"Things will never be the same again."
Gneiss Underwood never thought that he could have a shot of a normal life.
Growing up in an environment where everything defied sanity, guns and loneliness were his normal companions, if not danger and Death h...
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"Her world was very small and only a few people existed within it. Whether those outside it lived or died, whether the world lived or died, she did not care. She could not afford to."
Number Two
Agent 00 took a shortcut towards the meeting room. It was on the other side of the compound. Fifth floor, third annex. This had been drilled to her ever since her arrival by a certain Asian she's currently having a fight with.
She leaped from the ground to a tree, and then made a long jump for the roof of the eighth annex, the building nearest to her. From there, she dashed.
If a normal person ran the distance without using the roof, it would take him or her roughly twenty to thirty minutes to get from one side to the other. Even using the roof, like Faye did, would only save him or her at most half the time.
She'd be late. Not that she cared.
The size of Creed headquarters was ridiculous, considering that it's a giant slab of white stone sitting in a middle of a shielded, man-made island. The current compound she's crossing was a small part of it, the very center called the Command. There were smaller establishments like supplies and medic, a residential area for the Rare Kinds and their UnGifted families and a number of training fields and hangars dotted around it.
Humongous... and gray.
Creed's headquarter was a city of its own, self-sufficient in terms of electricity, food, and water, that it was basically a country in itself. More than sufficient in terms of technology and defense. It was a floating fortress of metal, and she was thankful that at the very least, a man-made forest exists near the residential area. Without it, she feared that she could not breathe.
Creed... did she forget to mention it was stinking rich? This organization-business-cult-whatever was rumored to be funded by UN and basically every major country in the world. For what? 00 could guess that, of course. For doing their respective nation's dirty work.
"Am I late?" she cooed mischievously at the two restless figures waiting for her upon arriving outside the meeting room.
"Hey," a monotonous voice greeted her as soon as she slid inside the open windows. At the same time, she heard a bubbly "Medussa had arrived! Run for your lives!"
00 checked her watch. Perfect.
"Thought you're not making it," a dark-haired Asian sighed.
The other agent snorted. "Yeah, tell that to someone you believes you, buster. As if the star of the show could miss her grand entrance."
The first who spoke, whose face was as bored as his tone, was Arashi Katsuragi, known only in the organization as Agent 04. With midnight black hair and eyes, he has a constant blank face, responds in less than ten words and the only person she knows who is as white as snow. He was only a few months older than her, but he towered over her it annoyed her.
"How's your trip?" Ignoring the other agent, Arashi brushed her unruly hair away from her face. Despite his Gift, his fingers were cold.
"I didn't trip over my own feet," she smiled mockingly. She had been running, she must've looked like a mess. "But I guess I have a very bad hair day."
"You'll manage."
Despite his cool demeanor, she saw the warmth that seemed to make his eyes liquid as he stared at her. It was to be expected. They didn't see each other for a month. Mentor, protector, friend. He was one of her foundations whenever she felt like her sanity was slipping away. She was happy to see him healthy and unscathed.
But then, she remembered that they just had a fight. Her smile fell.
Someone then swooped in to crush her with a bear hug. Stunned, she almost failed to stop her instinct of throwing him over her shoulder.
"Aren't you lucky to have the two most handsome men in the world to escort you in?"
The other guy codenamed Agent 02, mock-gasped as he placed his arms on Faye's shoulders. He had to lean down because despite Arashi being tall, he was still taller, making her the smallest in the group. She wrinkled her nose in annoyance. Walking between these two could be a very bad idea.
"Shut up and go away," she reprimanded 02 with a fake Russian accent. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't replicate the sexy, husky accent of Ivan Romanovitch Ilyinksy. That never stopped her from trying.
Pushin him away, she then rubbed her temples. She couldn't help but ask, "Hasn't it started yet?"
"We're still outside, aye?" The white-blonde gave her a look that said everything.
Denna was right. 'They' were waiting for her like a predator over a prey. But the worry reflected in Ivan's heterochromic eyes was a definite warning. Being not there thirty minutes before the start, she already made a bad impression to the other Equations.
"Act tough. Be careful," Ivan said in a low voice, his mirth replaced by a serious demeanor he seldom adorned.
"Why?" she asked, although she realized it was a dumb question. Ivan gave her a tight smile, encouraging her like a big brother she never had. Arashi appeared wary as he tentatively touched the number 04 tattooed on his arm. Reflexively, she touched her skin above the collar.
00.
It's like dog tags, reminders that they were properties of Creed.
"You'll see," Arashi answered in his inflectionless voice. He didn't speak it aloud, but she knew exactly what his words implied. The others thought that would try to exert dominance over her. She was nervous, but she wasn't afraid.
Ivan was lean and sharp, like the blade of the sword, lethal and noble at the same time.
Arashi, on the other hand, was as silent as a phantom, a keen protector, and no-nonsense guy. With them by her side, she felt safe.
She forced a smile. There was grief, a numbness, inside her eyes but she did her best to hide it. "Aww, fudge. Isn't this exciting? Come on. Let's meet these guys."
However, one was paying close attention to her and did not miss it.
"Faye—"
The three of them froze. Waiting. Just waiting. Arashi opened his mouth, only to hesitantly close it again. "Faye, you—"
"Don't call me that," the brunette shook her head without looking at her friends. "I am Agent 00, the strongest Equation, and I'm just about to prove them that."
