Sins In Twisters
Chapter 35: The First Steps On The Road To Hell
Log Entry Date: March 12th, 2026
The following is this record's third and projected last entry until the situation has been established. As of this writing, there are 84 days until the deadline, and both fronts have rapidly picked up steam.
To begin with our focus, as of precisely 37 hours ago, Lincoln and his team had finished their South America chase and had returned to El Reno. They had only gotten what they had confirmed to be 12 out of their hoped 20 to 25 before the end. This is not due to a lack of weather producing desired results. On the contrary, had they decided to stay, there was a chance they could have met or surpassed this goal. It was because of what had transpired back in the States.
Without documenting every occurrence, a prolific tornado outbreak started eight days ago in north-central Mexico and moved northward into central Texas. Driven by a strongly negatively titled trough in the atmosphere and above-average warm Gulf air, the outbreak lasted roughly four days and produced an estimated 97 tornadoes. One storm on the second day, described as the 'tornado of the event,' was a nearly continuous storm complex that tracked over the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
This event comprised six individual storms, eight tornadoes, and a windstorm in the late night to morning hours that had achieved a wind force of nearly 110mph. Of the tornadoes that developed from three storms, two have been officially rated as EF4. The first official violent tornadoes of the year triggered over a dozen tornado emergencies when the first EF4 had formed southwest of Fort Worth, causing widespread damage to the Arlington area before lifting 16 miles away before the second would form just north of Plano.
During the rest of the outbreak, other tornadoes achieved EF3 and EF2 status; one EF2 reached a width of 2.1 miles in southeastern Oklahoma. The event was widely documented by the media and storm chasers, and its slow movement speed and the appearance of rain made it a highly praised chase.
According to some metrics, this storm complex is currently responsible for increasing our snow totals for this winter. However, that is of little concern. What is the fact that having missed a widespread significant outbreak, Lincoln and his team had decided to end their expedition early in favor of preparing earlier for the coming season. This can be found in the fact that elements of Vortex 3, whose official launch date was slated for April 3rd, have been moved up to March 20th, and several aspects of the incomplete fleet are currently actively chasing.
Though the current outlook doesn't show much regarding server weather activity, the current Day 5 outlook presents a massive spike in activity around the Kansas-Missouri and Iowa regions. Many online talks have regarded this as the first actual chase of the year that could come out of the gate swinging.
I have little doubt Lincoln is preparing for this specific event.
This is why we must act now despite not being fully ready.
According to Lana, work on Vanzilla 2 is roughly 85 percent complete. Some secondary work and building the hail guards over the windows remain, but the vehicle is ready overall. Whether the others are ready is questionable.
Having monitored their progress in reviewing my list of needed material, I can say that most of my sisters are not ready for what is to come. So far, only Luan, Lori, Luna, and, oddly, Lola have taken significant steps to understand what goes into chasing. While I have said the hope is to avoid us potentially driving into the path of incoming storms and try to prevent Lincoln from doing the same, I can not rule out the unknown chances that such an event is not just unlikely but inevitable.
If we had the time, I would gladly set up a more direct learning program to get them all up to par for what would be even close to a crash course, but such time is not on our side. With these recent developments, the ten of us will depart Royal Woods in two days. The current plan is to drive straight through the night to El Reno in shifts, though with us, anything could happen to cause delay. I can only be certain and hope it won't just be the ten of us when we return home.
Saturday, March 14th
The weather had seemingly granted them the wish that this day would invoke the feeling that the journey ahead would be one without much trouble. But they've all grown to expect the unexpected for the last decade. This week, everything seemed like a mess of pressure gauges, with the needles slowly moving up and down before dropping to zero or beyond full pressure. In four days, the tenth anniversary of the first Royal Woods Tornado would be marked—ten years since this nightmare had started for all of them.
By early morning, they were ready. The family of 12 stood in ankle-deep snow, gathered at Loud House 2.0. The outer walls were finally completed, and the roof was partially shingled and covered in snow. Brand new windows, still covered in plastic, kept the elements out. It was as if they were watching their old home being renovated, taking a small step back and expanding like the house was growing physically. It was a surreal sight to all of them.
But they didn't stay to watch any longer. They knew that a month from now, once the snow had melted, the grass had become green, and the last stroke of paint had dried, it'd become a place where a new generation of memories could be made…
Standing in the patch of frozen grass between the house and driveway, Lynn Sr and his wife stood off to the side. They were willing to help, but they agreed that he should relax. He was 'relaxed' in seeing how all his daughters worked together like a finely tuned machine. Passing the mound of cases from Vanzilla to the new van, which had all the 'upgrades,' made him secretly hope that they could be reversed in the future.
Not that he didn't mind the old girl; she was still a fighter even now, but in the few times he got to drive the new machine, he couldn't deny having some of those old feelings about Veronica spark up watching it be changed so much.
"Watch your fingers!" Lana's voice shouted as one-half of the luggage rack came down. Shaking the vehicle in place as she checked over the locks of the storage case meant to hold their belongings without worrying the elements or some mad lad would steal.
"That's the last of it!" She announced. Sliding down a ladder and taking it into the garage.
Standing between the vehicles, Lisa took her laptop out and scrolled through a list of everything she had detailed for them to pack. "Are we positive this is everything?" she asked, not wanting them to take any unnecessary weight but also not forget something and have to double back to pick it up.
They were already short on time—according to her watch, it might have been a little after 9 a.m. By all metrics, they could cover the distance in a single day, just like Lincoln did. But they had the benefits of being able to switch drivers, not tow another vehicle, and not be under the effects of medical or physical limits.
On the otherside, Luna was busy tightening a cargo box to the rack. Using every bit of leverage she could to get just a few more clicks to the point, giving the strap a little nudge, it felt more like trying to move a bolted-on band. "That's everything."
"Good."
