The Legacies (Sequal to The Unrated)

The Meet-Up: Part One

Hunter sat outside and scrolled through his phone. He didn't have many numbers in there besides work friends and his actual friends. A name he hadn't thought of came into his mind, Amy Martin. "Amy's going to be in The Rating Games too. She should be in on this." Hunter thought. Hunter found his boss's number and called it.

The phone rang for a while, but eventually, someone picked up. "This is Russell."

"Hey, boss. How're things?" Hunter says, trying not to sound anxious. Captain Russell York was not that bad of a man. He cared about protecting the people of Lucian. However, he knew when to get serious.

"Carter. It's been a minute since your last check-in. I see you're in the Obsidian Zone. Why?"

"Shit." Hunter thought. He forgot to tell Russell he was leaving the Platinum Zone. Lucian Guard rules state that any guard going into another's jurisdiction must request it through their superior. "A friend needed me tonight. Plus, it was my day off. Speaking of which, I need to ask you about The Games coming up."

"Oh yeah, you were in their last year. If I remember right, you did extremely well. I already granted your time away. Mandatory is mandatory. Lucky bastard. Don't tell anyone I said that. I'm not going to lie and say I won't miss you. You're a fine guardsman. Come stop by the Guards Tower before you leave. Got something for you."

"Thanks, Russell. It means a lot," Hunter said.

"It's Captain to you." Russell waited a moment. "Sorry for getting all serious, Sergeant Ross just walked by. Anyway, it's late. Get some sleep. That's an order. Later, Hunter."

"See ya, boss. HEY! Wait, I need to ask you something. A woman named Amy Martin. I need her contact info. We were in The Games together. I wanted to get in touch with her."

"You know that's not allowed," Russell says as he types her information into his computer. "Sorry, Hunter, I can't break the rules. Not even for you." Hunter gets a message with Amy's information. "Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir. I should've thought before I asked. As you know, that's a problem of mine. I will reprimand myself," Hunter said, trying to hold back a laugh.

"See that you do, Carter. I have to go. York disconnecting," Russell said, disconnecting the line.

Hunter didn't waste any time dialing Amy's number. "Come on, pick up," Hunter said impatiently.

"Hello? Who's this?" Amy asked.

"Amy! It's Hunter. Don't ask how I got your number. How are you?"

"HUNTER! It's been forever. I'm so happy to hear your voice again. I really needed to hear a friend's voice right now," Amy says, sniffling.

"Are you crying?" Hunter asked.

"I was. How are you not? Didn't you hear the news? They're making us do it again. I thought we were safe. This is bullshit."

"Hey, calm down. We should meet up and talk in person. I can drive to the Gold Zone tonight. I'm not doing much right now. Just hanging out with some friends." Hunter headed back inside Shaun's house. "Mind if I bring a friend with me? He's cool."

"Um, sure. I guess. Does he know about The Games?" Amy asked. Hunter knew what she meant.

"Yeah, he does. He's going to be in it with us. Before you ask, yes, I tried to talk him out of it. He's as stubborn as I am."

Amy chuckled. "Sounds like a riot then. I can't wait to meet him. I'll make some snacks."

"I appreciate it, Amy. Also, hold on to that statement. I bet you five hundred credits that you will change your mind once he opens his mouth. See you soon, okay?"

"Bye, Hunter. Bring drinks! I'm going to need one." Amy disconnects.

"Who's Amy?" Xavier asks, "Another piece of cannon fodder?"

"None of your business. Piss off." Hunter heads back into the living room. "Zach! Come on. We're going somewhere!"

"Pass," Zach yawned. "I'm tired."

"No, you're coming with me. I'll drag you if I have to. We're going to go meet someone. A friend I made in The Games. I don't want to go alone," Hunter said. He wasn't lying. He didn't trust himself to be alone with his mind right now. Zach was the only one who understood when something was wrong with him.

Zach looked at him. He could see something was up. "Fiiinnee." He turned to the others. "Hey, we're heading out. Shaun, don't wait up for us."

"Feck you," Shaun yelled from upstairs.

"Love you too!" Zach laughed.

"Where are you guys going?" Alissa asked.

"A friend needs me, right now. She's in The Gold Zone. We should be back in a couple of hours," Hunter says, grabbing his keys.

"Always playing the hero. Do you ever take a break?" Alissa asked, laughing.

"You know me. Always up to something. That sounds super sketchy. See you, Alissa. Come on, Z." Hunter walks out of the house.

"Later, Hunter, Zach. Be careful," Alissa waved.

"Bye, Alissa. Can you make sure Magnolia doesn't drink Shaun out of house and home? Or do. I don't really care." Zach salutes her and heads to Hunter's car.

Hunter put the directions to Amy's apartment into the GPS. Zach got into the car and turned on the radio. "Mind if we stop at the apartment? I need to change clothes," Zach says, putting in his headphones.

"Why would you turn on the radio?" Hunte rolled his eyes. "Whatever, yeah, we can stop. I need to change too. I'll use the emergency line. We can get there faster."

"Isn't that for emergencies?" Zach asked.

"Yeah, but not many guards use it. It's there for a reason. Might as well. Joey, open the emergency line."

"Of course, Mr. Carter. I have submitted your request." Joey said. "Request has been denied."

"What?! Why?"

"The Guard Emergency Line is only for active emergencies. I apologize, Mr. Carter. The civilian highway is fully functional. It will extend the trip by a significant amount, however. At least by an hour. The total trip estimated time is two hours."

"Come on! Wait! There is an emergency. Resubmit my request. Tell them some new rioters are near The Gold Zone." Hunter knew the consequences of falsifying an emergency, but it was so rarely done that he would probably just get off with some community service if he was lucky.

"Resubmitting your request, Mr. Carter. One moment." Joey said.

"Why haven't we left yet?" Zach asked, taking out his headphones.

"We'll leave in a sec. Just waiting for something."

"Request accepted. You now have access to The Emergency Line. The estimated travel time has been updated to one hour.

"Ha! I told you I'd get it to work. Just exaggerating the truth a bit."

"You lied."

"I'd like to think of it as creative truth-telling. Look, we'll get there faster now. Relax. We go home; we get changed, then we head to Amy's place. Simple."

"Amy? Is she your girlfriend?" Zach gasped. "You said you two were in The Games together! Was she the one you were with in the last round?"

"No, she's not my girlfriend, yes, we were in The Games together, and yes, she was with me in the last round. Could you not scare her off? She's cool."

"Scare her? Me? She doesn't know it yet, but her night is about to get a whole lot better."

"I'm telling Maggie," Hunter chuckled.

Zach's face turned pale. "Hunt, you can't do that to me. I'd rather go to The Wall than face Magnolia's wrath. Lucian, have pity on my soul."

Smiling, Hunter slammed his foot on the gas as they headed back to their apartment.