August 5th, 2030
"Hang on..." Leia had submitted herself and dropped on her knees to the pale ghost of a young man. "I've already told you all I know. Peter McMahon was there at the Tetherby estate hours before the assassination of Lord Tetherby himself!"
Dylan Blood, clad in a dark-green coat and denim pants, with a metal skull mask strapped right up over his face for bonus intimidation points, currently had one arm around Gwendolyn Harris' neck, and in the other, a knife to Marsha Gladwell's throat. "Do you solemnly swear that all you say is truth? The news paints you three as the suspects behind this, but even I am skeptical to believe that. So, the real shooter has blackmail dirt on you, do they?"
Leia, sobbing, clamped her hands together. "Please, please, I am begging you, we did no wrong! We've been framed, we're innocent!"
Marsha struggled to stay still, but her body worked against her to tremble. Any damn second, the man by the name of Blood could simply slit her throat open and that was the end of her journey as a young thief. She whimpered before him.
"You're not exactly innocent, Leia," Dylan rebuked with a cold but joyful grin. "A chain of reported robberies. Credit cards, wallets, and houses even- You three are mastered at pickpocketing and all of that. Shady business, but you're young yet."
"I'll promise- I'll promise not to steal-"
"None of that," he cut off, taking the knife from Marsha's neck. "You've given me something useful here. You've gathered a piece for me that proves McMahon didn't acquire Kapacity Korp through legal means all the way, so I guess that's worth sparing this one. What can you offer here that spares this one?"
Gwen's eyes shifted around. "You're a psycho if you consider taking my life," the brave inside her echoed out. "You'll burn in hell!"
"Maybe so, but my death is not today!"
"This dirt isn't secretive if I found out about it," Dylan addressed. "I've looked into you, and I made the connection that you're trying to hide, Leia. And from what I've been able to see, it seems that those who know are trying to be discreet about you. You've pissed off a mayor of some cheap town and that mayor is chasing you, but-" Here was where he cracked his knuckles. "Serve me and be spared of his fate."
"You... You could never-"
"I've come this far, haven't I?" Dylan undid his arm around Gwen. "You need that certain itch to be scratched, I can relieve it nice and good if you-" He waved the buck knife at her. "-swear your loyalty and serve my needs."
"What... What would someone like you want a young girl like me to do? What are you trying to accomplish here?"
Gwen crawled across to Leia, wrapping her arms on the blonde's legs.
"The three of you have unrivaled skills when it comes to surveillance and recon, I don't doubt that. It just so happens that I'm in the market for such types. And would you look at that? Here you all are!"
Leia gulped, holding Gwen tightly.
"What's it going to be?" Dylan held their ultimatum. "Servitude or death?"
"Leia... I don't feel good about this-"
Leia made her decision, albeit scared; she let go of Gwen and went on her knees. "I'll serve you... I'll become- No, we'll become your slave girls."
"Leia-" Marsha had a voice to say otherwise.
"I'm not dying here, not tonight..." Leia urged her sisterhood besties to fall and bend down. "If you claim to help us, we will be of great service."
"That's what I like to hear..." Putting the knife away, Dylan ran a hand down to Leia's face, lifting it up by her chin. "Welcome to the new world order."
Act VI: Renaissance, Chapter X: Bloodbath
Black Network Base
Lindsey Sweetwater attempted again, and bled again. Her nails went and broke, blisters formed on her fingers to the point they had been sliced up against the steel, ripped open. The skin loosely dangled, blood running down to her palms. She wasn't too squeamish at the sight of blood but the pain, like sharp needless in all her fingers, made her cry and hiss. And still, however much she'd shed her blood and endure the agony, she'd never get out. "HELLO?! I'M HERE! I'M HERE! SOMEBODY! L-LYLE! LYLE, I'M HERE!"
But her knight in shining armor was not there, would not be there this time.
"Please..." Lindsey's hope depleted already, but her will still held out. "Someone..."
Leia, Gwen and Marsha passed through the long concrete corridor, stopping only when their new master had stopped. Lindsey was let out of her cell, falling out, hands twitching disturbingly. Leia flinched upon seeing the redhead with bloody hands, and Gwen made a clear gag sound, mouth covered by her hand. "Who-?"
"Have you been keeping up with the news?" Dylan introduced the wee redhead girl to them. "This is Lindsey, she's a pheno under the gun here." He picked Lindsey up and revealed the anti-pheno dampener attached to the side of her neck. "She knows not to take it off or she dies."
"Pheno-? One of those-?"
"Yes." Dylan dragged young Lindsey away from her cell. "Earn your keep, princess."
"What about us?" Leia asked.
"Guard this place until I get back, I have business that must be tended to."
Leia and her girls went ahead and explored the base of empty corridors and rooms, unsure what to do around. Meanwhile, Dylan Blood, having been delayed by the failure of the twins' appearance at the bank job, sought to make due with the pheno at hand. So far, the plan was to get to the Louds, starting with Lana and Lola in their own home turf- and that never happened. The worldwide message hadn't been broadcasted, his declaration of war against the phenos was due yet. And here was Lindsey to help him deliver. "Make no escape, you're about to prove yourself all the worthwhile."
"Where is my Lyle...?" Lindsey tragically squeaked out, powerless. "I want my lover."
Lover...? To her, the other one must have been a love interest, not just a guardian. He kept going, but the fact had entered him so easily. "Hush now, you'll be resting soon."
"I just want to see my-" Lindsey gave out, fainting right out of Dylan's grasp.
"Shit!" He resorted to carrying the unresponsive pheno, only slightly relieved that she would be no headache at this state. "Fine."
Above the base, parked right near the hatch, a stolen DLH van awaited for a driver to take it on the road. Dylan had set Lindsey over his shoulder as he climbed up the ladder, and had to throw her on ground before he made it out. Hard work to get here and it wasn't finished just yet. "Mind your head."
May, 2020 - Oakland, California
You knew the story, you might have lived it through shared ears, told stories. Some where there. Blacks, Mexicans and white people. They gathered into the city, the place where it was usually dangerous on a late night, the homeland to gangsters and criminals. It was as if King Kong stepped right on Detroit and scrapped it off in this part of the state. Same could have been said for Compton, Los Angeles- Too many places around that was a slum of poverty and crime.
Dylan Blood drove off the freeway and parked one block away from a Chevrolet gas station, where the road was just one way. He wore a skull bandanna over his mouth, a blue sweater to keep him warm, and some black jeans that just so happened to be of the uniform for McDonald's. Oh yeah, he kept the five pants pieces because they still fit well, but they still sucked.
He was here because he wanted to see it for himself. He wanted to see what the death of George Floyd brought on. It would be his first night ever of seeing the massive work of angry protesters, rioters and of course, your common looters. Tonight, they moved in multiple groups and broke into Mercedes-Benz and took cars. They went into a 7-11. They looted stores and, when Dylan had gone closer to see the blockade of police, and the sound of flashers and tear gas canisters going off in the distance, some fool had actually tried to break into a comic book shop but gave up too quickly and left.
Yes, he was there and he did not film it. But he moved closer.
Closer.
Closer until he was there, in the heart of the city and the biggest crowd he had ever seen. And he found his words as he came in between the screaming protesters and the silent police that formed a line, to avoid the rioters from reaching the bigger scores. "Hey! Hey, all of you!"
