plans, and you have NOTHING to show for it?!” Party nearly screamed. “You let your clan run amuck with no order, you let your diner go to shit-”
“Party, calm the fuck down-” A tall man with frizzy brown hair put a hand on his shoulder.
“I will not calm the fuck down!” He raged. “There’s no one responsible here!”
“Hey, you can’t just come in here and say-” A blonde girl I hadn’t seen before started, before Party cut her off
“And you! You just run off into the desert for no apparent reason because your little boyfriend broke your heart? Seriously? We’re in the middle of a war, you can’t just run off-” Just about then, the blonde girl punched him square in the jaw, knocking him to the floor. Space Nuke quickly pulled me back by my shoulders and out of the way as Party fell, the stunned silence lasting only a nanosecond before they all simultaneously combusted.
The yelling could’ve awakened the dead as the blonde girl was scooped up by two larger guys from her clan, her biceps held so she couldn’t move. It seemed unnecessary, considering she wasn’t struggling. Party spit out a wad of blood on the floor as a war waged above him. The noise seemed to drop out suddenly as Party started laughing. I looked back at Space Nuke, who simply shrugged, confused.
“Wow, I totally deserved that, didn’t I?” He took his hand off his jaw and looked at it before staring at the blonde girl. “You have some left hook.”
“Thanks.” She smiled nervously.
“You totally did deserve that by the way, dumbass.” I rolled my eyes, trying to cut the tension. Jet and Kobra hauled Party to his feet.
“C’mon, knucklehead, let’s go clean you up.” Ghoul led the way to the kitchen, rolling his eyes. The guys let the girl down, which is when they took a look at each other before howling in laughter. After a few moments, they quieted, finally noticing me.
“I would’ve done the same thing.” I grinned, offering my hand. “It was nice to see someone stand up to him for once. I’m Tear Gas Terror.”
“Alabama Napalm.” She watched me cautiously as I shook her hand, as if expecting a trap. “This is Disco Destroya, Zebra Kiss, Raging Radiohead, Lightning Laserstrike, Solar Crash, Plasma Noise, Adolescent Suicide, and of course, Warzone Wasp.” I shook hands with each as she pointed them out
“But yeah, I promise, Party isn’t always such a hardass. He’s just stressed from... some stuff.” I bit my lip and glanced away. “I’m gonna go check on them.” I smiled before headed through the swinging kitchen doors the guys had disappeared into.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” I marched up to Party, who was sitting on the counter in the kitchen with a bag of ice on his face. “What on Earth was running through your head just then?”
“I was aggravated, okay?” He sounded rueful, like he actually felt bad for yelling. “I know, I should’ve controlled my temper, but it’s been a long day.”
I was silent for a second. “Well, couldn’t you have gone all apeshit on the crazy one, like Sally?” A smile crept onto my lips as the guys all started laughing. I rolled my eyes.
“Alright, alright. Terror, you and Space Nuke head to bed. We’re gonna wait up for the kid with the plans.” Party nodded.
“I’ll be right there watching you both though.” Ghoul glared at us.
“Oh yeah, we need watching.” I rolled my eyes before smiling seductively at Space Nuke. “C’mon, before he’s watching us.” I winked and grabbed his hand, scampering out of the room with Space Nuke in tow before Ghoul could blow a gasket and murder him.
We got to the mattress room quickly, laughing. “Dude, you’re gonna get me killed!” Spacke Nuke laughed.
“Nah, they need you too much.” I laughed it off, out of breath.
“Not that much.” He shook his head.
I chuckled before slapping my thighs and looking around. “We should probably be more quiet, there’s too many people sleeping.” I whispered. “C’mon, there’s some mattresses over here.” I pointed to three unoccupied mattresses, picking my way over sleeping Killjoys to get there. I laid down on one, Nuke grabbing an empty one near it and both of us laying down, quickly falling asleep.

Killer Laser Rays, Part 24: Alabama


“Alabama.” Someone hissed my name quietly, shaking my shoulder. I shot out of bed, adrenaline fueling my startling wake-up, before I realized it was Disco.
“Come on, you need to get up. Don’t wake Babydoll and Mighty Mouse.” He led me quickly out of the room of sleeping Killjoys and into the diner. I hadn’t realized it had fallen dark, but since this storm started, no one could tell day from night. From the clock on the wall, it was about 2 am Battery City time.
