Act I: Enter The Dawn, Chapter II: Adrenaline
May 5th, 2030
Lynn Loud waited for her team to assemble. Said team was made up of an all-female roster, consisting of Polly Peine, Paula Ward, and Margo Jefferson. The four had participated in three special missions in total, but Lynn had known they had been in it longer, to which she didn't know yet. The fine print said that bonding was not recommended in this line of work, but it wasn't a prohibited thing either. Lynn went on to befriend the trio at her own risk, and while she had to remember that they could die at any given time out in the field, Lynn never held back her humanity with them.
Sure, she wasn't exactly the most lady-like of all girls, but Lynn had heart, and was one who wanted to come back victorious at the end of these missions. Maybe it was because death was the consequence of failure that she joined up with the FBI to begin with. Lynn was pushing herself to insane levels, where the punishment for losing was harm, maybe even death. She trained hard so that she wouldn't fail, and pushed herself through hard trials that required to be in this place.
Lynn had to do a lot of work to let alone enter the agency, which that itself proved to be quite the hardest time of her life. She worked for it because she wanted it that badly. The hardships of high school, to which she traded up for college, all for a four-year bachelor's degree she needed just to get in. And then came more hardships.
And in a matter of those long years that passed in between, she had succeeded her goal, and made Aunt Rinn Reagan very proud.
Lynn just wished that her parents were also proud.
She knew what she signed up for, and had played with guns before arriving. Even so, she got more training with firearms at the her workplace, learning the basics for both a handgun and a shotgun, and learned some new stuff she hadn't before. The shotguns she used had quite a kick to it, but in time, she had mastered the grip and perfected her aim by a long shot, only missing once or twice from every ten or so shots.
Lynn was a proud FBI agent of 5'6, being the shortest of the team, but was twenty-seven years old, the third oldest of the four, with Margo underneath. Her brunette hair with the signature ponytail had long been forgotten, replaced by a shorter, wavy hairstyle. The reason for this was to closely emulate Luna's own for a reason she could never share to anyone. The sports were dropped from her hobbies long ago, filled in completely by fighting arts and gunplay. Sure, she felt nolstagic at times and would catch some matches from time to time, but Lynn had grown quite enamored with this particular job, maybe even this life if she were to wonder about it more, despite its many occupationap hazards. And those were one too many in the field.
She was all for it, always trying to go the extra mile around her work, which seemed weird to the whole department, up to the point they were led to believe Lynn had some sort of death wish, or was actually a whole new level of crazy never seen before. But Lynn was still the Lynn she had always been; the enthusiastic over-achiever who didn't know when to cease until someone had to be that person to do it. And in this case, that person, or rather the three, were her unit's core members.
Polly Peine was twenty-eight and a half, a figure of a lanky 5'8. Her face was a little mannish, especially with quite the chin her face packed and sported, but it never made her stand out in the days she spent working around the Bureau. She happened to be Lynn's first friend, having bonded over past sports and other recreational activities. It turned out they did have much in common, which kicked off from learning that the other had participated in rollerskating derbies, to baseball, to pretty much many other sports.
That was how Lynn's first day had gone, and she was glad to have made a friend in Polly. Truth was that Polly, being the only female in their district before Lynn's arrival, had been looked down upon by her colleagues simply for being a "defenseless flower" as one of the macho agents had put it with no consideration of her own views or the facts she'd counter the comment with.
Needless to say, Lynn had quite the blood boiling in her when Polly had shared that disrespectful scene, which led to Lynn only choosing Polly as her one and only partner for assignments. They had gone on only three as the dynamic duo before their superior, Director Richard Mathers, had requested the transfer of two other female agents from the neighboring Bureaus.
Lynn and Polly had claimed it a victory by having Margo Jefferson and Paula Ward join their little squad, but in reality it was more back-up for the two, for Mathers would not have "those two girls acting real stupid" under his jurisdiction.
Paula was the tallest of the Lynn Brigade, being a whole six feet and an inch in height. She looked more skinnier compared to Polly, but only without her protective gear. She was a blonde with bright blue eyes, hair set in a ponytail, just ahead of Lynn in age by three months. Paula was the third member of their unit, and the one with a screwed-up past just as it was like Lynn's own; Paula was left an orphan when her parents bit the big one when the Freights, the infamous domestic-based cult of criminals, had staged a bombing carried out at a restaurant they had gone to for their anniversary. It led her to move in with her aunt, where she continued to go on with her life, but only with an entirely new goal in mind; she got into law enforcement to personally see that there would be change, for she wanted to make a difference. And when she went out into the field with her blood sisters, she made another step to ensuring a better outcome of the unknown that was the unpredictable future. But she hadn't been alone in her personal crusade. And she was thankful for her buddies.
Paula had been the first of the only two to have been open on why she joined the program to begin with, which made Lynn reconsider her choosing to keep that away from them. She, as well as Polly, had known that they'd have to share that eventually, even if several people from the entire department had known prior to their joining.
Margo Jefferson had come last, but that didn't make her the least good member of their little team. She and Lynn shared the same height, but the woman was twenty-five, making her the youngest of the squad. Her hair color was a mix of gold and orange, which she had never tampered with apart from keeping it straightened. Her eyes were of a clear hazel shade that sparkled greatly when the sun reached her eyes, as told by Polly once, jokingly. She had freckles, and the average, normal features to have, apart from a nose slightly bigger than meets the eye. Not that she was complaining.
Margo's own reason for being here was one that grew in a time span of over ten years, originating from a classic string of pedophilia that shaped bits of her past, as well as other girls. It was a middle school coach she had known for over a year, which was also about how long the incidents went on for. The coach had been caught and sentenced way back when, but the thing was, Margo had been left quite scarred from the whole ordeal, and to this day, she still had to attend the proper help. At least here, the department did come with such resources, and she never hesitated to go.
Paula and Margo were broken in their own ways, as were the silent Lynn and Polly, but together, the four proved to the strong and formidable agents of the FBI. Maybe fate had rounded them up together for some reason. Good ones at that, Lynn hoped.
She was the first one there, already at the table of the debriefing room, where missions were assigned and explained in full, with significant roles with their own objectives being part of the process. For that, Lynn had received weeks' worth of learning about how they ran, what kinds of operations were carried out, and way more stuff than she initially believed she'd come to learn.
Mathers, as usual, was the debriefer, impatiently awaiting the missing three ladies while he stood at the end of a room, right in front of a screen that took up much of the space of the wall. "Honestly, what's taking them so long?"
Lynn had already strapped to a bulletproof vest and her handgun holster on the left side of her, loaded for the next phase after the rundown. "It's only been like a minute, sir," she pointed out. "I'm sure they are-"
The metal handle of the door creaked as it rotated downwards, stopping after an abrupt halt. The three women had finally arrived, but did so in their bare, casual uniforms, unlike the loaded-up Lynn Loud. Out of the three, only Margo was seen with a fresh cup of joe. "We're here, sir!" Margo pumped out with enthusiasm. "What's this one going to be? Another surveillance task?"
