Five years earlier…Cincinnati stood under the cherry blossoms and knew deep down that her life was coming to an end. She could do nothing about it, nothing short of putting on a brave face and moving forward."Hello, big sis," Cincinnati groaned as soon as the voice spoke and turned around to see her little brother in school uniform, grinning from ear to ear."You're a student at Stone High now, aren't you?" She asked, her shoulders slumped."You asked yesterday and the day before. Yes, I'm officially a part of Stone High." Mark seemed excited, even though Cincinnati's standing in the school was as good as ruined since her brother was, for lack of a better term, weird."Well, might as well get this over with," she said, walking ahead. Mark had always been a bright child, and being in the same high school with her was his dream. Even though she'd told him times without number to steer clear of her, he never listened."Big sister!!!" He followed, and Cincinnati knew deep down that she'
It was raining again. Yet, Zero couldn't feel the rain on his skin; he couldn't break out of his confines. The world was pressing against him, but there was nothing in him that could push back, that could make everything sensible once again.I'm pathetic.Number 9 didn't return or call him back. He knew there'd be hell to pay, but he disregarded it. Many things happened for a reason, and standing in the position where he could see the world for what it was, he knew that was a lie.Some things happen just because. There was no grand purpose, no grand order. They happened and left you to deal with the aftermath. It was like walking in the rain and letting your tears run down. The tears mingled with the rain, and nobody would ever know you were crying. "If you keep looking dead, I might be tempted to put a bullet through your head and save you from your misery," Alistair spoke, blowing a puff of smoke into the air. Zero noticed the umbrella that'd suddenly covered him from the relentles
All was quiet in the van when Enforcer 1 removed the mask, and Zero found himself staring at the most gorgeous woman he'd ever seen."Stop staring; we need to get fresh air too, you know," she laughed, and it wasn't a sound he'd ever associated with The Order. "You know what you're doing, so cut it out." Enforcer 2 spoke, a lanky guy who looked like a reed. Zero expected him to be blown out of the van any moment from then."You pissed off the big brass. So, you'd work with us for the next few weeks. You'd leave your cushy jobs in the headquarters and live with us. If that isn't providence, I don't know what else is," the lanky guy seemed to be having fun with Zero's dilemma, but he didn't care. "Lay off him; he looks confused. Are you confused?" The lady Enforcer was before him, almost close enough to touch foreheads."If you wanted a kiss, you should have just asked. There's no need for all this," Zero noticed the lanky guy was slightly jealous and wondered what kind of history the
Zero didn't like being at the mercy of anyone—especially someone like Alistair. The base of operations the Enforcers used was nothing to write home about, rundown, and an absolute disaster."Who lives here? And why?" He asked aloud, unable to believe the dingy room he stayed in was a place for ordinary people. Alistair might be a demanding boss, but Zero was a free bird. His accommodation was always paid for; he never had to worry about money. But now, he was seeing the other side of existence. He didn't like it one bit."Wow, who'd have thought the great Zero is squeamish to poverty?" Zero turned to see Valerie at the doorway, arms folded across her chest."Good morning to you too, and this place isn't conducive for living. I saw rats the size of a small dog. Why would anyone think this is a good place to live?" He sounded indignant, but he was past caring."You speak like we wanted this. Do you know why I can't even look at you?" Valerie seemed agitated for some reason."No, why?"
"I want you to give me a name. I haven't ever had one. Or maybe I don't remember having one. I can't keep using Zero; it's unlike me. So, why not give me a name?"He came up with the idea after realising that the Enforcers would ogle him for as long as he was there, and he wouldn't be allowed to belong. "Me? A name? I can-can't. How can I even do something like that? You are sacred. I can't even reach you, and we're in the same room." Zero noticed that Valarie's obsession went beyond normalcy; she was a fanatic for the one called Zero.But that wasn't him; it'd never been."But you could reach me when you didn't know who I was. Why does my name change the way you see me?" He didn't like bringing logic into it, but he was tired of circumventing the situation. It was best to nip it in the bud before it became a full-blown issue for him. He enjoyed his quiet life and would rather have that than a life where he was seen as a god or whatever else they described him as. "Your name isn't
"You cannot stand a warrior in his natural habitat."This saying had been pummeled into Zero, night and day. It was a testament to his resilience, which became his daily life.But the Enforcers didn't need to know that."There are a couple levels here; try to keep up." Terry was looking down on him for some reason, but he was unfazed by such a blatant show of disrespect."Okay, I'll take note," he replied politely, not willing to go back and forth with someone who was lovestruck."We are here." Terry spread his arms and chest as though taking in lungfuls of air. He looked like a caricature and almost made Zero laugh.Almost.The military base was better than he expected, and the place he slept in didn't do the base justice. He stood and took in the view, taking note of traps and any potential situation that could harm him. The door was an automated one, and the Enforcers were big on technology. Although they had their fair share of powerful mages, even the battle type, they leaned to
"This is the one who they call Zero? He looks like I could break him in half. Hey, how far does your back bend before your spine shatters?" There were snickers as a big, beefy boy stepped in, a cruel expression on his face."You talk too much. Come at me." Zero was getting tired of playing with the inexperienced bunch. "Who's the loudmouth now?" The big boy got red in the face and sent a punch hurtling towards Zero. He didn't dodge; he just stood there and let it land. "Is this it? You couldn't even dodge that," the pretty boy snickered, and a blade materialised from his vinyl suit, a blade of plasma. It was a weapon that spelt death to whoever it touched, able to seat through skin and bone in a space of milliseconds. But Zero wasn't just anyone.He feinted to the side as the blade came crashing down on the insulated floor, sending a mini tremor down the floor."Look at that; he's got some moves," the pretty boy's eyes became slits, and Zero felt the sense of danger overcome him. H
Dante knew something was wrong even before everybody else did. It started with a trickle and then morphed into something else, something he couldn't decipher.This is bad. Very bad.But who cared? Nobody. "You have a stupid look on your face when you're losing; it's cute," Crystal had a glint in her eyes, and Dante had to force himself to look away."This isn't fair; you know that, right? I'm all out," he flipped his cards, which was a bad hand. Gilgamesh tried his best not to laugh, but he couldn't hold it in anymore."This isn't my fault!" Dante defended, even though he didn't have to."He's a sore loser, isn't he?" Cincinnati said, boredom leaking through her voice. He'd noticed that she'd become a little more tolerant of him lately, and he didn't want anything to ruin that. She always spoke to him dismissively, but deep inside, she did care. Somewhat. He couldn't tell about her. "Not only a sore loser, but he's also a lame one," Gilgamesh said good-naturedly. Dante had noticed t