Post by Balto-Boy on Apr 14, 2009 21:37:49 GMT -5
Alrighty, I had this idea swimming around for a bit now. I'm kinda throwing it out here to see if people like it, and if so, I'll go ahead and illustrate it. Also, I noticed PurpleCat has a story started. I'm not trying to overshadow it or anything, I swear! Anywho, here we go.
Oh, and BTW, this is SPB, but not exactly as we know it... below I have all of the subplots seperated into their own introduction.
Is there anywhere as disgusting as this place? Maybe disgusting isn't the right word... it fits, but it doesn't describe this place well enough. Maybe "evil", no that's too simple. Maybe "dirty"... no. It fits just as well, but it needs explanation. Perhaps... perhaps "vile". Yes, that will work for now. This vile place. This vile city. This horrid place, full of fear and corruption and drugs and lusts. Truly, it is a hell on Earth. It is a city that desperately needs saving, but no one knows how. It needs cleaning, but there is no soap or water to be found. Its people need a hero, but no one will take a stand. But why do we stay here? Why do people live in this horrid place? Simple: they're scared shitless. They're too afraid to move or do anything aside from hide in their homes. And they're smart, only the foolish are willing to roam these streets by themselves. How are the good to survive in a place where the demonic thrive and the lambs are quickly devoured by hungry lions? This city takes all of the good that resides in us and burns it to ashes and dust. There is no good here. There is no justice here. There is no hope here.
May God save us all.
She sprinted through the woods as fast as her feet would take her. A teenage girl, running through the foliage on her own in the dark. She didn't know where she was going, but she tried to get away from what she has just done...
The dark consumed her vision, which was already blocked by her dirt-filled blonde hair. She could feel the thorns and sticks on the ground pierce the skin on her feet. It's days like these she wish she had a pair of shoes. Her conscious brought her to look back down the path she has traveled. She couldn't do it. The shame and the confusion was quick to bring violent chills down her back and swing her back around to look forward. She pinched the bridge of her nose out of stress. But she was quickly reminded of her curse.
The bulbous nose, the blotchy skin, her hunched back, her unlovable face... she hated herself. And yet, those people, strangers even, somehow found a way to love her. Like a daughter, like a sister, even like a mother... but she managed to fuck all that up. And the weird thing is that she doesn't know exactly how.
Amidst the sounds of herself pushing through the brush she heard weeping. Echoing somehow, the quiet sound amplified by something close by. She looked over and a cave emitted a light. Campfire light, maybe.
No, she thought, no one will want to be with me again.
But she didn't want to be loved. At this point, she barely wanted to survive. She wouldn't be long. Maybe they could spare some food or something. If they didn't, or if they didn't want to, she deserved it. Her curiosity gained hold.
The cave was small, but apparently big enough. This was definitely the source. That weeping now echoed in her ears. But it sounded soft, sounded... sounded muffled somehow. The cave started with a brief tunnel and curved around, like a corner leading to a room. She crept up to the corner, as soft as her bare feet would let her.
A sudden, mournful howl made her jump slightly. She landed back softly on the ground as lightly as she could. A moment to listen... no one said anything. They didn't hear her.
Finally, the corner was turned. A hulking figure was on its knees, its back pumping up and down with each huff of sorrow. He was bulky from head to toe, and something odd protruded from his head. And the most peculiar thing were the wings, uneven in size, sprouting unnaturally out of his back. Next to him was clearly a dog or wolf of some kind. Probably the source of that howl. It sat there on its haunches, calmly, sitting with his apparent master. Something bothered her about his appearance though. Something with his head, she wasn't quite sure.
She took a step. A quick cough, too shy to intrude verbally.