Mathers cleared his throat and motioned a hand to the screen. "Today's case isn't an intel-gathering one, rather..." A mugshot of a beaten dark-skinned, bald man popped up. "This is James Matthews, one of the suspected affiliates with the terror syndicate known as Five. The broker for various arms deals in a fifty-mile radius around here. Since Five just so happens to have international allies and property, this makes it a CIA affair, and so it shall be that you four will be rendezvousing with their team."
"What?" Margo squealed, nearly choking on her coffee. "A joint op?"
"Hey, what's the reason? What are we-?" Lynn began whining.
Mathers raised his hands and held them out, requesting for their collective silence. "Matthews is personally seeing a truckload of what we suspect are military grade weapons be shipped out to a supposedly vacant warehouse in the next two hours, with the buyers being members of Five. Lucky for us that he was apprehended just yesterday and a deal was made fairly quickly."
The screen switched from the mugshot to a set of photos of a white semi with a trailer, appearing to be in an alleyway. "So...?" Paula wondered, still confused.
"Matthews is to man the vehicle, with one of the CIA's own ensuring he tries nothing funny. You four and the rest of their team will follow close behind until you get to the drop. From there, I hope it all goes our way."
Lynn gathered that this was really a special mission, and not just a simple recon mission; the four were going for a bigger catch. And she felt a little nervous about this particular one; so much that she had a cold shiver hover right over her shoulders, penetrating right through the vest and uniform. She had every right to excuse herself from this possible upcoming battle, but she didn't bother to at all, and that was mainly due to the signature Lynn Loud ideas. She couldn't forfeit it simply because of the danger. She had to do it. She had to toss herself into the crossfire, and to try her best to win. Win, and live. And re-do.
"Any questions?" Mathers asked the girls before wrapping up.
Margo and Paula exchanged each other stern looks, having similar thoughts like Lynn. Only Polly seemed to be down with what she'd been handed down. "Not at all!"
Whatever would be in store for the young women had already been fated, and was being carried out as they all prepped up for the mission, and they'd soon come to know about today's schedule soon enough.
Later
The city of Chicago hadn't gone through real developing changes the last few years, really. Parts of the city were still just as bad as it had been forever, maybe a little worse by today. The HQ fell in a better area of Chicago, but it didn't really stop the occasional wandering homeless vagabonds from passing by and making for public disturbance, or some idiotic punk teenager vandalizing cars for the fun of it. Those types of thing, common in this busy-average city, as well as many other nuisances and various crime. Lynn only hoped the boys in blue did well on those issues.
Lynn was silent in the black SUV, seated like a statue on the front seat passenger's side. Polly was today's designated driver, but was now parked to the side, tasked with awaiting their target vehicle and the trailing escort start it off.
Paula feigned her worry through small talk. "So, Lynn, what's going on with that one guy?"
Behind the scenes, Lynn had indeed met a nice guy while the women were out on one of their casual ladies nights, spending that particular one at a bar and drinking some light beer. Paula thought to dress up as if she was going to a high-end party hosted by an A-list celebrity, coming to it in a purple dress, while the other three found reason to laugh at the spotted joke when she had shown up like that. They had dressed up with no care in the world, and it was during a reminiscing conversation where Lynn had spotted a nice man with a muscular build, and a shirt he must have intentionally put on to show off those guns.
She was reeled in within those fifteen seconds of staring at that perfect, indestructible body. Margo gave her a gentle push, urging Lynn to follow that meat. She cut their night short, trading it for some great sex back at her apartment almost an hour later after that.
"Oh, um..." Lynn had tried to go into details only once, but being a woman who wasn't fixated with the gossiping and a full-on girly characterization, she hadn't a feeling of eagerness to share what went on. But today made it an exception. "Right, yeah," she recalled, blushing away.
"Hey, little Lynnie is completely flustered!" Polly teased. "Go on, tell!"
Lynn turned her eyes to the mirror, already seeing Margo and Paula looking back at her with hungry eyes and ravenous smiles that begged Lynn to start telling her the goods. "There wasn't much that happened," she explained, still cheeky red. "Like I said, we hooked up and slept together-"
Margo gave a slow nod while the audience kept their faces attentive to Lynn's sexual tale.
Lynn drew her head back and exhaled contently. "Oh, God, he was so damn good! I mean, I thought I was gonna do all the work, but he totally took the initiative, and..." By then, she had a warm, horny sensation tap into her womanhood as she went on, genuinely feeling aroused just as she had been that late night. "He had me in between his great body and my bed, and- Dear God, I can't describe it, but he had the best junk made from heaven!" Lynn snickered little a little girl.
"Oh, you lucky gal, you!" Paula laughed. "I wish I found myself a good one."
"Now, wait just a minute!" Margo cut in. "What went on after? Surely, you've gotten his number, or decided to make plans for the next step in this relationship?"
Polly and Paula squealed out.
Lynn groaned a bit before answering. "He left me without contact info, actually. But he did say he goes to the bar quite often if I do want to to somewhere with it. He was nice, and well... I'd like him to fuck me again, of course!" She burst out laughing after.
"Oh, sounds like he's actually testing you," Margo pointed out.
"Huh? Is that so?" Lynn wondered, looking back at her.
"Yeah, think about it. If you go to seek him out, he'll know for sure he sank his hooks into you."
"Sounds more like a trap if the man turns out to be one of those guys," Paula added in. "I'd be careful if I go after that ass."
"Hey, I know how to kick ass, remember?" Lynn held up an arm and curled it into a fist. "Girl power!"
"I hear that!" Paula seconded.
"That's the way to go," Margo followed.
Polly had kept her eyes on the street, and was the one to notify them when the truck had started pulling out of the alleyway. "They're moving!"
"Lock and load, ladies," Lynn announced as she and the three agents with her pulled out their handguns from the safe holsters and cocked them back. "Remember the drills."
"We've got this," Margo told them, but felt unsure of her words.
Once the trailer truck pulled onto the street, a black 2018 Camaro followed it close behind. None of the girls could see who was driving, for the windows of the muscle car were tinted to the darkest degree possible. Polly pulled out of the side and began trailing them.
"Stay back two car lengths, over," the speaker at the other end of the walkie-talkie instructed.
Lynn picked theirs up from her lap. "Roger that, awaiting further instructions."
Paula giggled. "You're breaking protocol."
"Break this," Lynn snorted, taking a toot in the vehicle.
"Ugh!" Went Margo.
"Lynn, can you please not?" Polly cried.
Paula covered her nose and began laughing. "Dear God, Lynn, you are really something else!"
At first, it appeared that they were having a good time in the SUV. Lynn crossed her arms in triumph, smirking with pleasure, while her companions waved their hands in the air to brush away the odor.
Then, Paula dropped her head low as if she hit depression all of a sudden. And then she spoke. "Guys, I'm... Feeling a little nervous-" She had begun to take unsteady, cracked exhales, only answered by Margo who felt a mutual thing going on. Paula was then given a firm shoulder pat by the autumn-haired agent.
Lynn and Polly looked on through the mirror. "Yeah? Well..." And for some reason, it was hard to admit it. And not for the sake of trying to hide fear. No, there was totally another reason Lynn felt she couldn't share her weaknesses for. "It's okay, Paula. We've all got our backs today, and you'll do our best to make it count. I know you will."
