An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/5
Fandom: N.E.R.D.S. - Michael Buckley
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
with 5 people
Summary:
This is the freshman NERDS' collective response to the Troublemakers when they're talked into going to a party Jessie is throwing Friday night; for some of them, this is their first party in years. And it's also their first high school party. And their first high school event ever.
"Okay, it's *just* the Troublemakers, and it's *just* a party. What could happen?"
Well, a lot it seems. Perhaps too much. After all, the Troublemakers throw a mean party, the gang just don't realize it yet.
<><><><><><><><>
Lighthearted high-school era fic with headcanons galore and fun high school party tropes. Enjoy!
~~~~~~~~~~~
I cooked this up while feeling unwell, wanting to work on something stress-free before my main fic. If this spit in the void reaches anyone, enjoy!
I thought I'd have some fun brainstorming ideas for what the NERDS are like during high school. They're pretty much all headcanons so don't take any of it too seriously (not that anyone will).
I think it's fun to picture what the group will look like once they enter high school, and to see how they've grown mentally, physically, and emotionally. I don't see enough content of them past middle school, which is a shame cause there's some really cool ideas to explore and dynamics that exist.
Well, here they are, in no particular order:
Jackson got his braces off in 9th grade, having mostly finished his orthodontic treatment. He now wears wire retainers 24/7 except when eating. His upgrades still work with his retainers. Heathcliff also got minor work done, and now has two (regular-sized) false front teeth.
Duncan got a lot taller (but he's still the shortest of the group, about 5'6"). Ruby and Flinch tie for the tallest, both standing at 6'1"
Flinch ended up getting diagnosed with ADHD. Whatever energy was left in him after the Adderall he started channeling into weight lifting, and he now has muscle mass to rival Matilda.
Matilda chopped off her bob and now rocks a short, faded boy cut. Ruby learned how to tame her 3b curly hair (after shaving most of it off in the 8th grade) and now wears it down in a chin-length bob except while doing tactical or field work.
Jackson accidentally came out as bi during a mission assignment. He's named a few guys he'd "totally date" if he weren't in a committed relationship with Mindy.
Heathcliff joined an esports league at their high school, and plays Dota, Smash Bros, Team Fortress 2, and StarCraft on said team. He brags about being the best Smash Bros. player on the team to the other members of NERDS (Duncan can totally wipe the floor with him, but won't tell Heathcliff that).
Ruby and Matilda both underwent clinical trials for their allergies and asthma, respectfully. Ruby underwent 3 years of prophylaxis and immunotherapy and is no longer significantly allergic to pollen, dust, mold, pet dander, dairy, eggs, shellfish, insect stings, and latex, and is still receiving immunotherapy. Her superallergies are less severe but still present, and they will be until her upgrades are removed. Matilda wasn't as lucky, but did get herself a fancy new set of inhalers that deliver long-term medication that lessens the time between asthma attacks with more consistency.
Upon being able to consume dairy for the first time, Ruby found out she was also lactose intolerant. She's still annoyed about it to this day.
Flinch ran track for one year, during freshman year. Brand and Deprankova made him stop after one year to avoid giving away his upgrades.
Duncan joined the robotics team and has led their high school's team to State Finals every year he's been on the team.
Matilda never fully got back into cheerleading, but she did end up in a long-term relationship with a girl on the varsity squad.
Heathcliff and Ruby ended up taking a bunch of AP courses together (because of course both of them are overachievers). Ruby can handle it better than Heathcliff can, so they often end up studying together.
Heathcliff had a brief stint as a saxophonist in the marching band (the time demand between it and NERDS work was too much), and Ruby joined the string orchestra. She started out as a violinist but was convinced by the director to be one of two harp players in the ensemble.
Jackson is thinking about majoring in psychology in college.
Heathcliff never did get any nanotech upgrades again. He remained on the team as reconnaissance, and can still hold his own in combat. His current code name is Eight-Eyes.
Ruby and Matilda dated for a month in middle school. They both agreed they should just stay friends.
Flinch suddenly became a "ladies man" upon entering high school. He's gotten in trouble for bringing girlfriends down to the Playground (luckily the mind-wiping tech has improved since the elementary school days).
Because of Mindy's intensive work, she does online schooling mostly. She wants to work for the FBI or the CIA, but barring that, she'd be okay with being a pilot.
Oh yeah, she's okay with being called Mindy again, but only by Jackson. She mostly goes by her middle name (Elle) or her code name (still the Hyena) elsewhere.
