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Before They Were Fabulous

Chief Exterminator Korse

Passing the faded yellow and black, diamond shaped Zone marker standing at a precarious angle at the side of the road was the first hint to Gerard about how far away from Battery City he was. He pursed his lips as he noted it announced that they had reached Zone 2. He knew from the maps he had seen of the Zones beyond the city that each zone increased in size exponentially. This meant that Zone 2 wasn’t a comparatively great distance from the city dome. Added to that, they had only been driving for about an hour, which meant that they hadn’t been deep into Zone 3.

He grew silent and frowned deeply as the significance sank in. The lack of facilities, suitable drinking water, medicines, food, jobs and everything else that he considered part of even a basic standard of living shocked him to the core. As he saw it, there was no excuse, and he suspected that BLI was - and had always been - as aware of this as he now was. Otherwise, why lie about it? The more he thought about it, the more concerned he grew. He wondered what it was that they were trying to hide.

“What’s up, Gerard?”
“Hmm?”

Gerard looked up, his eyes vacant at first, deeply lost in thought. It was Flex who had spoken and from the expression on his face, it had been more than once.

“Where’ve you been?” Flex grinned. “You weren’t here, that’s for sure.”

Gerard offered an embarrassed grin at the question; he had long since noted that Flex, in fact all of them, were highly observant and very little went unnoticed. He imagined it as a kind of occupational necessity and very possibly the main reason they had managed to survive so long.

“I was thinking about Battery City,” he sighed, as he thought about how to phrase his question.
“You’ll be back soon,” Flex offered a reassuring yet somehow sad smile.

Gerard’s brow furrowed as he stared back, chewing his bottom lip with uncertainty.

“That’s not it, is it?” Flex asked, mirroring Gerard’s worried expression.
“I don’t understand why they lie about the Zones.”

Flex offered a thin smile as he considered the statement; Gerard had clearly been considering the point for some time.

“You’re confused about the lying?” Flex asked quietly.
“Yeah,” he replied, his pitch increased suggesting his confusion.
“I’m not questioning your sincerity to help the Zones, Gerard,” Flex raised his hands as he explained, believing he saw a flash of what might have been anger or disappointment. “I’m just not sure why their lying surprises you.”
“I just don’t know why they bother.”
“Go on,” Flex encouraged.

Gerard took a deep breath as he considered how he was going to phrase his concerns; particularly as he wasn’t entirely certain he had formulated his thoughts. It was at this point he noticed that Leech, whilst keeping his eyes on the road was now paying attention to their conversation. Neither seemed tense or worried, which reassured him that there was no ulterior motive for their question, but he remained frustrated by his uncertainties.

“Okay,” he nodded, tapping a finger against his lips. “So, BLI has a tight grip on Battery City and pretty much everyone there is taking their mind-numbing drugs, but they say that everyone is happy and taken care of. I mean, not just Battery City, but the Zones too. Why bother? Why do they even need to? Who are they trying to convince?”
“They don’t say everyone’s happy in the Zones.” Flex tilted his head in surprise.
“In fact,” Leech briefly glanced over his shoulder, “they use the idea that everyone is happy in Bat City to taunt people in the Zones. Trying to entice people back, if they’ll have them.”
“Which’ll only happen if they have some sort of useful profession,” Flex added.

Gerard stared back, suddenly realising that things were worse than he had originally thought.

“Oh!” He replied, his eyes wide in surprise. “Maybe it’s just me then? Why would they need to tell me that the Zones were looked after?”

Flex stared blankly; apparently equally puzzled by the revelation.

“I don’t know,” he shrugged as he considered the question. “Maybe... maybe because of the marketing you’re involved in? They want to convince you that...” Flex frowned as he paused; it seemed implausible that they would care what the boy thought.
“It’ll be to explain the existence of rebels.” Leech called back, glancing briefly over his shoulder. “If you believe that everyone in Bat City and beyond is looked after then the only reason for rebels to exist would have to be political. We’re portrayed as terrorists, fighting for control against a benevolent governing body purely for nefarious purposes.”
“And if I believe the Zones are full of dangerous rebels, I won’t question what happens to them,” Gerard took a deep breath. “And...”
“You can be controlled by them without the need for drugs while you’re still so young,” Flex continued.
“And when Korse arranged for me to be taken by rebels...”
“He didn’t,” Flex appeared astonished by the statement. “That was Mole... to get you clean.”
“Mole?” Gerard raised his eyebrows and almost laughed. “No,” he continued, “I mean the other time. He had three rebels abduct me and...” Gerard tapered off and he looked down frowning.
“He...” Flex’s eyes widened in surprise. “He... what?”