Coming around to the passenger side, Luna pulled open the rear door as Luan popped open the front. Both turned around as the ten sisters stood in formation in front of the van to see their parents standing in the snow. Seeing them all together like this, all packed up and ready to go somewhere neither parent could follow now, they couldn't help but feel the cold chill growing on their cheeks as tears in the corner of their eyes threatened to unleash.
"This feels just like the days when we had to watch some of you go off to college," Lynn Sr. said, wiping away a tear. He remembered how he had to see six of his kids off, knowing that it was just another step in their growth.
"Now remember," he said, trying to take on a sterner voice, "Eat healthy. Being on the road doesn't give you an excuse to snack on junk food all day. Don't let the young… younger ones stay up late. And make sure they do their homework! And-"
"Lynn," Rita said, placing a hand on his chest. He sighed, realizing that he was starting to follow the same path as before.
They weren't children anymore. Two had recently turned 16, and Lisa might have been only 13, but she had already had the mindset of an adult for years. There was only one 'child' left, and as much as they wanted her to stay here, having all her sisters watching over gave them some needed peace of mind. It would provide them with a moment of peace to themselves, something a bit rare nowadays. They trusted them all to look after each other out there.
"And girls…" he stepped forward. Crouching low enough to bring his youngest close and wrap his arms around all of them the best he could. Rita joined his side as they gave their children the tightest hug their aging bones could give them,
"Please… bring him home."
"We'll be back before Christmas," Luan jokes, causing some eye rolls but giving their father a much-needed laugh that makes it worth it.
"I hope so. We've got a lot of moving and decorating to do, " Senior quipped, earning some nods and smiles from those who shared his idea as they all turned towards the growing home with anticipation.
"Alright, girls, let's roll!" Lynn shouted as they broke formation. They ran around the van towards the driver's side, only for Lori to pop around the other and grab the door first.
"Hey, what gives?"
"Sorry, Lynn, but we already agreed I'm the designated driver for the first half." She said, opening the door and quickly jumping in before Lynn could have the chance to squeeze through.
Peeved by this, she got another idea.
"Shot-!"
"Already occupied," Lisa flatly stated. Lynn looked over to see the scientist already strapped in the front seat with her computer open.
Groaning, frustrated, she took what seat she could snag—popping down behind Lori with Luan on the opposite end. The twins and Leni sat in the far back, with Lucy, Lil, and Luna between them.
It was only the third time they had been in the new van together, and still couldn't believe this was technically the same van as Vanzilla but to the modern age. Comfortable seats that didn't trap you, plenty of legroom, a little AC port directly above with lights and seat belts that actually work, it was a miracle of engineering. As Lori started it up, they all still thought it wasn't working because of how quiet the engine was. Just barely feeling the van vibrate to the motor's hum and how the suspension didn't groan from their combined weight.
However, between them all, one seat was occupied but remained empty. Intended to fit that eleventh body, its purpose, for now, was to serve as the spot an overloaded snack cooler sat between the athlete and comedian. Something the jock immediately capitalized on by snagging a soda and started chugging it.
Once all doors were closed and locked, Lori adjusted her rearview to see everyone buckled in behind her.
"Are we ready?"
"Ready!" they shouted, Lynn just giving a thumbs-up. Looking over to Lisa, the 13-year-old gave her own little thumbs-up before pointing down the street.
Taking a deep breath to calm and mentally prepare herself, Lori shifted the stick into drive and slowly let the van crawl down the driveway. Pausing to check for traffic, it eased itself onto Franklin Avenue. Slowly picking up speed, the sisters waved goodbye to their parents, who waved in return. Both watched the rest of their children head off to distant, unknown lands and the new home to return to.
The further they went down the street, the more Lynn Sr felt something within his chest. It wasn't another heart attack (hopefully), but it was the feeling he had when pulling into that gas station all those months ago. Watching as the van took a left turn, heading through the empty neighborhood that had yet to return. He could see its green shine passing behind the buildings that stood, but the sight gave him less peace of mind and more fear. Fear that now all his children were going somewhere, they'd have to face this kind of force again…
"You okay, Lynn?" Rita asked, noticing her husband's gloom.
"*sigh, I'm worried, Rita," he said, using her name to convey his seriousness, "They… I know they'll keep trying… but this is something that even people with more experience than our son has gotten…" She placed a hand on his chest. Another to his cheek to turn his gaze away from the distance to be only focused on her eyes.
"I know," she said quietly. Dreading that reality was all too true. "But we gotta be confident that they'll both keep each other away from harm. They'll do everything to keep him safe, and Lincoln won't let them close to any danger."
The resolve in his wife's eyes helped push those thoughts away, but they lingered like shadows. Slowly, they turned towards their growing home—much bigger and rawer than the place they had seen nearly 30 years ago. It broke their hearts to remember all that three decades held, but like their family, even when knocked down, they would stand up stronger than before.
This home was the physical embodiment of that very idea, and Lynn couldn't stop a smile from spreading across his face as he hooked an arm around Rita's waist and brought her close. Dreaming of what it would be like in summer when everyone is home and together again.
Yet as the van marched through town, those out and about caught a glimpse of the suped-up van passing by. A pinch of people quickly realized who was driving and fished out their phones, looking for a secluded spot as they called the same number.
Unaware, the Loud Sisters continued to the west side, following the snaking road that Lincoln had unknowingly taken to come back home before. They passed a sign that home was now behind them, and the world was now ahead.
Goodbye, Royal Woods.
Hello, Tornado Alley.
Approaching the two-hour mark in their journey, the initial excitement had quickly worn off. That's not to say they weren't anxious; they had been daydreaming of doing this, and it was finally happening. Months, maybe years of waiting, and now they were on their way.