“What’s going on?” I whispered quietly to Disco as we crept out to the main diner. All of the emergency don’t-use-these-unless-the-world-ends-again lights were on, causing me to shield my eyes as I crept into the diner, wearing only some black cotton shorts I’d picked up a while ago and my wife-beater. As my eyes adjusted, I saw six people in the center of the diner. Two I didn’t recognize. Four I did.
“The Fabulous Killjoys?” I hissed at Disco. “Thanks for the warning!”
“Is this everybody?” The redheaded man, named Party Poison, as I was quickly filled in, looked at Wasp.
“Except the two youngest girls, yes.” Wasp was obviously tired, but still almost regal, like usual.
“So who’s the one with the plans?” He was expectantly examining Wasp.
“He’s having a hard time getting here, he’s on his way.” She nodded.
“So basically, your clan has become drama-filled and petty and you let them run all over the desert doing whatever they want?” Party Poison was looking down, pinching the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb. He looked up, waiting for Wasp’s answer.
“Well now-”
“I just drove halfway across the second Zone in the pouring rain in the dark at 120 miles PER hour to rush over here for these plans, and you have NOTHING to show for it?!” Party nearly screamed. “You let your clan run a-muck with no order, you let your diner go to shit-”
“Party, calm the fuck down-” A tall man with frizzy brown hair put a hand on his shoulder.
“I will not calm the fuck down!” He raged. “There’s no one responsible here!”
“Hey, you can’t just come in here and say-” I started before he turned on me.
“And you! You just run off into the desert for no apparent reason because your little boyfriend broke your heart? Seriously? We’re in the middle of a war, you can’t just run off-” and that’s when my fist connected with his jaw. It shut him up awfully well.
The infamous Party Poison fell down rather ungracefully as I was manhandled by Disco and Zebra, who locked up my biceps and held me back, even though it was unnecessary. I only needed one shot. Everyone started yelling as Party Poison spit out a wad of blood on the floor. The noise stopped suddenly, however, when we heard laughing. I didn’t find the source until my eyes landed on Party Poison, laughing his head off from the floor.
“Wow, I totally deserved that, didn’t I?” He looked at the his hand, which was covered in his blood, before looking back at me. “You have some left hook.”
“Thanks.” I smiled nervously from my captors’ arms, unsure if he was serious.
“You totally did deserve that by the way, dumb-ass.” The girl rolled her eyes while the frizzy-haired man and the tall, skinny one helped him up.
“C’mon, knucklehead, let’s go clean you up.” The shorter, dark-haired man led the way to the kitchen, rolling his eyes playfully. The guys let me down after he’d left the room, which is when we all merely looked at each other and started busting a gut, seeing as there was nothing else we could do.
After we’d all calmed down, we realized that the girl we’d seen earlier was still here. Her hair was a bright, frizzy red with neon green streaks, which framed a pale, freckled face. A long scar ran down one cheek, giving her elfish face a look of toughness.
“I would’ve done the same thing.” She grinned and held out her hand. “It was nice to see someone stand up to him for once. I’m Tear Gas Terror.”
“Alabama Napalm.” I eyed her carefully, shaking her hand. “This is Disco Destroya, Zebra Kiss, Raging Radiohead, Lightning Laserstrike, Solar Crash, Plasma Noise, Adolescent Suicide, and of course, Warzone Wasp.” I pointed to each one in turn as she shook their hand.
“But yeah, I promise, Party isn’t always such a hardass. He’s just stressed from... some stuff.” She looked away for a moment before turning back to us, her kind smile renewed. “I’m gonna go check on them.” She followed them into the kitchen quickly.
“Terror’s running with them again?” Zebra’s eyebrows went up. “Something big is up, that’s for sure.”
“Oh, quit gossipping and go back to bed. I’ll wake you when Ari gets home.” Wasp looked disheveled and exhausted.
“Wasp, you go get some sleep, you need it.” Solar nodded. “We’ll stay up and deal with the losers in the kitchen.”
“No, I’m fine.” She nodded, determined. “Don’t even bother arguing it. I’m fine.”
“All right then, if you insist.” Zebra shrugged.
“Everybody, grab a seat, we’ve got a wait ahead of us.” Wasp nodded as we dispersed to various parts of the diner. I grabbed Disco and sat across from him in a booth, folding my frigid feet underneath me.
“Now spill. What happened? Why are they here?” I nodded to the kitchen.