Heathcliff has a huge crush on Ruby. Like, huge huge.
Ruby likes him back but is uncertain about romance in general, just due to her being an emotionally closed person.
Both can tell the other likes them back, but neither of them say anything about it.
They're huge dorks that are totally in love.
Matilda and Duncan started dating but quickly realized they were gay and asexual, respectfully.
Mindy and Jackson are planning their wedding. They insist it's a joke but no one believes them.
Ruby got into skirts, and wears them pretty often, except on missions.
Jackson never ended up going back to football. He did, however, try out for the school musical. He can't sing too great, so he ended up as an extra. He still gets teased about it to this day.
Mindy forces Ruby and Matilda to go on shopping sprees on her dime whenever she's off-duty.
Flinch brought an uncertain Duncan and Matilda to a punk show. Duncan and Flinch are now into the genre, and Matilda went a little too hard in the mosh pit and got thrown out of the venue. She's probably the biggest punk fan and also likes metal and other alt genres (but has since become a much better, more polite mosher).
Ruby likes eyeliner but is horrible at it (and also has a bit of hard time finding hypoallergenic makeup). Her goth friend usually does it for her.
Matilda got a tattoo on her wrist by lying about her age. She plans on getting more as soon as she turns 18.
Jackson dyed his hair blue for fun one time. Everyone made him promise to never go blue again.
Heathcliff's hair grew out into a messy red mop. He refuses to go back to a short style.
All the NERDS try to hang out outside of missions and school. Usually it's study sessions/sleepovers.
They went to homecoming together each year, usually urged on by Jackson, Flinch, and Ms. Deprankova. One year they all wore suits (except for Jackson, who rocked one of Mindy's dresses), another they went in pajamas.
Ruby and Heathcliff definitely slow-danced at homecoming, but made sure none of the other NERDS found out. Mindy and Jackson also slow danced but were super-obvious and carefree about it.
All of them want to go to (different) universities, except for Matilda, who wants to either enter the pro wrestling sphere or become a welder, and Mindy, who plans to either enter flight school or FBI training. The only planned non-STEM major in the group is Flinch, who wants to become an educator. Heathcliff is considering medical school.
They plan to keep in touch after high school, as they all have very deep bonds with one another, and care too much to let everything go after they leave NERDS as active agents.
That's about all I've got for that. Feel free to use these and tell me your own, I think it's cool when people share headcanons (and also I want more NERDS content).
A N.E.R.D.S. Prompt to Get Me Mentally Ready to Write Again.
For my returning followers, I decided to do a prompt unrelated to my current work to ease my mind off of the stress of continuing a lengthy story. I am feeling a bit better, but writing a story does still take time, so it's still gonna be a bit before the next TRFT chapter is up. Thanks for humoring me! I will keep you updated, and my mind is still on that fic mainly.
Onto the prompt . . .
Context: The NERDS are high-school age (see: some of my headcanons for further context regarding some of my stylistic choices).
Their current mission: One old supervillain's henchmen have formed their own militia group consisting of mercenaries and are plotting something big, but no one's sure what exactly. The NERDS have been sent in to investigate their compound, and the Hyena is tagging along with them on her own assignment. Heathcliff (code name Eight-Eyes) is serving as field recon and mission control away from the compound, and the other's each have their own assignment within the compound itself.
Just before the prompt starts, Ruby (Pufferfish), Jackson (Braceface), and Matilda (Wheezer) are overpowered and apprehended in the field. They are knocked unconscious, taken into an interrogation room and restrained. Ruby is coming to as the prompt starts.
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Everything was dark. Ruby’s head was spinning. Where the fuck was she? She tried to move, but found that she couldn’t move any of her limbs. Panicking, she tried straining harder, but couldn’t break free of whatever was restraining her. As she slowly continued to come to, she quickly realized a cloth hood was covering her head and something was lodged in her mouth. Hives erupted all over her body. She strained to listen to her surroundings. She heard the sound of heavy combat boots on pavement, and the mutterings of male voices. Where was Jackson? What about Matilda? Did anyone else know where they were? Would backup be arriving, or were they on their own?
“Hey, they’re coming to,” Ruby heard one of them say.
They’re . . . Then Jackson and Matilda are with me, right?
