I'd put some eyeliner on after I got out of the shower, and by the time I finished my online learning modules I was starting to feel a bit silly about it. But then I looked in the mirror and it actually looked totally badass so I left it on when I went out to meet the others.
I'd only been in the pub a couple of minutes when Billy and Balae showed up. They'd brought a couple of Billy's schoolfriends with them. Somehow I forgot Billy has friends other than me and Balae. Sanjit and Hugo. Sanjit seemed alright, if you didn't try to keep up with his high speed lecture on everything that's ever happened in the pub.
I didn't like Hugo. He started talking about my fingernails, which I didn't like, because I can't help it that they look like that and it only gets worse when I'm angry, and I tried to hide them under the table, but then he started in on my hair and eyes and I really wished I hadn't put that eyeliner on. I was trying really hard to keep my temper, but then he started asking why the others called me Honey Badger and I ended up snapping at him and it was a real struggle to just grab hold of him without crushing his hand. I think it was only because Balae showed up with drinks and I didn't want to spoil her first day at school any more after I'd already caused trouble on the bus.
Oh, and he asked me if I played rugby, which annoyed me because when they were trying to make me go to school people kept saying I should play rugby and then they let me try it and then I got in trouble for breaking the goal and I wasn't allowed to do it any more.
Still, at least Balae had had a good day, and she was very keen to go to the school disco and wanted me to go too. Which is probably allowed so long as I'm going with her. And Billy thinks it's a great idea and is sure he can find someone else to go with. So that's going to happen. Maybe Abeni will help me decide what to wear.
Someone managed to get rid of Hugo and Sanjit eventually. I asked Billy if Hugo's always that annoying and he told me he only pays that much attention to people he likes! So I just have to hope I scared him off when I almost lost it at him.
Me and Billy were going to have to stay over again if we were all going to sneak out together to meet Mrs Stodgely, which meant we needed an excuse. Billy told Castor and Pollux some story about not getting on with his dad. I'm not sure if he was telling the truth or not, but they bought it. And I didn't have to lie. I just reminded them that I didn't have anyone at home, and they understood.
We waited until the two of them were busy watching some awful old musical and went up to the roof. No way Splinters was going to miss us sneaking out of the door, so it had to be down the drainpipe. Balae floated down. Billy held onto my waist and I started climbing. Except the drainpipe was in worse shape than I remembered and started coming away from the wall. I was pretty sure I could just drop down and I'd be fine, but Billy could get really badly hurt, so I asked Balae to help. She made her arms really long and held the drainpipe long enough for me to get us both down safely.
We didn't have enough time to walk, but Billy had his bike, and Balae had one that she'd stolen! So she made herself very small so she could ride in my hair, and Billy and me rode out towards the meeting place. Which was going alright until we had to get across the river. We'd managed to dodge the Asterion peacekeepers on the streets, but the bridge was swarming with them. Billy knew about an access tunnel we could use instead, and found the entrance under one of those big commercial bins. So I pushed it out of the way, but it made a noise and attracted some thugs.
Except they weren't really thugs, because they looked really skinny, like they hadn't eaten in days, but that didn't really help because even if we wanted to give them our wallets we hadn't brought them. I asked if they'd rather we paid in peanuts or gum, which I don't think helped, and they threatened to call the peacekeepers. No way we could stop them, even with Billy managing to intimidate them with his psychic weaponry, so we were just going to have to be really fast and hope we were gone before they got back.
I don't think that manhole cover will ever be the same again but I did manage to get the bin back in place as we all climbed down. Yet another sewer. What a place to have a super sensitive nose. But now we had a clear route to the other side of the river. Or so we thought. We were about halfway across when we ran into two peacekeepers.
Nobody else around. Nobody to see what we were doing, and I'd been spoiling for a fight ever since I'd met Hugo, and now here were two of these bastards right in my way. It didn't matter that there were two of them and only one of me. Honey badger don't care. I knew the others had my back. And the only thing that I noticed through the blind rage is that one of them shot Billy with his arm blaster thing. His next shot hit me, which was awful, but it meant the others were OK and could knock out the other one. Then we saw the starfish starting to detach, just like in the pub, and it felt pretty great stamping on them.
We couldn't hang about. We had a meeting to get to. And when we got there it was the same warehouse we'd been to see Ariadne. Except this time instead of a load of blinding lights there was a candlelit dining table and music playing and some guy in a white suit. And Carmilla, of course.
I wasn't going to waste a free meal. It was some kind of fish, and there wasn't any ketchup, but it was still good. But I was still paying attention, and I've never seen anyone hate anyone as much as Mrs Stodgely seemed to hate Faustus. Except maybe how much Carmilla seemed to hate me.
Anyway, Mrs Stodgely wanted her husband fixed, and it seemed like Faustus could help with that. But he wanted her to work for him, and he called her Airy, or something, which she didn't seem to like. And he wanted all of us as well, to help destroy the bio factory in Elizabeth Park.
He asked us if we had any questions, but I just had one. Why us? And instead of answering he just spun a load of bullshit, so I asked if he thought I was stupid, and yeah, he does think I'm stupid. Just a hunk of muscle and claws. I'm starting to see why Mrs Stodgely hates him so much.
Then it was time to go, and we got a lift in an aerial vehicle so we didn't have to dodge peacekeepers. Carmilla was driving, and I'd been thinking. You don't hate someone as much as she hates me when you've never even met them. So maybe she had met me? I didn't remember her, but there's lots of things I don't remember. So when we got back to the pub and the others got out, I hung back a bit.
I told her I'd not really been in a good mood last time we met, which was true, and that it had been a while and we should catch up. And she knew straight away I didn't actually remember her, but that was enough to get her to talk. I'd already started to suspect, and when her whole jaw opened up in a mess of pedipalps I knew I was right. I wasn't the only person the survivalists were experimenting on. I guess when I didn't work out they had some other predators to try. No wonder she didn't eat anything in the warehouse. Although I don't see why she thinks I had it that much easier. I can eat normal food, but she can make herself look normal and pretty and I can never look like anything but what Faustus thinks I am.
So she'd been through all the same shit as me, but I didn't see why she had to be such a bitch about it. Until I got out of the AV and saw Billy and Balae, and remembered everything that happened on the way to the warehouse, and realised I do have something that she doesn't. Friends I can count on to have my back.
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