“Apparently, Arizona radioed in about finding some plans. I don’t know the whole story, but rumor has it,” His voice dropped to a whisper, making him inaudible to the rest of the diner thanks to the ever persisting rain. “it’s a mind control plot by BLI. It could enslave all the Killjoys at once.” ,
“But that’s-”
“The same as the pill.” Disco cut me off. “They mess with your brainwaves This is very possible and it could work on everybody.”
I was silent for a minute, contemplating this. “Do they have any sort of plan?”
“I heard they’re sending in one of their spies to take it down.” He shrugged, quiet for a moment. “Hes coming back soon, y’know.”
My jaw tightened at the mention of Arizona. “I know.”
“You’re not going back to that piece of shit, are you?”
Suddenly, the door swung open and who else but Arizona walked through the door, soaked and disheveled, carrying what looked like a body over one shoulder. Disco stood up quickly, as did everyone else. My eyes widened as he dripped on the floor, the stench of rotting meat and acid rain flooding the room.
“Uhm, he’s just sleeping, don’t worry.” He said softly, his voice throaty and obviously exhausted. Zebra strode toward him and took the kid, handing him off to Ado before starting to strip Ari, removing his soaked clothes.
“Dude, you reek.” Rage made a face. Arizona nodded, allowing himself to be stripped. I noticed Solar lurking near the door to the mattress room, watching from afar, her arms sleepily crossed over her chest, worry written over her face as she watched him. Arizona didn't notice as Wasp and Zebra fussed over him, seeming to be running on empty. I stood from my seat, catching Arizona's eyes. I eyed him hesitantly, skeptically, as he stood before me, his goggles and most of his clothes shed, leaving him vulnerable. His eyes showed just how sorry he was, how badly he wanted me back. His eyes showed me volumes, but then I remembered the way he’d kissed Solar, the way he’d lied and used me. I couldn’t forgive him, at least not yet. I bit my lip and looked down, turning and walking away.

Killer Laser Rays, Part 23: Alabama


“Get the fuck away from her!” I bolted awake to someone screaming. I sat up and found myself in the middle of a standoff between my new-found friends and Rage, Lightning and Disco. All had weapons drawn, staring intently on the other. Captain had been leaning over me, about to wake me up.
“Okay, let’s all calm down here.” Captain said soothingly.
“Shut up!” Disco cut him off, waving his raygun.
“They took me in, moron, all of you put those things down!” I shouted angrily from my makeshift bed. The room went silent as Disco stared at me.
“But... the Ritalin Rat...” He stared at me confused.
“That’s a bit of a touchy subject...” I glanced nervously at Carrot Top, who had acquired a white-knuckle grip on her brand new rifle “I’ll explain later, just put your weapons down.”
After a few seconds of standoff, all parties involved lowered their respective weapons. I scrambled to my feet, forgetting to grab a blanket and realizing, after a few moments, that I was standing there in nothing but my bra and underwear.
“Don’t even say it.” I glared at Rage and Lightning, who glanced at each other, eyebrows raised. I snatched a blanket off the floor quickly before turning to my boys.
“Guys, this is Carrot Top Queen, TNT Termination and Captain A-Bomb.” I pointed to all of them. “Captain, Carrot Top, this is Disco Destroya, Raging Radiohead and Lightning Laserstrike.” Each group sized the other up, waving or nodding to acknowledge them.
“It’s nice to meet you all.” Disco nodded coolly. “Alabama, can I talk to you for a second, maybe after you put some clothes on?”
“Of course.” I glared at Disco, dressing quickly in my now-dry clothes and following him out into the hallway. He shut the doors carefully before turning and glaring at me with a fury unlike anything I’d ever seen.
“Do you have any idea how freaked out we’ve been for the past two days?” He said quietly, the fury apparent in his voice.
“Don’t give me that, Disco, I had to get out of there and got lost, I wasn’t thinking straight-”
“You NEVER think straight, that’s the problem!” Disco yelled, running a hand through his hair. “You get upset, and suddenly everyone else has to pay for it. Rage punched that asshole for you! Wasp has most of the Basket scouring the desert in an acid storm for you and Arizona!” I’d started backing away as Disco moved closer, smashing into the wall behind me.
“Wait, Arizona?” I furrowed my eyebrows, looking at Disco.
“Yeah, he ran off looking for you after getting in a fight with Rage.” Disco ran a hand through his hair, cooling down a bit. “We haven’t heard from him since.”