She heard more heavy footsteps, before the hood covering her head was roughly jerked off of her. Light suddenly flooded Ruby’s eyes, temporarily blinding her. Fresh, cold air reached her nostrils, the humidity taking her off-guard. Her head was pounding something fierce. She tried to get control of her arms and legs, but very quickly realized she was handcuffed and tied to a chair. Itchy bumps sprouted on her shoulders and upper arms. She tasted a cloth gag on her mouth, and shook her head in a poor attempt to spit it out.
Shit.
She glanced to the side and saw the men jerk off the hoods of two other figures sitting in two other chairs. It was Jackson and Matilda, and they were in similar situations, bound to chairs and gagged. Both looked like how she felt: confused, dizzy, and in pain. Matilda quickly came to and started to struggle hopelessly against her bindings. Jackson’s head lolled to one side as he slowly regained consciousness.
“Well, this is interesting. You three seem awfully young for spies,” one of them said.
There was a beat of silence. Ruby, Jackson, and Matilda all looked at each other, trying to silently communicate what their next move should be. They very quickly realized they were outnumbered. There were five mercenaries in the room, all holding M4 carbine rifles in a ready position. In a normal situation, Jackson could use his nanobytes to cut them out. However, there was no way they would be able do so right now without getting shot to pieces. They were in some sort of basement interrogation room, dimly lit by a single incandescent bulb. They were facing a set of currently closed steel doors, and the mercenaries stood in front of it, looking down at the three of them.
Jackson had fully come to and was starting to loudly protest, his voice being muffled by his gag. Matilda started to breathe heavily. Ruby noticed their weapons and Matilda’s inhalers laying on a workbench up against one of the concrete walls. One mercenary walked over to Ruby, and undid her gag. She coughed, swallowing some saliva that had accumulated in her mouth. He did the same thing to Jackson first and Matilda second.
“Hey, what fucking gives-” Jackson started.
“Shut up,” growled another mercenary, bumping Jackson with the barrel of his rifle as a warning. “We know you’re spies, and we’re pretty fucking sure we know why you’re here. If you want to live, you’ll keep your trap shut.”
Matilda started to cough and her breathing became rapid and shallow. Ruby glanced over at her.
I can’t tell if she’s faking an attack or not. Shit, I hope she isn’t having one for real. It is really damp down here. There’s probably a ton of mold and dust. Fuck, she might be having a real one . . . shit, of all the times to have one . . .
Ruby’s head was still spinning, trying to think of some way to get themselves out of this situation. This wasn’t the first time she’d been taken hostage on a mission, but this time, it was different. She was fully restrained and actively guarded by five men who could easily overpower her on their own, let alone with the loaded semi-automatic rifles they all possessed. Without her own weapon, or hell, any way to move, she was pretty much dead weight. Super allergies were pretty much useless when there was nothing you could do to escape or fight back.
A man wearing a cargo khakis, combat boots, a black shirt, a bulletproof vest, shades, and a camo bandanna wrapped around his head stepped forward. Ruby recognized him from the list of POIs she had reviewed before the mission. He was a self-declared strike-force team leader, and seemed to be preparing a tactical team for something greater than compound defense. Ruby had seen the name but between the stress of the moment and having been knocked out, she couldn’t remember it.
“Listen up! You’re gonna tell us everything about why you’re here, face to face with our boss here, and then we’re gonna decide what to do with you. Try anything, and we’ll kill you on the spot. Understand?” the leader of the group barked. All three of them mutely nodded, not wanting to piss their captors off any more than necessary.
Matilda started to turn pink as her wheezing became more and more labored. Ruby started to quietly panic. Matilda definitely wasn’t faking it, and it was getting worse. She would certainly start to suffocate if she couldn’t get to her rescue inhalers, and that would end up fatal very quickly.
“The fuck’s wrong with her?” one of the mercenaries said, noticing Matilda’s labored breathing.
Jackson spoke up. “She has asthma! She needs her inhalers!”
The mercenaries looked at one another. Matilda continued to wheeze painfully.
“Who ever heard of a spy with asthma?” the leader muttered. He moved to look at Matilda, analyzing her movements carefully. Matilda was doing her best to give him the most intimidating glare she could while being unable to breathe properly.
“Give me one good reason why we should save your friend over here,” he barked over to Ruby and Jackson.
Jackson gave a steely glare back. “If she dies, we all die. We have L-pills, and we will use them if we have to!” he bluffed.
Ruby quickly made what she hoped was a neutral face, as if this news was anything but. Matilda’s eyes bulged, but that could’ve easily been interpreted as a side effect of her asthma attack as opposed to shock.
