CHAPTER II

CHAPTER II

A TIME FORGOTTEN

Night was already creeping over the previously clear skies of Vane City. The trees danced to the hushed rhythm of the calm breeze, perfectly portraying the tranquility preserved within the busy metropolis. Eve and Seiren were now peacefully enjoying the luxury of comfort in their sleek black getaway car. The soft leather seats of the brand-new sedan were soft to their worn-out bodies. Their mission was over, for now.

They have been on the road since early afternoon. It was still bright when they had left the scene from the underground tunnel and it was now considerably dark. Seiren had occupied the front passenger seat of the vehicle since Eve refused to let her drive (like any sane person, Eve values her life). Seiren’s arm rested by the window, her hand tucked under her chin supporting her drowsy head. They were chatting just a while ago until she uncharacteristically fell silent. Eve assumed she had probably fallen asleep. Maybe it was boredom or exhaustion that got to her first. Either way, Eve couldn’t blame the girl. Today wasn’t exactly like a walk in the park for her, either.

Right in the middle of our vacation, they send us off to some mission. She could only release an irritated sigh – dedicated to the lucky one in charge of the mission assignments. Well, what’s done is done. There’s no use breeding contempt. The guy was just doing his job, much like what they’re doing now.

The night is still long; she might as well enjoy the peace it has to offer. The full moon shone brightly in the black sky, its pillar of light illuminating the empty road. Eve’s long, flowing tresses blended with the luxury four-door sedan’s polished coating; both were black as the night sky. Her pale skin glowed under the moonlight, the light reflected in her indigo eyes.

She took the time to acknowledge the silence. The only sounds were the engine’s soft humming, the light breathing of the person seated beside her, and the musings of her own thoughts. Her eyes were fixed on the road ahead of her but her mind was wandering elsewhere. Silence gives you the time to think of a lot of things. That’s why she keeps herself busy with work to not give her mind a chance to think… and to remember. But given her current situation, there’s not much she could do to help it.

The smoke had started to clear away. In its place was a mountain of dead bodies. Chunks of flesh were scattered all over the place. What were once arms, feet, legs, hands, torsos, and other organs mutilated beyond recognition were littered everywhere. The walls and floor were dyed in red. The stench was also starting to become overwhelming... Amidst the silence, a faint crying of a young girl rang out, albeit muffled beneath bloody corpses. She was crying for help, barely making out the words as sobs racked her lithe body. Time flew slowly… She couldn’t move, the dead bodies suppressing her wouldn’t budge no matter how hard her arms desperately tried to push away. She lost her voice a few hours ago. She lay there, motionless. Consciousness began slipping in and out of her system now. Blood trickled into her eyes.

‘Oh, even the sky is covered in blood… how beautiful… If I’m just going to die… then at least I could die looking at it like this...’

A trail of tears flowed from Eve’s eyes. She didn’t realize it until the blaring lights of an oncoming car snapped her back to reality. She gasped as she broke out of her trance, still a little shaken up by what she saw. It was that… again. Why? Why can’t I just forget?! She hurriedly switched on the radio in hopes of ridding her mind of the horrible flashback. Eve hoped that the music would be enough of a distraction to prevent the horrific scenes from flooding her mind again. She was back concentrating on her driving.

“Hey, wake up… Wake up, we’re here.”

“Unh…waddizzit?” Seiren mumbled incoherently while swatting away the hand that was shaking her persistently by the shoulders. She refused to open her eyes and merely shifted her position so that her back was facing Eve.

Eve knew that she was already awake. She thought for a moment, and then finally decided to do a little payback. She cleared her voice. “Seiren, are you slacking off on your job again?!” The perfect impersonation of their superior, Miss Elsa Rossi.

It took Seiren a good 5 seconds for her mind to register what she heard.

“W-what?! N-no I’m not, Miss Elsa, ma’am!!” She exclaimed rather loudly as she got up in panic… only to realize that she had been had. Eve was desperately trying to hold in her laughter, in which she failed miserably. She burst into a fit of giggles. Eve was ecstatic over her victory.

Seiren whipped her head back to face the one responsible for her cause of alarm. “Hey, don’t joke like that!” She puffed and folded her arms.

“You should’ve… seen the look… on your face!” Eve managed to speak out in-between giggles. She allowed her laughter to subside before taking in air. Once she’d calmed down she teased her with a small grin. “Now were even.”

Eve exited the car first. It felt good to finally be able to stand after hours of endless driving. Her upper thighs already felt numb from sitting too long. Seiren soon followed out of the vehicle and took in the surroundings. It was already pretty dark. The sky was illuminated by hundreds of twinkling little stars and a bright full moon. But instead of seeing the familiar heavy metal doors and sophisticated hi-tech facilities of the Agency Head Quarters, what she saw was a simple garage door. From the looks of it, it seems that it hasn’t been used for quite some time now. The paint on it was already starting to peel off and the tool shelves hanging on the adjacent wall were already filled with dust. It was Eve’s garage.

Eve and Seiren are considered to be two of the top-notch agents in the whole Agency and therefore spend most of their time living in the Head Quarters, in case an important task pops up and needs to be taken care of, presto. In turn, they seldom have time to stay in their own homes and worry about the housekeeping.

“I thought we were heading back to H.Q.?”

“We are, first thing tomorrow morning. It’s late, and who knows if those guys have set up an ambush for us.” Eve had a point. They just broke in and out of Nerve Corporation’s base, stole their precious Lost Technology, and blew up some of their men to bits – she doubts they’d be taking all of that so easily.

“Besides,” she added, “I didn’t get any sleep at all unlike you.” Seiren held out her finger and was about to propose something when she continued, “And don’t even think about me letting you drive. Do you even have a driver’s license yet?!”

Seiren dejectedly put down her finger. “…No.”

Eve’s house was an average-sized two-story house that was enclosed by a tall metal fence. Hidden surveillance cameras covered every angle, providing sufficient security. They were safe to spend the night here.

Inside, all the light switches were off, indicating no one’s presence. Eve lived all by herself. It was too dark to see anything. Eve started searching the wall for the light switch. She didn’t want to roam around too much in the dark and end up bumping furniture. She flicked it on and the light flickered a few times before filling the room with brightness.

Seiren jumped onto the soft mattress as soon she laid her eyes on it. She dozed off instantly as her head hit the pillows. Eve, however, went looking for those painkillers. Her body was still in pain thanks to Seiren. It seems like her partner dealt more of the damage than those Nerve’s soldiers did.

She only started to feel the weariness kick in when she saw Seiren’s sleeping figure sprawled over the bed. Deprived of her bed, she settled for the sofa. She didn’t have much energy left to kick Seiren out of her own bed. She flopped down on the sofa’s soft cushion and shut her eyes. They finally realized the importance of sleep.

The Lost Technology…Those rotten thugs and their good-for-nothing organization! Why did Nerve have such a thing in the first place? Just what were they trying to do…?

Eve was puzzled – it didn’t make sense. They’ve been on missions like this but this one’s different. They were always well-informed by the Agency on their subjects involved in their missions. However, this time information was classified. I’m a dog of the Agency.True, I have submitted myself to that title ever since I agreed to join. But being made to play fetch in the dark… isn’t such a dandy idea at all.

Exactly as the short hand of the clock struck the zenith, her mind had drowned in the very depths of unconsciousness.