It was advice and easing words she would shove into their heads and brains as many times as she could, but it would never be such words that she would ever have the luxury of heeding. For the life of her, Lynn could not take what she delivered and apply onto herself. A flaw.
The rest of the drive went smooth, but was that of a silent one. No one dared to speak after Lynn had tried to call the tension inside Paula. Maybe they were simply too scared to move that it affected the car ride. Lynn coughed visibly and decided to withdraw their minds from the likely danger with the same method Paula used. "So, Margo, how's your cousin been doing?"
"Oh, she's been alright," Margo answered quietly. "Liena's gonna graduate soon, and yet... No sign of Lyle, even after I tried to find some angle into his case. Sadly, nothing yet."
"You'd better ask those days off and go see her when she's done with high school," Paula thought. "Maybe we all could go, it would do us wonders to get a break, right?"
"Sounds like a plan-" Polly looked back at the backseat passengers, giving Margo a smile, and in such a bad timing, too. The Camaro up ahead was lost to some sort of explosion that claimed it without warning, ravaged into burning wreckage with its inhabitants being rendered into nothing but human crisps. This was likely some sort of ambush going underway. Then, the firing broke out.
"SHIT, STOP THE CAR!" Lynn yelled as she helped Polly turn the steering wheel a sharp right. Polly stammered a few seconds after some nearby shooter was targeting the truck's driver and passenger. Polly screeched to a halt, making the four jerk frontwards. "DAMN!"
Civilians walking the streets had already begun to run to safety, clearing the scene from any stragglers. The stunned driver set the vehicle in park as Lynn got out, gun readied, pointed upwards while she took cover behind the SUV. "OUT, OUT, OUT!" Lynn quickly ordered as she looked to the other side for the hostiles in play.
Margo quickly got out and dragged Paula with her. "Watch your feet!"
The blonde had to catch herself on all fours, scathing her hands on the gravel below. "AGH!" She bounced back up and drew her own firearm. "Where are they?!"
"I don't see anything!" Lynn took peaks rapidly, still keeping eyes on the truck. It was still there, almost as if it wasn't moving. And then she pieced it together. "The weapons shipment is compromised! I'm advancing, cover me!"
Polly relocated to the other side of the street, moving cautiously, gun held firmly in both hands. "Covering!"
Lynn ran way ahead of Polly, leaving Margo and Paula behind like nothing. It was how she did it that made it all the more risky and dangerous. The sheer dumb luck she no longer believed in was probably all the difference in the world, the factor that decided she wasn't off to the hereafter already.
The entire sidewalk had been cleared of innocent bystanders, which Lynn was relieved for. She had only ran past four parked cars when two individual shooters, at long last, had emerged from either side of the street, gripping some serious firepower in the form of M16s. "Oh, shit-"
"Get to cover!" Polly yelled from behind.
Agent Loud forced her body to fall behind one of the parked cars. The shooting came in bursts, anf Lynn could almost hear the bullets rip through the air as the shooters fired at her. "Can you get a bead?!"
"Lynn, that's for tracking!" Polly went, having stopped and aimed her gun at one of the two shooters.
The one who had come from Polly's side of the street went for the shipment directly, opened the driver door and pulled the corpse of the Five affiliate out of the cab. The other one covered him and kept shooting where Lynn was hiding. There was no time to think about them, who they were, or anything else. Lynn was pinned down, and in any moment, they'd lose their window just like that.
The cackling fire from the burning wreckage grew noticeably loud and fierce. It would only take a few minutes for the area to be locked down, but not enough time to get the proper back-up. Lynn had to center her ears on the firing, mainly to spot the in-betweens.
Silence. The reloading sequence. Lynn jumped out of her hiding spot and aimed at the attacking assailant, shooting to wound. Five rounds, but two hit the target's right leg, just as they had already reloaded. The rifle had fallen out of their hands as they dropped to the ground, having an unstable leg to balance improperly.
Meanwhile, the truck took off. Lynn and Polly focused their guns at the wheels of the vehicle and fired all of their rounds.
"Margo! Paula! Sometime today?!" Lynn bellowed.
The truck had picked up some significant speed, but enough wheels had been punctured that it went downhill for the other hostile. Polly regrouped with Lynn, meeting her in the middle of the street and behind the truck. Paula and Margo paced up and caught up with the two after all had gone quiet. No firefight, no screaming, or anything apart from the burning wreckage behind them.
The downed suspect was merely groaning as Lynn and company closed in on him, guns still pointed at him and the truck at the same time. Lynn and Polly reloaded their guns.
"Bag that guy!" Lynn kicked away the rifle and had today's fresh grab pinned down by their hands before sending them to sleep. "And call this in-"
Margo took care of the unconscious figure, looking over the bullet wound. "R-right!" She reached for her phone just as Lynn and Polly suddenly began firing- And the second person carrying out this little theft operation had realized there was no way to escape the Feds with flat tires. Margo only thought of herself in that fast-thinking moment, taking cover behind the unconscious body.
Lynn had an advantage between herself and the shooter; she kept steady breaths and the sights arranged to the designated target, while the other guy waved the rifle as he fired, having less of a chance to hit anyone. She was the one to get a headshot after only letting three rounds fly. "He's down!"
The sound of a gun dropping made her eyes jerk wide. She took her time to look at her unit, only to see Polly fall on her knees and tumble on her side. She had been struck with a stray that burrowed and lodged into her chest. Not only that, but Paula received one of her own, penetrating her right leg and leaving her unable to stand. Margo tended to her as she screamed in pain, but had also noticed the shape Polly was in. "Oh, my God!"
"P-Pol-" Lynn flipped the wounded agent on her back and checked how critical the wound was. The flowing blood had already gotten a head start, eluding from the woman's insides. Lynn had no full medical expertise to extract the bullet, or shards if it had broken upon impact, but she knew to apply pressure on it. "Don't worry- It's gonna be alright!"
Polly presented her brown eyes, now mixed with a visible, throbbing red color, was silently, mentally screaming to Lynn that she didn't want to bleed out like this. Not here, and not today. Her hands tried to direct themselves to her chest so that she could stop the bleeding herself, but they only trembled uncontrollably. She knew some true fear right off the bat, feeling it all the way.
"Don't move, T-Peine! Slow breaths, no sudden movements!"
Margo had already hung up the phone while helping Paula. "Ambulance and back-up on the way, guys! Polly, keep holding on! You and Paula are gonna be okay!"
"My fucking leg!" Paula screeched, turning and dragging herself without a plan. "Did you get him?!"
"Was that not obvious?!" Lynn threw back. "Stay down, damn it!"
"Paula, Paula-" Margo began to urge, lightly forcing her friend back down. "Oh, fuck-"
None of the four expected the sudden, bright blue rip in the fabric of space and time. A tear in the form of a swirling blue circle, and it was an unbelievable sight before their naked eyes. The scenery stopped, and their movements ceased to an unprecedented halt. The blue circle, hovering just above them, had stolen their full and undivided attention.
"What the hell is that?" Polly thought she was seeing the afterlife, but the fact that Lynn saw it and looked up made her realize this wasn't heaven, nor some sort of wild hallucination caused by her loss of blood. She stuttered to speak, but choked on blood and spat it out.
Margo felt a snag all of a sudden. Then, the gravity took a shift for the worst; Margo began to float inexplicably. "GUYS- HEY, HELP!"