The five mercenaries were silent for a moment. The only sound in the room was the strained gasping and wheezing for air from Matilda. Then, two of them walked over to Matilda’s chair. Two more walked over to Jackson and Ruby. Each of them drew their sidearms.
“Don’t try anything funny,” one of them warned Matilda. “Or we’ll shoot your friends first and you next.” They each planted the barrels of their guns at the base of Jackson’s and Ruby’s skulls. Ruby felt the cold, hard metal sharply make contact with hers, causing red, itchy welts to appear where the gun rested. Her mouth went dry.
Two more approached Matilda. One drew his M4 and pointed it directly at Matilda. The other cut away the ropes binding Matilda’s arms to the chair, and readied a handcuff key. The fifth and final, the leader, who had not moved yet, walked over to a workbench where Matilda’s gloves had been deposited. Luckily, the inhalers were still there with them. He walked them over to Matilda and stopped in front of her. Ruby held her breath. Matilda was a hothead, but surely she wouldn’t try anything while guns were pointed at all of them, right?
The mercenary holding the key unlocked Matilda’s handcuffs. Moving slowly, still gasping for air, she reached for both inhalers. She brought them to her lips and quickly dosed herself twice with the first one, gasped for air, and then dosed twice more with the other inhaler. She coughed violently, but started breathing regularly again. To be safe, she took one more puff on each one.
If looks could kill, Matilda would have killed the mercenary in front of her ten times over. But she said and did nothing except hand over her inhalers. As soon as they left her grasp, the mercenary behind her grabbed her arms and violently moved them behind her back again. He slid them into handcuffs, and the third quickly began wrapping more rope around Matilda’s upper body. The guns left Ruby and Jackson’s skulls.
“Well, now that that’s taken care of,” the leader said, “it’s time we get some information out of you.”
The three made eye contact. No words were exchanged, but there was no need. Both knew what they needed to do: use the emergency signal to contact Heathcliff. Ruby bit down on the inside of her right cheek and blinked three times. She glanced over at her teammates and watched them do the same. There was a beat of silence, and then she heard Heathcliff’s voice come through her com link.
“This is Eight-Eyes, Pufferfish, what do you . . . Oh. Oh, oh shit! Oh fuck, okay. What . . . OH shit! Both of you . . . Wait . . . All three of you. Fuck. Understood, I’ll send in backup to your location as soon as I can. Guys, just hang in there. Don’t give up on me.”
The leader walked over to Jackson and backhanded him sharply. Jackson cried out in pain and shock.
“You talk big shit don’t you, kid?” he growled, grabbing Jackson’s jaw. “L-pills, my ass. I know you’re bluffing. If you were important enough to put a kill switch in, you’d have used it by now. Besides, you’re too young. No org out there would put cyanide in a fucking child.”
He let go of Jackson’s jaw roughly, a few bruises starting to show up. Jackson moved his jaw around in an attempt to relieve some of the pain. “You’re lucky the boss wants all three of you alive for now, otherwise your asthmatic friend would have bit the dust. Now, which one of you is in charge of this fucking scheme of yours?” he asked. No one said anything. He drew a combat knife out of his utility belt. “Start talking,” he ordered in a low voice.
Ruby inhaled. “That’d be me,” she said quietly, staring at the concrete.
Ruby felt and heard heavy boots walking over towards her. She forced herself to look up, and made eye contact with the leader. He had a grizzled beard and scars criss-crossing his face. He brandished the combat knife at Ruby, the blade making contact with her right cheek. He held the knife there, as if daring Ruby to move.
“Well, well,” he said. “You’re awfully young to be leading an operation deep into a camp of soldiers. How old are you exactly?”
“15,” Ruby told him stonily.
“Fifteen, wow,” he chuckled. “Didn’t realize Uncle Sam is now sending teenagers to do their dirty work.”
His tone suddenly shifted from facetious to deadly serious. “What alphabet group sent you here to spy on us? Who are you working for?”
Ruby thought for a moment, racking her brain. “We’re like you. We work independently,” she lied.
This elicited a loud, scathing laugh from the mercenary. “Come on, you don’t actually expect me to believe that, do you? What, does your high school have a paramilitary club or somethin’?”
Ruby didn’t respond. The mercenary pushed the knife into Ruby’s skin a little further.
“Don’t bullshit me, hon. Who sent you?”
