Arc 2 - Chapter 1: Remember A Dark Past

(Quintiles 29, 59 / 8:02AM)

“Wake up sleepyhead!”

His body resigned to the bed he slept on. As a woman with freckles tugged at his shoulder, she continued to push him relentlessly like a naggy older sister.

“Breakfast is ready!”

Continuing to sleep, Gwen walked over to Luke’s side of the bed, her boots creaking the floorboards below. Rubbing her hands, she rubbed them so fast that sparks of electricity spurred out. As she held a large amount of friction, she extended her hands to Luke’s shirt, pulling it up to unveil his bare chest and stomach.

‘Man, talk about a change from six years ago.’

Despite being skinny, his chest and stomach were well toned. Having a six pack shone brightly into her eyes, his ribcage was defined as well, with small ripples streaking through his skin.

‘I thought he was just a twig, but I guess this twig has some meat on him.’

Bending down, she rubbed her fingers relentlessly to strike up several last jolts of sparks. Letting out a cheeky grin, she wrapped her fingers around his nipples, and held them firm.

And yet, her feet were loosened with the ground.

“Clear!”

Just as she was about to twist her fingers… the door to his room swayed open. The edge of the door slamming against the wall, it allowed another woman, a tanned beauty with a curvy body.

“Hey Luke! Get your ass up … up…”

And just seeing the sight in front of her, Luna’s fists began to tighten.

Instantly, Gwen stood up, flinching backwards as she took a step back. But unfortunately for him, she forgot she had his fingers still wrapped around his nipples.

“AH!!”

Springing his whole body up, Luke’s head collided straight toward her stomach. Feeling like a brick was thrown at her, she clenched her eyes shut while letting.

“A-Ah … sorry.”

Like a bolt of lightning, every nerve trickled throughout his body, making him shake with vigor. Once he stopped, he wrapped his bed blanket over himself, and acted like some heroine from a manga who was perved on.

“Why did you do that?!”

“I was just going to give you a purple nurple, but Luna scared the bejeebers out of me! Blame her!”

“What the hell is going on!? And why are you here with Luke alone?!”

His face turning a crimson red, his cheeks began to puff and enlarge. Staring at Gwen with sharpened eyes, she rubbed the back of her head while directing her voice to Luna.

“I just wanted to wake him up the hard way, that’s all.”

“I already told you I was going to wake him up!”

Luna took a couple of steps forward, her eyes glued to Gwen’s freckled face. Continuing to clench her fists, her body shook gently, followed by her arm muscles bulging the more she kept her eyes pinned.

All the while Gwen placed down her hand onto her lap, and tilted her head to the right.

“But you have the worst wake-up calls, especially to me and Hope.”

“But I kind of prefer Luna though. At least she doesn’t molest me.”

“That’s because she’s soft on you. Every one of us gets dragged by our ears or hair; you get bridal carried!”

Her face turned beet red, with a slight hint of pink fluttering her cheeks. Her mouth gaping open, her body tightened with anger.

“Shut up! Out of everyone, he gives me donuts! A-And that’s his reward!”

“Is there something else besides donuts~”

“Get out!”

Luna raised both her fists to the height of her face, her eyes glaring at Gwen. In return, Gwen surrendered, by extending her hands high with a wry smile.

“Ok, ok. You don’t have to fight me… but you should be more honest, you know?”

“Shut up!”

“Hey you three, Boris wants all of us back in the breakfast room now.”

A man clad wearing a black leather jacket and pants walked in, while wearing a brown cowboy hat and boots. Seeing Luna in her fighting stance, David inhaled and exhaled slowly, and placed his hands inside his jacket’s pockets.

“Luna, calm down. I can hear you from across the hall.”

“Shut up old man! You can’t tell me what to do!”

“What did you just call me?”

With a slouched back and neutral eyes, David began his trek toward Luna.

Putting her balled fists down, she took two steps back, as sweat dripped from her forehead. Once he towered over her, he didn’t glare at her, no … he just stared at her with a neutral face.

