Vampire Story Backup

The long shadows of the evening dissolved into the gathering darkness of the nighttime. The air cooled and the crickets sang while the Howland Family prayed and played together in their home.

From the outside this house looks nice and traditional. It has been built with tan stones and has fir wooden decorations. Tall, squared windows add to the overall look of the house and have been added to the house in a very asymmetric way. The house is equipped with a small kitchen and three bathrooms, it also has a warm living room, four bedrooms, a cozy dining room, a game room and a roomy basement. The building is fairly rounded in shape.

The house is surrounded by a tranquil garden, with various flowers, a long pond including a small waterfall and various rock formations. This was the beautiful house of the Howland Family: Anderson Howland, Maddox Howland, Daphne Howland, Aubrey Daisy Arleen Howland and Cullen Conway Raleigh Jonah Howland.

"But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. AMEN!" Cullen declared and took a bow.

"Amen!" His children echoed with big smiles on their faces as they applauded their father's recital.

"Wonderful job honey." Aubrey clapped.

"What can I say? I have wonderful motivators." Cullen walked over and kissed his wife and hugged his children one by one before taking his seat on the sofa. "Alright, it's getting late, so that will be all for tonight. But I'll tell you what, everyone gets their choice of bedtime story. Choose wisely my children."

The children walked behind the couch and they whispered to one another for a couple of minutes before they walked back around and sat down.

"Snowdrop!" Daphne declared!

"Wild Things!" The brothers declared at the same time.

Their parents had a good laugh over this. "Alright, alright, what do you say honey? I'll read the boys their story and you can read Daphne her Snowdrop story?"

"Splendid, dear! Now children, you run along now and get dressed up in your PJ's and get those wittle toofies brushed and we'll be there to tuck you in okay?"

"Yes mom!" The children ran off to the bathrooms, giggling and laughing.

After they brushed their little teeth and got dressed in their pajamas they got settled into bed and their parents walked in and tucked them in. "Comfy?" Cullen asked his children. They nodded vigorously. "Good. Now hold onto your hats." He pulled out his vest."Because it's storytime."

He cleared his throat and walked in front of their beds where he acted out the entire book while reading it to them.

"It was the night Max put on his wolf suit and made mischief of one kind and another." Max reached up and grabbed onto invisible ropes and then he turned around and pretended to hammer a wall and then he began chasing an invisible dog while making comical rawring noises. "Then! His mother called out him: wild thing!" Cullen said the last part in an overthetop comically feminine voice, making his children laugh.

"Daddy you sound like a girl!" Aderson giggled.

"So did some of the greatest Shakespearean actors. You can look this up, men actually dressed up like women for his plays back then."

"No way!"

"Way!" Cullen countered and continued. "And ye did Max yell back at his mother 'I'll eat you up!'....so he was sent to his room without supper."

Cullen walked across the room and sat down on a chair and crossed his arms and pursed his lips like a pouting child.

The brothers burst out laughing.

He waited until they were done to continue.

"That very night, in Max's room, a forest grew and grew and grew until his ceiling hung with vines and the walls became wild all around."

Cullen pretended to wander around a fantastic forest and then he stopped.

"And an ocean tumbled by with a private boat for Max and he sailed off through night and day and in and out of weeks and almost over a year to where the wild things are! And when he came to the place where the wild things are, they roared their terrible roars and gnashed their terrible teeth and rolled their terrible eyes and showed their terrible claws till Max said “BE STILL!” Cullen declared and held up his hand out in front of him.

"Max tamed them with the magic trick of staring into all their yellow eyes without blinking once and they were frightened and called him the most wild thing of all and made him king of all wild things!"

Cullen declared and put a pillow on his head and tied a sheet on the floor around his neck like a cape to the laughter of his children.

Maddox laughed so hard he fell out of his bed but his father was already there and caught him before he could hit the floor.

He lifted up his son and spun him around and set him down on the bed and tucked him back into bed and kissed his son on the forehead and then he sat down with his children again. “And now,” cried Max, “let the wild rumpus start!”

Cullen jumped up, walked to the middle of the room, tapped one foot to the side, closed his feet back together, stepped backwards, took three steps, repeated the cycle and punctuated every few step cycles with a figure. He danced for awhile before twirling and holding up his hand.

"'Now stop!' Max said and sent the wild things off to bed without their supper. And Max the king of all wild things was lonely and wanted to be where someone loved him best of all. Then all around from far away across the world he smelled good things to eat, so he gave up being king of where the wild things are. But the wild things cried, “Oh please don’t go, we’ll eat you up, we love you so!” Cullen said in a cheesy monster voice.

"And Max said, 'No!' The wild things roared their terrible roars and gnashed their terrible teeth and rolled their terrible eyes and showed their terrible claws but Max stepped into his private boat and waved goodbye and sailed back over a year and in and out of weeks and through a day and into the night of his very own room where he found his supper waiting for him and it was still hot." He closed the book and took a bow as his children applauded and cheered for their father.

"Alright boys, bed time. Goodnight, sleep tight, sweet dreams."

"Sweet dreams dad. Love you."

"Love you both." He turned off the lights and walked out.

Aubrey sat down with her daughter and hummed as she tucked her in and Daphne got comfortable as her mother held up the book and they read it to together.

"It was winter-time; the air was cold, the wind was sharp, but within the closed doors it was warm and comfortable, and within the closed door lay the flower; it lay in the bulb under the snow-covered earth. One day rain fell. The drops penetrated through the snowy covering down into the earth, and touched the flower-bulb, and talked of the bright world above. Soon the Sunbeam pierced its way through the snow to the root, and within the root there was a stirring.

“Come in,” said the flower.

“I cannot,” said the Sunbeam. “I am not strong enough to unlock the door! When the summer comes I shall be strong!”

“When will it be summer?” asked the Flower, and she repeated this question each time a new sunbeam made its way down to her. But the summer was yet far distant. The snow still lay upon the ground, and there was a coat of ice on the water every night.

“What a long time it takes! what a long time it takes!” said the Flower.

“I feel a stirring and striving within me; I must stretch myself, I must unlock the door, I must get out, and must nod a good morning to the summer, and what a happy time that will be!” And the Flower stirred and stretched itself within the thin rind which the water had softened from without, and the snow and the earth had warmed, and the Sunbeam had knocked at; and it shot forth under the snow with a greenish-white blossom on a green stalk, with narrow thick leaves, which seemed to want to protect it.

The snow was cold, but was pierced by the Sunbeam, therefore it was easy to get through it, and now the Sunbeam came with greater strength than before.

“Welcome, welcome!” sang and sounded every ray, and the Flower lifted itself up over the snow into the brighter world. The Sunbeams caressed and kissed it, so that it opened altogether, white as snow, and ornamented with green stripes. It bent its head in joy and humility.

“Beautiful Flower!” said the Sunbeams, “how graceful and delicate you are! You are the first, you are the only one! You are our love! You are the bell that rings out for summer, beautiful summer, over country and town. All the snow will melt; the cold winds will be driven away; we shall rule; all will become green, and then you will have companions, syringas, laburnums, and roses; but you are the first, so graceful, so delicate!”

That was a great pleasure. It seemed as if the air were singing and sounding, as if rays of light were piercing through the leaves and the stalks of the Flower. There it stood, so delicate and so easily broken, and yet so strong in its young beauty; it stood there in its white dress with the green stripes, and made a summer.

But there was a long time yet to the summer-time. Clouds hid the sun, and bleak winds were blowing. “You have come too early,” said Wind and Weather.

“We have still the power, and you shall feel it, and give it up to us. You should have stayed quietly at home and not have run out to make a display of yourself. Your time is not come yet!” It was a cutting cold! The days which now come brought not a single sunbeam. It was weather that might break such a little Flower in two with cold.

But the Flower had more strength than she herself knew of.

She was strong in joy and in faith in the summer, which would be sure to come, which had been announced by her deep longing and confirmed by the warm sunlight; and so she remained standing in confidence in the snow in her white garment, bending her head even while the snow-flakes fell thick and heavy, and the icy winds swept over her.

“You’ll break!” they said, “and fade, and fade! What did you want out here? Why did you let yourself be tempted? The Sunbeam only made game of you. Now you have what you deserve, you summer gauk.”

“Summer gauk!” she repeated in the cold morning hour. “O summer gauk!” cried some children rejoicingly; “yonder stands one—how beautiful, how beautiful! The first one, the only one!” These words did the Flower so much good, they seemed to her like warm sunbeams.

In her joy the Flower did not even feel when it was broken off. It lay in a child’s hand, and was kissed by a child’s mouth, and carried into a warm room, and looked on by gentle eyes, and put into water. How strengthening, how invigorating! The Flower thought she had suddenly come upon the summer.

The daughter of the house, a beautiful little girl, was confirmed, and she had a friend who was confirmed, too. He was studying for an examination for an appointment. “He shall be my summer gauk,” she said; and she took the delicate Flower and laid it in a piece of scented paper, on which verses were written, beginning with summer gauk and ending with summer gauk. “My friend, be a winter gauk.” She had twitted him with the summer.

Yes, all this was in the verses, and the paper was folded up like a letter, and the Flower was folded in the letter, too.

It was dark around her, dark as in those days when she lay hidden in the bulb. The Flower went forth on her journey, and lay in the post-bag, and was pressed and crushed, which was not at all pleasant; but that soon came to an end.

The journey was over; the letter was opened, and read by the dear friend. How pleased he was!

He kissed the letter, and it was laid, with its enclosure of verses, in a box, in which there were many beautiful verses, but all of them without flowers; she was the first, the only one, as the Sunbeams had called her; and it was a pleasant thing to think of that.

She had time enough, moreover, to think about it; she thought of it while the summer passed away, and the long winter went by, and the summer came again, before she appeared once more. But now the young man was not pleased at all.

He took hold of the letter very roughly, and threw the verses away, so that the Flower fell on the ground.

Flat and faded she certainly was, but why should she be thrown on the ground? Still, it was better to be here than in the fire, where the verses and the paper were being burnt to ashes. What had happened? What happens so often:—the Flower had made a gauk of him, that was a jest; the girl had made a fool of him, that was no jest, she had, during the summer, chosen another friend.

Next morning the sun shone in upon the little flattened Snowdrop, that looked as if it had been painted upon the floor.

The servant girl, who was sweeping out the room, picked it up, and laid it in one of the books which were upon the table, in the belief that it must have fallen out while the room was being arranged. Again the flower lay among verses—printed verses—and they are better than written ones—at least, more money has been spent upon them. And after this years went by. The book stood upon the book-shelf, and then it was taken up and somebody read out of it.

It was a good book; verses and songs by the old Danish poet, Ambrosius Stub, which are well worth reading. The man who was now reading the book turned over a page. “Why, there’s a flower!” he said; “a snowdrop, a summer gauk, a poet gauk! That flower must have been put in there with a meaning! Poor Ambrosius Stub!

He was a summer fool too, a poet fool; he came too early, before his time, and therefore he had to taste the sharp winds, and wander about as a guest from one noble landed proprietor to another, like a flower in a glass of water, a flower in rhymed verses! Summer fool, winter fool, fun and folly—but the first, the only, the fresh young Danish poet of those days.

Yes, thou shalt remain as a token in the book, thou little snowdrop: thou hast been put there with a meaning.” And so the Snowdrop was put back into the book, and felt equally honored and pleased to know that it was a token in the glorious book of songs, and that he who was the first to sing and to write had been also a snowdrop, had been a summer gauk, and had been looked upon in the winter-time as a fool. The Flower understood this, in her way, as we interpret everything in our way. That is the story of the Snowdrop."

"That was amazing mommy!"

"I love you honey." She kissed her little girls' forehead and hugged her goodnight.

"Love you mommy!" She smiled at Daphne and turned off the lights.

Time passed and the house quieted down as everybody went to bed.

An hour later, Daphne was awoken by the sound of tapping on her tapping on her window. The nightlight in her room just barely illuminated a small figure standing outside of it. The figure tapped the window again and waved to her. "H-h-hello? C-c-can you....help...m-m-me?" A crying voice asked softly. "P-please...please help...I'm all alone...help me please."

Daphne rolled over in her bed and she fumbled around until she found her nightlight and she switched it on. It took Daphne a few seconds for her eyes to adjust and once they did she turned around to look at the trembling, crying girl who had her hands pressed against the window.

She wasn't much older than Daphne herself with flowing blonde hair covering one of her sobbing eyes, a red bow in her hair, shining blue eyes and a bright pink shirt.

Her lips quivered as she looked behind her as if she was searching for whatever could be coming after her. "P-please...let me in please...help me. I'm so scared. Help me please." She pleaded.

She was crying hysterically now. It was the sobbing of a child who had no one to save her from the bogeyman chasing her.

She sank to her knees and looked up at Daphne pleadingly. "Please....c-can't....can I please come inside?"

Daphne inched ever closer to the windows and looked out at the sobbing girl who was pressing trembling hands against the glass.

"Please...help me." She pleaded.

"I-I s-should go ask my mommy and daddy."

"No please!" The girl insisted. "Please let me in. Don't leave me alone. I'm so scared. You have to help me please."

Daphne placed her hand on the window. "H-how...how can I help? I'm just Daphne."

"Please let me in." She looked back behind her once again and then back at Daphne. "Please. There's no time. You have to save me. Please let me in."

"Ummm o-okay I'lll ummm...okay, I have an idea. Just wait one second."

She grabbed the pillows off of her bed and she piled them up in front of the window tog give herself some extra height and she climbed up on top of the windowsill and she fiddled around with the locks until she could finally unlock it and she pulled and pulled and pulled until it finally opened up nd the cool night air belew into her bedroom and chilled her to her bones.

"There now." She held out her shivering hand. "Alright, hurry, hurry, come inside."

The girl finally smiled. "You mean it? I can really come inside?"

"Yes. Yes you can." Daphne smiled. Her parents would be so proud of her.

The girl's smile widened until it almost split open her face as she grabbed Daphne and pulled her right out the window and then she reached up with her left hand and covered her mouth. Her hand was blisteringly cold. So impossibly cold that her touch alone was sending chills down Daphne's spine. Daphne tried to scream and struggle but the fingers of the girl became elongated as her jaw was gripped tightly. Daphne kicked and struggled and squirmed but the hand was so cold! The biting cold of her fingers chilled her fingers into undexterous paralysis.

Then the girl became taller and taller and Daphne heard the horrific symphony of the popping and snapping of joints and ligaments as the little girl changed. Her pink shirt became a long, flowing black dress, her ribbon disappeared as her hair became midnight black, her skin white as snow and her shining blue eyes became blazing red, surrounded by an outline and sharper and more narrow in shape as her forehead and eye ridges became larger, revealing a more prominent brow ridge. The horrific transformation completed, she lifted Daphne up into the air and looked her in the eyes. "Thank you. For letting me in." She whispered in a child's voice. In Daphne's voice!

Her bloodthirsty, malicious smile spread wider and wider and her teeth became razor sharp as both her upper and lower jaws moved and she dragged Daphne close, tilted her head to the right and bit into her neck. Her fangs pierced her flesh without effort and dug straight in. Daphne tried to scream but her body went rigid. A searing pain flared from her throat, consuming her in agony and made her mind go blank. Her vision blurred as tears lined her eyes as she felt the blood being sucked out of her body. Her body began to shrivel up as 0.7 gallons of blood were drained out of her and soon Daphne knew no more.

The woman slithered into the bedroom through the window and Daphne's lifeless body was tucked into the bed.

She turned off the light next and faced the cross on the door. Smirking, she kicked a pillow over to the door and then reached out with her right hand and focused on the cross. The cross shook and trembled and bubbled and soon it was ripped right off of the door and silently fell onto a pillow. She then moved it out of the way and the door was opened and closed just as silently. She walked with catlike tread, so silent nobody in the house even knew she was there. She moved through the shadows as she approached the parents bedroom.

Aubrey Howland stretched out in her luxury silk nightgown on the bed as she read a book with a light attached on top of it. Her form-fitting nightgown was a pristine white. It pooled around her like liquid silk. The silk caressed her skin like a cool autumn breeze. She fell into the bed and pulled the thick, plush comforter to her chin.

She looked up as the door creaked open but there was nobody there. "Honey? Is that you?"

"Come find me mommy." Daphne's voice replied from the hallway.

"Daphne, honey, you need to go to bed."

"Come find me mommy." Her daughter's cheerful voice replied with a giggle.

"Alright, alright. Here I come." She closed the book and approached the hallway . "Mommy's coming to get you." Aubrey leaned into the dark hallway but she didn't see her daughter anywhere. "Daphne?" She whispered.

No response. She stepped into the dark hallway and looked around for her little girl.

"Daphne? Sweetie? Come on out now, it's bed time."

Her nightgown was flipped up as the air chilled around her. She yelped and stumbled backwards, frantically pulling it back down when a hand reached around and covered her mouth while another one twisted her arm behind her back and her head was tilted to the side. She felt a tongue lap at her neck before two fangs pierced her neck. Aubrey spasmed briefly before the paralysis stole the freedom of her body and her lifeblood flowed out of her.

Cullen yawned as he washed his hands in the sink. He really had drank way too much water before bed. Oh well, at least it was good for him. While he was at it he also washed his face and then dried off and then he walked back into his bedroom and lied back down in the bed with his wife and he nuzzled her neck and he listened for her breathing. Except he didn't hear it. He listened and listened but he didn't hear her breath and he didn't feel the rise of her chest or her soft breathing as she slept.

"H-honey? Honey are you okay?" He gently shook her. No response. He tried again to the same effect. "H-honey? Please wake up. Please." He rolled her over and he felt for her pulse...only to discover what felt like holes in the side of her neck. Before he could examine this further Cullen Howland was yanked off of the bed as a frigid hand covered his mouth.

"Hello Holyman." The voice that whispered into his ear was soft, soothing and yet at the same time dripping with malice. "Guess what your daughter let in?" He didn't have time to answer before two sharp fangs pierced his throat and drained away his blood.

The door to Anderson and Maddox's room creaked open and the cross upon the door fell off and clattered on the carpet. Maddox groaned as he opened his eyes and looked out into the hallway. Thanks to the nightlight their parents had set up, Maddox could just barely make out a figure standing in the dark hallway, barely illuminated by the room's nightlight. "D-dad? Daddy?" He asked.
No response.
"Daddy? Mommy? Is that you?"
"Hello little one."

"Mmmmnngggh....Mad? What are you talking about?" Anderson asked and yawned as he sat up, having been awoken by his brothers' commotion.

He looked around for his brother but he didn't see him anywhere.

Anderson turned around and turned on the lamp by his bed.

It switched on and illuminated the bedroom in light.

Anderson recoiled and rubbed his eyes to get rid of the spots.

Once his vision cleared up he took another look around the room but he still didn't see his brother and the bedroom door was open.

Anderson got out of bed and began walking around the house as quietly as a mouse while whispering for his brother.

"Maddox? Maddox? Where are you? This isn't funny." He felt around in the dark as he headed to the bathroom.

Anderson fumbled with the doorknob until he got it open and he peered inside but all of the lights were out. He backed out of the bathroom and turned around just in time to see his bedroom light turn off, plunging the house into darkness.

"Maddox? I-is that you?" He ran as fast as his little legs could carry him towards their bedroom, holding his arms in front of him, lest he run into a wall.

He still bumped into one though and he felt his way along it back into their bedroom.

"Maddox? Maddox?" He asked in a louder voice, feeling scared now. There was a sudden thumping noise in front of Anderson as his brothers' corpse was dropped down on the bed in front of him. Anderson fell over and crawled backwards. "M-m-maddox? I-I-Is th-that you?" He pleaded.

"Hey little brother. What are you doing up? Come here. It's time for bed." Anderson smiled as he heard his brother's reassuring voice and he stood up and ran over to the bed to hug his big brother. Anderson climbed up onto the bed and hugged his brother. "Where'd you go? You scared me."

Silence.

"M-maddox? Maddox, cut it out." He grabbed his brother's arms and tried to shake him but his skin felt...different, colder looser. He let him go and grabbed his brother's face and he felt the coldess of his skin. He was about to talk to him some more and he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder. "M-mommy? Mommy is that you?"

"Sssshhhh it's okay young one." A sugary sweet voice spoke to him. Anderson froze. That wasn't his mother's voice.

"Mommy's dead. And so is daddy. And so is your sister. And so is Maddox." She reached out and Anderson started to scream but her hand suddenly covered his mouth and he felt a piercing sensation in his throat.

She gathered the bodies together in the living room and propped them up on the couch, posing the parents with their arms around one another and then their other arms around the shoulders of their children's bodies. Finally, the little girl was lain across her mother's lap.

This accomplished, she took her time hunting around the house for something to wrap them up in. Eventually she discovered the family had sleeping bags squirreled away in the parents closet. They would work perfectly. After ensuring she hadn't left any signs of her visit, she started unzipping the sleeping bags and tucking them in one by one. Finally, she returned to the parents bedrooms, shifted through their belongings, found their wallets and took them with her.

The improvised body bags were piled up in the trunk of Cullen's truck and then it was slammed shut. She tossed the keys up and down as she got in and started it up and drove away.

Chapter 1

A Quiet Yet Fantastic Life

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TRINITY UNIVERSITY, WHITEHAWK CITY.
FALL

The air is so cold yet the trees are on fire. Scarlet and gold licks at the blue sky, no rain clouds today. The chill in the post-dawn air is the first hint that winter isn't far behind. Then these trees will stand naked, bereft of their color. But for now they line the avenue and his morning run from and to the University was more vibrant than any carnival parade. Only weeks ago the air was warm and the streets in the wide avenue were deep summer green, the whispering rustle of the leaves only audible once the daytime traffic petered to an almost stop. Now they are tinged with red and gold; not yet deserting their lofty branches in the gusts that pushed against his white and gold jogging suit. He couldn't help but muse on the fact that he went to sleep when it was dark and woke up to jog in the dark, his only light source was the shining lights emitted by his suit. He had it on a lower setting right now but if someone were to try and mug him he could turn it way up, blind them and then kick their teeth in.

Derrick Blackburn didn't develop his insane workout regimen just for fun after all. You had to be ready if one of those self styled Super Criminals attacked after all. Granted, he was certain he could handle someone like Phantom Clown, but if someone like Sonic Shriek, or god forbid The Annihilator showed up, it was run or die. The Diamond Roses barely defeated Annihilator after all, and they were a team of Gamma-Ranked Superheroes, a normal fighting him would be suicide. He pushed it out of his head and resumed jogging.

The city of Whitehawk was built atop the steep facade of a mighty fjord and is truly a leading-edge metropolis. Its elegance is matched by the backdrop of green, fertile fields which have helped shape the city to what it is today.
The resources these fields brought were of great importance, but they were also influential when it came to architectural designs as the vast majority of buildings are slim and tall, which mimics the grasses and openness of the fields around them.

The skyline is packed with giant skyscrapers and they clearly show what they represent to the city itself. Life is great in Stonewick and it has attracted a lot of attention. A few new cultures have left their mark not just on education, but also upon the city's identity. What historically was a city of no variation has grown into a multicultural hub, a large melting pot that unites 9 million people to this day.

It's this multicultural identity that has truly left its mark. Hundreds of diners, take-outs and ethnic restaurants offer a plethora of culinary choices and those who feel hungry for something else can enjoy sightseeing, an amusement park, the national park, theaters, musical activities, adventure sports, photography, musical activities, arcades or one of the many other recreational venues.

Derrick soon finished his 8.07783 Mile run and returned to the grounds of Trinity University, a massive, sprawling, campus covering 23,000 acres of land with the latest of advanced technology.

Derrick pulled back his hood and unzipped his suit to reveal his University uniform underneath and his ID held by a Black Lanyard Key Ring Necklace as the invisible checkpoints around the scanned him. Anyone caught by the scanners not wearing an ID or Visitor Pass would be reported to security.

Fortunately Derrick did so he was fine.

He crossed the campus until he arrived at Male Dormitory A and walked inside.

Fortunately Derrick did so he was fine.

He crossed the campus until he arrived at Male Dormitory A and walked inside.

Derrick entered the doorway between the inside and outside doors and had his ID Scanned. The doors lit up and he could see his reflection in the glass. Derrick is a tall young man with short, dark brown, spiky hair and emerald eyes that gleam interestingly. He has a muscular build. Derrick smiled and ran his fingers though his hair and unzipped his jogging suit fully as he stepped through the sliding doors.

With the upper half of his suit hanging off back, his uniform was more exposed: A long sleeved solid silver shirt is neatly tucked into the darker cyan blue trousers and covered with a darker cyan blue blazer with black trim that lines the cuffs and collar and has gold buttons for decoration. A broad metallic gold tie rests neatly in the middle.

Derrick walked up the short stairs into the main hallway. He took a minute to bathe in the starlight streaming in through the windows before he strolled across the red and gold carpet covered porcelain stoneware floor tiles, taking a moment to wave to the security guards stationed on either side of the hallway, and then walked up the luxurious staircases and slid his hand along the rails. For a moment he thought he saw something dart out of the corner of his eye but he quickly forgot about it.

After traversing 21 floors as quietly as possible Derrick finally arrived and walked around the railing and down the right hallway to the room on the end and swiped his ID to unlock the door and he stepped into his dorm. The dorm was massive, being molded after a five bedroom apartment, with tons of room for each of them. Derrick entered as quietly as possible and locked the door behind him. Derrick finally slipped off the rest of his tracksuit and set it on a chair and then walked to the middle of the dorm, did some breathing exercises and began his next workout: 2-sets of 200 Push-ups, 2-sets of 200 Sit-ups and 2-sets of 200 Squats.

Derrick rested for a minute and then stood up, grabbed his tracksuit and walked to his bedroom, walked in, tossed his tracksuit onto a chair and then took his uniform off, revealing his chiseled, musclebound physique he's spent years sculpting...

Derrick smiled and stretched and then he folded his uniform, placed it in the basket and crawled into bed for a nap before classes.

Derrick always found it easiest to compare the sensation of drifting off to sleep as being caught in a carousel of thoughts. Every idea, notion and event from the day would replay in your mind, demanding analysis before you would be allowed to sleep. Then, when the carousel finally came to a stop, your mind was able to meander freely in the random thoughts that is the precursor of sleep, as you would often realize that you're close to drifting off and then the anxiety would start the carousel up all over again. Innnn Derrick's case he tossed and turned as he ruminated on his classes at the university, his dormwork, his exams, his workouts, the super-criminal reports, hanging out with his friends and more. This continued until the bedroom fell away and Derrick found himself walking up a staircase...for hours. No matter if he went upstairs or down, he kept coming back to the same spot. A light bulb overhead shown down on him and it was his only source of light. Derrick tried to step forward only for the light to immediately switch off and leave him in the darkness. Derrick quickly figured out that this left him with only two choices: To get back in place or walk to the next floor in the darkness only to find himself in the same spot again. After thousands of attempts at escaping the stairs, he chose to stay in place. He took a few deep breaths trying calm himself while he sat down to make himself comfortable while he waited to wake up.

The light slowly moves from him to a door a few feet to his right. She stepped out and slowly walked over to him. He stepped back and the light went out immediately.

In the darkness of a dream the mind would conjure up magical beasts with jaws that were home to razor teeth. They would move in an unnatural ways maybe a limp or be severely hunched over. Soon the breathing would increase rapidly and become gasps of breath. On awakening, despite the nightmare ending, a ghastly feeling of being watched by invisible eyes prolongs an uneasy feeling.

Können Sie sich an mich erinnern?

Liebst Du Mich?

Derricks' eyes opened and he sat up as his alarm went off and sunlight shined in through the windows.

He could feel the sweat drench his skin, the throbbing of his eyes, the ringing screams vibrating in his ears, and the thumping of his heart against his chest. His fingers were curled into a fist, nails digging into his palm. He couldn't hear his rapid breathing, but he could feel the oxygen flooding in and out of his lungs.

Fear.

Fear is shackles, fear is a knife in the gut slowly twisted, fear is a constant hammer on the head. Yet fear also evaporates like water under the light of the early morning sun. When fear comes walk with confidence right past, because like the ghosts of children's nightmares, fear is an illusion.

Derrick sat down on the bed and performed breathing exercises as he calmed himself. Once he'd calmed down, Derrick got undressed and stepped into the bathroom to wash up with its gleaming granite counter tops, gold framed mirrors, jacuzzi tub, walk in shower room with multiple shower heads, fluffy towels neatly arranged, tile floor with under-floor heating, fluffy bath mat and a wicker laundry basket.

The University showers have panels with more than a hundred options you can choose regulating water temperature, pressure, soaps, shampoos, scents, oils, foot massagers, full body jets, LED lights, radios, ventilation fans, speakers, a cleaning function and massaging sponges. When you step out on a mat, heaters come on that blow dry your body. Instead of struggling with knots in wet hair, you merely place your hand on a box that sends a current through your scalp, untangling, parting, and drying your hair almost instantly. The shower turns on at the press of a button, the perfect pressure and temperature. Derrick set the pressure, soaps, scents, oil and massaging oils to his usual setting and let it wash away his nightmares with a big smile on his face.

Finished cleaning up, he turned it off and walked out and grabbed a towel.

He'd just finished dressing when there was a knock on his door.

"'Comin!" Derrick walked over to the door to unlock it only to discover it was already unlocked. "That's...weird. Could've sworn I locked up." He shrugged and opened the door to be greeted by Hubert Hunt. This contemplative gentleman has hooded brown eyes that are like two drops of chocolate. His luxurious coffee-colored hair is worn in a mushroom cut weave. He is very tall and a wide-chested build. His skin is cream-colored. He has an elegant nose. His mannerisms give you an impression of a thoughtful scholar

"Mornin' Bro!"
"Hey man, just checking in on you. We didn't hear you come in last night."

"I affectionately refer it to as "Stealth Mode"."
Riiight, stealth mode."

Derrick chuckled and stepped out. "Hey do you know if anyone else came in?"

"Not that I'm aware."

"Hm." Derrick walked across the dorm and double checked the door. Sure enough it was still locked.

"Is everything okay, Derrick?"

"I'm fine. I'm fine." Derrick assure him. "Just a weird dream."

"Yeah, well, that's what all night horrorthon will get you." Clyde Crawford joked. This man gives you the impression of a clever fox. His eyes are like two blue sapphires. He has long blonde hair worn in a spiked mullet with a ponytail. He is very tall and has an athletic build.

