Taking Back Nevertown

Three years had passed since the air raid. Everything was quiet and peaceful as Glamour recovered from the damage, its buildings reconstructed and its roads repaved so they were as good as new. The overseas reinforcements were supportive in assisting in the process, and the people were content and comfortable with their presence around. However, once their job was finished and they had to leave, the bandits returned once more. Thus, all had returned to what it once was, with only a few rats in the gutters being missed.

Freya sat at the dinner table in the mansion of Glamour's finest philanthropist, Mr. Midas. The man had made countless deals with businesses, no matter how big or small, to help get them back up on their feet after the incident. People believed that without him, the entire economy might have collapsed. No one questioned the reliability and integrity of Midas Trading Company despite its shady past. Especially not Sunset, who was one of those business that Mr. Midas had saved after the air raid obliterated it. Freya wouldn't be sitting here if she hadn't left early due to an emergency phone call by a certain person.

"It's so good to have you finally stop by," Mr. Midas said, raising up a glass with a cocky grin. "I knew you'd come to see things my way."

"I did," Freya stated without a hint of emotion as she poured the bottle she had brought with her. It was Mr. Mida's favorite champagne, the same one he loved spilling all over the place in a messy waterfall. Once both glasses were filled, they clinked their glasses together in a toast, just like always. Mr. Midas happily gulped down his drink, while Freya kept her glass idly in her hand.

Mr. Midas breathed out a joyous sigh and said, "Delicious as usual! Though it does seem a little... different. Less bubbles. Is this a fresh bottle?"

Freya shrugged her shoulders. "It's what my boss gave me."

"Fair enough."

The table was filled with the finest foods money could buy, from white truffle pasta to foie gras to kobe beef. Mr. Midas wasted no time grabbing at everything he wanted to fill his plate, while Freya merely plucked a few things here and there. They were left alone to enjoy this food to themselves, with his two guards standing outside the dining room by the closed doors.

"I do miss Miles," Mr. Midas admitted. "I had to hire two people to do half the work he could. But I don't blame him. The incident must have triggered his... what do you call it?" He carelessly waved a fork around while he thought about it, splattering bits of priceless oil around. "Post trauma! Yes... that's right."

"We were all terribly affected by the incident," Freya said, her voice as smooth and cold as his marbled statues. "It didn't matter who you were or what your status was."

"Quite!" He stabbed at a piece of pork covered in gold foil, gazing at it longingly. "It was even too much for my poor nugget. It's been lonely here without her."

"My condolences."

Mr. Midas sighed and popped the meat into his mouth. "It's alright. I wouldn't have been able to adopt Judas otherwise. He's the best son I could've hoped for! Santo didn't have him long, but it was enough to teach him to respect his elders."

Freya gripped her gold utensils hard enough to make her hands shake, yet she maintained her composure. "It was kind of you to take him in after what happened."

"Oh, it was nothing! It was the least I could do. Although... I do think he could a mother. He's still a growing boy, and a mother's love is the one thing I can't buy for him. I know he thinks highly of you. Perhaps you could consider-"

Mr. Midas was forcibly cut off by a violent cough. Followed by several more. Confused, he reached for his drink to wash it down, yet the coughing wouldn't stop. He couldn't breathe. His hands desperately gripped the table as the world spun around him, but all that accomplished was dragging the tablecloth down with him as he fell to the floor. Glass shattered, forks clattered, and food spilled across pristine, white cloth.

Freya calmly stood up from her seat and approached the suffering man, towering over him with a stare that burned with an intense hatred. She then kicked him straight in the stomach, and the contents from his dinner flooded out of his mouth. Even as he was gasping and silently crying in his own mess, she showed no sympathy.

"You're a fucking joke," Freya growled. "Asking me to marry you after you took EVERYTHING away from me!" She kicked him again, harder this time. "How dare you! I never liked you! You killed the man I loved! You hurt everyone I cared about! I picked out this poison and bribed your guards so you would suffer for as long as possible!"

Mr. Midas was left utterly powerless, reduced to a bloated ragdoll for Freya to enact her fury upon. Minutes crawled for an eternity with no escape in sight, no way to pay for this problem to go away. The air that tried to travel through his narrowing throat eventually thinned too much, and his vision darkened as he slowly suffocated. The last thing he heard before he died was Freya's anguished screams.

---

Nevertown had been secured by Mr. Midas after the air raid. He used the documents Judas had brought him to make some arrangements and bribe some law officials to put his family back as the rightful owners of the property. Because of this, the survivors who tried to come home were barred from entry, forced to find shelter elsewhere. 

Luckily, Talus was able to use his past connections to get them a temporary apartment in Glamour. It wasn't easy, yet they had the skills they needed to survive. They spent these last three years working jobs to get by, the girls cooking and cleaning at a restaurant while the boys tinkered at the mechanic shop. They caused no fuss, no mess, and never complained. Only at night did they show their true selves, comforting one another when they cried or had another nightmare.

But today, that would change. Today the five remaining children, now matured into adults, were going to take back Nevertown.

