by Riker Kane
The man walked forward, a pair of magnetic cuffs locking his hands behind him. He plopped onto his seat and gave Max an empty stare.
“This motherfucker…”
He hadn’t even spoken a word but Max knew it was him.
“I never thought I would get this opportunity.” The man’s voice was deep and filled with an undeniable confidence. “Here he is. Maximilian. The Rebel. In the flesh. It’s an honor to meet you.”
“The feeling isn’t mutual, Osiris… I’m not hard to find. You didn’t have to do what you did to get my attention.”
“I didn’t. But I figured I owed you as much. Lotto… Slug… You blasted Venom’s head clean off. And then when she was resequenced, they put her in cuffs and threw her in a cell.”
“She got what she deserved for what she did to Sammy.”
Osiris scoffed. “When I heard the details from Venom and Slug, I thought they were joking. But apparently it’s true. You came all this way simply to avenge the beating of a junkie who stole from me.”
Max shook his head. “I don’t know how you do things around here, but people like you don’t get away with shit like that. Lotto learned that lesson. So did Slug. So did Venom. You didn’t have to learn that lesson. But now you gave me no choice.”
Osiris’s devious smirk hid obviously sinister intentions. Max remained steadfast, staring a hole through Osiris despite the confidence on the other side of the energy barrier.
“When Venom discovered your true identity a long time ago, she gave you the benefit of the doubt. She convinced me to think perhaps you were interested in joining the Gears of Destruction. I thought it was unlikely but there was another part of me. A part of me selfish enough to believe someone capable like you would be willing to join my side. As always, some things are too good to be true. There’s still a chance though.”
“You can’t talk your way out of this.”
“Are you sure? The GODs run Santa Fe. We have a stranglehold on the Cobalt District. In time, we’ll have enough Disciples and product to make our presence felt in the other districts. And I’m giving you a chance to be a part of it.”
The offer was absurd enough to make Max laugh despite how angry he was. “Do you really think I want anything to do with you?”
“Your only other option is leaving for New Austin with your tail between your legs.”
“I’ve got one other option. How about—”
“You activate your ACE and blow a hole through my head just like you did Venom? Or perhaps you’ll make me choke on a blade like Slug? Is that why you brought the android with you?”
“The thought crossed my mind.”
Osiris’s smirk hadn’t left him. “You don’t understand just who I am. I beat your friend but I won’t suffer any consequences for it. The department has bigger problems than prosecuting another fight in the streets. Not unless they want to deal with my entire legal team. No… Your only choice is to accept my offer to join me or go back to New Austin. You’ll never get the justice you want.”
Max jumped up from his seat and immediately felt Zigzag’s hand on his shoulder. He looked back at her and she subtly shook her head. Looking into her brown eyes calmed him down just enough to move back into his seat.
“You know I’ll never join the Gears of Destruction. I’ll never become a Disciple.”
“I expected as much… What a shame. Maybe one day our paths will cross again and you might have a chance to use your ACE against me.”
“…You beat up my friend just to give me an offer you knew I’d refuse.”
“That’s right. And I’d do it again. What are you going to do about it, Rebel?”
Max stood back up from his seat and turned on his ACE. He shrugged Zigzag’s hand away from his shoulder and pointed his weapon at the barrier.
“That’s it,” Osiris said. “Solve your problems the only way you know you can. That’s what I want to see. That’s what they all want to see. Now I can give you my real offer.”
“Real offer?” Max narrowed his eyes, still seething from the smug satisfaction on Osiris’s lips.
“I’m aware of your involvement in the investigation into the GODs and their Disciples. It’s no coincidence Lotto, Slug and Venom along with so many of their foot soldiers were apprehended. I’ll give you a chance to use your ACE on me. Beat me up. Blast me away. On one condition.”
Despite his frustrations, Max knew he had no choice but to listen to his offer.
“Speak to the detective leading the investigation,” Osiris said. “Release the GODs. Release the Disciples. Release me. If you do that, I’ll meet you in the Vicious Sanctum. You’ll get a chance for the payback you crave so much.”
“The DA’s got enough evidence to lock you and your gang away for the rest of your lives.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. Even if you’re willing to take the chance of prosecuting me, you and I both know it will never be adequate justice for what happened to your friend.” Osiris turned around and yelled to the doorway. “I’m finished in here. Let’s go!”
The door opened up and guards shuffled in to usher Osiris out. The man in the white suit gave Max a smug grin before disappearing out of the room.
Max stayed in his seat, his eyes closed as he tried to maintain his composure.
“Max—”
He interrupted Zigzag and popped up to his feet. He immediately stormed out of the police station and back out onto the streets with the android following close behind him.
“Shit… Motherfucker… I’m gonna fucking kill him.”
“Max, your emotions are getting the best of you.”
“You’re damn right they are! You saw what he did to Hudson! He smiled about it because there’s nothing I can do about it. He’s locked up. That means he’s safe.”
Zigzag took his hand and tugged on him. “I must speak to you.”
“What?”
“I must speak to you. In private. It is urgent.”
