[So apparently I didn't learn my lesson last time and burned my self out earlier than expected and ended with a chapter going past 12k words and ended up cutting it down to 10k and split of the last chunk into a later chapter]

[Disclaimer: I do not own 'The Loud House' or anything really, if I did I wouldn't be on FF, I'd be on TV]

To OMAC001: You can and you will ;)

Posted 9/30/19

-Chapter 3-

"The science exposé, that's where everything went to shit, mom and dad had pop-pop and gran-gran look after the house and our pets, we were waiting for Lori to arrive so we could leave and I spent most of that time looking at a family portrait in the living room that was taken after my 'origin story', smiles on everyone's faces, and such clear detail too." He said, looking back fondly at the memory of his family picture.

"Mom has golden-blonde hair and bright-green eyes, dad has dark chestnut-brown balding hair and sapphire blue eyes.

Lori, the perfect blend of our parents with mom's golden-blonde hair and our dad's sapphire blue eyes, Leni has such a beautiful shade of angelic platinum-blonde hair and emerald-green eyes.

Luna decorated with freckles has our dad's dark chestnut-brown hair and dark-blue eyes, Luan has light auburn-brown hair and light-brown eyes, the first one to stray from our parents distinctive features.

Lynn has warm-brown hair and soft-brown eyes and just like Luna is littered with freckles, Lucy has long jet-black hair and had icy-blue eyes, not that you could tell under all that hair.

The twins have golden-blonde hair like our mom and light-brown eyes like Luan, Lisa has shaggy dark chestnut-brown hair like our father and Luna with emerald-green eyes like Leni.

Baby Lily has light-blonde hair and bright-green eyes like our mom, lastly there was me, snow white-hair and at the time I had chocolate-brown eyes." He ended taking a breath and started again.

"I was taking it all in, examining every last detail and I'm so glad I did, I must've stared at it so hard I got it burned into my skull." Lincoln sat there remembering, deep in focus like he was trying to recall some lost detail, "Eh, anyway Lori just came and-"

~XxX Flashback XxX~

It was bright and early in the Loud house at about 9am as Lincoln was staring at his oldest sister Lori after just breaking off their hug, it's been quite a while since he's seen her, he just can't take his eyes off of her.

14 year old Lincoln was taken aback by how tall Lori was at about 5'9", sure it wasn't that much but it was the first time in a long while he's seen her and he didn't expect to be reminded that he was the 'little brother' so soon with her looking down at him and with Lincoln's eyes attuned to the female beauty he finally sees what presumably Bobby and subsequently Clyde along with other boys see in his sister. Lori was beautiful and just like his other sisters to be sure Lori has her own unique charm as with the rest.

Working backwards, Lynn was cute, had a boyish outlook that felt safe to approach, for a long time being the sporty one made her seem so un-lady like, in some cases undesirable and downright intimidating to those of the male persuasion but growing up has really brought out her assets, her curves are coming in and all of this has shown Lincoln that girls come in all shapes and sizes, to sum up Lynn; 'strong is the new cute'.

Luan, is hard to pin down (wink), you wouldn't call her butch but you can't say feminine either. She just has one of those aura's that makes you want to grin and leaves you happy (or tries to at least), her dedication to her craft and singular mission to get you to smile just makes you feel all kinds of special, like you're all that matters in the world if only until it's her time to go. Puberty has been very kind to her, probably back pay for the years spent in braces and getting boo'd out by the others when her one goal was to make them laugh, with an impressively large bust for her age and a mega-watt smile, Luan's getting all the attention she should have been getting all her life, makes you wonder why she doesn't have a boyfriend now.

Luna, now there's a girl who knows how to show you a good time, she has the necessary energy needed in just one of her songs to power a small city, unlike Luan, Luna's much easier to place in the feminine to butch spectrum, easily butch through and through. She demands your attention and rewards you greatly for your devotion, the kind of woman you hate to see go but love to watch her leave, if Lincoln's being honest, there is no one thing that can perfectly describe Luna's beauty, only that it's a bunch of little things rolled into one woman that makes Luna so contagious among both men and women alike, Sam doesn't seem to mind it, Luna's got a little something for everyone.

Leni, Leni is pure, not to say she is pure good or pure of heart but if people were to describe Leni, it would probably be 'stereotypical pretty, dumb, blonde girl', but Lincoln sees the truth, Leni has nothing to influence her growth in any way to be more than just her; honest, sweet and emotional so yeah this does leave her to be vulnerable to manipulation and easy to mix up sometimes (a lot) but of all the louds there is no one more honest or soul-stirring than Leni. With an angelic face as divine as her hair, a slim but curvy build, she's not small but she's not big either, a perfect hourglass shape Leni draws the attention of boys and girls but only a handful have the courage or audacity to make a move, usually they think she'll put out until they realize the ditzy blonde routine is for real and if they want any T and A, they'll have to play the long game, something most teenagers are not into but Leni doesn't care about that or really understand what they were after in the first place, all she knows is there is at least one honest, perfect boy in her life and he lives down the hall.