Meaning his body was relaxed and calm. Pushing on a facade, she gave him a sly smirk and placed her hands onto her hips, making a taunting stance.

“Y-You heard me. W-What are you going to do about it? I know you have a soft spot for—”

In a flash, he pinched her lower right ear, his nails digging into her skin. As he pulled her in, she arched her body forward to look at the ground.

Luna used her right hand to grip David’s wrist, and with her fingertips, she dug her dull nails into the bone. Despite having immense strength, David didn’t bulge, in fact, he tightened the grip on her.

“Ow, ow, ow! Dammit, you geyser—ow, ow!”

He turned to Luke and Gwen, his eyes more softened than before. As Luna tried to punch into his stomach, in retaliation, David paid no heed at all. Even though it looked like her fists would break through stone.

“Stop picking on Luna, Gwen. You know how she is, even though her temper has gotten better through the years.”

“Aww, you know I tease everyone equally~”

“And Luke, make sure you get dressed, because it’s going to be a long day.”

________________________________________________________________________

(Quintiles 29, 59 / 8:25AM)

All men and women wore black leather jackets, along with black boots and black pants; with the exception of a few.

“Oh, look who decided to show up.” Said Jack.

Six to two years ago, the lunch room looked more of a cafeteria.

Now, it took on the appearance of a big house kitchen. Housing three tables, two stoves, two refrigerators, and the walls being painted green; it looked more alive.

Two out of the three tables were connected to one big mega table, one that housed both Stan’s group and The Dark Angels. And in front of them, their plates mashed with breakfast, the scene unfolded…

“Why soda at this hour? You’ll lose your teeth by the time you're 30.”, “You drenched your omelet with oil. Just seeing that will give people a heart attack.”, “You guys have bad eating habits…”, “You eat pure junk food.”, “Hey, I love my junk food.”, “That’s why you're fat.”, “I’m not fat! I’m big boned!”, “Wait, why so much syrup on your pancakes!”, “And why do you have mustard on your bacon?”, “Because mustard is good for you.”, “That’s funny, really. You should be a comedian.”, “You should shut up.”, “sigh … always to the rescue huh?”

On the other side of the room, was the last table. Casually eating their food, three of the adults were fine with the overall mood, except Boris. Clutching his fork tightly, leaving his knuckles to shake and tremble alongst the metal, he had his eyes pinned onto his plate.

David had his hands flat on the table, while seeing Boris on the verge of exploding.

“Let them be. For punishment, you could just have them clean the entire building.”

“Don’t you understand David? They’re adults! Soldiers! Why do they act like little kids?!” Yelled Boris.

Once he yelled, their casual gossip grew louder and louder, leading Boris to grip his fork even tighter. Hunching his head down, he looked down at his plate of steak and eggs.

‘They’re just young adults … they’re just young adults …’

Something smacked Jenny’s face.

As if someone had put their hand over their mouths, all of the soldiers sealed thier mouths in less than a second. Turning their eyes to Loraine, who put on a goofy face, she had already thrown something…

Which was an omelet, an omelet melted out of pure vegetable oil, leaving the candidates to …

Laugh.

Filling the room with their booming voices, even Luna and Benn chuckled softly at the unseriousness of their breakfast. Meanwhile, the only ones who didn’t laugh were Hope and Luke, who kept themselves silent despite wanting to help out Jenny.

David puffed his cheeks like a squirrel, hunching his head forward while squirming like a kid. For a middle-aged man, the cowboy acted carefree at times, leaving his humor and laugh to speak for itself. Boris and Jerry, being the only ones who didn’t find it funny, put on reddened faces.

‘Damn brat!’ thought Boris.

“Hold up Jenny, let me get that omelet out for you.” Said Jerry.

Peeling the omelet from her face, he placed it onto her plate. Her eyes bloodshot red, he tried to counter them with a calm smile.

