"Alina?" Ken repeated. He was lying on his back but used his hands to pick himself up from the ground when he heard Alina swear under her breath, confirming his suspicions.

"Who?" Alina asked gruffly, her voice masked by a voice modulator. Her eyes swam around before she thought of Jason's pseudonym. "I'm . . . I'm . . . Garmr."

Garmr? Are you kidding me?! Ken gawked at Alina with disbelief as his mouth hung open to the point where it almost dislocated. Alina fidgeted when she noticed him staring nonstop at her, her cheeks slightly pink, but Ken was too busy to notice.

"Did you think I wouldn't recognize you because you're wearing a face shield?" Ken asked incredulously. "Alina, I watch you every day, I'd know those eyes - and I'd recognize those curls - anywhere!"

Alina stood there stunned for a moment before her upper cheeks and forehead turned a bright shade of red and she blushed profusely. Quickly, she pulled her hood back on to cover her face. At the same time, she pulled back from Ken before crossing her arms.

"Gross," Alina said, using one word to emphasize how she felt about his statement. She shuddered slightly as she further added, "And creepy."

"I - I . . . that came out wrong. It sounded better in my head," Ken stuttered as he realized what he said and how offensive it sounded. "I only meant that I see you every day in class, as your classmate -"

"Uh-huh."

"And not as a stalker. I mean, I do stare at you -"

"Oh."

"Just . . . not . . . in a . . . creepy way. I'm not helping my case, am I?"

"Nope."

"I'm gonna shut up now," Ken muttered while Alina sent him a disapproving glance.

Well, boys will be boys no matter where you go, Alina thought. Complete and utter perverts. And creeps. Perverted creeps!

"What exactly were you doing?" Alina brushed aside her thoughts and focused on Ken before asking him in admonishment.

"What am I doing? What are you doing dressed as a female Winter Soldier?!" Ken shot back while gesturing at her outfit.

"I am not dressed like - I wasn't the one trying to buy a gun!" Alina looked down at herself and retorted instantaneously before shooting back at a distracted Ken.

"I - ca-can you -? It's very, very, distracting," Ken gestured as her face helplessly, bothered by the fact that she was still using a voice modulator to sound gruffer and Alina deactivated it with a push of a button before yanking the mask off as it folded in on itself.

"You gonna tell me why you were trying to buy a gun?" Alina asked as she placed the compressed mask into her pocket.

"You going to tell me why you're cosplaying and beating up drug dealers?" Ken asked back while gesturing at the groaning men who were scattered about.

The two stared down at each other, neither wanting to compromise first when the distant sound of sirens interrupted them. Alina heard it first and turned her head towards the sirens, trying her best to measure the distance and how close the police were with her ears.

"We need to leave," Alina turned back to Ken and said quietly.

"Right, let's do - thaaaaat!" Ken started screaming as Alina grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and ran up a building. After jumping onto the rooftop, she didn't stop or hesitate and ran off the ledge and onto another rooftop. Only when they were two blocks away did Alina pause and let go of Ken, who scrambled to a corner and almost threw everything he had eaten for a week while Alina watched.

Serves him right, Alina thought without a shred of sympathy. That'd teach him not to argue with me.

"So, you ready to tell me everything?" Alina asked Ken.

Ken, who was breathing heavily in an attempt to divert his oncoming retching, paused and seemed to consider it for a whole five seconds before shaking his head and saying, "No."

Right after his reply, he went back to practicing his lung exercise while patting his chest.

"Well, then. I guess we need to run over a few more buildings, eh?" Alina had an evil grin on her face as Ken held his mouth and turned to look at her in horror.

"Yo-you did that on purpose?!" Ken asked as he swallowed back the bile that almost erupted again.

"Maybe," Alina answered with a smirk as she took a step forward towards him as he fell back.

Ken's stomach churned again at the thought of experiencing such a harrowing moment once more and he quickly shook his head while raising a hand in surrender.

"Alright, alright, I give - urmph!" Ken covered his mouth and Alina pulled back with a pleased smile.

"Good," she replied in satisfaction before wrinkling her nose underneath her mask as she saw his strained face. "Let's head down and find a bathroom. You clean up and . . . do whatever you gotta do and I'll go get you some mints. Oh, and no running away while I'm gone. Or else . . ."

"Got it, understood, yes ma'am," Ken answered hastily while sighing in relief. If he did retch in front of Alina, he would've just jumped from the building than live with the shame.

After finding a public restroom, Ken went in to freshen himself while Alina went to buy him a drink and some mints. At the same time, she used her holo-lenses to access a virtual delivery app and order some food.

