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Parasite is the third part of The Underground series

Chapter 29 & the conclusion of Parasite

Something Dark Is Coming

Alias

Maybe that's why society is the way it is today. Maybe the good people of this world were simply the weaker species. Maybe, only those who were willing to sell their souls are the only ones who can survive this world anymore. Maybe we're all just a bunch of soulless bastards walking around. Why should there be a Hell to go to when we've already made one here?

"It's an art really, the image of two bodies moving in complete harmony with each other, reading each sign the other puts out, conveying the emotion and raw sensation between two lovers, the passion they express with each other." A black and tan german shepherd, dressed in a cobalt blue rayon suit, sipping a dirty martini, explained as if he were talking about a painting. "It's a magical thing really."

"Ah," Jenna replied, giggling slightly and brushing her indigo, neck length hair from her face, "while you're hovering over them, capturing all that magic on tape?"

The wolf, hair slicked back and wet looking from the product he used in it laughed, leaning back, exposing more of his chest than Jenna ever really cared to see. "Okay, you got me there." He admitted, taking a sip from his glass. "But we're not your slapstick production company. We don't just do people fucking," he raised his paw innocently, "pardon the term."

Jenna raised an eyebrow, loving the irony that saturated the conversation. Already suffering from a killer headache, Jenna was regretting her decision of agreeing to talking with this guy. Here this guy was apologizing for his language, and yet he was soliciting her to be part of a porn shoot.

Oh excuse me, I meant "romantic adult film." Her mind corrected her. Apparently, he didn't appreciate the term pornography. Not when it was an "art" as he claimed. If she could have rolled her eyes at him, she would have, but she was trying to be as civil as possible. However, her face grimaced as a sharp pain flashed through her stomach, almost like a cramp but more of a stabbing feeling that seemed to impale her, right at her abdomen, then disappear. Perhaps her innocent headache had evolved into a migraine

"You alright?" He asked her, watching her face.

"Yeah." Jenna replied quickly. "Feeling a little under the weather."

He nodded. "When it comes to your health, you can't be too careful." His paw raised the glass to his lips. "As I was saying, we create a film, each and every production is a film." He continued, leaning in, placing a paw atop Jenna's; her eyes glancing down to it, but not in a flattering sense. "It's more than just a furflick. When we edit, it's not just so people can jack it for two minutes before going to bed. We give them a climax of the mind with how we make our films. We have high standards, and even higher production values. Our last film grossed over forty million dollars. Some studio films don't even do that well."

"That really ain't bad." Jenna replied, nodding slightly. There must be a lot of lonely bastards out there. "You must be pretty proud of yourselves, huh?" She said as sincerely as she could.

At this the wolf let out another chuckle, sneer on his muzzle. "Our boss, she wouldn't have it any other way." Tipping his glass back he finished about half of what was left. "I'm sure I'm not the first guy here to tell you what an amazing body you have. Breathtaking with that dark blue fur of yours. I see you, running around here, killing yourself like you're trying to prove something; bending over backwards for these pricks who don't appreciate what's in front of them. Why not be appreciated as an artist, use what mother nature gifted you with?"

"Just out of curiosity, how much would I be making?" Jenna asked, pulling her paw from underneath his, and folding her arms across the table.

"Ah, asking the tough questions. I admire that in a woman." He nodded in approval. "You'd get a fixed rate up front, anywhere from five to ten thousand for first timer, depending on how much you're willing to do." He shrugged. "You'd have a cut in the royalties, and each time you worked with us those rates would increase. You'd be making some serious money very fast." He leaned in across the small table, eyes looking sensual and cologne rushing over her senses like a cheap pimp's would. "Tell me that's not better than getting felt up by asshole drug dealers for free each night."

"Meh... depends on the dealer." She replied in a sarcastically snarky tone. Her mind suddenly realized that she might be hanging around Abby too much.

"Tell you what..." The shepherd continued, reaching into his inner jacket pocket, pulling out a small white business card. "Think about it, and give me a call." He smiled, gold teeth replacing many of his real ones. "We can make you a star."