She took Paula with her, which was an attempt to hold onto her. "MARGO, LET GO!"
"ARE YOU INSANE?! HELP ME OUT!"
Paula tried to plant her one good leg on solid ground, but was also caught by the grip of the invisible force that seized them both. "IT'S TOO STRONG!"
Polly was already levitating in the air like a corpse being sent to heaven's welcoming arms. Lynn stuttered about, unsure of who to help here, but she soon found herself to be stripped of that decusion, for she was also pulled into the air with her crew. "HOLD ON!"
Whatever this mysterious blue thing was, she didn't know what to expect but had prepared for the worst. She had seen enough sci-fi movies to make the educated guess that it was some sort of incinerating beam, or a portal that led to some foreign place. Curse Lincoln Loud's movie choices when it was his turn for those movie nights her family hosted every Friday night.
Even their weapons had come with them; Lynn's gun, or Polly's, came floating in front of her, so she grabbed it without a second thought, and aimed it into the blue hell she was about to be subjected to. She would not be probed by some fucking aliens today. Sweat formed now, out of all times she had been given a chance to. "COVERING!"
And then she and her teammates entered the blue portal.
2062
Lynn hit the sidewalk, arriving last on the scene. The guns, including the rifle, and even the knocked out baddie had also arrived with the four. "Uhh..."
Margo went to the guns and picked up two of them, handing one to Paula. "Where... This isn't Chicago anymore, Lynn."
"What-?" She did take a look around, and filled her eyes with the sights before her. The city was a different one, and not just one where they were in another place. It was more like the structural layout seemed to be different. The streetlights were gone, replaced by unknown devices placed together, appearing like a built railing for giants. What was more, was that there were numerous lights circling the darkened skies. The buildings, all of which she could see, all glowed in heavy, multiple neon colors, flashing away as if the theme here happened to be rave-based. They messed with her eyes for a bit until she adjusted. "Where are we?"
"Is this Japan?" Margo lifted Paula up on her shoulder, giving Lynn the idea and applied it to Polly. Only, Polly was a heavy one.
"I don't know, but you should call again-" Lynn began to suggest, when suddenly, a large vehicle came revving in full throttle, skidding to a halt in front of them. The vehicle, a fully upgraded version of a BTR-70, with a stealth engine, dual automated minigun turrets front and back, bulletproof tires, and painted in a matte black color. The xenon lights remained on as a voice on a speaker rang out from inside.
"Domicile scum! Toss your weapons and surrender!"
"Domicile-" Lynn noted that they spoke English. "Hello, we need some help here! We've got wounded!"
"Lynn...?" Paula sensed something really wrong with this scene. No law enforcement in their era drove such a beast like this; the only type of vehicle similar to this belonged in the arsenal of a military she knew now which one. "Does this not feel...?"
Margo also noticed it as well. "Uhh... Lynn-"
"This is your last chance! Put your weapons down and hands up, or we will fire upon you!"
"Wait, we're with law enforcement!" Lynn countered. "I'm Lynn Loud Jr. of the FBI!"
She had to show them authenticity by taking out her badge. Who could have anticipated what came next?
The front turret turned to their direction and fired upon them. Margo was shredded into bloody chunks of flesh, ripped completely from top to bottom. Whatever the ammo was being used, it surely beat their Kevlar, a tad overkill. Lynn's mouth went agape with such shock. Paula had fallen on her stomach and dropped her weapon, having been bathed in Margo's blood and innards. She threw up while down, further staining herself.
"Muh-Muh-Muh-" Lynn mumbled, barely able to speak. The remains of Margo had left an atrocious mess of red, with pieces of clothing and armor mixed into the mess. The puddle had extended past the sidewalk, dripping onto the curb. Lynn didn't notice that Polly had fainted on her. "NO, WAIT, OKAY!"
Paula raised her arms up, all teary-eyed and reeking of vomit. "Don't shoot- Please!"
"Okay, wait, I- We- We're not-!" Lynn dropped her gun and complied now. "Don't shoot!"
"Oh, please, do something to aggravate the PF soldiers!" A female voice rang out. The owner of the voice revealed herself as a teenage girl climbing over the war vehicle and then ripped out the front turret with her bare hands, revealing some unholy supernatural strength. The girl, blonde, was in blue jean shirts and a black mini-shirt that didn't hide her firm six-pack or belly button. She handled the ripped turret like a bat and set it behind her shoulders, smiling fiendishly and stomped her left foot twice on the roof of the vehicle. "Don't interfere, men! This is Primer business now!"
"Who-?" Lynn had questions, but let her eyes go from the teen girl to the dead Margo.
"You three fall into my jurisdiction now!" The teen girl yelled.
"Who are you?! What's going on?!" Lynn had grown tired of holding Polly now. "Why did-?"
The blonde jumped from the BTR, landing closer to them. Her impact upon landing made a faint crater that only concerned Lynn and Paula even more. "I take it you're Lynn Loud, right?" She asked.
Lynn was baffled as to how this young stranger had known her name, maybe even more than she could surmise at first. "Y-yes, how-?"
"Welcome to the goddamn future, Lynn!" The blonde revealed with sarcasm, extending her arms for the extra mile to her act. "You've never met me before, but I know who you are. Oh, you bet I do."
Lynn narrowed her eyes when the girl spoke the only keyword that seemed to matter. And she shook her head, skeptical, refusing to believe it. "N-no, it can't be-" She was adamant to call the silly blonde on her insane bluff. "You're lying."
"Believe what you want, I'm just here to correct a mistake made long ago-" She closed her free hand and then opened it back to reveal some sharp claws replacing her normal fingers. "-And I won't fail."
"Miss Mercer, what would you like us to do?"
The freak teenager looked back to the BTR and pointed to the right of the street. "Return to base, and notify Letenko and Chang of my position in ten. I'm going to get my long-due fun tonight with the speedster all by myself."
"Copy that, Miss Mercer," the driver confirmed, already taking off the way they came.
Mercer sniffed the air uncontrollably, almost as if there was some heavenly aroma that filled the atmosphere. The scent that attracted her happened to be the fleshy remains of the late Margo Jefferson, for some strange reason. Lynn and Paula kept steady, but were still shaken on the inside by the development of this mess they could never have imagined.
Mercer went on all fours, dropping the turret piece and began crawling eerily towards the remains, further disturbing Lynn and Paula. She opened her mouth and stuck her tongue out, revealing a parasitic, flipping tongue that did not belong to any normal human being. It grossed the two agents out when Mercer began picking off the chunks of Margo's flesh and devoured them off the sidewalk.
Lynn had enough of this and looked down to her gun she dropped. She had the chance to snag that, or the rifle that had come with them. Not to mention she had forgotten they had another extra body there.
Still, Paula was wounded, and Lynn could barely take much more of carrying Polly now. "Damn it-"
Lynn went on her knees fast, letting Polly down in that quick second, and went for the rifle. The teenage freak proved to be no challenge for Lynn; she hsd been too distracted in her act of cannibalism, noticing too damn late that Lynn had pointed a weapon at her and fired before she could bust out her own moves. Lynn went full auto with the M16, emptying all the rounds into Mercer. Most of them hit the girl since Lynn was close enough not to miss. Mercer was covered in many holes as if she had received polkadots all around her face and mini shirt. Lynn had killed her, she was sure of it.
