Chapter Text
· · ─────── · · Chapter 2 · · ─────── · ·
The days that followed were overwhelming for everyone, it felt like an endless loop of anguish and doubts, when finally the firelight that had escaped captivity was able to speak where the others were, an answer to all doubts. But this smelled like a trap, it looked like they had let him get away on purpose. At least that's what they thought at first. This was making Jinx nervous, Fremmy tried, she bravely tried to hold the girl but it was impossible to put out the embers after she had already started a hot fire.
"-Jinxy don't do anything stupid, they'll do something, they just don't want to..."
"-They don't want to face it, fear of dying is just a thing in the head, I already have many things in my..."
“-Not quite”
“-It's exactly like that, I've been in front of it many times, it's all an invention of our own to hide cowardice! Fremmy to two captive teams, Ekko is there, he is there and he didn't leave this is more than a red flag"
The girl looked to the side, she didn't know if should answer, on the one hand she was right to act, on the other it seemed crazy. Jinx stared at her before giving a slight smirk.
"-Trust me. Ajuna is there too, you want to go don't you? ”
"-I want but…"
“-So, I promise to bring them, but they need to listen to me”
Jinx just walked out of that room listening to Fremmy's footsteps behind her, staring at the meeting taking place above them in the tree house. Without hesitating, she went upstairs urgently listening to them talking about the situation they were in and knocked on the table interrupting everyone who was staring at her.
"-The decision will be to go after them, immediate rescue and that's it."
"-My Ma-" Scar was cut off by another female voice
"-You don't have any authority here! You only stay safe because Ekko defends you, you murderous bitch!" Shaggy said looking with hatred at the girl who still remained serious.
"-One more for the bill wouldn't be a big deal would it?" Jinx teased
"-Ekko realising that you haven't changed isn't a big deal? Why does he still believe in you, when she shot several close to him in the head. Maybe because you manipulated-"
"-Shut up, Shaggy!" Scar intervened seeing that his leader's girlfriend was losing patience "-Your jealousy has crossed the line!"
"-He never loved you, you feed on your fantasies, then I am all the things you told me!"
Jinx had clearly been stressed by that, holding back too much for so long.
"-If you don't consider me from here, well keep your idealism, but I'm trying to save your fucking friends! But if you don't want to, then who is the murderer here?"
She let out her breath heavily as finished speaking, her head was racing now, absurd thoughts and words swirling around that seemed to be screaming in her ear. A sharp pain in her body hit again. These last few days Fremmy had been asking her to rest and not think about it too much and now she felt the girl who seemed desperately trying to catch her, because her vision was kind of blurred, and the muffled sound less of her own mind.
"-W- what?" She spoke confused but before saying many more things, fell into her best friend's arms. Smells of blood flooded the room, Jinx looked more confused still awake breathing heavily having contractions that she herself didn't seem to understand.
"Damn it help me Scar" Fremmy yelled at the older one even though he was already helping her carry Jinx to the infirmary. She was so fragile, looked like a glass she could crack but at the same time someone who could break her face in a matter of seconds.
"-Did you know something?" The bat asked Jinx
"-N-no… what's happening to me?…it hurts so much."
"-You're having premature labor, maybe a miscarriage…" Fremmy opened the door letting Scar pass and put her on the bed.
"-A what? I-I was pregnant???" Jinx fidgets, her nervousness grows even more and Fremmy takes the syringe.
"-Sorry Jinx will be better for you"
Her world went black in a matter of seconds and the afternoon fell like rain on cloudy days. Scar left with a group to analyse how they were going to get in and get everyone out of that place. Anyone nearby could feel something drop in their stomach, as if something terrible had happened.
"-He's not well, I doubt he'll stay. I hope they bring Ekko and the rest of the family back in time" Fremmy's voice sounded next to a man who seemed to be one of the "doctors" in that place.
"-I don't know how he's still alive…I'd give a-"
"-Let me see" Jinx sounded behind the two with a weak and tired voice, she would have had surgery, she felt like they had taken everything out of her.
"-Jinx you have cert-"
"-Let me see him, Fremmy! It's my son please"
Both looked at each other and the man left and came back with the baby so small and weak in his hands, he could barely feel his breath. Jinx caught him shaking, you could see the pain in the child's eyes and the pink in them.
"-He only lives… suffering because of it but…" She hugged the child tight. She didn't want to lose him. "-You have to try to help him!"