Her crystal blue eyes looked at the card. Again, the sharp pain returned to her stomach. This time it almost felt like she wanted to vomit. However, she forced her discomfort behind a mask, biting down on her tongue and accepting his card.

"I'll think about it." She agreed.

"Do that." He told her in a pleasant tone. "But I'm afraid I gotta' run. I need to find the other Jenna's out there." He explained, winking at her in a creeper style, pushing his glass to her. "I'm sure you know what to do with this."

Reaching over, she grabbed the glass, standing up, eyes narrowed. However, the canine was totally oblivious to this.

"You be good." He said, using the back of his index finger to caress her cheek in an upward motion. The vixen simply stood there and took it, even as her skin crawled.

She watched him move through the crowded Delirium. The rave lights and house music moving in sync with each other as people from all walks of Underground life packed the club, moving their bodies against each others, loving the scandalous contact. Delirium was unique as a club. Technically, no such club was on record anywhere. There were no zoning or tax records ever documented for any nightclub by that name. It was simply an old boarded up victorian mansion on one of Arcadia's forgotten streets; heavy plywood covering the windows. The building was actually quite hideous on the outside from the wear of weather and decay. Then again, it's not like outward appearances mattered. What mattered was what lay behind the plywood and worn bricks.

How they ever converted a run-down mansion on the corner of the block into a rave club was beyond Jenna. How they ever thought up the idea to do it was even more ridiculous. The fact that they actually did do it turned out to be amazing. Jenna didn't know the legalities of what they were doing there, but she guessed that it wasn't exactly kosher in the operations. It's why they never asked for ID at the door, and why Jenna was serving alcohol well before she was twenty-one. She had never seen anything that even resembled a liquor license. However, Delirium was a hub to the exotic side of The Underground. It was one of the places that made this kind of life seem glamorous. An environment where all the illicit and illegalities that took place was intriguing. Seeing the amount of money that freely flowed around the club, it made her want to be a part of this place and earn her keep in this brave new world. Never-mind the fact she had just been shot.

Jenna looked down at herself. Her short, black, reflective skirt started at her hips and only moved down to her mid thighs. Her abdomen all the way up to her breasts was completely exposed, only a low cut crop top covered her, and that wasn't much. There was the, small, lacy, black collar around her neck she had started wearing recently which tied the "uniform" together, but other than that, she was wearing next to nothing.

Small wonder a porn scout had sought her out. She guessed that he thought if she was willing to show this much in public, how much else would she be willing to show elsewhere?

Grabbing his half finished martini, she held it by the stem, looking down at the card.

"And, done thinking about it." She said to herself, and dropped the card inside the glass.

Her free paw went to the hem of her skirt, pulling it down to be sure her bullet wound was concealed. At least now she was off the crutch. Abby had her working at her bar, giving her the simple job of taking orders and cleaning glasses. Sure, Jenna could have taken time off, but after a week of sitting at home, the apartment walls got really small. Especially since Alias had left to find Openshaw. He had called her last night, letting her know he had made it to Palamont where The Doctor was supposed to be living under a false name. She hadn't heard from him since.

She was on painkillers to keep her sanity from the agony of being shot. However, they weren't working too well. Again, the random pain in her stomach returned. Her paw went to her abs, holding them for comfort as she moved slowly, limping slightly, back to Abby's bar.

A smile spread over her muzzle as she saw Abby preparing drinks at one of Delirium's many bars that were scattered in random rooms of the club. This one happened to be claimed by Abby Thrace for all eternity, and her friend was gracious enough to share it with Jenna while she was on the mend. Her eyes went to who she was chatting with. Dressed in his usual stylish manner, Mick sat at one of the stools, leaning on his elbows. Maybe it was just Jenna, but it seemed like those two had been spending a lot of time together since Mick had arrived in Arcadia.

"So what was that all about?" The calico asked Jenna as she moved behind the bar. Mick looked over at her, clearly waiting for an explanation too.

"Well, you were right." Jenna admitted, taking a seat. "You said girls here had been asked to do porn before." She shrugged. "I just didn't think they'd approach me."