Ruby said nothing, despite Matilda and Jackson desperately mouthing at her to say something. Telling the truth would compromise the mission, as well as their entire organization, which was to be kept a secret from everyone not with them.
Holding the knife in place, he reached forward and yanked Ruby’s hair violently up. Tears of pain oozed out of Ruby’s eyes. The knife pressed into her cheek, and she felt her skin break.
“Hey! Let her go!” yelled Jackson, struggling fruitlessly at his restraints.
“Stop it! You fucking cowards, let her go! Let us go!” screamed Matilda. Another mercenary delivered a swift punch to the back of Matilda’s head to shut her up. “Argh! Bastards!” Matilda screeched in response.
“Who do you work for?!” Answer me!” the mercenary leader yelled into her ear.
Ruby held her tongue and said nothing. She couldn’t compromise NERDS. She couldn’t compromise her other teammates and the Hyena. Starting to lose her cool, she desperately tried to think of a believable lie.
“Fine,” he said. He let go of her hair and then walked over to Matilda. He grabbed her by her crew cut, lifted her head up, and held the knife to her throat. Matilda yelled in protest.
“No!” yelled Jackson. Ruby grimaced.
“I’ll ask you one last time,” he ordered. “Who. Do. You. Work. For?”
“The CIA! We work for the CIA!” Ruby shouted desperately. “We’re part of an experimental group of teenage spies, and we were sent here on a training exercise. It’s just the three of us out here right now.” She shut her eyes desperately, praying that he would buy her story.
“It’s true!” Jackson corroborated. “She’s telling the truth! We are with them, we were sent to gather info on your group so the government can disband you.”
There was a moment of silence. The merc leader pulled the knife away from Matilda’s throat. “Of course it’s those bastards. What else won’t they try,” he muttered. “That settles it then,” he continued. He walked over to the worktable and picked up a two-way radio.
“Command,” he said. “The hostages we picked up are CIA operatives. Self-confessed. They were sent to dismantle us. What do you want us to do with them?”
There was silence on the other end. Then, the radio crackled.
“Forget it. Save your breath. Take them out. The only good spy is a dead one. Loot them and find out what they have and what they know. I’ll be there as soon as I can to witness it.”
“Affirmative,” he replied, putting the radio down. Ruby felt a wave of dread wash over her. She looked over to her teammates, who looked as terrified as she was. Matilda frantically mouthed, “Do something!” to both Jackson and Ruby. They both gave her hopeless stares.
“I can’t, they’ll shoot us!” Jackson mouthed back to her.
“They’re gonna shoot us anyway if you don’t do something!” Matilda retorted, her voice barely a whisper.
“What are your orders?” one of the mercenaries asked the leader.
“Boss wants ‘em dead,” he told him. “Record the execution, and 12 hours from now, leak it. Let those bastards know what happens when you cross us.”
The militia men dispersed into what seemed to be a usual routine for them. Three of them stood behind each chair, and a fourth grabbed a video camera on a tripod, and positioned it in front of the three of them. He pushed a button on the side, and a red power light lit up.
“The date is August 21st,” he said from behind the camera, as though he was reading from a script. “The time is 18:42. This message is directed to the CIA. We have three of your self-confessed operatives who infiltrated our compound at approximately 1600 hours. By the time you see this video, they will be dead. We do not keep enemy spies alive. You will not be able to find their bodies, so don’t come looking. This will be the last piece of evidence of them that you will obtain. Do not cross us again. We will find out what they know, and we will come to use it against you.”
Ruby heard the lens on the camera zoom in and out as the camera man pointed at each of them. Matilda was desperately trying to free herself from her bindings, while Jackson was staring at the concrete hopelessly, despair slowly creeping onto his face, seemingly resigned to his fate.
Ruby felt her chest constrict. This is it, she thought. This is the one I won’t make it out of. Mom, dad, I’m sorry. I’m sorry Brand. I’m sorry guys. She heard the sound of sidearms being loaded and cocked. She shut her eyes in anticipation for what would be the last few minutes of her life, followed by a deathblow.
Suddenly, she felt tiny pinpricks of hives pop up on her ears. A moment later, she heard the pops of gunfire and loud crashing sounds coming from far away down the hall. She sat up straight and listened. Matilda noticed Ruby’s movement, and listened as well. The sounds grew louder and louder. Then, the sound of a teen boy screaming, “I am mighty!” met their ears.
Jackson heard this too, and they all looked at each other, hope coming back onto their faces. It was Flinch!