The group huddled together up on the cliffs to observe the situation from below, scanning the area with their own binoculars. Their buildings had been replaced with warehouses for storage, and there was a total of two guards patrolling the entire area.

"Just two guards?" Chaz said while tilting his head, perplexed by this. "Why the small security?"

"He likely made a deal with the bandits," Melinda said. "They might also have other people on standby."

Russell looked over to Talus, who was hanging around the truck loaded with weapons. "Can you jam a signal?"

"Can birds fly?" Talus replied with a smirk.

Russell gave him a thumbs up, then turned his attention to Nina, who was loading her rifle. "What do you think? Can you take out both?"

"Doubt it," Nina answered honestly, grinding a spare bullet between her teeth. "One, definitely. I'd say you guys should jump in after I take the shot."

"Four against one would be easier," Winona said.

"Two... actually," Melinda said hesitantly, then pointed towards where the chapel used to be. "Look."

Everyone shifted their view over to where she pointed. The building there was different. It was a rectangular, wooden shack painted yellow with a white roof. The white steps were wooden as well, and it was at least big enough for a line of several people to fit in with their arms stretched out. 

That wasn't what caught Melinda's attention though. What had gotten her nervous was who was guarding it. There stood an older Judas decked out in military gear and holding a lightweight, semi-automatic rifle. The last three years had been good to him. Even if his earthy hair was still long and mane-like, he was much taller and his features had sharpened, shaping him into a handsome, young man.

"Damn it, Judas!" Russell cursed out loud.

Hearing the boy's name, Ceri poked his head out from the truck and said, "Judas is here?! Ah... I dunno. Are you sure you guys wanna do this?"

"Definitely," Chaz stated firmly.

"Absolutely," Winona said with the same resolve.

Ceri sighed and looked to Talus for guidance, who simply stood there while lighting his cigarette.

"Let'em have this," Talus said gently.

"But..."

Talus blew out a smoke, watching it roll away with the wind. "It's their business. We're just here for backup."

Ceri frowned. "Fine... I just hope they'll be okay."

"Me too, Ceri. Me too."

The group had readied themselves while the two were talking, each one picking up a weapon of their choice, and the attack team began to make their descent down the cliffs. Melinda was on scout duty, keeping an eye out in case the situation changed, while Chaz, Russell, and Winona circled around the perimeter, using the warehouses to their advantage to stealthily weave through.

Nina positioned herself on the ground with her sniper rifle, taking aim at her target. Her sturdy, robotic arms were exceptionally useful here, not having to worry as much about recoil. She had spent less time cooking and more time practicing with Miles precisely for this moment. There was no need to feel remorse. They would do the same to her for the right price. She waited for the guard to stop moving, closed one eye, and coldly pulled the trigger.

Boom. Right through his face.

As expected, it didn't take long for the other guard to hear the noise and discover what happened. He tried to call for backup on his radio, yet all he received was static. While he was fumbling around with it, trying to figure out what was going on, the attack team made their move. Chaz sent in the first wave of shots, a stream of bullets towards the guard, but his aim wasn't as accurate as Nina's. The guard was able to reel back and dodge, quickly getting his gun ready to shoot back. 

As the guard frantically turned his head left and right in the direction of the bullets, he failed to notice the figure sneaking up from behind until it was too late. Winona jumped from the shadows onto the guard's back, lifted up his chin, and stabbed his neck before he even had a chance to react. His reflexes reacted by pulling the trigger, yet all it did was send a few stray shots at the air. The guard choked on his blood and died in seconds, dropping to the ground as soon as Winona let go.

Russell went towards the shack, forced to walk out in the open once he reached the end of the line of warehouses. He trusted the others to take care of everything else. This he wanted to settle himself for his own selfish reasons.

Judas saw him approach, but rather than get his gun ready, he smirked. "Heeey, Russell! It's been a while. How've you been?"

Russell's brows were furrowed and his expression was stern, having zero intent to play nice with him. "We're here for Nevertown. We're taking it back."

Judas burst out laughing in response, clutching his side with a hand as he replied, "Seriously?! Man, you've got a grudge, huh?" He grasped his gun with both hands and pulled the safety, pointing the barrel directly at Russell. "Fine. What's one more dead orphan at this point, am I right?"

Russell shifted his body to get ready to run from the left, and Judas aimed accordingly, but this turned out to be a feint. He instead ducked and charged forward, going straight for him. Judas lacked the training Russell had to fight, having spent all these years living in laziness and luxury. Thus, when it really mattered, he panicked. His body froze. His finger was mere centimeters from the trigger, but couldn't commit to the act.

By the time his mind registered what was going on, Russell had already tackled him to the ground. His gun was ripped from him and tossed aside like a toy, buried in the sand without ever going off. Judas struggled under Russell's weight, yet he kept him pinned down with ease.

"Fuck!" Judas shouted. "How did you get this strong?!"

"Miles taught me," Russell answered. "We all worked hard for this."

