Chapter ten

I never thought I’d ever see someone stranger than Stitch but Buzz beat the band. He fluttered his wings nervously with a deep hum and I realised that I was staring; I closed my mouth and hit my foot against the ground.
Buzz let out a little humming laugh “Don’t worry, I’m used to it. You should have seen the looks I got when this started growing.” He tapped his stinger with a finger; it sounded solid. I was half glad that I landed on my front now, saving this guy was one thing but if I’d landed on him I’d be a kebab; still it’s hard to be grateful for smashing head first into the floor no matter how much good it did.
“You made the news as well man” Trapper laughed “I don’t know if it’s for bravery or because there’s now a pretty scary looking imprint on some street somewhere. They’re making you sound like a vigilante who protects the freaks.” A grin went round the room, even on Mist’s lips for a second, I felt slightly odd; half pleased with myself and half still aching as if someone was pouring scalding down me. A face plant can take the edge off any victory.
I just had to ask “What? Why are you guys all smiling?” Those still smiling began to grin wider, which wasn’t very hard for Stitch.
“Your daredevil dive-bomb has had further repercussions than you would think” Mist spoke up, she wasn’t grinning any more but she didn’t sound as stern anymore “You’ve been out for three days but for the first two there wasn’t a single burning in this country.” She sighed softly and the smiled became slightly bitter “They’ve started again though, last night. You got a little message across though, which is a help and a hindrance at the same time. Now mutants like us know that people are out to protect them, then again some people that think we should be exterminated are starting to become more violent. There have been... shootings.”

No one was grinning now, so much for a victory. There was a moment of silence for those who had died. What else could you do though, you couldn’t just stand here and mourn, you had to move on so less people would die in the future. Buzz looked around nervously, he was new here but then again so was I.
I was almost thankful when Mist spoke up; someone had to break the silence. “Trapper, you should show Buzz and Ivory around the place. If there is an attack they should know the lay of the land.”
There was a buzz from behind me as the newest member of our group lived up to his name “Attack? Is that likely? I thought this was a safe house?” His wings were starting to flap at an alarming rate; I could tell he was panicking.
“Calm down, calm down” Trapper said soothingly, the humming from Buzz’s wings lessened slightly “Mist’s being paranoid, it’s sort of her job here, but yes I should show you around.” Buzz had stopped his miniature fit of hysterics; you couldn’t really blame him. From the bandage on his arm I guessed he’d carry a lot more than emotional scars from that fire.

Trapper motioned to the room around us “This is the main room, sofa, TV and the heater. Unfortunately the television is the only way we know what’s going on out there.” We followed him as he walked towards the door to the kitchen, opened it and pointed down “Kitchen’s down there, there’s supplies for medical emergencies as well.” It felt odd being told things that I already knew. He went past us all and up the stairs, we followed obediently; my muscles still ached like they were a flame. We went out into the landing and Trapper began to open doors “Here we have... an empty room. Actually there’s quite a few so you can pick out your own sleeping place.” He mumbled to himself and scratched his head under his hat as me and Buzz shared a glance; it felt as if they were expecting a lot of company and soon. Trapper stopped in front of a door and frowned “Someone’s been in my workshop.”
He opened it slowly and I let out a little “Ohhhhhh” of understanding “Sorry, I was looking for the way down and I opened the door.” I looked into the mess of wires and metal, Trapper said he was smart but it looked like a junk yard in there. Surely no one could make something out of that lot.
My expression must have given me away because Trapper let out a small laugh “It looks like a pile of trash but I call it home. A lot of this stuff is going to be moved out soon, down to the sheds so I can start working on the Chevy.” He closed the door and motioned to some room’s not very far off, maybe a few doors down “Stitch, Mist and Bud sleep down there; well Stitch sleeps. Mist is so paranoid I think she stays awake all night and Bud... well she’s always been a light sleeper.”

I heard a small hum from Buzz as Trapper began to point out the other necessities like the toilet and headed back outside. I stared at the back of his striped scalp as we went downstairs and out into the grounds. He was strange, even in the little time that I’d known him I could tell that his humming got louder when he was nervous.
“The slaughter house is still practically in working order, we need to strip it of available parts, make it safe for anyone to wander around in and hopefully clean it” Trapper said. I was about to speak up when I was bowled over. I let out a yell of pain as my sore body bounced off the floor, I almost hit what was sitting on my chest until I realised my assailant was Ebony. Her wet nose was shoved hard against my face; her troubled eyes were staring into mine as well.
“I’m alright Ebony” I chuckled before I let out a loud wheeze “But you’re heavy.” She almost immediately turned into a kitten, still sitting on my chest with her nose pressed against me. I got up shakily, holding Ebony close to my smooth bare chest. Trapper patted my back gently as if making sure I didn’t fall over when he did it and began to walk towards the slaughterhouse again.

Now with me, Ebony and Buzz in tow Trapper walked up to the shed, which was open and showed the Chevy with its engine in bits.
“We keep the car in here. I’m trying to soup it up a bit, I’ve got the pieces up in my room as you’ve seen I’ve just got to get them down here.” Trapper laughed gently and began to move around the other side of the slaughterhouse. I hadn’t had the chance to explore this place before; I’d spent most of my time here on my back. It was starting to smell less as we moved away from the sheds, it was still almost overwhelming but the pain from my aching exoskeleton was keeping my mind from fogging over. Trapper entered a door at the side of the slaughterhouse and flicked on the light, it blinked a few times before we saw what lay beyond. Buzz and I let out a gasp at the sight before us; it was fascinating and horrifying view.

Chains and hooks dangled from tracks around the room, swaying from the gust of wind that had followed us into the cavernous room. Everything was stainless steel and shining, yet somehow there were still deep stains on some floors and walls. The smell still lingered here but this place was designed to be washed clean unlike the sheds. There was a massive machine over in a corner, the chained tracks led into it. I could only imagine what that machine did to the poor creatures that had been strung up by the hooks and dragged bleeding through the complex.
“This place still gives ME the creeps” Trapper said loudly as he gazed at the gently tinkling hooks with their dagger ends; he had to talk loudly, Buzz’s wings were kicking up a storm of noise and terror.

Disclaimer: Murder is fun to plan, guess what I'm planning to do to someone who steals from Lavalamp studios or me. Here's a tip, there's a clue in this chapter. :3
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Ebony and Ivory chapter eleven Now done.