“Zigzag, what are you talking about?” He gave her a confused look, her demeanor changing so suddenly.
He reluctantly followed her away from the police station and down the block near an abandoned building. They stumbled into an alleyway, too dark to be lit from the distant streetlights.
“What’s this about now—”
Zigzag pressed her hand against his chest, pushing him against the steel wall of the empty building. Her other hand roamed between his legs, searching for his length.
“Zigzag, what are you doing?”
“Your emotions are running high. You are not thinking straight.”
“I don’t think—”
She put her lips to his, moving her tongue against his as her hand continued to massage his shaft through the fabric. Max sighed in frustration though his sudden desire made him throb in the android’s palm.
No longer resisting, Max laid back and let her unbuckle his belt. He looked down and watched as she methodically lowered his jeans and his underwear just a second after. His length popped up full and erect. Her hands moved back upon him. The way her palms twisted around his taut flesh made his knees buckle.
The raven-haired woman kept her eyes upon his as she guided him through his sudden desires.
“I want to feel you,” she whispered. “Release your tension. Release your emotions.”
Max’s body tightened up. Zigzag increased the pace of her strokes. She twisted him rapidly with a delicate grip.
Max held his hands on her shoulders and braced himself. His knees buckled as he suddenly met his end. A thick throb of his seed spilled from his tip and splashed onto the pavement below. Zigzag continued milking his hard flesh, stroking him through an orgasm that emptied his mind. All he could do was groan from the pleasure of how well she squeezed around his pulsing shaft.
Max enjoyed it for as long as he could before his feelings subsided. He leaned up against the wall as Zigzag bent down to clean him off. She polished him completely then pulled his underwear and jeans back upon him.
“Zigzag… What the hell was that?”
“Humans are known to make rash decisions when their emotions are heightened. Anger. Sadness. Happiness. Thirst. Hunger. Fatigue. Releasing your sexual energy exhausts your body as well as the emotions attempting to take control of you. Now you can think more clearly.”
Max leaned up against the wall and sighed with his eyes closed. His senses returned to him, he thought about everything that just happened with Osiris and was able to think straight.
“I guess I did need that. But if I keep thinking about this any longer… Osiris knew exactly what he was doing. He beat up Hudson and he’s getting away with it.”
“I do not think Detective Pitt will allow Osiris to walk freely, despite the alleged corruption within the police department.”
“They don’t have enough evidence to nail him like the rest of the GODs. He’ll serve a punishment for what he did to Hudson but nothing will be adequate. I have to do it myself.”
“Do you believe battling Osiris in the Vicious Sanctum will be a more suitable punishment?”
“I do.”
“Then you must convince Detective Pitt to share your sentiment.”
Max only had to think about it for a moment. There was only one way to get back at Osiris.
Chapter 29
Max spent the rest of the night in his suite, tossing and turning as he tried to get over the decision he’d just made. It was early in the day when he found himself in a speeder cab heading toward Club Reincarnation.
“Are you certain this is the correct decision?” Zigzag asked. “Detective Pitt gave us specific instructions not to interfere with the investigation pertaining to Osiris and the Disciples.”
“Pitt wouldn’t have agreed with me if it wasn’t the right choice,” Max sighed. “With Osiris and the others back out on the streets, he’s getting what he wants.”
“And you are getting what you want. Though I must suggest you reconsider the haste in which you’ve made your decision.”
“If you’re uncertain, you don’t have to come.”
“I will stand by your side as I always have, Max. I am merely… curious to your thought process.”
Max gave her a smirk. “I couldn’t explain it to you. Sometimes humans just get emotional.”
She smiled softly and nodded. “I understand that all too well now.”
It was another cloudy day in Santa Fe. The sun barely managed to peek out through billowing gray clouds. The people went about their business as they usually did. The cops roaming the streets in their cruisers remained oblivious to all of the loot pushers and gang members hiding in the shadows between the buildings.
Max kept his focus as the speeder pulled up to the curb next to Reincarnation. Even in the middle of the day there was a crowd shuffling inside to get a drink and enjoy the preliminary bouts taking place in the Sanctum.
Max made a beeline through the main barroom and headed toward the elevators at the back of the club.
As the elevator ascended, Max rolled up his sleeve and activated his ACE. The silicone prongs digging into his skin warmed and a rush of adrenaline pulsed through his bloodstream. He gritted his teeth and sighed through his nose to maintain his composure.
“No sword,” he said to the android standing calmly behind him. “Nothing lethal. Just watch my back. I’m going for Osiris. As soon as I’m done, we leave.”
“There is a high probability Detective Pitt will be unhappy with the decision you’re making.”
“I’ll deal with the consequences after. Don’t try to pull my pants down now. Nothing you can do will change my mind.”
“At the moment, you are showing few signs of heightened emotions. Your decision is certain.”
Max watched the display of numbers ding until finally reaching the floor where the suite of the Disciples was. The elevator doors parted and Max immediately saw four Disciples standing guard in the hall.
He stepped out and they all took note of him. One of them laughed and pointed. “Check this guy out. It’s that asshole from the Sanctum—”
Max raised his ACE up and fired a Colossal Blast that sent the man flying into two Disciples behind him.