The hulky man looked back, along with the dog. Now, she saw this man's face. Or part of it, what could be called a face. He had a head, but only some of it was human. On his left side, one large blue eye bulged to examine the intruder. The rest of his head was covered in some odd substance, like how caramel covers an apple. In fact, that's what this substance looked like: apple. As if an apple was growing on top of his head, and it grew in places that sealed his mouth shut and hid the other eye from view. The head had worms poking through, invertebrates burrowing in their home. His muscles were malformed and jutted at odd angles. She noticed that one arm was longer than the other, and both arms seemed to resemble tentacles slightly. She looked back at that one eye that was staring at her. The firelight helped show the tears that filled it. The man/beast was quick to roar in anger.
The dog arched its back and growled. Now she saw its head, too. Something bulged out of the top of the dog's skull. And from what she could tell, it looked like a hand was grasping on to his head, but from the inside.
"I'm... I'm sorry," she said politely. "I was just... wondering if you had food. I'm sorry to bother you. I can just... leave. If you want."
The dog started to approach, the monster's one eye followed him. The dog was not willing to relax, though. He approached cautiously. And she did not dare move. The dog came closer and closer to her, until he was close enough. His nose brushed across her leg. It sniffed loudly, examining this stranger, and he ran the nose up and down her body as well as he could, wanting to gain all he could from her smell. Finally, he seemed satisfied. He brushed the side of his face against her leg, as a loving gesture.
The dog turned back to that monster by the fire. He barked once. This beast managed to relax at the noise, and he turned back to where he once faced. The weeping started again.
The dog casually returned to the beast's side. At halfway, he noticed that she wasn't following him. He looked back, and his head gave sort of a wave as if to say "Come here".
She was cautious as well. Her feet trudged across the cave's floor, ignoring the number of sharp rocks that littered it. In time, she worked her way to where these two people sat. She stood between them, looking over their shoulders. There was the sorrowful sight.
A mound in the ground protruded in front of the ground in front of them, the rocks cleared away to make room. At the head of this mound, a cross made with sticks tied together with blades of crabgrass stood crookedly. She could feel a tear coming to her eyes.
"Who... what was their name?" she asked.
The beast didn't turn. He tried to answer, but that gloop over his head would not let him speak fully.
"...Marle." He mumbled. He sniffed and turned to her. She never thought that she would cringe at the sight at a person. But this just seemed... seemed unnatural, ungodly. She knew she shouldn't think that.
The beast took a mangled arm and touched his own bare chest.
"MappleMore..." he mumbled.
He pointed to the dog. "Malmo."
The girl stared for a moment.
"...AppleCore and... and...Balto?"
The beast nodded. She noticed the dog was now looking up to her as well. In an unexpected turn, the beast pointed an arm at her.
"...me?" she asked. The beast nodded.
"Um... I'm Ruby..."
The beast turned back down to the mound. Ruby felt the dog scratch a paw against her bell bottoms. She turned her head enough to see Balto, sitting there, wagging its tail. She could have sworn that he smiled at her.
Though the wagging was slow, the memory of this Carole in Balto's mind still. He turned to the mound once more, as did Ruby. She came in here to find some food, something to keep her alive in what she predicted as her lonely life. Though, when she came in for sustenance, she found much more.
She sat on that couch in the dirty apartment. Looking down at the folds of her plaid skirt. She didn't dare make eye contact with the men in front of her. She barely moved, didn't look around, tried to even breathe quietly. In arms, she squeezed her green-and-purple plush turtle tighter, the only thing she had that reminded her of the pleasant times. She's surprised that, after all of this trade-off, no one has taken it from her. She didn't complain about that, of course. It was the one blessing she still had.
One of the men was very dark skinned, African in heritage. He had tired eyes that were red out of strain. And for whatever reason, his mouth had some sort of purple gleam to it, evidence of some disease.
He haggled with an Asian man in front of her. The Asian had pure black hair, and wore, of all things, a very tidy suit. The hair on his head was long enough to create a spiky ponytail so long, that it was absurd.
"I'm going to say..." the dark man started off. "...I'm gonna say 150 Brawlios."