Then there's Lori, like Leni she has a bit of an hourglass body type, minus the extra height on Leni and added curves on a slightly older woman, she's a blonde too, but unlike Leni, Lori's outlook has been molded by time and it's given her a desire to keep what's 'Hers' with her enchanting visage and authoritarian charge. Lori is in a light blue turtleneck and a brown skirt that barely reaches her knees with black flat heels. Her sweater is form fitting and accentuates her DD cups, and while Leni is starry wide-eyed, Lori's eyes are always half lidded (the bedroom eyes), revealing her blue eyeliner that makes her always seem stuck between seductive and dazed or analytical. She has a light creamy skin complexion that's just a few shades paler than Leni's, the exposed skin of Lori's legs look so smooth and rich you just want a quick feel and see what you're missing.

Lincoln stares at Lori as she's making her way to the kitchen to greet the rest of her family, her form-fitting pencil skirt outlines a nice, firm, perfect rear, an ass you could bounce a quarter off of.

"Oh so now I'm not good enough huh, found someone else did ya, I see how it is Lincoln." Came the voice of Lynn, startling Lincoln as she mock angrily struts away purposefully swaying her hips with her tight, red, ass-hugging shorts in full view, reminding Lincoln where his attention should be, 'God Damn Lynn!'

Lincoln's left daydreaming of how Lynn would look out of her shorts as he hears a knock on the door, he opens it to see his grandfather Albert 'Pop-pop' and Myrtle 'gran-gran' his girlfriend turned wife as of last of last spring. Albert and Myrtle still look the same, Albert, standing at 5'8" has white hair and a light-grey, thick mustache, Myrtle has big, dark-brown hair with a few streaks of grey coming in and is about Lincoln's height. The two of them haven't changed much in the last 3 years other than a few more wrinkles.

As the elderly couple makes their way in, Albert wraps Lincoln in a tight bear hug as Myrtle pinches his cheeks, "Woah, yer gettin' big Lincoln, haven't seen ya in ages." Albert says to his grandson.

"You just saw me last week pop-pop." Lincoln responds to Albert.

"Yeah but to an old fossil, one week may as well have been months, I love the boys back at the home but you can only play cards with the same crowd for so long, aint that right Myrtle?" He looks to his wife.

"Oh yes, but look at you Lincoln, so handsome, you probably have a girlfriend by now, right hun?" She asks as a familiar voice surprises them.

"Yeah Linc, tell them about all the girlfriends you don't have." Came the smug tone of Lynn who came back down with 4 black cases that Lincoln has seen in Lisa's room.

"Ha ha haaa, yeah alright Lynn, real funny." It is funny because Lincoln's been friend zoned by every girl so far since last Valentine's Day.

"Damn right, now take these boxes to the van while I catch up with pop-pop, K." She tells Lincoln.

"Sure, why not." He stops to notice how light they are.

"And be careful, don't need poindexter giving me an earful cause of you."

"Alright, Alright, I'm going now." He said ignoring the tomboy and delicately carries Lisa's cases to the van.

-XxX-

"And that takes care of that." Lincoln said as saw two shadows approaching.

Lincoln turns to see his best friend Clyde and his girlfriend of 2 years, Penelope. Clyde really has changed, just as Lincoln, Clyde has been getting in shape and stands taller than his best friend at 5'7", he still needs glasses but traded in his bright yellow and blue shirt for a solid blue dress shirt and underneath you can see the collar to a pale yellow shirt, meh, black slacks and black high tops.

Penelope has long frizzy red hair, black rimmed glasses, a pink sweater embroidered with an alien head and a teal short skirt with brown shoes, Lincoln's pretty sure she wore the exact same thing years ago but when you find a look that works for you, no point in changing. Apparently puberty decided to reward her like Luan for their pre-pubescent imperfections, cause she's stacked, 14 years old and carrying DD's, they just sprang out of nowhere last year, 'Clyde is a lucky man, those didn't even come in till last spring, and that trip to the pool-' His thoughts are interrupted by Clyde.

"Lincoln, I got your text last night, you're going now?"

"Hey Clyde, sup Pen, *"Good morning Lincoln"* and yes, we're leaving now. To be honest I'd rather not, but we don't really get too many chances where everyone's schedules are clear and for something so important. Still it kind of bothers me to know everyone just sort of agreed when we found out Lori was coming-" Lincoln started only to be cut off by the monotonous voice of Lucy.

"I didn't" *AHH!* Were the screams of our outdoor teens.

"Lucy what have we told you about that!" Lincoln said holding onto his chest.

"I didn't even see her, where did she come from?" Penelope asked as she wheezed.

"I've learned that it's better not to ask and just be thankful to still be breathing Penny." Said Clyde while catching his breath before Lincoln addressed his sister.

"How can we help you Luce and what do you mean you didn't?"

"I was just talking with our grandparents when I noticed you weren't around until I noticed Clyde and his eternal love standing in front of our dwelling, as for your second question, I never gave my answer, everyone skipped over me as per usual, Sigh."

"Oh, uh, wow, I'm so sorry Lucy, I was so caught up with myself I wasn't thinking about yo-"

"Your concern for me is appreciated and I understand Lincoln, I too am afraid of HD." Lucy told her brother as Clyde spoke up.

"Oh man, tell me about it, my dads are so spooked, they turned the tracker in my phone back on and call me every half hour I'm out of the house-"

~Switch on the sky and the stars glow for you,

Go see the world cause it's all so brand new~

"And speak of the devils, hold on I gotta take this." Clyde answered his smartphone to talk with his father(s). His ringtones have always been a bit upbeat and Disneyesque, Penelope begins in his place.