"Why not?" Mick asked, taking a sip of his bourbon from a rocks glass. "You can be pretty hot... when your personality isn't ruining it."

When exactly Mick and Jenna had developed this brother/sister relationship, she wasn't sure. It just kind of happened, and they found themselves constantly in a friendly battle of whit.

"Whatever." She shot back, smirking. "You'd totally buy my porn if I made one."

Abby moved around Jenna, letting her paw trail over Jenna's body, running them down her bare midriff, teasing Mick's eyes which had become fixated on the two. "Especially if it starred both of us." She purred while shooting Jenna a wink.

Mick remained frozen in his position for a moment, then downed a gulp of his bourbon. "You both are cruel..." .

Abby laughed, leaving Jenna and going back to her drinks. "At least you'll have the image of me with Abby tonight. That should be something for you to fantasize about." She said, still smiling good naturedly.

"I don't have to fantasize about her..."

Jenna looked up, hearing Mick mutter something under his breath. "Do what?" She asked, clearly not hearing him right.

"I uh... I said I'd pay money to see that." Mick replied.

Again, Jenna rolled her eyes, laughing. "You would."

"So what, did they just ask you if you wanted to shoot a movie in their basement?" Mick asked her.

Jenna shook her head. "No, actually." She replied thinking back to her "interview". "Seemed like a pretty big deal with business cards and everything. They apparently have an actual studio where they do all this. So, I guess it's kind of legit." The vixen shrugged.

"As legit as you can get with porn..." Abby reminded her, still moving about, passing out drinks.

"Any idea what company it was?" Mick asked, looking amused.

A feeling seemed to drop over her. It made the vixen not want to think or even discuss anything. As the invisible dagger twisted in her gut, she chose to block out the pain and act as if she was alright. She didn't want to answer questions. She didn't want to use the required energy to speak.

Again, Jenna shrugged. He had said it early on, but the club was so noisy it had been hard to hear him. That, and she hadn't exactly been hanging on every word he'd been saying. "I don't know..." Jenna replied, keeping her answers short, but trying to remember. "Like, criss-cross studios?" She threw out, not feeling sure that was the correct name. "Something like that."

There came a clatter as Mick dropped his glass a short distance onto the bar.

"Whoa, hold up!" He said aloud, brow furrowing in what looked like amazement. "Are you sure you don't mean-"

Whatever name Mick was about to suggest was drown out as the stabbing pain in her stomach returned. This time it was different. Her eyes clamped shut on their own, as a red haze enveloped her vision. She bent forward slightly, her teeth grinding together. It seemed almost to be reaching other places as well. Her head felt like someone was driving pegs into her eyes. Her whole digestive track seemed to go into cramps, and not like the cramps she was used to. It was like her whole body was seizing up violently.

"Jen?" She heard her name being called, but lacked the clarity to respond. Her teeth felt as if they would shatter if she were to clamp down any harder as she attempted to process her pain. Air whistled through her fangs in short intervals as she breathed in and out slowly.

Two paws latched onto each of her shoulders as she slowly leaned too far forward, nearly falling off her bar stool.

"Hey, easy!" Abby's comforting voice soothed in her ear. Jenna felt her pulling her back to a sitting position. " What's wrong? You sick?"

"I don't know..." Jenna replied slowly, cramps starting to ease on their clutch of her body. "Been feeling like this all day... I figured it'd go away, but it's gotten worse..."

"What's Ethel got you taking? Could be a reaction to some of the pain killers?" Mick offered, moving around the bar to where Jenna and Abby were.

Jenna had just blindly taken whatever meds Ethel had recommended. She couldn't even tell Mick what they were, or if the label was correct. Right now she was feeling rather stupid about doing that.

"Shouldn't be the pills." Abby interjected, tipping Jenna's chin upward and looking into her eyes. "If she were allergic, we would have known about it for days now. Could be fighting an infection." The calico looked over at Mick. "Call a cab, I don't want her walking home."

"Abby," Jenna began to protest, "I'm fine. Just not feeling the best right now..."