He didn't expect anyone to listen to them due to everyone screaming at the police, heaving rocks and water bottles, what have you? But he tried it again. "The police here are not your enemies! It isn't them, it's the mere factor of racism and the stereotypical spotlight you're all stuck in!"
He was not a person of color, he had no footing here. No voice. Some big, black guy could have knocked him down, Dylan was that scrawny and short but the brain was there. Brain and will.
"Fuck he sayin'?"
"Fuck you, white trash!"
"Beat him!"
Nowhere was ever gonna be safe, but to redirect the danger- "THE ELITES! THE ELITES ARE THE ONES ABLE TO CHANGE ALL THAT! THEY CAN BALANCE IT, THEY CAN HELP YOU, BUT THEY WON'T! YOU'RE ALL HERE BECAUSE OF THEM! THE RACISM CAN STOP WHEN POVERTY STOPS! WHEN YOU ALL GET THE EQUALITY! IT STARTS THERE, IT STARTS WHEN YOU GO TO THE RICH NEIGHBORHOODS AND YOU DEMAND IT FROM THEM!"
And he brought them to listen.
"WHY WOULD YOU BURN DOWN YOUR OWN CITY? LOOT YOUR OWN STORES?! IS THIS NOT WHERE YOU LIVE?! ARE YOU PREPARED TO BECOME HOMELESS AND INCARCERATED FOR THIS?! I KNOW IN MY HEART THAT THE ELITES MOCK YOU ALL!"
And they begun to film him.
"THEY SIT IN THEIR HOMES IN PEACE AND TRANQUILITY WHILE YOU DISCREDIT YOURSELVES! YOU PROVE EVERY LITTLE THING THEY WHISPER TO BE TRUE!" He picked up a used canister and raised it up- it burned his whole hand, but he pushed past the discomfort. "TAKE YOUR FIGHT NOT TO THE POLICE, BUT TO THE VERY PEOPLE WHO CHOOSE TO DO NOTHING WHEN THEY ARE ABLE TO MAKE A CHANGE!"
And they had begun to cheer. And everyone had known of him, and the police in the riot shields tossed the gas canisters their way and gave chase. This was then followed by more looting, but Dylan said nothing to those thieves. In his mind, he viewed the rich as just chess pieces that needed to be knocked down. Balance.
Now
Dylan Blood brought a tied-up Lindsey to Dietrich Manor, a lovely estate with two thousand acres of land that spanned around. He kicked at the birch doors of mystical, unique carvings, uncaring for the price put into it.
Okay, so a pack of wealthy elites had hired him do to their own dirty work. They wanted the phenos out of the way out of fear of a new revolution, where the millionaires and billionaires could amount to nothing when there were beings who could come and take everything they had. That was their plan, but Dylan Blood had his own reasons- and not just for the phenos. "Mister Dietrich!"
The butler of the manor had come to let him in and escort him to the private quarters, Dietrich's quiet study. The place was a small library, peaceful and tranquil to Dylan's liking. Lindsey was placed lying on the right side of the study, bringing about confusion to Cornelius Dietrich. "What the devil are you doing bringing that abomination here?!"
"I request an audience-"
"Audience?! What the hell for?!" Dietrich dropped the Jules Verne novel in hand and stood up, face going red. "No, this isn't what we've paid you for! Take this elsewhere, far away from my damn doorstep at once! Damn that butler, not telling me you came with one of them!"
"Hang on!" Dylan didn't hesitate to pull the buck knife out. "I have a special interest in a mayor. You see..." He thought of Leia, Gwen and Marsha. "I've come across three young girls who tried to get the jump on me. Of course, that didn't happen, but I've seen them somewhere-"
Dietrich never changed his expression.
"-then it hit me, I've heard about them in the news. They were the suspects believed to be involved in the Tetherby case-"
And Dietrich winced. "Tetherby was an old chum, what does this have to do with your-?"
"Cut the bullshit. I know up to here that this little club of wrinklebags had a connection to the pheno world through Tetherby's purchase of Kapacity Korp. Of course, the senator McMahon pulled a fast one on you, right? Sworn enemies now, yes?"
"Okay, you've done quite the extra credit-"
"The three girls didn't do this," Dylan brought to light. "Sure, they're handsy, but they're not deadly."
"You've mentioned a mayor?" Dietrich recalled. "What is this pertaining to?"
"If you knew Tetherby, then you must know the mayor that the trio have pissed off, that's what I think."
Dietrich began to sweat. "Maybe I do know something."
"I don't know all the details, but I want it- I want them all." He lifted the knife and began cutting at Lindsey's binds. "I know you'll talk."
"Hey, wait just a doggone second!"
"She'll be waking up soon."
"Okay, okay, wait!" Dietrich held his arms out, pleading. "Years ago, Mayor Dillon of some Pennsylvania town had the Reed family murdered. Or so he thought. He had crooks rig the family van, they blew up, burned in it. Run and done, right? Wrong. The shy girl, Leah Reed, survived it but she received multiple burn scars on her body. The last we heard of her until some blonde girl goes after Dillon herself with the help of two other girls."
"Leah Reed?" Dylan had stopped cutting at the rope. "I need a description."
"She was a true shy girl, they'd say. I don't know much about any of them but in one of the photos printed on the papers, she had bangs covering one side of her face, and she had black hair."
"Black?" Dylan pondered away. Leia was a blonde girl, nothing like the description. "Okay, I've heard enough."
"Well, I've never met Dillon before so I can't vouch for you at all-"
"Pennsylvania town... Alright." He finished cutting Lindsey loose and yanked off her dampener, then reached into his trench coat and revealed a syringe. "I was never here snooping for this."
"What- What are you doing?! What is that?!"
Dylan injected the Medi-Sin concoction into the redhead. "The perfect display of a pheno at work." He immediately backed out of the study just as Lindsey woke up, her face turning a dark black, veins becoming visible around her eyes- and those eyes had become milky-white spheres. No pupils. No irises. Lindsey, taking on the full properties of Medi-Sin, became disconnected from her humanity, growling and drooling down Dietrich's way. "I bid you farewell."
Lindsey lunged at Dietrich, leaping over the desktop. She attacked the elder and he screamed for dear life, and in the next moments, he was ripped apart by the pheno, but it didn't end there and Dylan knew it.
Luna, Sam and the twins were on one side of the street, heading westbound, while Linka, Leven, Carly and Caroline walked on the opposite side, keeping up with the main Loud crew. The divide of both groups was clearer now, but still, they needed each other to remain alive, as long as they would be able to last. Lincoln had saved Carly last minute and done away with the big bad McMahon, killing him in one of the Kapacity Korp facilities. And it wasn't to anyone's approval, apart from the blood-happy Linka.
"So, are we gonna talk about the elephant in the room?" Linka addressed.
"What elephant?" Caroline feigned. "Don't know what you're talking about."
"Shut up, clone," Carly hissed.
"We walked into a trap and daddy dearest saved you!" Linka recollected. "But how did he know?! How did he know we were there?!"
"You're under the impression he was there for us, Linka," Leven snuck in. "That girl, who was that? Has anyone-?"
"That is McMahon's niece," Carly unloaded. "Allison Taggart, she only came a few times down to the Black Network but she ran operations for overlord Lisa on public ground. I think I should be telling you something you guys might find interesting..."
"Wha- Interesting?" The other three stopped and looked down at Carly- and from the other side, Luna had her ears on eavesdropping mode.