"Ignoring that one of continuous obtrusions to come." She said obviously upset.

"Hsss, that bad Pen?" Lincoln asks.

"I mean, I get it but the other day me and Clyde were in the middle of-" She looks to see Lincoln raise an eyebrow, "You know what, never mind," She blushes, "Anyway, they keep calling when we're trying to have some alone time and he just picks up for them, c'mon I know I'm no UFO or a cryptid but I deserve a little attention too!" She finished with a huff.

"President of the Paranormal Research club ladies and gentlemen, *"Co-President"* right, how could I forget, anyway I can't help you with your guy troubles, shot in the dark, you tried talking to him?"

"Obviously, but he keeps deflecting and dodging the subject like Bigfoot dodges a camera."

"Alright, I think we get it, you're aiming to be a paranormal investigator but can we please just talk normal and leave that SCP crap back in the mystery machine, Velma." Lincoln said rather rudely.

"…See this why you can't land a girlfriend, for a guy who has like a million hobbies, you really should take an interest in someone else's, maybe then you wouldn't need the aid of chocolates, oh and how's that going by the way." Oh this ginger bites back.

"Just fine, how's the hunt for 'Bigfoot' treating you." He said gesturing to Clyde as her Bigfoot. Playful banter between the two to be sure, it's how they defeat the awkward tension between the two when Penelope started dating Clyde and steeling all of his free time.

They stare intently at one another until they share in a laugh, if they were being honest, when Penny started dating Clyde, she and Lincoln really didn't know how to be friends or 'share' Clyde and after one misinterpreted comment, it turned into trading insults and just as the toxic atmosphere reached its climax, they just burst out laughing and that's been the basis of their friendship, eventually they just learn to play things out and when not on dates, Penny regularly joins Clyde in his and Lincoln's (mis)adventures.

Penny gradually got to meet the rest of the Louds and finds Lucy the most… fascinating, she truly buys into Lucy's supernatural affiliations.

"So anyway, sorry can't help you there Pen but if it's really bothering you that much, you could just talk to Mr. and Mr. Mcbride about it, I'm sure they'll understand." Lincoln tells Penny.

"Right, I'll keep that in mind Linc, so you hear about Russia?"

"Yeah, HD's turning into a real nightmare."

"You said it, everybody won't shut up about it, we were thinking about heading to 'Gus' games and grub' later but on the way here, it was like a ghost town, people are too scared to leave their homes and play outside these days."

"Don't even get me started, I spent all of yesterday with my sisters at home, didn't even want to go out, guess everyone's waiting for the inevitable, huh."

"Yeah, anyway we wanted to wish your family well, we know you guys are gonna be safe at that exposé."

"Thanks."

"Don't worry about it, now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go drag my man out for some fun." She said walking back to Clyde who is still in the middle of his conversation as Penny pulls the phone from his ear and kisses him deeply then as if in a trance he hangs up and walks off with his girl.

"Huh, he didn't even ask about Lori this time, I guess Pen's really got a hold on you. *Sigh* See you when I get back." He says in a dull tone.

"I'm sure they'll be fine without you-" *AHH!*

"You're still here?!" He nearly screamed.

"Sigh, yes and as I was saying, they'll be fine without you, you have nothing to worry about Lincoln."

"Yeah, I guess, you sure you don't need anything, I didn't keep you waiting did I?"

"No, I'm fine here, though everyone else seems eager to leave, remind me how we are getting to Seattle in less than a day, I seemed to have forgotten."

"Yeah Lisa was pretty spotty on the details last night but Mom and Dad said that we're being flown over in some kind of supped up private jet, we are estimated to arrive just under 2 hours."

"How many strings did Lisa pull to land that?" Lucy asked, impressed.

"It's being provided for her by one of her colleagues just for the exposé, I think his name was… something McCoy, it's also supposed to be our ride back home."

"How wondrous." There was a hint of excitement in her dull voice.

"Here's the kicker, it's being developed for the military but it needs a trial run so we're being allowed to travel aboard an unarmed demo model, I mean it's no Lockheed Blackbird but I heard it's pretty damn fast."

Lucy raised an eyebrow not that Lincoln could tell, "And you're sure it's safe?"

"Lisa said so, she also told mom and dad that's how a lot of other big wig scientists are getting there on short notice too."

"…Sigh, very well." And like that Lucy exited back into the Loud House.

*Sigh* "Now if only I could believe that."

~XxX Flashback End XxX~

*Sigh* "Not much I could've done then, I'm just happy to be alive with Lucy now. So back to the plane, it wasn't really a smooth ride but it did get us to DC just before noon and as we went through customs with a family of 13, being checked thoroughly delayed us by about an hour, at least it wasn't American Airlines …that's still relevant right?

Then we were escorted to a hotel by some secret service, men in black looking assholes who made it clear we were a chore to them but fuck those guys, me and the girls didn't really feel like going out, room service was awesome, there was an arcade on the ground floor, DDR with Lynn and Lori, karaoke with Leni and Luna, guess who drew in a crowd, not me. Oh man, don't get me started on this one girl, she had mocha skin, long wavy dark hair, bright green eyes and had the fattest a- Wait, wait no, stay on target Lincoln." He reminded himself.