"So, go home and start feeling better." Abby replied in a forceful, yet friendly manner. "You lost blood, opened yourself up for infections, you're taking black-market drugs." She laughed slightly. "You probably shouldn't even be on your feet. These things eventually take a toll on the body, sweetie."

Jenna would have continued to argue with Abby, but her head was killing her so much that, she didn't even feel like talking. The young vixen let her head roll to the side, resting comfortably against Abby's body, soft fur feeling soothing. Abby's fingers running rhythmically through her short hair almost seemed to relieve the pressure in her head.

"Yeah, baby..."

Jenna opened her aching eyes slightly to see a young male horse, probably around her age, staring at the waitresses, grinning like an idiot. His mind was probably blown as he watched the two scantily clad waitresses seemingly "cuddling" with each other.

"Fuck off, asshole!" Abby barked savagely at him, flipping him the bird in the process. "Mick," she continued, sounding pissed off, "where's the cab?"

Jenna's mind seemed to fog over slightly. Everything around her took on a surreal feel to it. It reminded her of the time in high school when she experimented with pot. It was like a high, only without the enjoyable feeling of euphoria. Plus a nauseating sensation of what was akin to motion sickness. The lights of the club went from harmless effects, to razor shards of color that attacked her brain, slicing though her eyes. The music went from steady beats to loud sounds that resonated deep within her mind, making her brain feel like it was bleeding. It hadn't been this bad earlier... she never would have come in tonight if it had been this bad...

She felt a cool paw on her forehead. "You're burning up..." She heard Abby say, her voice vibrating into Jenna's body.

"Hey, I told them to pick us up out back." Mick announced, walking over to Abby as he snapped his phone shut.

"Would you mind making sure she gets home?" Abby asked, sounding gracious. "I would, but there's not anyone else to close tonight."

Mick nodded without question. "Yeah, no problem." His brown eyes went to Jenna. "You ready to go, kid?"

"Yeah..." Jenna replied quietly, getting to her feet slowly. "Sorry about this, Abby..."

"You overdid it." The calico reminded her. "You get an A for effort on this one." Jenna then felt a paw scratching the back of her head gently. "Go home and get some sleep."

In Abby's arms, the blue vixen was passed from her, to Mick, who took her by the arm to steady her.

"Sometimes I don't know who's more stubborn, you or Alias." Mick teased her, at which Jenna smiled weakly. He led her to the back, where their locker room was. "You need to change?" He asked, noting she was still in her Delirium uniform.

Changing was low on her priority list, especially if she was taking a cab. "Just gonna grab my coat." She replied, shaking her head. At this point, she really didn't care how she looked, so long as she was out of here. After fumbling with her locker for a few minutes trying to open it, her paws finally operated coordinately enough to work the metallic latch. Clamping her eyes shut for a moment, Jenna attempted to regain her focus that seemed to shatter like a cheep china plate. As she met Mick back outside the changing room, she pulled her black peacoat around her shoulders, and took his arm once more for support.

The back door led to an alley, and at one end a there was the welcoming sight of a yellow cab awaiting them. Reaching down into her pocket, Jenna made sure her purse was with her so she could pay the cabbie. As she opened the rear passenger door, she turned to Mick, hugging him.

"Thanks Mick, but I think I can take it from here." She replied to him, head feeling like it was swimming.

"Oh no," he replied waving his finger at her, "I'm not falling for that! I go back in there, my ass is grass with Abby!"

Jenna backed away, patting Mick's soft, brown, suede coat graciously. "Mick, you called my cab, you walked me out here, I think I'll..." She clamped her eyes shut once again, attempting desperately to manage the new onslaught of pain. "I think I'll make it the last twenty feet to my apartment." She pointed to the Delirium's backdoor. "Go enjoy your evening, I'm just going to crash." She forced a small smile. "Don't let a girl kick your ass too much."

At this, Mick playfully shoved Jenna away from him. "If you weren't sick..." He threatened in a carefree tone, smiling.