"Noooo that's this weekend." Derrick smiled. "Nocturnal Nightmare 666 is a masterpiece and I'm going to prove it to you."

"Challenge accepted."

"Is Diego awake yet?"

"Still doing his pullups. He'll be up in a sec."

"Diiiid someone call for God?" Diego Davidson asked while stepping out of his room.

"Present!" Derrick called back.

Diego Davidson. This man puts you in mind of a regal ruler. He has round blue eyes. His fine, silky, shoulder-length, golden orange hair is worn in a style that reminds you of a puffy dandelion. He is very tall and has a powerful build. His skin is tanned. He has thick eyebrows.

The two friends slapped their palms together with enough of a boom that it echoed around the room as they grasped one anothers palms and squeezed. After a few seconds of struggle Derrick slowly forced his hand down with a smile on his face.

"You guys gonna need the room tonight?" Clyde asked.
"As attractive as Derrick is, my heart belongs to Cairistìne. Sorry man." Diego laughed as they let go.
"No problem Diego. Are you two still going steady?"
"Yeah. She's keeping busy up at Millennium University's Department of Applied Multimedia Networking Mainframe Application Development Division. once she graduates she's planning to put in a few more years and then land a cushy job at KhrysosCorp."
"Good idea." Hubert complimented. "Are you going to be working there with her?"
"Nah, I'm studying Cytology. I'm aiming for working at Gabrielle Enterprises once I get some experience in."
"Oh you guys are going to be rich."
"Right?! I think working there would be the coolest job ever."
"I can imagine." Hubert agreed.

"What about you 'Rick?"

"I...don't know. I'm consideing joining the military for awhile and maybe becoming a police officer or something afterwords. There's a lot of lunatics out there, someone's gotta stand up to them, The Capes won't always be in the area and who are you gonna call?"

"Officer Blackburn: Super Cop. I can see it."

Derrick laughed with his friends. "Come on, let's get some food, I'm starved."

Derrick and his friends grabbed their bags and waked out of the dorm.

"Are we taking the elevator?" Diego joked.

"Do we ever?" Derrick smirked.

The four friends laughed and joked as they descended the staircase.

"Look, all I'm saying is, I don’t like to use the term “triple threat,” because it suggests that I’m limited to only three skills, but the fact is, in addition to pranking and drinking, I’m a rather phenomenal singer." Clyde laughed. "Seriously. Karaoke night this Saturday. We're gonna blow some minds."

"I'm in. The world needs to hear our angelic voices."

"I'll be sure to practice." Hubert said.

"Hey guys! What's up?"

They looked up to see Joshua Angelo, a young man of tall height, with golden colored hair and hazel eyes with a golden cross necklace around his neck. Derrick high-fived him and he started walking with them.

"Singing. We're hitting a karaoke bar this weekend. You in?"

"Sounds like fun. Who's our driver?"

"We'll decide later by way of rocks-paper-scissors."

"I'll take that challenge."

"My man!" Diego fist bumped him.

Even the cafeteria of the University was beyond fancy with large mullioned windows, long embroidered curtains, dark walnut tables, flowers on each table, delicate live piano music, flagstone tile floor, a lounge area with embroidered couches, oval coffee tables with splendidly proportioned cabriole legs, tea served from silver trays in white teapots. Students and faculty alike would come here often for fine dining and relaxation so it wasn't unusual to see people just chilling inside at any point during the day.

One student in particular was enjoying a salad while reviewing her math work. It was a kitchen sink salad. Everything was in it but the kitchen sink. There was lettuce, cucumber, tomato, apple, walnut, toasted seeds, fresh herb leaves, cheese, celery and radish. The salad was tossed in a rich creamy dressing and served with fresh bread. Delicious.

"Okay let's see here: sec(θ)=cos(θ)...

Play with the point on the unit circle to see how cosine and secant change together. Notice how when cosine is small, secant is big, and vice versa. It turns out they always multiply to exactly 1111. We can also see this identity using similar triangles. Slide the dot below the graph to see one triangle transform into the other. Watch carefully to see which segments correspond to each other. csc⁡(θ)=1sin⁡(θ)\csc(\theta)= \dfrac{1}{\sin(\theta)}csc(θ)=sin(θ). Play with the point on the unit circle to see how sine and cosecant change together. Notice how when sine is small, cosecant is big, and vice versa. It turns out they always multiply to exactly 1111. We can also see this identity using similar triangles. Slide the dot below the graph to see one triangle transform into the other. Watch carefully to see which segments correspond to each other. cot⁡(θ)=1tan⁡(θ)\cot(\theta)= \dfrac{1}{\tan(\theta)}cot(θ)=tan(θ). 1cotangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, 1, divided by, tangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, end fraction. Play with the point on the unit circle to see how tangent and cotangent change together. Notice how when tangent is small, cotangent is big, and vice versa. It turns out they always multiply to exactly 1111. We can also see this identity using similar triangles. Slide the dot below the graph to see one triangle transform into the other. Watch carefully to see which segments correspond to each other. tan⁡(θ)=sin⁡(θ)cos⁡(θ)\tan(\theta)= \dfrac{\sin(\theta)}{\cos(\theta)}tan(θ)=cos(θ) sin(θ)tangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, sine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, divided by, cosine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, end fraction. We can see this identity using similar triangles. Slide the dot below the graph to see one triangle transform into the other. Watch carefully to see which segments correspond to each other. cot⁡(θ)=cos⁡(θ)sin⁡(θ)\cot(\theta)= \dfrac{\cos(\theta)}{\sin(\theta)}cot(θ)=sin(θ)cos(θ)cotangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, cosine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, divided by, sine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, end fraction. We can see this identity using similar triangles. Slide the dot below the graph to see one triangle transform into the other. Watch carefully to see which segments correspond to each other. Pythagorean identities: sin⁡2(θ)+cos⁡2(θ)=12\sin^2(\theta) + \cos^2(\theta)=1^2sin2(θ)+cos2(θ)=12sine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, plus, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, equals, 1, start superscript, 2, end superscript. This identity comes from writing down the Pythagorean theorem. tan⁡2(θ)+12=sec⁡2(θ)\tan^2(\theta) +1^2=\sec^2(\theta)tan2(θ)+12=sec2(θ) This identity comes from writing down the Pythagorean theorem for the triangle. cot⁡2(θ)+12=csc⁡2(θ)\cot^2(\theta) + 1^2=\csc^2(\theta)cot2(θ)+12=csc2(θ) This identity comes from writing down the Pythagorean theorem for the triangle. Identities that come from sums, differences, multiples, and fractions of angles. These are all closely related, but let's go over each kind. Angle sum and difference identities.
sin⁡(θ+ϕ)=sin⁡θcos⁡ϕ+cos⁡θsin⁡ϕ\sin(\theta+\phi)=\sin\theta\cos\phi+\cos\theta\sin\phisin(θ+ϕ)=sinθcosϕ+cosθsinϕ sin⁡(θ−ϕ)=sin⁡θcos⁡ϕ−cos⁡θsin⁡ϕ\sin(\theta-\phi)=\sin\theta\cos\phi-\cos\theta\sin\phisin(θ−ϕ)=sinθcosϕ−cosθsinϕ cos⁡(θ+ϕ)=cos⁡θcos⁡ϕ−sin⁡θsin⁡ϕ\cos(\theta+\phi)=\cos\theta\cos\phi-\sin\theta\sin\phicos(θ+ϕ)=cosθcosϕ−sinθsinϕ
cos⁡(θ−ϕ)=cos⁡θcos⁡ϕ+sin⁡θsin⁡ϕ\cos(\theta-\phi)=\cos\theta\cos\phi+\sin\theta\sin\phicos(θ−ϕ)=cosθcosϕ+sinθsinϕ The figure shows a way of proving the angle sum identities. The left and right sides of the rectangle are equal, giving us: sin⁡(θ+ϕ)=sin⁡θcos⁡ϕ+cos⁡θsin⁡ϕ\purple{\sin(\theta+\phi)}=\blue{\sin\theta}\red{\cos\phi}+\blue{\cos\theta}\red{\sin\phi}sin(θ+ϕ)=sinθcosϕ+cosθsinϕ The top and bottom sides are also equal, giving us: cos⁡(θ+ϕ)=cos⁡θcos⁡ϕ−sin⁡θsin⁡ϕ\purple{\cos(\theta+\phi)}=\blue{\cos\theta}\red{\cos\phi}-\blue{\sin\theta}\red{\sin\phi}cos(θ+ϕ)=cosθcosϕ−sinθsinϕ. It's easiest to make sense of this diagram if you start with the right triangle in the middle of the diagram and build outward using the right triangle definitions of the trig functions. A similar diagram could show the angle difference identities. (Technically, this isn't a proof for all possible values of θ\thetaθtheta and ϕ\phiϕ, but the identities do apply for all values.) tan⁡(θ+ϕ)=tan⁡θ+tan⁡ϕ1−tan⁡θtan⁡ϕ\tan(\theta+\phi)=\dfrac{\tan\theta+\tan\phi}{1-\tan\theta\tan\phi}tan(θ+ϕ)=1−tanθtanϕ tanθ+tanϕ tan⁡(θ−ϕ)=tan⁡θ−tan⁡ϕ1+tan⁡θtan⁡ϕ\tan(\theta-\phi)=\dfrac{\tan\theta-\tan\phi}{1+\tan\theta\tan\phi}tan(θ−ϕ)=1+tanθtanϕ tanθ−tanϕ The figure shows a way of proving the angle sum identity for tangent. This one is a little bit tricky to make sense of. It's all about building up to the triangle in the upper-left part of the diagram. When you apply the right triangle definition of tangent to that triangle, you get: tan(θ+ϕ)=oppositeadjacent=tanθ+tanϕ1−tanθtanϕ
It's easiest to make sense of this diagram if you start with the segment at the bottom of the diagram and build upward using the right triangle definitions of the trig functions (SOH CAH TOA). A similar diagram could show the angle difference identity. Technically, this isn't a proof for all possible values of θ\thetaθtheta and ϕ\phiϕ, but the identities do apply for all values. Double angle identities: sin⁡(2θ)=2sin⁡θcos⁡θ\sin(2\theta)=2\sin\theta\cos\thetasin(2θ)=2sinθcosθsine, left parenthesis, 2, theta, right parenthesis, equals, 2, sine, theta, cosine, theta. We can get this identity if we take the angle sum identity for sine, but make both angles the same. sin⁡(θ+ϕ)=sin⁡θcos⁡ϕ+cos⁡θsin⁡ϕ\sin(\blue\theta+\red\phi)=\sin\blue\theta\cos\red\phi+\cos\blue\theta\sin\red\phisin(θ+ϕ)=sinθcosϕ+cosθsinϕ. sin⁡(θ+θ)=sin⁡θcos⁡θ+cos⁡θsin⁡θ\sin(\blue\theta+\blue\theta)=\sin\blue\theta\cos\blue\theta+\cos\blue\theta\sin\blue\thetasin(θ+θ)=sinθcosθ+cosθsinθsine, left parenthesis, start color blue, theta, end color blue, plus, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, sine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, cosine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, plus, cosine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, sine, start color blue, theta, end color blue sin⁡(2θ)=2sin⁡θcos⁡θ\sin(2\blue\theta)=2\sin\blue\theta\cos\blue\thetasin(2θ)=2sinθcosθsine, left parenthesis, 2, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, 2, sine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, cosine, start color blue, theta, end color blue cos⁡(2θ)=2cos⁡2θ−1\cos(2\theta)=2\cos^2\theta-1cos(2θ)=2cos2θ−1cosine, left parenthesis, 2, theta, right parenthesis, equals, 2, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, theta, minus, 1 We can also get this one from the angle sum identity, but we need to do a little extra manipulation. First, let's make both angles the same. cos⁡(θ+ϕ)=cos⁡θcos⁡ϕ−sin⁡θsin⁡ϕ\cos(\blue\theta+\red\phi)=\cos\blue\theta\cos\red\phi-\sin\blue\theta\sin\red\phicos(θ+ϕ)=cosθcosϕ−sinθsinϕ cos⁡(θ+θ)=cos⁡θcos⁡θ−sin⁡θsin⁡θ\cos(\blue\theta+\blue\theta)=\cos\blue\theta\cos\blue\theta-\sin\blue\theta\sin\blue\thetacos(θ+θ)=cosθcosθ−sinθsinθcosine, left parenthesis, start color blue, theta, end color blue, plus, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, cosine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, cosine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, minus, sine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, sine, start color blue, theta, end color blue cos⁡(2θ)=cos⁡2θ−sin⁡2θ\cos(2\blue\theta)=\cos^2\blue\theta-\sin^2\blue\thetacos(2θ)=cos2θ−sin2θcosine, left parenthesis, 2, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue, minus, sine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue. Now, we can use the identity sin⁡2θ+cos⁡2θ=1\sin^2\theta +\cos^2\theta= 1sin2θ+cos2θ=1sine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, theta, plus, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, theta, equals, 1 to put the right-hand side in terms of just cosines. cos⁡(2θ)=cos⁡2θ−(1−cos⁡2θ)\cos(2\blue\theta)=\cos^2\blue\theta-(1-\cos^2\blue\theta)cos(2θ)=cos2θ−(1−cos2θ)cosine, left parenthesis, 2, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue, minus, left parenthesis, 1, minus, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis cos⁡(2θ)=cos⁡2θ−1+cos⁡2θ\cos(2\blue\theta)=\cos^2\blue\theta-1+\cos^2\blue\thetacos(2θ)=cos2θ−1+cos2θcosine, left parenthesis, 2, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue, minus, 1, plus, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue cos⁡(2θ)=2cos⁡2θ−1\cos(2\blue\theta)=2\cos^2\blue\theta-1cos(2θ)=2cos2θ−1cosine, left parenthesis, 2, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, 2, cosine, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue, minus, 1 tan⁡(2θ)=2tan⁡θ1−tan⁡2θ\tan(2\theta)=\dfrac{2\tan\theta}{1-\tan^2\theta}tan(2θ)=1−tan2θ 2tanθtangent, left parenthesis, 2, theta, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, 2, tangent, theta, divided by, 1, minus, tangent, start superscript, 2, end superscript, theta, end fraction. This one also comes from the angle sum identity. tan⁡(θ+ϕ)=tan⁡θ+tan⁡ϕ1−tan⁡θtan⁡ϕ\tan(\blue\theta+\red\phi)=\dfrac{\tan\blue\theta+\tan\red\phi}{1-\tan\blue\theta\tan\red\phi}tan(θ+ϕ)=1−tanθtanϕ. tanθ+tanϕ tan⁡(θ+θ)=tan⁡θ+tan⁡θ1−tan⁡θtan⁡θ\tan(\blue\theta+\blue\theta)=\dfrac{\tan\blue\theta+\tan\blue\theta}{1-\tan\blue\theta\tan\blue\theta}tan(θ+θ)=1−tanθtanθ tanθ+tanθtangent, left parenthesis, start color blue, theta, end color blue, plus, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, tangent, start color blue, theta, end color blue, plus, tangent, start color blue, theta, end color blue, divided by, 1, minus, tangent, start color blue, theta, end color blue, tangent, start color blue, theta, end color blue, end fraction tan⁡(2θ)=2tan⁡θ1−tan⁡2θ\tan(2\blue\theta)=\dfrac{2\tan\blue\theta}{1-\tan^2\blue\theta}tan(2θ)=1−tan2θ 2tanθtangent, left parenthesis, 2, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, 2, tangent, start color blue, theta, end color blue, divided by, 1, minus, tangent, start superscript, 2, end superscript, start color blue, theta, end color blue, end fraction. Half angle identities sin⁡θ2=±1−cos⁡θ2\sin\dfrac\theta2=\pm\sqrt{\dfrac{1-\cos\theta}{2}}sin2 θ=±2 1−cosθ sine, start fraction, theta, divided by, 2, end fraction, equals, plus minus, square root of, start fraction, 1, minus, cosine, theta, divided by, 2, end fraction, end square root cos⁡θ2=±1+cos⁡θ2\cos\dfrac\theta2=\pm\sqrt{\dfrac{1+\cos\theta}{2}}cos2 θ=±2 1+cosθ cosine, start fraction, theta, divided by, 2, end fraction, equals, plus minus, square root of, start fraction, 1, plus, cosine, theta, divided by, 2, end fraction, end square root tan⁡θ2=±1−cos⁡θ1+cos⁡θ= 1−cos⁡θsin⁡θ= sin⁡θ1+cos⁡θ\begin{aligned} \tan\dfrac{\theta}{2}&=\pm\sqrt{\dfrac{1-\cos\theta}{1+\cos\theta}}\\ \\ &=~~~~~~~\dfrac{1-\cos\theta}{\sin\theta}\\ \\ &=~~~~~~~\dfrac{\sin\theta}{1+\cos\theta}\end{aligned}tan2 θ=±1+cosθ 1−cosθ = sinθ 1−cosθ= 1+cosθ sinθ We can get all of these by taking the double angle formulas and making the substitution: θ→θ2\blue\theta\rightarrow\red{\dfrac{\theta}{2}}θ→2 θstart color blue, theta, end color blue, right arrow, start color red, start fraction, theta, divided by, 2, end fraction, end color red. Then there's some rearranging to do. For example: sin⁡(2θ)=2sin⁡θcos⁡θ\sin(2\blue\theta)=2\sin\blue\theta\cos\blue\thetasin(2θ)=2sinθcosθsine, left parenthesis, 2, start color blue, theta, end color blue, right parenthesis, equals, 2, sine, start color blue, theta, end color blue, cosine, start color blue, theta, end color blue turns into...sin⁡(2θ2)=2sin⁡θ2cos⁡θ2\sin(\cancel2\red{\dfrac{\theta}{\cancel2}})=2\sin\red{\dfrac{\theta}{2}}\cos\red{\dfrac{\theta}{2}}sin(2 2 θ)=2sin2 θcos2 θ And then we need to solve for sin⁡θ2\sin\red{\dfrac{\theta}{2}}sin2 θsine, start color red, start fraction, theta, divided by, 2, end fraction, end color red. Give it a shot, and see if you can figure out how to show the other identities. Symmetry and periodicity identities. sin⁡(−θ)=−sin⁡(θ)\sin(-\theta)=-\sin(\theta)sin(−θ)=−sin(θ)sine, left parenthesis, minus, theta, right parenthesis, equals, minus, sine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis. We can see this by looking at a unit circle diagram. cos⁡(−θ)=+cos⁡(θ)\cos(-\theta)=+\cos(\theta)cos(−θ)=+cos(θ)cosine, left parenthesis, minus, theta, right parenthesis, equals, plus, cosine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis We can see this by looking at a unit circle diagram. tan⁡(−θ)=−tan⁡(θ)\tan(-\theta)=-\tan(\theta)tan(−θ)=−tan(θ)tangent, left parenthesis, minus, theta, right parenthesis, equals, minus, tangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis. This one is harder to see on a unit circle diagram, but we can get it by writing tangent in terms of sine and cosine, then applying the sine and cosine identities for negative angles. tan⁡(θ)=sin⁡(θ)cos⁡(θ)\tan(\theta)= \dfrac{\sin(\theta)}{\cos(\theta)}tan(θ)=cos(θ) sin(θ)tangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, sine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, divided by, cosine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, end fraction. So, tan⁡(−θ)=sin⁡(−θ)cos⁡(−θ)=−sin⁡(θ)cos⁡(θ)=−tan⁡(θ)\tan(-\theta)= \dfrac{\sin(-\theta)}{\cos(-\theta)}= \dfrac{-\sin(\theta)}{\cos(\theta)}=-\tan(\theta)tan(−θ)=cos(−θ) sin(−θ)=cos(θ)−sin(θ)=−tan(θ)tangent, left parenthesis, minus, theta, right parenthesis, equals, start fraction, sine, left parenthesis, minus, theta, right parenthesis, divided by, cosine, left parenthesis, minus, theta, right parenthesis, end fraction, equals, start fraction, minus, sine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, divided by, cosine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis, end fraction, equals, minus, tangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis sin⁡(θ+2π)=sin⁡(θ)\sin(\theta+2\pi)=\sin(\theta)sin(θ+2π)=sin(θ)sine, left parenthesis, theta, plus, 2, pi, right parenthesis, equals, sine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis cos⁡(θ+2π)=cos⁡(θ)\cos(\theta+2\pi)=\cos(\theta)cos(θ+2π)=cos(θ)cosine, left parenthesis, theta, plus, 2, pi, right parenthesis, equals, cosine, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis tan⁡(θ+π)=tan⁡(θ)\tan(\theta+\pi)=\tan(\theta)tan(θ+π)=tan(θ)tangent, left parenthesis, theta, plus, pi, right parenthesis, equals, tangent, left parenthesis, theta, right parenthesis. Cofunction identities sin⁡θ=cos⁡(π2−θ)\sin\theta= \cos(\dfrac{\pi}{2}-\theta)sinθ=cos(2 π−θ)sine, theta, equals, cosine, left parenthesis, start fraction, pi, divided by, 2, end fraction, minus, theta, right parenthesis cos⁡θ=sin⁡(π2−θ)\cos\theta= \sin(\dfrac{\pi}{2}-\theta)cosθ=sin(2 π−θ)cosine, theta, equals, sine, left parenthesis, start fraction, pi, divided by, 2, end fraction, minus, theta, right parenthesis tan⁡θ=cot⁡(π2−θ)\tan\theta= \cot(\dfrac{\pi}{2}-\theta)tanθ=cot(2 π−θ)tangent, theta, equals, cotangent, left parenthesis, start fraction, pi, divided by, 2, end fraction, minus, theta, right parenthesiscotθ=tan⁡(π2−θ)cot\theta= \tan(\dfrac{\pi}{2}-\theta)cotθ=tan(2 π−θ)c, o, t, theta, equals, tangent, left parenthesis, start fraction, pi, divided by, 2, end fraction, minus, theta, right parenthesis sec⁡θ=csc⁡(π2−θ)\sec\theta= \csc(\dfrac{\pi}{2}-\theta)secθ=csc(2π−θ) csc⁡θ=sec⁡(π2−θ)\csc\theta= \sec(\dfrac{\pi}{2}-\theta)cscθ=sec(2 π−θ)

"Getting lost in Trig again I see." Nicole Noble smiled as she sat down with a plate of chocolate chip pancakes. Nicole was a relatively petite young woman, fair almost to the extreme of golden blondness. Her features were small and perfectly related; her nose deliciously interrogative at the tip. Blue eyes, long, wavy blonde hair, so smooth and silky, almost as if it was tailored from gold fabric. A confident, sexy strut that tells the world, "I'm beautiful.". She wears a silver necklace and Basket-Set Round Ruby Studs.

Her friend, Dolores Palazzo, was like a Victoria's Secret model and looked very much like she could have graced any billboard or magazine cover. She has that movie star look. Her muscle definition was perfect and she walked with the confidence of someone a decade older. She wasn't just flawless in her bone structure, her skin was like silk over glass and she radiated an intelligent beauty. Her eyes were the glimmering color of emerald, sparkling in the light of the morning sun like a fresh sheen of morning dew and when she lifted her pale face to the sky, emerald shifted into the color of deep ocean shimmering in the moonlight. Her thick, wavy, scorching, red hair, was worn in a complex, elegant, sleek ponytail style. She is tall and has an amazonian build. Her skin is light-colored.

Both are wearing the Women's Uniform of The University.

"Come on now. You have to be diligent if you're gonna make it here. The Professors are nice but they can be cutthroat when it comes to grading. Especially Pearl Parks."

Nicole giggled. "I warned you. Advanced Superhuman Studies is fun but Mrs. Parks doesn't hold back. Those surprise tests will keep you on your toes."

"Says the girl who aced it like the rest of her courses." She had some salad, chewed and swallowed. "You little brainiac."

"Hate the game not the player DP."

"Uh huh, have you even figured out what you're going to do with all these skills after you graduate?"

Nicole shrugged. "To be honest...I just want a quiet life. We live in a world where busyness is king. We’re so busy glorifying how busy we are, we miss out on experiencing the moments that matter. That's how I see it. I'll move some place quiet, away from the noise and villains and become a writer." Nicole dug into her pancakes.

"That's deep Nicky. Me...I dunno yet. I'm trying a bit of everything."

They were soon joined by Dawnesha Collins and Regina Adams as Derrick and his friends were entering. Dawnesha, a tall, leggy, lean young lady with light hair, sat down next to Dolores and Regina, a beautiful young lady with short dark blue hair, sat down next to Nicole. Dawn had chosen bacon and eggs and Regina had gravitated to chicken waffles.

Regina alternated between eating her waffles and flipping through the news on her holo-phone.

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Victoria Volkov Acquitted! All Charges Dropped!

She flipped through a few more articles before setting it down. "What a world we live in." Regina noted in an amused tone.

Dawn looked up from her Chemistry Notes. "Anything interesting today?"

"Crimson's a fighting machine, Volkov is innocent after all and more conspiracy theories about Piper."

"Cool. I'll be checking out the Crimson News later."

Nicole checked the news herself and smiled. "Kids these days."

Derrick waved to the group as they walked by to get their own breakfast and Dolores wiggled her fingers to wave back.

"You know, if you need the room tonight, you can just tell us. We'll get a hotel."

"Don't make me reach over there Regina." Dolores whispered back with a smile on her face.

Nicole and Dawn giggled at their two friends.

Derrick and the team selected their own meals: A Berry and Yogurt Smoothie for Clyde, A PB&J Waffle Sandwich for Derrick, A Berry Breakfast Parfait for Hubert, Banana Peanut Butter Chia Pudding for Joshua and Healthy Banana Bread for Diego. They sat down at a table together and held a moment of silent respect as Josh silently prayed before beginning his breakfast meal with the others. "So, hey, Derrick, what was that dream you were telling us about?"

"I'd say it was more of a nightmare honestly." Derrick replied and described his nightmare quietly to his friends.

"That's freaky." Josh agreed. "But I'm sure it was just a dream. You know how good the security is here. Unless she had the Security Guards Passes or the specific badge to your dorm room, there's no way anybody could've gotten across the campus. Much less into your room."

"He's right man. It's either that or she was a ninja." Clyde joked.

Derrick shrugged. "I doubt it. I've fought some real psychos but I've never done anything to tick off the Foot Clan. As far as I know. I don't think she was even wearing an animal mask like the last bunch of sickos."

"Animal Masks? What?" Josh asked.

"I'll tell you about it later. When we're not eating."

"Trust us Josh. You're going to want to let your food settle before you hear about this." Diego assured him.

Nicole continued eating her meal but turned her head slightly to their direction.

"I'll take your word for it then. Just remember Derrick: The Lord is always with you. Through thick and thin."

"I can believe it. Mary's my homegirl after all."

Josh raised an eyebrow.

"I'm kidding Josh. But, I can believe it, why not? Superhumans are real, aliens are real, who's to say all religions can't be real? Just because Loki hasn't come down leading an alien army yet doesn't mean it can't happen."

"My man!" Josh fist bumped him.

"Don't worry about a bad dream or two 'Rick. You were probably just working out too hard or something."

"There is no such thing and you know it."

The friends laughed together.

"Something wrong Nicole?" Dolores asked her friend.

"No. It's fine. These are really good panackes though." Nicole replied and resumed eating.

"Hey guys. I was wondering, since we're here and all, could you quiz me?" Josh asked. "I've got an exam coming up and I wanted to be prepared for it."

"I'm game if you are man." Derrick said as he set down his fork.

"Cool." He and Joshua wiped their hands and Joshua pulled a set of holo-cards out of his pocket and handed them to Derrick.

"Alright. Let's see what we got here. Ohhhh I get it. You're taking Mrs. Sasha Rockingham's class arent you?"

"Yeah. Have you taken it?"

"Last semester. You're in for some real brain busters with her class. Don't let your guard down or her exams will bury you."

"I know. I managed to ace the last one but I had to study like crazy for it. The pop quizzes keep me on my toes too."

"Oh yeah. She loves those. Alright. Name Ampère’s law."

"Ampère’s law, one of the basic relations between electricity and magnetism, stating quantitatively the relation of a magnetic field to the electric current or changing electric field that produces it. The law is named in honor of André-Marie Ampère, who by 1825 had laid the foundation of electromagnetic theory. An alternative expression of the Biot-Savart law, which also relates the magnetic field and the current that produces it, Ampère’s law is generally stated formally in the language of calculus: the line integral of the magnetic field around an arbitrarily chosen path is proportional to the net electric current enclosed by the path. James Clerk Maxwell is responsible for this mathematical formulation and for the extension of the law to include magnetic fields that arise without electric current, as between the plates of a capacitor, or condenser, in which the electric field changes with the periodic charging and discharging of the plates but in which no passage of electric charge occurs. Maxwell also showed that even in empty space a varying electric field is accompanied by a changing magnetic field. In this more general form, the so-called Ampère-Maxwell law is one of the four Maxwell equations that define electromagnetism."

"That's right." Derrick replied without needing to look at the answer. You remember the things you learn in Ms.Rockingham's class. For fun though, Derrick slid his finger down the holo-card and the answer popped up. He switched to the next card.

"Like I said. Studying like crazy." Joshua laughed.

"My turn!" Hubert chimed in and took a card. "Ooooh. Gauss's Law."

"The total of the electric flux out of a closed surface is equal to the charge enclosed divided by the permittivity. The electric flux through an area is defined as the electric field multiplied by the area of the surface projected in a plane perpendicular to the field. Gauss's Law is a general law applying to any closed surface. It is an important tool since it permits the assessment of the amount of enclosed charge by mapping the field on a surface outside the charge distribution. For geometries of sufficient symmetry, it simplifies the calculation of the electric field. Another way of visualizing this is to consider a probe of area A which can measure the electric field perpendicular to that area. If it picks any closed surface and steps over that surface, measuring the perpendicular field times its area, it will obtain a measure of the net electric charge within the surface, no matter how that internal charge is configured."

"That's correct." Hubert said and activated the holo-card and it emitted the answer along with several equations.

"Alright. Try this one." Clyde smiled. "Faraday's Law?"

"Any change in the magnetic environment of a coil of wire will cause a voltage (emf) to be "induced" in the coil. No matter how the change is produced, the voltage will be generated. The change could be produced by changing the magnetic field strength, moving a magnet toward or away from the coil, moving the coil into or out of the magnetic field, rotating the coil relative to the magnet, etc. Faraday's law is a fundamental relationship which comes from Maxwell's equations. It serves as a succinct summary of the ways a voltage (or emf) may be generated by a changing magnetic environment. The induced emf in a coil is equal to the negative of the rate of change of magnetic flux times the number of turns in the coil. It involves the interaction of charge with magnetic field."