Once Royal Woods and the greater Detroit area were far out of view, they all fell into their own little bubbles of comfort. After their last two big road trips, getting where they want to be will take a while. The plan, as far as they knew immediately, was to head towards Great Lakes City and follow one of two highways to their destination—a thousand miles and only now 16 hours to go. If nothing happens, they'd be standing in front of Lincoln's front door by tomorrow afternoon.
At least, that was what they hoped.
Right now, it felt like they were just off to revisit Bobby. Like the feeling you'd get from traveling back and forth from one spot, your mind begins to wonder when you don't stop. You keep driving through and see how much further that same road you've traveled a hundred times goes.
The mood in the van was tame compared to the circus going on in their minds. Even with some beefed-up tires that made you feel a lot more of the road, it was such a smooth ride; some thought it was nice enough to try to catch up on sleep, knowing they'd be here for a while. The twins were already out like a light; Lola leaned against her sister, and Lana tried to keep her head up before smushing it into the window. Lily was right behind them, leaning against Luna's shoulder as the rocker spent the time with her ear pods watching the scenery pass by. Lynn could either follow Luna's idea and watch the world silently. The only noise against muffled breaths and the van was from Lucy turning a page in her book or Luan and Lisa typing on their devices.
And it was already starting to drive Lori a bit crazy.
"So, captain…" She asked, looking at Lisa, "What's the plan?"
"We'll maintain our current western route through Great Lakes City to bypass South Chicago until we get on 55. We'll stay on that until we reach St. Louis, and from there, we'll connect to 44 and take it straight to northern Oklahoma City. The chosen route should allow us to bypass most urban centers and any possible construction and heavy traffic zones."
"And how much longer do we have?"
"As of 42 seconds ago; 15 hours, 49 minutes, 4-"
"Alright. Forget I literally said anything." Lori muttered. Regretting to ask that number started a countdown in her head that stood at the forefront of her brain.
But Lisa saw it from a different perspective.
Part of her regretted not going through with her teleporter experiments before the government caught wind of her and forced her to destroy all of it. Sure, there's the task of getting the second unit to the point where you want to be transported, and by road was the only way to go, it would still make one long trip be the only one to take.
She highly doubts they'd make this trip in one go. Not from the expected gas, food, and bathroom breaks added in, but they'd average an extra two hours built into their current time. With some areas further south already experiencing Spring warmth, it is not too far to assume that such construction or winter travel would be growing. Their path was straightforward but could be bottlenecked to the point they wasted hours just sitting.
They couldn't afford to wait. The main reason she had picked today as their D-Day was so they had time and a buffer just in case of the former problems, but the weather was rapidly making itself a new challenge.
The conditions, the very atmosphere, were starting to scare her again.
The three-day outlook had been updated only half an hour ago, and today and tomorrow were expected to become hot with activity. Day One had a Slight risk of severe activity across the midwest regions that stretched from Wisconsin to Colorado, extending from Eastern Kansas to Missouri. A lot of the risk was for severe thunderstorms; the primary driving risk was the expected flooding caused by the rapidly melting snow and slow-moving cold front with a winter storm ravaging the upper northwest. Models had that very storm staying mostly north into the Dakotas, but cold air was still to plunge southward overnight. All the rainfall left behind would soak everything, and a surge of warm air would be ripped up by the trough created by the system.
Today, it'd become a growing cold and wet mess for everyone. But tomorrow…
An enhanced risk over the Kansas-Missouri border. Intense gusty storms are expected to be the main show but with the chance of isolated tornadoes. Chasers were already discussing the best target areas to drive to today to be ready tomorrow. Some said Kansas City, others as far east as St. Louis if the third day was just as active or more. Dozens to hundreds of spotter icons were already converging into Missouri, with many more from as far west as Utah and Arizona to as far east as the Carolinas, like sharks sensing blood in the water.
Lincoln's icon had been activated, but several dozen, possibly the convoy, still lingered around Oklahoma City. Perhaps preparing or hopefully not chasing. It opened a few possibilities for them if he was out. Their journey would technically be shortened if he was coming towards them. If they could get to it before storms went up or in less optimal conditions, cross paths when he's chasing, then they'd have a chance to get to him sooner and already be 500 miles closer to getting him home. And if he didn't, then more to them for not having to chase after him.
Missouri was looking to be the convergence point for everything. Daytime heating today and tomorrow with such a destabilizing atmosphere, the chance that something could-
*crrr-THNNKKkkk*
"WE'VE BEEN HIT!" Leni shouted, causing everyone to wake up confused and panicked as the back of the van started to wobble severely. Cries that they were about to wreck or to throw out guesses of what hit them rang out as the two upfront braced themself and fought to keep the van from going into the ditch or traffic.
"Everyone, calm down!" Lori shouted back. We didn't hit anything! We need to pull over and see… what…" Her words slowly faded as the grinding sound became louder once they came to a stop.
Leaning over to see out the passenger windows, they all watched as what was the rear right wheel slowly rolled past them with a wad of metal still connected to it. Rolling on a couple of yards ahead until a bit of rock made it tip over and come to rest like an exhausted runner, finally letting it go.
"Well... that's not good," Luan quipped before they felt the van shift backward.
Outside of Great Lakes City, from an auto shop that looked like the building was being held by rivets and chicken wire, surrounded by enough cars parked in the front to think it was the hottest shop in the area, to a salvage yard expanding the rearmost ten acres of land, the family stood gathered just outside the open garage bay to the shop.
Bundled up more than what they were before leaving home as the winds from the lake not too far away swept through the land, they stood with shivers as Lana and two mechanics stood under Vanzilla 2 with flashlights as the van was sitting high on a lift with its rear axle barely holding on by its springs. The three murmured, shining the light on the various pieces that looked fine to what you'd expect part of an axle being ground down when going down the highway at 70. One poked at a spot with a screwdriver hard enough to hear something rattling inside. Looking down at the rear tire's remains and its remaining bearings, he grumbled something. Lana cringed and slowly shook her head.
