[attr="class","skullbody"]Aiming at him.[break][break]
Isaac's breath hitched as Matt clutched onto him. He had the iron grip of a man that knew he was dying. After everything Isaac had done, after all of his fuckups, Matt took a bullet for him. And he didn't even blame him for it. Isaac did, of course. For the second time in a week, Isaac's mistakes, his regrets, his very
presence lead to a friend of his getting badly hurt.[break][break]
Isaac's eyes sparked with rage. Hatred boiled in his gut. His very voice was strained. Despite this, he still did his best to give Matt a comforting smile.
"You're too good to me," he said, his mask smothering his tears before they could roll.
"You're too good for all of this bullshit."[break][break]
Gently, oh so gently, Isaac ran a hand through Kazzy's new fur.
"I'm gonna be right back, okay?" Isaac said, voice quivering. He stooped down, picking up the goggles and sliding them over his head. Nothing, nothing, nothing . . . there! On the horizon, Isaac could see an infrared figure stumbling over himself in a panic.
"Someone's gotta answer for this."[break][break]
After applying one last layer of Life Dew, Isaac and Echo Teleported away. Would Kazzy follow? Or would he avoid moving Matt more than he needed to?[break][break]
Normally, Isaac used his teleports for strategic vantage points. Not today. Instead, he teleported right in front of the wannabe gunman, lunging forward in a vicious clothesline. With literally no warning, the gunman had no time to slow down. The two collided at full momentum, leaving him practically unable to breathe.[break][break]
For a lesser crime, that'd be enough. But Matt Vice had gotten fucking shot. Isaac's next move was to spitefully sweep at the man's legs as he stumbled, his kick sweeping him off of his feet and leaving him falling to the ground. Without a moment of hesitation, Isaac followed him down, dropping a knee right onto his gut. That'd knock the gunman's breath away, and with his windpipe in ruins he wouldn't be getting it back anytime soon. It was a level of brutality that, even with
Zev Harcourt's lessons, Isaac never imagined himself needing. Yet here he was.[break][break]
First order of business. Gun. A cylindrical canvas case was slung over the man's shoulder, and it didn't take a genius to figure out that was where he was stowing it. Isaac lifted the man's chest off of the ground by his shirt, staring hatefully into his eyes as Echo used her Psychic to ease the bag off of him. Once it was removed, Isaac dropped him back into the dirt like the worm he was.[break][break]
Next order of business. Terror. In a move that would make
Cillian Quinn proud, the shadows underneath the man's feet began to pool into a solid form. Blood red tendrils of algae tore their way from the shadow realm as Isaac's Dhelmise, Sanford, rose from its grave.
"Hang him high," Isaac hissed, Sanford snagging the gunman's ankles in a tight Power Whip. The sound of bone creaking was enough to put a smile on Isaac's face. The Dhelmise then swung its anchor in a circle, slinging an Anchor Shot over the treeline like the counterweight on a hangman's noose. His chain sailed up and over the branches, dragging the poor, unfortunate soul in his wake.[break][break]
The gunman was left dangling upside down by his ankles, the spitting image of the Hanged Man tarot card.[break][break]
"Alright, buddy," Isaac said, jabbing him in the chest hard enough to leave him swinging. Between his breathlessness, the blood rushing to his head, and his pants-shitting terror, he didn't even think to strike back.
"Two ways we do this. Either you tell me why you shot him. Or, by the time I'm done with you, you won't be telling anyone anything. Deal?"[break][break]
The gunman said nothing at first. A punch to the gut changed his tune quickly.
"Didn't. Mean to!" he rasped.
"Aiming. At." He realized the words coming out of his mouth, wincing at the implication they held.[break][break]
Isaac looked the man in the eye, a smirk curling onto his face.
"Your plan at getting off easy is to tell me you were trying to shoot me," he said.
"Either you've got some real stones on you, or you're the dumbest guy that's ever tried to kill me. Mind telling me which?"[break][break]
"Dumb! Really! Really! Dumb!"[break][break]
Okay. There was something oddly intoxicating about shooting at someone's feet and making them dance. The amusement Isaac got out of the man's pleas had a disgusting aftertaste, but it was hard to get past how sweet it felt. Ugh. No. This was bad. Maybe instead of LARPing Predator until his victim pissed himself, he should just cut to the chase.[break][break]
Isaac bit the inside of his cheek to snap himself out of it before continuing.
"Question still stands. Why'd you try and shoot me? You on the League's payroll? Or just some bleeding heart patriot that saw black and red?"[break][break]
The man averted his gaze.
"Bounty . . ." he wheezed, his voice like a deflating balloon.[break][break]
"So you decided to play judge, jury, and executioner for a little bit of cash." The man withered under Isaac's gaze as it bored holes in his soul.
"Scum. And some real stupid scum, too. Let's say you succeeded. I'm too dead to be of any use for the League. You get cuffs slapped on you for vigilante justice, 'cause even a scumbag like me has rights. And my death doesn't do a damn thing to slow Rocket down, 'cause I'm just another cog in the machine. Too bad, so sad, none of us get what we want."[break][break]
"Don't . . . kill . . . me . . .""Nah. That'd be way too good for you." The gunman writhed like a fish on a hook at the implication. Isaac could only sigh in response.
"Look. Accidents have consequences. A court of law's not gonna care if some dipshit goes 'boo hoo, I did a fuckup,' You shot a Ranger. And now, whatever happens happens. So you're just gonna have to live with that."[break][break]
"But really, I'm a nice guy. A dumbass like you wouldn't last a day in the slammer. So how about we cut a deal?" Even as he tried not to enjoy this, a smirk crept up Isaac's face.
"Think of me like a genie. But you'll be the one granting me three wishes. First two are easy. You wire the money to help pay Matt Vice and Josh Devlin's hospital bills. I don't care how you get it. Hit your savings. Rob a bank. Go in debt at the Game Corner for all I give a shit. But you're making up for your fuck up, and giving back to the gym leader that you got oh so worked up over. Sound good?"[break][break]
The man nodded, eyes pleading.
"Third. Wish?"[break][break]
"Arceus, it's a metaphor. Anyway, this one's a nice, simple one. You owe me a favor. I'm not gonna use it to get you killed, or have you do anything you can't live with. Who knows? Maybe I'll just ask you to make a beer run for me. But I want you to remember this day, and that favor's gonna hang over your head to make sure you never forget. Understood?" The man nodded again. Isaac's eyes sharpened.
"I said, understood?"[break][break]
"Under! Stood!"[break][break]
"Good boy." Isaac snapped his fingers, and Sanford released his grip. The gunman fell to the ground, coughing and wheezing all the while. Isaac reached out a hand to help him up; after staring at it as if it were a bomb, he hesitantly took it. Isaac pulled him up, even patted him on the back to make sure he was okay.[break][break]
And then pulled him close, his grip hard enough to crush the man's fingers.
"I'll say you got away before I got a good look at you. Wire the money to Matt's bills in three days, and we leave it at that. If you don't, we're gonna have another problem." The implication hovered in the air as ominously as Sanford did.
"And we don't want another problem, now do we?"[break][break]
"Never! Ever!" Isaac released his grip, smiled at the gunman, and with a little twirl of his hand motioned for him to be gone. He bolted like a Corsola in a Mareanie den, and for a second Isaac could've sworn the grass looked a little bit yellower. Or maybe that was just the layer of jade that had formed around his rose-tinted glasses.
[break][break]
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[attr="class","skullinfo"]MOBILE POST /
Matt Vice