"You are killing this!"

"I prefer crushing it but thank you very much. What else do we have?"

"Coulomb's Law." Diego Davidson challenged.

"Like charges repel, unlike charges attract. The electric force acting on a point charge q1 as a result of the presence of a second point charge q2 is given by Coulomb's Law:
where ε0 = permittivity of space. This satisfies Newton's third law because it implies that exactly the same magnitude of force acts on q2 . Coulomb's law is a vector equation and includes the fact that the force acts along the line joining the charges. Like charges repel and unlike charges attract. Coulomb's law describes a force of infinite range which obeys the inverse square law, and is of the same form as the gravity force. A negative force implies an attractive force. The force is directed along the line joining the two charges."

The four friends continued quizzing him while another student walked into the cafeteria followed closely by a giant who entered through the extra tall side doors which had been designed for bigger students as he entered into the cafeteria. The first student, Randall Sharp, was built like a linebacker with a smart goatee and dark brown hair in a buzzcut. He was one of the taller students in the University and just as tall as Diego, who himself was slightly taller than Derrick. He only looked small next to his human tank classmate Owain Thomas. While Derrick and his group were tall, Owain towered over everyone in the school and he was almost as broad as he was tall. Being a brick naturally lead to muscular builds but Owain was one of the few who were described as Boulder-Bricks, extra large super strength type supers. He had to have his clothing custom made, including his school uniform. He was also one of the few truck drivers at the school as normal cars just didn't suit him. The reason behind his increased build, aside from his Advanced Gene, was because he'd gotten into a rough spot during the Invasion Of 2031 and threw himself into an intense workout program ever since.

Derrick could relate.

He looked up from the quiz and high-fived Randall and Owain as they walked by. Owain paused and looked at the card for a second. "The constant of proportionality k appearing in Coulomb's law is often called Coulomb's constant. Note that it can be expressed in terms of another constant, ε0 = permittivity of space. When describing the electric forces in atoms and nuclei, it is often convenient to work with the product of Coulomb's constant and the square of the electron charge since that product appears in electric potential energy and electric force expressions."

"That's right man. I didn't know you took her class."

"I'm currently taking it actually. Joshua and I. He's a lifesaver."

Joshua smiled at his roommate. "Happy to help Owain."

"Good idea. He's a bit of a genius himself."

"A bit? I'll have you know I'm one of the highest scoring students here." Joshua smirked.

"Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches."

"Jeremiah 9:23. Oh man you set me up again. Besides which, are you really one to boast about any of those?"

"To be fair: I'm right up there with you guys in smarts, my family's pretty damn rich and I'm the strongest on campus next to the tank."

" Keep tellin' yorself that." Randall quipped as he walked by them.

"Anytime buzzcut." Derrick joked.

Nicole looked up and beamed as Randall Sharp sat down at the table next to her. " Good mornin' beautiful."

"Good morning yourself handsome." Nicole replied.

" Did yer sleep well, eh?"

"I always do. Because I know tomorrow is going to be another beautiful day on campus."

" Every day on campus wiv yer is a beautiful one."

"Awwwww you're so sweet babe."

"You know we're eating here right?" Dolores smirked.

"Oui, pardon!" She replied with a cartoonish shrug.

The friends had a good laugh and Randall pulled out his phone and forwarded a poem to Nicole's E-Mail.

Nicole's phone beeped and she pulled it out and looked over her E-Mails until she found the one from Randall and she opened it up.

Param( [Parameter(Position=0, Mandatory=$true, HelpMessage="How Does She Answer?")] [string]$SheSaid)

If($SheSaid -like "yes")

{

Function Get-Married

{

$SheSaidYes = Get-Date

$TheBigDay = $SheSaidYes.AddDays(364)

#A year would be too far!

$FriendsandFamily = Get-Content -Path ".\friendsandfamily.cfg"

ForEach ($LovedOne in $FriendsandFamily)

{

Send-MailMessage -To $LovedOne.Address

}

$DaysLeft = New-TimeSpan -Start $SheSaidYes -End $TheBigDay

Do

{

Start-Sleep -s 86400

#Agonizing Seconds

$DaysLeft = ($DaysLeft -1)

}

While($DaysLeft -gt 0)

}

Function Live-HappilyEverAfter

{

$Happiness = Get-Happiness

$DaysLeft = Get-Content ".\ThingsWeCanNeverKnow.ini"

ForEach ($DaysWithHer in $DaysLeft)

{

$Happiness = ($Happiness +1)

Start-Sleep -s 86400

#Time Just Flies

$DaysLeft = ($DaysLeft -1)

}

}

Get-Married

Live-HappilyEverAfter

}

Else

{

Exit

}

Nicole very nearly burst out laughing right then and there but responded with a giant heart to him. He smiled and texted one back to her and they clinked their drinks.

"Ohhh wow. Wow do you...do you hear that?" Dawnesha asked Regina.

"What is it? Could it be?"

"Wedding Bells?" They asked at the same time.

"You know I heard people were marrying young these days but this is pretty sudden." Josh joked.

"Hey if you guys are gonna need a best man, just let me know!" Derrick called back to them.

"Wotcher goin' on about, then, eh? Yor the bloomin' flower girl."

"Find an outfit in my size and I just may consider it." Derrick joked.

The friends had another hearty laugh together and continued joking around in between eating their breakfast.

They eventually finished their morning meals and tossed the trash into the Clean and 'Cycle System before turning their trays into the washing units and then washing their hands.

"Hey Derrick. Are you going to tell me about those animal mask people you mentioned?"

"Uhhhhh." Derrick looked around the growing crowds of students and professors coming and going. "Maybe later. At the library. This isn't a story you talk about in public. It's not exactly the happiest of stories."

Joshua and the others immediately around him couldn't help but notice the passing of sadness on his face before he perked up again. "So, ah, just be a bit patient and think it over. If you still want to hear about it after lunch, then I'll tell you all about it in a quiet corner of the library."

"Okay then. Thank you for the warning Derrick."

"You're welcome."

"Well...whatever happened in the past. I'm glad you're here with us."

Derrick flexed his bicep. "But of course. It takes a lot more than a band of crazies to bring me down. And thank you Josh."

They fist bumped and continued to their own respective classes.

Derrick walked across the campus grounds with his friends until he arrived at his computer sciences building and waved to them as he walked inside.

To say the buildings were fancy was doing them a disservice. It would be better to describe each of them as futuristic. The first thing you saw when entering the lobby was a very nice waiting area with plenty of sitting room, a fountain, exotic plants, an information display and a hard light holographic map display that let students know where they were and where everything was, with health drink and snack dispensers on the walls and with classical music playing from speakers.

Up on the ceiling was a holographic display greeting the students to the Computer Sciences building along with a holographic display of the founder of the University; Salvadore Barbaroman. A powerfully built man who nonetheless had the charming appearance of a quintessential English Gentleman who just happened to have an eyepatch over his left eye and a sword for a right hand. There were stories among the student body about what could've happened to him that caused such injuries but even his family members were mum about it. The most people had managed to dig up was that he was in a brutal fight. But nobody could decide if it had been with a Super Criminal, A War or some kind of Monster. All anybody knew for sure was that he survived it, came back stronger and put a sword on his hand.

And really, what else do you need to know about the man besides that?

Derrick walked to the left and proceeded up the walkway. The university had plenty of nice elevators but he preferred the exercise. It was only six floors up. He had plenty of time to get to class.

"Oi mate, wait up."

Derrick turned back around to Randall. "What's up man?"

"I'm sorry but I overheard yer a wee bit earlier. Are yer okay, isit?"

"I'm fine. It was ten years ago. A bunch of jackasses fucked with the wrong family and Rick'd for it."

"Rick'd? Ohhh, like in The chuffin' Walkin' Dead, eh, mate?"

"The other Rick."

Randall laughed. "Ha! Oh shit I am sorry that I missed that knees-up."

"No, trust me, you're not." Derrick shrugged and he turned around and they walked to class.

"So are yer sure they won't be comin' back again, then, guv?"

Derrick scoffed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Oh please. It's been ten years. If they were going to come back for another asskicking they would've done it by now. Besides, what are they gonna do if they did come back? Invade the campus? Security'll wreck their redneck asses before they get anywhere near the student body."

Randall laughed. "Yor right about that! Struth! Tryin' ter attack Trinity University is like tryin' ter attack Champion City or a Military Base. Yor'd cop wrecked before yer knew wot 'appened."

Champion City of course being one of the most advanced cities in the United States, let alone the world, and home of Khrysos Corporation HQ. And among the rest of the advanced security around the entire city, Khrysos Corporation had its own crime fighting unit that worked around the city to assist the police in keeping it crime free and to provide good morals and lessons to kids. The Khrysos Corporations Special Duty Peacekeeping Combat Unit: The Power Titans. Derrick and his friends had only seen holo-videos of them and watched them on the news and they were like futuristic ninjas the way they moved.

"That's right. So don't worry about it man. I'm fine. We're all fine and the psychos went the way of Bunnyman."
"Wot the hell fire is the chuffin' Bunnyman?"
"Precisely." Derrick smirked.

They continued shooting the breeze until they arrived on the sixth floor and walked through another door into the main area.

From there they walked around the labyrinthine room until they arrived at COMPSCI 642 and Derrick swiped his ID and the door slid open to their auditorium style computer room.

Derrick crossed the room and took his seat in the back and booted up his station. A hard light holographic homescreen popped up along with a similar keyboard and other features. Derrick used the holo-board to type in his personal password (9RiENvrXo28vX2sn70LU7Fe62J) and logged in as student.

The keyboard was incredibly smooth and felt like liquid steel under your fingers and there was an awesome ripple effect if you ran your hands across the whole of it.

As Derrick understood, hard light technology involved polyphotonics - quantum-entangled pairs of electromagnetic monopoles span tight linear EM fields between them, containing any light within the span of the field at laser-intensity, save the ends around the nodes where some photons can escape. One pair of nodes makes a line. With three nodes you can make two-dimensional shapes. With four or more you can make three-dimensional shapes, such as what more or less amounts to laser armour. While of course any structures supporting the nodes are solid, the actual 'hardlight' is not. It functions identically to a laser, except along a plane instead of a line.

It was the Khrysos Corporation that invented the Solid Vision Hologram System which built on the principles of polyphotonics and utilized holographic projections for visuals, and force fields for physical effects, and a feedback and CPU system for computers, paving the way for the utilization of hard light to create temporary structures/barriers, improvised ramps/stairs, holograms, etc.

i.imgur.com/zT9cpNG.jpg

i.imgur.com/NghADCx.jpg
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NMquGw21tU

Derrick navigated the computer by placing his hand over the mousepad. A light shined out of it onto his hand and he slowly moved his hand around to the internet browser, opened it up with a tap of his finger and pulled it up. He logged into the blackboard system and sat back to wait for the Professor to begin class.

Students poured into the class for a few minutes until eventually the one hundred seats in the classroom were filled. They made small talk among themselves and Derrick greeted and waved to them as they entered and got comfortable.

Five more minutes passed. No sign of the professor. Then ten. Still no sign of him. The students continued talking among themselves while they had the chance. Fifteen minutes passed. The students were getting restless and confused. He was never late. Thirty minutes passed and when there was still no sign of the Professor, Derrick stood up and looked around the room and scratched the back of his head. "Uhhhhhh guys? Does anybody know where Mr.Howland is?"

"No idea." A student, Sha'quan Sanders, spoke up. "There's nothing in the E-mails about him running late today. Is there anything on the Blackboard?"

Derrick sat down and his fingers flew over the keyboard. "Nnnnothing. That's not like him. You'd think they'd have a sub."

"Think he's out sick?" Richmond Jackson asked.

"Not unless 'e came dahn wiv it last night and 'ad ter go straight ter the bloomin' 'ospital but even then 'is trouble and strife would've at least called the bloody school." Randall pointed out.

"He's right. If something happened I'm sure we'd know about it."

"Ohhhh I'm not too worried. Mr. Howland's always been in good shape." Cora O'Neill pointed out as she relaxed in her chair. "I'm sure he's fiiiine. Let's just enjoy the free period."

"Right." Derrick agreed and sat down to send an E-Mail to Mr.Howland. He clicked on the video option and smiled as the computer screen scanned him and then his ID. After a few seconds the screen glowed blue and then a reflection of his face appeared. Derrick cleared his throat. "Hello Mister Howland, it's Derrick. I'm just checking in with you because you didn't show up to class today and we didn't receive any notice. So I thought I'd check in that everything is okay with you sir. Please get in back in touch with the class when you get the chance sir. Thank you and I hope you're doing okay." Derrick ended the video message, played it back and, satisfied with it, he sent it to his E-Mail. Exiting the E-Mail, Derrick relaxed and got started on double checking his homework while the class was split between relaxing and chatting and getting ahead on schoolwork. A few of them placed VD-CHIPS on their heads, set timers and tuned out to enjoy Movie Simulations.

After a few minutes Randall walked over to him and pulled up a chair.

"So wotcher make o' this?"

"I'm with you. Something's weird about this. He would've called ahead if he was sick or something."
"Do yer think it's fowl play?"
"I mean....maybe?" Derrick tapped his paper with the tip of his pencil. "But why? Who would go after the Howlands? They're Church Mice. They're the nicest people you've ever met. They're working at charities constantly. Who on Earth would go after them?"

Randall lowered his voice to a whisper. "Could've been a burglary."

"Which goes back to my point. I know the University pays well but the guy lives a humble life. He isn't flaunting his wealth and if somebody did attack his house I'm sure somebody would've called the police." Derrick went back to his Calculus for a few seconds before looking back up at him. "You see, shit like this is why I'm not a detective."

"Oh I 'ear that. Probably best ter just leave it up ter the bobbies."

"It's for the best." Derrick agreed. "So which group are you in?"

"I'm gonna double check me work and then 'ave a nap." Randall declared and slid back across the room with the chair.

"Living the dream." Derrick smiled and went back to double checking his schoolwork.

After a few minutes of double checking his math of course his mind started drifting back to last night. "A burglary huh?"

She walks in his room and time slowed down, pacing with her slow footsteps. She stopped beside his bed, and her hand slowly reached for his arm. He did everything he could to move his arm but it stayed still. It felt like it was pinned to the bed with tons of weight on it. Her fingers caresses over his forearm, while he lay still, paralyzed. He wanted to scream, but he couldn't find the strength to so much as move! It wasn't her, or her touch, that scared him, but his inability to move.

In the darkness of a dream the mind would conjure up magical beasts with jaws that were home to razor teeth. They would move in an unnatural ways maybe a limp or be severely hunched over. Soon the breathing would increase rapidly and become gasps of breath. On awakening, despite the nightmare ending, a ghastly feeling of being watched by invisible eyes prolongs an uneasy feeling.

"No. No way." He shook his head and got back to work. A nightmare wasn't exactly something to go on after all.

Meanwhile Dolores, Nicole, Clyde and several other students were in Professor Daniella Bergamine's class working through a lecture on Trigonometric Substitution. Professor Bergamine taught at the front of the classroom utilizing a light display emitted from the blackboard. The numbers and the words would spin around and take the form of wordboxes next to her as she spoke to the students and they would follow along taking notes on the hard light computers which emitted the notes as lights.

"Now class, let's suppose that we have a circle of radius a okay I will Center the origin and I want to evaluate the area of this quarter of a circle what's the answer so this day they answer it okay so we'll keep that in mind and now we go to do it systematically by calculating the area of this object right so we can set up our usual integral under curve so the area is going to be given by an integral from 0 to a y DX right so this is why we need to find the formula for wife so how can we express this curve as a function of X we know that x squared plus y squared equals a squared because it's a circle and we can resolve it for y because we're in the positive quadrant we have no doubt about the sine of Y it's positive so this is square root of a squared - 8x squared right so my formula for the area becomes the following definite integral okay so this is what I need to evaluate is this an easy integral so we've seen something like this and in principle we could try to do substitution right we can say that this is you okay do you DX is something like 2x but there is an X missing from here it usually such integrals involved times X DX in which case we have a signature of the derivative of this additional variable now we don't have that so this metal method of substitution will fail and we have to find a different method but luckily here we have the geometry working for us so this let's consider a certain level X okay and this is y as a function of X okay so and this is a the long side of this right triangle let's denote this angle theta okay and I'm going to express Y and express X as theta so what is the relationship between X and theta we can say that X is a times cosine theta correct okay so and this is a substitution that I'm going to use for this integral so let's just play with it a little bit let's say that when X is equal to 0 what is the value of theta X zero means we are here it so what is theta 90 degrees or PI over 2 so we can say that theta is PI over 2 when x equals a because I go from zero to a x equals a means the 10 here what is the otis theta is zero right this whole thing collapses into a straight line so theta is equal to zero you can also check it here for instance x equals 0 corresponds to cosine of PI over cosine of PI over 2 is 0 x equals a corresponds to cosine being equal to 1 which is theta equals 0 so this works ok and finally I want to calculate DX the differential so I have to differentiate both sides of this equation so I have a times minus sine theta D theta and now I'm going to try and rewrite this whole thing in terms of theta so I go from the x coordinate of each point to its angular coordinate it's got kind of like going to polar coordinates so for 0 I have PI over 2 for a I have 0 I have square root of a squared minus a squared cos squared theta and for DX I have this whole expression times a sine theta D theta and it should forget the minus sign which appears in front of the internal ok so now this is my new integral completely rewritten in terms of the angle and I can do things here for instance I can see that under the square root a square mouth multiplies both of the terms so in also I can see that PI over 2 is greater than 0 and I have a minus sign so I can slip and lose the - so I have from 0 to PI over 2 ok I have square root of a squared 1 minus cos squared theta we do it like this times a sine theta D theta what else can I do. This is the radius it's a positive number I'm going to take it out in fact I'm going to take this 8a and this out like this what do I have under square root now 1 minus cos squared theta can I simplify this expression yes of course this is sine squared theta so under the square root I have sine squared theta can I evaluate this expression square root of sine squared theta well in general it's plus or minus sine theta but because I'm here I know that theta is positive and it's sine is also positive so I can with confidence replace that with sine theta so here under the integral I have sine theta times sine theta d-theta. Next, we can use a trigonometric substitution to integrate the function f (x) = x x2 − 9. Check your work by integration using the substitution u = x2 . Referring to our trig substitution summary, we see that the recommended way to integrate an expression including x2 − 32 is to substitute x = 3 sec θ, in which case dx = 3 sec θ tan θ dθ and: x2 − 9 = (3 sec θ)2 − 9 = 9 sec2 θ − 9 = 3 sec2 θ − 1 x2 − 9 = 3 tan θ.We start by performing this substitution and simplifying: 2 x x − 9 dx = (3 sec θ)(3 tan θ)3 sec θ tan θ dθ = 27 sec2 θ tan2 θ dθ. At this point we substitute u = tan θ, so du = sec2 θ dθ and: x x2 − 9 dx = 27 sec2 θ tan2 θ dθ = 27 u2 duu3+c39 tan3 θ + c=27. We have an answer in terms of tan θ and we want an answer in terms of x. We know that x = 3 sec θ, or equivalently that sec θ = x3 . Keeping that fact in mind (or the fact that cos θ = x3 ) we draw a right triangle with one angle equal to θ in which the side adjacent to θ has length 3 and the hypotenuse has lengthx. By the Pythagorean theorem, the side opposite the angle θ has length √x2 − 9 and: √x2 − 9 tan θ = .3 We can now complete our calculation: x x2 − 9 dx = 9 tan3 θ + c1 x �x2 − 9 dx=�√ �3 x2 − 99+ c 3 =1 2 (x − 9)3/2 + c3. It is faster and more reliable to compute this integral via the substitution u = x2 − 9. If we do this we have du = 2x dx or x dx = 12 du and: � � �√ 12 x x − 9 dx =u du21 2 3/2=· u +c2313/2=u +c 3� �1 2 x x2 − 9 dx =(x − 9)3/2 + c. 32...."

Naturally Nicole had a big smile on her face throughout the class, clearly enjoying herself as she breezed through her work. Dolores was doing the same and Clyde was working ahead of everyone.

One student tried to pull up a video website but the browser refused to open. He tried again. Nothing. He tried again. Nothing. He tried again. Nothing. He tried a different browser. Nothing. He tried to pull up Galaga. Nothing. Professor Daniella Bergamine snapped her fingers a few times in his direction to get his attention. "Do pay attention Mister Spears. Remember that this is going to be on the test and that you are graded for participation."

Kingsley Spears blushed and nodded. "Yes ma'am. Of course. Sorry about that."

"I am not without compassion Mister Spears. Can you repeat the last minute back to the class?"

"Oh...oh, right, sure." He stood up and cleared his throat. "The inverse trigonometric relations for sine, cosine, tangent, cosecant, secant, and cotangent are, respetively: arcsine, arccosine, arctangent, arccosecant, arcsecant, and arccotangent. Another way to write x = sin(y) is y = arcsin(x). The same holds true for all the inverse relations. Below these six relations are graphed. The graphs of the inverse relations differs from the graphs of the functions only in that the roles of x and y are interchanged. So far we have referred to these operations as relations. The reason is simple: the operations are not functions. Study the graphs above--do they pass the vertical line test? No. For a given input x, there are either zero, or an infinite number of values of y. This phenomenon is due to the fact that the trigonometric functions are periodic. As an example, let's examine the inverse relation arcsine. What is arcsin(2)? Because there are no angles whose sine is two, no solution exists. How about arcsin()? There are an infinite number of solutions, or angles whose sine is one-half. The domains of the inverse relations are the ranges of their corresponding original functions."

"Correct! That's very good Kingsley. All is forgiven please get back to notetaking."

"Yes ma'am. Thank you." He sat back to some applause from his classmates and a fist bump from his twin brother Leonidas Spears.

"Goofballs." Dolores whispered with a smile on her face.

"Nothing wrong with having fun in class." Nicole whispered back. Truly. This was the best. A nice simple relaxing life having fun at college with her friends. Everything was ordinary and perfectly balanced. Exactly the way she liked it.

"You're right. This is fine." Dolores whispered back as class resumed and they quietly slapped high-fives.

At the same time, Joshua, Owain, Hubert and Diego were listening to a lecture in their philosophy class on the subject of justice by Professor Dillon Curtis.

At the end of the second part of the lecture, Joshua decided to stand up and speak his mind and he raised up his hand.

"Yes sir! What would you like to add to the conversation?"

Joshua picked up the microphone and took a deep breath and spoke his mind on the subject.

"Well, sir, uhm, it is my personal opinion, that, the only possible way for one to acquit the cannibalism case is to think like an animal. Animals live to survive. They have no moral decisions to make- all they worry about is having a full belly before going to sleep every day. Human beings CANNOT be expected to behave like animals. We aren't governed by our desires, needs and wants. We don't live just to live. It is, in my own view, unacceptable to defend an act of vicious murder to appease your appetite. I feel that in supporting cannibalism by saying that....that no one would be affected by the death of that cabin boy is preposterous. No one knows how his life might have been- we are in no position to condemn someone to death for the greater good. We are not a pack of animals hunting for food, shelter or comfort. It is not pleasure or the sense of having our needs met that gives us true joy. Sacrifice, pain, sorrow, and suffering make our lives meaningful. Saying that the crew was governed to kill the boy out of 'love' and 'consideration' for their family feels wrong to me. It is not love that drove them to kill the boy- it was the bestial instinct to survive- no matter what the cost . Yes, we can keep concocting fanciful names and euphemisms to embellish these carnal sins. But that doesn't validate the act. We persistently think that we are doing the 'greatest good for the greatest number', and we are infatuated with the 'grey' line that separates the black from the white. But all we are trying to do is find a way to appease our conscience and somehow justify the wrong thing so that we can sculpt a world where we can do anything we feel like doing. Our idea of 'good' is wholly self-obsessed. Sure, the captain would have justified his act as doing greatest good for the crew- but all he really wanted was to 'survive'. Until we stop thinking about ourselves and stop equating happiness with the acquisition of our desires, needs and wants; until we start realizing that good comes from placing the needs of others before our own, and that it comes from sacrificing and suffering our desires for others....we will keep debating, pondering and thinking with our bellies, instead of our hearts."

The class applauded Joshua's speech and the professor beamed. "Mister...Angelo, right? That was a beautiful speech. Thank you for sharing with us. Would anyone else like to share?"

Diego stood up and picked up his mic. " Another point that was missed in the cannibalism lecture is the question of the responsibility of authority. The captain was the only person with the authority to make a unilateral life-or-death decision about the crew under him. His responsibility in that position would be to sacrifice himself to ensure their survival. If that isn't in the equation, then there's nothing noble about leadership - it's merely opportunism."

"I also think they were taking law and legality out of the equations. One could argue that the captain abused his power as being seen socially as the highest law, not that he in this example was, but he was seen as such. So it isn't his responsibility instead his viewed value perhaps." Hubert pointed out.

"Very interesting points gentlemen. But do you think the captain's responsibility in this position should be to sacrifice himself to ensure their survival? He would be more useful, in theory, alive rather than dead. One could in fact say that although what the captain did was morally wrong, he made the right strategic decision to further the chance of survival of his crew. By killing the weakest to allow the stronger ones to survive, their probability of survival would increase."

"Well, yeah, but, how can you be so sure that cabin boy's sacrifice would save the lives of the rest of the crew members? So long as we're throwing what ifs out, what if nobody comes to save them? In that case...the boy's life was wasted. Or what if their saviors are coming the very next day, then his life was wasted as well...and the very fact that the captain is not going to be a willing sacrifice, makes cannibalism wrong no matter what. That's why the law and society emphasizes survivors when someone dies. Cannibalism is refuting the right to survive by everyone." Joshua pointed out again.

Owain stood up and raised his hand next.

"Yes sir!"

"Well...sir, you said, repeatedly, you said, "The boy had no family" and thus no one to miss him. However, this makes a assumption that you know the future of that boy. That boy could have grown to have a family that, given generations, could have a more profound impact on potential lives than the 3 men. I would argue that if the men truly felt that one must die to save the others then it should either be the largest or oldest. Either you get the most food from the person you kill or you assume that you are condemning the fewest years of life. If they felt the boy would die regardless of what they did then they should have waited for it to occur. But they took it upon themselves to commit the act. Thus acting in selfishness...that your needs take precedent. Thus guilty."

The Professor applauded his class. "Thank you for such wise and well thought out answers ladies and gentlemen. Brilliant minds like yours are what make this class so much fun for everyone."

The class continued in this way for awhile until time ran out and The Professor thanked everybody for coming and assigned their homework.

At the same time the other courses also let out and the hallways filled up with students and professors going every which way.

They eventually ran into Derrick and Randall exiting their own building and he waved them over. "Sooo....something strange happened in class today."

"Another virtual tour?"

"Nah man: Professor Howland didn't show up."

"Okay that is different."

"Yeah. No email or notice or anything." Derrick shrugged. "I mean, maybe he's out sick? But this is the first time he's been absent."

"It's not a big deal, right? I'm bloody well sure 'e's not so bad." Randall shrugged. "Right good news is: We got a free study period out o' it. Got ahead on us work we did."

"Sounds like fun. We debated cannibalism." Joshua said as they walked to their next class.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously." Hubert agreed. "Ever heard of the cabin boy case?"

"Oh, Lord." Derrick sighed. "Yeah. I've heard that one. And they were in the wrong. In that situation it's the duty of the leader, the captain, to do what is right for the survival of his crew. But cannibalism....no. No that's not an option. You know what that gets you? Fucking face skin wearing wendigos man. That's what that gets you."

"Well yeah...along with displaying displayed extreme greed, gluttony, and excess. Until Dawn left out a lot." Nicole spoke up.

"Really? Uh, such as?"

"Welll.....the best way to describe them is a mixture of both the Ojibwe's legends and the the Algonquian legends: “A giant with a heart of ice; sometimes it is thought to be entirely made of ice. Its body is skeletal and deformed, with missing lips and toes. It was a large creature, as tall as a tree, with a lipless mouth and jagged teeth. Its breath was a strange hiss, its footprints full of blood, and it ate any man, woman or child who ventured into its territory. And those were the lucky ones. Sometimes, the Wendigo chose to possess a person instead, and then the luckless individual became a Wendigo himself, hunting down those he had once loved and feasting upon their flesh. This creature has long been known among the Algonquian Ojibwe, Eastern Cree, Saulteaux, Westmain Swampy Cree, Naskapi, and Innu peoples who have described them as giants, many times larger than human beings. Although descriptions can vary somewhat, common to all these cultures is the view that the wendigo is a malevolent, cannibalistic, supernatural being which is strongly associated with winter, the north, coldness, famine and starvation."

"You see? You see? That just proves my point!" Derrick insisted as he high-fived Nicole.

"Wow that sounds like something I wouldn't mess with." Josh admitted. "Think you could take one big guy?" He asked Owain.

"Wendigo or not, I haven't met anything that could toe-to-toe with me yet." Owain replied. "Sounds like it would be a good work out though."

"That's the spirit mate! Right! Show them giant tossers who's the chuffin' boss!" Randall pumped his fist in the air.

Diego was quiet for a moment before looking back to Derrick. "Okay, but, like, hypothetically, if you were in that situation..."

"I'd think of a way out. I always have. I'd save everyone." Derrick answered quickly.

"......Ah, shit, hey look I'm sorry man."

"Don't worry about it." Derrick slapped his bro on the back. "Anybody else have a fun class experience?"

"Math was nice and quiet." Clyde spoke up.

"And of course that would be the normal class." Derrick joked to his friends laughs.

The group soon parted to go their respective classes. As Derrick was walking up to his next class, Diego quickly caught up with him. "Hey Derrick. Look, I really am sorry about that. I know what happened was...horrible and I shouldn't have gone there."

"It's alright D'go. Yeah it sucked ass but that doesn't mean I'm going to flip on you for asking a question. You're my friend. Nothing's gonna change that."

"Thanks. Yeah, you're right. But what you said earlier? Saving everyone? I think that's the right answer."

"That's the only answer." Derrick replied proudly and they resumed walking to class.

"By the way: Have you ever heard of Shepard?"

"A person or the town?" Derrick asked.