Jenna slid onto the cracked vinyl seats of the cab, the shards of the crusty material scraping her slightly, but not enough for it to hurt. Cradling her head in her paws, she remembered that the driver needed somewhere to go.

"1445 Grinstead Avenue." Jenna croaked out, her mind not wanting to speak at all anymore. The effort it took was simply more than she desired to give. Without a care, she slowly leaned forward where her head was resting against the hard bulletproof glass that separated Jenna from the driver.

"You alright?" The driver asked her, looking into his rearview mirror, watching her with slight concern.

"Fine..." Jenna replied with no enthusiasm in her voice. She hated knowing the guy probably thought she was being bitchy to him, when in reality, it just hurt her to try and carry on a conversation. "Just need some rest..." She followed up, trying to be as polite as possible under the given circumstance.

Normally, it took Jenna and Alias about ten minutes to traverse Arcadia and get home. Taking a cab was about a fraction of that time. The good news was it meant that the fare wasn't so high. Pulling out the money from her purse, she thanked the driver and gave him a tip for her lack of conversation.

It wasn't long after her feet hit the concrete sidewalk that the cab was already pulling away. Reaching for her keys, she suddenly felt a slight tickle in her nose. Her eyes began to water as she felt the onset of a sneeze building up. Maybe she really was sick. Sicker than she had thought.

Oh well... I've been sick before... Jenna's mind spoke to her. However, when she actually tried to think of the last time she had been sick, Jenna realized she couldn't pinpoint it.

Her paw snapped to her muzzle as she let out a loud sneeze on the deserted streets of the winter laced Arcadia. A shiver of disgust whipped through her body as she felt a wet spray coat her paw. Her body was in the radius of the nearest street lamplight, casting a shadow over her paw. Feeling quite disgusted at sneezing all over her own paw she turned to the light to see how bad it was.

However, her eyes were met with an even more disturbing sight. Her normally dark blue paw was peppered in tiny red circular patches. She stared in disbelief at her paw, light reflecting off the tiny red viscous liquid. Her other paw went to her muzzle, carefully wiping her nose. Holding it up to the light, a few drops of the red liquid ran between her fingers. She smelled it in her nose, felt it's sticky texture. Jenna knew exactly what she was looking at. It was her own blood. She was bleeding from her nose... but why?

Feeling rather shaky, and a little freaked out, Jenna wasted no time making her way up to the apartment, avoiding use of her blood flecked paw. Clearly, it must just be the dry Arcadian air that was causing her nosebleed. What other explanation could there be? Allergies were probably just getting to her, that's all.

What allergies have I ever had?

But no matter how much reassurance she gave herself, Jenna couldn't help feeling anxious about all this. Maybe she should have let Mick come back with her.

The nausea was about to reach a boiling point in her stomach as she climbed the three flights of steps to the right floor, cursing each step she took. Her paw wrapped around her stomach, all the blue vixen could think about was how much she wanted to be in a bed, melting away in the darkness.

Saliva suddenly began to build up in her mouth for no apparent reason. It didn't take her long to figure out what that meant. She began to pace her breathing, knowing she could stay the urge in her stomach at least until she made it to a bathroom where she could deal with this accordingly. One thing she always liked about her biology was that she could hold off on vomiting until she was in a proper place.

Once back in Palamont, actually at Club Xero of all places, some guy bought her a shot, even though at that point in the evening she knew she'd send it straight back up. But he was cute and she didn't want to look like a girly-girl, so she had downed the harsh tequila shot. After that, she spent five excruciating minutes breathing slowly, trying to calm her pissed off stomach in the time before she could retreat to a bathroom or nearby alley. Breathing was the key to not blowing chunks in front of a cute guy she had learned. If you could just keep breathing chances were your stomach would calm itself down and you'd be fine. Unfortunately, she was learning tonight that sometimes the stomach made its own decisions.Something was on it's way up, regardless of how much she was going to breathe.

