4th Wall Universe

Thirst

#Thirst

#AnExtremelyShortStory

#ByDannyJQuick

#4thWallUniverse

Barely able to control her breathing; 'In and out... in and out' she thinks to herself as Scorpion's words echo in her mind. 'You're nothing more than a loose cannon and I will never trust you to have my back.' Her blood is boiling at the thought of his smug attitude. She storms out of the gym before she succumbs to her urges to rip his face off along with that damned mask. She can feel warmth rising from under her collar like from a gas oven on a snow day. As the bathroom door closes behind her she uses her left hand to fan her neck and simultaneously reaches with her right to turn on the cold water. Deep respirations through her nostrils fill her lungs with cold air and she could feel the coolness tickle the back of her throat.

"Relax Rhana... Just Relax!" The last thing she wants is to prove them right. Both Scorpion and her former employer, Dr Malvade have made similar observations about her temper. Her anger has always been a part of her drive to be the best, but since the procedure that heightened her senses and abilities when she joined the SIC Squad, she's found it harder to control her outbursts. She fears that it's becoming part of her reputation, but doesn't know what she can do about it.

When she gets angry, she can feel her pulse quicken suddenly. That's her cue. If she doesn't take action at that very moment, things usually turn our bad. It begins to feel like she's in a trance. She can see visions of herself viciously victimizing violators. Images of blood-soaked carnage flood her mind and begin to entice her. She can fell the warm wet blood dripping on her like an April shower at mid-day. This is what scares her. She wants it. She needs the violence to quiet the hurricane of thoughts and images in her head. Even though she was raised by her sweet Filipino mother who worked as a caregiver for 40 years just so she could afford her college tuition, she cannot control her urges to violence. Her mother's voice disappears under the crushing torrent of thoughts. All of her degrees and achievements in the sciences cannot solve the quandary. Her teammates have seen the aftermath of her vampiristic hunger on many occasions. Before the team was officially SIC Squad Alpha they were frequently called upon to protect oppressed people all over the world. Her thirst for blood earned her the nickname Pirahna. Like the ferocious fish she would finish foes with frightful fatality. It wasn't a problem then, when the mission were less monitored and called for casualties. The SIC Squad has grown however, and are supposed to be the pinnacle of diplomacy.

Tough as nails on the outside, Piranha refuses to let a tear form in her eyes, but she feels as helpless as a turtle flipped on its shell in the middle of a highway. There has never been a task that she wasn't willing to stand up and face. She decides that her rage will just be another box on her long list of tribulations that she's overcome. A few deep breaths in her nose and out of her mouth and the urges begin to subside... for now.