Empyrean Iris Story Collection Vol. 3

Worth Revenge

Thomas had been sitting against the cold tile for hours his face pressed against the bathroom wall which was cool and soothing against his skin. The sheer effort of sitting there and fighting off his cravings was enough to leave him exhausted. He curled up tighter with his head in his arms. He could hear people coming and gong from the bathroom on occasion, but no one tried his door and he was left mostly in peace. At one point he thought he heard his name being called from somewhere, but it quickly died away, leaving him in silence.

He was so tired now that he almost drifted off against the bathroom wall, only to hear footsteps racing up the hallway. They turned the corner and raced into the bathroom.

There were even more voices behind that, and he lifted his head as the footsteps stopped outside his door.

The sound of frantic knocking followed.

"Thomas! Thomas! Are you in there!"

He felt his body sag with relief upon hearing his younger brother's voice, and with a body that seemed more exhausted than it should have been he crawled over and unlocked the door with a click. He sat back as the door was pushed open and Adam came barging in.

His younger brother looked frantic, single eye, wide and wild, his hair sticking up at all angels. He was wearing his favorite jacket –a Jacket that Thomas had given him as a hand-me down more than five years ago – over a pair of sweatpants, and had hastily thrown on a pair of boots that were still unlaced.

He knelt down taking Thomas by the shoulders and looking him over, "Are you alright..... you didn't leave did you?"

Thomas shook his head.

Adam hugged him tight, "You're alright."

Behind him , stood Sunny, her back to them as she did her best to keep curious eyes barred at the door.

She was doing a pretty good job too, as no one dared tangle with a seven foot Drev.

Adam helped Thomas to his feet.

"You look like shit, come on, we'll get you some sleep and then talk about what happened."

Thomas pulled away rubbing at his eyes, "No, Adam, we have to.... Right now."

Adam seemed surprised but pulled up.

Thomas took a deep breath.

"One of the other marines dragged me along to some sort of secret gambling bar in the middle of the station. I was just having a drink when these guys came in. One of them was a human and the others were Tesraki. They waited in curtained rooms at the back of the bar, and people would go in for a few minutes then come out. One of the other marines forced me inside, and they..... they took a small vile of adrenaline from me."

Adam frowned looking confused.

Thomas continued his voice growing faster and more frantic with every word, "Once he was done he told me that he was offering compensation. He grabbed a case, opened it up and inside there was..... there was...." He paused and took a deep breath to calm himself, "Adam, I have never seen that many types of drugs in one spot, dozens of types all in little bags, and he said since it was a first time donation I was allowed to take too." He gritted his teeth trying to hold back the hot prickling in his eyes, "I almost took some, Adam.... I.... I almost."

Adam held up a hand and rested it on his brother's arm, "But you didn't, and that's what matters."

His face turned grim, "It seems that the human hormone trade has made it further than the UNSC originally thought. Can you show me this place?"