"For that?!" the Asian man shouted at him. A hostile cringe of disgust showed clearly on his face, lips snarling, eyes squinted. He looked over to the girl sitting on the couch. His eyes traveled from her white Nikes up to the green headband up on her long brown hair, clearly not a day over sixteen years old. She didn't dare look up still.
"...Hundred." the Asian man finally said as he looked back.
The dark man looked down and shook his head.
"One forty."
"Mr. Omni, it's not worth that," the Asian said. "Hundred ten."
This Mr. Omni seemed persistent.
"One thirty-five. I told you the things she could do. That seems like a more than reasonable price to me, considering what you're going to get."
The Asian considered it for a moment, glancing back to the girl on the couch. She still didn't look.
"Hundred twenty-five. Final offer."
The dark man expelled an audible "Hmmm...".
"Alright, then," he finally said. He held out his hand. "We have a deal."
The Asian stared at the dark man's hand. Seemingly confused, or maybe expecting something else.
"Oh, my bad," Mr. Omni finally said. "How rude."
Omni bowed down slightly to the Asian man, who did the same. The Asian reached into his dress pant pocket and pulled out a rather large billfold. The opened piece of leather was rummaged through and he pulled out a trio of black-and-gray bills. Omni was quick to accept the offering.
"I hope that she is all you say," the Asian man said in his obvious accent. "I heard you knew what you sell."
"Trust me, I'm good with this." Omni turned his head sharply at the girl.
"Grimmy. Up."
The girl quickly stood, like a military private snapping to her commander. Omni took Grimmy by the arm and pushed her towards the Asian man. She stumbled a couple of steps, but landed into one of the Asian's skinny arms.
"Look here," the Asian said, grabbing on to her face. "Let me see your pretty face."
Grabbing her by the jaw, the Asian titled Grimmy's head left and right, up and down, back and forth. At one point, he opened her mouth and looked at her teeth. In time, he had his fill and Grimmy was quick to drop her head the second the Asian let go.
"See seem clean," the Asian responded. "She seem promising."
"Told you I know my businesses," Omni replied. The Asian walked on past him, Grimmy's arm locked with his.
"Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Yacazuma," Omni waved.
Yacazuma didn't respond. The apartment door slammed behind him. Omni pocketed the new bills and left the room.
Father and son rode together in a Sedan down the road. Today was a family day, Dad never had a chance to spend time with his son and successor. But today was different. All of his business affairs were put aside, just for his boy.
"How have things been, Theo?"
Theo was the son. He looked out the window of his side of the car, thinking to himself, hoping the raised hoodie would isolate him. He caught a glimpse of someone being beaten out on the sidewalk. As natural, no one to help.
"Theo, my boy!" Dad finally yelped. Theo turned to him.
"Oh... sorry Dad," Theo apologized. "Just thinking..."
Apparently, Dad knew what about.
"Don't worry about a thing!" Dad said. "I'm tough, I'm a fighter, I've gotten through a lot!"
"Yeah, I know! You're the man!" Theo agreed. "But... I dunno. I can't help it sometimes, y'know?"
"Ah, can't say I blame ya," Dad said. "There've been times where I was scared shitless myself!"
"You?! Really?!" Theo was forced to asked.
"You bet! Hey, I'm head of the Bulet family! What else would I be doing?!"
"Maybe drowning on cigars in a hot tub filled with hot women?"
"Ha, ha, ha! My boy's got a sense of humor! Man, I wish I could do that..."
"Me too."
Dad punched Theo in his shoulder.
"Hey, now! You're not even supposed to know about that stuff! Don't let your mother know that you know, you hear?"
"I got 'cha, Pops."
"And don't call me Pops, either."
"'kay, Old Man."
Dad looked over and smiled. He brought a hand to rub against Theo's head, effectively knocking off his dark-green hood. He couldn't help but smile back.
A series of gunshots sounded. Dad seemed alarmed, and this alarmed Theo. Dad took his hand and adjusted the rearview mirror as to see behind him. Three cars took up the road, closing off anyone that might come up behind them.
"Shit..." Dad uttered. He reached back in the back seat and handed Theo a military rifle.
