Fearless Leader (Juxtapose City) (21 page)

Because maybe you already know.

One of these days, Calyx told himself, after he'd found his sanctuary in the Silent City and found his revenge he would find the person who had hurt his Darkness. Whether it took a week or a year, he wouldn't rest until he found them.

And when Calyx found them he would tear them apart, piece by bloody piece. He knew he would enjoy every minute of it.

Calyx fell asleep somewhere around five in the morning, long after sympathy had given way to something less charitable. He was awakened two hours later when it sounded as though every door in the house was systematically slammed on its hinges. He groaned in misery and dragged a pillow over his head. The silence lasted about thirty seconds before his own door rattled in its frame beneath heavy pounding.

"Go away, Mom," he groaned. "There's no school today."

"Open the door, Starr."

Hell. Of course it would be the very bastard responsible for Calyx's current state of mind-numbing exhaustion. Cursing, he tumbled out of bed and staggered to the door, flinging it open hard enough to leave a dent in the wall where the doorknob impacted with it.

Black stared at him, a muscle twitching in his jaw. "You're naked."

"At this point I could be wearing a goddamn prom dress, sweetheart, and I wouldn't know the difference." Calyx sent him a scathing glare. "You so kindly forgot to give me my Bliss tab last night before your little 'performance'."

Brown eyes narrowed dangerously. "What performance?"

Calyx covered his face with his hands, trying not to sway on his feet. "The damned horror movie that you apparently star in every other night." The empath dropped his hands and glared at Black. "You have no idea how close I was to breaking into the gun locker and shooting us both."

Black jerked down the neck of the black turtleneck he was wearing, revealing a line of vicious bruises. "You marked me like an animal last night! I look like someone's abused boyfriend, you asshole. If you ever touch me like that again I'll save you the trouble of breaking into the locker and shoot you myself!"

Calyx took a step forward, unconcerned with his nudity. "What's the matter, sweetheart? Did it bring up some nasty memories?" When Black continued to glare furiously at him, Calyx went on recklessly. "From what I was feeling last night it's not
my
touch that got you worked up. That's some old pain you've got simmering in your head, Darkness. I'm insulted that someone's been there before me. I'm beginning to think you're used goods."

The crack of knuckles against his jaw dropped Calyx like an anvil to the head. He blinked stupidly at finding himself sprawled sloppily across the carpet. He rubbed his sore jaw and looked up at the younger man. Calyx snarled, "You little--"

He flinched when Black threw something at him. But it was small and light, fluttering to rest in the empath's naked lap.

"There's your Bliss," Black snapped. "Get high, jump out the window... I don't give a shit. If you manage to actually become functional and realize that JC2 is an opportunity for you and not an invitation for you to fuck with everyone's minds report to Sergeant Cole. I've instructed him to go over hand-to-hand combat with you."

"Oh, joy," Calyx drawled carelessly. But his fingers trembled as he peeled off one of the tabs and eagerly slipped it beneath his tongue. As the familiar tingle spread through his mouth he sighed, dropping his head back on his shoulders.
God, yes
. Feeling more languid, he opened his legs, smirking as Black's eyes fell to his crotch. Mmm, Darkness looked particularly hot when he was flushed and angry like this. "Forget Sergeant Cole, sweetheart. Why don't you and
I
do a little hand-to-hand?"

Black sneered as he tugged at the neck of his sweater. "You're a slow learner, aren't you Starr? I don't want you near me. That's not a hint, I'm
telling
you." He shook his head. "It's amazing to me how you managed to last on the streets as long as you have."

Calyx idly touched his slowly hardening cock. "It's because I know how to make people like me, sweetheart. Let me show you how I do it."

"No thanks." Black spun crisply on his heel. "Nothing from the streets interests me. That goes double for you."

"Self-hate is so terribly unattractive," Calyx called after him.

Black flipped him the bird as he slammed his bedroom door behind him.

"Someone's in a snippy mood today," Calyx muttered, rising to his feet. Not that he cared anymore. Nothing could upset him now that he had his Bliss. Sighing
blissfully,
he dropped back onto his bed and crawled happily between the sheets.

Calyx had never learned restraint when it came to Bliss. What was the point of rationing the drug when he had always been able to find a way to get more when he needed it? Black had thrown two days' worth at him -- probably as a test -- and Calyx promptly consumed all four pills the first day. He never had been a very good student.

He slept a day and a half as much to avoid Black as to get some much desired rest. When he eventually rolled out of bed he was stone cold sober. How people did this every day he had no idea.

He delved through his clothing and came up with something he knew would cause Black and the others the most pain: a long-sleeved fishnet top that revealed the pink discs of his nipples and beneath it electric blue bondage pants with four straps crisscrossing his waist and legs that swung and chimed with every step.

"Perfect," Calyx purred, looking himself over in the mirror. He finished his outfit with four-inch platform boots and headed downstairs to find the others.

The rest of the team was gathered in the Clubhouse's kitchen much to his surprise. His surprise however, didn't match Jake's.

"What the hell are you wearing?" Jake sputtered, lowering the beer he had been about to chug from.

Calyx smirked and slid around the stunned man to enter the kitchen. He winked at a flustered Haney as he pulled open the refrigerator door. "You're
supposed
to be thinking, 'Damn, Calyx is sexy in those pants. I'd love to tie him to the bed with those straps.' Go ahead, Cole, it's alright if you're attracted to me."

He smiled as Jake choked. "You must be having a bad trip, Starr, because there's no way in hell I'd ever be attracted to
you
. Freaky whores aren't my type, thank you."

Calyx leaned back against a counter, beer in hand, and smiled lazily at the larger man. "No, your tastes run more along the lines of tall, Darkness and handsome, am I right?"