"Well?!" Lola shouted impatiently from behind a pink scarf.
Her twin sighed, walking over while wiping her hands, "It's bad."
"Tell us something we don't know..." Lynn snider.
"Aside from the bearing and axle shaft, one of the suspension brackets is broken off, and the inner ring gear is probably destroyed because of the disconnection. So, chances are the differential is damaged. Brake lines are snapped. The housing is obviously chewed up-"
"How long will it take to fix?" Lisa spoke up. She knew it wouldn't be a quick morning repair; it was 20 after noon since they started, and she had lost two hours sitting on the road and getting towed to here. Money was no object in their mission if they could convince the shop to focus on their problem rather than the other ten cars in the building and waiting outside. She ran several ideas on expediting their return to the road, but this wasn't her main field of operation or knowledge.
"Would need to drop the whole axle and either rebuild or replace it with anything snapped off. So about…" she counted on her hand, " about three days at best. Less if we find a donor car with good parts and transplant them."
Lisa's mind felt like it had experienced a glitch that was so sudden and missed that she had a delayed reaction. She grabbed the closest arm to support herself as she brought a hand to her head to ease the whiplash. Three days was too long. Two were already pushing towards disaster. They could afford a costly repair, but time was something they couldn't.
Feeling the same since they rolled in, Lori, standing a bit further away to keep the noise from interrupting her call, sighed and thanked the other end as she turned to rejoin the others.
"I called a ride for us. It should be here any minute." A wave of relief spread across the group. Happy to know they won't be stranded here for long.
What time 'any minute' was used in getting their language off the van and standing outside in the snow. Staying close to some of the parked cars to use as a windbreak to keep themselves a bit warmer as they stayed huddled together. They were grumbling about how the shop's office/waiting room could barely hold six people. They did anything to keep warm, opening up jackets to bring in another to share body heat. Lynn took the idea of jogging in place to get her core temperature up despite Lisa saying trying to work up a sweat was a bad idea. Lucy, out of all of them, was still the least affected as she stood still like a statue.
The dower mood was only broken when an old Chevy transport van cut across the road and wobbled through the lot. Circling around, struggling to get through some thicker snow, to present its passenger side to them as the window slowly rolled down.
"Hey, girls!" A familiar face called out, leaning over the front seat with a red beanie and beard to keep him warm.
"Bobby?" Luan asked, surprised to see him, of all people, be the one to show up.
"Yep! Come on, get in! Get in! The heat is finally to the point where you won't be sweating or cracking open a window."
Not wasting a second more, the girls snatched up their bags and piled in. Not even a second later, they complained about where someone was sitting and the lack of space since they had to keep their stuff on their laps for the trip. Lori went to hop into the front seat before suddenly feeling her coat be yanked down to be eye level with Lisa.
"You called him?"
"What? You wanted to stay here or go somewhere warm?" Lori countered.
"And are you forgetting the massive risks if he tells his sister the reason for our endeavor?" Lisa resisted yelling out in fear of their driver overhearing. "The both of them are—were already close enough to our brother I don't want to include more in our situation. Our parents and friends were on the same side, and this is no different."
"You guys okay there?" Bobby spoke up.
Lori stood back up, "We're good!" then leaned back down, "What are we supposed to say then?"
"Improvise. Tell the truth without telling the truth." She hissed before joining her sisters in the back.
Huffing, Lori looked in the back, did a headcount, and noted they were missing one body. "Are you coming, Lana?" she called out to the older twin as Lana, with the two mechanics, was working to remove the rear axle.
"I'll call you guys later! The faster I get this, the sooner we can roll, " she replied, returning to her work. One good hit sent the remains of the axle crashing to the ground. Lori cringed as she watched what had been a pretty penny investment by the family fall apart already. She didn't know if it was their taste in vehicles or if their luck was the kind that Vanzillia would still be part of them no matter what they got.
With a sigh, the eldest sister climbed up into the front seat. Rolling the window up, she felt the surge of warm air hit her cold form. Bobby was right; the heat really was just right.
"Is everyone all set?" Santiago asked, getting a murmur of yeses. A bit slow to get out of the lot and wait for a wave of traffic to pass, the van eased its way back onto the road as Great Lakes City stood in the closing distance.
The ride wasn't as quiet as one would have said with the radio turned off. It was a bit bumpier than their new van; they could hear something rattling and an odd smell on the carpet, and everyone was a bit more cramped now that they were holding everything on their laps. It didn't help Lori that her suitcase was on the larger end of the spectrum, and it was awkward trying to get it situated without causing Bobby an unneeded distraction.
"Sorry to have to call for an Uber, Bobby." Lori apologized again, finally settling her case.
"Hey, like I said on the phone, I didn't mind helping out a close friend before, and I don't mind helping them now either."
"Where did you get this van anyway?"
Bobby explained, "Funny enough, I had family over for the week. The folks wanted to stop by and see how the three of us were doing. I had dropped them off at the airport this morning and was on my way to take the van back ot the rental place before you called. So I figured an extra day wouldn't hurt."
"Lucky for us, I guess?" She said as the pair laughed. Surprising them both and even some of the others, it suddenly felt like a flashback to old times.
"Haha… yeah… So, what are you guys doing out this way?
"We're-" *thunk* She felt a sharp kick in the back of her seat as the van rocked like it had hit a pothole.
Glancing to the rearview, she searched for whoever was behind her, only to be met with Lisa's sharp gaze. Lisa silently stared back with a blank, cold expression. Wordlessly, Lisa told her to carefully watch what she was about to say and think twice before speaking it.
"Damn, potholes," Bobby muttered, thinking they had taken a bad hit. "This thing really doesn't like rough roads. Anyway, you were saying?"
Lori sat quietly for a moment, her brain in a fog as she tried to register a dozen things at once until she realized Bobby had spoken to her again.
