:P

It's been awhile hasn't it?

Q: Where have you been, you lazy bum?

A: Heh. Hehheh. Yeah sorry about that. It was a weird combination of writers pause,(not to be confused with its cousin writers block!) starting a new job, working on other projects and trying to make a few fandubs for anime OP's and ED's.

A: SOON. DON'T WORRY BOUT IT. :D I've got a lot of material left.

Chapter 3: The Last Member

Galeforce POV go!

Dodging bullets with my old Mafia buddies? There was gunpowder in the air at the last reunion five years ago, but it wasn’t that bad. Take the Russian deal as an example: it took a few months before my liver grew back and my third rib never really recovered. As for the last time I dodged bullets with my personal maid was… seventeen years ago? That silly woman, putting herself in front of me… she was just delaying the inevitable.She took a bullet to the hip and went into early retirement. But I suppose it was coming to her, she’d always butted in unnecessarily. It was inevitable. You can’t escape the past, right? Neither can I. It was always there, maybe it was a deal gone south, an old rival, an old flame… I’d accepted the consequences for all my actions. But this… was beyond me. All of the regrets and enemies of a short life and the weight of a daring new future? Well, its not like expected to live to a ripe old age anyways...

One of the basics for winning a firefight is maintaining cover. There was no cover. I clambered over a dumpster and vaulted over a wall. A bullet tagged me on my left shoulder. I staggered, as I vanished behind the wall, landing hard but with enough grace to keep my feet. I took pride knowing none of my buddies could still run like me anymore. Screeching tires, a flash of white: bursts of muzzle flash lit my attackers ski masks from inside this van. I ducked into an alley. A hot flash zinged past my head, the pain subsided quickly, but I could still feel the bloody wet heat pouring down the side of my face. The sound of tires grew louder in the tight alley I ran in. I turned my head. The bastards had a clear shot but the same was true for me. I dived to the side, banging my right elbow against the wall. Skin ripped off of my knee like a potato peel. They missed. I fired four shots at the driver side window, then quickly switched to the tires realizing the glass was bulletproof. The filth left my sights, probably circling around back.

“You bastards!” I yelled. “Can’t you shoot straight? If my buddies knew I’d been fired on by such incompetents, I’d be the laughingstock of the entire Sicilian Mafia!”

“Signore Bosco! Please don’t agitate them further!”my maid cried out to me in her sweet silky voice.”

“Abbey!” I said, cocking my head back toward the exit. “Where are you?”

I squinted at the end of the alley. I could see an angelic pair of hands peeking into the alley, urging me on. I think I must’ve burst a lung sprinting to her.

“Abbey! My darling! You’re alright!” I panted, grabbing both her shoulders. She pulled me up, looking me over with her stern gorgeous eyes.

“Signore! You’re hurt!”

“Flesh wounds.” I said, grabbing her hand and running. “Come with me!”

Interpol sirens filled the hot, hazy air, ringing off of the cobbled stone and tight streets. We ran a few yards apart, to keep down the possibility of a single burst hitting us both. I reloaded my custom Browning Hi-Power. A smattering of bullets pinged against the green Fiat 500 next to me. Both of the white vans from earlier had found us. We dived behind the Fiat, and propping our guns against the ground.

“Go for the tires, Darling!” I cried. “They’re using bulletproof glass!”

We emptied our clips into the front tires of the lead van. A parked car lost its side mirrors as the first van dovetailed, blocking off their comrades.

“Signore! Let’s go!”

“Of course, Darling!”

The sirens were even louder now. Interpol had arrived and we disappeared in the chaos. The old streets of Florence rung with our footsteps. Abbey pulled me aside into one of the darker and twisting streets, and started looking around. The precious minx dragged me up a fire-escape and onto a roof.

“Signore, are you alright?”

“Those damnable bullet sprayers!” I spat.

“They still manage to hit you twice.” she said.

“But, Dearest Abbey,” I said to her “Youmust understand what an insult it is to be hunted down by such garbage!”

“But Signore-”

“These yellow faced Oriental scourges couldn’t hit a sumo wrestler’s ass crack with a sawed-off! They couldn’t possibly hit me with such pitifully shriveled squinting eyes hidden by sunglasses!” I thundered.