"The town." Diego specified.
"I've heard stories but I've never visited it myself."
"Yeah, well, people say they have a Sasquatch. It's on their site."

"Oh cool! Any pictures of it?"
Diego pulled up the site on his phone. "Let's see...yeah, no, here we go: Apparently it doesn't like being photographed and the cameras and phones always deactivate around him."

"Sasquatches can mess with technology now?"

"Apparently. Think it's true?"

"I gotta be straight with you D'go, I've seen some weird stuff. This is perfectly logical compared to the things I've been through."

"Cool, cool." He turned off the phone. "You know what? We need to take a road trip there. Next summer. All of us. We'll take a road trip down to Shepard to see if the rumors are true."

"Throw in some Ox Burgers and I'm sold."

"That goes without saying doesn't it?"

They laughed and continued on towards their next class: The Science Of Space Colonies.

Professor Eddie Antonakos looked up from the work at his computer with a smile as the students filed into the class. He greeted them all as they walked around and took their spots. Once everybody was seated he cleared his throat and spoke to his class. "Helllo Ladies And Gentlemen! Welcome back to Interstellar Science! Yesterday we covered Space Elevators, Sky Hooks, Space Towers and Launch Loops and today I would like to cover the next step: Lunar Colonies to explore ways to go beyond simple Lunar Bases to a full-fledged productive colony that can help us travel to other worlds and expand our own. As I'm sure you're aware, the Khrysos Corporation, Enki Aerospace Engineering Corp, Ultrainnovations, Progressive Innovations and many others are collaborating on a project to begin colonization of other worlds. Starting with The Moon itself. Which brings me to this: Hold on to your bags kids." He pulled a remote out of his shirt and clicked it. "Because we're about to go on a trip!" The room glowed brightly and colors swirled around the students rapidly as their desks disappeared from sight and the scenery of the room changed into outer space!

Derrick grinned. The holograms of the college were his favorite parts of the class. The students looked around excitedly laughing as the simplistic classroom was changed into a dark blanket, contrasting with blacks and yellows, and the occasional white, which is shaped as a circle and sometimes a crescent. There are stars which dot the blanket in a intricate pattern. This is space. The hallowed pool of subtle light had adorned itself with the diamonds of thousand moons and of thousand dreams, for these weaved themselves on that cosmic ether of divinity......all hung in the frame of "galaxy."

Eddie laughed as he watched the students play and leap around in the 'holo-space environment' the computers pulled up. Every time he got the same reaction from them. Their reactions to riding the space elevators were especially entertaining. Eventually he snapped his fingers a few times and the students all turned their attention back to him.

"Okay, now, of course, you wouldn't be able to hear me normally because their is no air in space. Sound travels in waves like light or heat does, but unlike them, sound travels by making molecules vibrate. So, in order for sound to travel, there has to be something with molecules for it to travel through. On Earth, sound travels to your ears by vibrating air molecules. In deep space, the large empty areas between stars and planets, there are no molecules to vibrate. There is no sound there. And of course, spending time in that vacuum is incredibly lethal for you. This is going to be a bit off topic, and very morbid, buuuut it is important to know for the future. Spending some time in the cosmic vacuum—sans spacesuit—might seem like a questionable life choice. After all, in the movies, whenever people end up in the intergalactic void without proper protection, either their heads explode or they instantaneously freeze solid. Neither outcome is particularly appealing. However, in reality, I’m afraid that your space death won’t be quite so spectacularly gruesome, as such, no exploding head or bulging eyeballs. But that doesn’t mean that your death won’t be interesting. Here are some of the ways space can kill you: Explosive Decompression. Let’s assume that you’re in a space shuttle. You’re traveling along merrily. Your life is just grand. Suddenly, you’re seized with a completely irrational, yet entirely irresistible urge to go for a spacewalk. And, oops, you forget your spacesuit. So the air doesn’t slowly leak out of your shuttle. You’re not gradually exposed to a complete vacuum. Oh no. You open the door of your pod and BAM! Decompression. No air. You’re in space. As long as you don’t try and hold your breath during this explosive decompression, you’ll survive about 30 seconds before you sustain any permanent injuries. But what if you do hold your breath? How likely is it that you would survive? Not very likely at all, I’m afraid. If you hold your breath during decompression, the gas in your lungs will expand due to the lack of ambient pressure. This expansion will eventually cause internal ruptures in your pulmonary tissue, essentially, your lungs will kind of, well, explode…for lack of a better description. As your lungs collapse, the gas that they contain will be transformed into massive, internal air bubbles. These bubbles will meander throughout your body. Sooner or later, they will find their way to your vital organs, such as your heart and your brain. If the air lodges in your heart, you’ll go into cardiac arrest and die. Essentially, you’ll have a heart attack. If it makes its way to your brain, you’ll have a massive stroke and die. Of course, even if the air from your exploded lungs does not enter your heart or your brain, you’ll still die. We simply don’t have the medical technology needed to repair lungs ruptured in this manner. So no matter what way you look at it, explosive decompression is very bad for your health.

Ebullism. After about 10 seconds, the moisture in your body will start to evaporate. This is known as “ebullism,” and it happens because the reduction in pressure causes the boiling point of your bodily fluids to decrease. And if “evaporating body fluids” doesn’t sound terribly pleasant, well, it’s because it’s not. On August 16, 1960, Joe Kittinger ascended to 19.5 miles (31.3km) in an attempt to break the world record for the highest parachute jump. During his ascent, Kittinger noticed an odd sensation in his right hand. Upon inspection, he realized that he had lost pressurization in that area of his suit. Nonetheless, Kittinger decided to continue the mission as, fortunately, the rest of his suit seemed to be functioning properly. Thus, the only part of Kittinger’s body that was exposed to near-vacuum conditions was his hand. As he continued to ascend, the fluid in Kittinger’s skin continued to evaporate. Eventually, this caused his hand to swell to over twice its normal size. Kittinger describe this experience by likening it to the tingling sensation you feel when your foot falls asleep…so thousands of tiny pinpricks, dancing across your skin. You might scoff at this, but the pain will virtually paralyze you. Want to hear the really bad news? As the moisture in your body evaporates and trails off into the darkness of space, you will lose control of your bodily functions—so you’ll simultaneously defecate, vomit, and urinate. Oh, and if you don’t return to your ship in about 30 seconds, then ebullism will cause your lungs to collapse. And you will die. Not so fun times.

Freezing. Fortunately, heat doesn’t transfer very quickly in the vacuum of space because there is no air, water, or other medium to aid the transfer of heat. This is obviously a very good thing, as space can be both frigidly cold and scorching hot. Fun fact: if you’re facing a sun-like star, and are about 93 million miles away (150 million km), the temperature difference between your “day” and “night” side will be about 275 degrees Fahrenheit (135 degrees Celsius). However, since heat does not transfer well in space, freezing to death is not an immediate risk, and neither is spontaneously bursting into flames. But just because freezing isn’t an immediate risk doesn’t mean that it’s not a risk. Remember when we talked about your bodily fluids evaporating? Well, when your body fluids escape as a gas, they take away more than their fair share of heat. Eventually, this evaporative cooling will chill your mouth and nose to near-freezing temperatures; ice will also form in your respiratory tract. And of course, you’ll be radiating heat from your body. Stay in the vacuum too long and the combined effects of this cooling will lead you to an icy death.

High Energy Photons. If you’re close to starlight when you enter the vacuum of space, things will go poorly rather quickly (really though, why would you vacate your ship when you are close to a star?! Terrible life choice). First, you’ll get an awful sunburn from the ultraviolet radiation. Unlike the Earth, the vacuum of space doesn’t have an atmosphere to protect you from harmful solar rays, so even short term exposure could cause cancer. But as long as you remain about 93 million miles (150 million km) from Sun-like stars, you’ll be fine. Venture closer than that and the ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma rays radiating from the star will cause severe damage to your DNA. And no, you won’t get super powers or turn into one of the X-Men…you’ll get tumors and experience organ failure. Get too close to the star and you’ll start to fry from the extreme heat radiating from it.

Burning Up in the Atmosphere. But wait…how can you burn up in an atmosphere if you’re in the vacuum of space? A fine question. Allow me to explain. But first, I need to point out that, when people tell you that there’s no gravity in space, they are lying. There is gravity everywhere—planets, stars, comets, asteroids, Home Depot, and even the vacuum of space. Gravity envelops our own planet and the most remote corners of the universe. So you could be in the vacuum of space but, if you’re too close to a massive object like a star, planet, or moon, gravity will cause you to fall into the object. Ultimately, objects that are in orbit around another body don’t fail to maintain their positions because there is no gravity, but because of speed. For example, objects in Earth orbit have to travel at least 17,500 mph to keep from plummeting to the planet (28,000 kmh). At this speed, an object is moving so fast that, as it falls towards the Earth, the planet curves away beneath it. Consequently, the object essentially remains in a state of free fall and the Earth never gets any closer. But if you slow down, things start to get a bit mucky. Although there is no clear-cut answer to where space truly begins, the consensus is that it starts somewhere around 400 miles (643 km) above sea level. So let’s say that you are traveling around the Earth at about this altitude when you decide to make your little foray into space. Since you are still subject to the Earth’s gravity, you won’t just fly about the planet for all eternity. You’ll burn. Eventually, you will start to slow down and plummet into the Earth’s atmosphere…where you will be fried to a crisp. Actually, you’ll be fried to more than a crisp—you’ll be dusty nothingness. Of course, it would take some time for your orbital decay to be significant enough to result in a fiery death, about a decade, depending on your speed.

Asphyxiation. So what’s the most immediate threat that you need to worry about in the vacuum of space? Rogue black holes? Gamma ray bursts from distant quasars? Aliens?! I’m afraid it’s nothing quite as horrifyingly fantastical as all that. The most immediate threat in the cosmic vacuum is oxygen deprivation. Assuming that you don’t hold your breath during decompression, it will take about 15 seconds for your O2-deprived blood to get to your brain. When this happens, you’ll pass out…and then you’ll die. Simple loss of oxygen will likely kill you faster than anything else in the vacuum of space."

The professor cleared his throat as he let them take all of this in and then he continued. "Now for a lighter topic, let's begin our Moon discussions." He said as the students felt the room spin around them as they were pulled forward onto the moon where astronauts were working to create a new colony. The professor then began his next lecture.

Eventually, after a period of classes, it was finally time for lunch and the gang reconvened at the cafeteria. Derrick got himself Ground Chicken Breast Meatballs with Mozzarella Cheese and Hubert got Grilled Flank Steak Salad with Strawberries. They sat down at a table while the rest were selecting their own healthy meals. "Hey Derrick, are you sure about telling Josh about....what happened?"
"If he wants to hear about it, I'll tell him. There's nothing wrong with telling him. It's Josh after all. He's the most harmless guy in the school."
"That's true. You sure you're ready to talk about it?"
"It was batshit insane, sure, but I learned talking about it helps."
"Alright, just know, we'll be right there with you."
"Thanks man." Derrick looked up and waved Dolores over to the table.
"Do you want me to move? I can give you alone time." Hubert joked.
"Grow up man. I just thought she might want to join us."
"Uh huh."
"Hey guys!" Dolores greeted as she approached them. "Mind if I join you?"
Derrick stood up and pulled a chair out for her. "Please. Your presence is an honor for all of us."
"Ohhhh my, how formal of you!" Dolores replied as she set her tray on the table and sat down as Derrick slid the chair into the table.
"Manners hold a community together, and manners hold a family together; in a way, they hold the world together. Manners hold a community together, and manners hold a family together; in a way, they hold the world together."
"And with as crazy as the world is getting these days, a little politeness can go a long way 'Rick." Dolores replied as Derrick was sitting back down.

"It's true isn't it? There is a simple philosophy to follow for a wonderful life: Greet each person with a smile, smiling is a lovely style, you will find, after a while, most people will smile at you. Know inside each soul's the Lord, with folks words, do not get bored, although it might seem quite a chore, treat each person with love and respect. Love and respect will come to you, if these teachings you pursue, being polite is the thing to do, every single day. And remember… it pays to be polite."

"You are full of surprises aren't you? I was unaware you had the heart of a poet, Mister Blackburn." Dolores smiled as she folded her hands, rested her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her hands.

Derrick relaxed in his chair. "Show me a place where poets abide...and I'll show you a place where no one hides. Where once remained hidden, in the heart of mankind, all is exposed, and easy to find. The heart of the poet, is a heart without doors and a poet without words is like a boat without oars. Come now and take this journey with me and I shall promise to set our hearts free." He finished as he raised his glass of milk (Low fat and skim milk being great sources of protein and other essential micronutrients. And these low-fat varieties are the best choices because they contain much less saturated fat than reduced-fat milk or whole milk.) to her. She giggled and raised her green tea. "I will drink to that my rhyme slinging friend."

They 'clinked' their cups and turned to Hubert. "And you Mister Hunt?"
Hubert Hunt smiled and raised his own drink to them. "Well what can I say, my friends? I would like to be a scholar in whatever I do, a scholar is never finished, he is always seeking and I am always seeking."

The trio 'clinked' their drinks and sat back down. "Pray tell, good sir, what makes a scholar a scholar? And how do you become one?"

Hubert sipped his juice. "You become a scholar once you've decided to read and learn as much about the world as you can. You become a scholar once you've decided that culture remains when everything else is gone. You become a scholar once the beautiful words of skilled authors are imprinted in you so deep that you can quote them. At last, you become a scholar once you've confessed to yourself you would have to die, if you were forbidden to read and learn."

"You've certainly picked the right university for such a career choice and we will be there supporting you the entire way."

"We all will."

"Thanks guys."

They had some of their food while the others were walking to the table.

Dolores looked up from her Honey Sesame Chicken Lunch Bowl.

"So Derrick? Any plans this weekend?"

"We're actually going to a karaoke bar on Saturday. You wanna come? The more the merrier."

"Having sampled your wondrous poetry already, I would be delighted to hear you sing. Saturday it is. What time?"
"The Stately Knight opens at 6PM so we were thinking we'd get there around 7:30 or 8:00 PM."

"8:00 PM will work. The Stately Knight at Revelations Plaza, right?"
"That's the one. It will be my treat my fair lady."
"Such a gentleman. I'm sold. I'll bring the others if they can make it."
"Excellent idea. We are going to rock this city!"

"Always down for a rock off. When's the gig?" Regina asked them.

"The Stately Knight this Saturday at 8:00 PM." Derrick and Dolores said at the same time, paused and then laughed.

"Cool. I'll be there. What about Nicky? You coming?"

"Sorry guys, Randall and I are going to see The Silken Emerald this weekend. Raincheck?" The Silken Emerald, naturally, was an Erotic Romantic Dramedy Starring A Dominatrix.

(Wow. I didn't know Randall was into those kinds of movies. Good for him. You go bro.) Derrick thought to himself. "It's all good. We can always go back Sunday for an encore."

"I'd like that. I'll talk it over with Randall and if our schedules are free, which I'm sure they are, we'll join you for the Sunday encore."

Dawnesha whispered to Nicole as she was sitting down. "The Silken Emerald? Seriously?"
"Oh yeah."
"You little horndog."

"Takes one to know one."

Dawnesha ruffled her hair and started eating lunch.

"Alright you guys have fun, alright?" Dolores said to her.

"Oh we will." Nicole assured her. "Try to bring a few houses down for me will you?"

"Promise."

A bit later Derrick was getting a refill on his drink when he passed Randall. "Good movie choice."

Randall chuckled and they returned to the tables.

"Yo, Blackburn."

He looked to the left to see Ch'ang Jae-Hwa walking over to their table.

"Hey Ch'ang? What's up?"

"Everybody's saying Mr.Howland's class is canceled so I thought I might as well double check with you."

"It's only canceled in that he hasn't shown up yet." Derrick shrugged. "I'd go anyway. Just in case he does show up or they call in a sub."

"Yeah that's a good point. Alright. If I hear anything I'll let you guys know." He waved and walked away while taking out his phone and texting someone.

Derrick waved and looked up at the ceiling. "Still nothing huh?"
"Come on I'm sure it's fine." Dolores assured him. "He's probably just under the weather today. It happens. Now come on and perk up. We're hitting the gym next period."

"Yeah you're right." She was. She was indeed right. It was the most logical explanation.

So why the hell couldn't Derrick shake this nasty feeling gnawing at him?

"Come on 'Rick, it's all good. We're hitting the gym next period, work up a cold sweat and next thing you know you'll forget all about whatever's bothering you. You know the coach'll leap at the chance to make you burn."

"Looking forward to it." Derrick smirked.

"See? That's better. Show us your pretty smile!" They clasped hands. "Trust me. Whatever's wrong with Professor Howland, I'm sure it's fine. Worst case scenario he took a day off and 'forgot' to call it in. It's fine. It happens."

"You're right of course. Sorry about that guys."
"Come on bro you can't be ashamed of being empathic." Clyde chimed in. "You're worried about your teacher. It means you're a good person. When he comes back, you can high five him and assure him that you showed up ready for class. Might win you a point on your next exam."

"Two if I'm lucky." Derrick joked back.

Soon the friends were all joking and laughing together again and the sensation slowly faded even if it didn't leave him completely.

After enjoying Lunch, Derrick walked outside with the others and turned to look at Josh. "Hey man. Have you thought about it?"

"I have. And I would like to know. Talking can make things easier after all and if this can help you to feel better then I am all ears."

"Alright then. Just know that this isn't for the faint of heart. This is a violent story my man. Extremely violent."

"I-I can handle it."

"Okay then." Derrick and his friends walked with Josh to the library.

Row after row of neatly lined up books with their spines facing outward, colour coded with dots, fiction section arranged in alphabetical order, young adults section, children's section with low shelves and floor cushions, comfortable leather arm chairs, tables for quiet study, muffled stillness, librarian at help desk, a fancy expensive carpet on the floor, computers for doing book searches, computers for surfing the web, tutors and students, holo-posters for book clubs on the wall, wall of magazines, shelves of CD's and movies and washrooms.

Derrick and his friends found a spot in the back where they could all sit down and Derrick went quiet for awhile before he looked up and began his story. "Alright. You wanted to know what happened at The Sunset Fields Farm. Here we go. It all started with a road trip. I was 14 teen at the time. It was me, my dad, my mom, my cousin Tina Berardinelli, my aunt and uncle Alessandro and Michelle, my aunt Gloria and Grandfather Argos. We were on a trip to visit some family in Floweracre, Westfall. We had to take a longer route there because the airports were closed due to air disturbances and there was road repair being done from super battles and other assorted problems. Eventually, we ended up in Strongmarsh and stopped to fuel up and get some food."

______________________________________________________________________________

In this heat even the trees appear defeated. Leaves that should be firm and upward tilting droop, flaccid as old lettuce. The soil isn't simply dry, but powdery to the touch. Grass that is always green until August is hay by early July. Even the air is dry, not the usual humid warmth they would've had at this time of the year. Each day the sky is barren, though of late the forest fires have stolen our endless blue for a dull grey and each evening bringing out a blood sun. Two days ago some rain fell around the area, leaving large warm drops that disappeared as soon as they struck the hot tarmac or else sucked into the dusty mud not leaving a trace. Strongmarsh had such little winter that the fall leaves still litter the ground and he couldn't help but wonder if this season's greenery will even make it till autumn. Already above his head fluttered gold where it should be nothing but robust virescent hues. In a few months those colours would lift my spirit, but not now. They should be dark, not this insipid tone, fueling the tree for the winter ahead. This part of the world should never be so arid and it felt so strange to him at the time. Any tree that'd been in the ground less than two years lost every single leaf, they just died, slowly. The sun was no longer the kids' summertime friend, it was an oppressive presence that sapped the energy out of every living thing.

Thank God for the souped up air conditioning of their cars keeping them nice and cool.

The cars pulled up to The Jefferson's Court Barbecue Restaurant and slowed to a stop at the gas pumps. Derrick Blackburn yawned and popped off his sunglasses. They were utterly shiny, dark silver and so seamless. They simply wrapped around his face from one side to another, perfect as if only ever touched by gloved hand. Derrick was considerably smaller back then with a skinny but lean muscular body and wild black hair complete with a punk t-shirt and distressed denim shorts in which he had special pockets sewn under the seams which contained lockpicks. His dad's idea. Just in case they were ever needed.

"Dad? What's up? Where are we? Is that smoked meat? Dibs!"

"That's good old fashioned barbecue son! It may not be as legendary as what they've got down in Shepard but it's still the best for miles around." Leonardo Blackburn replied to his son as he parked the car. "Trust me: One bite of these burgers and you'll never want to go back to fast food!" He was a tall, strongly built gentleman with combed back hair, a powerful beard, the eyes of a wolf and the smile of a fatherly gentleman. He complimented this with his casual Italian style of dress.

"Challenge accepted."

"You okay honey?" Josephina Stoneshire Blackburn asked Leo while rubbing his back. She was a tall and toned woman with dark blonde hair tied back in twin ponytails wearing casual sportswear. "You've been driving a long time."
"This? This is nothing. We pulled longer shifts back in the army remember."

"Oh yeah. Remember that stakeout in Zailkhad? It took forever for the targets to show up!"

"And when they did we went right ahead and took care of business." Leo chuckled. "How's about this? I'll refuel and park while you guys are getting a table. Go on in."

"Sounds like a plan to me!" Gloria Stoneshire replied and stepped out. She was the spitting image of her sister if not for the difference in muscle and hair style.

"Thanks dad!" Derrick hopped out.

Josephina kissed her husband on the lips and stepped out. He chuckled and turned off the car and stepped out to refuel.

Across from them were another family exiting their own car: Alessandro Berardinelli, Michelle Blackburn Berardinelli, Tina Berardinelli and Argos Blackburn.

Tina bounded over and embraced her cousin who hugged her back. "Ohhhh man! I don't know about you but I seriously need to stretch my legs! I don't even care if it's hot out! I need to do some running!" She exclaimed while hopping up and down. She was a little bundle of joy wearing bright pink summer clothes that matched the pink streaks in her hair.

"I feel you there Tina." Derrick agreed and picked his cousin up and spun around and set her down. "Could use a good mile run right about now. I swear when we get to Aunt Nancy's place I'm running laps around it. You ready for a burger?"
"Oh God. You cannot subsist on gummies alone on a trip like this." She admitted.

"I told you to save them." Alessandro joked as he got ready to pump the gas. He was a tall slender man with shoulder length dark hair, scruffy facial hair and a nice suit. His wife Michelle was a stern looking beautiful woman with chestnut brown hair worn in a fancy style. She is wearing a business casual women summer outfit with a pencil skirt. "If you're that hungry sweetie we can get you something nice here. How does a smoked bbq burger sound?"

"Awesome!"

"I'll take a smoked rib eye if they have 'em." Argos Blackburn decided as he stretched his massive arms. He was a giant of a man, towering over the rest of the family with over 340 lbs of muscle backing him. Argos was also dressed casually. Just some jeans and a white shirt. He smelled the air. "Yep. They've definitely got them."

"Alright then, let's do this! It's chowtime everybody!" Derrick declared.

"Quite the kid you've got." Alessandro complimented his brother in law.

"Oh like we were any different at his age?" Leo chuckled.

"Isn't that the damn truth. At least you were normal. I was running around in a mask and a cape. Getting into street fights on a nightly basis."

"You were damn good at it though, saved a lot of people, and it's how you met Michelle."

Alessandro chuckled. "Who even steals jewels anymore."

"You ever miss it?"
"Oh heck no. I got a kid now Leo. She needs me in her life. They both do. Just as much as I need them. Besides, testing security measures for people is always plenty of fun."

"Believe me I understand. You ever want to get back into action? The military would love to have someone with your skills."

"Thanks. I'll keep that in mind."

The family sat down together inside of the restaurant where the unmistakable aroma of grilled chicken, beef and pork will fill the air

Barbecue is one of those unique cooking forms that you can enjoy the special goodness of even before you take a bite. A leisurely bath in the vapours deepens their beefy flavour and softens their chewy texture. It’s the smoke — rich, languid, sweet smoke — that imparts so much flavor to the meat and causes your olfactory senses to explode in delight before the first bite is taken. It’s like an early warning to your mouth that something good is about to happen, only without the annoying siren.

"This is nice." Josephina smiled as she relaxed. "They're all so advanced these days. It's nice to see an old school business like this."

"It smells so gooooood! Can we just stay here?"

"You'd probably have to work." Gloria smirked.

"Child Labor Laws. Can't touch us."

"3 hours in a school day, 18 hours in a school week, 8 hours on a non-school day, 40 hours on a non-school week and our hours would be between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m." Derrick corrected Tina.

"Shhhhhh! Don't let them know that!"

"Too late! We're signing you kids up. It's Summer so you'll get plenty of work experience."

"Aunt Gloria!" They exclaimed.

They giggled.

Argos flexed. "Ah this would be easy work for you. Why when I was your age I was doing some real back breaking work. Really getting my hands dirty." The 74 year old bodybuilding gentleman laughed. "Paid off though! Just kept building my body and now I'm as large as a barge!"

"What kind of work was that grampa? Wait...is that how you..."

"Lost my eye? Nah sonnyboy. That was due to a really bad day in the desert. I'll tell you when you're older. You kids ain't quite ready to hear about it yet."

"Whel hello there. Welcome ta thay Jefferson's Court Barbecue Restaurant! Are y'all frawum out av town?" The group looked up to see a buxom young waitress approaching them.

Now Derrick, being a 14 year old boy, immediately smoothed back his hair and leaned back in his seat and tried to act all cool. "Why yes, yes we are, just rolled into town today and the godly aroma of this restaurants divine culinary skills reached our hearts and guided us to this restaurant!"

Tina pushed on his head and smiled at the waitress. "What my crazy cousin means is that we're on a road trip and we've heard so much about the restaurant that we just had to stop by!"

She laughed it off. "Ay'm awful glay y'all stopped by. It's always kind ta see new faces around here. Allow me ta introduce myself. My name's Mary Ellen ayn' ay'll be y'all's servuurr today. Here is our menus, our speciaal today is fire-roasted jasmahn lamb. May ay start y'all off with some drinks? We've done got Episcope products!"

Derrick pushed Tina's hand off of his head and fixed his hair. "Awesome. Then I would like a Honey Crystal."

"Banana Hound for me." Tina added.

"Diet Mountain Pep for me." Michelle spoke up. "Also we've got two more outside who are refueling the cars."

"Ay understand. When they come in we'll show them ta thay table." Mary replied while jotting down their drink orders.

Josephina, Gloria and Argos ordered a Glowing Burst Orange Burst, a Northern Tornado and a Grape Thunder respectively. The waitress took their drink orders and walked to off to retrieve their drinks while Leo and Alessandro were walking into the restaurant.

"Hi dad. Hi Uncle Leo. Derrick was trying to act like a hotshot but I put him in his place."

"If that's what you call messing up my hair pinkie."

She blew a raspberry at her cousin and he made a face. She tried to push him down again but he stopped her arm and they started wrestling a little until Michelle snapped her fingers and they snapped to attention.

Leo chuckled."Save it for Aunt Nany's, kids. Blake & Finley will throw down with you all day long."

"Yes sir! Sorry for the disturbance!" They replied. Leo and Alessandro sat down together with their family.

"You guys order yet?" Alessandro asked while picking up a menu.

"Just the drinks. They have Episcope drinks."
"What? All the way out here? Wow."

"Guess I will have a Honey Crystal then."
"Diet Mountain Pep."

The waitress came back with the first order of drinks and Leonardo turned to his son and raised an eyebrow. Derrick sheepishly shrugged his shoulders and Leo ruffled his son's hair.

He and Alessandro ordered their own drinks and their lunch alongside the others. The waitress took their orders and returned to the kitchen as the family returned to their conversations.

"So there we are right? My suit's torn up, we're out of breath, pinned down behind rubble and Sergent Serdyuk just keeps rambling! He starts like, this prepared speech about how *feeble* we compared to him, how *inevitable* our defeat is, how *the world* *will soon* *be his*, yadda yadda yadda. You remember right honey?"

"Oh Gooood him! I mean, one direct hit from his mega cannon and we're dust! The idiot had us dead to rights and he wouldn't shut up!" Josephina laughed.

"How did you get out of that one?" Derrick asked.

"Teamwork. Your caught his breath, created a sniper rifle and shot out the lights of his death ray. Then while he was freaking out over that I...well if I'm being perfectly honest...I shot him in the balls with an Incendiary Luxx Crystal (L-INC) round." The family burst out laughing at this mental image of Josephina shooting someone in the groin with one of her super fire bullets.

The Khrysos Corporation's Incendiary Round is, as guessed, an incendiary round designed for the military usage that detonates a split second after impact reverse engineered off of alien technology that they have acquired in the past. It is designed to manipulate an energy field to their desired effect depending on the structure.

In the case of the Incendiary rounds, the weapon releases a small field of energy that rapidly increases molecular vibration in matter causing a small but intense wave of heat that will set nearly anything on fire and can leave 5th degree burns on most organic life in mere moments and even deform and fracture many metals. Specialized rounds manipulate the field further to create even more intense heat waves that can ignite the air around the target into an intense fireball that can completely incinerate the target.

Obviously, being shot by such a bullet burned off the villain's lower extremities, groin area, part of his torso and most of his legs.

"So after that we just wiped out the rest of his minions, scrapped the death ray and called it in. Cleanup crews took care of the rest." Leo relaxed. "Yes son your mother is quite a woman."

"You're awesome mom!"

"Awww thanks sweetie! It was a team effort though. You can be the toughest guy in the world but still get outnumbered. It pays to have someone watching your back."

"In more ways than one." Gloria joked.

"Quiet you." Josephina replied to her sister and stuck her tongue out.

The waitress eventually returned with their drinks and food and the family got ready to enjoy their lunch.

Derrick and Tina had Juicy Grass-Fed Beef Burgers, Argos got a plate of Asian Style Slow Cooker BBQ Ribs (Which they always have ready to go!), Michelle received her order of Greek-Style Chicken, Leo and Josephina got their orders of Seared Lamb with Balsamic Sauce, Gloria received her order of a Beef Tenderloin Steak with Chipotle Butter and Bell Pepper Sauté and Alessandro received his order of Coriander-Thyme Lamb Chops with Yogurt Sauce.

"Oh man this is unreal! These look amazing!" Derrick smiled. He took a bite of his burger, chewed, savored and swallowed. "And they taste amazing too! This one of the best burgers I've ever had!"

