Polluted Feelings: Love
Title: Polluted Feelings: Love
Author: joemerl
Word Count: 1491
Rating: PG.
Summary: Dr. Blight is injured, and Looten Plunder is willing to go to humiliatingly extreme lengths to help her. Part 1 of 2.
Characters and/or Pairings: Plunder/Blight, part of a series of one-shots and drabbles. Also features Argos Bleak, Gaia and the Planeteers.
Warnings: Evil, Plunder-based political incorrectness.
THUKA-THUKA-THUKA-THUKA-
The steady sound of the helicopter blades combined with the soft roar of the engine was giving Plunder a headache, and that was doing nothing to help his already-foul mood. "What's the problem, Bleak?" he growled testily, giving his assistant a dark sideways look.
"Just looking for a place to land, boss," Bleak responded shortly. He was oddly jittery, his tone holding a slight edge of nervousness. "There's so many damn trees...we'll have to try the beach."
"Do it."
They descended; the uneven sand was hardly the best place to set down, especially as it put them in plain sight of their enemies, but given the circumstances Plunder didn't really see how stealth was an asset anyway. "Wait for me here," Plunder said simply, unbuckling himself and moving to retrieve the precious cargo from the back of the vehicle.
Bleak hesitated. "Sure you won't need my help, boss?"
"Yes." The voice was flat and almost emotionless, but with a slight edge of anger that made even Bleak nervous. Without another word Plunder opened the door to the helicopter, carrying his most prized possession with careful awkwardness in both arms. Despite the difficulty of holding its weight he landed easily on the sandy ground without stumbling, and began to walk alone towards the little commune about fifty yards away.
Bleak sighed wearily, then unsnapped his holster in case he was needed.
Plunder didn't get even halfway down the beach before the door to the bamboo-and-wood hovel opened, and out came the Planeteers; each of their ridiculously-diverse faces showed either anger or nervousness at this turn of events, and the American at least was clearly holding his fist at the ready, red Fire Ring gleaming in the sunlight. Half-surrounded by and half-leading the group was another figure, one whom he had never seen in person before but knew from video images and the occasional mystical transparent sky-vision-Gaia, the so-called "Spirit of the Earth," looking definitely solid now and wearing an expression that could have been either curious or pensive or worried or about a thousand other things, with each potential interpretation somehow making Plunder about equally annoyed.
The two groups were about ten feet away from each other when, as if united by a common will, both sides stopped right in their tracks. Plunder's face might have been carved from stone, hard and impassive; the Planeteer's expressions were more fungible, several sets of eyes widening as they made out what it was their enemy was holding out in his arms. The American's face was just as set as Plunder's, however, and the spirit's remained just as inscrutable.
There was a long moment's pause. It was Gaia who broke it.
"What happened to her, Plunder?" She might already know the answer, or not, she might have been mocking him, or not, her voice was just as unreadable as her expression, much to Plunder's annoyance.
As if she knew they were talking about her, Barbara Blight's head rolled against Plunder's shoulder, a soft moan escaping from her throat. Her face had gotten both paler and greener; even her scar tissue, visible now with her hair fallen back, seemed almost white and sickly. Plunder allowed his eyes to dart down to her for just a moment, wondering how much time he had before even this desperate solution wouldn't be able to do any good.
"Her most recent...experiment backfired," Plunder said coolly, staring the supposed spirit right in her bright, mysterious blue eyes. "The gas-"
"That was her own fault!" the American suddenly interrupted, before Gaia waved a hand and gave him a sharp, quieting look. Plunder's face twisted into a sudden, ugly grimace; both of the (human) girls noticed it, and their own expressions grew darker as Gaia turned calmly back to him.
"My Planeteers warned you that that gas of hers was highly dangerous." She paused, and now her expression became easier to read, as she stared at him with an infuriating sternness that made his blood boil. "But of course, you both already knew that, didn't you?"
"What's your point?"
