Dark Meets Wind
Jacob sat at a table with Jill, Jonathan and Desiree.
Jill sat close to him, "So you really know this place, huh?"
Jacob drank his Old Fashioned that Frank made for him, "Yeah, I actually used to work here. I was security, and I did a pretty good job at it too. Most guys would see me, just some scrawny rat, then they'd find themselves out on their asses before they knew it. Frank got the job for me. He was friends with my dad, so dad made him my godfather."
Jill nursed her own drink, a s'mores martini with a roasted marshmallow. She spoke when he was done, "Wow, that's really cool. I work in retail myself. Desi here got me that job. It's great having a rich dad and all, but I still gotta make my own living, you know? Dad won't be there all the time, right?"
Desiree threw an arm around her friend's slim frame, "That's right! Can't be moochin' off Daddy forever, Jilly!"
Jill blushed from her friend's affectionate hug, "So, Frank was talking about how he was glad to see you with a new girl? I guess that means I'm not the first you've brought around here, huh?"
Jacob nodded as he fidgeted with the rosary around his neck, "Yeah, yeah, you would actually be the second."
Jill noticed how his mood changed, "Only second? I guess it was serious, whoever you had before me."
Jacob kept an even smile, "It was, it was... I'm sorry if I'm spoiling the mood."
Jill's round ears pinned back as she patted Jacob's hand, "No, no, it's okay. I'm here if you want to talk about it."
Jacob smiled at her genuine kindness, "Thank you." He could feel himself about to break, "Could you excuse me?"
Jill smiled back at him, "Sure, take a load off. We'll all be right here when you get back."
...
Jacob was in the men's restroom then, tearing up as his whole past with Hannah came back to him. He clutched the rosary, "Goddamn it..." He stood at the sink, looking at himself in the mirror as he tried to control his own emotions.
As the rat was having his emotional breakdown, the restroom door swung open and a couple figures came in.
One was a short, stocky badger in a forest green sweater. The tall vampire bat with him nodded as the badger went over to a urinal to relieve himself.
Jimmy did a double-take, "Motherfucker's actually pissin'..." He muttered to himself, before he shrugged then walked right up to the sinks, placing himself a respectable distance away from the rat who was clearly going through a moment right now.
The bat took out a black comb he kept in his pants. He didn't have a shirt on, since his wingspan made it hard for him to even wear one. His lean, sculpted abs were on full display as the bat checked himself out and combed his long-straight black hair. When he was finished primping himself like a ballerina, he spoke to the rat, "Hey, hell of a night, right?"
Jacob was just coming out of his mood when the bat talked to him, "Huh? Oh, yeah, hell of a night."
Jimmy immediately checked out his quarry, thinking to himself how his prey looked... kinda cute, "Yeah, the kind of a night, ya just don't know where it's gonna go. But wherever it is, it'd be a hell of a thing, huh?"
Jacob looked at the bat as he kept talking to him, "Yeah, I'm... I'm not really there, just trying to have a normal night really."
The bat scoffed, "Normal? The hell kind of normal are you gonna find in South Texas of all places?"
Jacob started to feel weird talking to this bat, "I'm sorry, but do I know you?"
Jimmy smiled at his prey with as innocent a smile he could muster, "Nah! Trust me, this ain't the type of face you forget." He snickered, extending a winged hand in friendship, "Name's Jimmy, Jimmy Lee Darrell!"
The rat was suspicious, but he shook hands with the bat, "And I'm Jacob, Jacob Marshall."
Jimmy kept that friendly smile, "Come to think of it, you don't quite know me, but I think I remember someone like you..." He leaned in, himself a full four inches taller than the rat, his grip tightening on Jacob, "You ever been to Waco?"
Jacob felt the fur on his neck rise the instant the mood changed, the rat's tattoo glowed underneath his shirt as his arm converted to shadow.
Jimmy watched this happen, his smile morphing into a wicked devilish grin, "Heh-heh, plot twist!"
Matt had, meanwhile, just finished relieving himself when Jimmy suddenly flew past him, crashing into the wall and leaving a large Jimmy-sized hole in it.
The bat laughed maniacally after being thrown across the room by Jacob, as gravel and broken tile fell from his hair, "Yes! Fuckin' hell, that's a rush!"
Jacob stood across the room from the bat and badger, one shadowy tendril in place of his right arm, "Who in the fuck are you?"
Jimmy casually shook off Matt as the badger tried to help him up, "Fuckin' happier than a junkie in a crack house, my friend! That's who I am!" The bat's own tattoo lit up, as gusts of air surrounded him, blowing back his long hair. Jimmy flapped his right wing in Jacob's direction, and the shard energy created a blast of air strong enough to blow Jacob back.
The restroom door was broken off of its hinges and Jacob stumbled out. The commotion was loud enough to get everyone looking in their direction as Jimmy stepped out, red eyes glowing.
Jill, Desi, and Jon all three got up when they saw what was happening.
Jill muttered in disbelief, "What?"
Desiree was less quiet, "The fuck's going on here?"