"Well, goo'ness gracious, mister, that there's very kind ta hear!" The waitress beamed. "There is naw highuurr honaw faw our chefs than ayy pleased customuurr."

"Unquestionably. Wow."

Michelle looked over her chicken and Argos's ribs. "You guys really have a little bit of everything don't you? I'm impressed."

"Mighty kaand av y'all ta say so! We pride ourselves on our wide variety av meals available here at thay Jefferson's Court Barbecue Restaurant. Remembuurr our slogan: If the deysh involves meat, we can cook it!"

"That is a catch slogan. I'll drink to it!" Tina raised her soda and the family clinked them. The waitress smiled and nodded.

"Mighty kaand av ya'all. Thank ya so much. So, ay will leave ya ta enjoy y'all's meals. If y'all need anything just holluurr ayn' ay will be raheet back in two shakes av ayy lamb's tail." The waitress grinned and walked away.

Tina crossed her legs and set her drink down. "This place is as Southern as it gets." She joked.

"Be nice Tina. The golden rule in the South is to do unto others as you would have them do unto you, without expecting reciprocation. Southerners don’t give or dole out favors as an obligation, but we do it out of courtesy, respect, and habit. It's a good philosophy to follow in life. Besides, Sacred Hospitality goes back a long way. Offering hospitality is a duty, and both guest and host must behave themselves." Michelle informed her daughter.

"Yes mom." She had some of her burger. "This is great though."

Michelle had some of her own meal. "Fantastic."

The family continued laughing and talking and joking around together as they enjoyed their lunch.

After a fantastic lunch and a few drinks, the family paid for their meals and used the washrooms. As Derrick was leaving the washroom he found his father talking with one of the owners about which route to take to get back to the highway utilizing a holo-map on the table and the Holo-Phone's GPS.

"Okay so go raheet up General Boulevard frawum Centre Avenue ayn' go straaheet until y'all faand the highway exit ayn' y'all'll be on y'all's way. Now ay feel ay should warn y'all: We've done heard repawts about troublemakers a-dressin' up as awnery varmints ayn' a-playin' sick pranks on passerby ayn' causing trouble faw them. If y'all see anyone done dressed like an animal waving thay'r arms ayn' a-tryin' ta get attention, y'all just keep raheet on a-drivin' ayn' don't pay them any maand. Just keep a-drivin'."

Jimmy James Jefferson explained to Leo Blackburn.

"Noted. Thank you very much Mr.Jefferson."

"Awww shucks Leo! Ay can call ya Leo right? Just call me Jiimmy! Everyone does!" He clapped Derrick's father on the back. "Ya'll take care now alright?"

"You too Jimmy. This place is amazing." Leo shook his hand firmly.

"Ya're ayy darn good man leo. Ya should be proud." He shook Leo's hand and waved to Derrick and returned to the kitchen.

"Nice guy."

"Trust me son, you'll learn to love visiting the South. There's a lot of good people down here."
"Uh, I caught some of that what was that about pranks and varmints?"
"Just some idiots in animal masks. Don't worry about it. If worse comes to worse, we'll just scare 'em off and be on our way. Speaking of which, you ready to go?"

"Always dad."

Leo informed the rest of the family of what he'd told them and the family filed outside and got back in their cars.

As they were driving away a man in the back of the restaurant was hunched over his phone sending a message.

The family is leaving Jimmy's now.
They will be going the Center Avenue route.
Take out the cars and grab them and bring them to the farm.
Remember the client wants the boy unharmed.
We can do what we want with the rest.
We have a lot of money riding on this one.
Don't screw this up.

He sent out the message, pocketed his phone and returned to his steak lunch.

The family drove up the road with the GPS guiding them as they played their music. The Blackburns were playing Rock and Metal Driving Music and The Berardinelli's were playing a mix of various songs and Tina went back to her Crimson Avenger Audiobook. It was the Audiobook of the Novelization of her first teamup with The Diamond Roses to fight The Nefarious Doctor Insidious, one of her most famous comics.

As their car engines sang to the lone country roads, Derrick and his family sang their metal music together in what Derrick would later assure his friends was complete synchronization. In truth they were out of synch and a little off key but it didn't matter at the time because the family was just too busy having fun and laughing together as they rocked out to The Rock N Roll Soldiers' Funny Little Feeling.

"I'm not doin; fine
I'm desecrating lives
I boned a phone booth of a lady shaky heinous crimes
Nailing hands down to floorboards
Angry side gone overboard
And
I'm bored
Still bored
I'm so bored
I've got a funny little feeling
My arms are shaking like a lightning rod, yeah
I'll cannonball right through the ceiling
And sink my teeth in till the feelings gone, yeah
Oh, I'm the slow move guy
No time for swattin' flies
Appeasing bees knees easing g string seizing wheezing
Funny little feeling
Lick it dry
Wonders just who am I
Prison warden, teenage boy, transvestite with high heels on
Hey where has my life gone
Ain't done anything I want
According to my list
I've still got so many musicians to kill
Will kill, until I fill my landfill full of bodies standing still
I've got a funny little feeling
My arms are shaking like a lightning rod, yeah
I'll cannonball right through the ceiling
And sink my teeth in 'till the feelings gone, yeah
I've got a funny little feeling
My arms are shaking like a lightning rod, yeah
I'll cannonball right through the ceiling
And sink my teeth in 'till the feelings gone, yeah
I've got a funny little feeling
My arms are shaking like a lightning rod, yeah
I'll cannonball right through the ceiling
And sink my teeth in 'till the feelings gone, yeah
I've got a funny little
I've got a funny little
I've got a funny little
I've got a funny little feelin'
I've got a funny little
I've got a funny little
I've got a funny little feelin'
Feelin'
Feelin'!"

About an hour into their drive a pair of a massive diesel trucks hauling two large trailers each started to come up on them. The family initially didn't pay them much mind and continued driving.

After a few minutes of following them however the trucks suddenly sped up and an alarm sounded from the car's dashboard. Leo glanced at it and his eyes went wide. "EVERYBODY HOLD ON TO SOMETHING!" Derrick looked up and Josephina glanced back at her son as she gripped the handlebar and Gloria leaned over and covered Derrick.

The Berardinelli's turned off the music and braced themselves. Alessandro gripped the steering wheel, Michelle braced herself and called out to Argos who was already placing a hand on Tina.

The trucks rammed into the backs of the cars, their horns blaring like banshees! The family jerked forward in their cars and Derrick yelled out.

"DAMMIT! WHAT THE FUCK IS THEIR PROBLEM?!" Gloria shouted.

"DERRICK! DERRICK ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Leo yelled back to his son.

"I-I'm fine...who are these GAAHH!" He was cut off with another yell as the truck slammed them again.
"Just hold on baby, you'll be okay!" Josephina assured her son as she held on. "Leo! Leo can't you get over?!"

"There's no room we're boxed in on either side!" He gritted his teeth and pressed a button to call Alessandro. "This car can take a beating but we need to get the hell out of here. Alessandro! Are you there? You still with us?"

There was a hissing, fizzing sound but they were still able to understand most of it. "Jus.....ew...mps....GING IN.....NEED A PL....FERSON MUST'VE....US OUT....WE HIT....NITROS! NITROS!"

"LOUD AND CLEAR ALESSANDRO! LOUD AND CLEAR!" Leo opened up the armrest to reveal a series of switches and buttons. "WE'RE GOING NITRO! BRACE YOURSELVES!"

"WE'RE GOING WHAT? THIS CAR CAN DO THAT?!" Derrick exclaimed. Gloria helped Derrick back up into position and he grabbed onto the handrail and his seat as Gloria did. "DO IT!"

Josephina braced herself. "GO!"

Leo flicked the switches and jabbed his thumb onto the first button and braced himself. The car's nitros activated and miniature center mounted jet engines with an afterburner slid down from the center of the cars. The afterburner was engaged and additional fuel was injected behind the jet engine's normal turbine to provide additional thrust. This of course burns fuel a lot faster so it doesn't get used all the time. The family jerked backwards as their cars rocketed forward and swiftly left the trucks in the dust. "HOOOOOLLLYYY SHIIIIIIIIT!" Derrick exclaimed and burst out laughing.
Leo kept himself focused on the road and narrowed his eyes as he continued driving, not taking his eyes off for a second. He knew Alessandro was doing the same, their cars neck and neck as they raced away.

Not to be outdone however the trucks had their own series of tricks ready for the family. The headlights slid down and a pair of harpoons on chains shot out like rockets to impale their cars! They cut through the air like a blade through tissue paper and caught up to the cars easily. The harpoons impacted the cars with loud *BANG!* sounds and slid across the trunks of the cars and hit the glass. A shower of sparks was thrown into the air while a thin crack barely the length of a hair strand appeared in the back window. The cars continued forward undettered and the harpoons slumped to the street defeated. Derrick was holding onto his Aunt Gloria now and she tried to stop his trembling while Tina screamed and screamed in the Berardinelli's car and buried her sobbing eyes in Argos's shirt. "MOOOMMMMY! I WANNA GO HOME! I WANNA GO HOOOME! MOOOOMM!"

Michelle continued watching the mirrors until the trucks were out of view while the cars went up the hill. "Okay. Okay. They're gone." She turned back to her daughter and reached out to her. "It's okay now sweetie. You're alright now. They're gone. They're gone and they won't hurt you. We won't let them okay? Look at me Tina. Tina, I'm right here. I'm here baby."

"Mom....mom...mommy? Mommy?" Tina reached and took her mother's in her own.
"Oh God sweetie it's okay. We're safe now. They can't catch us now. We're going to get out of here and never come back." Michelle did not like lying to her daughter at the end but it was mostly true. Certainly the children would never come back to this dungheap of a town but she would. Oh yes she would. She would come back here, hunt down the drivers and make them scream for scaring her little girl. Then she'd find Mr.Jefferson and make him talk. If Alessandro was right, if he had indeed sold them out, there would be no place in the world for him to hide from them and no force on Earth that would stop them from making him pay. But right now her little girl needed her so Michelle held her hand. "Ssshhhh now. It's okay. You're going to be alright honey. You're a strong girl and I'm proud of you. We're okay. You're okay. I'm okay. We're all okay. I love you honey."

"I love you too mommy." Tina sniffled and wiped her eyes first with her hands then with a tissue Michelle handed her.

"There you go. That's my girl. Where's your phone? I think playing your superhero story will calm everyone down."

"Oh right. I-I dropped it. Where is it?" Tina looked around the car until Argos spotted it and he picked it up and handed it back to her. "Here you go kiddo."
Tina beamed and she quickly turned it back on and got back to the section she was at before and took out the headphones and she began playing it again.

Michelle turned back around and slumped against her seat. "Holy cow. Are you okay?"
"I did not expect this to happen today. Thank God we tricked out the car." Alessandro sighed as they rocketed down the hill. "I'm going to kill the afterburner in a minute once we know we're safe." He tried the phone again. "Hey Leo! You holding up alright?"

"As good as we can." Alessandro didn't need to be there in person to notice the rage boiling under his voice. It was as clear to him as the fire inside of his beloved wife's eyes. He'd see their rage before. The anger of The Blackburns. They were good people. Honorable, kind, loving, polite, always willing to help you out of a jam. But by all that is holy do not cross their lines. Do not piss them off. Do not threaten their loved ones or they will rain hellfire down on you.

Derrick told his friends about something Alessandro's Grandmother used to say about The Blackburn family.

Cave Blackburns ad iram. Ardet intus diaboli.

Beware the rage of the Blackburns. The devil burns within them.

The name Blackburn is, after all, of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when a family lived in the town of Blackburn in the county of Lancashire. This place-name is derived from the Old English word burn, meaning stream, and referred to a stream in a dark area.

The cars continued on for a little while further and then they turned off the afterburner boost.

Leo sighed. "Hey Alessandro."
"Yeah Leo?"
"Whaddya say we leave these guys a little present?"

"Oil slick?"
"Oil slick."

"Oil slick?" Derrick asked.

Leo and Alessandro pressed buttons in their respective cars and their cars squirted out lengthy slippery oil slicks on the road. A little present for the truck drivers for when they came back after them.

"The car can do that too? Why did you never tell me this?" Derrick questioned.

"I was going to tell you in a few years when you were old enough to start driving. You need a special license to drive one of these you know."
"Really? What else haven't you told me dad?"
"I'll tell you later when we're at your Aunt's place."

A minute passed. "Are we gonna be okay dad?"

"You'll be fine Derrick. Nobody's gonna hurt you with me around."

"If they try we'll tear them apart." Josephina assured her son.

Derrick sighed and relaxed in his seat. Done with this day in general now. He closed his eyes and relaxed. "Cool. Love you guys."
"Love you son."

"Dad you alright?" Leo asked Argos.

"I've been through crazier than this. But who the hell has harpoons in their headlights all the way out here?"

"Must be the masked assholes they warned us about unless that was a lie. I don't know. We'll figure out when we find a place to pull over, rest and call the cops." Josephina reasoned.
"I say we keep going. Her house will be safer than any place out here and we can plan out a counter offensive better. Either way once we're on the highway they won't be able to chase us without hundreds of witnesses. We'll be fine." Leo pointed out. "Right now I want everybody to keep an eye out and be ready for anything."

For the next few minutes there was peace and quiet for the family. Nothing but smooth sailing they thought. They figured the danger was passed. After about ten minutes of this they finally got away from the rocky hills and into a wide open grassy area and promptly drove right over a trap. A series of small spiked drills popped out of the ground and shot up into the air and they stabbed and bored their way right into the tires and shredded them open! The cars swerved and slowed to a crawl as they drove over them and they soon came to a stop, just sliding over the ground to a stop.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Josephina exclaimed. Leo turned around and looked back and saw the drill spikes and the trucks coming down the hill only to drive right over the oil slick and slip and slide out of control. This slowed them down and would disorient the drivers but it wasn't enough to stop them. Leo glowered and turned off the car. "Everybody out. Get out of the cars and crouch down next to ours. It's small, armored and the windows are bulletproof. Do it now. I'm putting a stop to this shit."

"But dad!"

"Now Derrick."

"...okay."

The Blackburns got out and they assembled next to the car. Leo calmly walked out of the car, locked it and tossed his wife the keys. Leo wiggled his fingers and then raised his hands up with his fingers in a position where he it looked like he was holding guns. There was a flash of brilliant yellow and violet light that swirled around his hands as more energy crackled around his hands. The energy soon took the form of a pair of handcannons.

He twirled the guns and marched forward to meet the oncoming trucks.

The drivers finally got a handle on their steering again and they barreled down on him. He continued walking towards them and raised the handcannons. The trucks raced towards him at top speed. He squeezed the triggers and two brilliant lights of bright yellow energy with purple lights traveling around the light beams that super heated the air to the point of ionization, resulting in purple lightning like bolts traveling around them. The beams shot through the air and hit the trucks head on and blew apart the front of the trucks!

Allow me to explain. Leonardo Blackburn's power is Firearm Construction: The power to create guns of all types, and sizes, by shaping the existing matter and energy via mentally reciting the atomic configuration and inner workings of the gun. He can't generate normal ammunition though. Instead, he utilizes energy that his body produces and fires it through the guns. This can be incredibly destructive or as powerful as a normal bullet depending on his focus and how much energy he puts into the guns. Every shot drains his stamina however. The more energy he puts out and the more bullets he fires the more stamina he loses.

Back to current past events, the energy blasts crashed into the front of the trucks like trains tearing through the air at 2,799 feet/sec and the electricity crackled around them and the front of the trucks lit up like the Sun before igniting in a fiery ball of yellow flame that billowed outwards and the sky trembled above them to the sound of a roaring thunderclap. The trucks swerved wildly, smashed into each other, collided and they went into two separate directions and they tore across the grass before tipping over. The ground trembled like the sky above it when the trucks fell over with the trailers smashing into the grass and threw up grass and dirt and soil.

Josephina took her hands off of her ears and she poked Derrick to let him know it was okay to do so. He slowly rose up and peeked his head around the car and his jaw dropped at the sight of the burning trucks, the strange smell of burning rubber and metal and glass and the smoke rising into the air. He literally had no words. He'd seen his dad showing off his powers before on the 4th of July or when he was shooting wooden targets and mannequins but he never would've guessed that he was this powerful! He was like a walking bazooka! He tried to find the words to speak but nothing came out of his mouth. Josephina placed a comforting arm around him. "What is that?" She spoke his thoughts out loud. "That is your father in action. It's why he never touches alcohol."

"Holy."

"Yeah. Sweetie! Leo? Are we good?"

"Stay down right now. We don't know if they're finished yet!" Leo called back to them without taking his eyes off of the trucks.

"He's right. Back down Derrick."

He nodded and they slowly crouched back down.

"Is it over yet?" Tina asked.

"Almost honey. Almost." Michelle spoke softly and kissed her daughter's forehead. "I am very proud of you. You're being very brave."

"Just relax Tina honey. Uncle Leo's never let us down." Alessandro embraced his daughter gently. "And he's going to get this cleaned up too."

Leo watched the trucks in complete silence. Not once letting down his guard. The army had drilled that into his head and he was going to put it to use now. Leo smelled the air. Super senses was not one of his talents but his nose was sharp enough to catch the country air, the smoke and the burning trucks even from this distance. He slowly approached them one step at a time. One step in front of the other. His shoes crunching on the ground. K'duh, k'duh, k'duh K'duh, k'duh, k'duh. K'duh, k'duh, k'duh K'duh, k'duh, k'duh. He gradually closed in on the burning trucks and the blazing hot golden flames engulfing the front of the trucks and spreading to the grass, threatening to erupt into a blazing wildfire that would entrap the family and cook them alive from the heat if they didn't suffocate from the smoke first. That wouldn't do. So Leo focused himself again and released a different waves of energy this time in the form of pressure waves that simply smashed into the trucks and snuffed out the flames before they could spread any further. He sighed and turned them off once this was accomplished.

Leonardo continued approaching the trucks, cautious of any surprises. He doubted the drivers were still alive but that didn't mean that there wasn't anybody else waiting for them in the trailers. These guys had harpoons in their headlights and spiked traps set up. He wasn't taking any chances here.

Leo was proven right when he heard clanging and banging noises inside of the trailers. Leo moved to the side so he was in front of the trailer on the left and he backed up against its scrap metal hood and then he slowly manuevered around the sides of the first trailer.

The clanging and banging noises continued until the back of the trailer burst open and a group of men tumbled out of it.

"Fuckin! What the fuckin' fuck?! Who the fuck fucked this here fuckin'?! How done y'all that there fuckin' fucks! Fuck!" One of them demanded as he staggered to his feet. "Shitfuck douchenugget cock-sucking cuntwaffle barbara streisand's sagging testicles! What the fuck just done happened?!"

One.

"Christ on ayy cracker! Everything hurts! Done those there goatfuckers just crash?"

Two.

"Shit fuck dammit all. How in thay ...err sam hell do y'all crarsh like that there anyway?"

Three.

"Whel that there were fun. Ay think ay'm bleeding but that there were ayy ride. Hold on. Okay. Yeah. Ay'm bleeding. Hurts ayy bit. Also ay shot marvin in thay ...err face. That there were my awful bad. Sorry."

Four. And they were armed.

"Damn. Ay done liked Marvin."

Five.

"Nahwt a-tellin' thay old man! One two three nahwt it!"

Six and an old man they were working for. He would have to be sure to spare one or two of them to get information about their boss. Whomever they were working for probably wanted them alive, or at least intact, which probably meant that the harpoons were meant to capture them. Considering the size and shape of the trailers and the armed guards, he could assume that they were for transporting the prisoners to their boss. Which probably meant they were torturing, dissecting, eating or selling their prisoners. Or all of the above. Probably that one. One thing was certain however: These men were planning to capture and kill his family. And that was not forgivable.

He listened a bit longer until he confirmed there were about eight in total and all of them were still a bit banged up from the crash. He also heard the other trailers starting to open and came up with a plan of attack: Spring out from cover, take out these guys before they knew what hit them, then take out the ones directly across from him, then the guys coming out of the rear trailer from the truck on the left and finally the last group from the other truck. He'd take most of them out of commission and leave the last two just intact enough to tell him everything he needed to know who they worked for, who worked with them and everything else they needed to know. Then they would call the police and inform them of what was going on and work with them to finish off the rest of these trash.

Leonardo Blackburn continued creeping around the side of the trailer until he was close enough to attack. He took a deep breath, exhaled and he jumped out and opened fire. As it turned out the men were dressed in farm and ranch wear and animal masks were plenty of stains and tears and holes. They didn't get a chance to react before he opened fire with a series of focused shots that blew gaping holes through their chests. The dead bodies of the animal men dropped to the ground with red hot holes in their bodies. Leo kicked their guns back inside of the truck and peaked inside. Sure enough there was a man slouched over with a hole in his head. Obviously a misfire from one of the rifles when the trucks crashed. Well that made things easier. So counting him with the other idiots that made nine, plus the two drivers of this truck made eleven plus the two drivers of the other truck made thirteen.

Time to find out if that was his lucky number today.

With these guys down and out, he moved on and walked towards the other trailers directly across from him. He moved just as cautiously as before, conserving his energy with slow deliberate movements while keeping his guns up and pointed at the trailers. Once he reached the trailer he turned his back to it and slowly crept along the length of the trailer. Even now he could hear them banging away and forcing the doors open. Same with the other trailers. They were starting to wake up and while they were still confused and injured, Leo knew he had to move fast to take these guys out before they could get their bearings. He slid along the wall and stopped and waited. It didn't take long for the ones in the trailer behind him to break open the doors. They stumbled out but before they could figure out what was going on Leonardo sprung out from the side of the trailer and opened fire on them. The energy blasts from his guns shot right through them even as each shot drained some more stamina from him. He kept going though and after five trigger pulls from each gun he'd shot down the whole group. Twenty-Two now. He breathed in deep and exhaled. There were more banging sounds and the doors of the trailer behind him and the trailer across from that broke open. That made eighteen more to go. He took a few steps back into the trailer, stepping over the corpses, and then he turned around and crouched down and took aim at the front of the trailer and pulled the trigger of the gun in his left hand. Another energy blast was released and impacted against the front of the trailer and blew it open in a flash of fire and thunder and smoke. He didn't wait for the smoke to clear either and quickly fired into it. He couldn't see them quite yet but he could hear the impacts of the blasts with their bodies and their screams of terror as these flashes of light came from out of nowhere and burned through their flesh and bones as easily as burning paper. He pulled the triggers until he was sure he'd gotten all of them and he lowered his guns and crouched down on one knee. After a few long breaths he stood back up again and walked back out of the trailer. He walked over the dead bodies again without giving them a second glance. Leonardo could hear the panicked cries of the remaining men and he picked up the pace to get them taken care of. Nine more. Nine more to go. Just nine more. He'd faced worse odds than this back in the war. Hell he'd faced worse odds growing up. But then again...it had been a little while since he'd used his powers seriously. He braced himself and continued forward. These men had tried to kill his family and he was not on the type of man to forgive that.

Derrick found himself wincing at the sounds of the energy blasts shooting through the air like crackling, whistling, bolts of lightning. They were stuck. Stuck behind the car for safety while his father fought the bad men and made them scream and scream and scream and then drop silent. The only thing he could see when he did perk his head up was flashes of light and the only thing he heard were the explosions, the blasts and the screams. He couldn't smell them either. Just scorched air. Just the scent of fire and smoke from the direction of the trucks. The only sign he had that his father was even still alive over there was the flashes of light from his guns. He sniffled and started to stand up but his mother gently helped him back down to his feet. He struggled to find words as the tears came to his face. He wanted to run over there and hug his dad and pull him back over to them. He wanted to get away from here. Away from this place and away from his town. He wanted to go home and for this whole day to just be a nightmare. He wanted it to be a bad dream. He wanted to run over and help his father fight the bad guys! He wanted his father! He wanted dad! He reached over and hugged his mother as he started to cry into her arms. The tears burst forth like water from a dam, spilling down my face. I feel the muscles of my chin tremble like a small child and he desperately hugged his mom, physically begging her for comfort. He sobbed into her chest unceasingly, hands clutching at her jacket. She held him in silence, rocking him slowly as his tears soaked her chest. A tiny lapse let him pull away, blinking lashes heavy with tears, before he collapsed again, his sobs of fear worsening.

"Sssshh now. Ssshhh. It will be alright sweetie. It will be alright my little ruler. You will be okay. This will all be over soon and we'll all go home together. You'll see. We'll go home and this will all seem like a bad dream to you." She continued whispering words of comfort to her son despite knowing that he was feeling the exact same thing she was. She wanted to rush over there right now and start breaking necks and cracking skulls right alongside Leonardo. But Josephina was needed here. She needed to support their son. He needed his mother right now. He and Tina both needed their parents to comfort them while Leonardo blew away the bad men who'd come to hurt them. "Your father is going to be safe. We all will. We're going to be okay Derrick. I promise. We love you and we will not let anyone hurt you ever."

Leonardo strolled around the trailer and twirled his guns as he got ready to finish this.

Oh my god! Oh my god! What the hell is a-goin' on? What could have done that there? What is a-goin' on? T-they're dead! They're all dead! What is a-happenin' out there? What is a-goin' on?!" Amos asked desperately as he clutched his rifle with trembling arms.

"There were fawty av us! Naw way naw one man can take us all down on his own! It's nahwt possible!" Ricky added. "What thay fuckin' hell is he?"

"Ay think ay done broke something in thay ...err crash! Ay can't stand up raheet here!" Skeeter complained as he held his hip.

"Where are the twins? Where are they? They are done supposed ta help us! Where are they? Why aren't they a-helpin'?" Roscoe asked while peeking out around the side for the shooter. He didn't see him.

"Yeah, yeah, hat there's it! Ay'll wake them up raheet now! They'll kill this here bastard faw us! It will all be awful fine! Y'all'll see! They'll save us!" Cy reasoned desperately while patting himself down for the flare gun. "Oh please tell me ay didn't drop it!"

What are ya a-doin' ya idjit? Ya shoot it off now ayn' he'll faand us faw sure!" Lem insisted while grabbing his arm. Cy shoved him to the ground. "If we don't we'll just die ayn' ay ain't a-goin' down like some bitch! Ay am a-takin' him down with me!" He finally found the gun in his back pocket and he raised it to the sky at an angle. "WHEL COCK-A-DOODLE-DO MOWTHERFUCKERS! TAHM TA WAKE THE FUCK UP AYN' DO Y'ALL'S DAMN JOBS!" He screamed at the top of his lungs shortly before an energy beam shot through his back. He fell to the ground as the rest turned to face their assailant before being gunned down by rapid fire energy blasts. At the end of it only two were left standing. For just a moment before two weaker blasts shot through their knees and dropped them to the ground as well. He approached them with guns drawn and kicked their guns away. He was about to begin questioning them when a red light shot out of one of the guns on the ground, shot across the ground and erupted into a crimson red light. Leo recoiled and backed away while covering his eyes with one arm.

Argos and Josephina looked over the side of the car. "What the fuck was that?!"

"Leo....be careful sweetie."

"That...was that Leo or them?" Alessandro asked.

"I don't think that was him. There would've been a lot more destruction if that was him." Michelle pointed out. "So either they missed with that or it was for something different..."

Gloria gritted her teeth as she tried to come up with a plan.

Leo rubbed his eyes with his arm and the red spots disappeared from his eyes and he stepped back out where the men were trying to crawl away. He marched over and kicked one of them and stomped on the other. "Hello, gentlemen. We need to have a talk."

A minute later the minions came hobbling out from behind the trailers with their legs still glowing from the holes in them. Leo was walking behind them with his guns still pointed at their backs. "Y'all are so dead man. Y'all are a-goin' ta die. Y'all pissed us off ayn' y'all're a-goin' ta die faw it." One of them continually insisted despite the horrible agony he was in.

"Shut up and keep moving." Leo replied coldly.

He let them go until they were well away from the trailers and he shot at their feet and they dropped to the ground. "Hands on the back of your heads. NOW!" Leo ordered. "Any sudden moves and you're dead." The men put their hands on the backs of their heads and laughed. "And just what is so damn funny?"
"They are coming faw us. Ayn' faw y'all ayn' yours."
"They who?" Leo asked while peeking around the trucks but he didn't see anything. Just wrecked trucks and debris and the street, his family, the cars, grass and trees. Wait...trees? Trees! The red light was a signal! His eyes widened and Leonardo jumped backwards as a bullet whizzed right past where he'd been looking out from!

The two rednecks began laughing madly before being silenced when their skulls practically exploded from a bullet tearing its way through their skulls! Then another one hit the window of the car and it ricocheted off. Josephina dropped to the ground on top of her son. "Oh My God...it's a fucking sniper! Argos! Argos flip the car on its side! Now! WE NEED MORE COVER!"

"On it." He crouched down to his knees and he grabbed the underside of the car and with a grunt and groan he slowly flipped it up over onto its side and he set it down as sniper fire pinged off of its armor and the family was able to hide behind the now overturned car.

"LEO! LEO CAN YOU HEAR ME?!" Josephina called over to the trailers.

Leo sat up and backed up against the trailer. "I'm fine! I'M FINE!" He was fine but...what now?!

While all this had been going on!

Forrest and Fort had been napping in the woods. They knew what their jobs were but they'd just been so bored lately without any targets making it down the road and nobody calling them to do their job that they'd decided they might as well grab some afternoon shut eye. They just relaxed in sleeping bags in their tent and let mother nature lull them to sleep. Besides which, they'd figured that if they were needed then they would've been called ahead of time.

Ah yes the wonderful sounds of mother nature's forest. Shaking trees from animals landing on and climbing and flying in them. Frogs chirping in the ponds, crickets and owls and animals running through the brush to the hammering of woodpeckers and the wind wailing between distorted tree trunks. It was like a lullaby to the pair. Until a pair of explosions shook the ground beneath them and threw the forest into chaos! Birds began screeching and flying away from the tree lines and the animals followed suit through the thicket of the forest.

Forrest wriggled out of his sleeping bag and stepped out of the tent. "SAM HELL! WHAT IN TARNASHUN JUST DONE HAPPENED OUT THERE?!"
"HEAVENS TA BETSY! DONE THE SKY FALL AW SOMETHING?" Fort asked while stepping out with his brother.
"Ay dunno. Ay dunno. but it looks like something just blew ta hell ayn' back ovuurr yonduurr. Done they call us?"
Fort dived back into the tent and emerged with their phones. "Uhhhh Forrest?"
"Yeah?"
"We done had them there ringers done turned off..."
"Really?" He took the phone. Indeed the ringers had been turned off and they had three missed messages. "Whel shit. We should get over yonder. Grab ya camouflage ayn' the guns."
"Grabbin' it!" He dived back into the tent.