"He was going to release that gas on an entire village of people!" the Chinese (or something) one said, turning to Gaia while pointing angrily at Plunder.
"If by 'village' you mean the people squatting on my land..."
"If by 'land' you mean an entire rainforest you were planning-"
"Linka, enough."
"But Gaia-"
"Linka."
The little Commie shut her trap, much to Plunder's relief. He was getting glares from all three of the Planeteers who had spoken, and the black one didn't exactly seem friendly either, though his face seemed more thoughtful than outright hostile. The only one who looked like he might be sympathetic to Plunder was that youngest one, the Mexican kid or the Indian or whatever the hell he was. Plunder returned his gaze to Gaia, whose eyes were like cool pieces of ice.
Whether these little terrorists functioned like a democracy or a dictatorship, Plunder was certainly not liking his odds here.
"And what do you want us to do, Looten?" Gaia wondered. Plunder allowed the barest second of silence; the switch to his first name managed to surprise, encourage and infuriate him all in a single moment.
"The best team of doctors I have can't figure out a way to cure her. Even MAL..." Plunder trailed off, and for another brief moment his eyes flickered to Babs' pale, sickly face. "I know whatever...technology you're hogging is more advanced than any of that," he continued, choosing the "t" word over the more-probably-accurate "m."
"You want us to help Blight?" the black one asked. It was close to a statement.
The American scoffed. "No way!"
"She did this to herself, Gaia!"
"We cannot seriously-"
Gaia raised her hand for silence again, then gave Plunder another hard, stern look.
A long moment passed. Plunder scowled.
"I'm not going to beg," he sneered, even as he silently questioned if that statement was really true.
For a moment Plunder could sense that Gaia almost-almost-rolled her eyes at him, but instead she just silently extended her hands, her empty arms taking the same position as Plunder's full ones.
Without a word Plunder came forward and, very carefully, put his colleague and ally into the hands of his sworn enemy. For some prideful reason he chose to make sure his own skin never touched the spirit's; she seemed to be radiating some sort of strange aura, a kind of pleasant coolness that contrasted to the bright heat of the sun, and a youthful, almost mystical sense of life and joy that just made Plunder even more enraged that this whole situation couldn't be taking place in a cold hospital emergency room under the pleasant harshness of a florescent light.
"Is there anything we can actually do for her, Gaia?" the youngest one asked, speaking for the first time.
"The powers of the Earth hold many cures," the spirit said, which was so vague and idiotically New-Agey that Plunder had to resist the urge to throw his head back and scream. "Come, Planeteers," she said, turning with Blight in her arms to make her way back to their cottage. Then she paused, half-turning to Plunder. "You can come, too, if you like."
She turned and walked off with her little cult of followers, the American, Chinese and Russian members audibly grumbling about this turn of events. Plunder growled softly to himself as well, then after a moment's hesitation went off after them. Might as well see the inside of their base, that might be useful at least...
He tried to keep a foot or two back from the group, keeping a step or two behind the Spanish kid, who made up the rear. His eyes darted around the island, then to Gaia's back (or more accurately Blight's head and feet, which he could see dangling from this angle), then back to the island, back to Gaia and Blight-
He heard a slight noise, then suddenly became aware of a pinkish light coming from the little spick's Ring; the boy was staring at it closely, his brow furrowed. "What are you doing? !" Plunder suddenly spat, and the boy was so startled that he jumped, the light cutting off like a candle being extinguished. Plunder knew the little one barely had any sort of powers, but he wasn't going to be taking any chances now.
"Um-nothing," he said a bit nervously, giving Plunder a sideways look. "It's just..."
"Just what?"
The boy continued staring at him. "You really do love her, don't you?"
Plunder blinked but didn't answer, turning away and looking straight forward with hard, stony eyes. The boy continued to stare at him for a moment, then looked away himself, as if embarrassed.
Blight's head turned toward Plunder now, and the ragged way she was breathing made his empty hands tremble, however impassive his face managed to look.
