"Izzy, Izzy."
Izari quickly snapped out of his thoughts to face Janice who was now leaning close to his face.
"What is it!" He retorted as he avoided her gaze.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I guess." He looked up at her, she was still unconvinced.
"Do I really look okay! My stuff got stolen because I had to help some self righteous hobo protect some girl from freaking abominations living down the warrens, I am not okay!" He cupped his hands over his face.
Intrigued Janice sat beside him.
"Wait what?"
"And I didn't even get paid, I knew that deal was too good to be true."
"Hey hey hey let's start right of the top, you know when I left, okay?"
Izari nodded.
"So you are telling me the dude I passed by the corridor yesterday holding the weird girl came to you seeking help?"
Izari nodded.
"From who exactly?"
Izari paused for a while before stammering, "Th…the Bronze skulls, yeah the Bronze skulls." Janice raised an eyebrow. Izari avoided her gaze.
"You're lying."
"Look I am doing this for your sake I don't want you pulled into whatever hell I dragged myself into, okay?"
"Well it's too late for that now, you've already dragged us with you just by association and Esme just needs to know what we are up against."
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
"Try me."
"I already tried yesterday and you dismissed me."
"Wait whatever killed Roy was still…"
Izari nodded as he stood up and lifted his shirt exposing the now spreading infection.
Janice gasped, "What the hell is that!"
"I don't know! A friend told me it was supposed to kill me in a few hours but nothing has happened, I'm…I'm scared."
Janice looked down deep in thought before looking up.
"What happened down there?"
"I…I can't explain everything I just doesn't make sense, it made me see things I don't want to remember made me hear things I can't explain. I…I …"
"Calm down." Janice interjected.
"Hell, it's real and I saw it." Izari continued, he was sounding more and more delirious by the second.
"You have to believe me Janice when I tell you it's for your own sake that you don't know everything."
"Everything about what."
"Some freaking cult kidnapping people and turning them into some freaks down there!"
The room went silent.
"Oh god." Izari gasped. Janice got up and tapped his shoulder reassuringly "Relax it's over, you made it back safe and sound and that's what matters."
"No no no." Izari gasped as he began searching his pockets. "Can I have your comms."
"I don't have mine right now."
Izari dashed out of the room over to the next one and began knocking desperately on it.
"Can I borrow your phone I need to make a call, please." He pleaded as no one answered. He ran over to the next door and did the same no one answered. All the while Janice stood by his door watching him feeling pity towards him.
After a while he gave up and fell on his knees in front of the last door sobbing loudly. Janice walked up to him and picked him up and led him back to his empty room
"I just want to know if they are safe."
He sat on the bed frame again and continued crying as Janice stood watching him unaware of what to do next
"I can't lose another friend."
Something at the back of her mind gnawed at her guilt. She had been standing in this same place again long ago. After a while Izari stopped crying and looked up at Janice.
"Sorry you had to see me like that."
Janice gave him a reassuring nod as she leaned in closer.
"Do you need some time alone or…"
"No no I'm…I'm okay."
Izari looked around him empty room again.
"Can I stay in your place tonight?"
Janice lowered her eyebrows at the question, she really wanted to object but telling him no in the situation that he was in was going to help.
"Yes." She replied reluctantly. Izari noted this but didn't let her know he was aware he just nodded.
"Thanks."
"I made new friends by the way."
"You don't say." Janice joyfully quipped as she sat on the floor leaning on the bed frame next to Izari.
"Yeah this dude from the Silver echo called Rona, a girl from the south district Cassia yes Cassia and Lorian he's a really great guy you should meet him someday."
"Sure sure just get some rest for now the boss will be back with your verdict from the guys up in the union."
"Okay." Izari sniffled as he looked out the window.
Janice got up "So what are you waiting for let's go to my place get you some food and sleep, you look like you really need both."
Izari didn't stand, he just kept staring at the window.
"I'll stay. Don't worry about me."
"You sure?" Janice asked him stepping closer, he had noticed.
"I'm okay, don't worry I won't go anywhere this time, you'll find me right here." He gave her a weak smile. Janice was now sure there was no way of getting him to leave.
"Take care." She said in almost a whisper as she closed the door behind her. She looked at the door for a while before leaving. As she was walking outside her comms began ringing and she took it, it was Esme.
"Did he tell you everything?"
"Well not everything just what matters."
"That's good enough meet me at my place by three o'clock tonight."
"Really?" Janice sounded tired.
"Okay okay how much for a cab?"
Janice smiled as she answered his question cut off the call before he could reply and kept on walking through the busy street to her place but not before shooting a glance at a window on the third floor where she was sure Izari's room was, he was there at the window looking at something in the far distance.
That night Izari sat by a corner of his room just deep in thought, he really wanted to leave this room run through the street and down that maintenance hatch all the way back to Lorian's place, he needed to know they were safe cause something inside him just didn't feel right. He had left too soon. Of only he had stayed there longer then maybe he wouldn't be having this sick feeling inside.
The seer was still alive and prowling down there and by now he would be in the forgotten sector so hopefully he didn't know where Lorian's family stayed but if he knew where Solomon operated then the chances were slim. Fear intensified as quickly got up his hands brushing over the cracked wall as he thought hard on what to do next. He wasn't going to lose another friend, not again. His gaze fell upon the brown urn under the bed frame. He slowly crawled on the dusty floor until he got it. Silently sobbing he took the cold urn and embraced it tightly.