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle—”

She shot up like a rocket, and turned her greasy face to Loraine. Veins bulging from every follicle within her forehead, she jagged her eyes at the teen like she wanted to kill her.

And using her legs, Loraine pushed herself off of her seat, leaving her to dash out of the kitchen. As she ran, she gave out a peace sign, and winked at Jenny specifically to rub salt on the wound.

“Toodles!”

And like a rocket, she honed onto the teen girl with all her strength. Her knuckles crushing themselves against her immense strain, she sprinted and cracked a bit of floorboard with each thunder step.

“Loraine!”

Everyone continued to remain silent, leading them to look down at their plates still filled with food. With his breakfast still unfinished, Jerry stood up and pushed in his chair.

“Sighs … I’ll go get them.”

“No, let Jenny handle it. She could capture Loraine with no problem.”

Boris had his sharpened eyes directed at the mega table. His fists shaking tremendously, he kept his composure in check, once he placed his right thumb over his left.

“Once Jenny comes back, I want everyone to apologize to her. As for your punishment, how about cleaning up all the dishes and garbages throughout the day?”

““““““““““Aww man…””””””””””

________________________________________________________________________

(Quintiles 29, 59 / 2:03PM)

“There you are!”

Cigarette smoke and tobacco clogged the busy streets.

Men wore white t-shirts and khaki pants, while women wore long white dress skirts and heels. Because it was summer, the Kepputhan heat of the north was light, which left everyone to warm their faces with a smile.

“You’re in so much trouble young lady! So much trouble!”

“But that was funny right?”

“That’s it!”

Except for two women.

In the back of an alleyway, Jenny grabbed Loraine’s pigtails with force. Having them clutched with her right hand, she started her walk back toward the Dark Angel’s building.

Punching her sides, Jenny’s iron grip only worsened, making her push up a smug smile. Her punches were weak, sort of like how Luna’s punches were with David. As if their bodies were crafted from stone, Loraine felt her knuckles dent, while she felt her scalp beginning to pop.

“Ow! Ow! Ow!”

‘I should hurry. Don’t want to waste Boris’ time’

Walking in a hurry, she dragged Loraine against her will, as she pushed through the crowd of businessmen and businesswomen. Unwilling to look back, she felt her arm squeeze, as a trickle of nerves flared up like she was stabbed by needles.

Clenching her teeth, Jenny held herself back, once she turned around to see Loraine trying to soar blood from her.

“Hey, if you keep it up, I’ll put a leash on you!”

Sticking her tongue out in retaliation, a couple of veins sprouted throughout her forehead; yet again. While they exited out of the large crowd of city people, her face brittled all red at the teen girl.

“Stop pulling my hair!”

“Then stop tormenting me!”

Turning her head around, Loraine had her mouth in front of Jenny’s other hand. Thrusting her face forward, she opened her mouth wide … and … snuggled Jenny’s entire hand into it, with one fatal swoop.

“Ow! Loraine!”

Snarling aggressively, while putting her left hand on her forehead, Jenny wrangled with Loraine who acted disorderly. Spreading her legs several inches away from each other, Jenny’s back straightened and her stomach clenched.

Pushing all of her strength into her left arm, it bulged, gleamed under the afternoon sun. And with her right, she soared another hidden strength, as it bulged and gleamed like hot candy. In one push, she pushed her back several feet away, making her roll and tumble through the ground.

As she rolled, she hit her head, forming a small bump.

“Ah!”

Massaging her head with her hands, she whimpered. Her face contorted with disgust, Jenny cleaned her hand with the brush of her pants, while inhaling and exhaling slowly.

Looking up at her, she stood up, as tears began to form underneath her eyelids.

“You hurt my head!”

“You started it! You’ve been causing me so many issues ever since you first joined! Can’t you just listen and behave for once you weirdo?!”

“Weirdo?”

