Craig, Octavio, Ammoses, Louis, Casiopea and Machine Girl were all standing around, near Craig's home. Each had an envelope in their hand, sent to them by a person named "Alija Aljo". "Who the fuck is Alija Aljo?" asked Casiopea. "I think I recognize her." Craig responded, "Isn't she the daughter of that one mayor? I dunno if he's a mayor actually, I just know that he's a politician." Octavio remarked, "What the hell could she want from us? Are we in trouble with the government, or somethin'?"
Ammoses shook his head, "Nope. This is a letter personally written to us by Alija. Wonder what she could want." Machine Girl said, "Maybe we'd find out if we opened the damn letters." She ripped and opened the left side of the envelope, pulling out the slip of paper inside. The other four did the same as Machine Girl. Every letter was identical, each one congratulating the receiver for their "service". "Service?" said Louis, "Isn't that like, the shit you do when you serve in the military? But we're not in the military yet!"
Craig said, "This is definitely about what happened two days ago. I can't think of any recent 'service' we did besides beating Coco's ass. Also, it says that Alija wants to meet with us. Seems like there's some announcement that she wants to share with us. Should we go?" The group of six looked at each other, and Ammoses, Louis, and Casiopea all said, "Sure!" Craig looked over Octavio and Machine Girl, "How about you two?" Both shook their heads. Octavio explained, "I don't trust this. It could definitely be a plan to lure us in somewhere, and then do who knows what. I could see this being somethin' Coco comes up with." Machine Girl nodded her head in agreement.
Craig looked over at the other three, "You guys sure you wanna go?" Ammoses said, "To be fair, that does sound like a possibility. But I do believe that these letters are from Alija herself, and I'd doubt that she'd be affiliated with Coco and his goons." Casiopea yelled, "Ion give a fuck if its an ambush! I'll beat 'em with my pinky alone!" Louis calmly said, "I'm sure there'll be a metal bar laying around somewhere." Craig looked around, "So everyone except Octavio and Machine Girl are going? Alrighty then, let's go."
...
The four all sat down and gathered around a table in Alija's home. The place was large and fancy, it wasn't hard to tell that it was the property of a wealthy politician. Alija even owned her own television. Alija sat down on the furthest end of the table, and said, "Welcome! I've invited you all here because you've all done a great thing for this community. By giving Coco the whooping he deserved, he and his henchmen vowed to stop terrorizing this area. They've also turned themselves in to the police for their crimes and they're now in the county jail. Apparently, they feel safer locked up than outside. It's a shame that Gota and Octavio didn't arrive, I heard they beat his ass- erm, bum the hardest."
Alija was an octoling, with dark blue hair, brown skin, and a black pinstripe suit with a tie that matched her hair color. Ammoses responded, "Thank you! But- may I ask, why did you wish to meet with us personally? It said on the letter that you wished to give us an announcement." Alija smiled, "I do! It came to my attention that all of you, with the exception of Gota, are currently about to enter military academy. I've heard how stressful and tedious that can be, so I decided to use my father's influence to convince the academy."
Louis tilted his head to the side, "Convince 'em to do what?" Craig said, "Yeah, what happened?" Alija responded, "Like I said, I heard that whole thing can be stressful. So thanks to me, you're only going to have to go for a single year. After that, you'll be able to join the military. Do you all wish for me to undo this, or do you accept it?" The group's jaws dropped. Craig exclaimed, "Yes, I accept! And here I thought I was gonna spend the next four years of my life doin' that shit." Casiopea exclaimed, "Hell yeah! I get to become a war criminal faster! I get to risk my life for the people in power who simply sit in offices all day!"
Louis remarked, "If only this happened for fuckin' high school! I'm in!" Ammoses commented, "Thank you for doing this for us. You're very kind." Alija smiled, "My pleasure!" Ammoses said, "Also, you mentioned that Gota would earn something different since she wasn't going to military academy. What is she earning?" "I'm aware that she enjoys to design things. I don't know what those things are, but my family will gift her a work space." Ammoses' eyes lit up, "Oh, she'll love it! By the way, when you talk to her, refer to her as Machine Girl. She hates her real name."
After a few more minutes of talking, the group of four left Alija's house. The four all high fived, celebrating their accomplishment. Although Craig and Louis hardly knew Casiopea and Ammoses, they could all feel a new connection forming between themselves. In fact, Craig went back and knocked on Alija's door. She opened it, asking what he needed. "Hey. Could you perhaps do us another favor? Can you put us all in the same class, or classes?" Alija nodded, "Sure!" Craig exclaimed, "Thanks a bunch!"
Octavio and Machine Girl both decided to go the library as they waited for the other four. Octavio was reading a book describing previous revolutions and uprisings in history, and Machine Girl was reading a book discussing the most infamous terror attacks and national tragedies. They didn't say a word to each other, they simply read in silence.
To Be Continued