"Rigor Mortis"-The life after death RP(Started/PM for participation)-Arc 4: Closing Loose Ends

[TheIronRuler]

"Don't shout", Frank tried to say in a mellow tone, but only his husky voice came out. He aimed his revolver at Marcus, this time he chose his right chest. He pulled the pin back and fired another shot. Dan could be heard in the background crying, "Who the fuck are you" he asked Frank.

Marcus fell back and remained in a state of shock long enough for Frank to notice a faint green light glowing near his bleeding wound. "Good", Frank said, throwing the revoler to the ground, "Treat yourself and help Mister Mark", he ordered Marcus to act. Fank walked back to the left corner and sat back down on an armchair, "Nice office", he said to the dying man.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Marcus raised his head, coughing up blood as he did so, to see a faint green light hovering just above the dark stain that was spreading from the hole in his chest. The pain was almost blinding, and Marcus had to struggle to keep himself conscious. He didn't have much time.

"Treat yourself and help Mister Mark"

"What do I do?" Marcus gasped.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Frank placed his elbows on his knees, lowered his head and rested it on his hands.
"Jack told me he would think happy thoughts. He said that being lost in a sea of warmness, of love, would stop the darkness.", Frank sighed and looked back at Dan. He began crawling towards him, still bleeding. "When you help her you need to imagine the wound healed" he said. He continued to follow Dan crawling around the desk.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Marcus did his best to focus through the fog of pain on the wound in his chest. He imagined the wound healing, the bleeding subsiding. Nothing at first. Marcus had to try harder, he had tunnel vision now and he knew he must be close to losing consciousness.

...............................................................................................

He was dazed, not quite aware of what had just happened. Steam obscured his vision, and broken glass littered the back seats all around him.

Looking out of the smashed window, Marcus could see the wreckage of another car entangled with their's. It's horn was sounding, one constant, drawn out note, and yet the sound seemed so far away to Marcus, as if it was calling out to him from across an ocean.

It was only now Marcus realized that he was upside down. It was strange. He couldn't remember how they had got there. He had been crying because they'd left without his favorite toy and Daddy wouldn't go back for it. Daddy had yelled at him, turning his head to face Marcus so he would listen, and then everything had gone dark. He couldn't see Daddy anymore.

Marcus was getting scared now, he wanted to go and look for Daddy, but he couldn't get his car seat undone. It was then he noticed movement from the front of the car. Mommy was still here, it was alright.

"Marcus." she said in a weak, trembling voice. "You be brave for Mommy ok?"

She was crying. Marcus hadn't noticed before because of all the red lines down her face. He watched her close her eyes just as the sound of sirens filled the air.

...............................................................................................

No! It's not true, it wasn't my fault! C'mon, try harder!

He visualized again, in more detail this time. Just in time his vision started to clear, and then Marcus screamed in pain as the bullet was pushed back though the hole and out of his body. His breathing eased as the blood that had been filling his chest cavity drained away. Finally, Marcus watched as his muscle and skin stitched themselves back together, leaving almost no trace of a wound there at all.

Marcus still felt faint, and it took a surprising amount of physical excursion just to get himself to his feet. He stumbled over to Mira, removing the scarf he had just used, and focused again.

It happened faster this time. The bullet squeezed out, the bleeding stopped, and the hole closed. He could hear Mira's breathing getting stronger, and relief washed over him when he knew she was going to be alright.

Mr. Mark next. Marcus picked up his severed hand from the desk, now a sickly grey color through loss of blood. Mr. Mark yelped in pain as Marcus grabbed his wrist, and then held the hand next to it. There was a crack as bone came together, as if the two broken ends were magnetized. Then, from the inside out the rest of the limb reattached. Marcus knew it had been successful as the hand started to turn back to it's normal coloration, meaning that blood was flowing again.

He looked at Frank, with a mixture of shock, anger, and fear.

"What now?" he asked.

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

Why... Mira thought out as she writhed on the floor. She had tried to heal Mr.Mark but there was simply no way. The bullet hit her with the speed of a boxer's punch. She tried to hear Marcus' words but all she could hear was a ringing. Her vision began to dot as the blood-loss set in. Mira tried to move but it was difficult, breathing was too.

Then Marcus healed her. The astonishment of how it was even possible shocked Mira more than Frank opening fire on her. All her career she was trained in trying to save lives with what was assumed to be technology's best but now the fact that Marcus successfully sealed and healed her bullet wound left her speechless once again. After Marcus was done she brought herself up and looked at Frank.

