The Few

The Pack

"Get the f**k up Jet!"Abi yelled throwing her pillow at him harshly. "We have not got long until Blue comes down to get us!" He sighed as he quickly swung his legs out of the bed. "You look like shit." He looked in the mirror at his pale face.

"I feel like s**t Abs." He rubbed his temples trying to rub the headache away. "Is Rue awake?" He said with a raspy voice.

"I haven't checked, I had a shower and came to get you." She said pulling her shoes on. "You literally smell of beer dude." She replied, "How much did you drink last night in the Rec?"

"I don't remember," he smiled as he stood to grab a towel from the side of the cabinet. "I remember Max getting back from his run, having a few drinks with him..." He paused, "Rue and I walked back down here and then I climbed into bed....Where were you? You were in the Rec then you were gone?"

"I came to bed after you told me to 'get a f*****g life and loosen up.' If you remember?" 

"Oh s**t, sorry sis." He said rubbing his temples. "I hope Queen goes easy on me today somehow, I don't think that is going to happen. I best get a shower." He said walking out the room. Within a few seconds there was a knock on their bedroom door. 

"I feel like I am dying!" Rue said falling down onto Jet's bed. "Why does booze have to be so fun when you're drinking it then the next day it makes you wish you were dead...last night I had never been so happy to be alive and now...bury me... kill me and bury me."

"It cant be that bad." Abi said holding back a laugh. "You looked like you were having fun last night... from what I saw anyway..." 

"You're brother is hot, Max is hot. I am sorry that..."

"You shoved your tongue down my brothers throat?" Abi replied pulling her hair back into a long ponytail. "Then turned around and did the exact same thing to Max?" Rue blushed and sat up right. 

"Not a good move huh?" She said embarrassed. 

"I wouldn't say it was your best." Abi replied, "but hey, I don't really know you that well Rue this maybe who you really are and you have never been able to explore that."

"Well that part is true. None of us know who we really are yet, we have been told by our parents who we are and who we want to be, what to wear, how we are to behave. So now we are being able to choose who we are... I am not judging you," Abi replied. 

"Thanks... Jet in the shower?" She asked Abi just nodded. "You nervous about your assessment today?"

"I don't know what to expect. Max had a 10 mile run, that was his first assessment!"

"Yeah but he's athletic to him sure that would be a challenge but not as much as it would be for us." Abi nodded looking back at Rue, "like seriously Abi, what you do...I wouldn't have a clue how to do what you do but hopefully today will be okay for you." 

"I don't have a clue what is waiting for us...but I do know more about Red than this Queen or French. I have to say I am not sure I trust her." Abi added. 

"I don't think we are meant to trust anyone yet." Rue said, "we have to work our way up to trusting people in here." Jet walked back in the room rubbing his hair with a towel. "You look like shit."

"Back at you Rue." He replied pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. 

"Really? 5 minuets and Blue will be here!" Abi said.

"He is already here." Blue said leaning against the door. He was wearing a pair of very dark pair of black jeans. He had a black shirt that had the words 'Evil German' on it. He had a over sized grey cardigan on with the sleeves rolled up. We was not as muscular as Lance but he had clearly had worked out a lot more than likely in his youth. He was not out of shape by any means and in his tight shirt there was an outline on fitness.He unlike the last two days had on his left hand in pride of place was a black and silver wedding band. "Ready to go?" He said smirking noticing Abi looking at his hand. "Do you like it?" He showed off his hand. 

"Its beautiful." She said. "Does your wife manage well with Red being your partner?"

"She has a partner too." He said smiling. "I have no problem with her working with anyone, I am happy that when she's out there she has someone looking out for her. She feels the same about Red." He replied with a smile. 

"I guess that make sense, is your wife's partner male?"

"My wife doesn't care about gender so either way it wouldn't matter. I trust her and I trust her partner, even if she had to change partner I would trust her. Anyway, lets get going if you want something to eat before your assessment." He pushed his sleeves up more. "Ready Jet? Rue? You look like shit."

"They're hungover," Abi said walking out of the room. 

"Queen is going to kill you." He replied, "come on you need something greasy." 

They all got into the elevator the lights from there were bright and it was a struggle for the two hungover people in the elevator. They were almost silent when they went up to the canteen floor. The door opened and they were hit with the sound and smell of breakfast with hundreds of people. They all got in line and took their food to a table and started shoving their faces with food. "So do you only have 2 tattoos?" Rue asked Blue.