“Oh.” I nodded, feeling slightly guilty, even though Arizona had hurt me so terribly. “I really fucked up this time, huh?”
“Yeah, you did.” He nodded, rubbing his hands over his face before looking up at me. “I know you didn’t mean it, you just got upset.”
“But still I... I need to work on control.” I looked down, suddenly shamed.
“It’s all right, come here.” Disco pulled me into a hug. I breathed in the familiar scent of him, feeling better already.
“Hey guys, you might wanna come in here!” We heard Rage call nervously from inside. We threw open the door to find them all staring at the barricaded door as someone pounded against it.
“Dracs.” Disco nodded as we heard the clawing and yelling from outside.
“Time to go.” Captain and Carrot Top snatched a large box with handles drilled into it from nearby, filling it with all the stuff they could manage to take with them, packing up most of the site in a matter of minutes. The Dracs had started up a chainsaw or something, starting to cut through the door as we stamped out the everlasting fire.
“This way.” Captain led the way down the stairs, Carrot Top holding one handle, him the other.
“Come on, T.” Carrot Top tried to coax her brother down the stairs. The Dracs were getting closer as she spoke more hurriedly, trying to juggle the box as well.
“Here, let us. Rage took one handle of the box, Lightning the other, freeing up Carrot Top to get her brother moving. Captain led the way down the stairs quickly, back through the room we’d come through and out the door. It was still pouring rain, as luck would have it, probably karma for running out without an explanation. Great.
“They must’ve come in the other way, luckily enough.” Captain said seriously. “Where’s your ride?”
“There.” Disco pointed to a van we’d recovered a month ago from the Dracs, only now it was painted black and grafitied with neon spray paint.
“Typical.” Captain shook his head, grinning. “You Killjoys are all the same.”
“How about you make fun of us in the van?” Disco said quickly, hopping in the front. “Alabama’s the best shot, she sits shotgun. Everybody else in the back.”
“I gotta grab the bike, hold on.” I turned around and sprinted to the bush I’d left it under, pulled it out and jogging it back to the van. Lightning and Rage pulled the bike in from the back quickly while Carrot Top grabbed my forearm, hauling me in as well. The rear doors slammed shut as I stumbled to the front seat quickly, climbing over the median and plopping into the passenger seat next to Disco.
“Here.” Disco dumped my two rayguns, which I’d splatter painted sometime in the last month, into my lap. “Hold them off if you hear shots.”
As he said those words, the pew of laser fire rang out, rocking the van.
“Speak of the devil.” I shook my head and tossed one of my guns on the dashboard, rolling down my window, regardless of the rain, and pulling my upper body out the window to sit on the door. I turned backwards and began shooting, taking down two losers on bikes and a bunch in a car I’d disabled before I had to duck back in.
“From what I could see, there’s four cars and three bikes, so about 15 targets.” I shook the water from my hair. “It’s raining enough to give them cover, but that works both ways, so swerve, but tell me first.” I was about to go back out the window when a noise and a scream from the back caught my attention. I whipped around to see the rear door fly open thanks to a Drac, who was hanging onto the van. Rage quickly pulled his gun and shot it dead, watching the body fall and roll backwards on the concrete.
“There’s four cars, three bikes!” Rage yelled up to the front, aiming and shooting again. “Make that two bikes!” He ducked back into the van, the doors flapping open. Lightning had pulled his gun as well, shooting along with Captain from the sides. Carrot Top was lying on the floor of the van, shooting with her rifle.
“Shit. Swerving!” Disco yelled as he turned sharply, mowing down another bike.
“I’m back at it then.” I climbed back out the window to find one car left.
“Go for the tires!” I yelled quickly. A barrage of lasers came flooding out of the back of the van, and suddenly the car slowed to a crawl before stopping, its tires flat. I cheered along with everyone else as I slid back into my seat, soaked but victorious. In the back, they were high-fiving each other, Lightning questioning Carrot Top about her gun. I smiled to myself, hopeful for my quiet brother.
“All right, we should be back at Wasp’s by tonight.” Disco grinned. “Let’s just hope Zebra, Ado and Plasma had as much luck.”