Damn it.
He really did, didn't he?
Author: joemerl
Word Count: 1491
Rating: PG.
Summary: Dr. Blight is injured, and Looten Plunder is willing to go to humiliatingly extreme lengths to help her. Part 1 of 2.
Characters and/or Pairings: Plunder/Blight, part of a series of one-shots and drabbles. Also features Argos Bleak, Gaia and the Planeteers.
Warnings: Evil, Plunder-based political incorrectness.
THUKA-THUKA-THUKA-THUKA-
The steady sound of the helicopter blades combined with the soft roar of the engine was giving Plunder a headache, and that was doing nothing to help his already-foul mood. "What's the problem, Bleak?" he growled testily, giving his assistant a dark sideways look.
"Just looking for a place to land, boss," Bleak responded shortly. He was oddly jittery, his tone holding a slight edge of nervousness. "There's so many damn trees...we'll have to try the beach."
"Do it."
They descended; the uneven sand was hardly the best place to set down, especially as it put them in plain sight of their enemies, but given the circumstances Plunder didn't really see how stealth was an asset anyway. "Wait for me here," Plunder said simply, unbuckling himself and moving to retrieve the precious cargo from the back of the vehicle.
Bleak hesitated. "Sure you won't need my help, boss?"
"Yes." The voice was flat and almost emotionless, but with a slight edge of anger that made even Bleak nervous. Without another word Plunder opened the door to the helicopter, carrying his most prized possession with careful awkwardness in both arms. Despite the difficulty of holding its weight he landed easily on the sandy ground without stumbling, and began to walk alone towards the little commune about fifty yards away.
Bleak sighed wearily, then unsnapped his holster in case he was needed.
Plunder didn't get even halfway down the beach before the door to the bamboo-and-wood hovel opened, and out came the Planeteers; each of their ridiculously-diverse faces showed either anger or nervousness at this turn of events, and the American at least was clearly holding his fist at the ready, red Fire Ring gleaming in the sunlight. Half-surrounded by and half-leading the group was another figure, one whom he had never seen in person before but knew from video images and the occasional mystical transparent sky-vision-Gaia, the so-called "Spirit of the Earth," looking definitely solid now and wearing an expression that could have been either curious or pensive or worried or about a thousand other things, with each potential interpretation somehow making Plunder about equally annoyed.
The two groups were about ten feet away from each other when, as if united by a common will, both sides stopped right in their tracks. Plunder's face might have been carved from stone, hard and impassive; the Planeteer's expressions were more fungible, several sets of eyes widening as they made out what it was their enemy was holding out in his arms. The American's face was just as set as Plunder's, however, and the spirit's remained just as inscrutable.
There was a long moment's pause. It was Gaia who broke it.
"What happened to her, Plunder?" She might already know the answer, or not, she might have been mocking him, or not, her voice was just as unreadable as her expression, much to Plunder's annoyance.
As if she knew they were talking about her, Barbara Blight's head rolled against Plunder's shoulder, a soft moan escaping from her throat. Her face had gotten both paler and greener; even her scar tissue, visible now with her hair fallen back, seemed almost white and sickly. Plunder allowed his eyes to dart down to her for just a moment, wondering how much time he had before even this desperate solution wouldn't be able to do any good.
"Her most recent...experiment backfired," Plunder said coolly, staring the supposed spirit right in her bright, mysterious blue eyes. "The gas-"
"That was her own fault!" the American suddenly interrupted, before Gaia waved a hand and gave him a sharp, quieting look. Plunder's face twisted into a sudden, ugly grimace; both of the (human) girls noticed it, and their own expressions grew darker as Gaia turned calmly back to him.
"My Planeteers warned you that that gas of hers was highly dangerous." She paused, and now her expression became easier to read, as she stared at him with an infuriating sternness that made his blood boil. "But of course, you both already knew that, didn't you?"
"What's your point?"
"He was going to release that gas on an entire village of people!" the Chinese (or something) one said, turning to Gaia while pointing angrily at Plunder.