Even though I just ate with Kate and Selena I'm still famished, Alina thought as she ordered five quarter-pound burgers before rubbing her growling stomach.

By the time she had finished ordering and purchasing what she needed, Ken walked out of the restroom. Noticing him, Alina tossed a pack of mints to him and Ken hurriedly downed half a dozen in one mouthful. Halfway through his chewing though, he paused and looked at the mints carefully.

"Alina?"

"Hm?"

"These are Tums."

"Oh, right," Alina clicked her fingers as she recalled her shopping experience. "They didn't have mints so I went for the closest thing to it."

Uh . . . Tums isn't anything like mints, Ken thought before choosing his next words carefully. ". . . Couldn't you have gotten some gum instead?"

Alina froze, her face completely blank for over a minute before a lightbulb clicked in her head and she nodded. "Oh, yeah. I could've bought that instead. Huh."

You just realized that now?! Ken thought with exasperation but wisely remained silent. When someone as strong as Jason was stumped by this girl's weird taste in food, what could Ken possibly do?

Oblivious to Ken's predicament, Alina started walking, leading him to a bridge over a water canal. She spun around, facing Ken as she sat down on the bridge's railing. Ken's breathing stilled as he saw the setting sun graze its warm light on her before moving to lean on the railing while gazing at the opposite direction of Alina. He avoided Alina's eyes as he stared into the waters, watching at a shrinking gondola as it rowed away. [1]

"Here," Alina handed him the bottle of energized water which he gratefully accepted.

Alina didn't say anything when she noticed him still evading her. This time she was patient, waiting for him to tell her voluntarily when a drone came buzzing down from the sky. Alina took the food delivery from the drone and it flew away after confirming that the food was correctly delivered.

"Burger?" Alina asked casually while holding out a double cheeseburger to Ken.

He turned to her and shook his head. "Thanks, but I'm not hungry."

"Suit yourself," Alina shrugged and dug into the burger with relish while Ken looked on with a raised eyebrow, especially when he noticed just how many burgers she ordered.

Guess she's a lot like Jason, Ken thought, vaguely remembering how Jason would have at least two burgers almost every day in the school cafeteria. In fact, one time, he even had a bet with Asami and downed twelve burgers without pausing.

Alina noticed his gaze and stopped chewing.

"What?" She asked defensively as she fidgeted.

"Nothing," Ken replied with a small smile.

"I'm hungry, ok? In case you didn't notice, I used my powers back there and now my metabolism is kicking in. I don't usually eat so much, alright?" Alina explained in one go, her cheeks glowing with embarrassment while Ken looked on speechlessly.

"I - I didn't say anything," Ken stuttered an excuse which caused her to nearly snort.

"You didn't have to," Alina answered and Ken sighed before opening his bottle of water and drinking it as an excuse to avoid the conversation.

At the same time, he lamented on how perceptive women were while Alina finished her burger in one big bite and turned to another. Ken turned to look at her once more before looking back at the water.

"I want to kill someone," he finally said bluntly. Alina paused, her hands holding the burger just a few inches from her mouth as he continued. "That's why I wanted to buy a gun."

"Duh, that's obvious. Why else would you need a gun?" Alina rolled her eyes.

"Not just anyone," Ken explained while ignoring Alina's retort. "I want to kill the murderer of my parents."

This time Alina lowered her burger and turned to look at Ken seriously. He was always so shy and soft-spoken, so much so that she never considered that he lost just as much as her. That he was in pain just like her.

"I'm sorry," Alina whispered and Ken just shook his head without answering. Alina wasn't able to handle the silence and finally asked, "H-how did you find out?"

Ken reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and pulled a folded paper out and handed it to Alina. "From this."

"Paper? Really? Who uses paper these days?" Alina asked as she wiped her hands before taking the folded paper.

"It's from your brother," Ken answered with a sardonic smile, much to Alina's surprise.

Without hesitation, Alina opened the letter and skimped through it. It contained a rough summary of what Jason's investigation had unveiled along with an address to a safe house which contained a more thorough and detailed information board.

"Did you go to the safe house?" Alina asked and Ken nodded.

"My uncle tried hiding it but I found out," Ken replied while Alina handed the note back to him. Confusion appeared on her face as she asked another question.

"Why would Jason . . . ?"

"Make a deal with my uncle? He gave the info on my parents' murders as recompense for getting Nikki hurt. During the carnival attack," Ken added for clarification.

Alina nodded but remained silent. She looked at the setting sun that was already sinking past the horizon. Ken understood her stance and he scoffed at her disappointment in him.

