S.M.A.S.H

Hellraiser

HEY THERES PLAYLIST AVAILABLE FOR THIS BOOK: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/088dhFYducwG7isKgXzCJU?si=i40LEoVoR16I3SaQ4M9kcQ&pi=u-rL7EoBT5SPqC

Song for this chapter: For Whom the Bell Tolls by Metallica.

One week earlier:

"Well, all looks good here... Y/N, I think you'd be a real asset to the company." Ian looked up from his papers and stuck his hand out to you. "We hope to see you here Monday morning."

"Thank you!" You smiled wide, accepting his shake. "I'll be here."

"Great," Anthony said, also sticking his hand out. "We'll get you introduced and whatnot then. Enjoy the rest of your weekend."

"You, too."

It was official. You were a part of SMOSH. It was real. Not a pipedream, as your mother had stated it to be when you proposed the idea.

Suck it, mom.

~~~

"Jesus, what a night," Hadley grumbled, shaking the rain from his thinning hair as he stepped into the prison's cramped security booth-- well, it was more of a shack. You read that right. Alcatraz wasn't too focused on the security department. They were more focused on their latest threat. This time, though, it came from inside the prison walls. "Parked right up close and I still look like a cat that fell in the tub."

"Tell me about it." Percy sipped his coffee loudly before grimacing at the mug. "God, this is bitter."

"Anything from the day shift I need to know about? Riots, fights, a rat in Captain's office again?" Hadley hung his coat on the rack and popped down at the desk.

"No; nothing. Not even from Miller," Percy said.

"Really? No fights, no threats?"

"Nope. Kinda scary, actually. I've been keeping an eye on her all day. She's been sitting in her cell, just... Staring at the wall." Percy flipped through the cameras before landing on Courtney's cell, which now sat empty. "Huh. That's weird."

"Maybe she broke out," Hadley laughed. "Hey, got any Fireball? Cold as hell in here."

"Oh, yeah. I've got some in my coffee right now. Take a sip." Percy passed the mug to Hadley before continuing, "And as strong, and... Frankly terrifying, as she is, I doubt she could break out of here. And even if she could, it's an Island. She's way too dense to float!"

Hadley and Percy burst into laughter as a sudden burst of thunder rolled through the sky above them, flickering the lights as it reached its peak.

As their laughter died down, a muffled message came over the radio.

"C.O Cooper to security. Missing a prisoner on 'E' block. Do you see MF-573967 on any of your cameras? Just wanna see if she's out and about before callin' Captain Asshat."

"Aw, Christ. Hadley to Cooper. We'll look; hang on." Hadley spoke into his radio before looking to his partner. "You take East and West wings, I'll take North and South."

For approximately the next minute, all that could be heard was the clicking of the computer mice as the men looked through all 179 cameras of the prison, searching for America's most-feared non-criminal. While she wasn't technically a criminal, MF-573967 was considered to be a hazard to the safety of... Well, everyone. In fact, if the judge hadn't insisted on rehabilitation, Captain Manrodd would have put her in solitary 24/7, save for an hour in the yard by herself.

"You see her?" Percy asked.

"Nope." Hadley picked up his radio. "Hadley to C.O Cooper. We don't see MF-573967 anywhere. Go ahead and tell the captain."

"Roger that. Please keep an eye out, just in case she decided to pop into the astral realm for a minute."

Radio silence.

"Hey, do you think she could do that? Just... Project, I guess, into the astral realm, I mean," Percy asked.

"Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised."

Another roll of thunder as a deafening voice screamed into the ear of Percy.

"You're damn right I can!"

Strong, inhuman hands clasped themselves around Percy's thin neck and yanked it backward. A sick snap could be heard over the screaming of both Hadley and MF-573967. Hadley rushed to hit the 'PANIC' button on the corner of his desk, which would send the whole prison-- all 22.5 acres-- into lockdown.

"That ain't gonna stop me!" She screamed, tackling him to the floor. "I'm Courtney Freaking Miller! And you know what you are?"

"What?" Hadley choked out as Courtney began squeezing tightly around his airway.

"Dead!" She gave a hard yank, and his head popped clean off.

Easier than she thought. Hadley hadn't even hit the 'PANIC' button; he'd missed. Now, it was just a matter of getting over the gate.

Courtney marched outside, eyeing a small, glimmering light towards the dock. Her ride out of here. She approached the gate, brought her arm back, and punched the steel bars as hard as she could. They gave way instantly. She laughed. There was no stopping Courtney Freaking Miller.

As she walked up to the light, the man carrying it waved to her.

"Hello, Courtney! Looking to enter society again, eh?" His wavering voice hadn't changed, it seemed.

"Oh, you know it, Dumpy!" She cried, clamoring into the small boat her elderly friend had been waiting in. "I got some business to take care of!"

"Care to share the news?" Dumpy picked up his oars and showed them to his friend. "Got to have some entertainment while I work."

"SMOSH hired a new girl," Courtney began. "And I don't like her. She's too..." She searched for the word, quickly giving up. "I don't know the word, but she sucks! I'm gonna overtake them! Again!"

"Again, eh? Sounds like it didn't work out well the first time."

"Naw, but we had lots of fun that day! I'll be real with you, Dumpy, I don't think I could do it again, though. No, it's time for me to move on... I'll just kill her and call it quits!" Courtney looked at the full moon. "Reminds me of an old colleague, that moon. God rest his soul."

"Chosen's not dead, Courtney," Dumpy panted, his old bones worn out from the rowing. "He's actually quite well. Can you row for a bit? I never entered the world of physical fitness, and I'm beginning to regret it."

Courtney took the paddles and almost instantly, they moved twice as fast as before. "I wasn't talking about Chosen, you Albert Einstein wannabe. My first cellmate, Shawty One-Shoe. He died in a riot."

"Did you start it?"

"...yes. But that's not the point! Point is, I'm out. In less than ten minutes, Courtney Freaking Miller will be a free woman." She looked to the sky before whispering, "God bless America."

America would need it.