*Inhale* *Exhale* In a somber mood, Lincoln began again. "Alright so back to the expo, it was about 6, the sun was setting and the president was being introduced-"

~XxX Flashback XxX~

Lincoln and his family were in a massive crowd that swarmed around a stage, very, large, very spacious. Behind the curtains of the stage people were moving about, probably the stage hands workers getting the lights right as the speakers were buzzing.

Lincoln felt a tug on his pants as his baby sister Lily gained his attention.

"What is it Lil'?" He asked seeing her eyes water and lips quiver.

"I can't see, Lincoln!" she shouted needing to be heard over the intense and mixing voices of the crowd around them.

"Alright Lil', how about this." He picks her up and quickly but gently places Lily on his shoulders, as she tries to balance herself she grabs patches of Lincoln's achromic hair, he yelps in brief pain.

"Ah, ah, easy Lily! Your big bro needs that hair." He tells his sister.

"Sorry Lincoln!" She tells him in a panic.

"It's alright, now how's the view from up there Lily?" He asks.

"Better!"

"Good, now let's watch Lisa 'revolutionize the world', right guys." He addresses his family.

"Right!" Shout his family. Lincoln looked onward ready for the show to start as he feels Lily squeeze his head tighter and he smiles.

Finally the curtains parted to reveal a massive cloaked structure of machine, and a man walking to a podium. He was light skinned bald and in a black pinstripe suit, and soon enough he was making the introduction for someone else.

"Ladies and gentlemen it is my honor to welcome our president-" *BRZZT* *BRZZT* *BRZZT* The man continued to speak until he realized that the microphone wasn't picking up the audio and the speakers were bugging out just as another voice began in his place.

["Good afternoon Ladies and gentlemen, this is 'Harmony and Discord' here to interrupt your little science fair to deliver a message."]

Everyone began panicking as the voice only grew louder and suddenly he feels his arms being squeezed by two kids. He shifts his head left and right to see Lana and Lola respectively grab onto him. Dear lord, he sees Lola visibly shaking and the color draining from her as sweat pours down Lana's face, they look exactly how he feels right now and it's downright horrifying.

"Oh no, oh no, no, NO." Lola mumbles to herself as her arms vibrate with fear taking hold, Lincoln sees tears trailing down her face and her mascara dripping along with it.

The voice calling everyone's attention picks up, Lincoln hardly noticed that he had stopped listening to it, instead choosing to see his sisters panic and try to do something about it as he turns back to the podium, he knows he has missed chunks of HD's big speech.

["…Best said by Homer in the Odyssey, '…Nothing is bred that is weaker than man', but we know the truth, we humans were gifted with no physical advantages that give us the edge within the cruel game of life known as 'survival of the fittest' yet we as a species stand firmly atop the food chain, the hierarchy among our fellow beasts of the land but history continues to point out our faults.

Those who stand on top of any pyramid grow complacent, we grow comfortable in the role we've taken for ourselves, then others who wish to take our place makes the same mistake, history repeats itself because no one lives long enough to see the pattern.

We live in an age dominated by bureaucrats, politics, pencil pushing and paper money, for some it is paradise for they've learned to thrive whereas the rest must assume the position of subservient beast.

We humans were not gifted with strong fangs, mighty claws nor any extraordinary traits that put us all on equal footing with our superiors within the wild, we've conquered them, confined them but we've yet to claim the ability to stand beside them, because we are still weak. History has taught us that through conflict, we humans fail to meet it with brute force, no, we use our minds to make up for what we cannot accomplish on our own, we have developed our minds, our numbers but not ourselves.

This is because the Consortium has fooled us into believing we cannot rise and by keeping us complacent, we don't question it, we don't argue with it, we just accept it. I have a present for all of you, we've had it made special for everyone here."]

The voice went silent as no one wanted to speak above the loud humming noise that originated from the stage and everyone looked to the massive machine that was covered, it was glowing an ominous red and pulsating. 2 members of the security detail approached the cloaked structure with guns drawn, as both individuals pulled the fabric off the machine a loud roar erupted from the audience.

[22:52]

It was counting down, for God sake it was a timer and everyone knew what for.

["Our gift to you, death, destruction, misery and the beginning of a new era, for it is trial by fire, conflict and struggle which proves the impetus for evolution. War is the catalyst for ingenuity just as pain is the crucible to power, only by fighting for our lives do we become more efficient but it isn't enough, there is no change in humanity through war, it only scars us, molds our mindset, no, what we have given you is the pinnacle of our ingenuity, the ability to change, evolve and finally give us our fangs and claws.

'Nothing is bred that is weaker than man', it is indeed true, we must make ourselves stronger… this is a bomb filled chemical mutagens, a special compound that will lead to the salvation of our world."]

[20:59]

["It is most unfortunate that you will not survive for if you do you may come to beg for death. Even so, progress and evolution requires the destruction of the old in order to-"]

There came a tap on Lincoln's shoulders as a man who looks to be of the security detail drags Lincoln and his family through the crowd and makes their way out of the expo and behind a formation of men who look to be of secret service forming some kind of perimeter.

Not far from the expo there was a hidden escape route that led to small shuttle train-carts that were made to travel underground all lined up, one was already leaving and from the thick slightly frosted lining of the glass windows he could see it was the US president, his family and his entourage/escorts. The next ones to enter a shuttle train were the guest big wig scientists, the ones making the presentation.

