Jacksy

𝖥ѻև𝗋𝗍𝖾𝖾ƞ

The dealer pressed the mayor against the wall. He held the mayor by his blue suit, and when the mayor fully regained consciousness, he fought against the dealer. The dealer was too strong, though Noah could see him trembling slightly.

Noah stood, and so did everyone else in the tunnel. The air was thick with tension as they waited to see what would happen next. No one spoke except the dealer, who was shaking with rage. Even the zippers on his pants trembled.

"Hello, Jakey," spat the dealer.

Noah and Skully instinctively made eye contact. No one had expected the dealer to say such an odd thing. Noah frowned. Did the dealer personally know the mayor?

"Let go of me," said the mayor, his voice deep.

The dealer tore open one of his pockets and pulled out a black circular disc about the size of an eye. There were tiny needles on one side. "I won't hesitate."

The mayor eyed the disc, then took a couple of slow breaths. "You know they're coming for you."

"I've got tunnels full of weapons," said the dealer, still holding the disc threateningly.

Ashton and the small boy were frozen, their gazes fixed on the mayor. Noah wondered if the mayor had visited them often, and if so, what he did to them.

"Go on, Jacksy," said the mayor, resting his head against the wall. "Do it already."

The dealer tilted his head to the side. "I got lucky. Someone almost got you before me."

The mayor winced. His neck was covered in blood from deep scratches that had been clawed into him.

The dealer pushed the mayor's shoulders roughly, threw the disc aside, and took a step back. "You have nothing else to say to me?" He raised his arms in the air.

The mayor took a step forward, and Noah noticed Ashton take a small step in front of the boy. "What do you want?" the mayor snarled. "Praise? This wasn't your doing." He pointed at Skully. "He's the one who did this! You didn't do anything!"

The dealer clenched his fists. "You don't know what you're talking about. I gave them a way in! I offered them weapons! I gave them a tracker!"

The mayor glanced at Noah, and chills ran down Noah's spine. "You should thank me," said the mayor quietly, returning his gaze to the dealer. "It was either going to be you or me. One of us had to do it."

"YOU KILLED HER!" the dealer suddenly shouted, making them all jump. "You framed me!"

"I was protecting our family's name!" yelled the mayor.

Noah's frown grew. He could not see any resemblance between the dealer and the mayor. They were complete opposites: Silver hair against black, pale against tan, short against tall. Yet Noah could feel the connection in the air. He looked again at Skully, who seemed at a loss for what to do.

"You could've killed me!" said the dealer, tears in his eyes. "But instead, you drove me down here and left me here! You made me suffer!"

"I spared you!"

"Like you spared these kids?" said the dealer loudly. "Where's the girl, the one you took twelve years ago? She should be... eighteen now, shouldn't she? Did she tear into your neck?"

"You want to die?" The mayor shook his head. "You've signed your death sentence by bringing me down here."

The dealer took a deep breath and looked down at the ground, but Noah saw him slowly unzip a pocket as he did so. "I wish we could've fixed this."

Multiple things happened at once. A sharp metal pole was unfolding with metallic clicks in the dealer's hand. The mayor shouted, and he looked at Noah. Noah blinked, and he found himself standing very near the dealer. There was something in Noah's hand, but he couldn't look down to see what it was. The dealer stabbed the pole into the mayor's heart. Noah heard someone shout his name, but he could not stop himself from stabbing the chip in his hand into the dealer's shoulder. Immediately, the dealer collapsed. He was convulsing, his eyes white.

Someone grabbed Noah's shoulders and tore him away from the dealer. It was Skully. When Noah saw Skully, it was as if a switch flipped inside him. He looked back at the dealer, then the mayor. The mayor had told Noah to kill the dealer. Tears disrupted Noah's vision.

"Noah," Skully was saying, his grip tight on Noah's shoulders. "Noah, look at me."

Noah did, but he knew it wasn't because he wanted to. He could feel the murky cloud inside his head that appeared when he obeyed someone against his will. They had turned him into a pet.

Someone screamed. They all turned to find Princess standing at the bottom of the ladder, her hands cupped over her mouth. She was looking from the dealer to the mayor. Her eyes met Noah's.

"I'm done with this," said Bear, standing and pushing past Princess. Zippy sheepishly limped behind Bear. Princess hesitated, but seeing the dead mayor and the suffering dealer made her turn and climb back up the ladder.

Skully knelt before the dealer, but he didn't know what to do. None of them did. Noah didn't know what that black chip was that he stabbed into the dealer's shoulder. Blood leaked from the dealer's nose.

Ashton shielded the boy's eyes. Noah could hardly stand. A black haze was in the corner of his vision.

The dealer stopped convulsing and gasped, blood slipping into his mouth. "Roger," breathed the dealer. "Get Roger." Then, his eyes closed.

They waited a moment, silence pressing in on Noah's head. When Skully determined the dealer was still alive, he stood, his face grim. "We have to find Roger. I'm assuming that's his doctor."

Ashton took a step forward, shaking his head. "Our clothes..."

Skully sighed, rubbing a weary hand down his face. "I can't just leave. What if the mayor's people come down here?"

Ashton's eyes were wide and determined. "We aren't going anywhere."

After a moment, Skully nodded. "I'll be right back. It shouldn't be long." He climbed up the ladder.