Jon just watched on.
Jacob recovered from being thrown and he lashed at Jimmy with his shadow arm.
The bat was quick to deflect it with his wing, "What now, huh? Don't tell me I didn't come all this way just for that limp-dick attack, cabron!"
Jacob's eyes glowed then he took full shadow form. He sank into the floor, sliding out from under Jimmy, and quickly took form, throwing both arms around the bat before he could react.
Jimmy found himself refrained, with his back against his quarry, "What? Not even gonna buy me a drink first?" He joked before he released a gust that forced the rat off of him.
At this point, people were already making a frantic run for the exits. The whole club quickly exited out.
In all this commotion, Frank came up to the two fighting, "What the goddamn hell is going on in here?" The hippo paused when he saw his godson, and also, "You?" He looked right at Jimmy.
Jimmy grinned at the hippo, "Yeah! Me!" before he was suddenly thrown back by another of Jacob's attacks.
Before Jacob could retaliate, a long stainless steel whip wrapped around him, before an electric shock was sent through, enough to make him kneel, "Fuck!
Carrie came up then, dressed in her leather dominatrix costume as she kept Jacob restrained, "That'll be quite enough of that, little ratty."
Frank stood in minor shock at seeing his godson being attacked, "You fuckin' Marksmen? The fuck you doin' attackin' my family?"
At this point, many of the patrons had left. Only Jill, Desiree and Jon remained. All of them were very worried for Jacob.
Matt walked out of the wrecked men's room having patiently washed his hands while Jimmy had fought it out with their quarry. The badger looked first at the rat, then the big middle-aged hippo, "I'm afraid your family here's made the mistake of crossing our boss, Jerome Marks." The badger smoked on a weed joint as he spoke, "A couple hoods who worked for us lost their lives to this punk right here." He struck Jacob with a cheap shot, leaving the rat with a bloodied nose, "I know, a minor offense in the grand scheme of things, but Jerry doesn't like pests in our territory, ya see."
Frank looked down in disbelief at his godson, "Jake?"
Jacob stayed kneeling, "Frank, they wanted to take Dad's jacket, I couldn't let 'em, I couldn't control it." His eyes still glowed, as did the mark on his chest.
Jimmy got up in his face then, "Ah, so you're a cherry, huh? Ya just got power and you had yourself a little bit of incontinence, it happens to all of us, even yours truly!"
Matt almost sympathized, "Yeah, shitty luck he had to let it out on some of our guys..." The badger put out his cigarette, "Loosen up the chain a bit, Carrie."
The roo girl rolled her eyes but did as he said, but only enough so her chain wouldn't cut into Jacob's skin. The rat would still be unable to move.
Matt didn't have to kneel as he was the shortest of the trio; he still tilted the rat's chin to look in his eyes, "I know we haven't made the best first impression on ya, but we're willin' to forgive your transgression against our organization, if you're willin' to listen."
Jacob grunted in defeat. He couldn't move his arms, the static shock seemed to have stopped the shard inside him, at least for the moment so he couldn't take shadow form. He could see Jill and the others looking at him, defeated and brought to his knees. He must look so pathetic, he sighed, "Okay, I'll listen."
Matt nodded, using his handkerchief to wipe the rat's bloodied muzzle, "And sorry about the cheap shot, that was for shakin' the wall and makin' me miss the urinal." The badger laughed at his own bad joke before he continued, "Now, since we're bein' nice and civilized, I and my compadres would like to extend to you a proposition. You've told us just now, you only just got these powers, so you don't have complete control. So I propose, ya come with us for a bit. We can show you the ropes, show you what's what, somewhere down the line even work for us, but that's only if you agree fully. We're not wasting time on you if you're just gonna try and escape or overthrow us or some dumb shit like that. We're runnin' a business here, time is money, so an answer now would be preferable."
Jacob had to really think about this, he was literally just asked to come join a crime organization here in public, worse in front of his godfather.
The hippo could only look on as the thing unfolded.
Jill came up to the group, "You're just gonna let them take him?"
Frank shook his head in shame, shame at himself for being so cowardly, "It's the Marksmen, darlin'. It's not just the three of them here, they're a whole organization, they own this club."
Matt spoke, "I know we don't paint ourselves in the prettiest of pictures, sweetheart, but I promise you, this is just business."
Jill was defiant, though, "No, fuck that, my dad's a businessman, you all are just bullies!"
Matt looked at her, "Darling, our business is not your own, don't try to make it yours, you're not gonna like what you'll find."
Jacob watched as this sweet girl he'd just met was trying to defend him. He couldn't let her do that, not for his sake, "I'll do it! I'll go with you, just leave everyone else in peace, please!"
Matt let a ghost of a smile form as he turned to their prisoner, "It's good to see you can think like an adult. And don't worry, we'll leave all your friends to go in peace. Quid pro quo and all that bullshit..."
Carrie unwound her chain, letting the rat go.
Jacob's legs were stiff from being forced to kneel so long, he had some trouble getting up.