"Son, it's the Blood."
Theo was loading up the rifle. Quite everyday in this city that someone as young as 13 handling an automatic rifle.
"That's what worried me..."
Dad pulled out a golden desert eagle, a family heirloom. His elbow busted out the car's window and the giant handgun shot away. Theo rolled down his window as fast as he could, looking back to fire his gun. Shots fired all around them, scaring off citizens that were close by. No one was hitting each other, but bullets sparked off of the exteriors of all four cars.
Theo brought his gun inside the car to reload. He looked ahead, to see more cars coming into play. Theo knew too well.
"DAD! WATCH IT!!!"
Dad looked forward and saw the danger. With a single hand on the wheel, he jerkily swerved the car out of danger, passing the oncoming cars, continuing down the road. After recovering from whiplash, Theo looked back to see two of the cars collide with each other and crash off to the side of the road.
"Nice one, Dad!"
"Keep shooting, Theo! Keep shooting!"
Theo looked back and continued shooting at the two remaining cars that followed him and his dad. The shooting repeated itself as it did before. Occasionally, Theo would be called to fetch ammo out of the back of the car as his dad drove the vehicle. Around them, the sidewalks seemed to be abandoned. People seemed to see a battle in the infamous Bulet-Blood war heading their way.
Throwing Theo off, the cars dispersed, splitting off into intersections; one going left at one going right. Theo mentioned it to his dad. That's when Theo noticed something horrid.
"Dad! They got you!"
A spill of red came out on Dad's shoulder. And another near his shoulder blade.
"Son... Theo... I know what they're doing. I need you to go..."
"What? No! I'm going to help you!" Theo urged.
Up ahead, it was just as Dad thought. He could see clearly in the intersections ahead those same cars, and more, charging from both sides. Theo poked the rifle out on his side of the car. The bullets rang.
"Son, I love you. You have to keep on the Bulet family."
Theo stopped firing.
"What was that?"
"I love you, boy! Now stay alive!"
Theo could feel a rush of wind as Dad busted open the driver side door. As forcefully as he could, Dad grabbed on to the back of Theo's hoodie. And he flung him out of the car like a rag doll. Theo remembers hitting the left side of his face against the roaring pavement, and then blacking out.
He woke up after a time, in the middle of the road. Everything was blurry, his vision was clouded. When he rode with his dad, it was noon day. But now the sun was beginning to set. Up ahead, people crowded around something. His groggy mind's instinct told him to see.
As he walked down the blocked-off road, his vision became clearer and his mind was leveling. He could tell people were excited to see something. He also saw the city police standing around yellow caution tape. He walked calmly up to the scene, having no idea what to expect.
Like a jungle of flesh, he pushed through the people as if they were hanging vines blocking his path. They let up quite easily, and Theo thought it rather easy to break through the mob of people. Perhaps he had a reputation now. He came up to the police line, but seemingly ignored them. As he ducked under the caution tape, those police officers seemed to do the same.
He looked at the site. People around crowded -detectives, forensic agents, and the likes- the area, investigating the scene. Theo ignored them as well, trudging along, seeming calm enough to look as if he were casually walking through the park.
He came closer and closer to the scene, lost in his own thoughts. As he came closer, he saw what the law crowded around was an overturned car with an exploded gas tank. A Sedan, to be precise. The officials looked to him. Only one said something.
"Kid, get out of here! This is police work!"
Theo ignored them all. He looked at the car and saw where the car's hood met the cracked pavement. A hand hung out. And in it, there lied a golden desert eagle. Theo pushed the officials out of the way and bent down, still somehow wearing that calm demeanor. The gun was taken out of the still hand. Theo held it up to look at it, the setting sun using the gun's sheen to wink at him. No one stopped him from taking the weapon. The man that spoke earlier did, but the police urged him to step away. Theo, in the same calm manner, walked away, the same way he came, through the same people. He walked past the crowd for a couple of blocks. Then looked to the sky.
