lowlife, chapter 1
den sternen sind wir gleich; light 'em up; lights out; small town moon
brooke, bonnie, jesse, ishav, ryker, kolya
an: okay so i've been wanting to write this kind of story for years now and then this morning i plottet this whole thing within an hour and i'm never gonna finish it but here's the first chapter. it's a multicrossover and i'm trying to focus on characters who didn't get that much attention yet. thanks to nameonehero for letting me borrow some of her children!!
prompt by schattenmahr
bingomania: action & mystery bingo - explosion; alternative universe bingo - demon
Bin ab heute raus, Zeit um zu gehen
Soweit es mich trägt, verbrannte Brücken leiten den Weg
Mach' mein eigenes Ding, keine Last mitzutragen
Der Trick ist atmen, die Antwort einfach nicht zu fragen
L O W L I F E
Chapter 1: Sometimes Shit Goes Wrong And People Are Annoying So You End Up Seeking The Literal Devil But What Else Is New
Besides the occurrence of several mildly inconveniences, this day hadn't been that bad so far. Even when Jesse had messed up the gear and Ishav was that close to break up the glass door himself it had been more funny than anything else, and in the end they got in somehow anyway. (Thanks to Ishav's patience and skill to pick locks the old way.)
But when she ran into Bonnie once again when she was just about to get out with their haul, as Jesse would call it ("Jesus Christ, we're not on a fucking shopping trip" - Ishav, at least three times per job. ("You're right, that comes just after." - Jesse's reply, never failing to make Ishav roll his eyes)), Brooke's feeling of victory almost cracked at the edges.
She stopped dead in her tracks. Dark curls, a challenging look in her eyes, even if the sparse glim of her flash light. They were still in the back of the store, and for a moment Brooke wondered where Jesse and Ishav were. Probably in the car already, discussing at which fast food restaurant they should stop by on their way back.
"Doe," Brooke greeted her dryly. This bitch was blocking the exit, of course she would. Brooke still held onto her bag, but Bonnie didn't seem to care much anyway. "And it's been such a nice day."
"I didn't know I'd meet you here," Bonnie replied, looking actually kind of surprised. She'd presumably been about to hide her dynamite in every shelf she could find. Brooke wondered if it was really that much fun, making whole buildings go down.
Probably, yeah.
“But I must say,” Bonnie continued, “I'm not surprised - a badly planned escape plan, sloppy work, and an all in all pathetic job."
"Well, takes one to know one, doesn't it?" Brooke pointed out. She had her gun in her belt but, to be honest, she wasn't quite in the mood for a fight like this tonight. Admit it or not, Bonnie was actually right about the escape plan, damn it. "Didn't have enough left to pay for your girlfriend's hair dye?"
"Oh please," Bonnie gave back, "as if I was here for the cash. Don't worry, I'm not that pathetic yet. Hey, sweetheart, the next time you need lunch money, feel free to ask me instead of breaking into some random convenience store, yeah?"
“I forgot, still getting paid by Kugimiya?”
“As if I'd be doing anyone's dirty work. But, the end of Eun-chae's empire is long overdue, don't you think? And you've got to start somewhere,” she explained, smile on her lips, playing around with the remote in her hands. The remote that was supposed to make every single bomb that Bonnie has planted her go off, and tear the whole store down.
Brooke was almost close to getting her gun out. “If you plan to light up every company she owns in this town, then good luck. But, to be honest, I don't care much about your vendetta or who you'd like to blow up next -“
“How about I start with you?” Bonnie asked, holding the device still. Before Brooke could say anything, she added: “You have five seconds.”
“Oh, fuck you,” Brooke said, now really itching for her gun. Then she ran.
She didn't need to be told twice since it wouldn't be the the first time Bonnie would blow up a building with her still in it, and certainly not the last. Racing through the store, Brooke wondered how this girl always got away in time and unharmed, because honestly, a deal with the devil didn't seem that unrealistic in her eyes.
She ran as fast as she could, not caring about leaving behind tracks, Bonnie's laughter in her ears as she pushed open the front doors, jumping behind a car, just a moment before the whole thing blew up.
“Do you ever feel the desire to set someone on fire?”
