Jazzlyn barely had time to take a breath before chaos erupted all around her.
Noah was walking her down yet another long and dull hallway towards where her orientation was meant to begin. His incessant chatter filled the silence as they walked, the executive's words nothing but white noise to Jazzlyn as her mind swirled with all manner of thoughts. The meeting with Taitanzu's top brass was still clear in her mind as she grappled with her new reality. She was at the mercy of the most dangerous group of people in the city's recent history. She was their plaything, a toy which could be discarded without a second thought. No matter how many times she thought it over, she couldn't get over just how damn depressing it all was.
And in an instant, her worries momentarily evaporated.
A painfully loud alarm blared through the entire compound, shattering the oppressive silence like a rock through glass. The entire hallway appeared to be vibrating with tension as a frantic feminine voice crackled over the intercom.
"All hands prepare for combat! Unknown group inbound. Scouts theorize may be the-"
Her words were cut off by what was definitely a gunshot, bringing her announcement to its untimely end.
Noah's carefree demeanour didn't even falter, a predatory glint in his eyes as he began cracking his knuckles. He didn't look at Jazzlyn as he spoke, his voice light with excitement despite the sudden onset of tension and the fact he just overheard the death of one of his subordinates. "Well Jazz-Hands, your orientation is being put on hold. Looks like someone decided to play this morning!"
She didn't get a chance to respond before Noah took off down the hall laughing like a madman, moving at speeds she didn't even think were possible for a human. Jazzlyn's heart raced in her chest as she watched him turn down a corridor and vanish, her brain barely able to process what was going on. What the hell was happening? Who on Earth would have the audacity to attack Taitanzu in their own turf?
She nearly screamed as the sounds of gunfire erupted outside, followed quickly by shouts and explosions which shook the walls of the building. Despite being nowhere near the fighting she felt like she was right in the middle of a warzone, as the sounds of violence only grew louder with each passing second, quickly drawing nearer and nearer to her current position. There was no time to think. She ducked into the nearest room, some sort of storage area filled with rows and rows of shelves all containing workshop tools. As she scurried for a place to hide another explosion shook the building, causing some of the shelves to lose balance and fall, one nearly crushing her to death. Adrenaline kicked in as she searched the room, her breathing becoming shallow.
Fear and panic clawed at her insides as she scrambled for a place to hide among the shelves and crates.
She didn't want to fight. She was collateral. Nothing but an object. This fight didn't concern her. She didn't want to die. Not today. Not like this. As much as she didn't want to think about death, the overpowering grip of fear meant that it was the only thing on her mind. She was trapped in the middle of an all out assault, and the pressure of battle was growing closer and closer. The walls shook and cracked as gunfire and explosions went off relentlessly.
Jazzlyn's entire body couldn't stop trembling as she crouched down behind on upturned shelf near the back of the room, pressing her back against the cold concrete wall. She needed to escape—find somewhere, anywhere safe to hide until this all ended. Just as she mustered the courage to make a move, the door to the room flew open.
A lone figure stood in the doorway, breathing heavily and staring in with a manic expression. He wasn't wearing the black and red that Taitanzu was known for, instead dressed in a grey longcoat. With a gun raised he stepped into the room, muttering something about killing everyone he could find.
Time seemed to slow down for Jazzlyn. She knew it was only a matter of time until he saw her, and then she'd be a goner. Not only would she be dead, but Levi will probably be dead as well because his precious collateral was no longer present. A million and one things were going on in her head at the same time, and in the wildness of it all, a single thought prevailed.
I. Will. Not. Die.
Faster than she could process her own actions, Jazzlyn reached for a wrench that had fallen near her in all the chaos. Silent as a mouse and swift as a hawk, she made a beeline for the other man, who was too shaken by her sudden movement to aim a proper shot at her. The bullet he fired grazed her cheek, but it was already to late for the gangster. Jazzlyn swung the wrench at him with all her might, and it connected with a sickening crack.
Jazzlyn stood frozen as the man crumpled to the floor, a pool of blood forming from the side of his head where he'd been hit. What had she just done? Another human being lay at her feet, out cold or even dead. Barely an entire morning had passed, and she was already turning into one of them?
A gunshot snapped her out of her thoughts. No time to stop and reflect. The conflict outside was still going strong and her hiding spot had been compromised. Staying here was no longer an option. She slipped out into the hallway, her heartbeat thunderous as she dashed through the compound. The air was thick with dust and smoke, and gunfire echoed of the walls of the halls. The previously serene compound was now an effective warzone. Bodies of both Taitanzu gangsters and the unidentified attackers littered the ground, making it hard to run through. The smell of gunpowder and blood was strong. She could only imagine how long it would take to get it all fixed and cleaned up.
She had no clue where she was coming from or where she was even going. The goal was to survive, and that she was going to do.
As she rounded a corner, she came face to face with another battle. Noah and Clovis, fighting against eight of the other gangsters at once. It was as beautiful as it was horrifying, the way the two executives effortlessly dismantled the other men despite being out numbered. Noah used his knife and Clovis his bare hands to lay waste to their opponents, all eight of them dead in a matter of mere moments. Jazzlyn felt herself shiver as the two walked off calmly to cause more havoc. To them, taking lives was naught but a game.