“They still hit you though.”

“Hmph! Even a child could hit me better if they had the same firepower.”

“But sir, these aren’t your ordinary thugs! They were speaking Korean with the Kaesong dialect!” her voice blew into my ears like a golden breeze. “Their coordination is also first-class, they’re probably under orders directly from Pyongyang. They’re either with the SSD or directly sent by Kim Jong Un!”

“Nonsense, such lamentable-”

“Shh!!”

I frowned at the finger over her lips before sneaking a glance down below. A few of the hitmen had come this way.

“Shit! Those Zephyr brats really know how to make enemies!”

“What are you talking about Signor Bosco? You were the one who got their gear inside of North Korea on the pretense of trading uranium!”

“They can’t still be mad about that ! No, it must because I recently-” I slapped my hand over my mouth. “Oops...”

“Signore Bosco...”

I flinched. My lovely maid had the face of a demon. For a second, I even thought I saw a strange purplish light about her before blinking it away.

“Y-Yes, my Darling?” I asked meekly.

“When we’re safe, you’re going to tell me exactly what you did.”

“Yes, my Darling.”

The incompetents drew near us a few times, but nothing worth worrying about. There’s no way they’d be able to see so far through those asinine little squints they call eyes. More importantly, Abbey refused to let me hold her hand! Sometimes that woman is just too competent for her own good! I should never have hired an ex-spy… I’m sure I could’ve found a better…

Abbey’s face was tight as she opened up her purse to remove medical pliers or whatever they called them. Hands moving gently across my face before reaching back into her bag, her chiding eyes met mine. “Face your arm this way, Signor.”

She removed the shell from my shoulder with no anesthesia. I pressed my lips together, not willing to alert my pursuers. She continued to disinfect my bullet-mangled earlobe and shoulder, grimacing and muttering with every dab of her handkerchief. Her face had begun to pick up the lines of age, I could see where she’d furrowed her brow too many times. Ah... She was blushing after catching me staring! What a lovely woman! She turned away from me, her arms fully crossed. Even this worrying was also nice in its own way. I haven’t been together with her properly for a few weeks now, because of all of the silly hoops these Zephyr 8 kids have been running me through. Honestly, relying on me for everything… turning eighteen or running a revolution doesn’t make somebody any less of a kid. Forget them. I needed to enjoy this precious moment.

The mountains rolled gently on the horizon. Winds were sweet tonight, almost as if they’d already forgotten the scent of gunpowder. Abbey sat with her knees pointed into her chin. I put my hand around her shoulder but she smacked it away without looking at me. Silence was taut over our mouths and bodies. Above, the sun pinkened, long shadows creeping over the ancient pavements. I tapped my Darling’s arm with the back of my knuckles.

“Darling, I think we are safe.”

She didn’t look at me.

“Darling?”

It was a full minute before she turned to give me a hard, cold stare.

“Did you do something insurmountably stupid and dangerous recently?” The purplish light around her seemed to surge again.

“Well- dear you see-”

“ Did you?!?!?” she hissed.

“Yes…”

“Why would you interrupt our life together with such a thing?” She seized my collar. “Why would you be so stupid? Why would you get yourself so hurt? Why are you still running around like a monkey with a gun? You stupid old man!! Why would- Why would-”

I hugged her tightly. Her tears fell on my the back of my neck, her nails digging into my weather-beaten back.

“Why are youalways doing these things?” she demanded softly, exasperatedly, tiredly.

In these last five years I’d dodged bullets five times, all within the space of three months. It wasn’t a very nice way to come out of an early retirement, but there were worse things that could happen.

She pushed me away.

“I’m sorry, Abbey.” I said. “I can’t stop, not yet.”

“Who is stopping you, Signore Idiot? No amount of reason, force, pain or death could stop Signore Idiot… why would this lowly maid think she could do anything?” she spat.

“Abbey…”

“Good grief. Because Signore Idiot is such a colossal idiot, I’ll have to make sure to protect him from his own stupidity. However, because Signore is...”

