“I think I have an idea for getting past those robots in the tunnels.”
Bracky seemed fit to burst with excitement as he prepared himself to retell his discoveries to his good friend who was sitting reading a newspaper in the cafe they were in. Slurping on his hot milk with a little coffee, the younger tapped out a rhythm with a spoon on his cup as he waited for his companion to look up from whatever he was reading.
“Something to short circuit them, that’s what we need.” Bracky leant forward and smiled as wide as possible for his narrow face, “Sorta like a huge magnet.”
Vagrant smiled and looked back at the paper.
“And who’s going to carry this huge magnet into a metallic tunnel?”
Bracky raised one finger as if to signal he had a response and left his mouth hanging open as words failed him. His index finger slowly regressed back into its normal position and he exhaled.
“Huh. Good point. Okay, well then I’ll just build something that might work!”
Vagrant shook his head with a big smile on his face. Typical Bracky; forever the optimist especially where his inventions are at stake. Even when they were doomed to failure, like his water-proof alarm clock for those that get drowsy in the bath; a novel idea that was a given but after the prototype gave him a severe electric shock, he gave up on it. Severe might be overcooking it a little, the shock made his hair stand on end for a few hours and he was a human magnet with juice cans for a while but he was otherwise unharmed.
“What about you?” The older looked up as he was spoken to again. “Are you ready for it?”
Vagrant closed the paper and set it down on the table as he picked up his tea. In truth he wasn’t as ready as he appeared, this heist was by far their most treacherous to date and he was worried that something might happen to his friends. He was worried too that something might happen to him. For Carla’s sake, he didn’t want anything to happen to anyone because to bring her sorrow would hurt him just as badly. To know her eyes were full of tears and her chest hurting from heaving up those painful sobs, no, that would be unbearable. The thoughts alone were tormenting enough.
“Yes.”
Bracky nearly snorted into his drink at the solitary worded answer.
“That’s it, just ‘yes’?”
Vagrant looked at him straight in the eye and blinked once.
“Yes.”
The groups for the tunnels had been decided after the group had discussed the plan one last time the night before. Vagrant and Bracky would go in first, to deal with the rats if there were any and to make it to the first storage area that was four hundred yards due north west from the entrance. Due to Vagrant’s military background, the distance covered would not be difficult to judge; plus he had a rather nifty watch he’d ‘borrowed’ from an electronics store. The next group in was Joke and Ska, Joke was to keep an eye on Ska just in case any rats remained and were out to scare him. They were also rather spritely on their feet and would be able to make it to the first storage area in the same amount of time it would take the first team to reach the second one, which was only one hundred and fifty yards away from the first one. Going in last was Spider, who would rendezvous with the others in the second storage unit because according to Theo’s calculations the Cleaners would have swept their route and be on recharge for an hour by that time. It seemed to be falling into shape; the next part was just as tricky as the first however. Upon reaching the second turn off, there was a long ladder leading to the surface, which in turn would lead to the inside of the vault. Seemed easy enough, however, there was apparently a laser system in place surrounding the walls of money. It struck Spider as bit overprotective considering the tanks and armed guards outside, who were they afraid of? Giant moles with shotguns breaking in? Perhaps they were and if so, they were nearly on the money, so to speak. The last trick would be escaping the vault, if Bracky’s plan to dodge the lasers would pay off then they’d be home Scot-free. Joke wasn’t sure, he was convinced that his friend had seen Beaches’ Seven too many times. One of his favourites too but in that film the heist wasn’t real and nobody in their group could dance that way to get through the lasers without touching them. It would take a force of great dancing ability to do that, or wires but this wasn’t a movie; this was real. The day of the heist was getting closer and closer and everyone in the gang was ready for it. Nobody was getting cold feet because they knew what lay on the other side of the money. Freedom.