"You're dead, Rageblood," he suddenly yelled, his voice choking, his eyes watering.
"YOU HEAR ME?! YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!!!!"
Oh, and BTW, this is SPB, but not exactly as we know it... below I have all of the subplots seperated into their own introduction.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Is there anywhere as disgusting as this place? Maybe disgusting isn't the right word... it fits, but it doesn't describe this place well enough. Maybe "evil", no that's too simple. Maybe "dirty"... no. It fits just as well, but it needs explanation. Perhaps... perhaps "vile". Yes, that will work for now. This vile place. This vile city. This horrid place, full of fear and corruption and drugs and lusts. Truly, it is a hell on Earth. It is a city that desperately needs saving, but no one knows how. It needs cleaning, but there is no soap or water to be found. Its people need a hero, but no one will take a stand. But why do we stay here? Why do people live in this horrid place? Simple: they're scared shitless. They're too afraid to move or do anything aside from hide in their homes. And they're smart, only the foolish are willing to roam these streets by themselves. How are the good to survive in a place where the demonic thrive and the lambs are quickly devoured by hungry lions? This city takes all of the good that resides in us and burns it to ashes and dust. There is no good here. There is no justice here. There is no hope here.
May God save us all.
3 Years Ago...
She sprinted through the woods as fast as her feet would take her. A teenage girl, running through the foliage on her own in the dark. She didn't know where she was going, but she tried to get away from what she has just done...
The dark consumed her vision, which was already blocked by her dirt-filled blonde hair. She could feel the thorns and sticks on the ground pierce the skin on her feet. It's days like these she wish she had a pair of shoes. Her conscious brought her to look back down the path she has traveled. She couldn't do it. The shame and the confusion was quick to bring violent chills down her back and swing her back around to look forward. She pinched the bridge of her nose out of stress. But she was quickly reminded of her curse.
The bulbous nose, the blotchy skin, her hunched back, her unlovable face... she hated herself. And yet, those people, strangers even, somehow found a way to love her. Like a daughter, like a sister, even like a mother... but she managed to fuck all that up. And the weird thing is that she doesn't know exactly how.
Amidst the sounds of herself pushing through the brush she heard weeping. Echoing somehow, the quiet sound amplified by something close by. She looked over and a cave emitted a light. Campfire light, maybe.
No, she thought, no one will want to be with me again.
But she didn't want to be loved. At this point, she barely wanted to survive. She wouldn't be long. Maybe they could spare some food or something. If they didn't, or if they didn't want to, she deserved it. Her curiosity gained hold.
The cave was small, but apparently big enough. This was definitely the source. That weeping now echoed in her ears. But it sounded soft, sounded... sounded muffled somehow. The cave started with a brief tunnel and curved around, like a corner leading to a room. She crept up to the corner, as soft as her bare feet would let her.
A sudden, mournful howl made her jump slightly. She landed back softly on the ground as lightly as she could. A moment to listen... no one said anything. They didn't hear her.
Finally, the corner was turned. A hulking figure was on its knees, its back pumping up and down with each huff of sorrow. He was bulky from head to toe, and something odd protruded from his head. And the most peculiar thing were the wings, uneven in size, sprouting unnaturally out of his back. Next to him was clearly a dog or wolf of some kind. Probably the source of that howl. It sat there on its haunches, calmly, sitting with his apparent master. Something bothered her about his appearance though. Something with his head, she wasn't quite sure.
She took a step. A quick cough, too shy to intrude verbally.
The hulky man looked back, along with the dog. Now, she saw this man's face. Or part of it, what could be called a face. He had a head, but only some of it was human. On his left side, one large blue eye bulged to examine the intruder. The rest of his head was covered in some odd substance, like how caramel covers an apple. In fact, that's what this substance looked like: apple. As if an apple was growing on top of his head, and it grew in places that sealed his mouth shut and hid the other eye from view. The head had worms poking through, invertebrates burrowing in their home. His muscles were malformed and jutted at odd angles. She noticed that one arm was longer than the other, and both arms seemed to resemble tentacles slightly. She looked back at that one eye that was staring at her. The firelight helped show the tears that filled it. The man/beast was quick to roar in anger.