"-We can't, the only thing that could be is the shimmer... which he naturally already has but it's not enough"
"-You're scared… get out!"
"-We don't have ho-"
"-Get out!" Her angry voice and glowing eyes indicated they didn't have much of a choice. She was in her room, in her house, as "leader" the orders were direct. The sound of the door just continued and outside Fremmy could still hear her friend's cries. She could only pray that she would calm down and that Ekko would come back in time to help them.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
Ekko looked out of his prison, he had managed to survive, they wanted information and with him dead was losing something precious than the rest of the firelights to them. But it was making his stomach churn, unable to try anything. Having to wait wasn't something he liked so much when had his people dying in front of his eyes. The echoes of a female voice talking to others and a few men could be heard from the other room, watching one of his friends drag himself to death convulsing with some kind of venom-caused foam. He had seen the same scene several times in different ways but the same endings. That woman and her deadly plants were trying to finish them off, maybe they considered them a threat or maybe for another reason.
Few minutes passed and the noise of something exploding was what caught his attention and the distraction was his only chance to get out of there. He took advantage of the scare of the sleeping watchman to use a pipe in front of him, when he got up he didn't have time to dodge.
“-Ekko?”
Murmur from the teenager beside him was weak, he had a stomach wound and might not survive more than a few hours.
"-Calm down, let's get out of here" The same spoke quietly in case anyone was still around and took the keys from the man's pocket on the floor through the bars and he himself, trembling, managed to open the door looking to see if there was anyone. "-Come, we can still escape" The same returned to his friend and helped him to his feet, walking carefully.
"-Let's hide here for now..." He said guiding the same as he saw that damn henchmen scream for help. A great attack, they just had to wait for the path to clear.
“-Are we really going to go out? The smell of blood makes me nauseous…” Murmured the companion who was already succumbing.
"-Yes, just stay awake a little longer, Ajuna" He held the boy tight until he heard a familiar voice in the surroundings. “-Scar? SCAR!!” The same shouted for his friend, hope returning stronger, he could be delirious but it was risky not to try. Lifting with the weight of his friend's body, he walked a little, leaning against the wall and his eyes finally saw a familiar face.
"-Ekko, thanks... we're taking you..."
“-There are no you…no more than just us…”
"-...let's get out of here"
Ekko handed the wounded one over to Scar before escorting him out, he thought maybe that woman had run away after being cornered in her own lair, sometimes people were too cowardly to show their face when they were in real trouble, or it was a bigger plan. But he didn't ask, he was too exhausted for that and seeing his house was the only thing wanted right now, his girlfriend and friends.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
After that day Jinx spent her final days basically locked in her room except that would let someone in to bring her water or food and check on the baby, no matter how hard they tried, she refused to listen or leave.
“-Please, can you…”
Almost hopeless murmurs as her fingers caressed the baby who was basically lifeless, she had woken up a few seconds ago from the fright that her son was feeling sick. She refused, but inside her knew it was too late and there was nothing else to do. Outside, even locked, she knew what was happening and she had the information that they had been out for days looking for the missings friends.
"-At least... for your father, little boy " her cry caught in her throat and the hug she gave him was enough for her to feel his last breath against her chest.
Outside Scar had just entered through the hideout gate helping to carry only the only victim who had survived with Ekko, blood dripping from the same one that was immediately tended to, the leader was wounded too but just as well as the poor fellow.
“-Thank you” Ekko spoke in a weak voice to the rest of the team as they left and of everyone who came to see them he noticed the absence of one, there was a lot for him to talk about what he had experienced and what they were facing , luckily he hadn't died.
“-Ekko… Ekko!!” Fremmy ran among his colleagues and stopped in front of the desperate boy and it worried him "-It's Jinx she..." She was cut off by the woman's loud noise, sounding like a scream of agony. This was a warning for the boy who didn't wait for the girl to answer him to climb the stairs even with difficulty to his house and he found the door locked.
“-Jinx? Open the door …"
“-Ekko? Is that really you?”
“-Yes Pow, it's me… I'm back”
Silence then the door click and there she was with smudged eye mascara and more dark circles if that was how that fit more. Ekko looked at her even more worried, what had happened?
"-I'm sorry..." Jinx hugged him tight and he just held her looking beyond her to the bed where she lay to see what she had, that's when he found out what the last few days had been like without him.