"4." He replied. "I only get tattoo's that mean something specific."

"What do you mean?" Jet asked.

"All my tattoo's are for things I would give my life for." He replied tilting his neck. "I would die for the cause, the Few and being a non-conformist, freedom and free will. I would rather be in the ground than have that chip control me again." He said simply pulling his cup of coffee to his lips, "I have a tattoo of a wolf on my back for my dad, he brought me to the states for a better life and he risked everything so I would have for him."

"Would?" Abi asked. 

"He died when I was 20." He replied.

"I'm sorry." Jet and Abi said together while mouthing 'twin thing' at each other.

"Don't be. I got my wife's name on my chest in German... because I would give my life for that woman. And lastly you may have noticed that Red and I have matching tattoo's on our fingers." He pointed to the thin red ring he hand around his finger.

"Yeah, why?"

"We would both risk each other lives for each other, when you are out there in the streets and the cops are shooting at you and you need to trust that the person with you will do whatever they can to get each other out...you need a heavy trust and I would. Red...she's my best friend and I would trust her with my life and she would the same in return so that's how this came about." He said sitting back, taking the coffee in his hand.

"Can we see the one for your wife?" Jet asked.

"Nope, it is written in German...but her name in German is spelled exactly the same in German as in English and like we said yesterday, you don't get real names until you get your wings." He replied smiling. "I did want to talk to you about something Jet before you head off to your assessment."

"What's that?"

"You need to be careful around Queen." He said, "well not just Queen. There are a group of people down here called 'The Pack' they need to be watched and do not trust them."

"Why not?" Rue asked.

"Well, what you need to know is when you have gone through your assessment and you gain your wings you will be given 3 jobs, you will work within your specialism, you will be asked to go on jobs they can be anything it will be explained when you get your wings. Then lastly you will be asked to bring any recruited in if you find them and be their rep while they are earning their wings. Like I am doing here. When you gain a high level, you will be asked to 'take the call' and are given a team of people within your specialism to manage. The Pack...they are more than that. They answer to each other and the Boss. But they look out for themselves and in doing that it means that they do what they think is right. They have their own rules that they follow and honestly they are dangerous."

"So Queen is one of them?" Jet asked. 

"She is one of the top dogs, she has her fingers in everything artistic she is a visual genius, she can spot codes and patterns in art and can send messages in painting. She is insanely good the only one on a level with her is King."

"King?" Abi asked.

"Yeah he works in Operational  he is wizard within with setting up jobs and using espionage and subterfuge . He is crazy. Be careful all of you. Boss is in charge on paper but in reality King is in charge nothing runs in here without him saying its okay." The three of them all nodded. "Then there is Jack and Ace. Jack is in the one that you need to be wary of Rue, he works with France. Communications, you need to let that Max boy to watch out for Ace, he works with Briggs and Lance and well...lets say..." He lowered his voice when he spoke, "if you want someone dead, you go to Ace." The three of them looked at each other shocked. "Then you have the four suites, they are less to worry of but everything you say to them goes up the ladder. It will get to King so still you can trust them more but don't." He paused and messed with the ring on his left hand.

"Is there something else Blue?" Jet asked.

"There's one more. One more member of the pack you have to watch out for. He is probably the most dangerous of them all. He and I have history on a personal level and knowing me will not make you popular with him." He replied. "Joker...he doesn't have a specialism he is noticeably a genius and is good at many different things so he is out sourced to others. He will probably end up meeting Abi first he his a very highly qualified hacker. Also good in espionage and subterfuge, communications and hand to hand. He is a math genius and has a eidetic memory he can not forget anything he is read or heard. He is dangerous and unlike the other members of the pack he will sell his services to the highest bidder. Even the conformists, lets just say, if someone had a small doubt I was alive in local government and they paid him for info on me...i'd be dead."

"And you have personal beef with him?" Jet asked.

"Sadly yeah...he was involved with my wife before me." He said still playing with his wedding ring. "She would never go there, not now after she has seen what he is capable of but him... he fights to his own cause. He will answer to King and Boss but not if its something that would contradict his own views." He said coldly. "We need to go. "Its nearly 8 and we have three drop offs." He said standing up. He nodded to the elevator and the four of them walked together and as the doors closed all three of the new recruits felt the pit of their stomachs fall out.