Lincoln could barely form a thought and just ignored the voices around him and in the blink of an eye his family was next, he snaps out of it and realizes Lily was taken off of his shoulders as father was dragging him into the train as the sound of gunshots filled the air, then Lincoln looked back and saw a mob of the expo attendees rushing to the shuttles.

'Oh God, this IS happening!' Were the thoughts racing through his head.

"Are we gonna make it out of this Lis'?!" Came the strained voice of Lana, who asked the Loud genius who looked onward with wide eyes as she was stammering until her sister Lynn slapped her across the face.

"Get a hold of yourself Lis'!" Lisa came back to reality as the family looked to her.

"Yes, thank you for that and yes we should be able to escape the city within minutes, this underground rail system was made to launch escape shuttles fast enough to safely transport its occupants across the state into safe zones and bunkers, we should be safe if-"

"Like, why aren't the doors closing?!" screamed Leni as the crowd of people made it to the shuttle the Louds were in.

"Ahhh!" Everyone looked to see the spooky dark dweller of the Louds was pulled out of their shuttle as people tried to push themselves in.

Something snapped inside of Lincoln as a man who tried to grab onto another one of his sisters flew back with a sickening crunch resonating from his mouth, more and more people tried to force their way in as they were met with similar results as the first guy.

Man, woman, teen everyone got some as Lincoln was forcing his way out of the shuttle ignoring the voices of his family, he made his way to his downed sister and lift her off the ground as he saw a nasty bruise on her cheek but he ignored it as he turned on his heels and dragged Lucy through the crowd repeating the same actions he used to get off the train now to get back on until something collided with his back and sent him to his knees as he picked himself back up and kept moving.

He noticed in the midst of this chaos, the attendees were fighting each other as much as they tried to force themselves to board the shuttle, failing as another person stepped in only to be pulled out by the person behind them as the cycle repeated itself, but he cared little for what these animals did to each other, he made it closer to his family little by little.

Someone grabbed onto his neck as another person elbowed him in the face, his nose dripping and his head rattling as he pushed forward an made it to the doors only for someone to pull on Lucy and dragged Lincoln back too, as he looked back to his family screaming for him and Lucy, he turned back and saw whoever was pulling on Lucy and threw the fiercest right hook on this greasy balding man who looked like the kind of man your teachers warn you about, the kind of man who offers you candy to climb into the back of his windowless white van, Lincoln had no regrets knocking his shit in but as he pulled Lucy to the train the doors closed in their faces leaving a devastated family and a stunned pair of siblings as the train shoots off into the dark void of the underground tunnels.

Lincoln looks to the next cart that's already being boarded by desperate attendees hoping to survive whatever was waiting for them back at the expo, this time there was no hope of getting past this wave of angry survivors, some sitting and praying knowing that they're doomed, some refusing to accept what was happening and one guy pulling out a knife and- 'Holy Crap' he just starts stabbing people in his way but then he's viciously beaten to a pulp by a bigger mob in retaliation, Lincoln looks to Lucy who is lost in the maelstrom of fear, panic, terror and death around her and then it hits him, if there is time left, just get to a car someone may have left behind.

"C'mon, I got a plan!"

"R-right!" She struggles to form words and mostly just nods.

-XxX-

Lincoln and Lucy ran as fast as their legs could carry them while they run past the stage where the bomb had been armed as people were trying and failing to take it apart or disarm it not knowing how to, the damn thing was solid, it looked like one piece of machine but that isn't what he's here for.

[8:37]

Yes, there was still time, Lincoln knew he could run a few blocks in under a minute, but it was him and Lucy and Lucy could not keep up with him so he did the only thing he could. Lincoln yanked Lucy to his side and while ignoring her pained yelp he just throws her over his shoulder and sprints as fast as he can.

-XxX-

He is more focused and dedicated now than anything he's ever been in his life, as he could feel every second pass he estimated the countdown was at about 7 minutes.

Lincoln with Lucy in tow make it to the streets as he lets her down and she holds her gut in pain, he spares no apology as he's looking for a car to take, he's confused as to why more people weren't taking cars, 'I mean are they all panicking too much to think or do none of them know how to hotwire crap?' were his thoughts as he comes upon a topless Porsche wedged between a few more vehicles, Lincoln couldn't care less to figure out what model it is as he hops in and Lucy climbs in.

Lincoln quickly undoes the plastic guard under the steering wheel and starts pulling out wires.

~XxX Reality Break XxX~

"In case you're wondering, I learned how to hotwire from Luna and Lana, I picked up a thing or two from one of Lisa's lectures involving electronics, wires and passing on electrical charges. Lana showed me how to cross wires in a car to make certain parts go and Luna showed me how to actually hotwire, WHICH SHE DOESN'T DO WITH VANZILLA, 'wink' anyway"

~XxX Back to Flashback XxX~

Lincoln just got the car started as the engine roars.

"Seatbel- oh you got it, well hold on Luce!" He says as he shifts it into reverse.

"You know how to drive?!" She asks.

"Sort of, I've seen dad do it a jillion times how hard can i-" He's shut up as he rams into the car behind him, he looks over to Lucy and the blank face she was wearing, he could feel her judgmental gaze "What!" He puts it into drive and speeds of into the distance people are littering the streets as he swerves and narrowly misses a few idiots just standing in the road and one man tries to jump on the car only to roll off and get his leg crushed and rolled on but Lincoln doesn't pay it any mind.