Gerard offered a weak smile and shrugged half-heartedly.

“I was supposed to order the execution of three rebels. I didn’t want to and he doubted my loyalty to BLI, so he arranged for my abduction. They beat me pretty badly because I wouldn’t read out their message.”
“And Korse did that to you?” Flex asked, his expression one of deep sympathy.
“Yeah,” Gerard replied quietly.
“That’s sick,” he snapped with a deep frown.
“That’s not the worst of it,” Gerard shook his head.
“There’s worse?” Leech asked, without turning.
“He’s my uncle.”
“Yeah,” Leech glanced back again in disbelief. “That’s definitely worse.”
“How on earth could he do that to his own nephew?” Flex gasped in astonishment.

The medics glanced back and forth at each other; both of them sporting a puzzled expression.

“Well,” Gerard shrugged, with a half-smile. “I guess he has a spare.”

The comment broke the tension in the jeep raising a laugh from the pair.

“Korse only does anything if it benefits him.” Leech rolled his eyes. “Plus, the man’s been twisted by BLI conditioning. It still worries me that you’re going back to him.”

Gerard smiled at Leech’s concern but had no time to consider his words as the jeep suddenly juddered and skidded sideways across the road. A cloud of dust and sand rose up obscuring the area to the right of the jeep making it hard to see what had happened. Immediately ducking down, Flex had pushed Gerard flat to the floor of the jeep and both men had drawn their weapons.

“Can you see anything?” Leech hissed quietly.
“No,” Flex replied in a rough whisper, his throat now coated in dust as the cloud moved over them.
“What’s happened?” Gerard asked, alarmed by the sudden halt.
“Stay down,” Flex warned, looking about nervously. “It may just be a blown tyre, but...”

Flex never finished the sentence. The sound of laser fire ripped through the air and the remaining occupants of the jeep were showered in blood as the side of Flex’s head tore open and he slumped to the right.

“No!” Gerard screamed in horror, pushing himself upright automatically as he launched himself forward in the desperate hope he was still alive.

Leech turned his head sharply in the direction the shot had come from. Aware that Gerard was now on his knees and cradling Flex, tears filling his eyes as he realised that he was beyond hope, Leech didn’t have time to warn him to stay down before a second shot ripped through the air from the opposite side and killed the phlebotomist.

“No!” Gerard cried again, by now allowing the tears to stream down his face.

These men, these brave veterans, had risked everything for him and now paid with their lives. Gerard slumped, overcome with grief and waiting for the shot that would claim him too. As he looked down, he spied Flex’s dropped ray gun and snatched it up, his head looking from side to side, scanning the area. Wiping the tears from his eyes and cheeks, he began to grow angry; determined to avenge their deaths.

As two figures emerged, one either side of the jeep, he stared in astonishment; his eyes wide and wild as Exterminator Korse and Chief Exterminator Vitkovski walked slowly and triumphantly towards the jeep.

“Gerard,” Korse called in an icy cold tone. “Drop the gun and step down from the jeep. You’re safe now.”

Gerard’s chest heaved as he considered his options. What could he do? Could he kill them? Could he even defy them? There was one on each side; if he shot one, the other would surely kill him and he would have achieved nothing. But as he looked two of the men who had helped him, now lifeless, his anger bubbled up again.

“Get down from the jeep, Gerard!” Korse yelled.

Gerard turned his head back to the right; Korse was almost upon him. Still clutching the gun, although not aiming it, Gerard jumped down from the jeep, only to be pushed back against it, held firm by Korse’s left hand on his chest. Staring up defiantly, only the slightest flicker of fear manifested itself in his eyes as Korse pushed his gun under Gerard’s chin and he offered a sickly smile at the boy.

“Drop the gun, Gerard,” he added almost sweetly.

There was little he could do and he hated himself for it. Swallowing hard, Gerard allowed the gun to fall to the floor and within moments Korse had spun him around, pressing him against the side of the jeep. Gerard’s eyes widened from a combination of being within inches of Flex’s body, able now to see the messy head wound and staring, lifeless eyes and the fact that Korse had pulled his arms behind him and swiftly locked his wrists into restraints.

“Is that really necessary, Korse?” Vitkovski admonished as he re-holstered his gun. “It’s hardly his fault he was taken by rebels.”
“That’s not why I’m doing it,” Korse smirked.
“Why then?” The Chief Exterminator asked with a puzzled frown.
“So he’s easier to handle after I do this.”

Korse raised his gun once more and before there was a chance to react, Korse had gunned down Vitkovski. Turning Gerard back to face him, he laughed as he noted the terror in the boy’s eyes at the sight of the Chief Exterminator’s murder.

