Alex Connor: Resonant Chaos

Chapter 2. - No Reply

Ten days.

Ten days and counting.

This place is slower than usual. Usually, they take a day to reply if you have a job or not, either way, they contact you a second day to inform you of their decision, but no. It has been ten f*****g days. How could a person not be mad?

I have been beating my head against the wall for over an hour now when someone walked in my basement and dropping something on the floor. I didn't bother looking up.

"I leave you for ten days and this place turns into a shithole." I hear Ben saying on what, I can't help but scoff and turn to see my little brother. "Only you can do that." Ben says, pointing at me when I notice two more people behind him.

"Who are you hiding there, Benny Boy?" I ask taking off my gloves and drying my face from all the sweat when I glimpse a familiar green eyes and yellow hair. He brought Rimera and that marshal guy over.

"Lucian here offered us a ride to our places, so we can pick up our staff before the training begins. He's our escort for the day." Rimera jokes, poking Lucian at his rib on what he bulges in discomfort. Something was off.

"Right, I'll be off then." Ben says, pointing at the door that leads to our kitchen. Rimera follows him gladly, and I end up alone with a Pretty Boy.

Lucian just stood there, staring at the wall full of pinned pictures. On the photos were all the teenagers I trained when they couldn't take on bullying. They would all come here for one of my lessons. 

The lessons were free, anyone could come in and learn how to punch properly. All they needed to do was show up, and if they stayed for over three weeks, they'd have to buy their own box gloves.

It is one of my favourite hobbies I do, and Lucian he was looking at this one photography I took off this girl I trained a year back. She was such a warrior, she will become a true soldier one day. That is her dream.

"That one is one of my favourite photographs taken." I said, looking at her punching the boxing bag like there was no tomorrow. She was so angry that day, and that hatred energy was focused at the poor bag. She knocked it off the hook.

Not only that, but she impressed me that day. For the rest of that day, I couldn't stop believing she did that. I was very surprised.

"Angels, that's my sister." Lucian said without taking his eyes off her. "Haven't seen her ever since I started to extirpate." He pauses. I could tell he missed her a lot. "How... Why did she come here?" Lucian finally asks as he looks me straight into my eyes.

"Want a drink?" I ask, moving towards the vending machine and taking the cold water from it. The glass was broken for five years now thanks to my short temper. I broke it when I heard my parents have passed away. One of the hardest moments of my life.

"Sure." Lucian says as he sits on the chair next to him. He takes the water and drinks it entirely in one breath. "Angels." Lucian says reminding me on what I nod.

"She came here looking for a way to stop the pain she was feeling at the moment. Someone murdered her boyfriend, her parents didn't do much about it. Just made it worst because they kept telling her to go to Orbit to start anew. She was angry and desperately needed to punch something. I found her at the basketball field being beaten by the cheerleaders from her school. If I wasn't there, she'd probably be dead. I brought her here until she calmed down. I wanted to take her home, but she insisted on staying. Furthermore, I gave her a guest room, from there she wanted to learn to defend herself. She begged. So, I helped her. She stayed for a solid five months. Learned her everything I could. She was great. Good punch. Good attitude. Fantastic posture. One day she came here with her bags packed. She thanked me for everything, and when I asked where she will go next, do you know what she said?" I ask now looking at Lucian who was holding his water bottle so tight.

"The Moon Observatory." Lucian said with a smile.

"Yes." I say looking at the board where she kept beating the hell out of that boxing bag. Walking over to the board I take the photo off, looking at it for one last time, I turn to Lucian and give it to him. "Here, take it. You should have it. She is your sister. You haven't seen her in a while, you need it more than I do."

"Thank you, Alex." Lucian said, finally smiling ever since he walked in here. It was then Ben and Rimera finally showed up.

"Done!!" Ben literally shouted as he bulged in and falling over his bags.

"About the time. The hell took you so long?" Lucian asks when I notice Rimera was fixing her shirt and trying her best to help Ben without bursting into laughter. What in the world is going on with the two of them?

"Sorry, we are ready to go." Ben said looking at Lucian who shook his head as he walked out with Rimera following him leaving Ben and me alone. "I'm still bummed you're not there. You deserve to be there. It's exactly what we imagined." Ben said sadly on what I smiled.

"You deserve to be there too. Don't forget to have fun there, at least, do it for me, huh?" I ask with an idea on what his face bright's up like it was a Christmas day.

"You got it!" Ben said, hugging me one more time and disappearing behind the doors.

As I am left alone, again, I gaze upon the gym and everything that was left there since Bucky and I had a little riot five days ago, knowing I will have to clean this mess eventually before people walk in again. Just as I thought of that the door open, and I turn surprised that was fast for someone to come when I saw it was only Lucian Green.