"P-Paula, I need you to limp! I have to carry Polly, can you-?"
Paula picked up her gun and bounced back up. "Thank God for us she sent that metal behemoth away!"
"I hear that!" Lynn picked up Polly and heaved her on her shoulders. "Go right!"
"Wait, what about-?" Paula considered what the situation was with Margo's remains. She still reeked of vomit and had the dead agent's essence all over her.
"We'll solve that later! Right now it looks like we're in-"
Mercer's corpse moved back up, and the pair hadn't even moved ten steps away from it. The bullets that had entered her slid out of the holes. Mercer moved like an uneven ventriloquist dummy, arms, legs and head rotating while her advanced healing was taking place. "You... Girls..."
Paula began limping faster away from Mercer, already having enough that she practically said no to this. "LYNN!"
"Are... Going..." Mercer rejoiced her body to normal just as the wounds began to fade away.
Lynn exhaled sharply and returned to her objective, sprinting away with Polly. "Jesus!"
I'm sorry, Margo. Looks like we'll have to come back for you...
"TO PAY FOR THIS!" Mercer let out a monstrous growl, followed by the horrid twitching of her limbs. Her fair, smooth skin began to degrade to a nasty, dark green. Serious sharp claws were there where her hands had been before, ready for a deadly attack. Her baby-blue eyes turned into something that of a pure nightmare, going full yellow with her pupils reshaping into a black slit. Her body changed into something more grotesque. Her ears went pointy, with her nose transforming to a narrow shape to form slit nostrils. Scales formed from nothing, and her shoes were ripped apart from the inside, revealing beastly feet. There was even a tail that whipped out, ripping right through the back of her shorts.
Lynn and Paula dared not to look back, having already gotten an idea of what was transpiring behind them. "Keep going!"
And in one fell swoop, their only wildcard, or perhaps an actual favor lady luck delivered again, was activated; their captive suspect had come to, after all of that time, looking right at the monstrous reptilian creature on his right. He shudddered and gasped, quickly going for a hidden revolver no one thought to check he had. "COME ON!"
This proved to be a delay the agents definitely wanted and needed. The Mercer beast received an additional six bullets. Only, they never entered past her skin, but had stung the beast enough to get his attention. The monster opened her mouth, revealing a worse variation of her tongue, and a horrifying set of uneven, pointy teeth, almost like daggers. She went out of her way to sic this random hostile, shoving one of her feet onto his chest and then ripped away at his face with her vicious jaws.
Lynn and the wounded agents had lost it, already reached past a block over. She had so many questions forming, but her body, heavily subjected to what she could only describe as the maximum level of fear, which came in a burning flowy feel in her bloodstream, and the pumped-up heart beating rapidly, and not to mention her actually sweating, gave her all the reason to ignore her brain, only caring for the well-being of the poor woman. It went to combat with the images of her dear friend and ally being killed. Killed right in front of them. Near them. It happened, and Lynn had only labeled it as insanity while she ran with sharp breaths. One of her own. How was it going to look? How was she going to explain this to Mathers? How would this sound believable?
And then, Lynn remembered anger again. She did slow down, while Paula, ahead of her, hadn't taken notice yet. Something had to be done, and right back to that monstrous girl-creature. "D-damn it..."
The noises of all the world halted, taking an unscheduled pause just for her. She concentrated on her heartbeats. She could never be the one to back down from a challenge, no matter how tough and impossible it seemed. Not even for an opponent as powerful and carnivorous as this creature. She stopped and turned around. The hideous girl-creature came galloping on her hands and hind legs, laughing in the low, distorted voice she gained in her new form. "Here we go!"
Lynn set Polly down again and raised her fists, taking a firm fighting stance. Mercer made a pounce in the air, intending to topple her to death. "YOU'RE MINE!"
And it would have been Lynn's untimely and unnecessary death, if not for the weird, large red beam that just appeared and struck against the deadly beast, taking her away from Lynn. It happened so fast as a sudden breeze picked up and brushed her hair around. She had no idea what just happened.
"Lynn!" Paula was limping her way back. "Oh, my God!"
Lynn was still processing what just happened. She kept looking down the street while picking Polly back up. "H-how-?"
"No time for that yet! Yes, it happened! But we've gotta get a move on!"
The Loud agent stared one last time before rejoining Paula in their escape from whoever they were, for whatever fucking reason. "We need to get off the street!" Lynn suggested. "I can no longer hold her anymore!"
"We've gotta zigzag these blocks!" Paula realized. "They'll be looking within this perimeter, you know!"
"No shit! Fuck, we need to escape this city altogether!"
Paula nodded. "We also need to rest and get weapons!"
"Also that," Lynn agreed.
Later
They were a mile out of where they had landed, thanks to that portal, wherever it came from. Whoever it was sent by. Was it a mistake? Or... Was it intentional?
She got to thinking about it now that they had decided they were far enough to settle for downtime. Polly had missed out on everything, and there was no need to fill her in if she was going to opt out involuntarily by the news. Plus, there was still the matter of her wounds. Lynn then realized something she hasn't noticed before; the two bullets that struck Polly should not have penetrated through their Kevlar. The ammo that shredded Margo made sense, but not the rounds from the M16s. But, it did. Did that make it an armor piercing mag? Was it the same type as what was used on Margo?
Lynn stripped Polly from her armor and inspected the gunshots more closely. For one, the bleeding had only slowed down, but Polly was still gravely injured. "I have no rags or anything..."
Paula had fallen on herself, leaning against a wall across from Lynn, and helped herself manually. "Grgh!" It hurt like hell to even touch outside of the tiny red crater, but she gripped around the wound tightly. "FUCK!"
The three had taken shelter in a building that had a depressingly tan color, with a dome added as the roof. Lynn guessed it had to be a library, only this particular one was open for them. The only reason they knew was because the doors, a white, metal pair, opened by sliding upwards, basically telling them to get inside. Motion activated, perhaps?
They huddled in the front and stayed there, with the company of a white light shining down from the ceiling, in a weird layout of five lines. Only Lynn seemed to notice it while Paula tended to her leg. "You know," Lynn opened up. "That girl, she said-"
"I know what she said," Paula retorted with hostility. "I was there, too."
"...Right, sorry," Lynn softly responded, now letting her mind properly synchronize with the events so far. "I can't believe-"
They both shuddered to think about the only thing that made today memorable, and not in a positively good way. It was a scene that would haunt them thereafter, living to know that a great friend and acquaintance had been killed around them. Paula might have been more messed up than Lynn, considering that she was nearly killed as well, barely a miracle for her that she wasn't grazed by the turret. But Margo's essence lingered onto her by the blood that dripped onto her. God knows what she was possibly going through, or would be soon enough.
Lynn stopped herself from picking at it, for Paula's mental health. "Do you think she was telling the truth?"
Paula had been tightly gripping on her leg since she had finally gotten a break, and had begun to finally release it ever so gently. "It's... It can't be possible, Lynn. It just can't."