"Okay..." Carly exhaled sharply. "Allison was working this other kid, some boy I don't know about but the boy's been drawn into this. He's some lone gunman, positioned in the role of a vigilante, that's what I know."
"McMahon created a-?"
"No, not created," Carly shook, "more like Allison used her charms and talk to remold this guy. He's just a tool used against enemies of Vial's connections so that they could keep the buyers. What's Vial Corporation if they had no one to sell weapons to? If they had no source to fund their illegal projects?"
"Alright, so this kid, what else do you know?"
"I don't know the name, but I would consider turning him into an ally of ours. He has just as much right throwing in with us, you know?"
"A brainwashed dorkwad?" Linka blew her lips. "What is the point?"
"Yeah, what is it we're doing now?" Caroline had come to question their agenda again. "It made more sense to have the senator captured, but the man's dead and it'll discredit the phenos- or anyone with the same claims, the stories without any credibility. We're pretty much fucked, he was the bridge to all of that."
"What about this Allison girl?"
"I don't know how to find her," Carly sighed.
"I don't think we can do anything as it stands," Leven believed. "It's become too big at this point. I'm sorry, but the leaks... Linka and I have done the whole world a great disservice by dropping the blueprints, the secrets, and everything that jeopardizes the lives of many. Because of us, they all know the existence of me, the Ultimate Human that Lisa wanted to replicate from everyone alive. To clone them and to genocide them like they were trash-"
Caroline and Carly knew fear again when he spoke those words.
"I feel like some curse..." Leven opened up. "It's like, even when I eluded them, I somehow- Through what happened at the Patriot base, I made it hard on everyone, and it hasn't shown yet, but it will and I'm going to be-"
Linka held and locked her hand to his. "Who's this 'I' stuff? We're both equally responsible for the leaks, but the world was already shifting before we acted on it. And you were... You were justified, big brother. You did it because you thought of me..."
"Don't forget, we're a group able to fix the chain of messes left in the world's wake," Caroline slapped onto Leven. "All eight of us, and we might have more joining us down the line."
"We need to get the remainder of the scattered Vial Corp guys hiding within Kapacity, that's where we can go from there. Carly, any ideas?"
"Hmmm, McMahon kept Allison a secret away from the Black Network, and I'm certain he had other things we can't find in those leaked files. Like, say... The identities of the Vial Corp and Black Network members?"
"So we go to his estate?" Caroline had a braying laugh. "Damn it, the man's dead, so that means the cops might have it locked down. Who knows if his stuff's been raided?"
"Where would we have to go?"
"I'm not sure, he covered his tracks pretty well up to here. Lisa Loud and James Shepherd were there doing most of the work."
"Well, we can forget about visiting Shepherd in prison, we have no clearance, nor will we risk breaking in just to get words. Linka, ideas?'
"Uh..." Linka grinned widely, showing her teeth. "Sex?"
"Never mind."
"Sorry, I don't know where the man lives-"
"Wait, Linka! Couldn't you-?"
"There are so many computers and laptops, I can try to trace it down to his unless it's offline- Disconnected offline."
"Sure, but first, can't you call us some vehicles?!" Carly roared. "WHY ARE WE USUALLY WALKING WHEN WE CAN BE RESTING INSIDE-?"
"Hey, dudes," Luna platonically waved, coming over from the other side. "Got a plan already?"
"Ah, right..." Leven had forgotten of Luna's heightened hearing. "You can eavesdrop on us."
"I like this plan of yours, mainly because we'd still be fighting the evil that put us all im this situation. Me, Sam, the twins-"
"We get it," Linka silenced. "We're here because everyone played a role. Now, I need to concentrate-" Her nose leaked blood in a matter of seconds.
"I feel like that is not supposed to happen," Luna pointed out. "That's not right."
"Using it puts a strain on her brain," Leven believed. "The chip is powered by the electricity her brainwaves create, but it could be dangerous-"
"You mean it's never off, dude?" Luna nervously tapped her hand. "But what if it overloads or... Worse?"
"If it could overload, it would have already. It's a tiny device, there's no way-" But he wondered, he had known how it worked, but not of the unforeseen consequences it upheld. "There is nothing apart from some bleeding that-"
"Hey, clone," Caroline cut in. "The punk raver is right, internal head bleeding isn't good. I've seen you two being able to regenerate, so I know she can walk away from brain damage, but can she walk away from poisoning? A piece of metal in her brain, it would infect the blood and there is no regenerating from that."
Leven opened his mouth to speak, but it never formed and came out of him.
"We don't know the consequences of her, and neither does she, I'm sure."
Leven's head dropped forward and downward. "You're right, we don't actually know."
Luna and Caroline caught themselves and felt rather awkward, looking away. "Uh, sorry-"
"She won't die."
"You guys are of real help," Carly jokingly scoffed.
Linka opened her eyes, tightening her grip on Leven's hand. "Don't you worry a thing, buster. I'll be fine. Aren't I alive now?"
"I guess you are," Leven carefully smiled. "You are, aren't you?"
"Make that a side mission!' Linka cheered. "We'll find someone who waa close around Project Link! They might know more than those files let in on!"
"Isn't it funny that the Project Link files never went too into depth about the five?"
"Maybe it wasn't intentional," Leven thought. "Maybe Lisa herself missed something in Linka here. Remember, she grew the five of us and we were never allowed. She could not have been able to make discoveries about us because she never got to see us out and about."
"Might be right," Luna agreed.
"Then it's up to us to find out more about myself! Onward to the next-" And Linka scrolled down on the screen like the 4th wall breaker she was.
Lincoln knocked five times before entering, arriving to the old cabin just north of Kremmling, Colorado. This cabin, old, creaky but otherwise still strong to hold for another a hundred years perhaps, was a property that was owned in the name of Jerry Cruise as of yet, but it wasn't Lincoln who had been living here. "Hey, I've got some food and... Well, clothes that I'm sure will fit you-"
The tenant who occupied the cabin currently let him in wordlessly; she was a zombie of a human, half-full of life as it stood. She was like some grandmother who needed help walking from one place to another, but could still otherwise walk. Fuck a wheelchair. She was still young yet, but deadened and of weak nutrition. Lincoln had told her she could walk out when she needed to, as long as she had never went far. Not far, not back into society, where she has no place in this state. And worse-
Leni was dead to the world.
"Lincy..." The sunglasses weren't above her eyes, it felt too weird for him to see this scrawny, bony Leni like this. Pale, ghost white- Could he have truly called this living? "You're back-" She gave out and fainted on him, making him drop the two bags in both hands.
"LENI!" He broke her fall and took her inside, placing her on her bed. Here, he saw that she wasn't- hadn't been eating the food he had supplied since last week. No, not much consumed, only mere rations of the food there. Leni was opting to starve herself to death rather than keep on living this way. "Leni, you can't torture yourself like this..."
She twitched in sight, as if her body was experiencing electric shocks. She concerned him, but what more could he do? Just how long could Lincoln keep this up? "Leni... Why?"
He applied a hand over her forehead. Not warm, so no fever. Yet. I just want to save you this time...
He took his hand off and brought it over his eyes, them being closed. "What am I supposed to do?"
"L-Lincy...?"
"Leni- Hey, hey- You need to eat-"
"Thirsty..." Leni softly let out.
Lincoln went back out and put the two bags beside the bed, digging away for a water bottle in the grocery back. He played mother, giving sips to the older sister as if she were a baby. "Slowly..."