A very loud crash came into the hallway, startling the mercenaries in the room. The radio on the workbench crackled, but only the word “backup!” was audible. The leader growled in frustration.
“Find out what that was!” he ordered. The three men behind them holstered their sidearms and hurried out from behind the chairs and into the hall, drawing their rifles as they did so. The steel door snapped soundly behind them.
Ruby glanced over at Matilda and Jackson. Matilda’s face was set, and she was staring at Jackson’s mouth. Ruby peered and saw his retainer nanobytes starting to swirl in his mouth.
Frantically scanning the room for a distraction, Ruby looked up and saw an air grate directly above the two remaining mercenaries. She glanced over at Jackson, and made eye contact.
“Above you! The vent!” she screamed.
The two mercenaries drew their guns and pointed them directly above them. Before they could do anything else though, Jackson’s nanobytes in the shape of two large fists shot out of his mouth and socked both guards in the head. They both crumpled to the ground, one of them knocked unconscious. The other one, the now dazed leader, reached for his gun, but Jackson’s nanobytes grabbed one of the dropped rifles and struck the merc with it. He finally dropped to the ground, knocked out.
Ruby breathed a sign of relief. Matilda shouted in relief and anger.
“Thank fucking god! Help us out of here, Braceface!” she said to Jackson.
“Five steps ahead of you,” Jackson replied to Matilda. His retainers formed a giant pair of scissors that cleanly cut his ropes free, and a second nanobyte arm turned into a handcuff key that reached behind him. A few second later, and Jackson managed to pull himself free from the cuffs. He stood up from the chair, rubbing his wrists.
“Nice call, Pufferfish,” Jackson said to her.
“Thanks,” Ruby replied. “Hurry up and get us out of here, before the others come back.”
Jackson said nothing else. He grabbed the combat knife the leader has dropped and quickly sliced Ruby’s ropes off, while a second nanobyte knife and two nanobyte handcuff keys cut Matilda’s rope and unlocked both of their handcuffs. Ruby sprung to her feet and sprinted across the room. She tossed Matilda’s inhalers to her and holstered her own sidearm. Matilda took another dose of her inhaler, and holstered them in her gloves.
“I’m gonna fucking kill them all,” Matilda said, sliding her gloves back onto her hands.
“Easy does it,” Ruby said. “We need to come up with a plan to-”
Before she could finish, the steel doors crashed open, knocking aside the video camera and striking the two bodies on the floor. In flew two more bodies, still conscious, with their wrists and mouth bound in a sticky glue substance. They crashed in front of the chairs where Ruby, Jackson, and Matilda had been restrained. The third mercenary was completely limp and unconscious, and landed in an unceremonious pile on top of them. The three of them turned to look through the door.
In strode a trembling Julio and a visibly worried Duncan.
“Flinch! Gluestick!” Matilda cried. She ran forward and hugged both of them.
“Wheezer, Pufferfish, Braceface!” Julio shouted. “Holy shit, we thought you were goners. We came as fast as we could! Aggh!” He hugged Matilda back.
“That’s what we thought too!” Jackson said emotionally. He joined in the group hug.
“You alright Pufferfish?” Duncan asked, breaking away from Julio and Matilda. Matilda silently broke away and strode over to the two conscious mercenaries. Duncan stared at the cut on her cheek. “What happened?”
“Mostly,” Ruby replied. “Its just a scratch,” she told him passively. “Don’t worry about it. Wheezer had an asthma attack, probably from the mold or dust down here. She’s fine for now but she needs to be evacuated out. She couldn’t get to her inhalers fast enough and she’s more likely to have another one. She’s vulnerable now and needs to head to a hospital.”
“Doesn’t look like it to me,” Julio remarked, looking over at Matilda. Red in the face from anger, Matilda socked the first one in the temple, rendering him unconscious.
“That’s for withholding my inhalers!” she shouted. She turned to the other one, fists tightly clenched. His eyes widened in surprise.
“And this is for trying to execute me and my friends!” She stomped her boot down onto the other ones skull as hard as she could. The second mercenary’s eyes slowly rolled back and slid shut. She spat on his body in rage.
“Woah woah woah, did you say execute??” Julio asked, his mouth falling open.
“Ye olde firing squad,” Jackson said darkly. “They thought we were with the CIA and wanted us dead. If you guys hadn’t shown up when you did, we would probably be goners.”