The dog arched its back and growled. Now she saw its head, too. Something bulged out of the top of the dog's skull. And from what she could tell, it looked like a hand was grasping on to his head, but from the inside.
"I'm... I'm sorry," she said politely. "I was just... wondering if you had food. I'm sorry to bother you. I can just... leave. If you want."
The dog started to approach, the monster's one eye followed him. The dog was not willing to relax, though. He approached cautiously. And she did not dare move. The dog came closer and closer to her, until he was close enough. His nose brushed across her leg. It sniffed loudly, examining this stranger, and he ran the nose up and down her body as well as he could, wanting to gain all he could from her smell. Finally, he seemed satisfied. He brushed the side of his face against her leg, as a loving gesture.
The dog turned back to that monster by the fire. He barked once. This beast managed to relax at the noise, and he turned back to where he once faced. The weeping started again.
The dog casually returned to the beast's side. At halfway, he noticed that she wasn't following him. He looked back, and his head gave sort of a wave as if to say "Come here".
She was cautious as well. Her feet trudged across the cave's floor, ignoring the number of sharp rocks that littered it. In time, she worked her way to where these two people sat. She stood between them, looking over their shoulders. There was the sorrowful sight.
A mound in the ground protruded in front of the ground in front of them, the rocks cleared away to make room. At the head of this mound, a cross made with sticks tied together with blades of crabgrass stood crookedly. She could feel a tear coming to her eyes.
"Who... what was their name?" she asked.
The beast didn't turn. He tried to answer, but that gloop over his head would not let him speak fully.
"...Marle." He mumbled. He sniffed and turned to her. She never thought that she would cringe at the sight at a person. But this just seemed... seemed unnatural, ungodly. She knew she shouldn't think that.
The beast took a mangled arm and touched his own bare chest.
"MappleMore..." he mumbled.
He pointed to the dog. "Malmo."
The girl stared for a moment.
"...AppleCore and... and...Balto?"
The beast nodded. She noticed the dog was now looking up to her as well. In an unexpected turn, the beast pointed an arm at her.
"...me?" she asked. The beast nodded.
"Um... I'm Ruby..."
The beast turned back down to the mound. Ruby felt the dog scratch a paw against her bell bottoms. She turned her head enough to see Balto, sitting there, wagging its tail. She could have sworn that he smiled at her.
Though the wagging was slow, the memory of this Carole in Balto's mind still. He turned to the mound once more, as did Ruby. She came in here to find some food, something to keep her alive in what she predicted as her lonely life. Though, when she came in for sustenance, she found much more.
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1 And a Half Years Ago...
She sat on that couch in the dirty apartment. Looking down at the folds of her plaid skirt. She didn't dare make eye contact with the men in front of her. She barely moved, didn't look around, tried to even breathe quietly. In arms, she squeezed her green-and-purple plush turtle tighter, the only thing she had that reminded her of the pleasant times. She's surprised that, after all of this trade-off, no one has taken it from her. She didn't complain about that, of course. It was the one blessing she still had.
One of the men was very dark skinned, African in heritage. He had tired eyes that were red out of strain. And for whatever reason, his mouth had some sort of purple gleam to it, evidence of some disease.
He haggled with an Asian man in front of her. The Asian had pure black hair, and wore, of all things, a very tidy suit. The hair on his head was long enough to create a spiky ponytail so long, that it was absurd.
"I'm going to say..." the dark man started off. "...I'm gonna say 150 Brawlios."
"For that?!" the Asian man shouted at him. A hostile cringe of disgust showed clearly on his face, lips snarling, eyes squinted. He looked over to the girl sitting on the couch. His eyes traveled from her white Nikes up to the green headband up on her long brown hair, clearly not a day over sixteen years old. She didn't dare look up still.