"C'mon, C'mon, C'mon!" In his head, he's already wasted nearly 2 minutes getting away from these idiots blocking his way as only now does he start flooring it, seeing an empty path in front of him, he goes for it.

He drives in a straight line in a seemingly empty road hoping not to crash into anything, the needle on the speedometer reading 160 and climbing but he doesn't pay attention, his chest is pushed back into his seat as the pressure builds but he ignores it as the winds drown out the screams coming from Lucy.

Suddenly Lincoln sees something blocking the road ahead as he takes his foot off the gas pedal and slowly pushes on the brakes as he and Lucy are nearly lifted off their seats when the car came to a stop.

He begins huffing as he takes a closer look at what's blocking him and it's a God Damned construction blockade, apparently this street was closed for maintenance, there is no road to drive on just ripped up pavement and vehicles left behind by their crew.

"FUCK, FUCK, fuck it c'mon Luce, we gotta run!" He tells her as they both undo their seatbelts and jump out of the car and just run for dear life, 30 seconds later and they feel some kind of pulse go off with what they could only describe at the time was a punch to the earth by some malevolent deity.

"Shit, we have to take cover!" Lincoln shouts as he drags Lucy behind a building and wraps his body around hers, cocooning her.

As a wave of energy accompanied by a powerful force and burning light washes over the two, Lincoln just before he blacked out felt his insides burn out as his skin freezes and numbs, his eyes feel as if they're oozing out of his skull and then everything turns white for just the briefest moment and then nothingness, a darkness that draws him into what he can only guess is the eternal rest he was promised in death.

'So that's how it ends huh, not bad I guess, I just wish I could have gotten Luce back to the others, at least then… I'd… have died… happy.'

Everything goes black.

~XxX Reality Break XxX~

"Hope you didn't buy into that, cause I mean we're still here aren't we? I gotta tell you, that mutagen bomb or whatever was easily the worst pain I'd ever been in… back then, now, just barely top 10, trust me 6 years is a long fucking time to experience a new world of pain on a near monthly basis.

But anyway back to it then"

~XxX Back to Flashback XxX~

Everything was still, all was silent, night had fallen and it's pitch-black, it's hard to say how long it's been since the bomb went off but behind a building we see our white haired hero holding tightly onto his sister.

The air around Lincoln was cold, dry and devoid of any comfort. Suddenly there was jolt inside of him, something telling him to wake up but he just wanted to lay in the cold and rest.

*Bu-bum… Bu-bum* Lincoln stirs into consciousness as his body twitches, he feels a faint heartbeat outside of his body but slowly resonating with that of his own steady beat, 'Lucy?'

His eyes slowly open as he is alerted to the darkness around him, he slowly pulls himself off of Lucy as he puts his ear to her chest, 'Oh thank God, thank you' he sheds a tear as he carefully brings his hand to her cheek but stops as he sees his hand.

It's tanned, even with this dark atmosphere he can see it with relative ease, he's gotten a dark complexion and though it's rather light, it's still a completely different tone than what he knew he had.

"Oh god, what happened to me?" He asks himself as he takes a second look at Lucy, 'Even she's different', Lucy's skin is like that of the purest white, as white as bone, like porcelain, right now as shocked as he is to see the alterations to their epidermis he needs to tend to his sister.

Lincoln picks up Lucy and carries her bridal position as he makes his way back to the Porsche. He puts her in the passenger side with her facing away as he climbs back into the driver's seat, he touches the wires to start the engine but nothing happens, he does it again but it doesn't start.

"Well shit." He steps on the gas pedal expecting something different only for the same thing to happen, and then suddenly the sound of Lucy stirring awake draws Lincoln's attention.

"Li- Lincoln?" She voices in a chocked out whisper.

"Lucy, you're awake!" He nearly shouted in happiness.

"What is this, are we dead, is… is this The Bad Place, I can't see you." She said in a hushed whisper, barely able to let her voice out.

"I'm right in front of you Luce, we're alive, I think, everything seems normal, it's night time." Lincoln says trying to calm her while caressing her hair to let her know he's with her.

"How can you tell how everything looks, it's so dark I can't see anything, where are the lights?" She asked as Lincoln was getting worried.

'Oh no is she blind?' Lincoln turned Lucy towards him as she reeled away in shock, "What's wrong Luce?" He asked, could she see him at last?

"Are those your eyes Lincoln?"

"What do you mean?" Lincoln was confused, what's wrong with his eyes?

"They're glowing, it's like staring into molten gold being dragged into a black vortex." Lucy said in her usual poetic fashion.

"What?" Lincoln asked as he parted Lucy's hair to his shock, the icy-blue irises he had been accustomed to had shifted into an electric neon-blue with a tantalizing glow to them, 'Yeah that's definitely not normal, but why can't she see me?'

~XxX Reality Break XxX~

"Yeah, I'm ashamed to say it took me a lot longer than I care to admit that I figured out I had night vision or low to zero visibility vision, I can see in the dark, well that and a shit ton of other powers that make zero sense, and me into every video game hero's wet-dream.

But after talking to Luce, we came to the idea that we needed to see what happened to everyone else and maybe find some survivors and since the car was a total bust we had to walk, guess who had to guide his poor sister."