"I don't know what to believe, Paula..." Lynn took out her phone and went through her contacts, finding the one labeled Mathers. She pressed on that one and then proceeded to call him. It never rang, but rather redirected her to an automated machine that went, "We are sorry, but this number is unrecognized in the Prime Federation phone book."
Prime Federation? She wondered, before hanging up and calling again, only this time she turned on the speaker. "Hey, listen to this!"
The same automated message played again, and left Paula a little baffled and confused. "That's...-" She had no explanation to that. "It can't be... Can it?"
Polly opened her eyes and began moving her arms. "Ugh..." She wheezed.
"Oh!" Lynn looked over her in alarm. "Hey, are you still in pain?"
Polly made angry eyes at her, but was also squinting. "What- What happened?" She whispered.
"We had to move," Lynn explained. "I guess we're hiding from..."
Paula moved up, still clearly struggling to stand. "I need to wash up," she told her fellow agents. "I'm gonna find a bathroom."
She went further into the building, vanishing after the sliding door had let her in to the next room over. This was then followed by a muffle scream that belonged to her and no one else. Lynn went into panic mode and jumped on her legs. "Shit! I'll be right back!"
"Don't die on me!" Polly hoarsely whimpered.
Lynn hurried into the other room, coming across Paula in the center. What got them this time was their surroundings; a large rectangular screen hung high above them, and in a blue text font, it read; Hall of the New World
Around them, the whole floor was vastly decorated by various computer screens on both sides, and the room was divided into two at halfway, with more screens embedded into this third, short wall. Paula was looking at one of the screens, having toyed with it out of some dangerous curiosity. "L-Lynn..."
The brunette was quite relieved. The blonde hadn't gotten into trouble it seemed, just a senseless scream at most. Or so she thought. "What's the matter?" She wanted to make a joke, but this wasn't the right time nor place for it.
Paula pointed at the screen. "I've- I've had the idea to find answers, and-"
Lynn followed the arm, taking a look at what had Paula concerned. "What's this?"
The screen had flashed today's date, finally revealing when they were; February 2, in the year 2062.
"Twu-tuwuhhhh..." Lynn tried to speak. "Six-"
"We're thirty-two years into the future," Paula whispered sharply. "Three actual decades..."
The screen had a square gray button just underneath the date. Lynn raised a finger and tapped it lightly. She needed to know more, and would maybe get insight on this Prime Federation thing and what was going on in the world today. The screen flashed and changed to show her five new options on the pad.
Public Archives
The History of the Prime Federation
WARchives
Notable Figures
From 2026 to Today; A Timeline
The last choice was the most appealing one to Lynn. She tapped on it, without realizing what she was risking. Paula was behind her, being the voice of reason. "Lynn, no..."
"On the off chance we don't find a way..." Lynn started as she was taken to a list of videos, marked from 2026 to 2062. A whole lot of footage to cover. She selected her present year, which was marked as a fifteen-minute runtimer.
"I can't believe you said that..." Paula had highly suspected there was a chance they could get back home. If they had been sent here, regardless of accident or purpose, they could get back. Such technology had to exist, and surely there was likely such a device. "Have hope."
The video began, rolling in black text, and no interesting background to add life to it.
In the year 2030, a number of unaccounted events unfold against the agenda of Vial Corporation's true founder, Lisa Marie Loud, starting in May of that year-
L-Lisa?! My sister Lisa?!
-Starting with the off-the-textbook funding and establishing of the agency known as the Patriot Division. The apparent foundation for the creation of the agency is to combat and apprehend the unconventional of threats. Of course they were also founded on the suspicion that Vial Corporation was engaging in illegal activities, long enough to have quite the rapsheet.
"Vial Corp?" Paula skimmed through the words. "Those guys have been-? Er, I mean-" It made her head spin indefinitely, no doubt about that. "They've been doing this?"
Lynn didn't get sidetracked.
The Patriot Division, led by former sandbox veteran Alexander Elmont, began to connect a state senator Peter McMahon of Washington, DC, to Vial Corporation, only right after the terrorist cells Five and Scythe had appeared to have a buyer-and-seller connection. Vial was in charge of creating state-of-the-art firearms and ammunition, advanced than the standard military grade varieties.
Lynn re-read the line again. The seller of the shipment... Was Vial Corp?!
The Division itself caught a lucky break, in the form of several members of Lisa Loud's family tree. These members, siblings of the founder of Vial Corp, had come out of the woodwork with their own special abilities, enabling the Division to round them up to become America's first pheno team, marking a milestone in history.
"What- What is a pheno?" Lynn scratched her head.
The original roster includes Lincoln Loud, Luan Loud, Lynn Loud Jr., Lana Loud, Lola Loud, and Luna Loud.
Her name. Her damn name was there, along with a few of her siblings.
These select six would later come to be enemies of-
The video cut there all of a sudden, prompting Lynn to poke the screen impatiently. She needed to know more, and especially if there was a way out of here through this info pad. The screen had gone black entirely, as did all the rest of the ones around them. "Is this a blackout?! Now?!"
Paula looked up. The lined lights were still up and running, meaning this was something else at work. She felt nervous in that instant. "Lynn-"
Words popped up on the screen, when Lynn wasn't expecting it. It wasn't the video running again, but more like a message directed to them;
Hello, I've been expecting you! I hope you know how hard going through all PF museum databases is, and how long as well!
Lynn blinked, checking her eyes. "M-me?"
Oh, yes, you! No time to explain, but you have the entire Prime Federation force after you! You've gotta get back home before they kill you!
"Wait, I still-" Lynn looked back at Paula. "We still don't understand! Why us? What the fuck did we do?"
Lynn, it's what you will do that will paint a target on your back. And I won't allow you to cheat by looking at your own future, sorry.
Lynn flinched her eyes, a little peeved. "I... Do something?"
The moment you come back to the present, things will change.
They studied those words, wondering what this hacker meant. "I've just seen a bit of my own... I become part of a-"
You will, but not yet. Now, I need you to go up to the exhibition floor, the second floor above. I'll have a portal ready up there to take you to my location, and from there, I can send you back.
Lynn and Paula both gasped in delight. "Please!" They cried in unison.
Stairs are past this floor, so make it snappy. Lizy, the girl you encountered, will have a battalion of units swarming about for this. Get going!
"Hold on... Who are you? And how are you able to hear us? Are there hidden bugs around?"
You don't know me, but you will when you get back. Just call me LK for now.
LK. What... What did that mean? Was that their initials? LK, her savior she had to remember. "Right-" Then, she realized she had forgotten about Margo. "Wait, the remains of my friend- I can't just leave them-"
I have that covered, trust me. Please get moving.
Paula placed a hand on Lynn's shoulder. "Lynn, they'll take care of her. I know it."
The brunette backed up from the screen, looking back to the entrance. "Y-yeah, okay. I'd better get Polly."
"I'll meet you upstairs, and don't worry, I'll drag myself if I have to." The screen showed arrows to guide Paula as Lynn rushed back to Polly.
Polly fiddled her fingers around before Lynn returned to her. "Lynnie-"
"We've found a way back, you just keep holding on, okay? We're going to get you to a medic." She hsd regained enough energy and stamina to carry Polly again. "Up you go."
Polly gave a deep breath before speaking softly. "Lynn, I don't think I'm going to make it..."