Brooke took a sip from the cup of hot chocolate she stole from Ishav, much to his disapproval. They were home again, sprawled over the sofa, Brooke's limbs still aching from the action movie worth performance the day before. Neither Ishav nor Jesse had expressed that much sympathy; the mainly just had laughed, told her to stop complaining, and to hurry up next time if she preferred fried chicken wings over … well, fried Brooke.
The explosion was all over the news, the same mysterious group of people that have caused multiple damages all over New York City within the last years, presumably targeting companies run by Savannah Eun-chae, not even mentioning the stolen money.
“Constantly,” Ishav replied, eyeing Jesse.
“My love burns strong for you, too,” said Jesse without looking up from his phone.
Brooke ignored them. “I just want her to not be there for once. Honestly, can't she at least shut up, is that so much to ask for?” she whined.
“This is getting more and more relatable,” Ishav murmured, for which Brooke took the cup in his hands once again.
“Remember last month, that Sakile thing - it was her, and Way, and the one with the pink hair. Or the one before, Grazia was there, too, and don't get me started on him. I mean, doesn't it bother you?” Brooke asked the two of them. Ishav didn't seem much impressed (to be fair, when did he ever), but Jesse, who had been occupied by his phone, actually looked up.
“Wait, are you actually bothered by that?”
“Well, yeah,” Brooke replied, “they're really annoying, aren't they?”
“Wow,” Jesse said, shaking his head in disbelief, “mark today as the first day in history Brooklyn Cortez gives a shit about something.”
Brooke shrugged. “Listen, I just want to get my monthly income like every other guy."
Ishav raised an eyebrow at her. “You mean you want to be in the news, a bunch of fainting ladies and gentlemen asking, oh, mysterious lady, when will you come to steal my diamonds?”
“Something like that, yeah,” Brooke admitted.
Then she sighed, and because neither of them said anything, she said again, really deep and exaggerated, to which Ishav told her to shut up.
So this is my life now, she miserably thought - mocked by her arch enemy, unable to land a blow herself, cast out by her friends.
Maybe it was time to make a change.
Her first idea was to find herself new friends.
She considered it, scrolling through the contacts in her phone and trying to come up with reasons why Jesse and Ishav were the second worse people in the world (it was a close draw against team We Are Better Than You, featuring Miss I Blow Shit Up, Lady I Haven't Laughed Since 1998, the pastel fairy, and Mr and Mr Smith), but unfortunately she eventually had to chuck it since she remembered she actually liked her current friends, believe it or not. (Jesse was an amazing cook and beside the constant expression of annoyance on his face, Ishav was quite some fun, too.)
Her second idea was to show up at team WABTUs' headquarters and blow this shit up as Bonnie liked to say, maybe bring marshmallows to make some s'mores, playing fall out boy on full blast in the background as the explosions light up the night, hiding when police and the fire department arrived, too late to stop it or even save anyone. The reporters would come, hungry for information, CNN, NBC, ABC, the whole of the country would talk about her. Kugimiya's top agents down, even Eun-chae would die to know how she was.
Brooke dwelled on the thought a while longer until she came to face the harsh reality of the weaknesses in her plan. There were several she couldn't possibly ignore, since a) Brooke didn't know where they lived, b) she didn't know where to get the dynamite from, and c) she didn't really feel like actually killing someone in the first place.
Idea three and four were similarly useless (taking over a different city and declaring herself Queen of San Diego would be too much work and she didn't like the high temperatures there anyway so that wouldn't work; neither would a change of field since there wasn't anything else Brooke was particularly good at, sad but true) which took her over to idea four point one (wouldn't owning a zoo be fun?!), four point two (being a spy wouldn't be that far from what she was doing now), four point three (traveling the world, learning yoga, and becoming super calm), and, last but not least, four point four (becoming a scientist, inventing a time travel machine, and preventing the birth of Bonnie Doe, which wouldn't be the same as killing her, would it?)) - which left Brooke with idea five. Like, she still would be able to go on until twelve or thirteen at least, but the sooner she found a solution, the better.
See, the thing was: idea five might be even more unlikely to work out than the previous ones. In fact, one might consider it "dumb" (Ishav), "ridiculous" (Jesse), "impossible" (again, Jesse), and "a total waste of time, honestly, what are you doing with your life?" (Ishav). But Brooke hadn't ask for unnecessary opinions, and anyway - it wasn't like she had anything particularly planned tonight except for another rainbow boulevard drinking game feat. pizza at 1am and the occasional climb to the rooftop with her favourite shitheads.
