Copen was intently staring right back at him.
"I challenge you to a duel. If you win against me in a round of Cosmic Crusaders, I'll forgive you. But if I win, you'll probably be hearing about it for quite some time. Probably the rest of your life." Zeno stated.
Copen and Zeno shook hands with Copen as Xiao and Gunvolt searched for the game. When the round was over, Zeno grit his teeth.
"Well, there's no denyin' what's right in front of ya. Good game man. And I'm sorry 'bout earlier. You weren't tryna make me crash." Zeno apologizeed.
"I didn't mean to either, next time I'll make sure to keep the facts down to a minimum." Copen added.
"If only it would've been that easy to shut down the Sumeragi and Eden." Moniqa muttered.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
'If only we wouldnt've had the disagreement with Asimov.' Gunvolt thought.
Lumen sensed Gunvolt's misery.
"Don't worry GV, you don't have to worry about Asimov anymore. He's long gone, so is the Sumeragi and Eden. But we have to deal with ATEMS now. Let's try and focus on that." Lumen advised.
Gunvolt nodded solemnly and returned his focus to Xiao who was talking about how they tuned down the sizes of clocks to make watches.
"All of the components and placements are the same but it's just the sized that are different." Xiao elucidated.
"Would you think that would create a price difference between clocks and watches?" Gunvolt pondered.
"It all depends on where you get them and brand. Antinque stores may sell them for higher or lower prices. Thrift shops will definitely be your best bet." Xiao notified.
"Which brand of watches do you think is best?" Gunvolt wondered.
"Definitely Blancpain, they're the oldest watch brand so they're the best at their craft. They're one of the first watch companies if I'm not mistaken. The company's most known for making elegant and high quality watches." Xiao responded.
"Do you know a lot of people have been calling watches 'wrist clocks' lately?" Gunvolt asked.
"No, it sure sounds strange." Xiao answered.
Atari and Joule were fascinated by Mytyl's book. Causing the author to be showered in compliments by Lola and Lumen as well. Mytyl was cupping her cheeks and blushing.
"Stop it you guys, I'm getting embarrassed!" Mytyl blurted out.
"It's such an amazing book though!" Lumen remarked.
"Ugh, can't we just go back to, I dunno, say, reading?" Mytyl begged.
"Yeah, maybe we should try and finish it before we get seperated." Lumen advised.
"Yeah, let's do that." Lola agreed as they all continued reading the book.
"Well, you guys can take back whatever muffins you want." Zeno stated.
Gunvolt knocked on the door thrice before poking his head into the room.
"Lumen, Joule, it's time to go." Gunvolt announced.
The girls left begrudgingly.
Five minutes later, Copen decided that he, Mytyl and Lola should get going too. Then it was down to just Zeno, Moniqa and Atari. They spent the day reading until lunch. Zeno was content to just spend the rest of the day on the couch with Atari. He got to making lasagna while Moniqa kept an eye on Atari.
"It really is a nice book. You did a good job helping Mytyl write it." Moniqa commented.
Atari smiled.
"T-thank you." Atari squeaked.
Moniqa's heart was doing cartwheels. She always thought Atari was the kindest and sweetest thing. She also felt that Atari was a very misunderstood girl. Moniqa felt it was her sworn duty to keep Atari safe.
Sadly, the truth had to be said. There was nothing Moniqa could do to prevent it. That was why she decided to try and keep Atari protected best she could. Zeno noticed some sauce in the right corner of Atari's lips and wiped it off for her with a napkin. Moniqa had to put her own napkin to her mouth in order to hide her reaction.
After eating, Moniqa thanked Zeno for lunch and the recipe before returning home. Unfortunately, the peaceful silence didn't last for long. The quiet was soon interrupted by a loud banging at the door. Zeno opened the door to see Gunvolt and Lumen with Joule hiding behind Gunvolt.
"Ay man, somethin' wrong?" Zeno spoke.
"They have pictures of all our faces. And if that wasn't bad enough now the Sumeragi wants to arrest us all on charges of interferring with interational affairs." Gunvolt informed.
"Does Mr. Shino know about this? How about Copen? Has anyone told him yet?" Zeno worried.
Gunvolt shook his head.
"He'll probably call us quick enough saying that he saw the news too." Gunvolt assumed.
Just then, Copen called Zeno who got his phone off the kitchen counter. Gunvolt closed the door behind Joule and himself. Joule, Lumen and Atari talked and Gunvolt watched the news more while Zeno was on the phone. When teh call was finally eneded, Zeno went into the living room.
"Sorry 'bout that man. You were right, but I wasn't expectin' Copen ta call that quick." Zeno stated.
"There's nothing else about us on the news at the moment, that's a relief." Gunvolt notified.
"Copen said he wants us all to meet up at his place right now. Moniqa's already there." Zeno commented.
Gathering up the girls, Lumen filled Joule and Atari in and they left with Zeno and Gunvolt to see Copen. Zeno brought some of the muffins in ziplocs just in case the girls got peckish.
"We need to make a move, we can't let ATEMS think they're welcome here." Copen reminded.
"We'd better start off with the Desert Base. It's the closest area they overtook. If we get caught, it'll be quicker to return. Regardless, we have to be careful." Moniqa elucidated.