Open Arms and Sewer Grates

Filthy.
 
Disgusting, Unpleasant, Dirty, Messy, Gross, Wretched and Filthy.
 
The water was cold, and honesty? Kyle was grateful for it. It was something to help distract him, to numb him. His hands worked with the fourth destroyed sponge he managed to scrounge from the spare supplies closet in the showers.
 
He had wound up in some local rec center. He hadn't the faintest idea where, but that hardly mattered right then. He was barely holding on, gasping and shuddering as he surfaced in the pool. A small blessing as far as he was concerned! Pools meant showers, and somewhere to clean up. And somewhere to clean up was the second thing he needed. No worry of being caught, no fear of reprisal.... what with the time and location, it would be a miracle to be found there.
 
But first was to just breath.
 
He shivered thinking it over again, shaking his head. No good dwelling. Can talk it through later. For now?
 
For now, he continued ruining the fifth sponge now. Scrubbing, scraping at himself to get it all clean. To get it out and try to clear that stench.
 
 
Hydrokinesis had helped the most. Gripping all that raw sewage on him, and what he left in the pool, as a trail. Funneling it on back into the drain to just take it away. But for the smell, the feel, and his sanity, a more thorough cleaning was still needed. A scrub, a cleaning, and his clothes?
 
If he had a spare set, they would be burnt. Instead? Well, soon as he was done with himself, they were going to get a manual washing.
 
 
 
It was when the sixth sponge stopped coming away in putrid colors, when he could see more clearly that brilliant blue hue of his scales, his plain flesh above that he began to relax. Or at least, let his mind focus.
 
What had happened? It was supposed to be quick and easy, and instead....
 
 
 
The shower had been turned off by the time he found his words again.
Clothes still sopping wet and a mess, but far far cleaner now. Thanks municipal water system, you'll never be forgotten. The rec's centers free towels used, and the empty pool ahead of him as Siren, as Kip, as Kyle looked out across it.
 
 
Nervous hands shifted. The water followed, twisting and turning, a physical mirror as he looked on.
 
Dangerous. More than he expected by a mile.
 
One hand claspt about a little silver recorder. Something to center himself. Something familiar and his in such a strange world.
 
He clicked the button, and began to speak.
 
 
"It.... Was the sewers."
 
"Sorry, hi, yes, hello. Should probably begin with something more than just hopping into it, ha! Sorry, just.... Still reeling from it all! Easy to keep going right then, but then you stop! And...."
 
His free hand stilled. The water churned.
 
"It, uh... It was the sewers. First mission, first time out, first got to meet the rest of the team." Running a hand through his hair, rambled on.
"Honey Badger and.... Scarlet Sprite I think she said."
 
"Honey Badger is.... Well, bout this much taller. Foreign, pretty clearly. Heh. Half the words they said I'm pretty sure weren't English. Strong by the looks and sounds of it, and with claws to match." He paused, considering. "Bit more violent than I expected, but guess it takes all sorts."
 
"Sprite is.... Different. Didn't get as much of a read on her. Probably the helmet, can't read their face as well. But she carries herself well. More proud standing than Honey Badger I think. Least, hope so. She tried shouting down a monster thing after all."
 
 
He let himself chuckle at that, slowly uncurling, laying back against the smooth tile. Close his eyes. Take a breath.
 
"But, getting ahead of myself there. We, ah, we were called there. Apparently they messed up their last few missions. 's why I got called in. And why we were in the sewers. Not the most pleasant of places, even for me! But, ah.... We're tasked with picking up energy shards or.... Something."
 
His eyes opened, considering it as he spoke to himself. "Not.... Real clear what or why. But, well.... You know how it goes. LFER says you go, you go, yeah?"
 
"So, we get there, Scarlet takes up the box. The.... Whatever canister it is. Supposed to contain the shards so no one can find them. Least that's what she said. Honey Badger went ahead, and I... Well, hopped into the sewage. It's faster, and gross, and I'll live, but, you know how it goes. In for a penny and all that."
 
"But... Rounded the corner and saw a mess of.... Monster things. Nasty crickets, but the size of dogs. Ugly, pulsing fleshy ... Terrible shit. We fought them a minute and I dove behind and away to get away after a near miss... And then the mess started."
 
His hands rose, falling to his chest as he remembered. "Mister Intangible Man. Least, that's what Sprite shouted. Found out why later. But... I dove, he must have seen me. No clue why he was there, but far as I hear? That's pretty standard with Badger and Sprite.
 
"He gave a shout for us all to run off. That and.... did Something." He shivered and shook his head. "Felt like everything was.... Worse. Heavier. Nastier. Don't know what he did, but it was.... Rough. Like I couldn't quite support myself there."
 
