Two Page Shorts - Nick Venom (big ebook reader txt) 📗

you’re… all done.” She said as she winked at a nearby guard. The guard approached Helen, slapping on handcuffs faster than humanly possible. The guard was a speedster known as Agent Speed, a metahuman dressed in the same attire as the guards on the fence. 

Helen, who barely registered what he did several seconds after the action was completed, stared at Agent Speed in stock. “W-What is this?”

Jess furrowed her brows. “You weren’t told? Trigger, what is this?”

“You told me to grab her, nothing else. I’ll leave the specifics to you.” He retorted.

Jess scowled at him. “Whatever, report back to Leonardo for your next mission.” She informed them. Trigger nodded, half-paying attention to what she was saying. Jess noticed this but ignored it. She motioned for Agent Speed to take Helen away, which he did with ease. He disappeared one second and reappeared the next. He took Helen from the waiting room to the right side of the prison in Cell Block D, dropping her in her cell with her cellmates before heading back. The entire action took no more than a second to complete. 

“I’m still in awe at your speed,” Jess remarked. Agent Speed nodded, not responding verbally. He looked too afraid to speak as if it would affect his future to leak out a word.

Trigger, meanwhile, turned away from Jess and Agent Speed. Frozenstar was by his side, staring in the direction Agent Speed went. “She just entered hell.”

Trigger overheard him, his head snapping to Frozenstar. “Shut up!” He barked. “Are you an idiot?” He leaned closer to Frozenstar. “If he hears, then you know what happens.”

Frozenstar reluctantly nodded. “Yeah… you’re right.”

“Good, now let’s go. We can’t let him wait for too long.” Trigger said, tearing his face away from Frozenstar and angling it towards the exit. Frozenstar followed him. However, Siren Eagle didn’t follow instantly. He stared at the direction Helen was taken with saddened eyes. He simply shook his head before turning away, following the others out of the building. Neither of them wanted to stay in the suffocating atmosphere any longer than they wanted to. They escaped hell and refused to go back.

***

Helen was now in her cell filled with two bunk beds, a toilet, and a small desk. Alongside the furniture were two cellmates. One of them stood up from her bottom bunk while the other remained on her top bunk. The cellmate that stood up approached Helen, bowing her head. She was a redheaded petite girl dressed in an orange jumpsuit. She had her hair tied into a ponytail. “Hey, I’m Cat!” She energetically declared, one finger messing with her hair. “What’s your name?”

“H-Helen,” She meekly responded.

“What a pretty name? Is it greek?”

Helen raised an eyebrow. “Greek? Ahh… I don’t think so.”

“Oh, well. What are your powers? How did you get here? Are you happy?” She asked.

Helen felt bombarded with these questions, looking up at her other cellmate. Her blonde cellmate glanced down at her before looking back at the magazine in her hands. 

“Uh… I think… I think I have burning and ice hands.”

“Woah, how cool. How did you get here?” Cat asked, repeating her question.

“Well… I woke up i-in a glass thingy and escaped from the people who put me there. I was found by the police then those men took me here.”

“Oh, the Vault Security brought you here. They’re crazy. I was crazy once… Anyways, are you interested in learning about Jesus?”

Helen tilted her head, raising both eyebrows. Is she okay? Why is she so energetic? She thought to herself. “Uh…” She directed her stare to the blonde cellmate. “Is she always like this?”

“Cat is always energetic and dumb.” She remarked before rolling to her side, away from Helen and Cat.

“So mean… but it’s true.” She whispered the second half of her sentence. “Okay, do you want the bottom or top bunk? You can get both or the one under them.”

One under it? What’s under the bottom bunk? Wouldn’t it be just concrete under the floor? Or is there an actual bunk under the floor? Helen thought to herself. Cat was overwhelming her, already tiring her out after a few minutes of chatting. 

“Well… goodbye!” Cat turned away, going back to her bed and instantly falling asleep. The cell was filled with her snoring. Helen was even more perplexed by Cat’s actions. It was as if she was the queen of random.

“What was that?” She thought out loud.

“That? That was Cat. You can ignore her.” The blonde cellmate said. She rolled over to her other side, facing Helen. “She’s a nutcase. They found her after she destroyed school property and nearly caused an earthquake. Apparently, something happened with her powers and she became the mess she is now.” She explained. 

Helen nodded, staring at Cat. “Woah…”

“Yeah, crazy right? She short-circuited herself, basically.”

Helen nodded, turning her head to face the blonde cellmate. “How did you get here?”

“Me? I was in a fight like Cat, but it happened while I was in juvie. Some things happened and certain substances were involved and my powers sparked up. A building was burnt and Trigger and the other thugs captured and brought me here. That was a couple of years ago.” She said, “Well, your story sounds more intense than mine or Cat’s. You were… kidnapped?”

Helen nodded. “I woke up in some warehouse and there were two men and… they were trying to knock me out. I was fortunate that I escaped because of my powers sparking out. I ran away from the building and was saved by the police. They took me to the station where I was attacked by some man. I… dealt with him before Trigger arrived.

“Woah, that all sounds like a story… I can’t believe that your powers would spark up with such great timing as if they needed to for some strange reason.” She remarked.

“Yeah… it is,” Helen muttered. “Well… what’s your name?”

“Oh, sorry about that. I’m Beverly Torne. You said your name was Helen?”

“Yeah, Helen Hollow.”