"What are we?" Mira whispered in part shock and part astonishment.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Dan laid on the floor next to the now fully healed Marcus. He launched himself at the thrown revolver and turned around, facing Marcus's back and Frank. "Now we get shot", Frank said nonchalantly, and only a moment later Dan fired his revolver, emptying all four remaining bullets into Frank.

Frank let out a shout and stood up. He walked towards Dan as he got up and began running away. Dan ran past the door, but then fell back as the bleeding body of Frank suddenly appeared in front of him. A blood trail could be traced between the armchair and Dan. "I don't need traitors", Frank said. "Please, no, stop!" Dan screamed and tried to crawl away from frank.

Frank crouched down and put his right knee over Dan's genitalia, pressing it against the floor. His right hand glowed in an ominous red, and he punched his gut, puncturing it. His clothes caught on fire and Dan continued to scream. Frank held his head with his left hand and simply waited. The others stood in awe as Frank took out a cigarette with his right hand, lit it and began smoking it. "I will give you anything... please... Help... Doctor" Dan's pleas continued even after his fate was already sealed.

Frank took a deep, long breath and inhaled the smoke. His blood covered all of his clothes and began tickling down on Dan, blending with his. "Take the documents and go home", he ordered his two employees, "Be quick". Frank raised his leg up and pushed his knee into Dan's genitalia again, this time much more violently. Dan vomited a combination of blood and his stomach contents, letting all of it drip on his face and upper torso, extinguishing the flames that went toward his neck. Frank leaned towards Dan and whispered something in his ear. "We gave you life. Now you squandered it".

Frank finished his cigarette and stood up. He turned back and disappeared, leaving only a trail of blood behind him.

 

[Generic_Username]

Spencer was listening to Brendan and Evey's bickering from the other room. The door was open, and the walls were thin. It was entertaining, but there was something else on his mind.

He waited for the conversation to quiet down before speaking up. He noticed that Adrian also returned, and was now lying down on the couch, muttering to himself.

"Do you think there's anyone out there looking for us? The police, or... the mortuary? Sure, a lot of people die every day, but six bodies disappearing at the same time, just after their deaths, isn't something that would go unnoticed. And that's just assuming there's only six of us."

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Marcus Thought he should probably be shocked and appalled by what he had just seen, but it was as if he had expended all the emotion possible in one day. He just felt empty as he stared down at what was left of Mr. Mark.

"Well," he said, turning to Mira, "as first days go, at least it wasn't dull."

He picked the documents up off the desk, crossed the room and held the door open, waiting for Mira.

 

[Berenzen]

Ben listened to Spencer's question, it was fairly good, but Ben thought that the null hypothesis was much more likely.

"I don't think so, if they managed to resurrect us, I think they'd have the resources to manage to keep it quiet. A couple individuals paid off, maybe some bodies faked. There is no reason that the police are looking for us. Unless one of us tipped them off. Hell, I don't even know if I even had a paramedic even declare me legally dead, and from her story, I'm pretty sure that Evey here didn't either."

"We're alone in this world now, in the end, we should be banding together rather than infighting. We all have different personalities and different ways of handling the situation. In the end though, we will want to keep together, we're roomies now, and chances are that we will be doing missions together. The big question that I have is are we constantly being listened to by our new employers?"

 

[Link_to_Future]

"The big question that I have is are we constantly being listened to by our new employers?"

Adrian didn't move from the couch or show any signs of alertness. His voice sounded eerily dreamy as he spoke.

"I would be more surprised if they WEREN'T listening in on us right this moment. They were able to provide us with complete information on our targets. Frank showed up at just the right moment to turn the tide of the situation."

He coughed roughly. It was difficult for him to talk while lying on his back but it didn't stop him from trying.

"We could be either a great asset or a huge liability. They are going to be watching."

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

Mira followed, gingerly. When the pair left the building, away from the dark halls and blood spatters of what was Mr.Mark. She still couldn't believe or fathom what Frank had done and his brutal nature. She felt sick, woozy to the stomach.

"Excuse me..." Mira said as she ran off to the side and emptied her stomach into a trash can. It felt horrible. Tears ran down her eyes and she gagged up what was left. She coughed sporadically.

"I'm sorry... I just needed to..." Mira coughed again as spit out a few chunks of her stomach contents.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"Hey, it's alright." Marcus said, putting his hand on her shoulder and adopting the same soft, understanding tone that he'd learned comforted people during his later years at the orphanage. "You've got nothing to be sorry about. Today's been, well, today's been a *****, and I'm not going to pretend I know if it will get any better or not, but however bad things get, I've got your back. So whenever it get's too hard, just think 'I'm not alone in this. Someone has my back.'"