"Wha- oh, we're on our way to visit family." She said, looking in the mirror, that Lisa's head turned like she was looking out the window, but her eyes were still burning right back. "One of our cousins in Montana got a new place and invited everyone to check it out."
"At this time of year?" Bobby asked, puzzled, "Aren't they getting slammed by like back-to-back snowstorms? And wouldn't it be easier to fly out instead of driving?"
"Well…"
Good question. Why didn't they fly out? But with Lisa's reasoning, it was a bit of a pick your poison.
"... we're planning to stay for a bit. So we got the van fixed… Was fixed up so we could use it around there."
"So, how come your folks aren't coming?"
"Well…" Lori looked back in the mirror, seeing Lisa's focus turned away to look out the window instead. "Our mom is still a bit down, and our dad thought it wouldn't help either of them going cross country in the winter. Especially when the house is almost finished."
"I wonder what it'd be like in the new house." Bobby remarked, "I saw a drawing of it online, and it kind of reminds me of the old one, but bigger."
"Heh. It's taken a while, but we're finally supersizing..."
"Huh…" he said like he had been sitting on a question with a different answer than expected. After years of knowing each other, Lori saw it as clear as day.
"What?"
"Nothing. Nothing." He said quickly, trying not to come off as harsh. "It's just… I'm curious. I know you guys are used to living in a small place, though now that half of you are almost 20…"
Puzzled, Lori could gradually build the picture he was suggesting and could see where he was going.
It wasn't a picture that she liked to be reminded of.
In no time, she'll be kissing that big three and zero. The reality she was getting old was an old nightmare that kept rearing its ugly face every time she looked in the mirror and still saw her 18-year-old self looking back. After the failed stint in the garage, the brief time in the dorms, and a more successful time in Mr Grouse's garage until she got her first apartment, she hoped everywhere from in and out of the house. Only later, after the world got back together, did anyone else leave the nest. But they couldn't leave it forever. The call to home was a strange but strong force that made sure to keep them all… mostly all of them together.
Before November, they all had the chance to start looking beyond home. Now, they were trying to get the last piece of the puzzle to feel at home like before, which kept drawing them back.
"It's… complicated. Once this trip and the house are done, we'll see how the summer goes from there…" Bobby listened and slowly nodded.
"How you guys holding up? Haven't talked since November." He asked. Remembering their last trip back to Royal Woods. He had called around Christmas as a friendly ring-up, but it had been brief when both sides were dealing with family.
Lori looked back in the mirror, seeing all her sisters' tired and blank faces. Lisa had her laptop out but rolled her head back like she was asleep.
"We've been better. Getting better… How's Ronnie and Grace?" She asked, wanting to steer away from the turmoil that had brought up two months ago.
When his sister and daughter were mentioned, she saw his face light up and knew she had sparked something.
"Oh, the two of them are almost inseparable at times…" he smiled brightly, "It's helped us take our minds off things. I can manage the store a bit more smoothly without worrying about Gracia. We've been on such a roll we're actually turning a healthy profit that we can indulge a little. Ronnie's been caring for her while working part-time at the local rec center. Something to do instead of being stuck in the apartment all day. Gracia got so many new toys from the family this Christmas that I'm pretty sure we'll have to switch rooms so she has more play space."
His smile was contagious, and quickly, Lori had one herself. I picture Bobby having a mountain of toys scattered around the place as his little one goes one after another. Playing hide-and-seek among the boxes and wrapping paper on Christmas morning in absolute wonder at all the colors.
But as he spoke, his smile slowly faded.
"She's growing up so fast. One moment, she's so small you can hold her in one hand; the next, she's trying to take her first steps… and before you know it, she's all grown up…" His voice slowly became a whisper as he felt the reality of each word spoken.
Lori could still hear and feel her mind and heart thinking the same.
It was no secret between them what their dreams of old were. They wouldn't be here in some worlds where things had that fictional charm that kept them the same but moving along. Maybe they would be, even in this situation with their 'family mission,' but as two others just living life. She didn't know what could have happened had it all gone differently.
Would she change what has happened? Absolutely. But thinking of everything that could've been means what it wouldn't be anymore. She could think of it improving for all, but to take away something that gave him such a driving force in his life… Lori wondered what hers could've been like…
Entering the city's outskirts, the rest of the ride was quiet. The streets were relatively calm, save for your typical noon traffic. However, many people meandered about despite the harshness of the cold wind, which carried enough moisture to still cut through your clothes.
With the repeated stops and goes at traffic lights, the siblings who were asleep gradually awoken as they took a turn here and there.
"Bobby? Question." Luna spoke up from the back.
"What's up?" He asked, looking in the mirror.
"Does Ronnie know we're 'stopping by'?" she asked, a worried look in her features.
He made a gesture like a shrug and nodded as one but had uncertainty in his eyes, "I called her saying there were some friends that needed a place to crazy for a bit. Even asked the landlord if they could bunk in one of the spare units across from us."
Though his answer spoke truth, it didn't give them much assurance. Their last interaction was brief and had its bumps, but they all knew the last time they visited her just days after coming home from Kingman, she wasn't in the best state of mind once they left. Lisa had drilled it in further that under any circumstance, even if threatened with violence, they were to utter a word that could either trigger her past emotions or give her any piece of an idea that could link to their mission.
With her, it would be harder to pass on the idea that they were 'visiting family' in Montana. Lisa suddenly felt it was a small blessing that Vanzilla had broken down or that Ronnie was not present. The modifications down would have been the most enormous red flag to alert anyone of what they were up to. Just thinking of what changes to the van could allow their mission to be exposed, coming up under the rail bridge towards the apartment, two vehicles sat on the street. A red Ford Focus and a dark gray Toyota Forerunner looked a bit out of place, with its wheels looking a bit small and lighter spots around the body like decals had been stripped off.
Pulling around to the front of the store, Bobby brought the van to a stop ahead of the Forerunner, but that sister's eyes followed the car as they moved around and started to climb out.