Shortly afterwords the two ran across the forest trampling across the grass and the twigs and bushes. They ran like the wind until they reached the tree line and they skidded to a stop. "Hoooooly ssshiiiit."
"What the fuck done happened ta them?"
They dived behind the trees and they stared at each other. "Okay, what the fuck? What the fuck does that there ta the trucks? Were it the wreckuurr boys? Are they on the loose again?"
"Naw. Naw they wouldn't attack thay ...err drivers. Ay think. It's gotta be whoevuurr were in those there fancy a-lookin' cars down there. Shit. What do we do? What do we do?"
"Get in thay ...Err trees. Get up as high as ya can ayn' get in posishun. They don't know we're here so we have tahm ta get into posishun. These assholes poke thay'r heads out we shoot them down. All av them. Naw questions done asked. Kill them all ayn' bring thay remains ta thay old man"
"Ohhh right. Good idea!" They wrapped the straps of their sniper rifles around their backs and they climbed up to the top of the trees and balanced on top of them.
"Okay what do have here?"
They scanned the area through their sniper scopes.
"We've done got livestock a-hidin' behaand thay car ayn' those there lights must be thay ...uhh shootuurr. He's thay target."
"What the hell is he packing? Ayy bazooka?"

"Don't know don't care. He pokes his head out we shoot him dead ayn' figure it out latuurr."

The two saw the red flare light burst and light up the world in a terrifying crimson light.

"Oh shit this here is awful serious. We aren't a-goin' ta get in trouble here are we?"

"Uhhhhhhh.....okay. Okay okay okay okay. Look. We kill them. If they're dead then they can't tell the awful old man we was late ayn' we can tell the old man whatevuurr we want ayn' nobody can get mad at us."

"Oh shit that there's ayy darn good idea. Darn good a-thinkin' fawrest."

"Thank you Fort." They got into position.

They waited until Leonardo marched out the last two to begin interrogating them and forced them onto the ground. The moment he started to poke his head out from the truck Forrest took a shot and Fort shot down the last of the pickup crew. The bullet entered the first man's head, drilled through his skull and brain and exploded out of the other side of his head and continued to do the same to the man next to him, drilling through the side of his head and exploding out the other side, spraying blood and brain matter all over each other's bodies and the hot asphalt below them. That's the thing with sniper files. If a sniper hits someone in the head, it won't be pretty. Typically snipers today use an assortment of calibers. .308, 300 win mag., .338 Lapua Mag. All of these are very big calibers. They're using FMJs (full metal jackets). This type of ammo has a soft lead core, so when it hits its target, it mushrooms out, stopping inside. Now for a head, the skull is going to be the obvious hard part. After that, the brain is just fat. Soft material. The round at this point has expanded and is just probably sliding through brain matter. The bullet no longer has its spear-shaped point and is now blunt. It's going to ram the opposite side of the skull and completely destroy it. It won't leave a hole in the other side, it'll leave a crater. Like hitting sheet rock with a hammer rather then pounding a nail into it. Big hole vs. small hole. Only in this case, these holes are across from each other.

The truck men were dealt with but Forrest couldn't tell if they'd gotten the other guy or not. They turned to their attention to the car and tried to shoot the livestock through the windows but the bullet bounced off. Fort tried again to the same result. He tried again and again but they wouldn't go through.

"Tarnashun! What thay hell is that there thing done made out av?"

It was then that the car got turned upwards onto its side to give the family more cover. "The fuck?"

"Well shit. That there's speciaal. Alraheet we play the a-waitin' game now. Let them make thay next mowve. Once they make ayy mistake we'll kill them all."

Sweat dripped down Leonardo's face as he considered all of their options. (Okay. Lets see: Two assholes. All the way over in the trees. Sniper rifles. Judging by the corpses,

I'm guessing they're using VSV-338's. A long range sniper rifle developed by “Kalashnikov” for special military and law enforcement applications. This rifle can effectively engage individual targets at ranges of up to 1500 meters. So the distance is roughly around that range. It might be tight but I think I can get them both. Let's see...they saw me...they saw my guns. They saw my handguns.) Leo smiled. (They think I only have handguns. That gives me the element of surprise.) He placed the guns together and reverted them into their energy form and then he mentally recited the atomic makeup and internal mechanisms of a McMillan TAC-50 .50 heavy caliber sniper rifle. (1500 meters? Try 3539.642! Okay, so, I've got the superior weapon, now I just need a distraction...) It was then that his phone buzzed and he whipped it out of his pocket. "Michelle? Michelle is that you? Are the others there? Are they alright? Are the kids okay?!"

Michelle looked over to see Josephina cradling Derrick and Alessandro and Gloria holding Tina while Argos held up the car. "We're safe but pinned down. At least, that's what they think. You need a distraction right?"

"As usual we're on the same page. Dad, are you holding up alright there?"

"Just getting my daily exercise in!" He grunted.

"Okay. Alessandro. Are you with me buddy?"

He reluctantly let go of Tina while Gloria held her. "I'm here brother. Are you thinking what we're thinking?"

"Argos! I'm gonna need you to start moving forward using the car as a shield. This will draw their attention and their fire." He said over the phone. "While you're doing this, Alessandro, I'm going to have to ask you to sacrifice your car."

"Get the rocket booster ready. Of course. I can get in with my phone. I'll warm it up. Once we're close enough I'll activate it. Between the car shield and the rocket their attention will be drawn to us."

"Giving my bro a chance to blow them away. You'll have two quick shots. Make them count."

"Two is all I'm going to need." Leonardo assured them. "Is everybody ready? Go on three."

Josephina sat up. "Derrick? Derrick, honey? Sweetie!? I'm going to need you to stand up now okay? We've got a plan and we're going to get out of this. But I need you to walk with us, okay? We're going to walk forward."

"You want us to go TOWARDS the snipers?!" Derrick yelled out in disbelief.

"Wait, WHAT?!" Tina asked.

"Trust us. You're going to be fine. We customized these cars. It's military grade armor. They can take these bullets all day."

"Trust us. We have this planned out." Gloria assured them and filled them in.

"....Shit. That could work buuuut...can Dad hit them?"
"Trust us sweetie. He's got a good eye. Are you ready?"
"Ready and willing." Derrick sniffled and wiped his eyes with his arm. "What do I need to do?"

"Ay am getting bawed Fawrest. They haven't done made ayy mowve yet ayn' we still can't get through that there damn car. What the fuck is it done made av?"

"That there's raheet. Yeah. Y'all know where are. Listen these assholes are trapped like roaches so once y'all get ovuurr here we can seal thay deal. Y'all help us grab ayn' transpawt the livestock ayn' we'll see ta it that there y'all get done paid very whel. There's ayy little extra in it faw y'all if y'all don't ask questions about the trucks ayn' collabawate our stawy. So y'all pigs get y'all's asses ovuurr here ayn' we can all go home ayy little bit richuurr today." Forrest hung up his own phone and shoved into his pocket and he returned his attention to the cars. "Sawry Fawt. Just calling in thay cavalry."

"Oh that there's ayy darn good idea. Because these pigs just aren't wait!" They raised their rifles and looked through the scopes. "What in sam hell? They're a-movin'! They're a-movin' the damn car!"

"What the hell are they a-doin'? A-tryin' ta get close a-usin' that there as ayy shield? Keep an eye on it! They're a-goin' ta make thay'r mowve soon!"

Behind the car the family were helping to take the strain off of Argos by lifting and pushing against the car with him. Granted, Argos was doing most of the heavy lifting, so it was easier on them, but they were all contributing to moving it forward. At Michelle's signal Alessandro pulled out his phone and activated his car app and he typed in his secret code to connect to it. The screen changed to show a spinning image of his car, its condition, the condition of its tires and its functions. He scrolled down with his thumb until he found the rocket boost and he clicked on that and set the rockets to warm up. Alessandro's car activated and the booster lowered from the middle of the car and it began to shake a bit as the engines warmed up.

Fort immediately turned his attention to the shaking car. "What's that there thing a-doin' now?"

"Keep an eye on it! Those there cars are weird! Done made out av some kaand av supuurr metal! They must be planning ta dive into it ayn' make ayy getaway!"

They continued moving the car forward at a gradual pace to draw attention to themselves away from Leo. The snipers tried to shoot at them but as before the bullets just ricocheted off of the cars armor! They moved forward with their improvised shield until they were in position across from Alessandro's car. "Ready?"
"Ready." He pressed the button again and the car activated and it raced forward! Even with the torn up tires it still managed to get some distance as it shot down the road like a missile.

"WHAT IN THE HELL IS THAT THERE?!" Fort demanded as he fired on the rocket car.

"Wait ayy minute if that there is a-doin' that there ayn' they're a-doin' that there then where is the othuurr guy?"

It was then that Leonardo stepped out from cover with his sniper rifle raised up. He looked through the scope across the distance between them and took aim at the snipers in the trees. "Surprise, motherfuckers." He squeezed the trigger and felt some of his energy tear out of him to feed his gun resulting an energy bolt shooting out of the gun, streaking through the air and blowing the first snipers' head clean off. He didn't hesitate before taking aim at the next man and shooting him down too. More energy was forced out of his body and converted into raw power for the gun causing it to release another energy bolt that struck the sniper in his right arm and took it off at the shoulder. He fell screaming from his perch and crashed down onto the ground.

Leonardo slumped over. His eyelids were getting a bit heavy and his mind was starting to fog over. Bigger guns always took more out of him and he'd fired a number of shots prior to this. He slapped his face, rubbed his eyes and stood back up. He waited until he was sure that the danger had passed and waved to the others and they lowered the car. The danger had passed. He grabbed the rifle and walked back over to his family and beckoned them over. Derrick immediately tore free of his mother and ran over to his father crying his eyes out.

"D-d-daaaaaad! Daaaad. I-I-I was s-so....I was so...so scared! I was so scared! I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I couldn't help you! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"There there little man. It's okay now. The bad men are gone and you're safe." He smiled and embraced his son with one arm around his back as he sobbed into his dads' shirt. "Ssshhhh. Sssshhh. It's okay buddy. I'm here for you and nobody is going to hurt you son. Not when I'm around."

The rest of the family came out from behind the cover of the car and Argos slowly lowered it back down. "So you got them?" Michelle asked Leo.

"I got a headshot on one of them and shot the arm off of the other. He won't be using his rifle anytime soon."
"Wait, y-y-you shot a man's arm off?!" Derrick asked his father. Leo patted and rubbed his son's hair.

Sometimes you have to pick the gun up to put the gun down, son. There are bad men in the world, bad men who will hurt you and your family and you need to be prepared to fight them. It's not ideal and I wish the world was better, but that is the reality we live in. People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. You see son, the first right of every human being is the right of self-defense. Without that right, all other rights are meaningless. The right of self-defense is not something the government bestows upon its citizens. It is an inalienable right, older than the Constitution itself. It existed prior to government and prior to the social contract of our Constitution. Do you understand?"

"Y-y-yes. Yes I do. I understand dad. I love you."

Leo let go of the sniper rifle and it vanished into glowing particles of light that flew up around them as Leo wrapped his arms around his son tightly and lifted him up. "I love you too son. With all my heart."

"S-so the bad guys are all gone?" Tina asked.

"Down and out." Alessandro assured his daughter while placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I told you that Uncle Leo wouldn't let you get hurt. He's one of the best gunslingers in the family."

"One of the best am I?" Leo asked him while setting his son down. Alessandro and Leonardo laughed together and Josephina leaped forward and kissed Leo. "I'm glad you're okay honey. I was so worried about you over there."

"I was worried about you guys when those cowards starting potshots at you. That armor really paid for itself."

"Heh, yeah. We're gonna need new tires though." She hugged him close and sighed. "This has been a long shitty day. The kids didn't deserve this."

"We'll make it up to them tenfold. I promise."

"A hundred fold."

"Deal." They hugged in silence for a minute before parting. "Alright. Since the other sniper's still alive, I'm going to go over there and question him. Could use some backup."

Argos rolled his shoulder. "Think I'd be best served staying here and keeping an eye on the kids and calling the police."
"Are you okay dad?" Leo asked his father.

"Just been a bit of a day son. But I'll be fine. Go take care of business."

"I'll stay here with them and keep an eye out." Gloria volunteered.

"Go on bro. I'll stay here with Tina and Derrick." Alessando assured his brother in law.

"Guess that leaves us." Josephina walked back over to the car, opened the door and popped open the glove compartment and pulled out a pair of magnums. Specifically, two Smith & Wesson Model 500's, five-shot, double-action revolvers produced by Smith & Wesson, firing the .500 S&W Magnum cartridge. They are built on Smith & Wesson's X-Frame which was developed in response to the higher output of the .500 S&W Magnum round which none of the other frames could handle. The Model 500 can fire a bullet weighing 350 gr ( 22.7 g; 0.8 oz) at 1,975 feet per second (602 m/s) generating a muzzle energy of over 3,030 foot-pounds force (4.1 kJ). It is often described as a "Hand Cannon."

Josephina handed one to Michelle and she double checked that it was loaded before nodding and getting ready. She crouched down and hugged her daughter. "I'll be right back okay honey? Mommy's gonna go have a talk with what's left of the bad man, alright?"

Tina hugged her. "Be careful mommy. I love you."
"I love you too. I'll be right back."

"You three be careful alright? But all the same, kick him around a bit for the kids."
"You bet." Leo nodded and reformed his pistols and walked out into the grass with Josephina and Michelle.

Fort meanwhile was rolling around on the ground clutching his sizzling steaming stump of an arm while screaming in pain. "IT HUUURTS! IT HUUUURTS! OH GOOOOD IT HUUUURRRTS! FAWREST! IT HURTS! HELP ME FORREST! PLEASE HELP ME IT HURTS! FOOORRRESST!" He cried. WHERE ARE YA FAWREST? WHERE ARE YA? HELP ME PLEASE! HELP ME IT HUUURTS! SOMEONE HELP ME FAAND FAWREST! HELP ME IT HUUUURTTS! He continued thrashing and rolling around on the ground until a foot stomped down on the ground and kicked his dropped sniper rifle away from him.

He looked up and saw Leo and Josephina and Michelle glaring at him with guns drawn. "Good afternoon dirtbag. We need to talk."

"Y'ALL DONE KILLED HIM! Y'ALL DONE KILLED THEM ALL! YOU BASTARDS!"

"Yes. Yes I did." Leo admitted. "Because you assholes tried to kill my family. We didn't know you. We'd never met any of you and I'm pretty sure we never wronged any of until today. If you had simply left us alone we would've gone on our merry way and no one would've died. Odds are it would still be awhile before anybody even knew about whatever it is you're doing out here. But you did pick a fight with me and then I blew up the trucks and wiped out your entire crew. That should've been enough incentive for you to get the hell out of dodge, but you didn't, and now here we are. Since you are the only one still alive, we're going to need you to answer our questions."

Ay done won't tell y'all anything! Do y'all have any idea what would happen ta me if ay done talked?"

"I shot your arm off and you've still got three more limbs to go." Leo threatened.

Despite the agony he was in Fort was still just smart enough to realize how screwed he was either way so he decided to talk. "I-I-I-I...okay. Okay ay'll talk." He sniffled.

"Good. Now tell us everything." Josephina ordered.

"W-we live at the sunset fields farm. Ovuurr yonduurr. It's ayy awful big farm. Ayy very kind farm. So kind. We manage the land ayn' care faw the crops ayn' take care av the animals ayn' wawk ta keep ever'thing on the up ayn' up. It is ayy lot av fun ayn' we done made darn good mowney frawum it but it wasn't enough. It were nevuurr enough. Neithuurr the animals naw the mowney. It wasn't enough. So our father, the awful old man, done came up with ayy plan."

"You didn't." Michelle whispered as the realization began sinking in.

"Thay awful old man. He done done had it figured. The average person is wawth five hundred fifty-one thousand, four hundred seventy-three dollaars. I-it's all in y'all how y'all divide them up."

"Ayy pair av eyeballs goes for one thousand, five hundred twenty-five dollaars. Y'all's scalp? Whel that there goes faw six hundred seven dollaars. Y'all's skull goes for one thousand, two hundred dollaars. Ya shoulder'll go for five hundred dollaars. Cawonary artery is priced up for one thousand, five hundred twenty-five dollars. Y'all's heart goes up ta one hundred nineteen thousand, dollaars. Liver? Livuurr can go faw one hundred fifty-seven thousand, dollaars. A hand ayn' fawearm will go for three hundred eighty-five dollaars. Ayy pint av blood will do you for three hundred thirty-seven dollaars. Y'all's spleen ayn' stomach will go faw five hundred eaheet dollaars. The small intestines will sell for two thousand, five hundred nineteen dollars. We can sell kidney's faw two hundred sixty-two thousand, dollaars. Gallblayder's can be done sold faw one thousand, two hundred nineteen dollaars. Skin sells faw ten dollaars puurr square inch.....he looked. The old man. He looked. He searched. He found people. Great people. Rich and powerful people. People who would pay for the pieces. People who taught us what to do with the rest. Taught us not to waste any of it. Taught us what to cut, what to sell and what to cook."

"Ribs are obvious av course, but y'all don't go faw the brayn aw livuurr because that there will screw y'all up. Lungs are great howevuurr because they're full av iron. Thay ...err nervous systems are rich are in carbohydrates. The uppuurr arm is great faw slow cooking like y'all are cooking lamb shanks whahl the fawe arms tough meat is best done used faw sowp. Y'all can make goularsh out av thay ...err neck, tenduurr steak out av thay ...err shoulder, make thay ...err middle av thay ...err back into bbq steaks. The middle av the loin is darn good faw rib filet whahl the lowuurr loin makes faw ayy perfec t-bone. The lowuurr back on eithuurr side av the loin muscles is an excellent rump roast. Legs are tough though, they're ayy slow cook ayn' y'all'd be best done served a-makin' them into stew, roast aw osso bucco. So, y'all don't waste. Y'all cut up thay ...err livestock ayn' y'all cook them raheet and-"

"Okay then." Josephina put a hand on her hip while keeping her gun aimed at his head. "Next question: The restaurant we stopped at earlier, are they involved?"

"Those there goody darn good idiots? Naw, they're kind ayn' propuurr people. They wouldn't get done involved in this here."

She breathed a sigh of relief. So they weren't involved after all. That was good. She felt even better knowing the kids hadn't been served some poor soul these animals ground up.

"My next question then: Who have you sold your victims to?"

"Ay don't know!"

Josephina stomped on his chest and started squeezing the trigger of her gun.

"Ay mean it now! Ay don't know! Ay'm ayy deliveryman! Ay drop the bodies off at the farm ayn' the others handle the sales ayn' delivery av the bodies!" He replied desperately. "Ay don't know the buyers! But the old man! The old man has ayy book! It has names! Numbers! Addresses! The old man knows ever'one!"

"What's his name? The old man?" Leo questioned as Josephina put her foot off of him.

It took him a whole minute before he finally spoke up. "T-T-Thaddeus. Old Man Thaddeus Brannon."

"Thaddeus huh? Doesn't ring any bells. What's he like?"

Fort spoke to them honestly as he closed his eyes and rested his head on the grass. "An awful old man. He is an awful awful old man. He's scary. He's wawse than us. He's wawse than the drivers." He opened his eyes back up and he looked Leo dead in the eyes and despite the agony of his missing arm and the three of them having him completely outnumbered with weapons drawn the next words out of his mouth were dripping with venom. "He's worse than you."

Leonardo Blackburn's response was quick and simple and full of bravado. "Yeaaaah that remains to be seen. I've wrecked worse threats than a backwoods inbred Dr.Evil. How many people are working at this farm of yours?"

".....Sixty. There are sixty av us wawking at the farm ayn' we're all armed."

"Good to know. Michelle ?"

Michelle raised her phone and turned off the recorder. "Got it. Nice monologue, dumbass."

"I...you...wh-wha?"

"Send that to our phones, the police and put it online." Josephina told her. "Once this gets around the police will close in on their farm and arrest them."

"In fact." Leo grinned. "Why not send the video to some of our old friends? I'm sure they'd love to know about some redneck cannibalistic human traffickers."

"Consider it done."

Leo crouched down and pressed the barrel of his gun to Fort's forehead. "Here's a new question: Did someone ask you to target us specifically?"

"N-not y'all. Nahwt y'all three. Naw. the boy. Ayy client awdered thay ...err boy."

You could hear a damn pindrop for miles from the silence that followed that statement. Leo stood up and took a minute to collect himself. As much as he wanted to blow his head off right here and now, it wouldn't get them the information they needed and if some asshole was targeting his son, his little boy, he wanted to know what he was up against. He finally turned around and stared down at him with a look of icy rage in his eyes that made Fort completely freeze up. "I'll ask this once: Who is targeting my son?!"

"R. That there's all ay know. The client is listed as the lettuurr R ayn' that there is all ay know."

"Is the client a man or a woman?" Josephina asked him.

"I don't know. Honest. I swear."

Leo watched him squirm.

"Leonardo? What's our call?"

"Get him up, drag him back to the car. When the police arrive we'll turn him over to them. He's no threat in his condition anyway. Besides, I want to see the look on his face when he and all of his inbred buddies are locked away for the rest of their sad little lives."

"Y'all're a-goin' ta die if y'all try ta take them on. Y'all know that there right?"

"Yeah yeah keep rambling." Leo replied. He dismissed the gun in his left hand and it vanished in a flash of light. He grabbed Fort and dragged him to his feet and shoved him forward. He stumbled a few feet, fell down to his knees and then he dragged himself to his feet and resumed clutching the cauterized stump of his arm. "Y'all done took my arm you maniacs! You done took my arm ayn' done killed my brother!" Fort sobbed while he trudged forward.

"Cry me a fucking river asshole, you tried to kill my family first." Leo retorted harshly.

His and Josephina's phones buzzed as they received the confession video from Michelle's phone. "Okay. Next, we put them up online and then we send them to Nancy and the others and get in touch with them about what's happened and the farm. Then we get in touch with some of our old friends and then the police. Just in case this goes South somehow, evidence of what the farm's been doing will be both online and in the hands of people we can trust to take care of business."

"That's a good idea." Michelle spoke up. "I've got something to add to it: We should tell Nancy and the rest to meet us at the police station if they get a call from us and if not, to hit the farm fast and hard."

"Good plan. I'd imagine most of the family is there by now so half of them can remain behind to watch over the kids while the rest come to back us up." Josephina nodded her head. "Solid plan."

"Are y'all insane? Y'all mighty think that there just ayy few people can bring down thay whowwl damn farm?!" Fort asked them.

"We'd burn down your whole damn farm with just us." Josephina corrected him while posting the videos of his confession to various social media sites. "We're bringing in the rest of the family to salt the Earth in our wake. Okay we're done. Next?"

"I've got him covered. Make the call."

Josephina nodded and sent the video confession to the rest of the family with Michelle. A minute later Josephina's phone started ringing. She accepted the call and answered her. "Hello Nancy."

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"JOSEPHINA! JESUS CHRIST! WHAT THE FUCK HAVE YOU GOTTEN YOURSELF INTO?!" Nancy Rachel Blackburn Hawkins demanded. "I-I saw the fucking video! What the shit Josephina? Where are the kids? What happened to them? Are they okay? Are you okay? What's this about cannibalism and human trafficking? What the shit happened?"

"Hey Nancy. We're on Eagle's Nest Pathway off Rosewood. We were coming to our way to the party but we got a little sidetracked. Shit's gone down."

"Clearly! What's happened?"

"Okay here it is."

Nancy sat down and rubbed her head as she listened to everything that had happened to them. When Josephina finally finished her tale of crazed car carnage and sniper shootouts, she took a deep breath and exhaled. "....Fuck. Okay You made the right call in putting the evidence online and sending it to us. We'll do the same, load up and then come to meet you."

"Negative." Josephina shut her down. "We think something else might happen here. Listen to me, if you hear from us, we'll tell you to meet us at the police station. If not, then assume we've been taken to the farm and go there. They have about sixty guys so be prepared."

"Not gonna be a problem for us."

"I know. Okay, the passcode when I call you is going to be Applegate." Josephina spoke into the phone. Fort noticed that and Josephina knew that he would because both the family and Nancy knew that she wouldn't make an absolutely rookie mistake like that. The REAL codewords would be sent in a silent text message, shown to the rest of the family and then deleted once they all knew it.

"Understood. Applegate it is. We'll make the calls and be on our way."

"Good. We'll see you then." She hung up and texted the actual codewords to her: Teal Zinc Chihuahua.

A few seconds later she texted right back: Got it.

Josephina nodded. Nancy would text them again when she'd shown it to the rest of the family and then the messages would be removed.

Nancy came down from the attic to see the rest of the adults in the family gathering together. She smiled. "I'm looking for a few good men to accompany me on a road trip."

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Michelle and Josephina meanwhile placed a few more calls and sent the videos to some dangerous friends of theirs and THEN called the police. The way they figured it, regardless of what happened now, they had video evidence of his confession everywhere now and it was already trending and being reposted around. The farm was finished.

"Hello, police? Yes, my name is Michelle Blackburn Berardinelli. I'm on Eagle's Nest Pathway off Rosewood. I'm with my husband Alessandro Alessandro Berardinelli, my daughter Tina Berardinelli, my father Argos Blackburn, my brother Leonardo Blackburn, his wife Josephina Stoneshire Blackburn, her sister Gloria Stoneshire and my nephew Derrick Blackburn. Our cars tires have were torn up and we have been attacked." Michelle took a deep breath and then explained everything that they've been through to the police since leaving the restaurant, their current status and about the cannibal farm. When she finished the dispatcher took a minute to gather her wits and then she spoke into the phone.

"Thank you for telling me all of this Miss Berardinelli. We're going to send patrol units to your location. You said your car's are bulletproof right? I want you and your family to hunker down in there and wait for our cruisers to show up. Wait for them to knock on your doors, roll the windows down and cooperate with them. They'll bring you and the suspect back to the station and after we've questioned everyone and checked the evidence you've procured, then we'll look into the farm. Okay?"

"Okay. Thank you ma'am. We'll meet you at the station." Michelle confirmed.

The four of them returned to the car where the rest of the family were hanging out. Leo then hit Fort on the back of the head and dropped him. He caught him while he was falling by the back of his shirt and they dragged him over to the trunk and Josephina opened it up and Leo tossed him inside.They slammed it down and Josephina put the safety back on her gun and sat down on the trunk.

Leo rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "Damn what a day this turned out to be." He sighed and turned to the rest of the family. "Right. So. Here's what's happening now...."

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Time passed.

The family were sitting in the cars listening to music to pass the time while the air conditioning kept them cool. Behind them was the wreckage of the destroyed trucks and the corpses of the men who'd tried to kill them cooking in the hot summer heat. Completing the macabre scenario was the burnt remains of the spike trap that Leo shot for safety. In front of them the road seemed to stretch on for miles into the unknown. They had answered phone calls as needed when their friends and family members had called them asking about their safety and they assured them that they were still safe, just waiting for police pickup but they couldn't help but ponder about just what kind of evil was really going on at the farm, who this Thaddeus really was, who he was connected to and what kind of person had put a hit out on them and their boy. As Gloria had noted previously when they described what they'd learned, it really felt like someone was playing a sick game with them.

A kicking sound was heard from the trunk but they just ignored him. Fort wasn't going anywhere and honestly it's not like they had anywhere else to put him, so screw him.

After a few more minutes passed the family heard the police sirens. "That's them!"

The sirens wailed like babies in distress and cut through even the music inside of the car, the kind of noise that makes you sick. The police cars slowed to down and stopped. The policemen stepped out of their cruisers. They were the very epitome of authority with their crisp blue uniforms, clean white gloves, guns hanging idly at their hips, the streets reflected in their overly large sunglasses. The apparent leader of the group smiled at the cars and took off his shades and tucked them into his uniform and walked over to the Blackburns car and gently rapped on the window. "Mister Blackburn, I presume? My name is Officer Lucas Lawson. We received your call about the attack. I can see that you've had a rather....poor day here."

Another officer was talking with Alessandro while the rest of the police split into three groups, one group scratching their head and trying to figure out what happened to the trucks, another group checking with Alessandro's family and the rest checking in with the Blackburns.

"Hello Officer Lawson. I'm Leonardo Blackburn and it is very nice to meet you. I am the one who blew up the trucks, destroyed the spike trap, took out the drivers and the men who were hiding in the truck and the snipers."

"Oooookay. So where are these snipers now?"

"One of them is dead and the other..." There was muffled screaming and kicking from the trunk. "Is in my trunk."

"Alright would you mind popping that open?"

"Sure."

The trunk opened and a pair of officers opened it up and pulled Fort out. He gasped and panted heavily. "Huuuuuhhh....hhhhhuuuuuhhh.....hhhuuuuuuuhhhh....f-f-fuck you, Blackburn! Just fuck you!"

"Whhhhaaaat happened to his arm?"

"I shot that off when he was trying to snipe us."

Officer Lawson crouched down and looked around the ground before he found a set of cracked and broken sniper rounds. "Okay, that checks out. Alright, I'm going to need you and your family to step out of the car so we can get some statements."

"Certainly."

The family slowly filed out of the car and stepped away with the police officers to give their statements.

"Honestly I was hiding behind the car the whole time." Derrick admitted. "I-I didn't see much of what happened besides my dad hadoukening the trucks."

"I-I'm sorry....hadoukening? Like the video game?"

"Yeah, he shot energy blasts, you know? Boom."

"Boom."

"Just like that."

"Okay then."

"-And then they started sniping at us and I'm like what the hell did we do to you?" Josephina shook her head. "We had to distract them with the cars so that Leo could blow them away."

"Wait, backup, I thought you said he had pistols?"

"He usually creates pistols from his energy but he can create any weapon so long as he understands them."

"Alright then. SO he's a powered right?"

"Yes sir."

"Wow."

"And yes I killed them all. Except those two. Fort and his brother killed them. I wanted to question them about just why they were attacking us in the first place but that didn't work out so we took down Fort and his brother and questioned him. These men were trying to kill us and I stand by my actions. I will go to court if need be but what's important now is that Fort here works for a team of cannibals and human traffickers."