Loraine looked down, her tears nowhere to be seen. Noticing this sudden change, Jenny took a step back, seeing Loraine lifelessly stare at the ground like she was transforming.

“Hey! Are you listening to me?! I said are you listening to me?!”

Looking up, she glared at Jenny, her eyes soulless.

“… Don’t call me a weirdo.”

Her feet loosened with the ground.

Balling her right fist, Loraine steadied her feet while eyeing Jenny with unbreaking focus. Giving herself enough room, she was about to charge like a bullet, until…

“Oh man…”

A group of objects thud the ground.

Both of them losing their focus, they turned toward an old man who dropped a group of apples. Leaving behind her defense stance, she walked over to the man, as she saw him trying to pick them up one by one with a hunched back.

“Here, let me help you.”

“Oh, yes please.”

As she helped him, she took note of his clothes and his looks. Having glasses that looked circular then squared, a white robe, sandals, he looked more like a priest of a religious cult. And what stood out to her, was his natural light green hair.

Putting the last of his apples inside the bag, she stood in front of him, his height towering her.

“That should be all your apples. Do you need any further assistance?”

“No thanks dear. I may be old, but I’m sure I can handle myself. Pardon me for asking, but is that little girl your daughter?”

Placing his hand underneath his chin, he scratched the little facial hair he had. His eyes peered at Loraine, her body shook violently, making her hide behind Jenny as she grabbed her shirt.

While all he did was push a gentle smile, making Jenny trickle a drop of sweat.

“She’s my boss’s daughter that I babysit. She just ran away from home, so I’m just dragging her back.”

Feeling Loraine tighten her hold, she ignored her odd behavior and pushed a warm smile for the old man. Rubbing the back of her head, she slightly flustered with a glint of pinkish red.

“Anyhow, I should get going. Don’t want to worry my boss that much.”

“No worries. Say dear, is the building you're working at several blocks away? If you want, I could escort you to your work, since you helped me out.”

“You don’t have to do anything, I just helped out a senior citizen in need, that’s all.”

The old man gave a subtle nod, as his smile pushed onto Jenny. Letting out a soft chuckle, it only worsened Loraine’s grip she had on Jenny’s shirt.

“Then you have a good day now.”

“Alrighty then. I hope you take care now.”

Raising his right hand, he waved at them before he turned his body the opposite way. As they went their separate ways, Loraine moved her hand to grab Jenny’s, squeezing it as she continued to look down. Glancing at the teen girl, she sharpened her face, but let out a small sigh.

“Why were you scared of him?”

Loraine didn’t respond. Her body shivering like she was thawed out from ice, she failed to lift her head up.

“He didn't look that scary. Maybe you’re just overreacting.”

Using her other hand, Jenny rubbed the back of her nape as the Kepputhan sun continued to glimmer. Meanwhile, Loraine placed her hand onto her stomach, and then released a loud gurgle from her body.

“Do you want me to take you somewhere to eat?”

“Yes please…”

“sighs … Fine. But I ain’t letting you off the hook.”

Carrying onward, they didn’t look back, once the old man stopped to turn around to see them walk. Adjusting his glasses by pushing the center of the lenses, he devilishly grinned.

“Those two are close, despite them almost fighting in public. Reminds me of some people…”

Turning his head toward the dark alleyway, he saw a silhouette leaning against a wall in the shadows. Unable to distinguish the features of the young man, he gently gleamed his eyes at him. While the young man walked up to him, with the shadows still cloaking his face and body.

“Tell Pedro and Kenichi to follow those two, and make sure they don’t lose sight of them.”

“Got it. Permission to speak sir?”

“Ask away.”

“Why can’t I do it? You know in terms of power, I would be enough to take down the rest of the dark angels.”

“You just answered your question. And besides…”

The old man took out a handkerchief, cleaning his hands out of random despite not touching anything. With the corners of his lips reaching the bottom of his ears, his devil smile worsened once he looked down at the floor.

—“To drive a man or woman into despair, let them remember a dark past.”—