To his delight, Jake flushed, looking in embarrassment at Bee and Haney who were trying their best to appear occupied in the small kitchen.

"You, uh, been in your room these past couple of days, Calyx?" Haney asked, trying obviously to spare his teammate. "We haven't seen you around. You missed out on the excitement. Or, well, er, lack of excitement, I guess."

Jake rolled his eyes. "Nice, Haney."

Calyx looked between the men with interest. It was Bee who finally explained.

"The lieutenant had us gear up to apprehend a dealer who'd been selling to little kids."

Calyx picked at the label on his beer, keeping his eyes averted to hide his sudden anxiety. "And?"

Bee sighed. "Guess the jerk had gotten a tip that we were coming. He'd up and gone."

Calyx smiled faintly. "I'd imagine that Darkness -- excuse me, Lieutenant Black was quite upset to miss such an opportunity."

"You're lucky you weren't around," Jake sneered at the empath. "I'm sure he would've taken you down a notch or two."

Oh, he tried, alright.
At least that explained Darkness' bitchy mood the other morning. Black should have known better. Despite being idiotic enough to abuse his own product, Razzy wasn't
that
stupid. Black's intentions of taking the dealer down had been all over his face that night in Razzy's office.

Calyx smiled to himself. Poor Darkness, constantly trying to be the good guy but the bad guys just wouldn't cooperate.

"And where's our fearless leader now?" he asked casually.

Jake tossed his beer bottle into the recycling module. It ground the glass quietly as he shook his head. "Out. Though why he's there..."

"Why he's where?"

"Black has a meeting with JC1," Bee explained.

"Sundhill," Calyx hissed.

"The Golden Wonder is such a suck-up," Jake muttered, stepping out of the kitchen. "I don't know what the hell Black was thinking by going there to see him."

You're so blind
, Calyx thought in pity as he looked at Black's former lover.
No wonder you're no longer together.
But although Black and Jake's apparent break-up meant that Black was now available to Calyx's advances, it opened him up to Sundhill's as well. Calyx's brief interaction with the Golden Wonder at the range had told the empath all he needed to know: Lieutenant Sundhill had designs on Black and was the type of smooth playboy who knew how to get what he wanted.

"You should have stopped him," Calyx snapped out before he could stop himself. He felt Bee's thoughtful gaze upon him and turned away. In a calmer voice, he added, "Like you said, Sundhill’s nothing but cheese and slime."

"As if stopping Black from doing what he wanted has ever been an option," Jake grumbled. Something in his tone made Calyx look closer at him. Hmm, perhaps the sergeant wasn’t as stupid as he looked. The displeasure on Jake’s face probably matched Calyx's own.

"It stings when they stray, doesn't it?" Calyx said.

Jake's eyes widened briefly as if he couldn’t tell if Calyx was commiserating with him or mocking him.

Jake shook it off to smirk. "Black told me that he wants me to go over some combat techniques with you. You up for that... freak?"

"Jake..." Bee warned.

Calyx held up his hand to the big man. "No need to defend my delicate sensibilities, Bee. I can handle Cole on my own, thanks." He tossed his own beer into the recycling module and looked at his rival for Black's affections. "You think you can put me on my back, Cole? Sorry to disappoint you but I'm actually selective about who I allow to top me. I have certain--" he glanced meaningfully at the other man's crotch "-- requirements."

Jake's face went red. "Why don't you let me give it a shot?"

Calyx thought of Black at JC1, probably being seduced out of his pants at that very moment. The empath's teeth flashed in a feral grin. "Give it your best shot, sweetheart." He had a feeling he would enjoy pounding Jake's face into the mats very much.

Across town, Black still had his pants on. But not much else.

He circled Lieutenant Sundhill and felt the sweat slide down his spine and disappear beneath the waistband of the shorts the other man had lent him.

"You're good, lieutenant," Sundhill panted, facing him across the black mats. "I'm impressed. Whoever it was who taught you to fight taught you well."

Black had allowed such praise to distract him before. He didn't this time and it saved him from being dropped to his back as Sundhill made a dive for his legs. He used the larger man's forward momentum to send Sundhill tumbling past him to the floor.

Sundhill rolled over, propping himself up on his elbows as he grinned up at Black. "You're making me look like an ox."

Black relaxed slightly. "Hardly. That's the first time I've managed to get you off your feet since we started."

Sundhill looked at him with lazy nonchalance. "Is that so? I guess I'll have to restore the status quo, then. I think I prefer it the other way around. With you on the bottom."

Black felt his cheeks burn.
He didn't mean it that way
, he told himself firmly. But it was hard to tell with Sundhill looking up at him almost... heatedly. Black cleared his throat. He extended a hand down to the other man.

"Since that's not likely to happen want to call it quits?" he asked lightly.

Sundhill shrugged and accepted his hand. Black cursed himself a second later as he fell for the oldest trick in the book. A powerful yank pulled him off his feet and sent him sprawling across the older man. In a deft move born of much practice, Sundhill reversed their positions, pinning Black face down to the mat.

"Damn it!" Black hissed into the vinyl. "I can't believe I let you do that!"

Sundhill laughed lightly against the side of his face. His warm breath stirred teasingly through the whorls of Black's ear. It was at that moment that Black realized just how intimately they were pressed together. He could feel the other man along the entire length of his body. Sundhill's strong thighs straddled his own. It was a dangerous position, for it placed Sundhill's weight on his hips which pushed tight against the curve of Black's ass. And he could feel Sundhill's--

Black held very, very still.

"Are you holding your breath?" Sundhill asked.

"I'm practicing my breath control," Black answered quietly.