All that Brooke was thinking when she already made her way down town.
Her destination was the bar slash gang hq slash possibly real bar (?) where the Belnords were supposed to spend their Tuesday evenings. Or any day, probably.
The Belnords - at least the two Brooke knew. She met Ryker Eckhart and Kolya Minkov at a party months ago; her and Jesse more or less had to literally drag Ishav there (as always (but in the end he had enjoyed it, as always) (a party wouldn't be a party without Ishav complaining about it)). Bronte had invited them, "a chance to meet the right people in this business" (Jesse), "a chance to get absolutely wasted" (Brooke and Ishav, simultaneously).
Bonnie hadn't been there, it had been a good evening.
After the better half of a bottle of some booze she and Ishav shared, Brooke found herself in a conversation with those two. At this time she had been sure they had been joking, but sobering up, she couldn't stop thinking about their offer. Also, considering the kind of shit that was going on around here, it wasn't that much out of this world.
Only that it was, literally.
Brooke pushed the door open.
A bar in Brooklyn, NYC, Tuesday night, 10pm or something. A few people but not that many; a girl in ripped jeans and a hoodie.
Brooke nodded at the bartender as she took a seat. The girl next to her shot her a glance before she got back to discussing the ingredients of her cocktail with the guy next to her.
"The I'd like to talk to those two guys in the back special," Brooke said, letting her bubblegum bubble plop. "On ice."
"Down the floor, second door left," he replied. When Brooke got up, she thought she heard him mumble something like "Yeah, why even bother with passwords anymore, I swear to God".
Maybe she should have taken an actual drink, she thought as she knocked on the door.
"And that's why I say we should wait until she shows herself," a male voice said while he opened the door. Then, looking at Brooke: "What's - oh, the girl who downed a Caipi in one go, what brings you here tonight?"
That must be Ryker, Brooke guessed. She was like 79% sure, but to her defence, she had been quite drunk that night.
"You know, just taking a walk. What's up?" she asked, finger gunning at him and the other guy leaning against the window. Probably Kolya.
"Take a seat. Fancy a drink, princess?" Then, with a smile he added, "Caipirinha?"
"Sure," Brooke replied, letting her gum plop again.
Ryker made a quick call, ordering her cocktail and something for him and Kolya too.
“There was a party the other day, but it kind of lacked in style without your presence,” Ryker said, standing behind Brooke.
“I must have been busy. There’s a lot going on, you know.”
“Remember to take care of yourself. Stress isn’t good for you,” Ryker said.
Just as Brooke was about to reply, the guy from the bar came in, placing the drink in front of her. She took a deep sip, well, finally.
“You know,” she started, swirling the straw, “there actually is something that might me help relax. Or at least I suppose there is, I can’t tell whether I’m sure.”
“What would that be?”
Brooke took another sip before she replied: “I heard there might be a weapon.”
“Oh, I see.” She could hear the smile in his voice. “You’re here to make business. It’s taken you some time, I must say, but in the end they always come, don’t they?” he said to Kolya as he sat down behind his desk, Kolya next to him, still leaning against the window. It didn’t seem like he was paying much attention to their conversation which kind of reminded her of Ishav. He couldn’t fool her.
Ryker crossed his legs and leaned back; Brooke crossed her arms and leaned back, a smirk on her lips. The heavy leather chair was cold beneath her, and this whole ambience was something she might be able to get used to.
“So, when comes the part where you tell me it’s been all just a joke and I came here for nothing, making myself look like an idiot,” she wanted to know, “or did you actually tell the truth?”
Ryker let out a laugh. “That’s one of my favourite parts of this, you know. The doubt - that’s bullshit, isn’t it? But what if it was actually real, can you imagine? Could it be? Well, princess, what do you think?”
“I think,” Brooke started, “that I came here for a weapon. The question you are going to answer now is: Am I wasting my time?”
He held her gaze for a few seconds before. Brooke was wearing a mask of disinterest, she could walk out of this room and leave the bar behind any moment, what did she care.
Finally he replied: “That depends. What exactly are you looking for?”
“Oh, that’s easy,” she huffed, “I want to get ahead of fucking Bonnie Doe and her gang.”
