The Hit(men) Just Keep Coming

[ngm_assassin]

It took a bit of scouting to find a rooftop with the right vantage point for the job he was employed for. One Marcelo Alencar da Silva had a big price on his head. Bullseye meant to collect on it. He had been contacted by Assassin Nation after one of the regular stable of killers failed.

The man dressed mostly in red wasn't the first one to have this moniker, but he planned on doing better than his predecessor. He set up his rifle on a rooftop a half mile away from the mark's penthouse apartment. Bullseye sniffed at the hot New York City air as he sighted the killzone. There were very soft metallic clinks beneath his flowing red overcoat.

He had strict instructions to leave the mark's wife unharmed. As she was a mutant, Bullseye figured distance would be the best buffer he could use when he blew da Silva's brains out. It gave him a chance to prepare at worst or the time to disappear at best.

He chambered his specially designed cartridge. Bullseye looked down his telescopic sight and waited. The happy newlywed should show up soon. The assassin had seen the mark's wife pass by the killzone not too long ago.

Comments

[pyroprincess]

"A wonderful hard-working, sexy man." Stephanie replied with a faint smile. "Donors, yes. I've managed to find some, but not as many as I'd like. I'll probably have to approach Stark again."

"For a man who's probably halfway to the moon on painkillers, you give very good directions." She teased softly.

[vesper_verde]

"If that's how you describe someone who thought the armor he made was great, then yes. That's me." He nodded with pain killer addled definitiveness. He sniffed a bit.

"How does your old school stay afloat? Cutting corners or posh hidden mutant wallets? Maybe they'll help."

He smacked his lips and raised an eyebrow at her. When he spoke again, he had a terrible British accent. "The view from up here is exquisite, darling. Take a right at the next corner."

[pyroprincess]

"I don't think a suit of armor has ever been made that was foolproof. The good thing is that you'll be able to learn and adjust." She would of course prefer that he decided to retire, but it was pointless even to ask. They both had their burdens and crusades. It was simply the way things were.

"Charles has a lot of money, and I think there might be some secretive investments. I could ask them, but I'm not sure if there's much to spare. Worthington might, however."

She rolled her eyes slightly. "How loverly."

[vesper_verde]

Marcelo was certain Stephanie didn't know how tempting it was for him to retire. Particularly as he had someone to live for, but admitting as much to her would put a strain on both of them that he didn't think was necessary.

"Well then. Not bad for a guy with no degrees, huh?" He left the degree-ing to the people he hired. He just played jigsaw puzzle with what he could use from prototypes.

"The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plains. Left in two blocks. You'll avoid construction that way."

[pyroprincess]

"Truly, something said by someone who has never been to Spain. I assure you, the plains in Spain are very, very dry. The rain mostly falls on the coast." Stephanie rolled her eyes with a thin smirk.

It was probably better that they didn't talk about it too much, at least not now. It was easier to deal with it as an inevitability more than a choice.

"I liked My Fair Lady, though. How are you doing? Is the bandage holding up all right?"

[vesper_verde]

He started humming a song. Once he was sure he had the right tune, he started musically mumbling lyrics. As it went on he got a little louder. "Well, I've never been to Spain, but I kinda like the music. Say the ladies are insane there, and they sure know how to use it."

He snapped his fingers. "They don't abuse it. Never gonna lose it. I can't refuse it."

He bobbed in his seat a bit. "Aww, yeah. Singing the truth."

Marcelo glanced down at his side as hummed some more. His humming got interrupted by a groan when he gently poked his side. "Did I bring a color change shirt?"

[pyroprincess]

"You nerd." Stephanie replied with a snort. "You complete fucking nerd." And then she heard him groan. "We're almost there, Marcelo. Just hang on ... you complete nerd."

[vesper_verde]

"I think my makeshift bandage slipped. Though maybe they'll believe I've been stabbed with a growing red spot on my shirt." He resolved to not poke at it again.

Then he blinked innocently at Stephanie. "Nerd? Moi?"

When in doubt, quote Miss Pigathia Lee for absurdity.

[pyroprincess]

"You shouldn't poke at it. We're almost there, we should be all right. Tell me if you're going to pass out or something, okay?" Stephanie tried to sound chipper, but she was starting to get worried again.

"Yes, nerd. You. And you're making some sort of reference I don't get. Like a nerd."

[vesper_verde]

"My finger's the only pokey thing that works at the moment. But I'm wiiiiiiiiide awake." He glanced down at his lap. "And my zipper, too. No one needs to see my green underwear."

He carefully shifted and pulled his zipper up.

"Which reference? The song? Because I know of your woeful musical education. Or was it Miss Piggy who threw you through a name-calling loop?" His attempt at a straight face looked like him sucking sugar off his lips.