The feeling of seeing another ghost from the past weighed heavily on their minds, seeing that it was their brother's first real car that he earned his way towards and what was the last thing they saw of him on that day years ago. It still had its modifications from when he was chasing during the early decade. His original storm chaser before going on to build the beast. Lucy felt that she should somehow thank it as if it were a spirit in itself. Had Lincoln not stored it away to preserve it, what were the chances that a storm would have gotten him far sooner when he got too close…
"If you guys want, you can settle down in my place. Gotta drop the van off and grab the key to the place next door," Bobby said as they gathered on the sidewalk. Ronnie and her friend are still upstairs watching Gracia. One of them should be able to let you in."
"Again, thank you for this, Bobby," Lori said in gratitude.
"It's fine, Lori. Like I said, happy to help." he said, heading around the van, "I should be back in about an hour."
"Drive safe!" Lori called out as he pulled away and disappeared down the street.
"It was so nice of him to do this," Leni commented, thinking how much her sister's ex's actions helped. He reminds me a lot of Lincoln…" Lori gave her a side-eye, but she had to agree.
In a slow march, they headed up the steps towards the apartments, feeling the chill in the hallways as they went up to the next floor. Coming upon a familiar door that they remembered standing in front of months ago, Lynn was the one to give a quick four knocks to get anyone's attention.
There were muffled voices from the other side, the sound of a muted TV, some shuffling, and the quick footsteps of someone approaching the door.
"Did you forget your key again, B—" The door flung open, and in black sweatpants and a light purple sweater, with her hair tied into a ponytail and a teasing smile on her face, Ronnie Anne stood to the side, expecting her brother to be ready for a tease. Her smirk vanished at the sight of the crowd. "Obby…"
"Hello, Ronnie." Lisa greeted her, studied her reaction, and noticed the young woman's visible surprise.
"Hey…" she said, feeling some deja vu, "What… what are you all doing here?"
"The van broke down and might not be fixed until tomorrow. I asked your brother if there was a place we could stay, and he picked us up here and said the landlord might let us stay in the opposite unit for a day." Lori explained, feeling it was best if she drove the conversation.
They all saw the look of realization dawn in her eyes, followed by a hard slap of her hand, which met her eyes and rubbed them as she sighed in frustration.
"Dammit, Bobby…" she muttered. Stepping to the side and gesturing for the family to enter, she returned to what she was doing before.
Sharing a glance at their nearest sibling, the clan picked up their bags and headed inside. The place hadn't changed much since the last time they set foot, but where there was something old for such a long time was now something new. The corner by the windows between the chair and couch was noticeably widened with what looked like a playpen with enough toys you'd think any child would be going bonkers over not knowing what to play with.
Some furniture was new; the entertainment center was now more modern, with a bigger TV on the wall and thicker low-sitting shelving around it. Many more pictures occupied them, with some of the ones seen before and many new ones. From what the last holidays had been and families of old gathered to celebrate, it was surprising to see even more photos of the past.
One they couldn't put their finger on.
It was definitely from the year before, 2024; Bobby didn't have his beard growing yet, and Ronnie had that sharp look to her like all the photos they had seen her be like before Kingman. The two of them, arms over shoulders with Lincoln in the middle next to the old blue truck they used with smiles all around.
When Ronnie walked past to sit on the couch, the image seemed a bit more black-and-white.
"You got Gracia in there?!" Ronnie called out.
"Yeah!" Another woman's voice answered from down the hallway. A door opened to the side with the sound of a sink being turned off, and the figure stepped out. "She got a bit of a mess, so I…"
She froze, holding the baby Santiago in her arms as the sudden crowd in the living room took her aback.
"Uh… hi?" She said awkwardly, to which a few Louds gave small waves back, "Uh… Ronnie? What…"
"These are the 'friends' Bobby said needed a place to stay." She answered with ever so great enthusiasm. "They'll just be here for a day… hopefully."
"Right…" The woman drew out, coming over to the other side of the couch. Upon seeing Ronnie, the little one immediately started to become fussy. Trying to squirm her way out of her entrapment and reach her hands over to her aunt.
It made the woman smile and completely changed Ronnie's mood as she took Gracia in her arms. "Oh… is my little devil missing her favorite auntie already?" she said in a voice that shocked the sisters.
In any of their wildest dreams, they never expected Ronnie Anne Santiago to speak so sweetly to anyone. Child or not, it felt so out of character to hear the voice be matched with someone they remembered that, at twelve years old, wouldn't hesitate to fight a mob for looking at her the wrong way by being so… gentle. The way she interacted with her niece, carefully tossing her just a little in the air, rewarded her with babbles and giggles; the light in her eyes was like the one they'd see their mother have whenever she brought a new sibling to the house.
Though she was occupied, the woman beside her looked back to the gathered clan, unsure of what to do or say as a guest. The sisters felt the same, uncertain whether to find a place to sit or wait outside for Bobby to return.
Until Lori stepped around and leaned in a little closer to get a better look. Looking over her features, trying to see if she… "You're Sid Chang, aren't you?" she asked.
The woman looked surprised by the name, but looking over at the woman, she squinted to try to get her brain to think until the realization came to her with a little laugh, "Hah, long time no see, Lori?"
"Wow! Look at you!" Lori exclaimed, moving to be in the front. "You've grown so much. I thought your family moved to Maine years ago."
"Yeah, my dad got transferred out. But I've only been back here for the last three weeks..."
Before the others could realize what had happened, Lori had already left her bag by the door. Being joined by someone they guessed was a part of her circle back when they were still dating Bobby, the two fell into gossip, and they parked at the kitchen table.
With one sister having found something to keep them occupied, the others looked around, trying to figure out what to do.