“Tell me more,” Ryker demanded, “what do you want?”
“I want her to know she can’t fuck with me.”
He rolled his eyes at her, “Good God, girl, it won’t work like that. Don’t think about other people, think about yourself. Don’t say you want to be better than some chick with her bombs, say you want to be better. Get it?”
Brooke considered for a moment, chewing her gum. It tasted like toothpaste mixed up with lime. She wondered what Ishav would say, or Jesse. Jesse would go for some wise ass shit, probably. Or just a really big gun or something.
Finally she said: “Alright. I want to be better, I want to be powerful. I want to be able to defeat anyone, I want all the fucking fame, and, most importantly, I want as much money as there is to steal in this goddamn city.”
With that Ryker finally seemed to be pleased, a grin on his lips. “That’s more like it.”
“You happy to deliver?” Brooke kind of doubted it, but she was always open for surprises. (Except if they included Bonnie.)
Ryker nodded slowly. “Yeah, I think I have something for you that might suite you just well.”
“I believe it when I see it,” Brooke gave back dryly, taking another sip. “So, how much is this going to cost me?”
“This girl knows how to do business.” He paused, dragging out the moment, supposedly scaring her off, hah, as if. Then he said: “Fifteen.”
Now he did surprise her.
“Fifteen?” she repeated, “What are you selling me, a squirt gun?”
“Believe me, the real price will come later. Not in money, don’t get me wrong,” Ryker added before Brooke could say anything, “Don’t worry, princess, you’ll understand soon enough.”
She squinted her eyes, considering the deal. “A super weapon that’s supposed to give me enough power to get all the money and fame I want and defeat Doe & Friends, and all of this for fifteen.”
Ryker nodded. Brooke shot Kolya a glance who was still ignoring her. She knew it might all be a scam, luring innocent people (or not that innocent, she had to admit) into traps, making it sound like all they have ever dreamed of. This part of the city was no place for kids, or people who naively went for the first opportunity they saw.
But Brooke has been around some time already, and, most importantly: Bonnie was annoying as fuck, and she’s had enough of this.
So Brooke rose from her chair, resting her arms on the desk, looking into Ryker’s eyes.
“Well,” she said, “when are you going to show me?”
Rising as well, Ryker replied: “Follow me.”
He lead Brooke through the hallway. Kolya was just behind them, blending in with the background. He had been more fun at the party, Brooke had to admit.
Ryker opened a door at the end of the corridor, revealing an elevator. “After you,” he told Brooke.
It might not be the best idea to follow two dudes you barely know into a dark basement a few feet underground especially considering their field of work and environment, but the idea is much more bearable with a gun in the pocket of your hoodie.
So she stepped into the elevator, doors closing behind the three of them.
“What do people usually ask for?” Brooke wanted to know, popping her gum.
Ryker shrugged, “Oh, you know. World domination, bringing their dead loved ones back to life. That’s actually the most popular, I guess. Other than that … money is quite common, but mostly power in all forms and shapes.”
“And, do they get what they ask for?”
“Yeah,” Ryker replied, “just not always in the way they imagined they would.”
“Well, that sounds promising.”
The doors opened and Ryker turned on the lights, revealing a room that looked quite like his office upstairs. Brooke couldn’t help but feeling a bit disappointed.
“Look,” Ryker said, “the party was fun, you’re an okay person - I would even go as far as saying I like you.”
Kolya next to Ryker rolled his eyes, Brooke looked at Ryker expectantly. “So?”
“So,” he continued, “I’m telling you this: you still have the chance to quit. I have to be honest with you, it might not be worth the price. And I don’t mean the money, I mean the footnotes. People might have been successful this way, but some of them had to pay with their lives. Don’t underestimate it.”
“You just want to keep it for yourself, don’t you?” she laughed, but when Ryker’s expression didn’t change, Brooke nodded. “Alright, I’ll be careful. But don’t worry, nothing can kill me that quickly.”
“Believe me, they all said that,” Ryker snorted, “but well.”
Then he turned to the table, opening the drawer, and Brooke was excited; the thought of defeating Bonnie, to finally get rid of this bunch of assholes, she couldn’t wait to see their faces.
When Ryker got out a book, he had this typical smile on his lips.