“What the hell—”
The last guard standing took the next blast and slammed into the wall. The thunderous explosion was enough to make the door to the suite open up.
“Reinforcements,” Zigzag said.
The android rushed forward as four more Disciples rushed out with their ACEs raised. But before they could even aim properly, Zigzag was already right next to them. Her fists moved like lightning as they slammed against their jaws. One Disciple fell. Then another. Then another. Zigzag moved fast before the Disciples could even react.
Max ran up to the last Disciple trying to guard the entrance to the suite and cracked him hard in the chin. The thud of his knuckles against bone slumped the thug on the ground in a heap.
“C’mon.” Max motioned for Zigzag to follow as they moved forward into the suite.
More Disciples were waiting for them. Ten soldiers all with their weapons up. Behind them, Lotto, Slug and Venom stood next to Osiris, who sat at his desk. Each of them stared at Max with a disdain he’d never seen from them. But that wasn’t enough to deter them from what he was about to do.
“What are you waiting for?” Venom yelled. “Kick his ass!”
Ten Disciples all converged on Zigzag and Max at once. All it took was one Colossal Blast to knock half of them into each other. The one who took the full brunt of the attack slammed against the wood wall made a divot the size of his entire body.
Zigzag kept her fists up, dodging the projectiles and blasts fired in her direction. Not using her sword only made her more efficient. No longer hindered by the weight of the blade, the android flipped and twirled around the small suite. Precise punches from the metal frame beneath her skin proved more devastating than a strike from a normal human.
“That’s the best you got?” Max punched the last Disciple unconscious and held his hands out. “I’ll go through your entire army if I have to.”
Slug, Venom and Lotto stood ready in front of the desk where Osiris sat calmly. The man in the white suit eyed Max from only a few meters away.
“Lotto… Teach him a lesson…”
Osiris snapped his fingers. Lotto had only taken a step forward when Max fired a blast that knocked him back. Being a GOD made him no less vulnerable to the attack, his lack of armor making him fly back and slam into the wall as the others had.
“Get up!” Venom rushed over to help Lotto to his feet while Slug moved forward to engage.
“I don’t need my ACE for this,” Slug said.
Zigzag blocked his path and the two were suddenly involved in a boxing match in the small suite.
Slug swung with vicious strikes. Hooks and uppercuts. Roundhouse kicks and jumping knees. Despite how violent his blows were, Zigzag was able to avoid all of them and strike when she found openings.
“Kick her ass!” Venom shouted.
Slug took the android’s punches well, showing little signs of wear despite how many he’d taken.
“Not so tough without your sword.” Slug ran forward and wrapped his arms around her. He squeezed his hands around her throat, lifting her up from the air.
“Let her go!” Max fired a blast that caught Slug in the chest. The enforcer dropped Zigzag from his grip and stumbled back.
The latest thunderous blast from Max’s ACE was loud enough to set off an alarm. The horns filled the suite and lights began to flash.
“Club Reincarnation security has been alerted of our presence,” Zigzag said. “They will arrive shortly.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Max said. “I only need a few more seconds to get what I want.”
Max clenched his jaw as he stared forward at Osiris. Osiris slicked his hair back over his head then straightened his tie as he stood up from his seat.
The other GODs moved by his side, their ACEs charged and ready.
“I’m impressed,” Osiris said. “It’s been less than twenty-four hours since I was released and you’ve come to exact vengeance for what I did to your friend. I respect that.” Osiris held his hands up. “That’s why I’m willing to extend my offer to you once again. Join the GODs. Put aside our differences and we’ll rule Santa Fe together.”
“You’re an idiot if you think I’d accept your offer now,” Max scoffed.
“No… The only idiot is you if you think you and your android could defeat all of us… Take him out.”
Lotto, Slug and Venom all raised their ACEs up and fired. Zigzag and Max ducked to opposite sides to avoid the projectiles and blasts headed in their direction. Max rolled back up to his feet and prepared to fire.
“Freeze! Lower your weapon!”
Max turned around to see more than ten security guards storming into the suite. They all rushed on top of Max and pinned him to the ground. He didn’t resist as they forced his hands behind his back and cuffed his wrists together.
“Let’s go!”
Max stared hard at Osiris until he was dragged out of the suite and over the pile of unconscious Disciples. He stood in the elevator with Zigzag by his side. Despite everything that just happened, the android appeared as collected as she always was.
“Thanks, Zigzag.”
~ ~ ~
Max pressed his forehead against the carbon steel bar, the feeling more familiar than he expected it to be. The buzz of the dull lights filled his ears as he leaned forward with his eyes closed.
A door opened up in the distance and footsteps followed. They grew louder until stopping right in front of Max.
“Here we go…”
Max shifted his bleary eyes up to see Detective Pitt staring back at him, his eyes as cold as they always were. Neither man said anything but not out of a lack of words. Max knew the older man was just trying to figure out how to sort his thoughts.
“I don’t even know what to say,” Pitt said. “Oliver hadn’t been released for a day and you went after him.”