Judas stopped fight it, admitting defeat, and chuckled. "Wow. How nice. I bet you could take Wesley in a fight. Too bad you'll never find out-"

Russell slapped him hard across the face, stunning him into silence. Russell then pulled out a combat knife from his pocket, and raised it high above Judas, aiming it at his chest. Judas tried to smile at this, but the fear was clear in his eyes.

"Haha... h-hey, wait," Judas pleaded nervously. "Santo wouldn't like this. Didn't he say everyone has a right to live?"

Russell's eyes were hollow, showing no semblance of mercy. "You lost that right the moment you stole it from others."

The knife was thrust deep into his chest, down to the hilt. Judas stared down at the knife in absolute horror... and then laughed. He laughed as loud as he could before his blood churned up his throat and out his mouth.

As Judas laid there coughing up his blood, feeling his body rapidly go cold, he managed to choke out one final mockery. "Glad we have... that in common now."

And with that, Judas closed his eyes for the last time, drifting into an eternal sleep. Everyone had regrouped and ran up to Russell by the time he got off of him. Upon seeing the corpse, everyone's faces was a mix of different emotions, ranging from shock to horror to downright anger. Winona was the first to react, storming over to the body to kneel down and grab it by the collar.

"Don't you think you're getting off easy!" Winona yelled, then whacked the corpse with a swift punch to the face. Then another. Then another. Then another. All the while she continued, "GIVE THEM BACK! GIVE THEM BACK, YOU BASTARD! GIVE ME BACK MY BABY BROTHER!"

Nina was the next person to do something, going over to Winona to pull her off of the body. Winona panted heavily as she watched Nina follow up by repeatedly stomping on it.

"YOU. FUCKING. BASTARD!" Nina shouted with each stomp. "You're going to rot in hell! I had to tell Ayako's mom what you fucking did! You made a mother cry for her lost daughter! I'll never forgive you!"

Russell felt his heart clench at the reminder. During their time in Glamour, they did manage to track down Ayako's missing mother and save her from being locked up in some pervert's basement. They explained how they knew Ayako and that they were friends of hers, but obviously her mother was going to want to know where she was now. The face she made upon hearing the devastating news was forever burned into their memories.

Talus lastly stepped forward and placed a hand on each of the girls' shoulders. "Ladies... it's time to stop. It's over."

They both looked away, but didn't protest.

"Are we just waiting on Freya now?" Melinda asked, trying to change subjects.

As if on cue, Talus's cell phone went off. He released the girls and answered it, putting it on speaker for everyone to hear.

"Yeah, Freya?" Talus said. "How did it go?"

"It was a success," Freya answered. "I have the documents."

"Including the contract?"

"Yes. As we thought, Santo left the property to the children in his will. In the event none of them were of legal age, we would be acting guardians."

"Think this'll hold up in court?"

"We have to try. Miles said..."

While they were discussing the legal details, Russell couldn't help but be drawn to the wooden shack. Judas had no idea how to use a gun, yet he chose to protect it regardless.

Seeing his friend's curiosity, Chaz asked, "You wanna see what's inside?"

Russell nodded, and the two walked up the steps to the wooden door. The door was unlocked, allowing Russell to push it open without issue. When he saw what was inside, his jaw dropped, and Chaz stared from behind in complete bewilderment.

"Guys..." Russell said, barely able to contain his astonishment. "You have to see this."

Russell and Chaz moved aside for the group to look, yet their gaze never left it. Some gasped and others covered their mouths, unable to believe the sight in front of them.

Rows upon rows of flowers, from lilies to roses to carnations in various colors, all lined around the shack in a crescent shape. In the garden of flowers were framed pictures of all the children in Nevertown, likely taken from Santo's office. In the center of the display was a painted portrait of Santo, beautifully depicting him as an angel gathering faceless children into his loving arms.

"It's... a memorial," Melinda whispered as tears formed around her eyes.

Winona went inside to inspect the photos until she found the one she was looking for. It was a picture of her showing Jermaine how to play with his new train. She swiped the picture from its stand and held it close to her chest, hugging it tightly as she started to cry. Nina did the same for Ayako, managing to find a picture of them setting up a party together before the tears streaming down her face blocked her vision.

Russell held his head in his hands, the reality of his sin finally getting to him. Judas had cared after all. And he killed him...

Chaz snapped him out of it by grabbing both of his shoulders. "Hey. Look. This doesn't change what he did. This was his way of coping, but a killer who feels bad is still a killer."

"We're all killers now," Russell said.

Chaz pulled Russell into a hug to hide his anguish. "I know..."

Melinda couldn't help herself from joining in on the hug, and the boys accepted her without hesitation. Even as she was weeping, she tried her best to comfort them.

"It's okay, guys. It's going to be okay..."

They weren't sure if that was true, but they believed it anyway. They had to. They had to fight for the future Santo wanted for them. He had given them everything they needed to survive. All they had to do was combine their tools and skills, and they could rebuild. They could help more people, and help each other. Everyone has the right to live.

 They would never forget that, and never let go.