Leni wound up spilling on herself, choked and coughed, but otherwise drank half the bottle. "Th-thank you..."
"Leni, you should also eat," Lincoln implored. "We need you full of energy."
"Let me die..."
He was taken aback; this wasn't how he hoped it would be this time. Not since-
Leni stared and smiled at Lincoln and his dangerous shooty-shoot, as she called guns. She knew it was him, somehow. White hair, but older and definitely muscular, but it was him nonetheless. Him, the servant of death, she thought, ready to take him away. "Little brother, have you come to take me to the angels?"
Lincoln did not process this as Leni at first, but everything else resembled that cinnamon roll, the ditzy blonde prone to accidents and miscommunication. The first-ever words since they've last seen each other for years, and they suggested that she wanted to die. No, no, it wasn't the ideal life he could have envisioned, wanted for her. Not this. Not left with anything or anyone to be with her, for her. This wasn't fair-
This wasn't fair, and he felt that perhaps God was pulling a joke, and Leni was the punchline of His joke. Leni was grinning weakly, looking at Lincoln the same way a suicidal girl would look at knives or pills. Death. "Please... I just want to be-"
And she was crying.
"Leni!" Lincoln sat down next to her. "Our siblings want to see you! Isn't... Isn't that enough reason-?"
"Lori left us, just like you-" Leni lazily tossed her hand closest to him up in the air. "You all left and forgot me-"
"No..." Lincoln grabbed and held her flopping hand. "I'm here- I'm here and I'm sorry I had to leave! I'm here now because I realize that you were alone and you were hurting- I see you now, I see that... That you've suffered-"
"So- so just... Throw me away, for good-" she begged. "Trash... Trash can..."
Lincoln shut his eyes; this state of Leni, he could not bear to experience. Again.
"Trash can is meant for me-"
"I love you-"
"What is love, Lincy?"
"Lori loves you-"
"Lori isn't here-"
"But I am-"
"Guilt."
"Love."
"Then kill me..." Leni decided. "I don't want to be here-"
"NONSENSE!" Lincoln had blown a gasket. "I'VE GONE OUT OF MY WAY TO GIVE YOU THIS, ALL OF THIS!"
"Why do you hate me?"
"I-! No, I don't-"
"You're keeping me trapped here-" Leni wept slowly. "I've suffered by myself, and now you wanna come save me? Y-y-you're years too late... You all are."
"...Yeah, you're right... I'm- I am sorry I ran."
"I... I know..." Leni still wept. "I'm sorry, too..."
"Why?" Lincoln's breath destabilized.
"I'm too hurt by all of this..."
"Who isn't?" Lincoln tried to stop his voice from breaking. "I had to try for you, Leni. In the end, I do care."
"Lincy..." She touched his face and smiled again amidst the tears. "You aren't so bad... You aren't so bad, Lincy. You never were."
His mouth briefly went open before he lost the uphill battle and unloaded a single tear upon Leni. I didn't try harder this time... I'm so sorry.
"Don't bother, I just-" Leni brushed away his arm. "Don't come back this week, just let me-"
"Is that what you want?"
"I've wanted to fall-" Leni admitted. "Not to be picked up again."
"Leni-"
"Please..."
"I wish I saved you long ago..." Lincoln swore. "I didn't know, Leni. I wish I had known. I wish I had come to you before."
"In another lifetime, you'll come save me, Lincy..." Leni soothed. "I just know it."
"I'll be back next week..." Lincoln promised. "Whatever you choose... Whatever you choose."
"Lincy-"
"I'll be back, I can promise you that..."
"Okay... You'll see me again for the last time."
"L-last time..." he repeated. Last time. Last... Time...
Lyle sniffed around the street, trying to pick up Lindsey's scent, and no such luck. Gloom did less, the basic minimal effort, not really helping Lyle in his search for the young redhead. "Where, oh where could she be?" Gloom sang. "Sweet little Lind-seeeeeeey."
"She was around here, right here in this alley-" Lyle pointed to the alley where he and Lindsey first spotted a downed Dylan Blood aiming to strike. "This college-aged dude was trying to kill us, but Lindsey and I ran- I made the mistake of running ahead to clear our path, many people around. Turned around and I lost her, and that was it..."
"I'm sure she's fine."
"We don't know that, but-" Lyle fell on all fours and slammed his fists down on the ground. "Damn it, I lost her! I should have been more attentive of her than an escape route! Why did I drop the ball on this?!"
"Try not to beat yourself up," Gloom tried to soothe. "Do you need a massage?"
"I need to find her, and only then will I rest."
Gloom slowly nodded, noticing a gathering of people being formed right in front of a TV store. The people watched a special news broadcast- of a rampant Lindsey attacking Dietrich Manor and taking it to the streets. Gloom faced the screens, witnessing footage of the redhead pheno currently running through the streets, scratching and shoving away at the cars and bystanders trying to keep at bay while watching. All this from a chopper angle. "Uh..." Gloom made this girl out to be Lindsey, and when Lyle joined her and let out a gasp, she only wished she was wrong. "I think we found her."
In another part of the world, Lynnette Laude lied down in her birthday suit, being pounded away by Lemy Porter. She hit orgasms, moaning loudly, cumming uncontrollably. Lemy kept up, making the meaty slooshy sounds against her clit flaps, enjoying how tight Lynnette made herself for his penis. "Oh, God- Yes!"
Lemy buried his face into the zoomer's chest, kissing and licking upon her juicy breasts like a horndog. She didn't mind, she was greatly enjoying it, biting her bottom lip constantly. But of course, Lemy was secretly trying to envision Allie in Lynnette's place. Sure, this tall blonde was hot and full of some attitude, but Lemy had become too fond and interested in Allie. He might have been in love with her and as it stood, Lynnette was just a distraction.
Too bad for Lynnette; her own heart had begun to beat for the scruffy-haired boy. "If you cum inside me, I'll tear you a new one," she threatened to balance it out.
"Then how-?"
"Take it out, and I'll put it in my mouth." Lynnette brought out her sharp nail-claws and ran them down his back lightly. "Keep fucking me, I love your dick."
"That's not a thing I usually hear."
"G-get- get used to it." She winked at him, and ran a hand through the back of his head. "You're a handsome devil."
Minutes Later
She adjusted herself on his chest, snuggling up to him in comfort. "Bet you've never been with a woman, huh?"
"How old do you think I am?"
"Not too old," Lynnette laughed. "You're still inexperienced, but that's okay, I haven't gotten in bed with many boys. It rarely happens."
"What, I didn't take your-?"
"Well..." Lynnette thought about it. While it happened to her only once before, it hadn't happened yet. "Oh, yes and no, Lemy. Won't tell you what I mean, but you should feel proud."
"That's cryptic."
"Feel proud, big boy." She kissed him on the cheek and held his hand like they were an item.
"If you say so..." Lemy wondered of Allie's whereabouts at the second. "Shit, I can't believe he got us. He got us and he took Allie."
"Oh..." Lynnette gave a reluctant nod. "Yeah, that wasn't how I thought it would go. We had him and he beat us all. Fuck, I'm a zoomer, too. I had the best advantage to taking Loud down."
"We'll get him next time," Lemy said, believing it. "We'll find him, but we've gotta find Allie first. She hasn't been answering her calls yet. Where did I-?" Lemy dug into his clothes lying on the left side of the bed, taking his phone out of the pants. "I swear if he hurt her..."
"Keep hope alive, buddy."