Jazzlyn's legs felt like they were about to give out at any moment, but she willed herself to move on, slipping through the unfolding chaos unnoticed. For once, she was glad to be so invisible. She had no idea how long the battle had lasted or how long it would keep going, but one thing was certain and it was that she needed to hide.
Just as she thought she had found a relatively safe corner to hide in, Crystal appeared, popping out of an unknown direction and scaring her half to death. Her face was splashed with blood and streaked in dirt, and her eyes were held a degree of happiness in them, like she was unbothered by everything happening. She grabbed her arm, grip surprisingly firm despite her frail frame.
"Like, stay with me lil Miss" she commanded playfully while pulling Jazzlyn along behind her. "We need to get back to the exec room"
They sprinted through the compound, avoiding getting hit by stray bullets and ducking behind whatever cover was available. Jazzlyn's entire body burned due to the exertion, but the instinct to survive pushed her forward. At this point she was willing to risk hanging around with the executives if it meant staying out of the crosshairs of battle. Anything would be better than meeting her demise at the hands of some random.
The compound shook violently as another explosion went off. Fortunately they were right at the executive room. The door slid open, and Jazzlyn stumbled inside, immediately falling to her knees and gasping for air. The darkened room was lit only by the flickering screens that displayed the various camera feeds.
The executives save for Noah, Clovis and Casey were already there, each one standing in a corner of the room doing whatever they so desired. Boris who stood at the head of the table, briefly glanced in her direction before turning back to the screens.
"Lock the doors," he ordered calmly. "I've had enough surprises for one morning"
Jazzlyn slowly made her way to a chair near where Eliza was standing, her entire body shaking from the fear and exhaustion. She had no way of knowing what went through the heads of the others, not that she expected them to care about what was going on, but she felt somewhat pleased. She'd just survived her first gang scuffle, and she couldn't help but feel a little sense of victory.
The remaining executives appeared moments later, each one with their own varied reactions to the conflict on their face. Clovis looked oddly satisfied while Casey still looked angry. Noah as usual was very happy with himself, and spoke up eagerly as he reached the center of the room.
"Well, that was fun," he drawled, wiping his hands on a cloth. "Looks like the blokes are retreating. Want us to murk em all boss?"
Boris placed a hand on his chin in contemplation, his one good eye fixed on the screen. "No, let them run. I need Crystal's scouts to follow them back to their den and discover who they roll with. Their uniforms…..I need confirmation on who they're working for"
As the sounds of gunfire faded into the distance, the tension in the air gradually eased up. Jazzlyn's heart was far from calmed down though, the memories of everything that had happened replaying in her head. Her mind kept repeating everything that had just happened. It was all so fast. The blood, the bodies, the man in that storage room…..
As soon as she thought back to it, the door opened once more, revealing a Taitanzu gangster restraining one of the enemy gangsters. "I found this one trying to make it here"
Jazzlyn had to hold back a gasp. It was the same guy she slammed with a wrench. The relief of finding out she hadn't murdered someone in cold blood washed over her like a refreshing rain.
Boris grunted. "LR"
LR, silent but intense as ever, took the man from the other gangster, pressing him against the wall by the neck. Boris regarded the captive with a dismissive look as he continued speaking.
"You guys have balls, I'll give you that. However, you should know its a bad idea to test the deepness of the water with your toes. You'll be serving as a message to your fellow nobodies. LR, dispose this trash"
Jazzlyn watched on in horror as LR complied by slamming the man's head into the wall with such unprecedented power and ferocity that his skull broke open like a watermelon, blood splashing against the wall to create a grim display of the brutality of Taitanzu's executives. She felt her stomach twist up in knots at the sight of another person's head crushed into paste with such ease—at the hands of another human being no less.
"God damn LR, you turned him into a piece of modern art! His head's embedded in the concrete and everything" Crystal jested as she inspected the mangled corpse.
Eliza, who had been observing with muted interest, glanced at Jazzlyn before nudging her "One wrong move and you or your brother could end up like that poor fuck. LR's all too eager to bash someone's head in, so be cool around him" she said lazily, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "Still, for someone who's supposed to be collateral, you seem to know how to handle yourself. That'll keep you alive"
Jazzlyn blinked, still too shocked by what she'd witnessed to respond. She wasn't sure if what Eliza was saying was even supposed to be a compliment.
"I wouldn't get comfortable just yet though" Crystal added from where she was, her green eyes gleaming. "You survived one fight, let's just hope you can do it again. Prove your worth and don't mess up, and you won't get turned to modern art too. Easy-peezy"
Jazzlyn swallowed hard. She had gone from chilling in her room to being in the midst of a miniature war, and now she witnessed a man's head get crushed like a grape—all in the span of one day. How could she possibly keep this up?
Noah grinned at her, his expression the personification of mischief. "I told you you'll fit right in Jazz Hands"
And with that, her orientation began.