"Reading what happened isn't the same as being there. You didn't see just how much my parents' suffered before they died and I -" Ken's voice broke as he looked away from Alina, trying his hardest to prevent her from seeing his teary eyes. "I need to make him suffer twice as much before I pull the trigger."

Alina closed her eyes as Ken spoke. She understood exactly where Ken was coming from, for she felt the very same rage as him. For the longest time, she wanted to do the same and gain vengeance over the death of her mother and father; it was her raison d'etre, the reason why she pushed herself to train and become strong. Yet now . . .

"Killing isn't going to bring them back or make you feel better," Alina finally opened her eyes and turned to Ken, her voice soft as she tried explaining why she disapproved.

"Oh please, what do you know?" Ken shot back, anger overwhelming him. "You have everything! Money, strength, and - and a super brother. You didn't have to worry about how traumatized your sister was, how you might be separated, how - how you needed to - how everything just ended in one night!"

Alina shrunk back, not from fear but from the pain Ken's words brought her. Noticing her reproachful gaze, Ken realized that he went overboard and sighed with regret.

"I'm sorry, that was a low blow," Ken said quietly with a lowered head. "I - Jason told me what happened to your parents. I'm sorry."

Alina nodded, accepting his apology. Her eyes moved to the horizon, where she watched the purple hue of the sunset.

"I get what you're feeling, I do," Alina said. "But killing? It's not - I see what it does to people. You can pretend that it doesn't affect you but it does. It gnaws at you until you can't eat or sleep and I - I don't want you to see you like that."

Ken listened to Alina carefully before mulling over her words. There was a certain disquiet about what she said, but it took him some time to realize why. Finally, he realized exactly what was bothering him and gazed at Alina solemnly.

"Alina . . . have you killed someone before?" Ken asked in a low voice.

Alina smiled bitterly but didn't answer. She placed her unfinished burger back into the brown bag and got up from the railing.

"Let's go and see that safe house," Alina suggested. "I want to know the details."

"Wait. Why do you . . . ?"

"Cause I wanna help," Alina replied to a hesitant Ken. "But under the condition that you don't kill the murderer."

Ken lowered his head, struggling to come to a decision regarding Alina. He appreciated her offer to help him, and he knew that she would be invaluable to his investigation. But he also couldn't accept the fact that he'd have to give up on his vengeance. After thinking it over for an entire minute, Ken came to a decision.

"Alright," Ken relented. "I won't kill him. And thank you."

I promise not to kill him right away, Ken thought in his mind. He couldn't, wouldn't let go of his hatred.

"Right," Alina nodded and hailed a taxi. "Let's get a move on then. I need to get home before curfew or Jason will ground me."

"Curfew?" Ken asked.

"Yeah, he doesn't like me being out so late," Alina answered as an automated taxi stopped in front of them. "He worries too much."

"He's a good brother," Ken said, admitting his admiration for Jason with a smile.

"Way too protective and way too much of a horndog," Alina muttered. "But, yeah, an incredible brother."

Fifteen minutes later, both Alina and Ken departed from the taxi. In front of them stood a rather old self-storage facility. Despite being relatively clean, the dingy old retro look of the facility was reminiscent of the 20th century as it lacked the modern technology that was prevalent nowadays.

Entering the lobby of the storage facility, Alina wrinkled her nose as she looked around. The paint on the walls was yellowed with age and, despite being clean, a faint mouldy smell was prevalent in the air. The lobby itself was small with only three rickety folding chairs for visitors, all placed in front of an old wooden office desk that had lost its sheen ages ago.

Movement from the desk caught Alina's attention and it was only then that she realized that the desk was occupied. An old lady was squinting at Alina and Ken since they had entered. With a grumble, she fumbled through her cluttered desk for her glasses which she promptly put on. Her eyes landed on Alina and a wisp of a smile formed on her wrinkled face until she noticed Ken and she sighed. Ken nodded politely and the old lady waved her hand shooing him away dismissively and the former gestured at Alina to follow him.

Ken led Alina to the back of the facility where dozens upon dozens of shutters, each holding a large space for storage of all sorts. Alina recalled how, when she and Jason were visiting America, auctions would occur over storages whose lease were long expired. Most auctions would contain junk but occasionally there would be a treasure or two hidden amongst all the waste, both a boon and a curse for those who were lucky to win.

Those were the days, Alina thought with a smile. Travelling from place to place, country to country. The world was our home. Still, it's nice to be here, in one place instead of constantly moving. At least now, I have friends.

"We're here," Ken's voice interrupted Alina's thoughts and she turned to look at where he was pointing.

A rather unremarkable shuttered storage stood in front of them, no different than the rest. But knowing that it was a safe house that Jason handed to Ken, Alina knew that there was more hidden underneath the surface. Sure enough, the situation quickly priced her right.