[pyroprincess]

"Just you. All of you." Stephanie replied as they got closer to the clinic. "Everything about you, ever. I love you so much. I think I must be a nerd too." She laughed to herself.

"And green? Here I was thinking you'd be commando."

[vesper_verde]

"You look very nerdy with your glasses on. If that helps? Or like a sexy nerd. My lab people tell me there are those." And he believed them. They did all that SCIENCE stuff. Which he used later under a different identity to save his butt.

"I love you, too, querida. But we're gonna have to work on you listening to Three Dog Night. They've got some great songs to drink to." He glanced down at his closed zipper. "I find most medical professionals prefer not to see my penis. Unless there's something wrong with it. But I've had daily checks. Sometimes multiple times a day. My nurse says it's fantastic. Or so I assume from her screaming my name. Also, commando on patrol is not advised."

He shook his head slowly. One of his fighting styles had a lot of bouncing and moving. He liked to keep things snug in that case.

[pyroprincess]

"I do not." Stephanie replied archly.

"I don't need a song by a sillily-named band to drink to, anyway. And ... your nurse is quite satisfied with it. Everything works very nicely down there." Stephanie smirked slightly. "And yes, that makes sense, I suppose.

Any other turns I need to make?"

[vesper_verde]

"Do too. Now arch your eyebrow like that again." He grinned and stared.

"Everything's better with music, querida. Especially bullfrogs who are good friends of mine." He knew she wouldn't get the reference. He hoped he could remember to put some Three Dog Night on the mp3 player he had gotten for her awhile ago.

He glanced at the street. "Left. Go three blocks and then find parking on the street."

He went back to watching her eyebrows.

[pyroprincess]

Her eyebrow remained arched.

"I'm assuming you're making another nerdy reference." A thin smile couldn't help but break through.

She followed his directions to the letter, parking on the street. She looked over at him. "All right, let's get out of here and get you patched up ... nerd."

She smiled and leaned over to give him a kiss.

[vesper_verde]

"Ooh, baby. You know what I like." It was too bad he had a bleeding wound. Which reminded him he kind of hurt. "Ow."

He opened his door and spent plenty of time wincing as he tried to carefully get out of the car. He puffed out a breath when he finally got to his feet.

[pyroprincess]

Stephanie moved around quickly to be able to offer support should he need it as they went inside the clinic. She helped with the door, so he could focus on walking.

"You can have more of what you like when we get home."

[vesper_verde]

"Some of what I like comes from your mouth." He tried to walk on his own. Stubbornly trying to prove he was strong enough. Though his stride on the injured side hitched from pain. Though he was glad Stephanie got the door.

The clinic was not as busy as he had expected. Though it was nice enough to not have to cut in front of a bunch of people. He limped toward the front desk.

[pyroprincess]

Stephanie stayed there, making sure she was there if he needed her, but not completely robbing him of his autonomy. She knew her husband liked her independence.

Thankfully the clinic was less busy than it could have been. That made things much easier. She hung close by Marcelo as he went to the front desk.

[vesper_verde]

When he got up to the front desk, the red spot on his shirt had grown. The nurse there spotted that and immediately got up. She grabbed a clipboard and ushered the pair to an exam room in the back. Stab wound took precedence over some of the minor afflictions in the waiting room. She promised the doctor would be right there.

Marcelo swallowed and eyed the exam bed. "Looks clean enough. I can't turn around and go back out to use a needle and thread, can I?"

[pyroprincess]

"No. You're going to have a doctor look at that and fix it, Marcelo." Stephanie said firmly, trying not to look at that large red spot. He seemed to have a decent command of himself, so she assumed it wasn't imminently fatal.

Seeing it, though, made her side hurt in sympathy. She realized she'd been staring for a moment and then looked away.

I'm not going to cry. Not even a little. He's going to be okay.

[vesper_verde]

If he died from this, Stephanie would kill him. Or something. He frowned slightly. He so did not want to watch himself get stitched up.

Though his wife was staring at the blood-soaked part of his shirt.

"Querida," he said softly, "I'll be fine. I've had worse."

She had even been witness to his worse.

[pyroprincess]

"I know, mi amor." She replied quietly. It was just that she was afraid that this was going to be a near-constant pattern. He'd gone to seek medical aid this time- would he the next? It all made her worry.

But this was reality, she'd known that when she'd married him. No matter what happened, she would never, ever regret that.

[vesper_verde]

He didn't know what to say to make her feel better. His brow furrowed to try to figure something out. His rumination was interrupted by the doctor coming in.

Marcelo was a little hesitant to get up on the exam table, but he clambered up after the young medical professional patted the top. The Brazilian answered questions after he carefully removed his shirt. He studiously looked elsewhere as he his wound was examined and then treated.