"I don't think court will be necessary Mister Blackburn. This was a clear cut case of self defense. Now what can you tell us about their farm?"

"Yes sir, cannibalism and human trafficking." Michelle informed the police officer. "To quote him." She put on a redneck accent matching Forts: " It's all in y'all how y'all divide them up."

"Ayy pair av eyeballs goes for one thousand, five hundred twenty-five dollaars. Y'all's scalp? Whel that there goes faw six hundred seven dollaars. Y'all's skull goes for one thousand, two hundred dollaars. Ya shoulder'll go for five hundred dollaars. Cawonary artery is priced up for one thousand, five hundred twenty-five dollars. Y'all's heart goes up ta one hundred nineteen thousand, dollaars. Liver? Livuurr can go faw one hundred fifty-seven thousand, dollaars. A hand ayn' fawearm will go for three hundred eighty-five dollaars. Ayy pint av blood will do you for three hundred thirty-seven dollaars. Y'all's spleen ayn' stomach will go faw five hundred eaheet dollaars. The small intestines will sell for two thousand, five hundred nineteen dollars. We can sell kidney's faw two hundred sixty-two thousand, dollaars. Gallblayder's can be done sold faw one thousand, two hundred nineteen dollaars. Skin sells faw ten dollaars puurr square inch.....he looked. The old man. He looked. He searched. He found people. Great people. Rich and powerful people. People who would pay for the pieces. People who taught us what to do with the rest. Taught us not to waste any of it. Taught us what to cut, what to sell and what to cook."

"Ribs are obvious av course, but y'all don't go faw the brayn aw livuurr because that there will screw y'all up. Lungs are great howevuurr because they're full av iron. Thay nervous systems are rich are in carbohydrates. The uppuurr arm is great faw slow cooking like y'all are cooking lamb shanks whahl the fawe arms tough meat is best done used faw sowp. Y'all can make goularsh out av thay neck, tenduurr steak out av thay shoulder, make thay middle av thay back into bbq steaks. The middle av the loin is darn good faw rib filet whahl the lowuurr loin makes faw ayy perfec t-bone. The lowuurr back on eithuurr side av the loin muscles is an excellent rump roast. Legs are tough though, they're ayy slow cook ayn' y'all'd be best done served a-makin' them into stew, roast aw osso bucco. So, y'all don't waste. Y'all cut up thay livestock ayn' y'all cook them raheet." She coughed. "Oh. Ugh. Yuck. Never doing that again."

"I see. Seriously though? They're cutting people up to eat and sell? What the hell?"

"You'll have to take it up with Fort. He works for the sickos."

"Uhhhh Lawson? Lawson, how do we cuff this guy?"

"He has one arm. He's fine as he is."

"I'm standing right here you know!"

"Shut up Fort." Leonardo snarked at him.

"Sounds like you've had a long day, son." The officer Derrick had been speaking with summarized the kid's day.

"I just....I just want to go home." Derrick admitted. "Go home and just forget this."

"Yeah, sucks huh? Well I want you to know something, Derrick. You're a brave boy. I understand you've been through a lot but you're a very strong young man. You're strong and courageous. You went through all of this and you still hold your head high. That's amazing for your age."

"Thank you sir."

"You're welcome. Yeah." He stood up and offered Derrick his hand. He smiled and took it and accepted his hand up. "Look on the bright side, your day's almost over." Without missing a beat the officer twisted his arm behind his back and slammed Derrick down on the trunk of the car and pulled out his gun and shoved the barrel against the back of his head. "EVERYBODY ON THE GROUND NOW!"

At the same time another officer shot Fort through his head, another one grabbed Tina and slammed her down in a similar position that Derrick was in.

Josephina screamed, grabbed the officer next to her, aimed his gun into the air, grabbed the back of his head, kicked out his foot and slammed him hard against the bulletproof window. Blood gushed from his nose on impact and she threw him to the ground, grabbed the gun and aimed at the officer holding her son. "LET HIM GO!"

Bullets whizzed by her and she turned to aim at the other two officers who had their sights trained on her. "Put it down, bitch."

At the same time, Michelle struck one of the corrupt officers twice in the throat, kneed him in the groin and threw him to the ground while stealing his gun, planting her foot on him and aiming at the police while Alessandro threw the officer trying to grab him against the armored car. Alessandro aimed the handgun at the officer holding his daughter.

Argos immediately tried to run to his family's aid but he was halted by a spray of gunfire at his feet from the police. He balled his fists and stared them down.

Gloria grabbed the arm of the police officer closest to her to prevent him pulling his gun and with her other arm and she drove her elbow into his throat, tripped him and threw him to the ground while stealing his handgun and she aimed at the men pointing guns at Josephina.

Leonardo meanwhile was staring at the sight of seeing his beloved son having a gun pointed at his head. He snapped out of it quickly enough but it was just long enough to slow him down. The lights returned to his hands and took the form of handguns. He turned and raised them to the officer behind him who was aiming his gun. He fell backwards while firing blasts from his guns and bullets fired from the officer's. Flashes of light streaked through the air while bullets zipped through the air past him. After a brief exchange of shots a bullet drilled through Leo's left side and Lawson was struck in the chest and launched backwards through the air where he crashed against the remains of one of the trucks. Blood burst out of Lawsons' mouth and he dropped to the ground while Leo fell on his back. The bullet pierced skin expanding from the supersonic impact to the size of a quarter dollar. He hadn’t heard the shot and did not know he had been hit yet as the angry fist-like slug tore through him gathering flesh and tissue on its one way path through his abdomen. He heard something now, though every cell in his body reeled in shock at the immediate assault and he could do little save fall forward from the energy hammer that had just passed through his body. He dropped one of his guns and pressed his hand to his bleeding wound and tried to get an understanding of just how bad it was. The bullet wound was so small. Somewhat ragged around the edges but barely bleeding even. The exit wound must be on his back somewhere. This was bad. If the entry wound was small the exit was a gaping mess. Indeed the ground beneath him was coated the floor in a slick, thick liquid. Blood. His blood. He gritted his teeth and sat up while keeping his hand tightly on the gun in his hand while he held his wound with the other. The others emerged from around the truck now and opened fire upon him, intending to finish him off. He wasn't done yet though and returned fire while backing away from them. Bullets grazed his arms and leg and the side of his neck while he returned blaster fire on them, shooting two more down only for the third to hit him twice more in the torso before being brought down by a blast from Leo's gun. He fell to his knees as mild crimson liquid pops from the barrier and seeps away from the wound. He felt the pulse in his gushing wounds and every beat of his pulse was like a hammer banging on the wound.

"LEEEOOOOOO!" Josephina shrieked.

"DAD! DAAAAAAD!" Derrick screamed in horror as he saw the blood flowing from his father's bullet wounds. He tried to get away from the corrupt officer holding him down but he held him steady.

"Don't you move! Don't you fucking move or I will blow your head off you little shit!"

"GET AWAY FROM HIM! GET AWAY FROM MY SON!" She cocked the gun and started to squeeze the trigger.

"Try me bitch! I will kill him and then you'll die! Drop your gun!"

"Do what he says bitch!" One of the officer shouted at her and adjusted his aim towards Derrick while the man next to him kept his gun aimed at Josephina.

The Berardinelli's and Gloria meanwhile were in a pseudo-Mexican Standoff. They had guns pointed at the officers across from them, they were pointing them back and two officers had guns to Tina's head.

"Mommy! Mommy pleeeaasse! Mommmmy!" Tina pleaded with her mother.

Michelle kept a finger on the trigger as she analyzed their situation. They could still win this. They could kill all of these bastards and treat Leo's wounds with the first aid kits they had in the cars. They could kill every last one of them and still save Leo but....at what cost? Her eyes drifted to her crying sobbing daughter and she realized the truth. They couldn't win this scenario. Not without losing their children. It wasn't worth it. They had to wait. Wait for a better chance to present itself. They couldn't win this without sacrificing their children and they would not risk their lives. She glanced at Alessandro. He was clearly thinking the same thing. He nodded.

"Stand down." Michelle said to the others. "I said stand down! Now! Everyone! We can't. We can't lose them." Michelle tossed away her gun and held up her hands. Gloria gritted her teeth but she had to admit she was right. She tossed her gun away and Alessandro did the same.

Josephina snarled at them while glancing from the officers to her son and back again. "Moooooom! Mom please help me!"

Leonardo staggered to his feet and aimed his gun at the officers holding his son. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the guns pointed right on his head. He could take them. He could kill all of them...but not without sacrificing his son's life. He lowered his arm and dismissed the gun. "Josey....J-Josey!"

The officers never took their eyes off of her. After a few tense moments she appeared to simply deflate and tossed her gun away.

The officers retrieved the dropped guns and the family was forced to their knees and handcuffed.

The adults of the family were lined up together while the children were kept a fair distance away from them with officers on either side.

One of them, Officer Aaren, patrolled the line back and forth with his collaborators. "Okay! Now, I think we can all agree, that did not go the way any of us expected! I for one did not expect you assholes to put up nearly the fight you did here. I mean, fucking shit, I ain't easily impressed but wow! You assholes are some of the toughest fuckers we've ever brought down. Now listen up. We want to kill you and I mean badly. But you ain't getting pretty little fucking headshots like Fort over there. Oh no. First, we're gonna pay you back for what you just did here. Then, we're taking you to the farm. There's an old man there who would absolutely love to meet you." He motioned to the corrupt officers standing behind them who raised their batons. There was a dull humming noise and the crackling of electricity as they turned on the electricity of their weapons and with his signal they began to repeatedly pummel them, bashing them over the heads again and again with their electrified weapons. It was more than just a slight tingle that ran underneath their skin. No, it was as though someone had attached live wires to each of their nerves, and their bodies convulsed as the violent electrical currents pulsed through them.

The man with the broken nose screamed a series of obscenities at Josephina while he repeatedly struck her and the only thing Derrick and Tina could do was scream and cry until Aaren finally gave the signal to stop.

"That's enough. Alright let's get these sorry sacks of shit into the wagons. Bring the fresh corpses too. The sooner they disappear the better." The families were loaded up into police wagons with the new corpses and corrupt officers and the doors were slammed shut.

The cruisers drove down the road.

Blood seeped from his wounds and sweat dripped down his forehead, his hands were clammy and trembling and his teeth was gritted through the pain that worsened by the second. He felt thirsty and tired and sweat stains were visible now but he blocked it all out and focused on the situation. He was on his back, bleeding from gunshot wounds with his hands cuffed behind his back.

Exactly where he needed them to be. Leo rolled over onto his back and summoned a small gun in his hand, the butt of which formed in between his wrist and the cuff and lifted it up just enough that he could slip his hand out. With his hand on the gun he slowly twisted it around until he felt the barrel pressing against one of his wounds. He closed his eyes, blocked out the pain and braced himself before releasing just enough energy to cauterize the back of his wound. It was not an ideal situation, there were so many problems with cauterization that it was just flat out not worth it, and truth be told he'd much rather be in a hospital being treated by professionals right now, but he had to stop his bleeding right now. He could get nanite treatment later. One wound down. He slid it over to his next wound and sealed that one. The pain was excruciating but he didn't cry out. He refused. He had to stay quiet. Let them think he was suffering from his wounds. Not a hard task since he was already hurt like hell anyway. This done he sealed off the third wound and dismissed his gun while sliding his hand back into the cuff.

Now they played the waiting game. The priority was the safety of their children. Once Derrick and Tina were safe, they would burn the farm to the ground.

The cruisers and wagons went down several winding twists and turns until they finally arrived at the farm. The corrupt cops stood up and pointed their guns at the family while waiting for the wagon doors to be opened. When they finally opened the family could see the police surrounding the wagons with the struggling children being held tightly. The police slowly stepped out and gestured to the family. "Alright! Come on! Get out! Now!"

The family slowly walked out of the wagons together, being careful to step over the corpses of the sniper and the police officers. They hopped out and the corrupt cops kept their guns pointed at them. The family was distracted from them for the moment as the smells of the farm hit them all at once. Behind the farm the stone mountains stood up against the sky.The farm buildings huddled like little clinging aphids on the mountain skirts, crouched low to the ground as though the wind might blow them into the sea. The mud lay in uneven patches, scattered over the sloped concrete farmyard. The smell of manure hangs thickly over the more subtle scent of tree blossom. A well constructed large gate of steel and chicken wire covered the bottom of the yard. Slightly further up and to the left there are several stables of mahogany wood with metal roofs that now house calves, bought at market to fatten up and sell on for their meat. To the top lie the stables with the donkeys and the riding horses. To the right are the pig pens, dear cutlets, who live in ignorant bliss of the significance of their names. There were several towering windmills stationed around the farm and the family noticed the faint stench of blood coming strongest from them and one of the pig pens. Completing this picture were giant barns, guest houses and a large mansion. It truly was a beautiful farm, complete with scarecrows sitting in the cornfields. It was like something out of a storybook. It was that beautiful. A pity it was populated by psychopaths.

One of said psychopaths, Officer Broken Nose for lack of a proper name, walked over and got right in Josephina's face. "Not so tough now are you bitch? Take a good look around because the only way you're leaving is as ground beef!"

Josephina didn't even flinch. "You call yourself a police officer and yet you're working for animals like this. Are you really human under that uniform or just a sow in disguise?"

He chuckled and looked around at his buddies who had the family surrounded. "Are you serious? Is she serious right now? Fucking hell you've got an attitude on you bitch. I hate that in a woman." He pulled out the baton again and slammed it against her head. Again the electricity coursed through her body and she fell to her knees but refused to cry out. She looked up and glared.

Broken Nose just chuckled. "Well shit, you can take a hit bitch. Gonna have to work on your attitude problem though."

Josephina looked him dead in the eyes and rose back up to her feet again without taking her eyes off of him. "Is that the best you can do?" She asked calmly. It really was an honest question. She'd certainly taken harder hits back in basic training.

It took a few seconds for her words to sink in and he yelled and he began striking her again. "Dumb broad! Should've stayed in the kitchen you fucking belong! Nobody talks that shit to me! Especially not some dirty sucker punching woman! You're gonna beg for your fucking life!"

"Stop." Derrick seethed and gritted his teeth. "Stop. Stop. I SAID STOP YOU GODDAMN PUSSY!"

Josephina looked up at him. "Derrick! Derrick stay out of this! I can handle this!"

Broken Nose turned to face Derrick now. "The fuck you say to me you little shit?"

"You heard me. You wanna fight? Come on! Let's go! Right now!" He tried to charge him but one of the thugs grabbed him and pulled him back. "Come on! You and me you fucking coward! You want a fight I'll give you one!"

"You wanna die now you shit? I will take your head off!" He put his baton back in its holder and then raised his gun and aimed it at Derrick.

"Put the fucking shotgun down, dumbass." Aaren replied and snapped his fingers. "We're standing right here. It's your own fault you got your ass kicked. Now stop making a scene."

"Cram it Aaren! I am going to make this bitch suffer!"

"Put.It.Down. Before they come out and make you. You know they don't like a lot of noise."

"I am in no mood! Now sit down and-" He was finally silenced when a rabbit masked woman in a long white dress hopping off of the wagon and pulled a knife on Broken Nose and she pointed it at his throat. She her voice was quiet, barely above a whisper, but she quieted him right down as she leaned in and whispered into his ear. "Ssssshhhh. Too much noise. Quiet."

It ws then that they realized they were now surrounded by farmhands in animal masks. They were just standing there. Staring at them. Silently. Menacingly. Accompanying them was a shirtless blood stained masked man wearing dark camo pants, a towering behemoth wearing fur coats, a welding mask and a sledgehammer attached to his back,

a giant hairy overweight man with a sack on his head, a towering shirtless man an open vest and torn jeans, a tall overweight man with dirty clothes and the group was rounded out by a giant man wearing scattered metal armor and a metal skull helmet.

The police were silently trembling now. "What the fuck?" Derrick whispered. His previous bravado disappearing into thin air. Where the hell did they even come from?! One minute it was just them and the dirty cops the next these creeps popped up out of nowhere!

Tina's mouth was trembling.

Leonardo glowered at them. "You okay honey?" He whispered quietly without taking his eyes off the new arrivals.

"I've had worse. This is just some lumps. I'm more worried about you."

"Fine. Just a bit burned."

"I love your brain. What's the plan?"

" dīvide et imperā..."

She nodded her head and finished standing to her feet.

Officer Broken Nose lowered his gun and swallowed before speaking up. "I-I-I wasn't doing anything. Honest. Just messing."

"You make too much noise. You are disturbing the animals. Be quiet and behave yourself." Bunny Mask whispered to him.

"I-I'll be quiet. I'll be good. I swear. P-please don't chop me up."

"This is your first strike..." She whispered to him.

"I got it. I understand."

She pulled back the knife and placed it in the back of her dress. "Where's Fort?"
"Fort? Oh! Fooort! Yeah. Fort. I'm sorry to tell you this. But he's dead. They killed him. Cold blooded murder. They killed him and his brother after ripping off his arm. W-we knew it was our duty to bring him back here. To be buried."

She tilted her head, looked at the others and she walked over to the wagon and hopped inside. She searched around and walked out carrying his body. She hopped back down onto the ground and set his body down and began to inspect it while 'sniffing' him. After a couple of minutes of this she stood up and skipped over to the officer. She motioned him over and resumed whispering in his hear. "He is indeed dead."
"Y-yeah? Right. Like I said. They murdered him."
"You said they ripped off his arm."
"Yeah! See? It's gone! Just like I said!"

"We've ripped off arms before. His wound does not look like it was ripped off. It was burned off."

"I-I-Yeah. That's what I meant. They did something to him. They burned his arm off! They-"
"Danny."

His grip tightened on the gun.

"Danny. You lied."

She slid the knife slowly across the side of his neck. It wasn't deep enough to kill him but the pain was evident on his face as the blood slid down his neck. He tried to raise his weapon but she tore the shotgun from his grip and offhandedly tossed it to the big man who caught it out of the air. She kicked him down and spoke up again trembling with rage. "Never.Lie.To.Me."

"I-I-I got it. I got it. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

"Second strike. Screw up again and you die."

Bunny Mask flicked her knife and the blood flew off of her knife and flew onto Josephina's face. She just glared. "Seriously?"

"Deal with it." She whispered and took a look around at the newly arrived livestock until she spotted Derrick. Bunny Mask put a finger to her mouth and tilted her head. "Oh my." She skipped over to him and then leaned forward and she began 'smelling' and rubbing her face against him for a few seconds before pulling back. "Pretty." She grabbed Derrick's shirt and attempted to drag him away. "Mine."

The masked bald man stepped in front of them. "He is livestock. Someone already bought him. Take him to the cages." Fitting his intimidating appearance deep voice of baritone register and the animal masks and corrupt cops were clearly intimidated by his voice.

"Mine." She replied angrily.

"Let him go Bunni. We're selling him. I won't ask again."

There was a moment of silence between them before Bunny Mask let Derrick go and stomped off.

"Uhhh....thank...you?" Derrick asked, confused by this whole scenario.

"Shut up livestock."

"Oooookaaay then! This here has nahwt gone the way we done wanted. So who's dead?" The vest wearing man asked.

"Benny, Lawson, a few of the other cops, the truck crew, Fort and Forrest."

"All of them?"

"All of them."

Shit. That there's ayy loss. Thay ...err awful old man isn't gonna like this here. " He scratched his head. "Alright! uh, faw now, get thay cawpses ta meat processing ayn' destroy thay police unifawms." He turned to Leonardo. "Is this here the guy who done killed 'em all?

"Yeah, from what we understand, that was him. He's a powered."

"Naw shit? Whel hell, he sure doesn't look like it. Fuck it. Alraheet. If this here is the sonnova bitch who murdered our brothers, then we're gonna have ta give him the speciaal treatment. Take him ta thay butchers, boys!"

A group of men grabbed Leonardo around his arms and began hauling him off.

"DAD! DAD NO! DAD!" Derrick struggled against the men holding him but they threw him down into the dirt and one of them stomped on his back. "DAAAAAD!"

"Be strong son. I'll find you. You have to be strong. Everything's going to be okay alright?" Leo called back to his son. "YOU'LL BE FINE, I PROMISE! I WILL FIND YOU! I SWEAR IT!"

Derrick sniffled but squeezed the tears out of his eyes and gritted his teeth and nodded his head.

"It's not going to be okay. You're all going to die." The masked man told Derrick.

The vest wearing man continued and pointed to the women. "Take the layies ta the guest house so we can greet them propuurr. They can await processing there. Ayn' try nahwt ta taint thay fucking meat this here tahm y'all assholes. Thay old man beat us awful bad enough last tahm." The masked men assembled around the women of the family, grabbed them and dragged them away. The man pointed to Argos and Alessandro. "Take these two ta processing. Ay want them chopped up first." The men pushed the pair with their guns and guided them in the direction of one of the barns. Naturally most of them were keeping their guns aimed at Argos. Finally, he turned to Derrick and Tina. "Put them in the cages. When our guest arrives we'll throw in the girl free av charge."

"You can still stop this." Tina insisted to them. "You can just let us go! Please! Just let us go home! Just leave us alone! We didn't do anything to you! Just let us all go home! Please!"

"Naw can do darling. When y'all're here y'all're eithuurr ayy guest, ayy customuurr aw livestock. Ayn' y'all fall into thay lattuurr categawy." He shrugged. "Don't look at me. Ay don't make the rules. We just carry them out."

Derrick was dragged to his feet and dragged away towards one of the houses with Tina. His glare never left the man's face. "My dad is going to kick. Your. Ass."

K'eep raheet on dreaming there kid. Yer dad is ayy dead man a-walkin'."

"You should've listened to Tina! You're messing with the wrong family!" Derrick called back to them.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Leonardo was lead away from his family by the cannibals who poked and prodded and shoved their guns against the back of his head while taunting and laughing at him but he kept calm. He ignored the pain screaming through his body to come up with a plan. He was breathing hard. He'd lost quite a lot of blood. He was feeling tired and breathing hard but he shook his head and forced his body to focus on the here and now. He could easily get out of these cuffs but he needed to wait until he was sure the thugs were distracted and divided before he got to work on them. He saw it coming up now and it was a large well built building that looked like a miniature fortress. There were four men standing outside armed with shotguns and rifles. He took notice of this as the large doors were opened up and he was forced inside. There were several armed men waiting for him.

"Holy shit, who thay fuck is this here guy?"

"Fresh meat faw the butchers. Ay think they're gonna like this one."

They continued forcing Leo to walk across the house while they laughed at and taunted him. The interior of the building was certainly different than he'd expected. He was surrounded by dark marble walls, metal fixtures of polished, stainless steel, and reflective, mirror-smooth black ceramic tiles. Retro loft style creative metal chain Edison pendant lights hung down from the ceiling in random spots. The extreme cold of the building was such a stark contrast to the afternoon Summer heat that he was caught even further off guard. Despite how quickly the temperature dropped around him he found himself welcoming it. It was too hot out for this shit anyway and stepping out of the heat into a chilly place like this helped him focus. He was marched down a long hallway with a few scattered alcoves around it and several thugs just hanging out. He took notice of their firepower. Most of them had handguns or shotguns but he noticed some heavy ordinance as well. One man even had an automatic shotgun, another a three barreled shotgun, some had freaking hcar guns, and more. They weren't kidding about their black market dealings. Blasting his way out of here was going to be a bigger pain in the ass than he'd anticipated. It would be worth it for the armory though.

On the far end of the hallway was an open door with a set of stairs. Obviously leading to a basement. The stairs ahead were twisted in a perfect spiral, like a child's slinky toy pulled from each end. There was a poke at his back at Leo calmly descended the staircase. He watched his step carefully but his mind was primarily focused on the best way to deal with these assholes and save his family.

He continued descending the stairs. God he felt like shit. Getting shot was just a bitch.

Upon descending the staircase he was forced through another doorway and down a winding a hallway until he was lead to a room with a trail of blood leading out of it. The wall at the end of the hallway was splattered with blood as well. A man in a pig mask came out of a side door followed by two others who were dressed like janitors complete with the equipment. Not paying Leonardo any mind they casually began mopping it up and cleaning the wall.

He crinkled his nose from the stench of blood overwhelming him. A door opened on the far side of the building and a pair of jackal masked men walked out carrying large plastic bags over their shoulders. As they walked past Leonardo he got a peek inside of the bags and he noticed freshly dismembered limbs had been placed into smaller bags before being put inside of the bigger bags. There was even a pair of severed heads also stuffed into the bags with the rest of the body parts. As far as he could tell, the victims were a man and a woman and somewhere in their 20's. One of the psychopaths behind him slapped Leonardo on the back.

"Take ayy darn good look livestock. That there's a-goin' ta be you aftuurr the butchers are done. That is, if they're kind enough ta leave something done left av ya."

"Just so ya know, this here isn't personal. People gotta eat y'all, know what ay mean?" A pig mask stated to Leonardo.

"Yes it is! It is very personal! He done killed Fawrest ayn' Fawt ayn' the truckers!"

"Yeah but ay nevuurr done liked those there two anyway." Pig mask shrugged his shoulders.

Leo just ignored them. He had gone well past the initial stage of fury and was now in that calm lagoon of rage where his voice would be nice and steady, his manner would be measured and polite, and only the fire in his eyes gave hints of the hellfire he was going to rain down on this farm. He recited the words he'd learned during his military training. Quod puritas per odium. Dignitatem, per iram. Purity through hate. Dignity through rage. Should your anger ever become too much to contain, you must make sure that your anger be three things: Your rage must be cold. Your rage must be reasoned. Your rage must be legendary.

The brothers split back up once the Blackburns were divided. The sledgehammer man, Salvator, followed the others who were taking Argos and Alessandro to processing.

The sack head, Charles, followed the group taking Leo to the torture house and walked right in with them. Once the door was closed he sat down in front of it to block him from escaping just in case he did somehow get out of the torture room.

Romulus, the shirtless vest wearing man, and Chunk returned to their field work.

Diablos, the bald monster mask man, and Dread, the skull masked man, walked back to the mansion.

The house was built of dark stone that had been stained darker in places by the rain. Even when the day was still you could feel chilling breezes around the mansion. Ivy and ferns grew through the crevices of the winding stone path, which led directly to the colossal structure. The mansion loomed proudly over the rest of the farm and it was flanked on either side by massive towering trees crowned in crimson, swaying gently to the chilly autumn wind. At its threshold stood the delicate marble fountain, the soft gurgling of the clear water melodic as it resonated in the surrounding silence. By the door was a woven mat, fashioned from rustic strings, enriched with the mud of thousands of boots - a testimony to the life that dwelled in the house. The door mat could have been replaced years ago, its edges were frayed and curled, but it was still here. Their father had had the floor polished, the curtains made anew and the walls painted... yet still it remained, giving treasured mind-photographs, the best kind of life-nostalgia. They wiped their feet on the mat and then Diablos pushed open the double doors and the pair walked right inside.

They listened to the soft music of the mansion. They could hear Fur Elise being played which meant Jezebel was giving Porcelain her piano lessons. It had always mystified the brothers how they were able to play so well but the pair just had a talent for it. The brothers weren't going to complain anyway. It was nice hearing their music after a long hard day of working in the fields and handling the livestock.

The pair calmly advanced up the stairs to the third floor and then they took a left and then a right and opened the door to find Thaddeus playing a board game with Macey. The contrast between the pair was shocking.

Thaddeus has the appearance of an elderly gentleman and he was dressed gracefully in his traditional black uniform. Thaddeus's hair is entirely white, just like his immaculate beard. He has visible wrinkles on his hollow face, which makes him seem gentle in appearance, but his eyes are as sharp as an eagle's and danger radiated out from him. The brothers, as powerful as they were, knew better than to ever interrupt him or speak out of turn. You waited for father to speak to you. Not the other way around.

Macey meanwhile, being the youngest of the family, just under Bunni, was dressed more innocently in a bright pink dress with curly brown hair, white gloves and pink shoes. Her face was obscured by a duck mask she'd made and she had a sledgehammer by her side, the head of which she'd painted to look like a cow's head.

Thaddeus smiled as he instructed Macey on how to win the game while also teaching her some philosophy while playing the game.

"Have you ever considered, dear Macey, that what people call sanity, is just a prison in your minds that stops you from seeing that you're just tiny little cogs in a giant absurd machine? Certainly, men have called me mad; but the question is not yet settled, whether madness is or is not the loftiest intelligence– whether much that is glorious– whether all that is profound– does not spring from disease of thought– from moods of mind exalted at the expense of the general intellect." At first glance upon Thaddeus, you would normally be expecting the croak of old age but his voice was more like a sergeant major, strong and distinctly upper class.

"Take cannibalism for instance. Cannibalism is a way of life, a way to survive. But what I am truly wondering, is why it is frowned upon in today's society as an act only the sick or undesirables commit. Some North American natives believe that eating the fresh remains of a killed creature will give you the strength or abilities of that creature. Eating the eyes of an eagle will give you better eyesight and eating the meat of a buffalo will make you stronger, etc. At some point, certainly, these men would've had to wonder, if you ate another man's penis, would you (assuming you're a man) grow a larger penis? Maybe if I ate a woman's breasts, I would grow larger breasts? The problem with eating the flesh of other creatures is that the proteins are slightly different. The human body has to modify these proteins before they can be used. Buffalo beef is different from human meat, so it takes time and energy to modify it so it is compatible with the human body. Eating human meat however means there is NO time wasted making the meat compatible. Instead it goes straight into our blood system and makes us grow stronger and regenerate faster. Call it a Hannibal the Lector way of thinking, but the same goes for eating the brains of another human. Eating their brain tissue will result in that brain tissue being transplanted into your own brain. It might even be possible to gain knowledge and memories, provided that knowledge and memories isn't ruined by your stomach acids during the digestion process. You are what you eat, so they say. Pigs (pork, if you want to get down the name of the meat) are genetically very similar to humans. Pigs are surprisingly smart and have practically the same skin and hair tissue that humans have. Their bone structure is really the only major difference. Which makes me wonder: Is the reason Jewish people can't eat pork because pigs will eat their own shit (which cats & dogs do too, actually), or is it because pigs are genetically similar to humans? I don't know. What I do know is that scientifically, eating other humans apparently tastes like pork, makes you live longer, makes you stronger, and if you eat their brains, makes you smarter. That is how it's been for our family for generations has it not? Ever since it started with our great, great grandfather in that time of famine."