"I'm sorry." He muttered as a tear fell from his eye on to the floor, he watched it for a moment not noticing he was falling asleep.
The next morning Janice woke up from Esme's bed, she rubbed her head trying to shake off the any feeling of fatigue left and quickly jumped into the shower, when she got back Esme was already up and on his phone. It was probably the higher ups. He seemed to concerned with the call to notice Janice slip past him and out of his apartment room. Her plans to go back to her place where suddenly cut short when she remembered about Izari.
"Right!" She remarked as she slapped her forehead causing everyone in the elevator to cast a side eye at her, she muttered a quick apology and continued looking down on the floor embraced by herself. Esme's apartment was located on the much cleaner part of sector 7. Cleaner air, Fewer grime covered streets and alleyways, black lexor enforcers and their security droids were everywhere and even the buildings were well maintained. She would literally give anything to live here, it was really hard for her to believe that just two kilometers east of here everything was the opposite of the same. Her train of thoughts were cut short by a loud beep followed by the door opening as more people in cleaner, much cleaner clothes pushed themselves into the elevator but somehow in the commotion manage to avoid coming into contact with her not even a glance in her direction. She let out a sigh as she got out of the elevator into the less crowded street. Instead of countless people stumbling through the walkthroughs it was instead numerous cars causing a traffic jam.
"Well there goes the taxi." She sighed as she began walking instead. A car swerved from the road and veered into the walkthrough straight at her, she jumped aside as the car sped past her and then suddenly other vehicles began following suit until the walkthrough was now full of cars. Irritated she kicked at one of the hatchback cars and ran away before the driver could get out though at the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of the woman talking to an enforcer.
She then quickened her pace racing right into the underground station. After a long process of confirming her identification she was finally allowed on the train. Once the train started moving she found herself falling asleep again.
She would later open her eyes to find out the train had arrived at the right station, she rushed outside as the doors closed jumping outside as it's engine began humming. Cursing under her breath as to how well her day was going she picked herself up and began hurrying over to his place.
He was still curled up on the floor by the corner when she found him.
Janice breathed a sigh of relief as she had thought he had done something bad to himself while she was away.
"So how are you feeling today."
Izari looked up at her with a blank stare.
"Great. Now get up you need a bath and some food now."
Izari slowly got up still clutching the urn. Janice glared at it before saying.
"And can you leave that here. We are going to my place."
"It's her not 'that'." Izari muttered under his breath as he gingerly placed it down. He slowly followed her out of the room but not before stealing one last look at it and muttered an almost silent "Goodbye." And closing the door. Outside Janice waved a taxi and both got in. After giving the driver instructions she turned to Izari.
"Look I'm sorry about yesterday."
Izari kept on staring outside the window.
"Don't mention it."
The car ride to her place was silent up until they arrived and Janice payed for the trip. "Hey Izzy here's a phone, you can now make the call."
"No need." Izari lumbered past her "I don't have his number."
"Oh so is there anything we can do."
"Let's just wait to hear what the boss says okay."
"What about the twenty thousand crisse you promised him?"
"I was just bluffing even the boss knows I'm not capable of making such money in short time." Izari sounded defeated.
Janice remained silent as they walked into the fifty storey building. Inside reeked the smell of rot and dust but they didn't seem to mind, faulty electrical wires hang all around the ceiling and cracking walls and floors exposed old damaged pipes and bugs nests. Janice waved some away from her face as she led the way to a room number 009.
"Welcome." She ushered Izari in who just gave her a weak smile as he entered. As she was about to close the door she noticed blood droplets under the door to the room right next to hers but she didn't pay it no mind.
Once inside she took off her long coat, Izari was standing facing her holographic glass screen.
"So what did he say?" He asked under his breath.
"Still waiting on that response, just be patient, nothing bad is going to happen to you."
"How sure are you of that?" He muttered.
"Because you're that important, remember not so many neans are capable of what you do."
"I just go through walls."
"Exactly." Janice tried to cheer him up.
It seemed to work as Izari slumped on to her couch causing it creak loudly much to her discomfort.
"Just be careful around my stuff okay?"
Izari nodded.
She had began ordering some food when her doorbell rang. She cautiously approached the door and opened it slowly on it only to see a tightly sealed box with the words Oxorm cooperation written on the tape. It was her arm's maintenance parts, it had been delayed by two days but now it had arrived. She smiled as she bent over to pick it up only to notice that door with the blood was now open. Beside it was a woman with a wig with splashing colors had just finished talking to whoever was on the other side of the call. She turned to face Janice, in that split second Janice could have sworn she was studying her, assessing if she was a threat or not. Done she flashed a weird toothy grin, her face was covered in white paint, thick red eyeliner and green lipstick. Her teeth were an assortment of different colors which made Janice feel uneasy just staring at them but this was cut short by the woman returning back to the room. Relieved she picked up the box only to turn and see Izari standing right behind her. She let out a yelp almost letting go of the box.
"Is everything
okay?" Izari asked her .
Janice nodded as she walked past him.
"Let's just wait for the verdict, okay."
"Okay."