About two hours later, Bobby came back with the keys, and the sisters got settled in the unit across the hallway. Though Lori protested that they could just find a hotel nearby for the night, the closest being a four-mile walk, Bobby didn't let up as he helped bring out any cots, blankets, and spare air mattresses he had on hand. Though some would have to share, it was enough so they wouldn't have to sleep directly on the floor.
It was approaching mid-afternoon when they had finally settled in, and the first piece of good news from Lana called in, 'We found parts, old but good. Eta should hopefully be late tomorrow morning' was her message.
Tomorrow late morning… At this point, Lisa was heavily considering just abandoning the van and flying out. They'd have to figure out how to get around without the van and possibly miss their brother, but once they got to El Reno, then they could just wait it out…
But the genius Loud didn't want to wait. She had been impatiently waiting for five years, and just when they started to get somewhere, either from the consequences of rushed actions, the coincidence of timing, or the curse once again giving them the dry stick. She was a woman of science; science involved the long game of waiting for results in any field. Someone might wait five minutes for liquid in a beaker to change color or have to wait centuries for someone to see what the Earth looked like from heaven.
She was tired of waiting. She was tired of sitting at home or the institute, trying to keep her mind occupied by what she could do now while the realities of yesterday and tomorrow were acting like one and the same. Yesterday, they were at home; today, they got stuck in place; tomorrow…
It was borderline a mathematical certainty there would be severe storms tomorrow—a little on the fast side but manageable. Rain wasn't to be much of an issue by the Kansas border, but the further east the front went, the wetter it was expected to be with chances of flash flooding. The hail and high winds were billed as the main hazard to watch out for and stay sheltered, but a concentrated tornado threat stretched from Joplin towards Columbus. Dozens of news outlets were already spreading the word to be prepared for tomorrow afternoon, and the dozens of chasers were already converging in south-central Missouri to get in a preposition once storms started firing.
From the location of his spotter icon and three others, Lincoln and his team were presently heading in that direction. A post from his group's social media had them on a six-hour road trip to reach Springfield, their present target location, to set up for tomorrow. If there's anything early, they expect to head a little bit back west and north by 2 p.m.
And what could she do?
Sit on the roof of an apartment building, with a box as a stand for her computer and a bucket for a seat. Coat unzipped and puffing up when an intense chill or a surprisingly warm breeze would flow over the building and flutter her hair. With only the sounds of the traffic all around and the ventilation unit behind her, it was as much peace as she could get while alone up here. The families' floors below mingled as some joined in the time with the child while others talked more adultly with Bobby. She made it clear she needed somewhere to clear her mind, and this felt oddly rhythmic of a place for it.
Just her and the world around her. Blue skies with clumps of stratocumulus clouds made you feel the difference as the shade passed over you with the endless stretch of streets and buildings she could see in any direction. But with the warm wind and still pockets of snow, it was like the world was subtly taunting her as one strong breeze that did make her close the coat up started to spin. Pulling in loose snow as it quickly began to tighten, and a little snow devil was born beside her.
Lisa watched, frozen in place but eyes tracking its every move. It darted all over, no predictable path taken as it followed wherever its rotation took it. She could just as easily step through it and break the wind flow, temporarily or permanently ending its existence. But what would that honestly do? Nature could just as easily spin up another, either when she was here or not, or down on the streets or the roofs across the city.
Yet nature did that job for her. In a burst of acceleration, the whirl raced across the roof. Gathering more snow until a tube taller than her was forming before colliding with the wall. As fast as it formed, it came apart. What snow was lifted fell back or was carried away by the winds to an unknown destination.
Figured you'd be up here." A voice from the access door snapped her attention away. Standing there with her hands tucked into the pockets of a dark blue coat, Ronnie slowly stepped out. She shivered for a moment as she adjusted to the chill in the wind, her gaze following in the direction the devil had gone.
"Sisters getting a little rowdy and boring down there to sit with, hmm?" she asked, wandering around the roof until coming up to the ledge that looked towards the city's south side. "Just wanting a moment of peace until the universe decides peace is too much to give to just one person?"
"Yes…" Lisa agreed slowly. She was correct that Ronnie's presence here gave her that quiet piece she had before, but her defenses went back to high alert when she realized why he was talking like this. "It helps give a sense of clarity without having to look over your shoulder every time someone asks for something."
"Lincoln did the same…" She sighed, a fond look flashing in her eyes. When we had busts or a storm came to the house, he'd sit outside in this rocking chair he got as a thank-you gift. It didn't matter which direction it came from; he'd move that chair to face the wind. He said that it helped him imagine how it was like another part of the world was coming to visit him…"
Lisa didn't say anything to give her thoughts on the idea, but she knew where Ronnie was speaking from. So much of her earlier investigations were built upon how her brother's mentality after the first tornado drastically changed so much. Despite the fears anyone gets from having a thunderhead explode above when sleeping, he shrugged it off more and more until he was choosing to sleep through it or not. It gave her insight to see if this fascination was just an obsession or a way to cope.
"He always did say he wanted to go around the world… " Ronnie continued, unfazed by a blast of wind as her hair became caught within, "Explore places, see new sights, meet new people… He talked a lot about your guy's trips across the country and Europe years ago, saying it was probably what he needed to inspire him to go so far for anyone… You're going for him, aren't you."
Having listened closely while looking back at her computer, it took a second for the words to make their meaning clear, and Lisa sprung up so fast that she kicked the bucket away. Cursing to herself, she realized that every action only fueled the fire of admission, so she quickly devised a plan.
"No… we're not, " she said, trying to sound as serious as possible. We get that our brother is a busy man. But we are simply traveling to get a change of scenery after everything that has happened. It'd do well for everyone to be away for a while, and if going to Oregon to visit family does just that, then so be it."
"Montana." Ronnie corrected.
"What?" Lisa asked, confused.
