Because in a world where false peace proliferates, nameless assassins run amuck in the underworld in order to clean it from filth. They have powers that are both a Gift and a Curse.
They are the elites of Creed.
They are known as 'Equations'
... and...
(Story also submitted as Special chapter for the May Block Party 2017, AmbassadorsPH)
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A Meric Underwood SPECIAL CHAPTER
Meric dragged his tired body out of the black sedan, trying to ignore the ache of the knife wound on his lower leg. The pain was tolerable yesterday, but now that the shock of the fight had completely worn off, he was starting to feel like his muscles were being torn apart.
He was never the type to smile, and his solemn expression had given his Prince Charming face a kind of edge only battle-worn soldiers have. Despite his bearing, his pale blue eyes were like lit flames, full of life and energy, and they seemed to be sparkling in laughter. This inevitably made him look ten years younger.
"Papa is finally coming home today!" He could hear his five year-old daughter, Arkose, gush out in excitement from beyond the garage. It was easy to imagine her blonde curls bouncing against her ruddy cheeks as she jumped all over the sofa. His lovely, bubbly and very smart little angel.
Yes, my senorita. Papa is home.
Meric could not help but smile. Nothing beats spending time with his children.
As if on Instinct, he touched his face and felt the scruffy five o' clock shadow on his lower jaw. Uh-oh, his darling Arkose would throw a nasty fit if he tries to kiss her with a stubble. She had always hated it when he grows a beard. Ah, but he slept like a log on the flight home, and did not even manage to clean himself after arriving.
"Papa!" the little girl cheered as soon as he stepped past the front door. "Yay, yay, yay! Carry me, papa!"
He did as he was told, sneaking in a kiss on her smooth cheeks, to which he received a heavy palm on the nose.
"No, no! No kissey!"
Maybe he had spoilt her rotten, but it's okay. Arkose is his unica hija, the one and only princess of his life. "Where's Trisha and Gneiss?"
"Mama is in the backyard with Baby Tuffy! Nissy is sleeping! Do we wake him up?"
Without waiting for his answer, Arkose dragged her helpless father upstairs. After slamming Gneiss' door open with a 'bang!', she immediately ran towards her sleeping younger brother who was curled in the middle of the bed. "Wakey, wakey! Papa is here! Papa is home!"
Maybe it was because Arkose jumped in too suddenly, maybe it was because his son was half-conscious, but it caused Gneiss to jump out of his bed with a dagger in hand. Meric's blood froze in fright.
Why the hell is my three year-old kid holding a deadly weapon?
"Gneiss, who gave you that?" he asked in a heavy, solemn tone as something close to killing intent shrouded his mind. Kreuz, was it you?
"Papa? Awkose?" The beautiful blonde boy awkwardly blinked back the sleep in his eyes as he lowered the long – for fuck's sake! – not just any blade, but a long, doubled-edged dagger!
Meric crouched low, so that he could study his second child eye-to-eye. Slowly, he repeated his question, "Who gave you this dagger?"
As if not hearing the terror in his voice, the adorable boy blushed as he presented the disturbing weapon to his father. He still had a lisp like every other toddler out there, but the contents of his statement gave Meric an urge to storm back to the Command and rampage. "Papa! Look! Pretty, yes? Master said you will teach me how to fight once you come home. I want to be strong like you. I want to go out of the island when I grow up!"
His breathing grew shallow as he pulled Gneiss closer to him and rolled up his pajama sleeves, showing slender but strong limbs full of bruises.
Meric shuddered. It was his nightmares coming back to life. "Do you know how to use a knife? What about a gun? D-Did they also teach you how to shoot?"
Gneiss scratched his head, answering in hesitation. "Shoot? Uhm, teacher said that when someone gets nosy, just... you know... shoot 'em."
"Shoot 'em?"
Gneiss paled at the visible fury in his father's face, but he was unsure what made his father angry. The boy tried to think of ways to make his Papa happy. "Uhm, yeah. You shoot 'em... politely?"
Meric did not know whether to laugh or cry.
Apparently, his three year-old boy still had no inkling what 'shooting' someone means. However, some busybody had instructed him on wielding guns, which his boy barely understood because of his immaturity.
Basic training. Gneiss had already undergone basic training.
Meric had only been away for five months. How could this happen? Wasn't him being an Equation enough to keep his family safe? Did Trisha permit this?
Swiftly, he sheathed the dagger and placed it in his belt. No way was he letting his son keep this.
He carried Gneiss under his right arm with Arkose on the other, and put them back on top of the bed, warning them not to come down until he says so. Then, he stormed downstairs towards the backyard, where she saw a bespectacled blonde woman playing with a nine-month old baby boy.
He could not contain his anger as he glared at his wife.
The woman who bore him three wonderful children.
A woman he respected and trusted.
A woman he never loved.
"Trisha! How dare you let my son undergo Factor training?" he snarled through gritted teeth. If it was her, something like this would never occur. She would not permit this atrocious thing from happening. "Do you want him to become a killer just like me?"