"If by 'village' you mean the people squatting on my land..."
"If by 'land' you mean an entire rainforest you were planning-"
"Linka, enough."
"But Gaia-"
"Linka."
The little Commie shut her trap, much to Plunder's relief. He was getting glares from all three of the Planeteers who had spoken, and the black one didn't exactly seem friendly either, though his face seemed more thoughtful than outright hostile. The only one who looked like he might be sympathetic to Plunder was that youngest one, the Mexican kid or the Indian or whatever the hell he was. Plunder returned his gaze to Gaia, whose eyes were like cool pieces of ice.
Whether these little terrorists functioned like a democracy or a dictatorship, Plunder was certainly not liking his odds here.
"And what do you want us to do, Looten?" Gaia wondered. Plunder allowed the barest second of silence; the switch to his first name managed to surprise, encourage and infuriate him all in a single moment.
"The best team of doctors I have can't figure out a way to cure her. Even MAL..." Plunder trailed off, and for another brief moment his eyes flickered to Babs' pale, sickly face. "I know whatever...technology you're hogging is more advanced than any of that," he continued, choosing the "t" word over the more-probably-accurate "m."
"You want us to help Blight?" the black one asked. It was close to a statement.
The American scoffed. "No way!"
"She did this to herself, Gaia!"
"We cannot seriously-"
Gaia raised her hand for silence again, then gave Plunder another hard, stern look.
A long moment passed. Plunder scowled.
"I'm not going to beg," he sneered, even as he silently questioned if that statement was really true.
For a moment Plunder could sense that Gaia almost-almost-rolled her eyes at him, but instead she just silently extended her hands, her empty arms taking the same position as Plunder's full ones.
Without a word Plunder came forward and, very carefully, put his colleague and ally into the hands of his sworn enemy. For some prideful reason he chose to make sure his own skin never touched the spirit's; she seemed to be radiating some sort of strange aura, a kind of pleasant coolness that contrasted to the bright heat of the sun, and a youthful, almost mystical sense of life and joy that just made Plunder even more enraged that this whole situation couldn't be taking place in a cold hospital emergency room under the pleasant harshness of a florescent light.
"Is there anything we can actually do for her, Gaia?" the youngest one asked, speaking for the first time.
"The powers of the Earth hold many cures," the spirit said, which was so vague and idiotically New-Agey that Plunder had to resist the urge to throw his head back and scream. "Come, Planeteers," she said, turning with Blight in her arms to make her way back to their cottage. Then she paused, half-turning to Plunder. "You can come, too, if you like."
She turned and walked off with her little cult of followers, the American, Chinese and Russian members audibly grumbling about this turn of events. Plunder growled softly to himself as well, then after a moment's hesitation went off after them. Might as well see the inside of their base, that might be useful at least...
He tried to keep a foot or two back from the group, keeping a step or two behind the Spanish kid, who made up the rear. His eyes darted around the island, then to Gaia's back (or more accurately Blight's head and feet, which he could see dangling from this angle), then back to the island, back to Gaia and Blight-
He heard a slight noise, then suddenly became aware of a pinkish light coming from the little spick's Ring; the boy was staring at it closely, his brow furrowed. "What are you doing? !" Plunder suddenly spat, and the boy was so startled that he jumped, the light cutting off like a candle being extinguished. Plunder knew the little one barely had any sort of powers, but he wasn't going to be taking any chances now.
"Um-nothing," he said a bit nervously, giving Plunder a sideways look. "It's just..."
"Just what?"
The boy continued staring at him. "You really do love her, don't you?"
Plunder blinked but didn't answer, turning away and looking straight forward with hard, stony eyes. The boy continued to stare at him for a moment, then looked away himself, as if embarrassed.
Blight's head turned toward Plunder now, and the ragged way she was breathing made his empty hands tremble, however impassive his face managed to look.
Damn it.
He really did, didn't he?