Marcus didn't know if mere words were going to cut it this time, but it was the best he could do. Whatever else he may be, Marcus had always wanted to help people, even if it came at his own expense. Something about him (maybe it was his tendency to keep his emotions under wraps, and to always think before speaking) Meant that people often came to him when they were in trouble. Sometimes, even the people who were completely indifferent to him, or outwardly disliked him, would come to him when they felt they could ask no-one else for help; and Marcus would have been lying to say the thought had never flattered him. The thought of being the one person everyone trusted to be there for them when they needed it, even when they barely acknowledged his existence half the time, was one of the few parts of his persona he was truly happy with. The only problem was, he was so keen to play the part of the listener, or the protector, to these people rather than open up to then about his own problems, while he may have had their backs, he wasn't sure if anybody had ever had his.

Gently, he helped Mira to her feet.

"We need to get back. Are you going to be ok?"

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

"Thanks..." Mira sputtered out. She was sure that there was no more to cough out and rubbed the gunk that was on her hands to the walls of the building parallel to her. Mira appreciated Marcus' tone. Without David in her life, Mira had trouble finding someone who she could share the same emotions that she would with him. Mira found friends were too casual and boyfriends were too intimate to when it came to things like that. She never could find that middle and throughout her life she had looked for that middle ground.

"Yeah...God...I haven't puked like that since college." Mira joked to try and make light of the situation even though she had no idea if Marcus appreciated humor at all. "We should probably get going... back to the apartment. Let's see how the others did."

 

[TheIronRuler]

Frank found himself sitting in an alley, his back pressed against the wall. His torso brandished four gaping bullet wounds and he was gasping for air. His hands shook as he tried to reach for another cigarette from his pack. It was the last one. He slowly placed it in his mouth, but this time went for an inner pocket in his jacket and took a small lighter. He opened it and ignited his cigarette.

"That's rough, Frank", Frank heard a sweet, mellow voice. Alice entered the alleyway. A beautiful woman in her late teens, with flowing long black hair and deep blue eyes. The well endowed and thin lady walked towards Frank in her red high heels, her red short skirt teasing him. She stood next to him and bent down, letting Frank see more skin than what he would usually see from her revealing red top. "You used your lighter. What's wrong?", she asked him softly, though her posture suggested she was teasing him.

"I saw Jack", Frank said as he lit his cigarette. Alice looked confused, "Jack is gone, Frank. You know that. Eighty two. You of all people ought to remember", she tried to comfort him. "And never forgive", Frank added as he took another breath of the sweet tobacco he held in his hand. Strong green lights came from his chest.
"How was the Larkin residence?", Frank inquired. Alice straitened and and looked away towards the street.
"Home invasion. Husband down, ran to the kids room and killed them. Grabbed the wife and played with her a bit", she said without any emotion.

"But I never touched her like that", Frank said, his wounds began to heal themselves.
"Had to put in some flavor. Higgins was easy, the man killed himself", Alice continued with her report.
"Higgins?", Frank stopped Alice, "He was a veteran. He wouldn't kill himself for anything in -" as he continued to ask himself why Jeremy would kill himself, Alice provided the answer. "Me. He wanted me to show up. I won't be surprised if the last thing that remains of him is my memory. And you-", Alice smiled at Frank.

Her smile was beautiful. Her thin lips stretched just enough to give a perfect view of her pearly white teeth. "That accountant was a mess. I had to remove everything. Missing man.", Alice continued, "What did he do?", she asked him. Frank pointed at his now almost healed wounds, "Smith and Wesson. Four shots. Marcus... I saw Jack in that kid... He had the gift", Frank said, his thoughts drifting to his past.

Alice whistled and looked up to the sky. "Do you think the rest can go past level one?", she asked Frank. Frank looked at Alice and she looked back at him. Both of them smiled. "I can try", he said.

Frank stood up and looked down at his clothes. His blazer had two holes in them, besides being covered in blood. "Love", Frank said, "Do you want to go on a date?", he asked her with his husky voice, trying to sound as soft as possible.

"You know I don't date smokers, Frank. You know."

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

The ride back was quiet, but not in the same tense way it had been just a few hours, yet a lifetime before. This time it was calmer, as if they were saying to each other without uttering a sound 'We made it though today; and with any luck, we'll make it through the days that follow.'