"Shrugged and let him see what he wanted. Worked. For a moment at least. Thinking back.... I should have done more there, or something else, or just.... Something. Instead Sprite ran around and shouted something at him. Don't quite remember what, as I was stuck dealing with the crickets again."
 
A dry chuckle sounded as he shook his head. "People? It's a cinch! Monsters like that? Well... Honey Badger was good at taking care of them at least. And I... well..."
 
 
He closed his eyes, rubbing his brow, trying to.... Talk. Think. Not focus but remember.
"You.... Ever feel what it's like when a train runs by? It's heavy. It's loud. And it's got that kind of.... Force that you just get. If it hits you, you're done."
 
"He missed."
 
"Intangible Man. Or, Super Tangible Man. I dunno what happened, but he must have snapped out of it quick and decided to run me down. And... like I said, he missed fortunately. Not by much, I can tell you that. He ran and the stones cracked. The wall took his weight as he hammered into it, but it shook. When he moved back, you could see the cracking veins in the wall. That? That's....."
 
"Well, I ran. Not forever far away mind! This is supposed to be a team effort, so going and running off without the others wouldn't do well... and besides. If they were close, they could provide some backup! ... In theory."
 
"In practice? While I was trying to get Mister Man to take a nap, quite literally even! Those two were running off and... bickering. Something about who was holding the box or... what have you. Middle of my first run and what are they doing? Arguing among themselves while I'm fighting for my life out here!"
 
He had to laugh. It was either that or panic or despair. So laugh at it instead. "Honestly, think I could tell you now why the last few missions were busts! Only met them half an hour and that? Well... First impressions, am I right?"
 
 
Groaning a moment, he hefted himself back up, before slipping into the pool, leaning up against the edge as he rambled into his recorder. "Anyway, Mister Man throws the damn monster at me, and everything goes white. By the time I come to? He did that... something again. Only worse. It ain't like I'm sitting there and there's a weight on me. It's like I'm being sucked down against the earth, like my fingers and hands and arms and tail are all just... being thrown into the ground. Sucked down or something."
 
"I just prayed it was an area effect, so slapped my tail and dove away. Lucky me, it was."
 
"Throw on up a good wall between the two of us, and I was making ready to see if our team... well, 'Team' did the rest of the job. Seems like it too! Least, I hoped that was why Sprite was running with the box like hell on legs. Badger was snipping and snarling at something, but I didn't have the time to check."
 
"Yup, Mister Man. Intangible Man! Making good on his name, he made a beeline on to Scarlet. Through the wall, through the sewer, and back again..." He sighed, resting his head on the cool tile. "Dunno what I was thinking. Called him Intangible so what do I do? Put a wall up! That'll work."
 
"Well, I ran back closer, watching the two of them running, and sang again. Pipes, they got good echoes! And Tangible or Not, Mister Man's can still hear. So I had Scarlet vanish. Just... up into mist. If she can get away with the crate, we are gold. And luckily, she did."
 
 
"With Mister Man chasing ghosts, I ran on back to see what the holdup was. The snarling the screaming the clashing of claws... Well, I saw alright. Something like a hairless person shaped... thing was there. Claws out to hear and a face to make you wince... and a voice to do that too! Seems she was the reason Badger was hold up."
 
"So, drew up another wall between 'em. If Honey Badger was facing this thing, I was facing Blue Slippery and Painful, then Scarlet was on objective. And she had run with the box, so we needed to bounce. Badger got the idea and began running, after insulting the thing."
 
"Honest, don't know if that was really needed. Like, listen. I get why you'd use the Freak word, but come on. As someone who's had that said to, it never feels great."
 
"Either way, we both were making for the exit when Mister Man decided he was done playing games with shadows, and set out to take out Badger. I tried to pull him down, drop his focus and get him just so I could pull him under nice and deep. And for a second? It took. You can hear it, always. But..."
 
"Fella's made of sterner stuff than most. Shook it off like a champ. That, with the crickets rousing themselves and biting at me, and the screams of the witch lady getting louder? Had to escape. Like, I mean I had to. No way I was running past Mister Man there, and who knows what that thing was gonna do? So I shot an appology to Badger as she was running, and drew the water up, and started prying at it like you do. Near didn't make it, but... slipped through just in time."
 
"Now? Just gotta find those two again. See if they went to the safehouse first. Lucky me. Either way, this is Siren, Field Report Number 1. Signing off."
 
 
 
He sighed as he gave a final click to that silver tube. A request that had been made when he was assigned to this team. Afte rthe last few missions, they wanted a first hand account of what happened in each mission. Get to see what made it succeed, what caused it to go wrong. An audio journal, as informal as it might be, should suffice. Least, that was his hope.
 
For now? Dive deep. Pull back the veil between water... and look for that safehouse.