Duncan’s mouth became a fine line. “Brand wasn’t kidding,” he said. “These guys aren’t pulling any punches.”
Ruby felt horrible. “Braceface, Wheezer, I’m sorry,” she said, eyes on the ground. “I almost got us killed by saying we were CIA. I should’ve thought of something else, I don’t know what, but I should have . . . I didn’t want to compromise us. I can’t say I’m sorry enough.” She covered her face in her hands.
Without missing a beat, Jackson, Matilda, and Julio brought Ruby into a hug.
“They would’ve killed us no matter what you said,” Jackson told her. “Who knows what they would’ve done had they decided to keep us alive. You protected NERDS and you tried your best, all while you had a knife in your face,” Jackson said sagely. Everyone else mumbled their agreement.
Ruby felt the guilt seep out of her, and let out a breath she had been holding.
“Oye, Pufferfish, chica, you did fine,” Julio told her. “You always do the right thing.”
“Thanks, Flinch,” Ruby replied, hugging him back. She took a deep breath and tried to clear her head.
Duncan glanced over at Matilda, who was taking another puff of her inhalers. “Eight-Eyes is worried sick. You should probably contact him now that you’re all safe,” he told Ruby.
“Right,” Ruby agreed. She pressed the nostril that housed her com link.
“Eight-Eyes, this is Pufferfish. All three of us are safe. Flinch and Gluestick found us.”
A sigh of relief sounded in Ruby’s head.
“Oh thank god, I was freaking out,” Heathcliff’s voice said. “Everyone okay?”
“Wheezer needs to leave ASAP. She had an asthma attack and couldn’t get to her inhalers fast enough. But other than that we’re all okay. Just shaken up,” she relayed.
“Understood, I’ll let the Hyena know,” Heathcliff told her. “You should probably get out of there. Flinch and Gluestick probably caused a huge racket getting to you, and the other militia members will be on your tail.”
“What about you? Are you compromised?” Ruby asked him.
“I don’t think so?” Heathcliff said uncertainly. “They haven’t physically seen my location yet but I think someone’s aware that I’m in their system, so, I should lay as low as possible, literally and metaphorically.”
“Well, if you think you might be compromised, leave immediately, before they can get to you physically,” Ruby reminded him. “You’re more vulnerable than us. It’s not worth it to stick around. We’ll be fine without you.”
“Of course,” Heathcliff agreed. “Best of luck Pufferfish.”
“Thanks,” she said. “Pufferfish out.” She tapped her nose again and turned to her teammates.
“Flinch, Gluestick, lead the way,” she directed. “We have no idea how we got here. They brought us in when we were unconscious.”
Flinch gulped down a Red Bull to power up. “Let’s go!” he shouted. He swung his arm in a sweeping gesture towards the door.
“Yeah, fuck this noise,” Matilda agreed, switching her inhalers from her medicine to her boosters. The five of them hurried out of the interrogation room, leaving the unconscious bodies of their captors behind.
Can you do JacksonxThe Hyena for the shipping ask meme thing? Please?
This thing? Sure~
which one is abysmal at roller skating and has to hold onto the other
Jackson is the worst ice skater ever. Hyena learned how to skate sometime during her beauty queen days, but when she started she was just as bad, so she doesn’t make fun of him much
which one gets hiccups every time they drink something fizzy
Hyena. It’s a result of some crazy diet her mom put her on. But now that Hyena isn’t doing that anymore, she’s getting better. (Jackson also gets her sodas whenever he knows she’ll be around. Dr. Pepper is her favorite)
which one always joins the group dances at the skating rink
I don’t think either of them would normally. I mean the Hyena is great at skating and dancing, but she prefers to sit by the sides with Jackson and watch. But she will if she feels like it
which one listens to new songs on loop until the other can’t stand it
both of them do this. they go as long as they can pretending the other isn’t annoying them, but after like five hours they just look at each other like “if you turn your music off, I’ll turn off mine” and that’s that
which one tags the other in embarrassing photos without asking first
Jackson, hahaha. The Hyena’s embarassing photos are usually of her and Matilda or Ruby
which one had a short-lived interest in learning the ukulele
that would be Jackson. one day he feels kinda insecure since his girlfriend is so ultra-talented at everything, so he tries to learn an instrument. hilarity ensues. eventually the two of them talk about it and decide it’s okay for the Hyena to continue to best him at everything
which one keeps posting memes on facebook
Jackson again. His Facebook is pretty much all memes really