After keying in a pin number, Ken used his fingerprint to unlock the shutter before using a physical key to disable the failsafe. He then bent down and yanked the shutters upwards, opening the storage and gesturing at Alina to enter. Alina promptly entered and Ken, after looking around to check that the coast was clear, followed after her. A thin layer of dust greeted Alina and she coughed while waving her hand to disperse the air around her. Ken ignored the dust and moved to a wall counter.

"Almost there. Hang on a sec," Ken muttered as he pushed a button under the counter. With a click, a part of the wall slowly moved downwards, revealing a hidden staircase.

Alina quickly descended the stairs, happy to exit the dusty room while Ken followed her lead once again. As soon as Alina's foot reached the end of the stairs, the room lit up and Alina nodded with satisfaction when she noticed that the secret floor was much cleaner than the floor above. Looking around, she realized that this floor was full of high tech devices, unlike the rest of the facility.

She could see a food fabricator that only required raw fruits to create high-calorie energy bars, a modern day coffee maker, and shelves of persevered food such as canned fruits. At the far corner was a stand-up shower that was smaller than a public cubicle and a vacuum-powered toilet, much like those found in an airplane. Further off was a bunk bed which was actually just a metal frame that could slide in and out of the wall.

". . . This . . . This is a shelter," Alina muttered.

"Probably if the city's infrastructure ever collapses," Ken agreed.

"You mean this is a small ship?" Alina asked.

"Uh, well," Ken hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to say. "There are thrusters on this, so . . ."

"Oh, God, don't say anymore or I'll want to leave," Alina raised a hand and facepalmed herself.

Of course, she thought. Leave it to the madman who created a Skynet-wannabe-sexbot to also make an aerial shelter with rockets. Jesus, help me. Or him.

"Let's . . . just focus on what we came here for," Alina said to Ken who nodded.

Ken walked up to a board and uncovered it revealing a crime board. There were two major strings connected to the central photo with several other smaller strings branching out.

"The man who ordered the hit is Elijah Steele," Ken said through gritted teeth. "Scion of Steele Tech, and my parents' former employer."

"Hmm. From the looks of it, he didn't pull the trigger himself," Alina stated.

"No," Ken shook his head in agreement. He pointed his finger to one of the major strings. "He had this guy, Joseph Zayn, order the hit. And Joseph -"

"- Is one of the biggest crime lords in Europe," Alina finished grimly. "Who then had this guy pull the trigger."

Alina pointed to the second string and grimaced; she recognized him. Silas Gunner, a mercenary who was listed as number thirteen amongst the top twenty mercenaries in the world. A far cry from Jason, however, Fenrir was listed unofficially.

"Yeah. How did you know?" Ken asked in confusion but Alina didn't answer him but shrug.

"There's no way you can get to him or Steele. Not from here at least," Alina pointed out. "And forget about Gunner, he's a renowned killer."

"Maybe. But there is someone here that I can get," Ken replied evasively before pointing to a smaller string.

"This guy here," Ken continued. "He's a drug dealer."

"Jacob Smith. Man, a boring name like that's gotta be fake," Alina added under her breath before speaking out loud. "So, what's he got to do with a mercenary and a tech scion?"

"Business," Ken answered as he turned to a desk. He pulled a thick folder and browsed through the papers before pulling a stack out. "Using the computers here, I managed to pull some bank records."

Computer? Alina narrowed her eyes and turned to the computer on the desk. Hidden from Ken's eyes, she flicked a bolt of electricity into the computer and connected to it wirelessly. However, a firewall blocked her progress and Alina rolled her eyes. Computer my ass. It's A.V.A that's doing the heavy work.

Ken didn't notice anything as he handed the papers to Alina. The latter skimmed through them quickly before grimacing.

"Bastards," she muttered under her breath.

The paper indicated that Smith would get young ESPers hooked to drugs before "employing" them to Steele Tech. Those with strong powers would be good as muscles and grunts, while others, females mostly, would be assigned as "secretaries".

"And the cops aren't doing anything?" Alina asked in disbelief.

"What can they do? The victims themselves don't want their help," Ken answered bitterly.

"So Accelerant . . ."

"Yeah. It's Smith's work," Ken nodded, admitting easily. [2]

"So let me get this straight," Alina raised a hand and turned to look at Ken with a raised eyebrow. "You're buying a gun from the guy you wanna kill? Are you stupid? They'd keep an eye on you and kill you before you even got close to him!"

"You've got a better idea?" Ken asked.