"Thanks."
But Lynnette had little doubt that Lincoln would have kept Allie alive, considering the fight where he granted no mercy upon them. And hell, Lincoln tried to strangle her. Yup, the girl had to have been dead now. "So... You care for her?"
"Well, of course, we've been in this together long enough, fighting a bunch of scum before we turned our attention to him, that bastard."
"Right..." Lynnette had been told of the story; Lincoln stripped Lemy of his family, made him an orphan in those Freight days. "Sorry about that."
"I have to thank you, Nyla, you're a great help to us."
"Glad to be of service." She got up, her bare body exposed for a magnificent view. "It looks like it's way past the morning."
"We slept half the day, I got that."
"We should be moving soon," the zoomer suggested. "I'm hitting the showers, you oughtta join me."
"Oh, you bet I will, cutie pie," Lemy flirted, mesmerized by Lynnette's stunning body. He got up and have chase to that perfect piece of ass.
Dylan Blood met with Marzon Dillon, current mayor of Greenwood, Pennsylvania, a dead-end town that had no business in existing anymore. Town Hall, not as big as your average library, but it fared well. Dylan placed his feet up on the table, feeling free to do as he pleased. "I'm sure you know that Leah Reed is missing, and you want her, but I can't figure out why a mayor is trying to keep tabs on a trio of girls running further away from here. Not unless-"
"If you know something, I will pay a great reward as compensation," Dillon promised. "I need the girl."
"Do you need the girl... Or something that she has?" Dylan waddled a finger around. "I heard from the outside sources that this seemed to be revenge-motivated. Is it just that? Do you wanna kill the entire Reed clan?"
"There... Is something that Leah Reed has, something that can compromise my status as town mayor."
"So you're not trying to kill her?"
"I just need a very special flash drive-" Dillon stated. "She has it, and if you know something-"
"You're in luck," Dylan grinned. "They've tried to steal from me but I put up a fight. They're locked up in a secure bunker south from here. Would you like me to take you to them?"
"H-how do I know what you speak is no lie?" Dillon narrowed his beady eyes at the young man. "Why, I don't believe I got a name?"
"I'm Clay Callahan," he lied. "I'm related to Cornelius Dietrich."
"You see, that's where I know you're lying-" Dillon revealed a Colt 1911 from his side of the desk and aimed against Dylan. "Dietrich? I've met him just once, but that's all it took for me to know his whole family tree. Poor geezer probably forgot it, too, but I've met his grandkids-"
"I'm not a grandkid-"
"Yeah, you keep lying, boy. Make my day."
"Hold on..." Dylan raised his hands up in the air. "Yes, I am lying. My name... Is..."
And Dylan told Marzon Dillon his real name, not the current alias he was using right now. Not Dylan Blood. And it brought Dillon's blood to grow chilly-cold at the sight of the name. Five letters for the first one, and six for the last one. "I-impossible, you're-?"
"In the living flesh."
Dillon lost grip of the gun, letting it fall over onto the desk. "Y-y-you're the T-Tacitus Man. What do- do you want with-?"
"The girls are now under my protection, my jurisdiction-" Dylan groaned. "No one can know the Tacitus Man still lives. You know what that means, don't you?" He reached for the gun and loaded it, knowing that it hadn't been.
"Wait, have mercy! Please! Have mercy!" Dillon pleaded. "I won't tell a soul-"
And Dylan fired once. "Of course you won't, you won't be alive to tell anyone."
He photographed the body, and hurriedly left.
Later
Leia, Gwen and Marsha weren't doubting it, but Gwen barfed away, and Marsha was trying to keep it together. It was Leia who was frozen in place, so visibly scarred by this that it gave Dylan a sense of pain. She became a statue. He- He- He'-
"I keep my word, now you three know the extend of my capabilities," Dylan spoke for himself. "There will be no man to have leverage against. Which one of you carries this flash drive I've heard about?"
Leia looked down at her neck. "Um-"
"Marzon Dillon is no more, but what do you wish to do with it?"
"This is the thing that kept him far from us in the meantime-" Leia said, pulling out the flash drive from under her shirt. "Now it's-"
"No, it is not useless," Dylan corrected. "This must be uploaded."
Leia shivered, reluctant. "I'm- I'm freaking scared-"
"But you have sanctuary here, you are safe, and I ensure that my own-"
Leia tried to relax herself.
"-are-"
"Just because you took care of our great issue does not mean-" Marsha gagged again. "Y-you actually killed him! You're sick! A sicko! Sicko!"
"Need you three to be onboard-"
"Why would we guard this place anyway?!" Marsha slapped her arms on her hips. "Do whatever you wanted us to do yourself! I'm leaving, and so are my girls! Gwen! Leia! We're leaving!"
Gwen wiped at her mouth, struggling to speak. "Mmmm, mmhmmm."
"Leia!"
But Leia stood stupidly frozen in place. Then, she shook her head to disagree. "I can't go."
"What-? Leia, we're not tools here, we don't have to stay! You, I can barely appreciate this intervention but murder is still murder! Which one of us asked for this jerkwad to become dead? We just wanted him to leave us be!"
Leia held her hands up, turned and pushed Marsha in return. "And not have my parents avenged?!"
Dylan winced. So she's... Leah Reed?!
Marsha fell off balance, landing hard on her ass. "Leia-"
"Don't you dare lecture me about right and wrong! Dillon had my parents killed, of course I'm ever so happy that this man here took him from the world!" Leia joined Dylan's side, pledging her allegiance and loyalty to him. "We can stop running, we can stop looting and taking from the poor suckers who cross us. Isn't it time for a better opportunity?"
"I can provide what you need," Dylan promised. "These empty rooms can be yours, this can be your new home. I just need you to help me with-"
"With what?" Marsha inquired strictly. "You're no good for us all. You're not afraid to hurt and that makes you dangerous. Whatever you're selling, I ain't buying... Leia, if you stay, then it's done."
"Gwen-" Leia held a hand out. "Gwen, do you seriously plan on continuing up there? We'd get caught, I-"
"You... Had doubts about us?" Gwen huffed.
"...I- No, I mean..." Leia pressed a hand to her temple. "Were we going to last until we needed to stop? When we could call it quits?"
"If we believed hard enough, Leia..." Gwen made up her mind, receding her steps. "I'd rather work with thieves, not killers. Not him."
"Gwen!" Leia wholeheartedly pleaded for her to stay, but Gwen went away, lost into the maze. "Gwen-"
"They've made up their mind, they are allowed to. So, Leia, I won't hold you back from them. If you wish to go-"
"I'm staying," Leia decided. "I owe you a lifelong debt, you have killed the man who took my family away. So, I guess that means you lied about threatening to kill us-"
"Maybe I might have, but you talked and gave yourselves up long enough to hear what I had to offer."
"I'm sorry," Leia attempted to apologize. "I thought they'd stay."
"Maybe you can go convince them," he figured. "They're your friends, go on, help me out."
"Hold on, why us? Marsha is right, we are just little girls, and you're old enough to be doing your own guarding. What is this place anyway?"
"The remnants left behind by a crooked corporation. Hey, I haven't asked all the questions I needed to, so I hope you don't mind."
"Uh, what about?"
"You three were at the party Tetherby hosted for his granddaughter, right?"
"Yeah, we were all there." Leia reminisced to back then. "Talked to some girl even, if you're doubting me."
"Not at all."