“What... wh-what did you do that for?” Gerard gasped, his alarm almost snatching the words from him.
“I didn’t,” he smirked. “Such a shame your friends got to him first.”
“Why?” He demanded.
“I’m ready for a promotion,” he announced in return. “I just needed a suitable vacancy.”
“You think I won’t tell anyone?” Gerard gasped.
“Well, that depends, doesn’t it?” Korse replied, his smile morphing into a threatening glare.
“What on?” Gerard asked, trying hard to hold off the shake in his voice.
“A number of things,” Korse continued. “Whether or not you make it back to Battery City, whether you survive re-indoctrination, and how much you want your little friend to live.”

Gerard’s eyes opened wide at the terrifying threat. Not only did he know he meant what he said, but he knew he was more than capable of carrying it out. Shaking his head silently, Gerard looked up at Korse’s new expression. Something of a cross between superior, gloating and cruel, his smirk widened into a malicious grin as he saw the fear in Gerard’s eyes.

“Back to Battery City then,” Korse laughed as he dragged Gerard to the car hidden behind a sand dune to the right of the road. “Of course, you’ll be headed straight for the cells for interrogation and re-indoctrination. We can’t leave the face of BLI brainwashed by rebels, can we?”
“I haven’t been...”

Gerard’s objections were cut off sharply as Korse threw him roughly to the ground. Unable to break his fall, Gerard skidded and rolled slowly to a halt.

“Do you want me to cuff your ankles and leave you here?” Korse asked in an unnervingly casual tone.

On receiving no reply other than a wide-eyed and terrified stare, Korse chuckled to himself.

“No, I didn’t think so,” he smirked, reaching down to pull Gerard to his feet. “Don’t forget little Frankie,” he laughed again. “Your defiance is not good for his health.”

As the pair rounded the dune, Gerard saw that there were no draculoids accompanying the exterminator and that he was the only witness to Vitkovski’s murder.

“Do you understand?” Korse demanded.

Throwing Gerard against the side of the car, he shouted again.

“I said, do you understand?”

Swallowing his fear, Gerard first nodded before finding his voice.

“Yes,” he whispered.
“Yes what?” Korse leaned in menacingly.
“Yes, sir,” he replied, his heart racing.
“Yes, what?” Korse bellowed.
“Yes, Exterminator Korse,” he replied, hopeful to satisfy the man, now seemingly drunk with power.
“I think you’ll find that’s Chief Exterminator Korse!”

Gerard’s chest rose and fell rapidly with his heart rate and in his panic, he didn’t notice the exterminator reach into his pocket. Retrieving a small polythene bag from his pocket, Korse folded it back over his hand so as not to touch the contents - a chloroform soaked cloth - he forcefully pressed it over the boy’s nose and mouth, holding both Gerard and the cloth firm as he cried out and struggled in his grip. All too soon, Gerard’s struggles weakened and holding it in place for a few more moments after the boy’s knees had buckled, Korse drew the bag back up over the cloth, enclosing it once more, and pushed it into his pocket. Pushing Gerard onto the back seat of the car, Korse settled into the driver’s seat and head back to Battery City, calling in the tragic news of Vitkovski’s murder by the rebels as he did. He would be hailed a hero; the chief exterminator position would soon be his.

Notes

Comments

@Kobra Way
Hi! I will, I promise. The end of uni has been surprisingly crazy and when I haven’t been doing stuff to prepare for graduation, I’ve been asleep!! Making the most of having time to catch up on much needed sleep :D

I’m hoping to start tonight. I had a few lines of TBFD written but I’m having a bit of a block with that one so I’ll switch to this. This is the reason for having more than one on the go.

Anyhoo, I am soooo happy to be graduating. It’s been a long road and I’m ready to get back to working full time again.

Thanks for letting me know it’s you, glad you got back in, even if it’s on a new account.

Take care
Sas xx

SaskiaK SaskiaK
6/25/19

@SaskiaK
Hey it's Poison Way. I've had to change my account since I can't login with Tumblr anymore. Hope you'll update soon

Kobra Way Kobra Way
6/25/19

@SaskiaK
Hope you get a third distinction. Keep it up

Poison Way Poison Way
6/2/19

Damn Gerard, he’s got his wits turned on that’s for sure. Great chapter

cKayE cKayE
5/29/19

@Homosexual Yogurt
Yeah, Edward needs a medal for what he’s doing for them and now he’s even giving up everything! He really believes in Gerard (and we know he’s right to) but it’s still very brave of him!

Thank you for reading and commenting. I love to hear what people like, or even if they don’t like something. It’s as much for the readers as it is for me.

Sas xx

SaskiaK SaskiaK
5/29/19