"Huh?" Lynn ventured back into the screen room. "What- No, you're okay... Aren't you?"
Polly began coughing severely right after, telling Lynn a whole other story. "I've been slowing you down, h-haven't I?"
Lynn slowed down after getting halfway across the room. "No, you haven't. I take care of my own, and it's worth it, every step of the way."
Polly grunted, closing her eyes. "Lynn, you... You always had heart, you know that?"
Lynn stopped just before the stairs. "Hey, don't-"
"You've been a real mystery to me, you know that? Margo and Paula were more open than we could ever show and tell."
Lynn looked down, letting the undeniable fact sink in. "Yeah..."
"But you've been the bravest of all of us. You rushed it, Lynn. You moved first in our operation, when Margo, Paula and I were scared. You're brave..."
Lynn narrowed her eyes.
"But you're the one who's the most scared of us, aren't you? The one most damaged of this squad?"
She gasped. Polly had broken through that surface built by Lynn's apparent bravado, where she pretended things would go in their favor. Even now, even as one of their own had fallen, and Lynn was trying her best to sell Polly hope so that Lynn herself saw to it that she wouldn't believe the ugliness of the world existed again, not after she had left Aunt Rinn Reagan's place. She needed to believe that they'd all be okay. That they'd all-
Margo.
Lynn lost her composure as her mind withdrew into an uncomfortable panic. She drew shaken breaths, struck in the nerves and hurt by the very idea of waking up to understanding that she had only been trying to play a game where she tried to win, and her alone, using the three agents as her excuse and the object of the charade. She needed to win it all, so that she could never remember what it felt like. So that she could never suffer the consequences of being a failure, and the very same one who, even with all her strength and energy, could not save her parents from the fire that consumed her house.
Lynn was still a scared girl who had to take on the mask of the woman she thought she was. Nothing more, and nothing less. A broken Loud.
She let herself cry, what was the point in hiding it? Denying it? She was weak and fragile, had been for so long. And forgot what this was like. "H-how did-?"
Maybe it was from personal experience that Polly had come to suspect, know, and eventually understand Lynn's demons. Yes, Polly was on the same traumatic wavelength. And therefore, Lynn didn't need to ask, and understood why Polly kept to herself all this time. And for Polly, the case had become vice-versa. So Lynn didn't need to ask. She owned up to it.
"It feels scary and yet relieving. You- You understand me that much, don't you?" Lynn sobbed.
"Just as much as I do with myself," Polly admitted. "I may never know what horrors you faced, but just know it doesn't have to hurt you to the point you drive yourself to shove it away. I ran from my fears once too, so I should know what it does."
Tears went down poor little Lynn's face.
"You have to keep up with us, and to stop running far, and I mean that figuratively. It's okay to be scared, Lynn. It's okay to lose someone..."
The fractured brunette caved in and wailed while trying to keep a steady face. "I hate it... I I-hate it so much, T-Peine. I just... Get scared-"
"Yes, but you let it control you, rather than you being the dominant girl as it should be."
"Then what should I have done? What should I have learned?" Lynn desperately asked. "Tell me."
"I can't tell you, Lynn. This journey is yours and yours alone. Now-" Behind Polly, the sliding door from the frontside was activated. They had company again, in the form of armed men dressed in black suits, with thick body armor and masks, all sporting gray rifles unlike anything Lynn had ever seen. Definitely an advanced type of firearm. "You and Paula have to go!"
"What, are you insane?! What about-?!" Lynn was shoved into the staircase, falling face first right into the steps and immediately turned around and peered into the doorway. The second before it closed on her, Lynn saw Polly form a wide smile back at her, wordlessly letting her know things were gonna be fine, even if she was going to die far away from home. "NO! POLLY!"
The soldiers lined up side by side, focusing their guns on her and fired. They also fired at Lynn, only for the metal door to come running down, shielding her completely. Polly had died, and away from Lynn's sightlines, too.
"Lynn, what's going on?!" Paula had barely reached the exhibits floor. "Hurry!"
Lynn picked herself up and began sprinting upwards. The goons were just behind her, and it was an all-or-nothing race to the finish line. No way she could lose this, not after what she had seen, and not after learning she was destined for something she had yet to discover in full. Those, and the final words of Polly Peine meant something. The truth was found again, when Lynn hadn't known how to dig into it. Yes, she knew of it, but not how to exploit it herself. That was how strong her fear and insecurities had been, and Polly hadnt unraveled all of Lynn. Live, and overcome it. That was Polly's message. That was Lynn's lesson.
Lynn rejoined the only other squad member left and put the blonde onto her shoulders, just as she hsf with Polly, and together, they entered the exhibits floor.
This one was a peculiar sight for sore eyes, and totally looked like it belonged in a museum. Creatures of all sorts, rather than the average fake animals known to man, were all locked away behind cells, odd for an exhibition room. Not only that, but the cells themselves looked to be frigid, almost as if it was all kept on ice temperatures. There were smaller pads sticking out at the waist level just below each of the glass cells. "Weird, I've never seen statues being frozen like that."
Lynn came across only one, the first one on her left;
Lulu the Vine Monster
In 2028, the first appearance of this entity, of possible extraterrestrial origin, had appeared initially at a summer camp in the state of California. The inhabitants of the camp were terrorized by the monster, with most of them being killed. The only survivor escaped alive only to succumb to an unknown disease thereafter. Lulu had since been captured and placed in cryogenic stasis to this day.
She either needed to get her eyed checked, or it really did say monster. Why would this place have make-believe creatures-? "Are these- Were these based off real creatures?"
"Where's the portal that the LK person promised?" Paula impatiently pondered. "We have got to get out of here."
"Yeah..." They jogged through the room, just as impeding voices and footsteps alerted them that the armed PF goons were closing in. "Oh, no. We're cornered!"
The cell belonging to the Lulu creature had begun to heat up from an installed heater that activated once the freezing air conditioner had shut off. The statue began melting, only for it to begin moving as if it were alive. It just so happened that the creature, a green entity with multiple, slithering tentacles for hands and legs, had begun to break free from its contained cell and broke out fairly easily, attacking the surprised armed units by swinging its nasty tentacles to yank apart limbs and graze the skin of its victims.
A small shootout happened between the second and third parties, with the unnatural organism having a clear advantage. Its mouth even had a tentacle that entrapped one goon's head and shoved it into Its wide mouth for an instant decapitation.
When it died down, the Lulu monster turned to the two agents and then began to transform before them. It went from its full-grown monster form to that of a baby girl's own. The baby, a short-haired brunette, began giggling, crawling like a healthy, naked baby their way.
"You take it!"
"No, you take it!"
Lulu came crawling up to Lynn and demanded she be picked up when raising her adorable arms. This thing was totally acting like a real infant, even having the urge to wave its hands in a random pattern, playfully. "Mah mah mah," Lulu cooed.
Lynn accepted her request, sure that she'd be mauled and ripped apart, raising her high as her arms could allow. Maybe this was an infantile monster who needed parental figures so dearly. For a damn good second, Lynn pondered on taking her. "Y-you're a mean old girl, aren't you? Yes, you are! Yes, you are!"
"Lynn... She didn't make it, did she?" Paula rubbed her arm.