~XxX Back to Flashback XxX~

Down the darkened path, Lincoln was walking back towards the expo to see what happened, it was a bomb right, and it even reached Lincoln and Lucy so why are they still alive and why does everything look so untouched?

They must've been walking for hours because eventually the two got to apart the road that seemed familiar to Lincoln, it was coated with corpses, all still and lifeless, the sheer terror and isolation was lost on Lincoln as he tries to remember what he was doing here.

'This is near that road that was packed with people and that moron trying to jump on our ca-' His thoughts came to an end as he saw the man who attempted to hitch a ride on the Louds' escape vehicle.

An older white man, a 'dead' man with short brown, a dark brown jacket, jeans and red sneakers- a sneaker, one foot was barren of foot wear other than socks, a foot that was bent at a 90 degree angle upward, at the shin with a blood trail showing her was moving a great distance away from the direction of the expo and apparent blast, his face blank, not peaceful, like he saw the end and didn't have time accept it.

Lincoln stares on and is sickened by what he had been a part of, maybe he could have given the man a ride, everyone was trying to survive and now that Lincoln is safe, all he can do is wonder if his 'selfishness' killed a man, doomed others or if saving his remaining sister was worth what he had done to this guy, 'Did he have kids, a wife- no, no ring on his finger, maybe divorced?', these were the thoughts racing through Lincoln's head before a voice snapped him out of his trance.

"Lincoln, what's wrong he stopped for a while now, is there something here?" She asked still not being able to see but still worried her brother had stopped moving and while thankful of their break, they were still in the middle of nowhere.

"It's nothing Lucy, let's keep moving." He tried not to let his voice give away his emotional despondence just as another voice crept into his guilt riddled head, 'He tried to stop me and Lucy from escaping and suffered for it, he made his choice and paid for it, we did nothing wro- I probably helped kill a guy- He was as good as dead, he was just going to drag me and Lucy with him- STOP!' He screamed in his head as his foot collided with something.

A red bike, next to the corpse of a teenager, a boy of around Luna and Luan's age group, Lincoln pays him no mind as he is still conflicted over the man he may have helped kill.

He looks back to the bike, the frames are red, wheels black and it had pegs, 'It's not like he's gonna need it- That's disrespectful- I can't keep walking and I know Lucy needs the rest, she's a trooper, I'll give her that, only a few breaks in between and not a word of complaint, she needs this too.' And with that Lincoln carefully untangled the boy's feet from the bike that he owned in life but would now serve another in his death.

-XxX-

Lincoln had been cycling for about an hour, much faster than the pace he was going while guiding Lucy through the darkness only he could navigate. They had gone through the road they passed a while after they got the bike, that was over half an hour ago and there was nothing but bodies trying to get away from the blast, men, women and children all trying to get away and even a few cars with bodies piled around them, Lincoln figures some finally wised up and got to the cars only to be blocked by the people but he can't help but wonder why didn't anyone within the first twenty minutes of the countdown think to do that in the first place.

'Maybe like me they just stood there listening to the speech like a bunch of zombies, if not for the security detail, my family would have been left out here, maybe it was mob mentality that drove them to attack the escape shuttles, surely they knew there wasn't enough for everyone and most could have just stolen a car, who knows, who cares they made their choice and now we're stuck out here.' Lincoln concluded his thoughts.

Soon enough the bike came to a stop as Lincoln saw a sight he'd never forget, dark outlines of where people once were as most of the stage from the expo was blown apart as was the surrounding layout. The machine that started it all or what's left of it was left in bits ruble as something wet and moving was sounding an echo.

Lucy asked Lincoln what was going on but he kept silent, if she was worried, she didn't voice it as the bike they were on moved towards the noise in what Lincoln remembers to be the escape route used by the President's escorts.

What Lincoln saw would haunt him for years to come, what was in the hall was a mass of flesh with multiple limbs wriggling and writhing as Lincoln could see it was coated in blood and pale pinkish flesh, upon that flesh beside the limbs were slits that decorated the thing, and the smell. The scent nearly sent Lincoln gagging but he powered through it and noticed a few bodies, men in black suits, obviously dead but in one of their hands, a gun, a Sig Sauer p229 DAK model, he wouldn't even know what one looked like if not for his grandfather, all black, easy to miss and just what Lincoln wants, what he needs in case he runs into more of these… 'blobs'.

"Lucy hang tight, I'll be right back." Lincoln whispers to her.

"Wait but-"

"Shh" He shushes her.

Lincoln and Lucy gently get off the bike and he puts out its kickstand then stands it as he goes for the gun. As Lincoln inches closer to his target he looks back to the blob creature, listening to its raspy, sickly breathing as it continues to make a wet slithering noise but still hasn't moved.

Lincoln picks up the gun and searches the remaining bodies, he finds 3 guns and a grand total of 5 extra clips. As he begins sneaking back to Lucy, Lincoln feels something behind him and turns to meet the blob of flesh in front of him, 'How, I-' he thinks as he looks over to where he knew the monster was and saw it slither behind a building and stretch into the backside of the blob in front of him. Then the slits on its body part open and reveal eyes, eyes of all sorts of colors all glowing from a toxic green to a fiery red and even a soft pink.

The thing tried to grab onto Lincoln but he slipped away and saw something strange, it was waving its limbs in a frenzy searching for him, 'C-can, it not see me, even with all those eyes?' He asks himself.