“Alright, princess,” he said, “are you ready to summon a demon?”
brooke, bonnie, jesse, ishav, ryker, kolya
an: okay so i've been wanting to write this kind of story for years now and then this morning i plottet this whole thing within an hour and i'm never gonna finish it but here's the first chapter. it's a multicrossover and i'm trying to focus on characters who didn't get that much attention yet. thanks to nameonehero for letting me borrow some of her children!!
prompt by schattenmahr
bingomania: action & mystery bingo - explosion; alternative universe bingo - demon
Bin ab heute raus, Zeit um zu gehen
Soweit es mich trägt, verbrannte Brücken leiten den Weg
Mach' mein eigenes Ding, keine Last mitzutragen
Der Trick ist atmen, die Antwort einfach nicht zu fragen
L O W L I F E
Chapter 1: Sometimes Shit Goes Wrong And People Are Annoying So You End Up Seeking The Literal Devil But What Else Is New
Besides the occurrence of several mildly inconveniences, this day hadn't been that bad so far. Even when Jesse had messed up the gear and Ishav was that close to break up the glass door himself it had been more funny than anything else, and in the end they got in somehow anyway. (Thanks to Ishav's patience and skill to pick locks the old way.)
But when she ran into Bonnie once again when she was just about to get out with their haul, as Jesse would call it ("Jesus Christ, we're not on a fucking shopping trip" - Ishav, at least three times per job. ("You're right, that comes just after." - Jesse's reply, never failing to make Ishav roll his eyes)), Brooke's feeling of victory almost cracked at the edges.
She stopped dead in her tracks. Dark curls, a challenging look in her eyes, even if the sparse glim of her flash light. They were still in the back of the store, and for a moment Brooke wondered where Jesse and Ishav were. Probably in the car already, discussing at which fast food restaurant they should stop by on their way back.
"Doe," Brooke greeted her dryly. This bitch was blocking the exit, of course she would. Brooke still held onto her bag, but Bonnie didn't seem to care much anyway. "And it's been such a nice day."
"I didn't know I'd meet you here," Bonnie replied, looking actually kind of surprised. She'd presumably been about to hide her dynamite in every shelf she could find. Brooke wondered if it was really that much fun, making whole buildings go down.
Probably, yeah.
“But I must say,” Bonnie continued, “I'm not surprised - a badly planned escape plan, sloppy work, and an all in all pathetic job."
"Well, takes one to know one, doesn't it?" Brooke pointed out. She had her gun in her belt but, to be honest, she wasn't quite in the mood for a fight like this tonight. Admit it or not, Bonnie was actually right about the escape plan, damn it. "Didn't have enough left to pay for your girlfriend's hair dye?"
"Oh please," Bonnie gave back, "as if I was here for the cash. Don't worry, I'm not that pathetic yet. Hey, sweetheart, the next time you need lunch money, feel free to ask me instead of breaking into some random convenience store, yeah?"
“I forgot, still getting paid by Kugimiya?”
“As if I'd be doing anyone's dirty work. But, the end of Eun-chae's empire is long overdue, don't you think? And you've got to start somewhere,” she explained, smile on her lips, playing around with the remote in her hands. The remote that was supposed to make every single bomb that Bonnie has planted her go off, and tear the whole store down.
Brooke was almost close to getting her gun out. “If you plan to light up every company she owns in this town, then good luck. But, to be honest, I don't care much about your vendetta or who you'd like to blow up next -“
“How about I start with you?” Bonnie asked, holding the device still. Before Brooke could say anything, she added: “You have five seconds.”
“Oh, fuck you,” Brooke said, now really itching for her gun. Then she ran.
She didn't need to be told twice since it wouldn't be the the first time Bonnie would blow up a building with her still in it, and certainly not the last. Racing through the store, Brooke wondered how this girl always got away in time and unharmed, because honestly, a deal with the devil didn't seem that unrealistic in her eyes.
She ran as fast as she could, not caring about leaving behind tracks, Bonnie's laughter in her ears as she pushed open the front doors, jumping behind a car, just a moment before the whole thing blew up.
“Do you ever feel the desire to set someone on fire?”