"Hey, Indiana Jones, what would you say if I offer you a job to Extirpate 3000 as one of my studies?"

"Remove the Indiana Jones from that sentence, and I just might want to listen." I say on what I smile in disbelief I will be on Extirpate 3000.

 "I have one crazy idea." Rimera started on what I gladly confirmed she has been around Ben for way too long.

He always has a big impact on people that after only ten days everyone starts their sentences with I have this crazy idea or something similar. He has ruined her. The only perfectly sane person I have met around here now has gone crazy as my brother. Maybe the two are meant to be together.

Ever since Lucian offered me a job on Extirpate I have been wondering was it because I helped his sister, so je is helping me in return, or was it because he pitied me? That has been on my mind since.

Now I am sitting in a cafe this fine morning with Rimera, while she was waiting for her class to begin. I had nothing better to do, yet so instead, I decided to take a walk down the old docks where fishermen used to keep their fishing boats for the next morning.

The year is 2050, and ever since the great storm called Wipeout has destroyed the entire world, the people, at least what was left of them colonized big capitals of the world in hope to regenerate ourselves. There are four main colonies that observe their smaller ones and control them. The name of those four colonies was the Arc, Orbit, Torchwood, and Highcrest. And each colony had its own divisions. Now, everything is turned into a disaster.

This place used to be beautiful. It used to be calm and quiet over the night when the only thing you could feel was the sea breeze, hear waves splashing on the rocks, and smell of sea salt. It used to be energized in the morning when everyone was waking up and hurrying to their fishing boats to sail out into the open sea to catch some fish for their wife's so they had something to make for dinner. And when the afternoon came, it would be filled with laughter and songs from the children who would sing and scream as they run down the pier and jump into the cold sea while their mothers would yell to get out because the water wasn't warm enough yet for swimming.

That is how I remembered this place. I was born here. I used to live here long ago before my parents got departed into the C. O. R. P. S. division where they had to start their new jobs. And it was all because of that one storm back in 2020. Apparently, the scientist did make a huge discovery of how to wipe out 1/3 of the world's entire population instead of finding the cure. They brought this upon ourselves, and now I wonder, if they hadn't made that discovery, not even tried to pursue it, would life be any better now? Would my parents still be alive? And would I be with my brother every step of the way?

Now everything is ruined, and I can't stop thinking of what this world could be. All I see at the moment is what it is now, what it was in the past and continue wondering what will become in the future.

I see is a whole bunch of technology ruling over the world and at its finest. It has destroyed us already, and it will destroy us even more if we don't stop developing new weapons and ways of killing ourselves sooner than expected. Does anybody have a plan for us? It does, what are they thinking? What does the universe have in stock for us? When will we see our last days? Will we see it coming or not?

"Earth to Alex!" Rimera said for a hundredth time no even angrier as she kept waving in front of my face.

"I'm sorry." I said quickly, "I did it again didn't I?" I ask realizing I have been doing this a lot lately.

"A person would think, yes Alex you did it again," Rimera said fidgeting on her chair and making sure she had everything with her. "Listen, my classes are starting in two hours and if I don't get going now I will definitely be late. And before you say anything, it's to avoid traffic. Just in case."

"Okay, then. Good luck and have fun." I say drinking my coffee in what she stands on her spot looking at me in disbelief.

"Sometimes I wonder what do you think the definition of fun is? Because class is not fun, its a responsibility and an opportunity to get equipped with the knowledge needed for the job you tend on doing for the rest of your life. That's if you don't find anything better." Rimera said fixing her bag on her shoulder and looking at me like I was some sort of an i***t.

"Yeah, you just go." I brush her off because I know she is a smart ass and always fast with facts I list that could be good to argue or debate with. Only in her case, she always finds a way to lecture me on something.

Just as she left I saw this lighthouse my mother used to go when she was sad. She would take her violin and play for hours, and I would always listen to her music because there was nothing beautiful like her and the music she played. I could still hear her music echoing and spreading on the surface of the waves until it didn't reach the moon and the stars.

Suddenly every sound around me seemed to fade away. It was engulfed as if the water covered my ears allowing me to hear only the sound but not what words were being spoken. My heartbeat grew louder in my ears. It was beating fast.

As I looked around me everything seemed to continue its pace in slow motion rather than at proper pace, and that feeling I always get like something is about to happen, happens.

It was the gunfire so loud that echoed in my ears. As I looked around there was no one suspicious in the crowd. Then that smell of a burned barrel cut my nostrils, but so did the cigarette smoke, old man's cologne water and incredibly expensive pair of shoes that were bought earlier today. There was also that adrenaline rush speeding through the other man's veins. Blood was boiling. He was sweating like never before with the heart rate dangerously high, and all of this was happening just two blocks away.

I knew exactly what to do.