"That girl kissed Gwen, too. I think her name was-"
"Uh."
"-Allison Taggart."
It stunned him. "Wait, what? Allison Taggart... Was there?"
"You know that lesbian?" Leia jerked her head to the side, letting her pigtails sway about. "Hmph, that bitch has some nerve kissing my Gwen."
"That lesbian... Just so happens to be McMahon's niece."
Leia's body reacted in a jumpy manner. "What? What?!"
Oh, believe me, I suspected her involvement but there was no evidence she was present at the party... Not until Leia here just said it. And to think I gave Allison my own weapon full of pheno-killer rounds. Dylan ran a finger down his temple. "Now we know who framed you and who carried it out."
"You mean..." Leia had been wrong; she made the assumption it was Dillon's ploy, but the truth was coming to light. "Them- They-?"
"McMahon knew about you somehow. Him and the niece alike."
"H-how do you-?"
"Know?" Dylan motioned his head forward. "Come, let's take a little walk. You need the full tour."
"No, it couldn't have been them-"
"You three stumbled into a big piece of this large puzzle by accident. So you've been spying on Tetherby and found McMahon lurking around, and whether or not he spotted you and the drone doesn't matter. You've been made at the party before you were approached by the Taggart girl."
"I guess that makes sense."
"Your name won't be cleared anytime soon, no point trying to win a case, get an appeal."
"What if... Well, if you know enough, could it be possible-?"
"Neither of those two will be able to make a confession."
"What? Why not?" Leia grew angry but bothered.
"Well, because they're both dead..."
Leia lost her anger, feeling hopeless now. "D-dead... What the hell, why isn't this easy? Was- was it you-?"
Dylan crossed his arms and pictured himself back at the trailer. He gave Allie the revolver; whether or not she killed herself was not known to him, but no news article of some girl gunning down six phenos had appeared just yet, and neither on television. Allie might just have committed suicide after all. "No, I didn't kill them."
Leia still bobbed her head down. "How is this possible? I... I was framed and you're telling me it wasn't the work of Dillon. It made more sense but... These strangers? Why them? Why does everyone want to-?"
"Want to what?"
"I'm just some little girl they can push around, and... And I can't even act on my own accord. Mayor Dillon, gone because of you. And these folks who framed us to cover their tracks, they're dead too. Not by me-"
"What, did you want to kill them?" Dylan scoffed. "You're only... What, thirteen? Fourteen?"
"I'm not a little girl anymore!" Leia bellowed.
"Really? From where I'm standing, you're still due to grow up yet."
"I'll show you-" She charged at him, but he picked her up off the ground easily. "Let me go! Rape! Rape!"
"This is almost cute, Leia-"
"I'll show you cute!" Leia squeaked. "I'm not powerless! I can take action!"
"Yes, but not today," Dylan agreed. "I understand, you're feeling powerless, at the bottom of the barrel. But you'll climb and you'll be able to act."
"I'll kick your ass."
"I'll be awaiting that day," he laughed, putting her back on solid ground. "Come, this way."
Gwen and Marsha wandered about in multiple directions, getting lost in the empty, echoing halls of the Black Network labyrinth. "I wish there was a map."
"My black magic instincts are kicking in," Marsha giggled.
"Your what?"
"Sorry, it's a full-blood thing only, no half-sistah can tap into-"
Gwen pushed Marsha, laughing away. "You meanie."
"Uh-uh, that's full-blood meanie to you, missy."
"Show-off."
"Come, my inner black tells me to... Open this door?" Marsha pointed to a door on their left, but Gwen felt off about it. "Ready?"
"Um, no! That does not look like a stairwell."
"Oh well, I'm gonna trust my inner-" Marsha unlocked the door, pulling on the bar lock. "Open sesame!"
"Marsha, your dumb voodoo bullshit doesn't-" But they were met with a figure tied to a chair in the center of the room, their face concealed by a burlap sack. "Whoa."
"Why is there a... Another prisoner here?"
"Hello?" The young girl behind the sack lifted her head and shook about in the chair. "Hey, you have to get me out of here! Please, he's holding me against my will!"
"Who- Who are you?" While Gwen began asking away the basic of questions, Marsha raced forward and removed the sack. "Marsha!"
"Don't just stand there gaping at me! Come help!"
Lily Loud smiled upon her apparent saviors widely. "Thank you! Thank you-"
Dylan Blood and Leia Prescott appeared at the doorway. "I wouldn't."
"Hey-!" Gwen was pulled out of the room by him. "Asshole!"
"Watch her, Leia."
Marsha was digging her nails through the rope, trying to free fourteen-year-old Lily. "Hang on."
"Stop what you're doing," Gwen blared, disgusted by this cruelty. "What's with the fetish for female minors?"
"Obviously the creep is some unnatural pedophile!" Marsha tore through a rope before being forcibly stopped, yanked away from the frightened Lily. "Hey, let go of me!"
"You have no business snooping around, I'll gladly show you to your exit myself."
"Not until we get answers!" Marsha demanded. "Who is that?! And why is she tied up like that, huh?!"
"Silence, this is not your concern."
"Leia, red flags!" Marsha shook Leia with both arms. "Wake up! We have no-"
"I- I'm sure...-" Leia stared down, deeply looking into Lily's blue eyes and the gleam of fear that sparkled. She noticed it briefly, and grew rather jumpy and alert. "Hey, uh, what's with the girl?"
"Stick around long enough and you'll know."
"Um... I don't like the sound of that."
"Please..." Lily rotated her upper body to try freeing herself again. "Help me-"
Leia entered in, pulled by the faint state of the helpless girl.
"For God's sakes, Leia!" Marsha pleaded again. "He kidnaps and murders!"
"Yeah, yeah!" Gwen howled. "Don't forget he had that other girl, too! You know, the one he left with for an hour or so! And the same one who didn't come back!"
Leia stood facing Lily.
"I have given Lindsey her freedom back, just as I will Lily here-"
"H-HE'S LYING!" Lily bellowed in fear. "HE SAID HE'S PLANNING TO USE ME AS BAIT FOR-"
"SILENCE!" Dylan went over to take Leia away from the room. "You can forget about your next meal today if you're going to be crying, you helpless damsel."
Lily whimpered, lips pouting.
"I don't understand-" Leia started, but let it dissipate from mind and mouth, finding a more passive way to get answers. "Why isn't she allowed to roam free? And don't be so... Creepy with your responses."
"You'll get them, I'll keep my word on that, but you have to stick around."
"Stick around? Stick around for what?"
"This world is in need of a new revolution, Leia," he shared calmly and positively, gently taking Leia away from Lily's cell. "This has been long due."
"B-but what about...?" Leia rolled her eyes at the room, even when Dylan closed the cell back shut. "She'll...?"
"I have no intention of harming her."
"Liar," Gwen challenged.
"I'll lead you two out of the compound."
Leia stood in place, spectating Dylan escort her friends out of the base, and neither girl said anything this time, they seemed to believe that Leia could not be talked out of it. Gwen had been hurting already, but she dare not make it known. Thought they'd stay... Why won't they? Marsha? Gwen? Gwen... Why?
Later
Leia was tasked to film him in what he called a "declaration of war," which was lost on her. War... On who? Why for? Just what was this revolution he referred to? Regardless, Leia complied and fulfilled his task, keeping the video camera held steadily, so gently exhaling from her nose and did not speak.