Turns out, Disco’s “luck” for everybody had pretty much run out. Zebra, Ado and Plasma had come up empty, as we found out when we’d shown up to the Basket. I was greeted with hugs and worried scoldings all around, all telling me that while Arizona was a jackass, my running off helped no one. Mighty Mouse was a wreck when I returned, just adding to my guilt. Disco was still cool, which made it even worse. I’d fucked up, but I was sticking around to clean this up, one way or another. Everyone was exhausted from the worry and fighting, including me, so we all went to sleep, Wasp leaving Adolescent Suicide in charge of the diner. I stumbled off to my mattress, Disco on one side, Mighty Mouse and Babydoll on the other, and fell into a dark, and, for the first time, dreamless sleep.

Killer Laser Rays, Part 22: Alabama


I kept riding until the rain started coming. I was soaked, but I didn’t care. I scanned the horizon for five minutes before spotting the solitary cross in the distance. Even in the torrential downpour, the bright colors were clearly visible, even if some of the sand has been whisked away by the desert winds.The cross had been coated with a special resin I’d seen Neon use the day before, something they used on Battery City houses to protect from acid. I pulled my bandanna down from my mouth as I dumped the bike to the side and walked forward to stand in front of the waist-high cross. My knees made a muffled thump as they hit the dirt in front of the cross.
“I never should’ve trusted him.” I told G.I., regardless of the fact he was buried at least 6 feet under me. “I never should’ve trusted any of them. I should’ve stuck with my instincts, I should’ve never let it get this far. He was meant to be with Solar in the first place, regardless of me. Why did I trust him?!” I screamed to the wind, my words getting lost in the rain. I crawled forward through the dirt and hugged the base of the cross, curling into a ball of misery, anger and resentment.
“You would’ve known what to do. You would’ve saved me. I’m so sorry G.I.” I sobbed and hiccuped, now totally drenched. “So sorry, so sorry…”
I stayed like that, totally vulnerable and exposed, until my skin began to burn from the acid in the rain and the rational side of my brain took over. I stood, letting the rain wash over me, wiping off all the dirt and mud from my body before picking up the red dirt bike and starting it, just to keep driving. I couldn’t go back to the diner just yet, so I drove aimlessly until I saw the small town in the distance. I entered cautiously and looked around. It was old and crumbling and obviously abandoned, the only remnants of a life before the pills left in the cracked sidewalks and dilapidated houses. The burning on my skin getting gradually worse, I kept looking for somewhere to hide out when I the engine below me sputtered and slowly died. Great. Just to make my day, I was out of gas.
Sighing, I climbed off the bike and began to wheel it, looking for anywhere to hide, when the old-fashioned street I was on dead-ended into a massive brick structure. I looked up at the old sign on the side that read, “Redwood County Community High School, Home of the Mountain Lions.” A high school, huh? That would do. I wheeled the dirt bike through the broken courtyard gate, concealing it carefully under some overgrown bushes and grabbing the satchel kept on all dirt bikes just in case before running towards a row of glass and metal doors in the side of the building. I opened one and stepped inside, glad to be out of the rain, but shocked at my surroundings. The school had high ceilings and a big open foyer, which I was standing in just then, with doors leading to other places lining the walls to the front of me and to my left. I chose the doors ahead of me, quickly walking through them partially because I was still out in the open and partially because I was just curious as to what the previous civilization had left behind. Walking forward, I spotted glass and metal containers that must’ve once held rows and rows of food packages, the glass smashed and the food already taken from them. My stomach rumbled as if on cue, causing me to pause and think about the food I knew was in the satchel. No, I reprimanded myself, you might need that later. You’ve been hungrier, just keep moving and look for some place to hide. I walked through yet another set of doors, these wood and glass this time, and into a large room with a wood floor and metal and glass structures hanging from the ceiling. The floor creaked as I moved forward in the dark room. No windows meant no light, so as my eyes adjusted, I continued to move forward.
“Don’t move another muscle or I swear to God I’ll blow your brains out.” I froze, my heartbeat getting erratic as I felt a cold raygun barrel at the base of my neck. Dammit, someone else lived here too. I cursed myself silently as I tried to think of ways out of my current situation.
“Nice to meet you too.” I muttered, shifting from foot to foot. “I just came in here to get out of the rain, I won’t bother you and I’ll leave once the storm’s over.”
“Sure you will.” I heard the raygun cock. “Nice try, but you won’t live to tell your BLI thugs where we’re living.”
“What are you talking about? I’m a Killjoy. At least, I’m kind of a Killjoy.” I took a chance and turned around, staring straight down the barrel of a bright red raygun. Obviously, the person didn’t believe me. As my eyes adjusted, I noted the red-rimmed eyes and shaky hands. The figure sniffed, wiping its nose. A Ritalin Rat. My day just keeps getting better.
