Nemesis

VIII - Bad Memories

Nemesis

Chapter VIII — Bad Memories

[YVA — Pink Lemonade]

[24 October 2023]
[Manhattan Compound]
[23:19]

The compound had been rather quiet since the incident with Orla and Miranda, and the rest of the day went on rather uneventfully and the only other bit of excitement these security guards experienced was what they were currently up to — packing up planes and ships with the weaponry that they heavily guarded every day.

"That should do it for the first plane, the next one will be here to pick up the rest of the aerial division's tools." A man said, shaking the hand of one of the security guards and the Ares Tech product manager. The man entered the plane with the weapons and it began its preparation for take-off. As the transportation began to move, it picked up a bit of speed, but it was all halted when the plane burst into flames on the spot.

The guards and manager stared, eyes wide at the phenomenon, but one of them was quick to realize that there was still more to come. "RUN!" A guard shouted, sprinting towards the gate. The explosion from the weapons still seemed to be too powerful to escape.

Every man and woman was engulfed in the storm of flames that was quick to die down. In its wake, there was only one man that remained. Dragunov stood at the center of the decimated area, scorched bodies surrounding him. He gazed at the camera in front of him, right by the first damaged warehouse, and with the fire of a single bullet, the device was forcibly deactivated.

Dragunov then turned to the sky, where he could see another plane. It had turned back, and Dragunov was well aware of the news that it planned to deliver. He dug into one of his many canister pockets to unveil a grenade, but it appeared far more advanced.

Dragunov launched the weapon towards the plane which was a ridiculous distance away, but the grenade had still managed to reach its target. Once it made contact, the plane was engulfed in an explosion and right then, he knew his operations would not be interrupted for the time being. Dragunov turned his attention to the nigh-indestructable warehouses that stood in front of him, holding a larger yield of weaponry that he could not allow to cross the sea.

He unveiled more of these unique grenades and for each warehouse, he planted a hefty amount, sure to leave nothing in their wake when the explosion took place. He seemingly disappeared, moving at inhuman speeds to grow the gap between him and the warehouses. Once he stood at the gate, a tremor shook the ground, the explosion having gone off and consuming everything in the area and even expanding towards the sea, where more supply ships sat in wait and they were also instantly obliterated.

It was not long before Dragunov realized that not even he was safe from the monster of an explosion that he had unleashed on the compound. He had to get much farther. And so, he did and soon, he found himself back in Manhattan, watching his work from afar. Perhaps he had done too good of a job.

Regardless, there was nothing to find that could be traced back to him in that compound, all of it was destroyed. He had done his job quite well, and soon the American army would run out of weapons on the front lines.

[25 October 2023]
[Midtown, Manhattan]
[09:23]

Today was finally the day, the day that many people flipped the page on a painful chapter, the day many said their final goodbyes. It was the funeral of Ashton Burke, and it was quite the spectacle.

Many had heard of the incident in the Manhattan Compound, but for the time being, the news broadcast had directed its focus towards Ashton's funeral. The event had already been moved to the graveyard, where Orla's father was to be placed in his final home. Miranda and Orla sat at the front, witnessing the event with the best seats in the house, but it was far from pleasant. Dain sat beside them, as bothered as them by the scene they were witnessing.