"...Hundred." the Asian man finally said as he looked back.
The dark man looked down and shook his head.
"One forty."
"Mr. Omni, it's not worth that," the Asian said. "Hundred ten."
This Mr. Omni seemed persistent.
"One thirty-five. I told you the things she could do. That seems like a more than reasonable price to me, considering what you're going to get."
The Asian considered it for a moment, glancing back to the girl on the couch. She still didn't look.
"Hundred twenty-five. Final offer."
The dark man expelled an audible "Hmmm...".
"Alright, then," he finally said. He held out his hand. "We have a deal."
The Asian stared at the dark man's hand. Seemingly confused, or maybe expecting something else.
"Oh, my bad," Mr. Omni finally said. "How rude."
Omni bowed down slightly to the Asian man, who did the same. The Asian reached into his dress pant pocket and pulled out a rather large billfold. The opened piece of leather was rummaged through and he pulled out a trio of black-and-gray bills. Omni was quick to accept the offering.
"I hope that she is all you say," the Asian man said in his obvious accent. "I heard you knew what you sell."
"Trust me, I'm good with this." Omni turned his head sharply at the girl.
"Grimmy. Up."
The girl quickly stood, like a military private snapping to her commander. Omni took Grimmy by the arm and pushed her towards the Asian man. She stumbled a couple of steps, but landed into one of the Asian's skinny arms.
"Look here," the Asian said, grabbing on to her face. "Let me see your pretty face."
Grabbing her by the jaw, the Asian titled Grimmy's head left and right, up and down, back and forth. At one point, he opened her mouth and looked at her teeth. In time, he had his fill and Grimmy was quick to drop her head the second the Asian let go.
"See seem clean," the Asian responded. "She seem promising."
"Told you I know my businesses," Omni replied. The Asian walked on past him, Grimmy's arm locked with his.
"Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Yacazuma," Omni waved.
Yacazuma didn't respond. The apartment door slammed behind him. Omni pocketed the new bills and left the room.
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2 Years Ago...
Father and son rode together in a Sedan down the road. Today was a family day, Dad never had a chance to spend time with his son and successor. But today was different. All of his business affairs were put aside, just for his boy.
"How have things been, Theo?"
Theo was the son. He looked out the window of his side of the car, thinking to himself, hoping the raised hoodie would isolate him. He caught a glimpse of someone being beaten out on the sidewalk. As natural, no one to help.
"Theo, my boy!" Dad finally yelped. Theo turned to him.
"Oh... sorry Dad," Theo apologized. "Just thinking..."
Apparently, Dad knew what about.
"Don't worry about a thing!" Dad said. "I'm tough, I'm a fighter, I've gotten through a lot!"
"Yeah, I know! You're the man!" Theo agreed. "But... I dunno. I can't help it sometimes, y'know?"
"Ah, can't say I blame ya," Dad said. "There've been times where I was scared shitless myself!"
"You?! Really?!" Theo was forced to asked.
"You bet! Hey, I'm head of the Bulet family! What else would I be doing?!"
"Maybe drowning on cigars in a hot tub filled with hot women?"
"Ha, ha, ha! My boy's got a sense of humor! Man, I wish I could do that..."
"Me too."
Dad punched Theo in his shoulder.
"Hey, now! You're not even supposed to know about that stuff! Don't let your mother know that you know, you hear?"
"I got 'cha, Pops."
"And don't call me Pops, either."
"'kay, Old Man."
Dad looked over and smiled. He brought a hand to rub against Theo's head, effectively knocking off his dark-green hood. He couldn't help but smile back.
A series of gunshots sounded. Dad seemed alarmed, and this alarmed Theo. Dad took his hand and adjusted the rearview mirror as to see behind him. Three cars took up the road, closing off anyone that might come up behind them.
"Shit..." Dad uttered. He reached back in the back seat and handed Theo a military rifle.
"Son, it's the Blood."
Theo was loading up the rifle. Quite everyday in this city that someone as young as 13 handling an automatic rifle.