However, Marcus still couldn't shake from his mind what he had seen during his brief time in limbo. The images were less substantial now, coming in flashes, out of sync. Yet he couldn't shake them. They had nestled themselves into a deep, hard to reach level of his consciousness. Like a tumor that could never be cut out.

"You be brave for Mommy ok?"

Get a grip! Marcus scolded himself. You were too young to remember. That wasn't how it happened. Your mind is screwing with you, that's all!

It was possible, certainly, maybe even probable, that what he was telling himself was true. Yet deep down he knew that wasn't why he was saying it. He just couldn't bear the thought that their deaths, and the life he had had since as a result, could have been his fault.

As they ascended the stairs Marcus noticed that he and Mira's clothes were once again covered in blood. Not that it mattered, if the others had had experiences similar to theirs then Marcus wasn't betting on any of them coming back alive. However, they were all present when he opened the door.

They looked how he felt. Exhausted, and all bearing the signs of trauma etched into their expressions. Whether physical or emotional, Marcus couldn't be sure.

"Well that certainly wasn't what I normally expect from a night out." Marcus remarked, hoping to raise the mood a little.

 

[Generic_Username]

"Well that certainly wasn't what I normally expect from a night out."

"What, your guy didn't offer you a drink?"

Seeing them both alive and in one piece lifted Spencer's spirits. It meant their little group actually had a chance in this line of work. It was only then that he noticed their clothes. They were soaked in an unspeakable amount of blood. He couldn't make out whether that meant the job was a success or a critical failure.

"Are you alright? Whose blood is that?"

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

"A little bit of mine and a little bit of someone else's..." Mira said. She was exhausted and not only in the physical sense but also in the mental sense. The toll of seeing what had happened earlier cost her movements to be slow.

"How did it go with you guys?" Mira asked Spencer. But one thing he really wanted to ask her is if they had known that they had such powers or if it was them. She kept that question lingering in her mind though, ready to unleash it if someone brought it up.

 

[Generic_Username]

"Well, in a way, we got the easy one."

Spencer felt the letter opener in his pocket, as if trying to prove to himself what happened to them was real.

"He tried to attack us with a letter opener, but Evey managed to calm him down. He committed suicide, although I think he didn't mean to. He believed Alice would save him. He was like us. Dead, but alive."

He didn't want to go into any more details. The whole experience was behind him now.

"Did you guys get any resistance? And... where did all that blood come from?"

Spencer eyed both Mira and Marcus. There were no visible injuries on either of them, and yet Mira said it was her own blood.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"Did you guys get any resistance? And... where did all that blood come from?"

"It's a long story." Marcus replied. "Short version? It went ok at the start. We had the guy prisoner and he was taking us to the information we needed."

Marcus held up the blood-spattered file covers, as if reciprocating the gesture Spencer had made with the letter opener.

"Then Boss showed up and all hell broke loose. Our new friend got his hand cut off, Boss shot us for no reason, and then he made me, well, I'm not entirely sure sure how to explain it. He made me, 'heal' myself."

He paused a moment to let his words sink in. Spencer looked confused, yet if Marcus had to guess, he wasn't exactly surprised either. Marcus could relate. After today he wondered if anything would ever surprise him any more...

"Anyways. I figured out how to do it just in time, and then I did the same to Mira and Mr. Mark. Not that it made any difference. You don't want to know what happened to Mr. Mark after that."

Marcus was too tired to even bother with making space for himself on the sofa or the table. He just slumped in the corner between the wall and the marble worktop. It wasn't too bad, he'd crashed in worse places.

 

[Generic_Username]

Healing. Spencer rubbed his temple with his right hand. Resurrection. Pyrokinesis. And now healing? Apparently Evey and him were the only pair that hasn't witnessed a miracle today, aside from their own resurrections. After a day like this, Spencer was sure nothing could surprise him anymore.

"You... healed yourself. You healed yourself?"

The words were coming out, but the meaning still didn't sink in.

Why can Marcus heal, and not Mira, who is a paramedic? Could he do it again, if necessary? What's in the bloody file? Do they all have some sort of latent ability? And if they do, what's his?

"...never mind."

He had so many questions, but he finally decided not to ask anything. The last thing he wanted was to put pressure on Marcus and Mira. Their job seemed to have been the hardest, excluding Brendan, who died once more.

"By the way, now that we're all here, we should probably take care of the sleeping arrangements. I have no problem with sleeping on the floor, but there are two unused beds in the next room and I'd hate to see them go to waste. I suggest Mira and Evey take them."

He sat down and closed his eyes, resting his head against the wall.