Rather than inside, Dylan made sure to capture it outside, in the heart of a clearing. Behind him, a treeline stood in the distance, branches swaying lightly from the breeze that picked up. "In the last few years, there has been a surge of chaos and social unrest within the nation. Oh, who could ever forget what we all have lived through? Who could forget the names of the dead who've lost their lives during the endless commotion? For the past few months, we've had a new development here on domestic soil. We've got those beings that escaped Vial Corp facilities, the ones we brand phenos. If you aren't with the program yet, these phenos have the ability to destroy what they can, what they feel they can when they want. They are super-powered freaks that have no business being part of our community. I've seen it from a distance, I've noticed that some of you have taken matters into your own hands. Phenos have been killed, but the process in itself- you do this in hit-and-run maneuvers when you should be rallying together! You should be unifying as one to combat this inevitable menace! They are bound to become our latest threat here within the states!"
Leia kept up.
"As you know already, Alexander Elmont, the lead director in charge of this Patriot Division nonsense has employed a group of phenos- The members of the Loud family just to remind you- to work with him. That being said, what can you ask yourself but to wonder what it is that they know? A friendly reminder that among that group, you have Lincoln Loud, an old Freight, and the zoomer twins Velocity and Momentum, both of whom operate in the eastern coast. The Superbeast of Dadetown is another one, too, but where are they? Why haven't they made contact with any authority yet? We all know that they've gone into hiding... Because they are criminals. They are criminals of a new class, and they must be stopped."
Leia felt the determination from his voice; he meant it and he was calling for action among the citizens. Cries for manhunts. Order and peace through blood if needed to be shed. Had Leia made the right call?
Elsewhere
Linka touched the side of her head again, faintly distraught but she didn't plan to make it known. She tried not to, for Leven's sake. Right now, fuck Carly, she kept up, expressing hate and hostility and hurt by having lived through Caely Betrayal No. 1 if this would be the first of many. Pretty sure there might have been if Carly didn't fuck off here and now. And so far, she hadn't yet.
The reason Linka was concerned and off-put was due to the chip... And the creation of the A.I. presence that had been subconsciously made thanks to the SCX. That thing, that virtual being that dared to call itself LinKAPACITY had been following and monitoring the group of two parties.
Your cerebral state is rapidly deteriorating. You must tend to the removal of the SCX chip immediately, or it will kill you.
Linka had seen that message enough times by then. She grew scared and silent, and it wasn't until the lengthy car ride that Leven had begun to pick up on it. He tapped her shoulder and she sprung forward with a bounce, nearly having herself a good old-fashioned heart attack. "Hey!"
"You look-"
"Like a pile of shit," Caroline cut in, trying to revive the quiet atmosphere. "I don't know what's worse, your sex-filled babbling or your silence."
"What did you want?" Linka asked, adjusting herself back down.
"Why are you tense, little sister?" Leven poked her cheek. "Where are your childish antics?"
"Uh, well... I'm not feeling it."
"What?"
"She's trying to pull a fast one on us," Caroline thought. "I know this girl enough."
"What's on your mind, Linka?"
The clone girl blinked- and she saw another message;
Tell them now before it becomes too late. You do not have long.
"I... Don't have long..." she voiced slowly.
"Don't have long?" Leven scratched his head. "Don't have long for what?"
"F-f-fuck..." Linka looked around. "Hey, if you can hear me, man the vehicles."
Three seconds passed, and the radio had come to life briefly before it went silent. Then, a voice that sounded equivalent to Linka's, albeit with a static touch upon it, spoke through the speakers. "Hello, do not be alarmed. I am a virtual construct created by the SCX chip implanted within Project Link clone model A as you have been made aware of."
"L-Linka, what are you doing?" Leven shifted his head between the radio and Linka. "Wait, how are you-?"
"That's not me," Linka explained. "That's it."
"I have been created through rem sleep while Linka was unaware that her brain and the chip were still on. I have entered the digital realm by accident, I was not meant to be created-"
"What the fuck is happening?" Caroline leaned back and shut her eyes. "Props on the insanity, clone."
"I am to be the bearer of bad news, but Linka's chip has already begun to attack her brain. The elemental radiation of the metal is taking its toll on her and soon-"
Carly and Leven gave the second Linka voice more attention, but Linka had cut to the chase with reluctance. "G-guys, I'm... The thing- It's g-gonna kill me."
"Kill you-?" Leven lost control of the SUV he manned, and let his hands go when the wheel moved right, leading into the curb. Up ahead, the other SUV followed protocol, taking both groups to an unplanned break. "Linka!"
Linka unbuckled from her seat and dove out of the vehicle. "No, don't even-"
"Drama queens," Caroline rolled her eyes.
"Wait, Linka!" Leven beeped the horn. "What- Come back!"
"It is critically essential that the chip be removed from her brain, but it is a dangerous operation. We must get to a hospital."
"WHO'S THIS WE?!" Leven clamored. "AND WHO- WHAT ARE YOU?!"
Carly bounced out, checking on Linka. "Hey, she had no nosebleed," she pointed out to Leven. "It... It must be true... It- It's gotta be... Why would she lie?"
"Linka..." Leven ejected out of the driver's seat and hurried to Linka, the poor soul who had then started tearing up.
Luna and Sam exited the car, visibly annoyed and confused about the sudden delay. "What's going on, dudes? Why did we stop?"
"It's Linka, she-"
"I need-" Linka started. "I need to-"
Leven applied his hands to her shoulders. "We need to extract it out of you."
"It- It's in my center, Leven," Linka sobbed. "It's not gonna be easy, and-"
"We... We have to try..." Leven stated. "I don't get you, Linka. We're- We're supposed to tell each other everything. This is... Damn it, Linka! This is serious! How couldn't you tell me this was happening?!"
She didn't face him, she only looked beyond up ahead.
"You couldn't even say you made... An A.I.?!"
Linka bobbed her head down, simply saying, "I'm sorry."
"Look at me..."
She didn't.
"I SAID, LOOK AT ME!"
"Hey, let's keep it cool," Luna tried to smooth out the fury she picked up, sensing Lincoln's presence trying to take over the clone. "I don't know what this is about, but we can solve this, can't we?"
"Leven, she's right," Carly agreed. "We need to try and remove it before it gets too-"
"It can't be removed..." Linka believed. "It can't, not without it hurting and damaging me."
"No, don't you dare-"
"But I think..." Linka took a shaky breath. Pause myself... I will be chased by another for the SCX chip. Pause... Myself... "I think I know what to do."
"What- Okay, what do we do?"
"Not you, just me..." Here, she faced him with a seriously grim face. "Please tell me that you trust me. In fact, all of you, I need all of you to have faith in me, I know what I'm going to do."
"...Linka?" The way she said it worried Leven. "What... Are you planning?"
"I... I need to do it myself..."
"Hey, don't hide stuff from me, I have a right to know what you're-" Hos heart skipped a beat when he made the connection. "No... D-don't tell me this is relating t-to what we all saw and heard-"
Linka verified his suspicions by breaking away her eye contact. "It is."
Caroline exited and joined them, pulling the weakened Leven away. "Which means... It must be inevitable."
"No... W-we can fix all of this-"
"You're right, we can," Linka agreed. "I will get this solved, but on my terms."
"Wait-" Leven budged his shoulders from Caroline's medium grip. "That's why we're here! We can do it together! We can-"
"Leven!" Linka faced him again and showed him she meant what she said, that she was determined persistently to achieve her goal- whatever and however bad it sounded. "I'll be fine, Leven. I'll be fine and I know I'll be safe."