“Look, nobody wants to hurt you.” I kept my hands raised, posing no threat although the guns on either hip said otherwise. Ritalin Rats were kids the company had misdiagnosed with ADHD on purpose back before the Takeover as a precursor to the emotion-controlling pills the citizens were popping in Battery City. Once they were no longer prescribed the medication, the Rats became crazed, eventually going to the black market and outside dealers to get their fix. Some were no older than 14 today, others were in their late 20s. All were dangerous.
“Y-you need to leave now.” The shaking got worse as I started to make out more of the person’s face.
“How long have you been off the pills?” I said softly, my hands still raised.
“W-wha... How did you...?” The gun started to droop, which gave me the opportunity to take a chance. I grabbed the gun and bolted.
“Hey! No fair...” The voice said behind me as I booked it out the first set of doors. I turned to see if I was being followed, but was simultaneously tripped into a waiting net, which closed on me quickly. Someone was holding a lantern and several rechargeable flashlights, all pointing towards me. I blinked in the light, my sight mostly gone.
“Hey, it’s a girl!”
“Thanks, captain obvious, I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Take the net off her, for Pete’s sake, she’s a Killjoy!” I was unwrapped slowly as my eyes adjusted to the painful light.
“Sorry, friend, safety precaution. Are you all right?” I was picked up and dusted off before someone grabbed my hand, shaking it. “You got a name?”
“Alabama,” I blinked quickly, squinting against the light. “Alabama Napalm. I run with Wasp’s group.”
“I’m Captain A-Bomb, this is Carrot Top Queen.” A man with medium brown, closely cropped hair and a blue jacket gestured to the redheaded girl next to him, who shifted from foot to foot nodding at me. Both looked normal, like neither had ever touched the pills. “Inside the gym was TNT Termination.”
“You guys seem normal, what are you doing with the Ritalin Rat?” I questioned. I was quickly shoved up against the wall, a raygun at my throat.
“Don’t you say another fucking word about my brother, you got me?” The redheaded girl, Carrot Top, was about two inches away from my face.
“Come on, Carrot Top, she didn’t know.” Captain A-Bomb tried to defuse the situation.
“Yeah, I got you.” I said soothingly, “Sorry. I didn’t know it was your brother.”
“Yeah, just keep your fucking mouth shut.” She shoved me before Captain pulled her backwards, out of my face.
“Leave the poor girl alone. She must’ve had a rough day, what with gallivanting around without her family and having your brother sticking a gun in her face.” Captain reprimanded. “You don’t remember how close Killjoy families are? Leave her alone.” Carrot Top sullenly crossed her arms, but obeyed.
“Where’s your family, hon?” Captain A-Bomb seemed friendly enough.
“I kinda... well, it’s a long story.” I sighed, running a hand through me soaked and dirty blonde hair.
“Well, you’re not going anywhere any time soon in this storm, so how about you come upstairs and tell us what happened, hm?” He said nicely.
“All right, I guess.” I nodded.
“Great. Carrot Top, go get your brother please.” Captain said to the girl quickly. She walked around him and was headed into the gym until I stopped her.
“Hey Carrot Top.” I called as she was almost to the door.She spun around impassively, and I tossed her her brother’s raygun. “Here.” She snatched it and walked away without a word.
“Don’t mind her, she’s just a little touchy.” Captain smiled warmly to me, taking me by the hand. I followed him back through the big room with wooden floors, (this time with a flashlight), over to another, smaller hallway. Carrot Top and TNT were right behind us, from what I could tell, TNT whimpering softly and Carrot Top speaking to him soothingly, trying to keep him calm. Captain A-Bomb turned left halfway down the short hallway to a flight of stairs. We climbed them carefully, trying not to trip, all the way up to the top. I was led forward, through a set of wood and glass doors propped open with chairs to a large room with high, exposed ceilings and around 30 empty desks, all piled against the door on the far side of the room. A fire was already going near the door I was led to, surrounded by blankets and other sleeping materials. A copy of Catcher in the Rye on one makeshift bed, while a white raygun rifle sat on another, a black strap and scope attached.
“You found one of these?”I raised my eyebrows at Captain, excited. Carrot Top was tucking her brother into his own bedding not far from the fire. “These are limited edition from what I’ve heard, only Exterminators have them.”
