Murdersphere Mosaic [ManXMan] [BoyXBoy]

Chapter 5 Part 7 Here Comes The Rain Again

Carnifax's face reflects its conflict. He stammers. "No, that's okay. It should be fine." He puts the helmet back on and whips it off another bout of vomiting in progress. "Oh that is horribly foul!" 

He looks mortified, but I just grin at him. "Why are you embarassed?"

"I'm Justicar Carnifax!" He replies looking out towards the Wall where a dark ribbon of clouds is growing. "Clone of Captain America! Superhero! People are always watching me. I must make sure to not bring shame to Captain America because I wear his face."

"'Carnifax' means 'executioner.'" I say, raising an eyebrow. "When did Captain America go Punisher?"

He actually blushes. "It's not a code name. It's my name. What I was called when I came out of the clone vats. I don't kill all the time. Just when necessary."

"I'm not judging." I say. "It was just incongruous. How do you date without Rogers' face being spread all over the tabloids?"

Carnifax's face reddens, his reply is a little defensive. "I get by. I get lots of girls. I'm not the only clone anyway. The media always seems to be able to tell us apart, unless there's a scandal. Then it's 'are you sure you didn't sleep with that drunken high school senior?'"

I move into the air, feeling more than a little sarcastic, but I manage to keep my tone somewhat neutral. "Come on. You need to get cleaned up and then you go back to being a paragon of fear and justice."

Carnifax automatically goes to put on his helmet and recoils comically , nose wrinkling at the fumes of his vomit. Instead he tucks it under an arm and says. "After you." 

He follows me into the air. In about a minute we were landing on the roof, its lounge furniture empty.

The building recognizes me and the door opens and we tromp into the elevator and are soon on my floor and in my apartment.

"Damn." Carnifax mutters. "This place is odd. It's a literal corner apartment."

"The bathroom is in the far corner." I gesture. Carnifax nods and moves, his suit making subtle noises as the servos match his movement.

Thunder roils the sky, crackling and hissing.

"Son of a bitch." I growl, walking to the window and trying to peer up past the elevated railway. And then. I step back, remembering the sphere, and the strange changes in my perspective.

Remembering the event is enough. My perspective shifts outside and I'm watching the storm surge from the east, cloud bands racing over the city. It is moving amazingly fast.

"What the hell?" I exclaim. "Where did that storm come from?"

"It was the big news until the blackout and the riots." Carnifax says from the bathroom. "And then, the hurricane only really mattered to the poor people who live outside of the wall that keeps out the sea.

"What about outflow from the rivers because of rainfall?" I ask.

"Dr. Richards has done a very good job design wise." He yells.  "Tony Stark's construction has been flawless so far."

"Oh." I say.

The first curtains of rain sheeted across the neighborhood.

"Hey, would you mind if I take a shower?" Carnifax asks from the bathroom.

"No, I don't mind at all." I say, still watching the unfolding storm. "Go ahead."

The sucking depression that had enveloped me this morning was gone, leaving me with a brittle melancholy that fractures under the wonder of being able to see the world free from eyes.