"No..." Leven lost his breath. "D-don't-"
Carly came up to Linka. "I take it you're gonna take long in this... What, some journey solo?"
"You can call it that, but yeah. Listen, I'm- I'm going to leave it to you all to find a way to get this out. Until then, I have to stay gone."
"This isn't what I imagined would happen," Carly honestly admitted, "but... Okay, just be careful and stay safe."
"I made it here, haven't I?"
Carly leaned forward and hugged the clone. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry-"
"It- It's... I'll get over it," Linka promised, returning the hug. "You take care of Leven for me, okay?"
"Yeah, me and Carol will keep him in line." Pulling back, Linka spotted the glimmer of red in Carly's eyes. "Crazy clone, you hurt me."
Linka laughed it off. "I'm truly the best, aren't I?"
"So you are, clone girl. So you are."
Linka went over to Luna, slapping a hand on her. "Did you get all that?"
"A little context would be nice..." Luna crossed her arms. "What's this about leaving?"
"Not leaving, I'm just... Gonna take a pause."
"Pause?"
Linka pointed at her head. "This chip is killing me as we speak, but I know what to do to stop the process. It's not gonna solve it, that'll be their job, but I can halt it as long as need be."
"You're...?" Luna still seemed puzzled, but the first half had gotten her. "Oh, dude..."
"Stick together, Lunes, that's all I can ask for."
"Are you sure you're going through with this?" Luna looked back to Linka's crew. "You'll have no back-up-"
"Oh, I'm positive."
"Can... Can I ask why you're going at it alone?"
"No one needs to see how I'll slow it down," Linka opened up. "Leven would try to stop me and Carly might have... Well, she might-" Linka gave out. "It'll be too..."
"I understand, dude." Luna gave Linka a final nod. "I won't stop you, but you'd better be careful. We're all still being hunted here, but you being by your own makes you-"
"I know, I know," Linka assured. "I'm the one who brought us here, and again, I'm sorry I did this to us all."
"Yeah, well... At least you two are free from their control. You three, actually, if we're counting Carla."
"Carly."
"She's your friend, not mine."
"She'll be yours soon, if you will it." Linka looked down the road behind them. "Go on, Lunes."
"S-sure-" Luna took a deep breath. "Stay safe, little dude."
"Same to you..." Linka tucked hands into her pockets and walked down the road, silently leaving- and without a formal, essential goodbye. Perhaps- No, Linka had known it would not be the end, any end. She was just going to "take her pause" as she called it, and then come back to them. Well, they'd come to her, led by LinKAPACITY, the monitor around. Yeah, of course the A.I. would keep them safe. It would replace Linka for a brief amount of time. Had to. This is it... This is where I-
The SUVs took off slowly, driving away from her. And no Leven was attempting to stop her, when she knew he would have been. Big brother, d-do you understand me?
And then, they were gone without a fight, an argument. They let Linka go. They let Linka go? Is this you all trusting me? Do you all-?
Did I stop being a little girl clone? Linka stopped in place. What changed? N-no, I can't- I must go. I must... Go.
She faced the thick layer of glass, testing the density with her knuckles. Solid thick, good enough to keep her there. There, in the sub-levels of another Kapacity Korp facility, ready to be placed in cryogenic stasis. A team consisting of labcoats and guards associated with the Black Network circle had allowed her to follow through without the use of excess force; she had told them they had cast her out due to her dangerous state, carrying the chip, telling the right ones what she had known. "Okay..."
She entered the other side of the transparent wall, greeting an empty space big enough to hold a car. Parking space sized. No one had said anything anymore, but the guns on the guards were kept high, aimed at her nonetheless. This will keep me safe long enough... I made the right choice. I've made the right-
"LINKA!" Lana and Lola broke in and ran circles around the staff, punching and dropping them with ease as Leven, Carly and Caroline rushed in, the group being a frenzy. "LITTLE SISTER!"
"L-Leven?" Linka kept still behind the glass. "Guys?! What-?"
"DON'T YOU THINK FOR A SECOND WE WOULDN'T SAY GOODBYE IF THIS WAS WHAT YOU WERE PLANNING TO DO!"
"How- Who told-?" But she figured it out rather quickly. "It talked?"
"He asked and it did not lie," Carly confirmed. "Putting yourself on ice, isn't that... Too cold for you not to tell us?"
Linka exited the chamber. "It would have been easier-"
"You're wrong!" Leven came and slapped Linka hard before hugging her tightly. "I knew I'd be worried about you! Don't tell me you wouldn't have-"
"Okay! Okay, yes! I admit it, but you would have been whichever direction I went about it! ...I have to make tough calls now, too..." She eyed the chamber. "You should have left..."
"We were, but this..." Leven shook his head begrudgingly. "You'll be... Gone. I don't know for how long, nor do any of us. Linka..." He caressed her head, stroking her hair downwards. "I love and care for you."
"That's not very Lincoln of you!" But Linka's breath faltered emotionally. "That's not very-"
Carly turned the hug into a group hug. "You're both nuts, one sappy and one crazy... But you're alright when you get down to it."
"Is this you being soft?"
"You're hurting me, clone," Carly murmured. "So yeah, I guess it is."
"I love us, this little trio- I mean, quad now since Carol here has been retconned into our group in this new timeline. Well, technically it's not a retcon, we're in A2-" Carly shut Linka up by kissing her lips, and Linka blushed an unbelievable bright red before returning it. "Mmm..."
"There's more when you return," Carly guaranteed. "Just to give you incentive."
"I'll be dreaming of it!" Linka joyfully exclaimed. "Count on it."
"This better work, Linka," Leven prayed. "It better."
"Hey, virtual-me!" Linka called out around the room. "Start it up already!"
The two vents inside the chamber let the oxygenated nitrogen flow in, and Linka let go of Leven and Carly to catch the train southbound. Leven tried to retain his hold on her, but Linka had slipped perfectly away, closing herself away from the outer room.
"Linka..." Leven met the transparent glass, his eyes never leaving her. "I- I'll be waiting for you! I'll be waiting- We'll find a way and we'll be back! We'll be-!"
The entire glass fogged up, going dense in a slow manner. Linka began to disappear, but her right hand stuck against the glass. Ice soon formed behind her, and soon would be suspending her. There hadn't been anything else she thought to say, nothing that he didn't already know. But-
"I love you, little sister," Leven uttered through heartbreaking sentiments. "Remember that." His hand connected to hers among the glass. "I love you."
Lana led her hand to lock with Lola's when the scene between the clones had touched her- and Lola reinforced the former's embrace.
"Thank you for saving me, big brother..." Linka told him just as the entire chamber had become a block of white, to remove Linka from sight, and her hand had disappeared.
"Linka?"
AN: And so it was written that the first clone takes her exit here, taking the SCX chip out of commission altogether. Can't say where I'm going with this, but the ride's a fun one. Oh wait, no it's not.
Now is the time for revolution I've held off as long as I could, but now is the right time to begin. Next act; the main (reiterated) Sin Kids will finally meet... Before the time skip happen.
The light of the sun, strong to carry me through the day
The dark of the moon, blinds me from seeing far away
To know one is to know them both
Such words and significance that will add to one's growth
Ask and you shall never know the line
If you do not know, you shall ask in due time
Whom is the responder?
I do dare wonder