Rumno was feeling frisky that evening, no doubt about it; there were bitches in the vicinity and he wanted some of that action. Sniffing around the dock didn’t bring anything he wanted; instead the only scent in the air was that of the opposite gender. Even a steak being barbecued in a house nearby wasn’t nearly tempting enough for his snout. Tugging hard on his leash, Rumno tried to force himself free so he could chase his desires.
“Rumno! Hey!” Bracky could feel his arm giving way at the shoulder. “Rumno!?”
Digging his heels into the concrete as best he could, the dog walker held back on the leash and made sure the animal on the other end knew that he wasn’t going anywhere either. Battling with the dog took his mind away from more important thoughts; he had been thinking about the Cleaners or rather how to get past them. Bracky remembered reading a comic book a long time ago about a mechanical foe and how the humans got the better of it with something to do with electricity. He couldn’t remember what it was but was going to be very studious about it when he got home. If he got home alive, the hound on the other end of the leash was intent on getting to the nearest bitch for some doggy lovin’.
“Right you, home.”
Nearly having to drag the canine, Bracky made his way back to his room in Vagrant’s apartment. He wondered a little if maybe he had any Intel on dealing with machines like this after serving in the military. Surely they would have had similar technology?
“Well, well, well...” The voice he recognised but could not place entered his ears as he stopped short of the street to his home and turned around. “Look what we have here.”
Bracky stared at the silhouette beside a nearby shack, standing still with a plume of smoke drifting up above their head. He prayed to his favourite superhero Captain Zeph that it was Joke. But the voice was too effeminate for him, even when he was impersonating a woman for the punchline to one of his dirty jokes. The person started to walk over to the man and his dog and Bracky found himself becoming slightly afraid.
“What’re you doing here?”
“What if I said waiting for you?” Jazz appeared before him, her usual heavily eye-lined eyes looking over to him, her chest thankfully covered for a change. Bracky swallowed hard as she leant into his face with her own, Rumno not impressed that his walker was getting female attention, started to growl.
“I see your dog doesn’t like me.”
Bracky took this opportunity to break the eye contact and look at his pooch friend. Why was this happening to me? He found himself asking his inner thoughts. Why didn’t he take Joke up on his offer to go window shopping for future steals? Why was he now, in the dark, with her?
“I have an idea for something we can do that’s real fun, Bracky.”
“R-Really now,” his nerves kicked in and he started to stutter, “I really sh-should be g-getting home. C-Carla will worry...”
Jazz shook her head and cradled his face with both hands, each with ridiculously long fingernails. He found himself wondering how she could hold a pencil with those things.
“Fuck her, she’s not your mother.”
“B-but I don’t th-think me f-fucking her would be a g-good-“
Jazz laughed at his stuttering mistake on what she meant and silenced him with a long and wet kiss. At this point Rumno started barking and pawing at Bracky’s leg, like he could sense the man’s discomfort in the situation; he wasn’t wrong either.
“Jazz, no...” Bracky broke the kiss before he started to enjoy it, which was doubtful as he disliked things being forced upon him. Like that time Ska had tried to force him to like that awful sci-fi film about blue aliens... She didn’t take no for an answer and slid her hands down his chest to the top of his trousers. The move caused him to jump and step backwards from her.
“I really need to get ba-back to my home.” Bracky frowned at the woman who was being a little too hands on for his liking. “C-Carla will worry and I s-said I’d be home f-five minutes ago.”
Jazz threw her hands up in the air and cursed.
“You and your fucking Carla! She’s nothing but a stuck up bitch who doesn’t understand that a man like you is too old to be babied.”
Bracky scowled back at the tirade of abuse towards the lovely Carla. How dare she talk about her like that, she didn’t even know her! She’ll never be the angel that Vagrant’s wife is. However, deciding not to get into a war of words with this person, Bracky turned and walked up the street towards his home, listening to Jazz continue to taunt him with vulgar words about his friend’s wife and his own personality just because he’d turned her down. He sped up and walked briskly up the steps to the door. Rumno didn’t let up on his barking until he was at his door.
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