"Bobby filled me in and told me you were going to Montana. And knowing your track record from experience and Lincoln explaining a lot, I know you just lied about all you just said." As she turned around, Lisa could see that distinct ire in the woman's eyes that her family had initially thought was her true face years ago.
Yet, at that moment, Lisa could get another look at what she had to do to keep her surprise down earlier.
Ronnie's eyes shone in the sunlight, her natural green becoming like an emerald, while the other… lacked the sick pale they had seen the first time. Now, with only a faint green hue, she questioned if her vision had returned and to what extent her iris had been damaged. The scarring was still there, if not a bit healed to match the surrounding skin color, but extensive work was done to repair the damage.
Now that she thought about it, the more it made Lisa curse herself even more. Remember that by then, the gel had been perfected the first time and was being produced in large quantities for later in the event any of them were to have another incident. It completely slipped her mind that the person who was there when her brother was being torn apart didn't suffer from the same encounter. Repairing the skin was as easy as making a snake out of play-dough, and fixing a 'dead eye' would be the kind of damage the gel was designed to target.
What use would it be now when it could have made a difference months ago? But she knew their situation. There was no functional way the family could afford the necessary procedure unless…
"Him to go so far for anyone…" she muttered, confusing Ronnie at the different reaction she was expecting. When she stepped closer, Ronnie was getting unnerved by the Loud's unblinking stare until she noticed that Lisa wasn't staring directly at her, but something else.
With a sigh, that tough girl attitude she was trying to put up for this fell apart. "Yeah… he really would…" she said, rubbing the spot above her eyebrow where the scar tampered off. Looking off towards the sprawling suburbs of the city where the sun would soon set beyond the horizon and officially close a day that they'll never live again.
"What exactly is your plan to get him? Kingman was something that should have stopped him, yet he's doubling down more than ever this year."
'Unfortunately, you're right…' whispered in Lisa's mind. Turning her attention towards the southwest as she felt the wind shift again.
"I have several plans, but they all have one thing in common… whatever it takes."
(Note: These AN notes are written before, during, and afterhand to convey my thinking. Not based on what's changed, reviews, etc., and is borderline me ranting out loud my way of thinking.)
It's gotta be a testament to man's stubbornness and will to have the mental drive to sit down several hours a day and type out a piece of work that is but a small part of the bigger picture, in which the piece itself is bigger than some stories with a dozen plus chapters to its name. And if you have actually read through this to see this sentence and know what happened, I send a virtual cookie your way.
In a strange twist for someone else but not me, this Note was written before the rough draft of the first 2000 words of Chapter 34 was even edited. I already know that by the time anyone reads this, it'll be about five weeks from when it happened. Plus, towards the end, I got into a rut in finding a way to finish and publish it a day after this note got revised.
So what if past me is writing this when future me has yet to write this, what happened?
After a horrible week in November where, on Monday, I got stung by a hibernating wasp on my right hand when moving stuff for winter storage. On Tuesday, I got a cold that made my voice get so low I could be a narrator in old war and space documentaries, followed by my car breaking down, being called in on Thanksgiving, and preparing to spend the winter working the better part of 70 hours a week,I had a lot of time to figure out things for what I wanted to do.
And that was essentially rebuilding the narrative for both and the next 30. This note was originally 2000 words long and as an end of year message, but by the start of the second week of December, things have gotten a bit mixed.
As the last AN said, I was thinking of possibly combining both 35 and 36, depending on how it turned out. Both had changed so massively between each other I bounced back and forth between being separate or combined with a word count of either 13 and 16k each or a combined 25-31k. This was because of several factors, one being that as I looked over more and more of what I had going for Chapter 35, it was just a filler point between getting from one place to another. The best example is a combination of Chapters 12 to 17, with Chapter 36 being the combination of Chapters 10 and 23.
Once I got near the last 1300 words before going into the next day, part of me realized that my original idea of fitting in a single timeframe wouldn't work, and that the entire time for the following day would be better as its own chapter as originally thought. With this being on the small end of my expected estimates, Chapter 36 is being rebuilt again to allow a bit more freedom from start to finish for the day.
As I wanted to start the season early to have more time in the future to work with it, and upon further details that this would be the week in the show that NLS takes place, I saw some opportunity to work with it. Though this involved having to trim a LOT off what is basically the Chapter 35 half of this, thinking of a more light-hearted kind of road trip sequence like you'd see most storm chasing movies start as (like the beginning half to the NatGeo film Tornado Intercept) and some TLH episodes like "Camped!" and what the sisters experience on a trip like this would be as we get closer to the growing storm.
However, with what was planned, it would have been almost lethargic trying to stretch this into 13k words. As it's still winter, the family is comprised of 60 percent adults, and they are on a time crunch to get where they need to be. There was to be a whole separate sequence where the van breaks down several times throughout the day and forces the family to stop for the night as storms roll in, but that made me think of something like from the Discovery show in how broken axle and bearings at the start kind of delayed the chase. Trying to fill in a 17-hour road trip would have been a chore when there is no reason to.
This was the biggest issue: bridging the end of the last chapter to the middle of it without them just appearing there. Later, revising it gave me some ideas for interactions, such as Ronnie and Lisa's moment. Giving a chance for another time skip that made functional sense as it served as another test bed for me to dial in the characters as their 'pre-chase' adult/matured TLH selves and work out how they would react during a scenario such as going into a storm and coming face-to-face with a similar monster to the one that devastated their home.
The inclusion of Sid Chang is not involved in anything significant plot-wise like the earlier Chandler interaction, but just another moment of a TLH character in the future still showing that they're still around and living a life beyond where we saw before.
Next chapter is expected to be the last of this year and hopefully be out before New Year if I can maintain my average of writing 1-2k words a day. And a fair warning, its going to have a long explanation at the end for the future of this story.
(Note: These AN notes are written before, during, and afterhand to convey my thinking. Not based on what's changed, reviews, etc., and is borderline me ranting out loud my way of thinking.)