Brooke took a sip from the cup of hot chocolate she stole from Ishav, much to his disapproval. They were home again, sprawled over the sofa, Brooke's limbs still aching from the action movie worth performance the day before. Neither Ishav nor Jesse had expressed that much sympathy; the mainly just had laughed, told her to stop complaining, and to hurry up next time if she preferred fried chicken wings over … well, fried Brooke.
The explosion was all over the news, the same mysterious group of people that have caused multiple damages all over New York City within the last years, presumably targeting companies run by Savannah Eun-chae, not even mentioning the stolen money.
“Constantly,” Ishav replied, eyeing Jesse.
“My love burns strong for you, too,” said Jesse without looking up from his phone.
Brooke ignored them. “I just want her to not be there for once. Honestly, can't she at least shut up, is that so much to ask for?” she whined.
“This is getting more and more relatable,” Ishav murmured, for which Brooke took the cup in his hands once again.
“Remember last month, that Sakile thing - it was her, and Way, and the one with the pink hair. Or the one before, Grazia was there, too, and don't get me started on him. I mean, doesn't it bother you?” Brooke asked the two of them. Ishav didn't seem much impressed (to be fair, when did he ever), but Jesse, who had been occupied by his phone, actually looked up.
“Wait, are you actually bothered by that?”
“Well, yeah,” Brooke replied, “they're really annoying, aren't they?”
“Wow,” Jesse said, shaking his head in disbelief, “mark today as the first day in history Brooklyn Cortez gives a shit about something.”
Brooke shrugged. “Listen, I just want to get my monthly income like every other guy."
Ishav raised an eyebrow at her. “You mean you want to be in the news, a bunch of fainting ladies and gentlemen asking, oh, mysterious lady, when will you come to steal my diamonds?”
“Something like that, yeah,” Brooke admitted.
Then she sighed, and because neither of them said anything, she said again, really deep and exaggerated, to which Ishav told her to shut up.
So this is my life now, she miserably thought - mocked by her arch enemy, unable to land a blow herself, cast out by her friends.
Maybe it was time to make a change.
Her first idea was to find herself new friends.
She considered it, scrolling through the contacts in her phone and trying to come up with reasons why Jesse and Ishav were the second worse people in the world (it was a close draw against team We Are Better Than You, featuring Miss I Blow Shit Up, Lady I Haven't Laughed Since 1998, the pastel fairy, and Mr and Mr Smith), but unfortunately she eventually had to chuck it since she remembered she actually liked her current friends, believe it or not. (Jesse was an amazing cook and beside the constant expression of annoyance on his face, Ishav was quite some fun, too.)
Her second idea was to show up at team WABTUs' headquarters and blow this shit up as Bonnie liked to say, maybe bring marshmallows to make some s'mores, playing fall out boy on full blast in the background as the explosions light up the night, hiding when police and the fire department arrived, too late to stop it or even save anyone. The reporters would come, hungry for information, CNN, NBC, ABC, the whole of the country would talk about her. Kugimiya's top agents down, even Eun-chae would die to know how she was.
Brooke dwelled on the thought a while longer until she came to face the harsh reality of the weaknesses in her plan. There were several she couldn't possibly ignore, since a) Brooke didn't know where they lived, b) she didn't know where to get the dynamite from, and c) she didn't really feel like actually killing someone in the first place.
Idea three and four were similarly useless (taking over a different city and declaring herself Queen of San Diego would be too much work and she didn't like the high temperatures there anyway so that wouldn't work; neither would a change of field since there wasn't anything else Brooke was particularly good at, sad but true) which took her over to idea four point one (wouldn't owning a zoo be fun?!), four point two (being a spy wouldn't be that far from what she was doing now), four point three (traveling the world, learning yoga, and becoming super calm), and, last but not least, four point four (becoming a scientist, inventing a time travel machine, and preventing the birth of Bonnie Doe, which wouldn't be the same as killing her, would it?)) - which left Brooke with idea five. Like, she still would be able to go on until twelve or thirteen at least, but the sooner she found a solution, the better.
See, the thing was: idea five might be even more unlikely to work out than the previous ones. In fact, one might consider it "dumb" (Ishav), "ridiculous" (Jesse), "impossible" (again, Jesse), and "a total waste of time, honestly, what are you doing with your life?" (Ishav). But Brooke hadn't ask for unnecessary opinions, and anyway - it wasn't like she had anything particularly planned tonight except for another rainbow boulevard drinking game feat. pizza at 1am and the occasional climb to the rooftop with her favourite shitheads.