“Carrot Top found it. I prefer knives myself, but that’s just me.” He shrugged. “You should get out of those clothes, they’ll burn your skin.”
“You just want me naked, huh?” I smiled, taking off and laying out my clothes to dry.
“Except I don’t swing that way, m’dear.” He winked at me.
“That explains a lot.” I said to myself, wrapping a blanket around my shoulders.
“So what’s the deal with you running away from your family, huh?” He laid back, propping himself up on his elbows.
“Well, it’s kinda like-” I sighed, trying to find the words. “I’ve been with this guy for a month. Everything seemed to be going great, y’know, we just really worked, regardless of how fucked up we both were.” I sat cross-legged, staring into the fire. “The second day I met him, actually, I drove him so crazy he threatened to kill me and then kissed me within 10 minutes later, with a lot of crying on both our parts.” I chuckled at the memory. “See, I’d gotten into a fight with this girl in his Killjoy clan the night before, gave her a shiner she had for a week. I was in a gang in the Zone 2 ruins before our leader got ghosted and Wasp’s gang took us in. We were heading back to Wasp’s in the car when I’d insulted this girl, prompting the guy - his name’s Arizona - to get all sorts of pissed and threaten to kill me because he was in love with that girl - Solar Crash - and I’d insulted how she loved a total asshole, not him. You with me so far?” I looked at Captain, who nodded. “Anyway, he basically spilled his guts to me, telling me how he was in love with the other girl, but she never loved him back, and then we got into his little sister, who’d died two years ago, and I’d kissed him. Don’t look at me like that, it was the heat of the moment.” I rolled my eyes as Captain shook his head at me. “So everything’s great once we get back to Wasp’s until the girl Solar’s asshole boyfriend bird Song dies along with his whole clan.”
“The Kung Fu Krew? Yeah, I heard about them.” Captain nodded.
“Well, I make peace with Solar, just ‘cause I feel bad for her, when I come off of kitchen duty and walk in on Arizona and her sucking face in the sleeping area.” I shook my head. “We yelled at each other and I took off before anything else could happen.”
“What a scumbag.” Captain shook his head.
“And you know what the worst part is? I knew this would happen - Hell, I even told him in the beginning I wasn’t sure I wanted to get involved because I knew he still loved Solar. He convinced me to at least give it a shot, because I would’ve followed him off a fucking cliff, and look who got burned.” I exhaled, staring deep into the bright red embers. “I guess it serves me right, considering he told me about this up front.”
“It does not serve you right.” Captain sat up indignantly to look at me. “You trusted him. There’s nothing wrong with that, especially after him promising to be good. You didn’t know he had no control, this isn’t your fault.”
“Yeah I guess.” I ran a hand through my hair. “Man, I’m beat. The emotional roller coaster I’ve been on today really takes it out of you.”
“We’ve got tons of blankets here, let me dig something up for you.” Captain stood, turning to a cardboard box nearby.
“Thanks, I appreciate this, y’know.” I smiled at him before looking back into the fire. “When’s the last time you guys ate?”
“Yesterday...morning, I think?” Captain looked to Carrot Top for conformation. She nodded once, looking up from cleaning her new rifle.
“I have food, please, take it.” I took out my satchel and dug through it, taking out a can of ravioli and a can of dog food. “It’s not much but it’s better than nothing, and it’s the least I can do.”
Their eyes lit up as I set the food down near the fire. "We can't take that from you though." Captain stared hungrily at the cans.
"Yeah you can, please, take it." I handed the food to Captain, who eventually took it.
"Thank you." Captain looked at me seriously as Carrot Top came over to inspect the food. He elbowed her quickly, jerking his head at me.
“Thanks.” Carrot Top muttered quickly, her eyes darting  snatching the cans from Captain and putting them in the fire to warm. Captain rolled his eyes and busied himself in digging out blankets.
“Y’know, I heard about a detox station in Zone 4.” I said quietly to Carrot Top. She looked up from her gaze at her brother suddenly, guarded.
“Detox?” She said softly, her voice catching and her face softening.
“They could get him clean for good. He might still have some brain damage, but if it works on Dracs, I think it’ll work on him.” I nodded to TNT, who was sleeping peacefully.
“Really?” Tears trailed down her face, the hope and relief apparent.
“Really.” I nodded. Captain handed me old but warm quilts, helping me make a nest before I climbed in and fell fast asleep, the day’s emotions getting to me.