“Well… nice to meet you,” Beverly said as she jumped out of her bed to approach Helen, sticking out her hand. Helen hesitated, unsure of what to do. Fortunately, Beverly noticed this and grabbed Helen’s hand, shaking it. “Welcome to Cell Block D.”

***

“Line up!” A middle-aged man shouted, standing in front of several tens of prisoners in the courtyard. He was dressed in a similar outfit to the guards, but most of the tactical armor was stripped off, leaving the skeleton of the outfit behind. He barely fit in the skeleton, being a plump man that tiptoed the line between obese and healthy.

“Today, you’ll be given a good opportunity!” He glanced at his side to see Trigger and the others standing near him. “I am looking for recruits for the Vault Security team. Anyone who wants to join will have to go through my son, Steven Wicker. You will find him in the Skyscraper. Aside from being in charge of recruiting, he will be in charge of the Vault while I’m gone. That is all… you can do whatever it is that you do.” He turned away from them, heading towards the Skyscraper, the largest building in the prison. Trigger and the others followed him. 

With them gone, many of the prisoners sprinted towards the Skyscraper, fighting each other to arrive there faster. Helen watched as they went rabid, fighting for every inch. The guards weren’t stepping in, watching the brawls like a television show. 

“What is happening?” Helen whispered.

“It’s recruiting time for the Vault Security team,” Beverly said. She glanced at Cat who was mumbling to herself. 

“Why? Is it something that everybody wants to join?”

“Oh yeah, you’re new here. The Vault Security team is made of mutants and metahumans. They protect the Vault and are responsible for capturing any rogues. There are many benefits to joining them as they have a higher degree of freedom. Everybody here would kill to get to take a step outside this prison. I know I would.” She explained.

Helen nodded. “Oh, I see.”

“Yeah, but there’s a disadvantage too. You’ll be under the thumb of the Warden, Leonardo Wicker. That and his son, Steven Wicker. His son, especially, is a cruel beast.”

Helen furrowed her brows, staring directly into Beverly’s eyes. “What did he do?”

“What hasn’t he done? He’s raped, murdered, harassed, and about everything else you can think of. He calls them ‘purging of evil souls’, but it’s just him justifying his actions. And his father turns a blind eye to it, allowing him to get worse and worse. Stay as far as you can from him.” She warned Helen.

Helen nodded. “Okay, I will.”

“Blind… I was blind once.” Cat muttered out of nowhere. Beverly and Helen stared at her, both raising their eyebrows. They waited for her to speak again, but she refused to. She stared at a wall in silence. 

“Well… whatever, just make sure to stay away from him.”

“Got it. I will.” Helen responded. “I’ll keep away from him.”

Unfortunately, his eyes were already set on her. He wouldn’t keep away from her.

***

“Want to play a game?” Beverly asked, revealing a small red ball. She dropped it on the ground, watching as it jumped up into the air before falling back down. 

Helen nodded, sitting on the ground. After the majority of the prisoners barged into the Skyscraper, the courtyard was left empty with a few people standing around idly. She stared at everybody in quick succession, noticing the varying ages and appearances. Everybody was different but similar at the same time. They were all connected by their statuses and clothes.

“Hey, Helen?” Beverly asked, waving her hand in front of Helen’s face.

Helen jerked her head back. “Sorry, I zoned out. Let’s play.”

Beverly nodded, asking for Helen to rise. They faced each other, playing catch. They threw the ball from one person’s hands to the other. Cat, who had been stuck in her mind, turned to watch them. “Are you happy?” She muttered. “Are you?”

Neither of the girls heard her question, too focused on their game. They went through a cycle of catching the ball before then throwing it aggressively to then be waiting for the ball to be thrown back to then fumble the ball somehow - then rinse and repeat. Neither girl was paying enough attention to notice another girl, a brunette, approaching them. However, Cat noticed the girl, jumping up from her spot on the ground.

“What’s your name? I’m Cat!” She asked.

The girl furrowed her brows. “Okay…?”

“What are your powers? How did you get here? Are you happy?” She asked.

“I’m not revealing anything about me aside from my name. I’m Milly Jayhawk.” She said. “I wanted to talk with those girls.”

“What are your powers? How did you get here?” Cat asked, glancing at Milly’s waist. She had on a leather belt with several items attached to it. They were mostly random objects, but one of them stuck out to Cat. It was a small earbud.

Milly looked at where Cat was looking at, recognizing what it was. She squinted at Cat as she hovered her hand over her pocket. “Who are you?” She asked. “Why are you here?”

“Because I’m looking for-” Cat started.

“Who are you?” Beverly asked, staring at Milly. She wiped her forehead, drying her hands on her clothing. “I don’t remember seeing you before.”

“I’m Milly Jayhawk.” She started. “I wanted to talk with you about the Vault Security team.”

“You’ve been here longer…” Cat whispered. “Why?”

Milly glared at Cat before taking a step back. “She’s right, I must’ve forgotten. I’m sorry about that.” She turned around and walked away. As she walked away, another prisoner approached them. This prisoner wasn’t female, but a burly Hispanic man who was about the same height as Beverly at 5’10. 

“What you want?” Beverly snarled, baring her fangs.

“Well… You got a spare ball or something?” He asked, staring at Beverly. His eyes appeared sluggish and dazed. He couldn’t stare at Beverly for too long as his eyes wandered everywhere. It was as if he was fighting against sleep. 

“We don’t.” She responded.

The man nodded. “Thanks then.”

“What are your powers? How