All that Brooke was thinking when she already made her way down town.
Her destination was the bar slash gang hq slash possibly real bar (?) where the Belnords were supposed to spend their Tuesday evenings. Or any day, probably.
The Belnords - at least the two Brooke knew. She met Ryker Eckhart and Kolya Minkov at a party months ago; her and Jesse more or less had to literally drag Ishav there (as always (but in the end he had enjoyed it, as always) (a party wouldn't be a party without Ishav complaining about it)). Bronte had invited them, "a chance to meet the right people in this business" (Jesse), "a chance to get absolutely wasted" (Brooke and Ishav, simultaneously).
Bonnie hadn't been there, it had been a good evening.
After the better half of a bottle of some booze she and Ishav shared, Brooke found herself in a conversation with those two. At this time she had been sure they had been joking, but sobering up, she couldn't stop thinking about their offer. Also, considering the kind of shit that was going on around here, it wasn't that much out of this world.
Only that it was, literally.
Brooke pushed the door open.
A bar in Brooklyn, NYC, Tuesday night, 10pm or something. A few people but not that many; a girl in ripped jeans and a hoodie.
Brooke nodded at the bartender as she took a seat. The girl next to her shot her a glance before she got back to discussing the ingredients of her cocktail with the guy next to her.
"The I'd like to talk to those two guys in the back special," Brooke said, letting her bubblegum bubble plop. "On ice."
"Down the floor, second door left," he replied. When Brooke got up, she thought she heard him mumble something like "Yeah, why even bother with passwords anymore, I swear to God".
Maybe she should have taken an actual drink, she thought as she knocked on the door.
"And that's why I say we should wait until she shows herself," a male voice said while he opened the door. Then, looking at Brooke: "What's - oh, the girl who downed a Caipi in one go, what brings you here tonight?"
That must be Ryker, Brooke guessed. She was like 79% sure, but to her defence, she had been quite drunk that night.
"You know, just taking a walk. What's up?" she asked, finger gunning at him and the other guy leaning against the window. Probably Kolya.
"Take a seat. Fancy a drink, princess?" Then, with a smile he added, "Caipirinha?"
"Sure," Brooke replied, letting her gum plop again.
Ryker made a quick call, ordering her cocktail and something for him and Kolya too.
“There was a party the other day, but it kind of lacked in style without your presence,” Ryker said, standing behind Brooke.
“I must have been busy. There’s a lot going on, you know.”
“Remember to take care of yourself. Stress isn’t good for you,” Ryker said.
Just as Brooke was about to reply, the guy from the bar came in, placing the drink in front of her. She took a deep sip, well, finally.
“You know,” she started, swirling the straw, “there actually is something that might me help relax. Or at least I suppose there is, I can’t tell whether I’m sure.”
“What would that be?”
Brooke took another sip before she replied: “I heard there might be a weapon.”
“Oh, I see.” She could hear the smile in his voice. “You’re here to make business. It’s taken you some time, I must say, but in the end they always come, don’t they?” he said to Kolya as he sat down behind his desk, Kolya next to him, still leaning against the window. It didn’t seem like he was paying much attention to their conversation which kind of reminded her of Ishav. He couldn’t fool her.
Ryker crossed his legs and leaned back; Brooke crossed her arms and leaned back, a smirk on her lips. The heavy leather chair was cold beneath her, and this whole ambience was something she might be able to get used to.
“So, when comes the part where you tell me it’s been all just a joke and I came here for nothing, making myself look like an idiot,” she wanted to know, “or did you actually tell the truth?”
Ryker let out a laugh. “That’s one of my favourite parts of this, you know. The doubt - that’s bullshit, isn’t it? But what if it was actually real, can you imagine? Could it be? Well, princess, what do you think?”
“I think,” Brooke started, “that I came here for a weapon. The question you are going to answer now is: Am I wasting my time?”
He held her gaze for a few seconds before. Brooke was wearing a mask of disinterest, she could walk out of this room and leave the bar behind any moment, what did she care.
Finally he replied: “That depends. What exactly are you looking for?”
“Oh, that’s easy,” she huffed, “I want to get ahead of fucking Bonnie Doe and her gang.”