"That's what worried me..."
Dad pulled out a golden desert eagle, a family heirloom. His elbow busted out the car's window and the giant handgun shot away. Theo rolled down his window as fast as he could, looking back to fire his gun. Shots fired all around them, scaring off citizens that were close by. No one was hitting each other, but bullets sparked off of the exteriors of all four cars.
Theo brought his gun inside the car to reload. He looked ahead, to see more cars coming into play. Theo knew too well.
"DAD! WATCH IT!!!"
Dad looked forward and saw the danger. With a single hand on the wheel, he jerkily swerved the car out of danger, passing the oncoming cars, continuing down the road. After recovering from whiplash, Theo looked back to see two of the cars collide with each other and crash off to the side of the road.
"Nice one, Dad!"
"Keep shooting, Theo! Keep shooting!"
Theo looked back and continued shooting at the two remaining cars that followed him and his dad. The shooting repeated itself as it did before. Occasionally, Theo would be called to fetch ammo out of the back of the car as his dad drove the vehicle. Around them, the sidewalks seemed to be abandoned. People seemed to see a battle in the infamous Bulet-Blood war heading their way.
Throwing Theo off, the cars dispersed, splitting off into intersections; one going left at one going right. Theo mentioned it to his dad. That's when Theo noticed something horrid.
"Dad! They got you!"
A spill of red came out on Dad's shoulder. And another near his shoulder blade.
"Son... Theo... I know what they're doing. I need you to go..."
"What? No! I'm going to help you!" Theo urged.
Up ahead, it was just as Dad thought. He could see clearly in the intersections ahead those same cars, and more, charging from both sides. Theo poked the rifle out on his side of the car. The bullets rang.
"Son, I love you. You have to keep on the Bulet family."
Theo stopped firing.
"What was that?"
"I love you, boy! Now stay alive!"
Theo could feel a rush of wind as Dad busted open the driver side door. As forcefully as he could, Dad grabbed on to the back of Theo's hoodie. And he flung him out of the car like a rag doll. Theo remembers hitting the left side of his face against the roaring pavement, and then blacking out.
*****
He woke up after a time, in the middle of the road. Everything was blurry, his vision was clouded. When he rode with his dad, it was noon day. But now the sun was beginning to set. Up ahead, people crowded around something. His groggy mind's instinct told him to see.
As he walked down the blocked-off road, his vision became clearer and his mind was leveling. He could tell people were excited to see something. He also saw the city police standing around yellow caution tape. He walked calmly up to the scene, having no idea what to expect.
Like a jungle of flesh, he pushed through the people as if they were hanging vines blocking his path. They let up quite easily, and Theo thought it rather easy to break through the mob of people. Perhaps he had a reputation now. He came up to the police line, but seemingly ignored them. As he ducked under the caution tape, those police officers seemed to do the same.
He looked at the site. People around crowded -detectives, forensic agents, and the likes- the area, investigating the scene. Theo ignored them as well, trudging along, seeming calm enough to look as if he were casually walking through the park.
He came closer and closer to the scene, lost in his own thoughts. As he came closer, he saw what the law crowded around was an overturned car with an exploded gas tank. A Sedan, to be precise. The officials looked to him. Only one said something.
"Kid, get out of here! This is police work!"
Theo ignored them all. He looked at the car and saw where the car's hood met the cracked pavement. A hand hung out. And in it, there lied a golden desert eagle. Theo pushed the officials out of the way and bent down, still somehow wearing that calm demeanor. The gun was taken out of the still hand. Theo held it up to look at it, the setting sun using the gun's sheen to wink at him. No one stopped him from taking the weapon. The man that spoke earlier did, but the police urged him to step away. Theo, in the same calm manner, walked away, the same way he came, through the same people. He walked past the crowd for a couple of blocks. Then looked to the sky.
"You're dead, Rageblood," he suddenly yelled, his voice choking, his eyes watering.
"YOU HEAR ME?! YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!!!!"