Vertigo dragged his boots along the dusty path. This was the type of small town he favored over the loud and boisterous cities they often chose to work in. He didn't need to be told that they held far better prospects than these rundown settlements on the edge of the wastes, but he hated the crowds, he hated the noise, and he hated the attention Commander's reputation brought them. Here they were just another nameless group of mercenaries, and he was only another person strolling through the town at the crack of dawn, the red rising sun just barely peeking over the horizon. The air still held a hint of the night's chill, even as the day's warmth began to spread. The tough jacket underneath his cloak would become too much soon, but he wasn't interested in parting with it just yet.
His eyebrows furrowed together. Some nameless emotion weighed heavy on him. Not loneliness – he'd sought out this solitude, after all. There were thoughts to ponder and nightmares to sort. Being alone was unremarkable; while his presence in the corps was hardly unwanted, he simply didn't work in a team with any of them. Being un-Talented, there was just so little they could offer in terms of protection or even assistance. There were of course the other two members of Commander's elite squadron, but they were problematic in an entirely different way.
This ache was less familiar, a sense of being unsettled, displaced. The past five years blurred together under the morning light and it all seemed so pointless. Vertigo ran a hand through his hair, a sigh slipping past his lips. Out of pure habit he scanned the horizon with critical eyes, watching for any sign that could potentially mean incoming trouble.
The hair on the back of his neck prickled in warning. There was a presence behind him, swiftly moving to--
Vertigo hit the ground hard, the wind knocked out of him. He rolled over onto his back, only to receive a kick to the side. “Bliss! What the f-”
“That's for wandering off without tellin' anyone.” The blonde woman crossed her arms, one eyebrow quirked in exasperation. “You keep doin' shit like this, and I keep having to call off the search party to find your sorry ass. Is it so damn hard to leave a note?” She planted her boot on his chest, frowning at him. “I should totally drag you to Commander's tent and let him kick your ass for all the bullshit you create.”
Vertigo said nothing, just glared up at her.
“So what are you doing out here?” She crouched down, foot still resting on his chest. Narrowed eyes searched his, chin propped on her hand. “There's no bar open at this hour, nobody's gonna be selling food yet and hardly anyone's awake. Thinkin' about robbing someone? You shoulda done that last night while it was still dark.”
“I was thinking...”
“Heh. You?” She reached up and flicked his forehead. “Well give it a rest or you'll fry your brain.”
“Bliss...” he snarled through clenched teeth. “Lemme up.”
“Shush.” She moved to sit on him, purposefully letting her ample chest brush against him as she shifted her knees to either side. “I expected you'd still be in my bed this morning, and your stupid self is out here wanderin' around her doin' who knows what, when you could've been waking up next to me.” She trailed her fingers up his chest, hazel-green eyes gazing calculatedly at him from underneath sandy lashes. “I'd've thought you'd be too tired to be up this early, anyways...”
“Grr....” He grabbed her hand as it reached his face and threw her off of him. “Stop that.”
Bliss rolled nimbly and landed on her feet, smiling like a fox. “Anyways, Commander's already awake. He wants to see you.” She brushed herself off with exaggerated gestures. “And try not to make too much noise? People are sleeping.” Bliss sauntered away, taking extra care to put a sway in her step.
Growling to himself, Vertigo hauled himself to his feet and shook the dirt from his cloak. He drew his scarf back up to cover the lower half of his face, what little peace he'd been able to find in the quiet morning utterly gone. His eyebrows knit sullenly together as he turned around and stomped back toward the camp, making sure to give Bliss plenty of lead time.
The soldier on watch nodded to him as he entered the camp, which he returned with a cursory jerk of his head. Despite the early hour, many people were already up and moving about. Smoke from campfires and cookstoves wafted into the air; solders sat about cleaning weapons, chatting, or sipping coffee. Vertigo snatched a chunk of bread as he wandered past the cook's station, stuffing it into his mouth and waving a cheeky thanks without looking back in response to the complaint from the man on meal duty. He made his way through the neat rows of sturdy framed tents, nodding in response to the occasional greeting, and stopped outside a tent in the center of the camp.
Cautiously, he rapped on one of the wooden supports; he hadn't seen Commander go in there with anyone last night, but that didn't mean anything. Regardless, he had learned his lesson about just barging in long ago. “Come in,” a rough voice answered from within.
Vertigo pushed back the entrance flap and slouched into the tent. Commander sat reclined in a camp chair, a steaming mug of coffee in one hand. Various papers and maps strewed the low wooden table in front of him; Vertigo hardly bothered to spare them a glance. It was a familiar sight and either way none of that was anything he needed to worry about. Commander's boots were also propped on the table, with total disregard for the documents they lay upon.
“Morning, Vert,” Commander greeted him. “Coffee?”
“No thanks,” Vertigo grunted.