Lynn lowered Lulu down a bit, sighing. "Yeah... Shit, Paula. I'll be damned if you don't either."
"Like hell!"
Lulu rotated its head past human limitation and eyed Paula almost obsessively. She opened her tiny mouth which expanded three times over, revealing a pit of sharp teeth laced in one round jaw, and her tongue, the only inner tentacle, came spawning back out. It latched onto Paula's neck, followed by the baby pulling itself to the blonde- and peeled off a part of her neck.
Paula succumbed to the pain and fell down hard, striking her head on the smooth marble floor. She struggled to breath, going to hyperventilate mode. Lulu had begun to devour her with large bites taking out chunks of her. The agent screamed in such agony, body twitching visibly. She forced her arms upwards and tried to shove away the monstrous baby.
Lynn jumped in and delivered a kick to Lulu upside the head. It only ripped another portion of Paula's skin and flesh as the baby was sent on its back, tentacle-tongue flipping like a whip.
"Paula! Goddamn-" Lynn focused on her downed teammate long enough to be distracted. The tongue came back and jabbed itself into Lynn's back, sending a special fluid into her. "WHAT THE FUCK?!"
It paralyzed her rapidly, and she knew it right when her movements began to slow. She stumbled past Paula and was now dragging herself along the floor, right to the end of the floor. "Puh-"
Lulu returned to consume the blonde, and then posisbly Lynn, considering she was now unable to escape its clutches. Damn it, no! The portal, where was the damn portal?!
Her phone then rang from her pants, and somehow picked itself up without her touching it.
"You'll have to excuse me, heh, but Paula and your little problem will be solved right about-"
A blue portal had finally appeared, but it did so right underneath Paula and Lulu, taking them away to God knows where. Lynn only gathered it from the reflecting blue light, distraught that she had been left alone when the silence had formed. It was unbearable and frightening to her at the same time. Lynn was incredibly still that she could be passed off as dead. And even worse news would would come when the Prime Federation guys came in with reinforcements.
She forgot that the call was still active.
"Hold on, I have one just for you," the woman's voice announced. "Incoming."
Lynn spiraled through the floor after a fresh gateway activated below her. She fell for a few seconds and landed right in someone's arms. "Huh?"
Her holder and two other figures stood in a darkened setting, save for a huge glowing contraption that shone the same blue color as the portals. This had to be the center of someone's operations. Tabled with multiple paper sheets scattered about, weird weapons and other notable toys, and some photographs of people she'd never see before, all grouped together in the the middle. What's more, this looked like it was a facility that had been raided. The room was barely full of light, but the left wall was decorated with red spray paint with big words;
THE DOMICILE WILL TAKE BACK AMERICA
At first she assumed it was spray paint, but a body at the bottom of the message then convinced her otherwise. Whoa!
"Remember not to touch her," Lynn's catcher told one of the two figures in front of them. "Paradox rules."
The figure spoken to moved close and gave her an injection of some sort. Lynn could make out red snd white in the attire of this figure. Pretty soon, she was able to regain motor skills again.
Lynn was let go with ease, leaving her to immediately turn around. A woman with long, white wavy hair held up a hand to greet her kindly. This particular girl was sporting a brown leather jacket, which was shorter than the orange shirt she wore, visible to Lynn, with some dark jeans. It reminded her of her dear brother, which then baffled her when she put two and two together; Lynn was likely looking at his future daughter. "Oh, y-you're-"
"I know who I am," the woman said.
"I don't understand..." Lynn looked to the woman and pointed at the time machine. "Was this on purpose?"
The albino crossed her arms. "No way, man. Too much information for you, and besides-"
The silhouette who had given her the injection had spoken to her. "You'll understand it when you make it to my position, Lynn," the second female said, sounding strangely familiar to her. "You'll understand why this sacrifice has been made."
"Suh-sacrifice?" Her time was cut short when the U-shaped time machine hummed like an engine. "Wait, my friends-"
The albino grabbed Lynn's arms and led her right into the blue portal. "You've been given the abilities of a speedster, which is someone who can run really fast. The thing that the Lulu monster has infected you, but this formula will be canceling it out. You'll have some serious abilities in about five minutes."
"What? Wait, this isn't making any sense-!"
"Get captured by the Patriot Division, and your future will be all set. That's all you have to do." The woman stopped right before the portal and then proceeded to shove Lynn into it. "We're going to meet soon enough!"
May 27th, 2030
Lynn had an intense free-fall session that lasted for over five seconds, and definitely over twenty feet in height. She should have died- but the fall didn't actually kill her, but the concrete ground was painful to fall from that distance nonetheless. She got a headache the same second when hitting upon it. She sat up and looked around to find random civilians staring idly with interest on her. Who wouldn't be intrigued by a falling FBI agent who was still able to move after that?
But the sight of everything around her was the same as before, yet different. The streets were more crowded with cars, and the sidewalks were taken upon by crowds of people. The buildings were taller than that of Chicago's own skylines. This wasn't Chicago, but not the futuristic world she had seen. "Where am I?"
Lynn raced away from the sidewalk she had landed on, moving right into the concerned citizens who had already made some calls to the police, and had filmed some safe parts of it. Lynn ran from the witnesses and went into an alleyway she came upon. Lynn hid behind a dumpster, flat out paranoid for any chasers behind. Again scared, she'd not deal with that. She found herself alone, wondering where Paula had gone. Stupid of her to not have asked, even though it seemed like she was going yo be okay. She dearly hoped Paula would be safe and sound, but still needed to know.
She picked her phone out of her pocket and decided to call Mathers again. And just as she had done so, the phone exploded out of her hand, breaking into millions of pieces. A sniper bullet had shot right through it, and exited her palm as well. "Yeargh!"
Lynn looked upwards, holding her wounded hand, surprised to find Lincoln Loud perched on a roof, aiming a Beretta sniper rifle down on her. She didn't recognize him due to the sun having made his hair bright, throwing her off. And it appeared that he didn't know who she was either.
"No one could have lived after that fall!" He said. "I saw you coming from one of those, so you must be one of those freaks with Vial Corp!"
"Freaks with Vial-? Hold on, I-"
The next shot aligned with her forehead, and Lincoln fired before she could explain herself. The bullet made contact.
AN: Two down, a great many to go. Yes, Lizy undergoes a change that expands past her new name. Embrace Lissandra Mercer as your new Lizy. Unfortunately, her next appearance won't be until many acts have passed. Consider this a special occasion, a hint of what is to come. As for Lulu, I just knew I had to have her here as the monster Patanu (I think) created from the start. She works best here, that's in my humble opinion, even though she'll have the least number of appearances, but it can always change.
RIP Margo and Polly. They are gone from this tale and from Lynn's own arc. As for Paula and Lulu, oh don't you worry. That's been taken care of. Huehuehue.
Now that I have basically revealed I'm going to be changing the lore of many of the Sin Kids this fast, I guess I can say Lyle will be coming further this act. And yes, he and Liena are in the same family tree as Margo.
Huh, wonder if I should stop with these little Easter eggs and tiny reveals. No, not all of the Sin Kids go through "not a Loud" alterations. But I think it'll be fun to throw what I brainstormed.
Anyways, this ends chapter II. See you next time!