“Tell me more,” Ryker demanded, “what do you want?”
“I want her to know she can’t fuck with me.”
He rolled his eyes at her, “Good God, girl, it won’t work like that. Don’t think about other people, think about yourself. Don’t say you want to be better than some chick with her bombs, say you want to be better. Get it?”
Brooke considered for a moment, chewing her gum. It tasted like toothpaste mixed up with lime. She wondered what Ishav would say, or Jesse. Jesse would go for some wise ass shit, probably. Or just a really big gun or something.
Finally she said: “Alright. I want to be better, I want to be powerful. I want to be able to defeat anyone, I want all the fucking fame, and, most importantly, I want as much money as there is to steal in this goddamn city.”
With that Ryker finally seemed to be pleased, a grin on his lips. “That’s more like it.”
“You happy to deliver?” Brooke kind of doubted it, but she was always open for surprises. (Except if they included Bonnie.)
Ryker nodded slowly. “Yeah, I think I have something for you that might suite you just well.”
“I believe it when I see it,” Brooke gave back dryly, taking another sip. “So, how much is this going to cost me?”
“This girl knows how to do business.” He paused, dragging out the moment, supposedly scaring her off, hah, as if. Then he said: “Fifteen.”
Now he did surprise her.
“Fifteen?” she repeated, “What are you selling me, a squirt gun?”
“Believe me, the real price will come later. Not in money, don’t get me wrong,” Ryker added before Brooke could say anything, “Don’t worry, princess, you’ll understand soon enough.”
She squinted her eyes, considering the deal. “A super weapon that’s supposed to give me enough power to get all the money and fame I want and defeat Doe & Friends, and all of this for fifteen.”
Ryker nodded. Brooke shot Kolya a glance who was still ignoring her. She knew it might all be a scam, luring innocent people (or not that innocent, she had to admit) into traps, making it sound like all they have ever dreamed of. This part of the city was no place for kids, or people who naively went for the first opportunity they saw.
But Brooke has been around some time already, and, most importantly: Bonnie was annoying as fuck, and she’s had enough of this.
So Brooke rose from her chair, resting her arms on the desk, looking into Ryker’s eyes.
“Well,” she said, “when are you going to show me?”
Rising as well, Ryker replied: “Follow me.”
He lead Brooke through the hallway. Kolya was just behind them, blending in with the background. He had been more fun at the party, Brooke had to admit.
Ryker opened a door at the end of the corridor, revealing an elevator. “After you,” he told Brooke.
It might not be the best idea to follow two dudes you barely know into a dark basement a few feet underground especially considering their field of work and environment, but the idea is much more bearable with a gun in the pocket of your hoodie.
So she stepped into the elevator, doors closing behind the three of them.
“What do people usually ask for?” Brooke wanted to know, popping her gum.
Ryker shrugged, “Oh, you know. World domination, bringing their dead loved ones back to life. That’s actually the most popular, I guess. Other than that … money is quite common, but mostly power in all forms and shapes.”
“And, do they get what they ask for?”
“Yeah,” Ryker replied, “just not always in the way they imagined they would.”
“Well, that sounds promising.”
The doors opened and Ryker turned on the lights, revealing a room that looked quite like his office upstairs. Brooke couldn’t help but feeling a bit disappointed.
“Look,” Ryker said, “the party was fun, you’re an okay person - I would even go as far as saying I like you.”
Kolya next to Ryker rolled his eyes, Brooke looked at Ryker expectantly. “So?”
“So,” he continued, “I’m telling you this: you still have the chance to quit. I have to be honest with you, it might not be worth the price. And I don’t mean the money, I mean the footnotes. People might have been successful this way, but some of them had to pay with their lives. Don’t underestimate it.”
“You just want to keep it for yourself, don’t you?” she laughed, but when Ryker’s expression didn’t change, Brooke nodded. “Alright, I’ll be careful. But don’t worry, nothing can kill me that quickly.”
“Believe me, they all said that,” Ryker snorted, “but well.”
Then he turned to the table, opening the drawer, and Brooke was excited; the thought of defeating Bonnie, to finally get rid of this bunch of assholes, she couldn’t wait to see their faces.
When Ryker got out a book, he had this typical smile on his lips.
“Alright, princess,” he said, “are you ready to summon a demon?”