“Hmm.” Commander took a large gulp from his mug. The two remained in silence for a moment. “I hear you wandered off this morning,” he said finally.
Vertigo made a noncommittal noise, arms crossed over his chest. It hadn't been a direct question.
Commander shrugged, taking another sip of his coffee. “You know to stay out of too much trouble with the locals.” It was half statement, half order.
“Yessir,” Vertigo mumbled.
Quirking a golden eyebrow at him from over the tops of his sunglasses, the other man chuckled slightly as if to himself. “I'm not asking you for an explanation. It's not as if I'm not familiar with these moods you get into. Hell, I'm practically your father.” He set the mug down on the table and stretched. “And you were such a cute kid, too. I wonder what the hell happened.”
Familiar with Commander's style of banter, Vertigo just rolled his eyes.
“Well, wander off all you like, so long as you keep things under control. You might let Bliss know once in a while though. You know how she worries.” There was still heavy sarcasm in his voice, along with veiled irritation.
“I don't give a shit what she thinks.”
Commander chuckled again. “Ha! Well, don't tell her that. Or if you do, do it outside the camp. I'd like to keep everything standing.” He got to his feet and began to pace, hands behind his back. “In any case, I wanted to let you know we're going to move out today. I'd like to see what we can get for our latest acquisitions in Asapaco.”
Vertigo sighed internally. The thought of yet another large city made his skin itch.
“Don't give me that. We could use the cash, and besides...” Commander grinned. “Think of all the lovely ladies just pining away for the companionship of handsome, successful men like ourselves! Poor lonely things!”
“You know me better than that,” Vertigo growled. “We're not all into whoring ourselves around.”
“You might be in a better mood if you did, hmm?” Commander elbowed him in the arm and dodged Vertigo's return swat easily. “Pack it up. We're leaving before noon today.”
Disgruntled, Vertigo left the tent to obey. He kicked at the dirt under his feet, already dreading the long trip to Asapaco and the city itself. Without consciously willing it, the palms of his hands began to tingle and burn. Softly he snarled to himself, sinking his teeth into his lower lip. The sun had fully crested the horizon now and was beginning its long climb into the sky, adding to the heat prickling at his skin. He took a deep breath and willed it to subside. Slowly, the sensation faded. He pulled himself deeper into the shelter of his wide scarf as though for protection, a little tired from the effort, and continued on his way. He passed through the cloth-lined maze of tents, no longer bothering to return any greetings directed toward him.
He wanted the dark, quiet solitude of his tent for a moment before he had to think about anything else. As he rounded a corner and saw Nathan leaning against the wood-framed structure, he knew he wasn't going to get it. “Hey,” he acknowledged the other man grudgingly, more out of obligation than any desire to do so. “Did you need something?”
“No,” Nathan responded, “just getting some fresh air.” He hesitated, shifting his slight weight and brushing dusty hair from his eyes, and admitted, “I figured wherever you'd gone, you'd end up back here. What'd you do to Bliss? She went out looking for you and came back a little bit ago grumpy like someone drank her last beer.”
“Nothing.” Vertigo braced an arm against the tent, glaring into the distance. “She's pissy because I went for a walk instead of staying leashed to her like she wants. If she wants a good little bitch she should get a dog.”
“Oh.” Dark eyes troubled, Nathan watched him without moving to go. Vertigo sighed.
“Look, just because she bitches to you and she sleeps with you occasionally doesn't make you an expert on how I should deal with her, okay? Back off and let me handle it,” he snapped. “I don't need both of you on my ass every time I take two steps away from camp.”
“I'm not your babysitter. Clearly. Just trying to let you know that Bliss is acting pissed off. I don't know how you stay together without killing each other.”
Vertigo stared at him. “I'm not keeping her from you, Nathan.”
Huffing a frustrated breath, Nathan just knotted his brows together. “Vertigo,” he started in the tone of a man who knew he was on thin ice, “Tina's gone. She's not coming back. Maybe you should give Bliss a chance to get closer to you.”
Red shot through his vision and Vertigo grabbed Nathan's arm in a bruising grip. “I don't want to hear that name out of your mouth ever again. Got it? Now are you going to go pack or are you gonna push your luck any further? Commander's gonna be pissed if we're late.”
“Like you're any better.” Nathan yanked his arm free. “Half the time you don't even listen to Commander.”
“That's because I don't need him to hold my hand and wipe my ass for me,” Vertigo snapped. “Commander damn well knows I work best alone. If he needed a team player, he wouldn't have chosen me. I follow orders where it counts and that's all that matters.”
Nathan shook his head. “You work well enough with us. That's not exactly alone,” he pointed out.
“So I do my thing, and he lets me, as long as we get results. If he wants someone to kiss his ass he's got plenty of options.”
Nathan just sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “I just wish you weren't so damn difficult, Vert, and I know Bliss feels the same way.”
“Well,” Vertigo muttered under his breath, “then you can spend the night making her feel better.”
