“I dunno,” Jelly eyed the others, hoping they wouldn’t clock her secret attempt to push the plate over the edge of the table, “Killing smaller things than me. I like to play with them and watch them scream while they die. It makes me feel good.”
Jaycee wiped his mouth and took a sip of his water. The answer she’d given crept under his skin.
“Then I bring the bodies home to pay for my food.”
“Like a trophy?”
“Atrophy? No, my muscles are strong.”
“No, a trophy. Like a medal. For your owners? To show your appreciation?” Tripp asked.
“Umm, no. The trophy, as you call it, is more like a pat on the head that they’ve done well.”
“Hmm,” Tripp poked his food in deep thought, “Did you ever have a mommy and daddy? Siblings?”
“My brothers and sisters can look after themselves. My real dad tried to kill us. I hate him. I hope he’s dead.”
“Oh,” Bonnie said. “That’s a bit harsh, isn’t it?”
“Did your dad abandon you and your family in a cardboard box on the road hoping you’d get killed?” Jelly asked.
Bonnie looked at the others, “Um, no?”
“Hmm,” Jelly shrugged her shoulders, “My loyalty is to the people who feed me. And Jamie. I miss Jamie. Friend.”
Jaycee wiped his mouth and swallowed the last of his food down, “Ah, yeah. The kid. Heard a lot about him.”
“He was your friend, huh?” Bonnie grinned with affection.
“Mommy,” Jelly pointed her infinity claw at Wool and then at Bonnie, “Friend.”
“Aww, honey. You’re my friend, too.”
Jelly moved her claw to Tripp, “Friend.”
“I’m honored, Jelly. Thank you.”
“Yes,” Jelly moved her claw Jaycee, “Friend.”
“Thanks, Jelly. You’re not so bad yourself.”
“You’re welcome.”
Jelly pointed her claw like a gun at Tor, “Dickhead.”
“What?”
Everyone burst out laughing.
“Dickhead,” Jelly repeated and pretended to shoot him in the face, “Pow.”
“Stop saying that,” Tor yelled. “I am not a dickhead.”
“She’s spot on, comrade,” Jaycee nearly choked with laughter.
Tor buried his head in his hands, lamenting the day he ever set foot on the damned spacecraft. Of all the ridiculous and nasty events that had happened to him, being called a dickhead by a half-cat was the most humiliating.
Jelly scraped her claws along the table as the howls of laughter died down.
“Jamie wasn’t friend, really. More like brother. Actually, he is my brother. I miss him.”
“I’m sure he misses you too, honey,” Wool threw her a smile of affection.
“Maybe,” she yawned as wide as possible. Her fleetingly scary appearance stunned everyone at the table, “I’m tired.”
Jaycee leaned over to Tripp and whispered, “I hate it when she does that. She looks so scary. Those teeth and eyes. Brrr.”
“I know.”
Bonnie set her spoon down on her plate, “What do you miss about being a regular cat, Jelly?”
“Why, am I an irregular cat?”
“You could say that,” Bonnie giggled. “You’re hardly an everyday pet, now, are you?”
Tripp and Jaycee washed down their food with a gulp of water.
“Hmm,” Jelly gave the question some thought, “Probably being able to lick my own butt hole—”
SPRAASSHH!
The two men spat out their water upon hearing the answer. Much of it hit the table and Wool’s face.
“Ugh, really?” She wiped the water from her cheek and flung it to the ground, “That’s gross.”
“Sorry, Wool,” Jaycee cleared his throat, “Say that again, Jelly?”
Jelly ran the side of her arm along the edge of her plate, pushing it even further towards the edge of the table.
“Licking my butt hole. And other parts. I hate taking showers, but I can’t reach some areas of my body, anymore.”
“That sucks,” Jaycee said, “I know if I could do that, you’d be looking at an empty chair right now.”
Wool kicked Jaycee’s leg under the table, “Jaycee. Don’t be disgusting.”
“Sorry. It was just a joke. Don’t lose your temper.”
Tripp stood out of his chair and collected up the dirty paper plates, “We’d better get some rest. This is truly the calm before the storm.”
“You got that right,” Jaycee cracked his knuckles.
CLICK-CRUCK-SPLATT!
Tripp looked at Jaycee’s gloves, “That’s one hell of a bad knuckle you had there, Nayall.”
“That wasn’t me.”
Everyone turned to Jelly to see her plate was missing. She stared back at them, refusing to accept any liability. Then, everyone lowered their head under the table – and saw the upturned paper plate bleeding its chicken fusion across the floor.
“Miew,” Jelly whined as the heads returned from underneath the table, “It fell.”
“Bad girl,” Wool snapped at her. “You knocked it off again.”
FIZZ-SWISH!
A book-shaped holograph appeared above the table with extreme haste, “Guys, can you hear me?”
“Manuel?” Bonnie stood up, “Yes, we’re here.”
Manuel scanned the room and flapped his pages together, “Where are you?”
“R and R,” Tripp said. “What’s wrong?”
“They’re coming.”
“Who are?”
“The Shanta things. They’re headed for Botanix at speed.”
“ETA?”
“Thirty minutes, maybe less. If you were planning on getting rest, I’m afraid you’ll just have to wait till we’re all dead.”
Jaycee walked away from the table, “Pfft, charming. Okay, girls and boys. This is it.”
“Where are you going?” Tripp ran after him.
“Weapons and Armory, Healy. Where my specialty lies. I might suggest you do the same,” Jaycee turned to the others, “I suggest you all do the same.”
He lifted his forearm to his mouth and stepped out of the room, “Tor, this is Jaycee. Do you read me?”
“Yes, I read you.”
“Meet me at Weapons in two minutes. We’re at war,” he said, moving off down the corridor.
Tripp turned to the others. They seemed frightened – Wool, in particular.
“I guess this is it, then?”
“The sun didn’t get us first?”
“Nope,” Tripp backed up to the door, “Wool, take Jelly with you to Medix, please.”
Wool shook her head and screwed her face with anger, “No, Tripp,” she reached into her belt and pulled out her Rez-9.
“No? Are you defying a direct order—”
“—I’m defying death, Tripp. Jelly and I won’t waste away like useless mannequins in Medix. We’re fighting with you,” she said. “Am I right, Jelly?”
Gobsmacked, Tripp and Bonnie turned to Jelly for her reaction.
“Yeah, okay,” Jelly said and rose out of her chair, “I’ll help you take out the trash.”
Bonnie smiled at the remark.
Tripp exhaled and caved in. What other course of action was there, anyway? Everyone would go down in a blaze of glory – together.
CHAPTER SIX
Jaycee scanned the weapons in the armory store, “If we’re going to die, then we’re going down fighting.”
He unlatched three K-SPARK shotguns from the wall and slung two of them over his left shoulder. He passed the third to Tor, “Here, take this.”