"Yeah-uh," Alina nodded. "First, surveillance. We watch him and find out his schedule. Then we canvas an area he often visits, a nightclub or wherever he does his business and hit him when he least expects it."

Ken's mouth dropped and continued to drop as Alina continued her plan.

"Any questions?" Alina asked.

"Have you done this before?"

"Maybe," Alina shrugged before smiling. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

Alina took a step closer to Ken and the latter stopped breathing as he caught sight of her eyes. Somehow, those hazel brown eyes mesmerized him and he couldn't look away until Alina looked away.

Damn, she's amazing, he thought.

Alina gazed down at her watch and sighed. "I need to get back home. Let's plan some more over there."

"Wait, what?" Ken froze, unsure of whether he heard her clearly.

"We'll plan more at my place?" Alina repeated, her head tilted as she sent him a flummoxed gaze.

"Y-your place? Just like that?" Ken asked.

"Yeah what's wro-" Alina realized just how ambiguous her sentence sounded and she stopped halfway, utterly stupified. Her cheeks turned bright red and she spun away while screaming internally.

Oh my god! What did I just say?! Alina asked herself as she punched herself internally.

"I-I only meant that as a friend!" Alina corrected herself with a stutter and Ken frantically nodded.

"Right, right. I knew that. Even though you're inviting me as a girl -"

"Argh!" Alina covered her face with her hands while running her body away from Ken, who was just as embarrassed.

After a few minutes of flustered silence, Ken spoke. "So, should we . . . ?"

"Yes! We're leaving!" Without giving Ken a moment to see her face, Alina dashed out of the room.

The entire ride back home was filled with silence as Alina sat at the back with her hood up and Ken sat in the front passenger seat while gazing out the window. This time, they had the unfortunate luck of landing a taxi that was driven by a driver, and the latter was grinning wide at the sight of the two. Many times, Alina was tempted to shut the driver up violently, especially when he began telling Ken what to do to 'make up with his girlfriend'.

It was only after Alina reached home was she able to breathe properly. Turning to Ken who, once more, had nearly dislocated his jaw from shock as he gazed at the mansion did Alina smile.

"Welcome to my home," she said while gesturing at the mansion.

"Damn," Ken muttered as he took his shoes off. He slowly followed Alina up the stairs but continued gazing everywhere with surprise; he had never seen such a luxurious place before, let alone enter one.

"I know," Alina overheard him and nodded. "I'm not used to it either, but Jason got this place for Alice, his daughter."

"Alice is Jason's daughter?!" Ken turned to Alina as his jaws dropped. "But - how? They don't even look related!"

"She got it all from her mom," Alina explained as she opened the door and entered her bedroom. Ken hesitated for a moment before gingerly following her. "Only thing she got from Jason was his nose."

Alina stretched before pulling off her elbow and knee guards. She tossed them aside before unzipping her hoodie, forgetting that Ken was standing there watching her in stunned silence. Her sleeveless tank top revealed her smooth brown skin but Ken's eyes were fixed in Alina's back, where a scar was.

"Wait. Where - how?" Ken called out to Alina as he approached her, any semblance of embarrassment faded as he seriously checked her wound.

"Wh-what are you doing?!" Alina blushed as she realized that Ken was there but quickly she saw where his attention was diverted to. "It's - it's nothing."

"Nothing?!" Ken noticed the exact same scar on Alina's chest and quickly came to a conclusion. He gently touched the scar on her back before looking straight at her eyes. "How - what happened?"

Alina's face darkened as she pushed Ken's hands away and quickly pulled a sweater from a nearby drawer and put it on. "I said it's nothing."

"You were stabbed, Alina. I think -"

"It's none of your business!" Alina shouted and Ken flinched. Alina's face changed as she knew that her outburst was uncalled for, especially when Ken was only concerned for her.

"Sorry," Ken said rather guiltily. "I didn't mean -"

"I know," Alina cut through before sighing. "And thank you. But I'm not ready to talk about it."

"Alright," Ken nodded with understanding. "But if you ever need to -"

"Thank you," Alina whispered again, her voice filled with relief at Ken's understanding.

The sound of the front door opening and voices of Alice and Jason interrupted the two who froze.

"Shit," Alina said as she realized that Jason had come home before Ken could leave.

[1] The direction they're facing is symbolic of their emotions. Alina is facing westward and towards the setting sun, signifying her path towards light while Ken faces the east where it is dark, symbolizing his inner turmoil with his dark desire to exact vengeance on his parents' killer. At the same time, the setting sun also signifies the coming darkness for Alina, be it whether what is awaiting her, or what she will become.

[2] Smith is also the drug dealer that’s supplying Emily with drugs.