He thinks he can sneak away from this and plans to bail but then Lucy calls out his name hoping to get a response. That did it, the blob locked onto the sound and made a low rumbling noise as it shot out a stretchy limb-covered tendril towards Lucy and Lincoln didn't even need to think about it, he pulled out one the guns he 'liberated' and fired two rounds into the blob hoping to get its attention.

The bullets pierce its skin and blood pours from it as the rumbling started to sound like a hiss, it reformed back into one mass and rolled over to reveal a big slit on its 'stomach' and it opened showing Lincoln multiple rows of human teeth all mismatched and of varying colors and sizes. Within the teeth lain one more eye, a big one with 3 pupils splitting. As soon as it looked in Lincoln's direction a tendril shot out of one of its sides, to Lincoln it looked like it was coming in slow motion, he saw it as easily dodge-able but as soon as he moved his body it was moving just as slow as the tendril, 'What the WHAT?!' he screamed in his head as the tendril caught and slammed him into a wall, knocking the gun from his hand.

As he was pinned he saw the flesh and limbs morph, several holes opened into the tendril holding Lincoln in place as they unveiled mouths and teeth, one shot out and went for Lincoln's neck but he moved, another shot out as he kept moving again and again the same thing repeated itself and Lincoln could keep up.

Lincoln was beginning to see its movements the moment the tendrils so much as twitched, he was predicting their trajectories and patterns, how was he doing it, he didn't know or question it, he was just going to keep it up until he could come up with a plan.

'This is getting easier, if I just time it right this thing can't tou-' "Aughhh!" Lincoln screamed as one of the blob's maw bit into his right arm, he tried to pry it off with his left hand only for it to pull back and tear a chunk of his arm, skin ripping at the shoulder and peeling back, presenting the exposed and torn muscles underneath, "You asshole!" He yelled.

Another mouth latched onto his left thigh and repeated the same action, the pain was too much for Lincoln to bear as he began fading in and out but something wouldn't allow him to fall into the dark void he was denied hours ago, the sound of his name being called by Lucy in her panic, obviously not being able to see she can only worry and hope he can make it back to her.

"Stay back Lucy, RUN!" He screamed hoping to get the Blob's attention off of her and it worked as it launched another limb lined tendril towards Lincoln looking to end him.

*BANG BANG* The sound of a gun going off and bullets fly into the monster's main body causes it to moan and screech in agony as it reeled back in its tendrils and morph back into one mass.

Lincoln in all his pain looked around and hobbled until he saw Lucy walking forward waving an arm side to side, obviously she still can't see but why does she have the gun Lincoln dropped and how could she had hit the thing if she couldn't see it.

"Lucy! Was that you?" He asked and she looked in his direction and raced to his side, he stood as best as he could and held onto her with his left hand.

"Did I get whatever it was?" She asked answering Lincoln's question in a sense.

"Yeah but how, you can't see, can you?"

"N-no but I felt you both, you were in a lot of pain, you still are and it feels hungry and angry."

"Wait hold on, you felt it?" He asked now intrigued how she described what happened, even while blinded by this darkness, "Wait no, no time for that, we gotta move Luce."

"But you're hurt."

"And we're both in trouble if that thing gets a hold of us." He says as he guides her back to the bike

Lucy tries to be the one to ride but Lincoln tells her he's the one who can see, she wanted to argue but let him have his way, they begin riding if only slowly as they hear the blob screeching and slithering in their direction, Lincoln takes off but is still bleeding.

-XxX-

The bike is heading down the road the two came from and in the far distance they hear the blob but it can't seem to keep up or see the direction their going and so they lose it.

~XxX Reality Break XxX~

"And that would be the first of many encounters with that thing, eventually we do kill it but the how is another story for another time, so back to our escape."

~XxX Back to Flashback XxX~

-2 Hours after the escape-

Lincoln and Lucy had made it past the city limits through the construction zone and decided to stop as dawn broke through the skies as the blanket of darkness was torn apart by the majestic orange rays of the sunrise.

Lucy could finally see around her and was shocked by what she saw, "…" Lucy stood there with her face unmoving or showing any of her concerns.

"Luce, what's wrong?" He asks as Lucy tilts her head and nods to herself.

"Nothing, you look different but… somehow even more the same, more… right, I guess we'll have to adapt, it's better than the alternative I suppose."

"You make it sound like I turned into a monster."

"Oh no, it's just, well, I kind of like your new look, clear skin, exotic tone and the eyes just make it work- But enough of that, your wounds, I could feel your agony an- … what?" Lucy stood confused

"Huh, well how about that." Lincoln said looking at his 'wounded' areas and saw light peachy-creamy patches of his now darker toned skin, the chunks of flesh recently ripped out of Lincoln had healed over and was starting to return to its new 'natural' color, "That's… new."

~XxX Flashback End XxX~

"So yeah, I got super healing, regenerating parts of me and let me tell you, I will always be grateful for that power, more so than all my others, its saved me more than you know and that first encounter with the blob was just a day in the park compared to what came after" He said rubbing his left arm, gripping it tightly, "Just a day in the park." *Sigh*

END

[Just giving a heads up updates may get sporadic here and there, I no longer have the available free time I once had, but I'm not giving this up, I like writing]