Making it inside her door, Jenna quickly shut it behind her and let her coat fall to the floor. There came a thump as her cellphone, which was still in her coat pocket, hit the hard wood. Relief met her as the cool air overtook her body in the absence of her protective coat. This was short lived, as the vixen soon found her feet moving quickly toward the small bathroom between her room and Alias's. Dropping to her knees faster than she ever had in her life, Jenna positioned her mouth over the bowl of the toilet.

Her eyes didn't have a choice if they wanted to remain open or not this time. As her stomach convulsed so violently, her eyes snapped shut tightly and her body locked up. Bracing herself as best she could against the porcelain surface, Jenna held nothing back. As she sat there, giving everything back, she wouldn't have been surprised if her kidneys had been ejected from her mouth.

After that round, with her eye still shut, she leaned against the cool structure that was never designed for one to place their face. The poor young girl felt so shitty at this point, she didn't really care, as long as she was soothed in some manner. As she opened her eyes, tears from her efforts clouded her vision. Wiping them clear as she leaned back, her heart squeezed in terror as she looked down, seeing what had been expelled from her body.

Normally, vomit wouldn't affect her. The smell would be the worst part, but she had cleaned up plenty of her friends from her life before The Underground after a night of partying that she was desensitized to it.

This was something else.

Her lips went dry and started to tremble as the vengeful bite of fear took hold of her. Blue eyes glazed over in shock, Jenna stared down into the bowl. In contrast to the white surface of the porcelain structure, dark crimson blood filled the bottom of the bowl. Using her arm to clean away her mouth, she noticed her arm becoming clotted with the blood that she had vomited up.

She didn't feel scared anymore. No, what she was feeling went well beyond scared at this point. What she was feeling was the onset of full panic. Her pulse pounded in her head, butterflies of pain in her stomach, and her body had broken out into a cold sweat. With clammy palms, she carefully pulled herself to her feet.

She needed to call someone. Probably Ethel, maybe even Abby because she was closer. Something wasn't right. There was something wrong with her... really wrong. Alone in the empty apartment, the whole place seemed to grow huge. As she stepped forward, she nearly wiped out, only saving herself by catching the door frame. Her body slammed against the hard wooden surface, her voice letting out a small grunt of pain. Looking around for her phone, she suddenly remembered where it was; still in her coat, near the door. A distance that looked like a mile at this point.

Slowly, her feeble leg took a step forward as she let go of the door.

Her efforts were in vane as she slammed down hard onto the cold, unforgiving floor. Panic consumed the frightened vixen as she tried to crawl to her coat, hoping she could get someone, anyone to help her. An acidic bile seemed to grow on her muscles as she tried to move, making each crawl harder than the last. What was happening to her? Eventually, she collapsed, nearly five feet from her coat. Her vision was clouding over, object's color growing brighter and fading to grey at the same time. Then suddenly her body went numb to everything.

Everything.

There was no more pain, no more feeling at all really. There were no sounds from the outside, only blanketed silence. Through her eyes, the bright lights of objects didn't seem to bother her anymore. They all seemed to cloud together, becoming fuzzy as they danced before her eyes in strange ways. Ways not natural to this world, and yet their motion seemed to make sense all at the same time.

The only thing she heard and felt was the gentle vibrations of air moving in and out of her lungs with relative ease. As her blue eyes bobbed around in her skull, the sound of her breathing was the only thing that she could focus on. She knew she was scared, even if her body wouldn't move to let her know this. Somewhere in her fading mind, she wished he was here with her. At least then she wouldn't be alone...

As the light of the world dimmed and faded around her, she concentrated her focus on the steady rhythmic sound of her lungs. They slowly filled and then slowly released; slowly filled and released. If she could just keep focused on that, just that, she could make it through this.

Keep breathing... Her mind begged of her body. That's the key... just keep breathing...

Alias

We've slowly stood by and watched the goodness of our world die like an organism that can't adapt to a changing environment. We've seen the good people fade from our world one by one, leaving us here; alone. But it's only afterward that we see they never truly belonged here. Only The Underground would have you feeling grateful at a loved one's passing. You know they've escaped the new form of Hell we've stricken society with.

Like I said, what else could you describe The Underground as?