My dearest Abbey berated me for another four hours and stopping only because she collapsed in exhaustion. She wobbled a little, slumping down into my arms, trying to put more force into her voice and limbs. But she could only mutter “And that’s why you’ll die as a pathetic old man all alone!” The sun had long set. I ran my hand over my ears, as if to make sure her sharp words hadn’t cut them to pieces, although the bullets did a good job of that. She fell asleep with her head on my shoulder, gently snoring into my chest, while I watched the stars twinkling behind puffy clouds. My neck cricked and I looked back at my own star. My sweet Abbey. I swept her hair to the side of her face, my Abbey, no matter how fastidious and neat, was always a messy sleeper.

“Abbey? Are you asleep?”

She nodded. My chuckles shook a single tear out of my eyes and down my cheeks.

“Good. That’s good. There’s no way I could say this when my dearest lady is so impassioned.”

She continued snoring, but her breathing had changed. Her body started shaking, little by little. I clasped her hand in mine.

“I’ve angered a lot of people, Abbey. More than I’ve ever done before. And they’re Powerful… dear god, they’re powerful. They know who I am and what I’m doing. And they don’t like it. I frighten them. Zephyr 8 frightens them. They’re scared of what I can do to them and they should be afraid.” I squeezed her hand once, brushing the backs of her fingers with mine. “But the truth is... nobody is more scared than me. I didn’t survive forty years with the Mafia with courage… no… it was fear. I should already be dead by now but fear kept me out of the morgues, out of the soil where so many old friends lay. But that kind of fear has a cost, I was already dead, in every possibility and outcome I saw in my mind. And I… I...”

I swallowed, clasping her hand tighter. Her breath was shallow and quick, her fingers white from squeezing me back.

“And that’s all I feel now. Every step: a bullet. Every bump on the street: a knife. Everything I eat: poison. They want me bad. I have more to lose than I ever did and I don’t know if I’m strong enough to protect them all.” I saidsoftly. “Most likely I will be killed threefold: my life, my dreams and everyone around me. It was stupid even daring to dream about something like this. The margin for error is so small and the task so momentous and absurd… it’s almost like it can’t be done. It’s like scaling Mt. Everest with five balls of yarn in scuba gear.”

I laughed aloud heartily but it didn’t feel right, like it only fueled the hot growing lump in my throat.

“But here I am doing it! I’ve been doing it for a year and a half now. I can feel the death around me, but I can’t stop climbing up this crazy mountain! I can see death everywhere but I can see the peak towering above it all. And despite my age, the stacked odds and everyone I hold dear, I can’t resist trying to go a little higher. Even… even though it will probably kill me, no.. I’m already dead. I’m already dead, but I will show them why people fear zombies and the past coming once again. I have no other recourse. I can’t hide or run from these kind of people.So I won’t. I’m going to go one last round with these villains. One more good fight. I’ll let these kids take the wheel after I’m dead or satisfied. But not yet. ”

I wrapped her hand within both of mine, planting a kiss on tips of her fingers poking out.

“I’m so sorry for everything I’ve done. So please stay by my side for this last spurt of mine. You’ll only have to deal with my idiocy for a little while longer.”

Her body was still but tears were pouring out of her tightly shut eyes and she muffled small sobs on my shoulder. I wrapped my arms around her, squeezing hard enough to force the blood from her veins, letting my tears fall like rain.

After a great many shushes and pattings, my eyes, full of sleep, would not hold a second more and Abbey was so warm and soft… a good woman is always so nice. I sighed or was it a yawn? Sorry, Face. It looks like our master plan will be on hold for a little longer.

POV Shift to Face

The morning chill clinging to my leather armor soaked through to my skin, matting my arm hairs down. Actually, what was flattening my arm hairs was Sparky as she clutched me for warmth. Thank god, Lucy wasn’t there.

“What are you supposed to be?” I asked. “A penguin?”

“It’s cold! Plus it’s your fault I’m not in a toasty bed! You need to pay with your warmth!”

“Man… sometimes I wish that- hold on!”

I pulled her down behind a hip-high stone wall. A wave of prickles pierced my blood, shooting down my back, stopped as soon as it started. It was almost like whatever caused the ruckus stuffed its head in the ground and yelled “I’m not here! I’m not here!” Like hell that was true. Something was coming. Something looming out of sight, something sticky with shadows and fresh bones, something no kid would adopt. Definitely not stuffed animal material. I shuddered, meeting Sparky’s eyes through our masks. She rubbed her goosebumps against mine, tapping her feet back and forth back and forth until her foot caught in one of the omnipresent cracks in the street .

“What?” She moaned. “There’s nobody here…”

“Shh! Listen! Can you feel that? Wait...”

“What?”

“Yes, it’s not too far off. Can you feel it? Off in the distance, from where we first spawned...”

Could it be possible? Our arrival might’ve started something. Retaliation? Surely, these people must’ve fought back before! Everything is so battered… did us players spark an old conflict?

“Well, the only thing I feel are these wet, cold-ass medieval rags!”

“It’s like they… Oh damn… I can’t believe they’ve already started up the bullshit already! Come on! Hurry!”

I opened up a conference call and said “Zephyr 8! Change of plans! Pull out as fast as possible! No time to explain! Get back to the inn, right now! We’ve got monsters inbound!”

A stunned chorus of “On my way!” and “Roger!” filled up our comms. I motioned for Sparky to follow me before sprinting off.

“Wait! Face! What the hell? Monsters?”she cried. “And aren’t we going the wrong way?”

“We’re going to go get our allies. They’re vulnerable in their current position and we’ll need their support to survive as the night heats up!”

“Alright! Let’s go get some hobos!”

The hobos needed little convincing to join us. When we’d reached them, they were already on full alert, and seeking cover. The guards caught sight of us but they didn’t chase. Candles and torch slowly set a musky orange glow over the town. Eyes peeked out through curtains, I could hear their frightful hisses, boards nailed over doors and walls, the drawing of swords and knives, bows being strung and the hushed tears the children had mastered. We reached the inn last, with the rest of Zephyr 8 spread out in a thin line. The way their hands drifted toward their weapons, how they hunched towards each other: this is why they needed training. Even River’s soft, amiable eyes glinted coldly behind his mask. Boxman’s hands shook visibly, no matter how hard he gripped his weapon they kept shaking. The others were a mixture of surprise, fear and doubt, but the armed hobos’ presence forced it all down to a tempered, hard menace. Their mettle was admirable, especially considering the numbers, experience and level disadvantage. However, I was still disappointed.

“What the hell is this?” I demanded. “A super sentai pose? This place is about get hit by the equivalent of a minor Apocalypse! Get your overrated, revolutionary butts inside! This fiasco is only something that we can hope to ride out!”

They sidled towards the door, looking back at each other, before putting down their weapons.

“Umm, Face? Are these vagran-” River cleared out out his throat. “Ahem, fine fellows our new Partners?”

“That’s right!” Rakes cried out, stepping forward.“We’re Liberty Vanguard! The wielders of a strength nourished by freedom!”

Me and River kept a straight face but Boxman and Slips were giggling like mad, River and Bones just sounded like they were choking on mice. Oh yes, this crew…. Definitely. Needed. Training.

“Well met, Liberty Vanguard.” I replied, glaring at the rest of my team. “We are Zephyr 8! The gentle breeze which fans burning souls and the wind beneath the wings of revolution!”

“Well met indeed.” Rakes said, eyes flitting sideways. “But these greetings are better inside. Especially in times like these…”

“Right you are.” I said, pushing open the inn door.

The motley of us and the Vanguard rushed past the foyer and a sputtering innkeeper who quickly fled when Rakes said “Beasts in the plains. They’ll be here by tonight.” We braced the doors and window with boards and beds and ourselves with a round of drinks the innkeeper proffered, saying. “I-I- It’s on th-the h-ho-h-house! D- Damn it all! Let’s get us another pint, right!” He hurried off behind the counter in the foyer while grabbing emptied our mugs from an eager, bustling mass of what he could only think of as armed hobos. I took a light sip of the booze. I frowned. Most of Rakes men seemed quite happy with it- some of them a lot more than just happy- but Rakes had the same face I had on after drinking it.

“It’s little rough, isn’t it?” Rakes coughed. “It’s definitely not a young man’s drink. This one’s for for us older folk, people who’ve had the time to get the weight of the world on their shoulders.”

I passed my mug over to him. He shook his head. “I’m no great lover of drinking away my senses.”

“That’s not what threadbare thugs like you oughta say.”

“Hoho, Face!” he said wearily. “It would be good if your blade cut as well as your tongue. In fact, I hope you Zephyr 8 have your guts lined with steel and hearts that ring like the thunder. Yes…” he drained the rest of his pint.“I hope you make it through the night.”

“The same for us.” River agreed, toasting Rakes from a table of rather savvy looking hobos, who matched his toast good naturedly.

“You youngsters have a great deal of potential, plenty more than us old men. But right now, we’re leagues apart. ”Rakes said.“Frankly, you folks won’t last the night if you aren’t even five times tougher than you look!”

Bones’ laughs rang out. She slapped down a quarter pint of the ale before meeting Rakes’ eyes from across the room. “I suppose you’ll know how tough we are by the end of the night!” she cried.

“Indeed we will! But right now, I’m not sure if you lot are competent or crazy!”Rakes laughed, scratching his head.

“We’re both.” I said, “We’re both and far more.”

Rakes smiled, invisible in all but his eyes, an odd mix of sadness and hope. I got off the stool and patted his shoulder. He raised his keg, still facing the counter and his drink. The inn buzzed with second and nearly a third round before Rakes started barking at the men“Celebrate once you’ve survived!”

I’d found the innkeeper comforting a quiet woman and a young boy who hadn’t shaken the sleep out of his eyes.

“When was the last time this happened?” I asked.

“It’s usually only a few beasts that make it over the walls every couple of weeks. But this many?” He scratched his head. “At least fifteen years, I’d reckon!” The ale must’ve steadied his nerves or maybe he just came to terms with being raided by a large, ragged armed group and the imminent threat of monsters. And why did he believe us so easily… questions, questions...

“Why do they do it?” I asked. “Monsters may be dangerous but humans with barricades and walls, even if improperly martialed and armed, are still formidable.”

“We’re still not sure. Some people say, they’re possessed. Others say, they think we’re a threat. Some say it’s just the nature of a beast.”

“And what do you say?

“I don’t know. They’re something else… too sharp for a normal animal. They can figure things for what they are, but they’re still… just animals. Good fighting instinct, they can lay seige and raid and run away, but they’re still just a pack of beasts. Any major city would easily deal with this kind of thing. I suppose the quiet life isn’t always so.”

“No.” I sighed. No not always. But at least, can we look forward to reinforcements?”

“If we’re lucky a few stray mercenaries might come, but more than that… no. ”

Damn. Looks like this situations really is… what did he say? Stray mercenaries? A few? I slapped my hand to my forehead, once, twice- my forehead was red with palm strikes. Laughter burst out of me in thick, bubbling warmth.It seems that I, Face, leader of the-greatest-revolution-the-world-has-partially-seen, forgot about the calvalry: the other players! The strongest from the beta period! Those who, unlike me, chose to hold onto their hard earned experience, skills and items.

The innkeeper kept biting his lip and sipping his ale. Poor fellow, to be reduced to the lowest form of drinking. I patted him on the shoulder.

“Zephyr 8!” I called. “We’re pulling out! The monsters won’t be here tonight! We’ve got some excellent backup on the way. In fact, they’re basically already here and dealing with the monsters as we speak!”

“What? How is this possible?”the innkeeper asked.

“Can we still stay here?” Rakes asked. “It’s awful cold on the streets.”

“Clear off!” the innkeeper scowled. “ You’ve already drunk too much of my ale! And you’ll just scare away my customers dressed like that! Wait! You can stay near the back if you put wash up and get rid of those rags!”

Rakes smiled at the innkeeper. The innkeeper flinched before turning towards the Vanguard and reluctantly knocking on one of the few full barrels of ale left. They cheered

“Alright…” Rakes sighed. “Come on, men! We’re moving camp!

“Zephyr 8!” I said, my finger wavering on the logout button. “Meet back in two hours real time! When we come back, we’re going to be visiting our local library! Dismissed!”

Chapter notes: Felt like I used a little just a little too many italicized words. And maybe my dialogue still needs work. (Arghh!) I always appreciate feedback, whether it's good, bad or ugly: so don't hold back!