The family knew the story well. The old priest looked out upon his flock and saw them as no different from the sheep that had died when the grass withered. His mouth watered at the sight of the young ones who had been quite fat before and were even then still plump. He declared a message from God that it was His will to test them, to see who was the most pure of heart and would give their lives to save the others. These fine martyrs would be honored above all others in the life beyond this and their families would be well looked after. At any other time the old fraud would have been thrown to the wolves, but every stomach in the congregation rumbled and their brains began to consider previously unimaginable horror. After a time more eyes rested on the simple teenager who had lost his parents a year ago in a freak accident. After that they just got a taste for it and even now that the farms were prospering they still indulged.

But there was another reason. One that had grown in their family over the generations. The Gift Of Consumption they called it. Consumptive Absorption.

In laymen's terms, whatever they put inside of their mouths, no matter how hard, no matter how potentially toxic, anything they eat becomes harmless. Then they absorbed the properties of whatever they ate. For living things of course, freshness was important. The usual limit to absorption was for as long as it would remain in their body, however, by eating the same thing again and again and again, the ability to keep whatever they ate inside of their bodies became easier and they could keep powering themselves up. And it had made the family invincible.

Thaddeus continued. "And really, what is wrong with our actions? Certainly it is a better usage ofr the wastes of humanity than just throwing them in a grave somewhere. So many people are donating their organs or replacing them with machines these days. Imagine, for but a moment, if instead of wasting dead bodies, we simply made meat from them and shipped them off to the starving? Talk about solving world hunger, hmmm?" He chuckled. "Well, it is but something to consider little Macey. Back to our game. Watch closely now."

"That was amazing, papa!"

"The wisdom of experience my dear! A little trick to remember if you ever play for real money." He ruffled her hair and turned to his sons. "Yes?"

"We got the kid and the family. The children have been taken to the cages, the women to the guest house, the old man and a younger man to be processed and the patriarch of the family to the butchers."

"The butchers you say? My word, whatever did he do?"

"He killed the truckers, Forrest and some of our cops."

Thaddeus's eyes widened. "Wow. That's....actually quite a hefty loss. Interesting. If he's that strong then he must powered. A shame he is going to die now. I would've like to speak with this man. Oh well. What's done is done." He sipped a glass of lemonade that was sitting on the table next to him. "Tell the police good work in bringing them in. Ensure that the wages we would've paid the police are divided up among the survivors."

"Yes sir. We've been ensured that the cleanup crew is going to the trucks now. It will take time but we should be able to remove most of the evidence and secure the rest of the corpses." Diablos informed his father. "It shouldn't be a problem. The family will be dead and gone by tonight anyway."

They were interrupted by a by a woman clad in a black dress, a matching blazer and a wolf mask. "Forgive my interruptions father but there is a phone call for you. It's her."

"Ah thank you Ambrosia. Do excuse me Macey, I have urgent business to discuss." He hugged his youngest daughter and walked around the corner to a living room where he retrieved the phone. "Hello."

"Hi Thaddeus." Such a simple greeting but it chilled his spine. Her voice was like a dead man's lullaby. "I heard from your contact that my little Derrick is in town. Have you retrieved him?"

"Yess Miss R. We have the boy caged now and the family will be disposed of as well. There will be no traces of them entering the town."

The voice on the other end of the line laughed, her tone ringing in a sick icy way, sending chimes ringing in his ears. "Wunderbar, Thaddeus! You've exceeded my expectations. Rest assured, if you can pull this off, I'll put in a good word for you at the grown ups table. This is your ticket in, old man. Keep them secured. I'm on my way."

"Of course ma'am. It is our duty to serve." He replied cheerfully while trying to at least sound confident.

"Good boy. I will see you when I arrive! Auf Wiederhören!" She hung up and he sighed. They had lost a lot but they stood to gain so much more. They just had to get through today and the world would be their oyster.

Miss R. Whatever manner of woman, no, not woman, creature was more appropriate, that she was would be their ticket into her organization. If his belief about her was correct then he and his family would finally cast off the chains of humanity and become immortal. Combine this with the power they already possessed and they would climb even further to the realms of the Gods.

But he couldn't get ahead of himself. Not now. Not when he was finally so close to it. They had to proceed cautiously. Because above all else....Miss R scared him. The day she'd come into their lives and made the request for them to retrieve the boy, she was charming, formal, polite and hauntingly beautiful. But he couldn't help but feel an icy terror gripping his heart when he looked at her. She'd come alone, a rarity for guests, and had brought no weapons or means of defense that he could've seen. But still, even with the entire farm around him, one look in her eyes had been enough to tell him that fighting her would be impossible.

He would find out the truth about her tonight and use her as a stepping stone to ascend to the power of a God and then he and his family would bring their order to the rest of the world.

It was time for the world to be rest to a simpler way of life after all.

Thaddeus cleared his throat, hung up the phone, adjusted his suit and walked back around the corner to rejoin his daughter for their game.

As they got closer to the room he began hearing the voices of a man and a woman singing together while instruments were played along with them. It sounded distinctly country but it didn't come off as one from America. Possibly from somewhere in England? Maybe it was the headache or the blood loss or just the pain in his body in general but he was having trouble placing it.

Whatever the case, it certainly had the psychos tapping their feet.

Fucking hell he hated country music.

One of the psychos walked ahead, knocked on the door and leaned inside. "Look alive kids! We've done got fresh meat faw y'all ta play with! We want this here one ta be given the speciaal treatment! Give him ever'thing y'all done got! Make this here one y'all's finest wawk!"

He backed away from the door as a woman poked her head out and Leo was greeted by a frankly bizarre sight. The woman was wearing a latex fetish rubber bondage hood mask with holes open for her eyes mouth and jaw, a bloodstained bragard grand chef lady jacket, black trausers and...what he could only describe as a leathery apron quilt made from dried flesh and mutilated faces and body parts and hair. It was just as bloodstained as the rest of her clothes, most of which likely came from their recent victim though he could see plenty of dried blood on her clothes as well, but considering the apron went nearly down to her feet....he had to assume there'd been quite a few victims.

Just another debt these maniacs added to their tab.

"Huuuuh?" The woman gasped in disbelief. "Already? Well, goo'ness gracious y'all wawk fast when y'all mighty put yer minds ta it! Where is he?"

The pig mask jerked his thumb in Leo's direction.

The woman ran out of the torture room, stopped on a dime in front of Leo and began checking him. "Is this here some kaand av sick joke?" She turned back to the others with her hands on her hips. "This here boy looks half dead already! How are we done supposed ta have any fun with him if he'll die on us befawe we can even get off on it?!"

"Blame him ayn' thay cops. This here asshowwl done killed Fawrest ayn' Fawt ayn' the truck crew ayn' the cops shot him faw us. Honestly it's ayy miracle he's even a-standin'. That there's where y'all come in. Give him the speciaal treatment."

"....He done killed Fawrest?"

Leo couldn't help but notice her voice cracking as the realization hit her. She grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him down and stared into his eyes. "Done you do it? Done y'all? Done y'all kill my boy toy Fawrest?"'

"Took his head right off." Leonardo answered truthfully. Which may have been a slight mistake.

Because the moment those words sank in she screamed and pulled out a hammer and swung it at him. Struck Leo right across the jaw. He turned his head and spat on the ground and then he looked back up at her. She didn't even say anything before she resumed pounding on him like a madwoman. Strike after strike from the hammer rained down on his head but he still stood his ground and gritted his teeth through the pain.

When she eventually stopped the beating, blood was dripping down his head and his legs were shaking but he was still standing.

She grabbed Leo's face. "Ohhhh don't you quit on me now darling. Ay'm gonna make ya scream faw mercy befawe ya die. Bring him in!"

The psychopaths laughed and dragged him into the torture room. Leo's eyes narrowed at the sight of the bloodstained room. He noticed several torture devices including: A pair shaped instrument, consisting of four leaves that slowly separated from each other as the torturer turned the screw at the top, a rack, an iron chair, a judas cradle and bloodstained shackles, nooses and meathooks attached to the walls. On the far side of the room was a bloody stone altar and behind it was insane spirals of writing on the wall and the picture of some kind of horrific mishmash of a boar, an eagle, a human and a few other creatures and below that and the spirals the wall had the words: God Ends Here carved into the stone. Pleasant he thought to himself. He decided not to even bother questioning the logic of such fine art and he turned his attention to the table to his left where he could see multiple sharp objects. Some of which were still shiny and sharp, others were old and rusty and all of which were certainly bloodstained. Leo took notice of the six men in the room. Three of which had musical instruments in their hands, two of which were cleaning bloodstained weapons and the last one, the apparent leader of their little torture gang, was a muscular young man with spiky dark hair and his costume was a bloodstained cross between a surgeon and a butcher complete with the face mask and head mirror. He was clearly higher up in rank than the animal masked men and women of the farm. The surgeon butcher embraced the lady and they had a moment of silence for Forrest before they turned around and faced Leo.

"It must've been ayy fluke. Ay don't see how this here sad sack could've possibly beaten the others." He shook his head. "Oh whel." Surgeon-Butcher walked over to the table and retrieved an electric buzzsaw. "Get him strapped down ta thay ...err altar. We'll cut off his hands ayn' feet first ayn' then we can have ayy vote on what ta use next." The animal masks approached him and Leo cleared his throat.

"Excuse me Ladies and Gentlemen but, before we get started with the fun stuff, I have something I'd like to say."

"Ayy last request then? Alraheet. We done might as whel hear it befawe ay cut off yer tongue." Surgeon Butcher joked. "What is it?"

"You see....my son. He's a great kid. A wonderful kid. He's nice, smart, funny, an honor roll student. He stays out of trouble, gets along with everybody, he always does his chores around the house and he always helps people with their problems to the best of his ability. If he is walking down the street and he sees somebody trying to fix a tire he will stop and help. That's just the kind of guy he is. He has never met any of you before today. He has never wronged any of you before today. Nobody in my family has. They have done nothing to you but you see came after us all the same. From the first time you laid eyes on us, you tried to kill my family. If you'd simply left us alone and never bothered us, we would've gone on our merry way and, who knows? Maybe you would've continued your little murder business for another year or two before you got shut down. But you did come after us. You threatened us. You tried to run us off the road. You shot at us. You struck us. You shocked us. You separated us and now you plan to torture and murder us and sell off our children to some black market sociopath. Because all you see when you look at other human beings is fucking livestock. So. While I am burning the farm to the ground and standing triumphant over your lifeless corpses, I just want you to know: You brought all of this on yourselves."

The entire room burst out laughing. "Whel hell! That there sure were ayy mighty awful fine speech! best one we've done heard!" The surgeon laughed. "Usually ever'one's just begging faw thay'r lives! Just like y'all're about ta! but ay will give you credit faw that there speech! ya're ayy awful fine man! Ahhhh that there is some good shit. Alraheet grab him!"

It was then they heard the sound of his handcuffs clattering to the ground and saw the guns form in his hands.

"Wait, what?"

Leonardo braced himself and pulled the triggers. He felt more of his internal strength be pulled out of him and energy beams were released from his guns. They shot across the room at bullet speeds and impacted the surgeon and the woman next to him and burned holes straight through them, kept going and burned holes into the wall behind them! The lights faded and Leo immediately turned the guns on the others. He fired blasts from his guns again and felt more of his stamina being drained away from him as one of the musicians were blown away and one of the torturers was also shot down. Leonardo gritted his teeth and he turned to the other two musicians and blasted them down. He nearly fell over but he caught himself. He was shaking now and he was crouching low but he still didn't fall. He stood back up again and turned to the last guy and blasted him across the room. Leonardo stood there doubled over but he still refused to fall. He had work to do. He had a family to save. Leonardo released one of his guns, wiped the blood and sweat from his brow with the back of his sleeve, pulled up his shirt and cauterized his front wounds.

"That's finally done." He groaned and lowered his shirt and walked to the door and stood on the other side of it. Just in time too because four more men barged into the room with their guns drawn. Leonardo recognized a few of them as the janitors from before. They were not prepared for the sight that greeted them and they reacted as one might expect.

"WHAT THAY FUCK? WHAT DONE HAPPENED? HOW DONE HE DO THIS HERE?"

"WHERE IS HE? WHERE IS HE?"

"THEY'VE DONE GOT HOLES IN THEM! GIANT A-BURNIN' HOLES! WHAT EVEN DOES THAT THERE?!"

"OH MY GOD! WE NEED THAY BROTHERS! WE NEED THAY OLD MAN! WE NEED HELP HERE!"

Leonardo stepped out from around the door and blasted three of them down with his gun and then he shot the last one through his right leg. He screamed and dropped down to the ground with his buddies only he was left alive to scream in agony from the burning hole in his knee. Leonardo calmly walked over to him, dismissed his manifested gun for now and then he grabbed the dropped guns and pocketed two pistols, tucked another one in his belt and picked up the last one and then he grabbed the downed man.

"Thanks. I'm gonna need these."

Leo checked his gun. It bore a very close resemblance a Smith & Wesson Sigma, especially in the slide, magazine and lower frame, but it had brown checked grips with a laser sight pressure switch and a stainless steel slide with a hammer as opposed to a striker and an extended barrel that was threaded for a sound suppressor, a feature in a H&K USP, though this gun was longer. Judging by the weight of the gun it had 25 bullets in it. More than enough.

Leonardo dragged the screaming man to the door, took a deep breath and ran outside.

The men who were waiting outside of the door opened fire on him, realizing too late that they were just pumping lead into one of their own guys. Leonardo tossed him aside, raised the gun and fired three quick shots, hitting each man in the throat. 22 bullets left.

Leonardo kept moving and shot a man down the hall in the neck, taking him right out. 21 bullets left. Leonardo advanced down the hallway, leaned against a wall and made his way across it.

He slowly made his way down the winding hallway when one of them jumped out at him with a sickle in his hand but Leo evaded him, countered his sickle with his gun, put a left arm around his head, swung him around, threw him to the floor, stomped on his chest and double tapped his head, spraying blood out of his forehead through the mask. 19 bullets left. He quickly leaped to the left side side to evade a few panicked shots from one of the masked men, fell against the wall, ignored the pain and he rolled over onto his back then shot him down. 18 bullets left.

Leonardo was breathing hard but he was able to pull himself together, straightened up and he walked down the hallway. A pair of the psychopaths ran down the hallway and fired on him but Leo evaded their shots, rolled shots and fired back on them. 16 bullets left.

Leonardo Blackburn walked down the hallway past their bodies and a few men rushed him down and he grabbed one of them, swung his arm to the side and used his arm to shield him from the swinging knife. Leo kicked him away, shot him in the head, shot the man he was holding and then when another man tried to attack him but Leonardo kicked his knee hard enough to break it and then Leonardo shot him in the head. 13 bullets left.

He finally found the stairs and began climbing them back up. He only got part of the way up when a pair of thugs spotted him. Leo immediately fell back against the wall and fired up at them. He shot them both in the neck and they fell over the railing. He caught his breath. 11 bullets left.

Leonardo started to resume climbing up but then bullets whizzed by him from above. Leonardo retreated down the stairs and then he looked back up and returned fire on the thugs. back while firing back at them. A few bullets tore at his clothes and body but he was able to dodge the worst of them and he returned fire and his bullets hit their targets. 7 bullets left. Leonardo took a minute to catch his breath and then he resumed climbing the stairs.

Leo finally made it to the top and leaned against the wall.

On the other side of the wall the thugs were staring at the doorway.

"Okay what thay fuk is a-goin' on? We done had an army down there ayn' he's just a-killin' them all like that there? Who thay hell is he? He were half dead when they brung him in!"

"Do we have ayy plan? Seriously, we could use ayy plan raheet now."

"Okay look. He's just one guy. We have him outnumbered. Ay say we all go charging around thay cawnuurr all at once, shoot him full av holes ayn' then throw him ovuurr thay edge ayn' let him go splat on thay floaw. We ken scrape up what's done left when we're done ayn' let thay boys chop him up."

"Are y'all sure because...."

"Guys. We have him outnumbered. Leds go kill this here asshowwl already."

The thugs assembled together and slowly advanced on the doorway. Except that Leo had heard all of them the entire time and he was more than ready for them. He slid across the wall and stared at the doorway and waited for them to step through. The group crept through the doorway together and he rushed them down and opened fire. He got one of them in the head, then the next guy in the cheek while he grabbed his shotgun and shoved him against the others. He then dropped the handgun and spun the shotgun around and fired on the thugs, blowing away two of them. He pumped the shotgun and ducked down just in time to avoid a spray of gunfire from the others. Leonardo quickly ran for the stairs and dived down. He rolled down a few of the stairs before stopping himself and he aimed up at the doorway. The thugs charged in and aimed down at him. There was another exchange of gunfire on both sides. Leo fired the shotgun while he backed down the stairs as bullets whizzed by him and the thugs advanced on him. Fortunately he was able to catch them and he gunned down the next two. Leo pumped it and he started advancing up the stairs again.

Leonardo reached the top again and he slowly crept around the doorway and then automatic shotgun and rifle fire whizzed past him while he leaped back into the room and fell against the railing. "Shhhiiiit."

He kicked up his pistol again, pocketed it and leaned against the wall. He took a deep breaths, counted to ten and then he sprung back out around the doorway and fired on the thugs who returned fire on him. He got the one with the automatic shotguns and took out his legs. His friend advanced on Leo who backed away, backed up and jumped the railing, grabbed onto the ledge and dropped the empty shotgun. It clattered on the floor below and Leo pulled out his pistol while hanging from the ledge by his fingertips. The thug walked in and looked around for Leo. "Holy shot. Hooooly shot ay think ay done got him boys! Ay don't see him anywhere! Ay don't see him!"

It was then that Leo threw himself into the air with just a pull of his fingertips, grabbed onto the railing, pulled his gun up and shot the thug in the legs and groin, emptying the handgun. The thug screamed and fell to the ground. Leo dropped the empty handgun, climbed back up and flipped over the railing. He shook his hand a few times and rubbed his fingers before kicking the rifle up into the air, catching it and then grabbing the thug and tossing him over the railing. He dropped down to the ground and his head splattered on the floor below.

Leo wiped the blood and sweat off his head and walked around the corner. He calmly shot the shotgun guy in the head, grabbed one of his weapons and walked away. Leonardo Blackburn continued down the hallway.

He was marched down a long hallway with a few scattered alcoves around it and several thugs just hanging out. He took notice of their firepower. Most of them had handguns or shotguns but he noticed some heavy ordinance as well. One man even had an automatic shotgun, another a three barreled shotgun, some had freaking hcar guns, and more. They weren't kidding about their black market dealings. Blasting his way out of here was going to be a bigger pain in the ass than he'd anticipated. It would be worth it for the armory though.

A pair of thugs came charging down the hallway but Leo fired on them with the hcar, blowing them away. Leo took a few deep breaths and he reached the alcove area and he slowly crept around them. Leo went around two of them before a trio of thugs sprung out and attacked him with kitchen knives and sickles. Leo dropped the shotgun, blocked their blades with the hcar, kicked one guy in the crotch hard enough to break his balls, then whacked him across the jaw with the gun, turned, elbowed the next guy in the mouth hard enough to break his teeth, grabbed him, pulled him around, shoved him face first into a wall hard enough to leave a bloody mark and then he kicked the next guy in the stomach hard enough knock him on his ass. Leo then shot each of them in the face, grabbed the shotgun, put it over on his back and kept going.

He had just gotten through the alcove area when a group of thugs opened fire on him with handguns, forcing Leo to duck right back around. He waited until they stopped firing and then he leaned back out and fired on them with the hcar, blowing the men away.

He continued around the corner and around the hallway, shooting down more of the thugs as he went until he finally reached the entrance.

He heard a rumbling noise and a large man came stomping down the hallway. Leo looked up at him and noticed he was the same sackhead from before. He turned his head left and right and took in the sights of his dead friends and let out a bellow of pain and rage that Leonardo could've sworn was shaking the building and then he broke into a full on run at Leonardo who raised his gun back up and he squeezed the hcar's trigger but the gun clicked empty. Tossing it aside, Leo whipped out the handguns and unloaded nine bullets from each gun into his chest! All eighteen bullets hit him dead on but he didn't even slow down! "Shit." The man was fast too. Much faster than he should've been for a man of his size and physique, easily closing the distance between them so fast that Leonardo barely had time to get out of his way but instead of continuing to run after him the fat man turned on a dime, grabbed Leonardo and tossed him like a ragdoll into a wall! Leo gasped in pain and dropped to the ground. He landed on his hands and knees. He barely had time to realize what had happened before the man yanked him up into the air and began slamming him repeatedly against the wall and after about five hits from this, he slammed his giant fist against Leonardo's face and dropped him to the floor. Then he grabbed Leo's arm, swung him around and tossed him against the opposite wall like a rag doll. Leo found himself spinning in circles as he flew up into the air at an angle until impacted with the wall like a fastball thrown at it from a star pitcher and he dropped back down to the cold marble floor. Leo raised his head up just enough to cough out blood onto the floor as the pain was rushing through his body like an igniting fire. His eyes were squeezed closed as his face contorted. He could feel his head spinning and sweat trickled down his face, intermingling with the blood dripping down his mouth. His arms and legs were shaking and his body was screaming at him to stay down but his mind was screaming louder.

(Get up! Get the fuck up! Don't you dare stop fighting goddammit! They'll kill them! They'll kill your entire family and your son and your niece will disappear! You have to save them! You're the only one who can save them! Get off your ass and fight! No pain! No pain! This doesn't hurt at all! GET OFF YOUR ASS AND SAVE YOUR FUCKING FAMILY! NO PAIN! THIS DOESN'T HURT! YOU'RE FINE! GET UP! ON YOUR FEET SOLDIER! ON YOUR FEET!)

Leonardo spat blood at his feet in defiance, clenched his teeth and forced his battered tired body to cooperate and dragged himself up again. He grabbed the AA12 Shotgun and aimed it at him. "Let's fucking dance, fatass."

Sackhead roared and charged again and swung at him but Leo dived out of the way. The punch tore through the air and struck the wall. The impact was like a bomb going off! Sackhead's fist tore right through the wall and made a hole in it twice the size of his already giant meaty fist. With an annoyed grunt he pulled his arm back out and turned to face Leo. Leo fired the AA12 Shotgun on him. Five bullets hit his chest and four more hit him in the head. This at least got him more of a reaction than the handguns. He stumbled backwards from the bullets peppering his chest and bloody holes were blown right through his sack mask. He slumped over for a moment and then he recovered, stood up and flung himself at Leo. Leo gritted his teeth and dodged his long jump but his swipe hit Leo's shoulder and sent him sliding across the floor. There was a thud a dozen feet behind him as Sackhead landed and turned to face Leo again. Leo cursed, grabbed his shoulder and got up again. He really was a Brick after all. Or at the very least a low level one. The shotgun might be enough to put him down eventually but considering all those bloody holes in his body, he doubted it would be enough to finish the job. Handguns wouldn't accomplish jackshit here either. Leo tossed the shotgun aside and wiggled his fingers. His energy guns were the only way to win this. He didn't want to waste the energy on his way out but he didn't have any other options. Leo started to bring back his energy guns but Sackhead scooped up four corpses, two in each hand and flung two of them from his left hand down the hallway towards Leo like they softballs! Leo flipped to the left to dodge them and the corpses smacked into the wall and there were sickening snapping sounds of their spines breaking on impact. Sackhead was already running at him. He pulled back his arm and tossed the corpses across the hallway. Leo dodged them as well, summoned his guns again, raised them and pulled the triggers. He felt more of his inner strength get torn out of him to see the giant man being blown out of the air in a brilliant flash of light that illuminated the entire hallway.

Sackhead was thrown down the hallway thirty-six feet and then he hit the ground. His fat cannibalistic brick body was smoldering and wreathed in flames that resulted from the explosion. Leo smirked as he saw that the right and left sides of Sackhead's body had been blown wide open.

Despite the feeling of exhaustion in his body, that was a good feeling. "I'm impressed that you were tough enough for even that much of your body to be left. You were a tough one. But you fucked with the wrong family. See ya in hell, big guy." He stood up tall and took a few deep breaths, wiped the sweat from his brow and he turned around to walk out and was greeted by three armed men staring past him into the corpse laden hallway. Leo used this chance to shoot down two of them before they could recover but then the third man snapped out of it and he fired two shots from a crossbow. Leo dodged one and deflected the other with the barrel of the gun in his left hand while shooting him down with the gun in his right, blowing a hole right through the man and dropping him.

After catching his breath Leo continued to walk out of the torture building. He was almost out when he heard a disgusting squelching sound behind and two loud thuds on the floor. Leo lowered his guns and slowly turned back around.

"No. No fucking way."

He was standing! He was standing upright again! The holes in his torso had been filled in with some kind of disgusting cancer balloon, turning his upper half into a shapeless writing wriggling mass of flesh and fat and organs and blood! The writhing mass slowly deflated into his body and the destroyed chunks of his body filled right back in, starting with his organs and bones, then his veins and arteries and muscle tissue and finally his skin. He fell down to his knees and puked up blood and bile onto the floor, hacked and coughed and then his body trembled briefly before settling down and he stood up straight, albeit with his muscles visibly spasming. Sackhead threw off the remains of his mask and Leo got a good look at his head. He had very short and wild spiky dark yellow hair, bulging bloodshot eyes, an almost porcrine snout for a nose, the sides of his cheeks, which would normally have skin were open with razor sharp teeth exposed.

"So. You guys can heal too. Fucking wonderful."

This was not good. He was out of breath, sweating bullets, his body was battered and he'd lost a lot of blood earlier. But still he raised his arms again and turned his handguns into a pair of .454 Casull's, essentially a pair of very big semiautomatic pistols, 39cms long. This was going to hurt. He was going to lose a lot of strength from this but if he wanted this guy dead he would have to blow him apart so that he couldn't regenerate.

Both men stared each other down, breathing hard now. Leo from exhaustion and Sackhead from pain and anger.

Sackhead stomped on the ground and clenched his fists tightly.

Leo charged up his guns.

The stalemate was finally broken down when he roared at him in blind rage and charged Leonardo again. Leo raised his guns, braced himself and fired them again. Giant blasts of energy flew out of his guns, twirled, combined together and struck Sackhead. The thundering boom of the explosion seemed to crack the air, as if the very heavens might split apart. It rolled over the building and shook the ground beneath him like the ash could of a volcano, becoming a rolling booming rumble while it blew him to pieces. Sackhead's limbs, head, eyes, toes, fingers, intestines, femur, spine, ribs and everything else was splattered against the walls and floor around him and burned away.

Leo nearly fell right on his face and held out his arms to stop himself. He ended up on his knees and one arm was bent and the other arm was laying down.

He needed over a minute to pull himself up again. "Son of a bitch....a whole farm of guys....as tough as this? Shit. This is gonna suck." Leo walked back out of the building, stealing more weapons as he did so. "J-j-just hang on guys....hang on....hang...on. Hang on. I'm coming. I won't any of you die here. We're going home together."

"No matter what."

Upon stepping back outside to the farm again he was greeted by the sound of thunder booming overhead like the prelude to a great song, impetuous rumbling permeating the air every bit as much as the sudden rain. At first it was a crack, violent to the ears, but after came a rolling sound that dissipated into the surrounding hills. Rain falls in crazy chaotic drops, the gusting wind carrying them in wild vortices one moment and in diagonal sheets the next. A bone chilling mist followed and began to float over the surface of the ground, clinging to every surface. The mist was spook-grey. It was lifeless and motherless. Rags of the mist tickled the lake as it passed. It grasped at the calm water. It moved on and enclasped the shrubs. It looked fumy and filmy in the weak light that peeked through the clouds of the thunderstorm. The rain seemed mist-like also as it came down in thin sheets. It became heavier and pregnant drops of the rain arrived.

Leo had to admit, all things considered, it felt extremely refreshing.

As the pair were marched across the farm and through a field, Alessandro took a look around at their surroundings. There were multiple people working the farm, going about their daily activities. They were either pitching hay, picking plants, tending to animals, moving things in wheelbarrows or some other activity. What got him was the sight of some of the thugs carrying plastic bags full of chopped up human limbs. Alessandro tempered his anger. He would have words with them about it later. Right now the goal was to isolate the men escorting them away from the others, kill them and arm themselves. Once they were armed, they could move around the farm to find and free the others and take these assholes down.

"What do ya think?" One of them asked. "Anything we ken make av these boys?"

"Whel let's start with the old man. He's ayy little past the experashun date but if ya cut him up, saute the meat ayn' mix it in with some othuurr food? Could make ayy darn good gumbo out av him. Ah'm a-thinkin' carrots, onions, celery, garlik plus olive arl ta start, canned tomatoes, broth ayn' spices simmered ta perfection, ayy creamy flour-butter-milk roux ta create the lush gravy-like texture, andouille sausage plus shrimp plus chives aw othuurr herbs faw the flavaw lick. All av that there done served ovuurr ayy pahl av steamy rice – if you’re a-goin' faw the gold, healthy brown rice aw quinoa is delicious, too – ayn' topped with some little micro greens aw sautéed spinach."

"Hell man now ay'm hungry!" One of the men complained.

"We ken grab some snaks latuurr. Let's just focus on our job raheet now."

"Sownds darn good ta me. What about thay othuurr one?"

"Steak. Juicy, medium-rare perfec grilled steaks with herb buttuurr. Maybe make some ribs out ov him too. Then figure out thay rest. The impawtant thing is that there ya don't waste anything. Make sure ya cook and eat it all."

"Oh my between these idiots ayn' thay bitches a-waitin' in thay guest house weez gunna be a-eatin' like kings!"

The thugs continued joking and laughing all the way until they were lead to a large creepy looking barn.

It was a derelict building that loomed over the farm with broken tiles of its dark green roof, barbed wire wrapped around the windows, remnants of shattered glass in wooden frames, mortar and stone crumbling and invasive vegetation in the outer walls.

It reeked of blood. One of the cannibals banged on the door and it opened up. "They for processing?" A man called from inside.

"Processing." A cannibal agreed.

"Alright, bring them in." The man replied from inside in a casual businesslike manner.

The pair felt guns poking their backs and they were forced inside of the barn.

Despite how old and dilapidated it looked from the outside, the pair were surprised with how modern and clean it looked. The outside of the barn was an illusion. The inside of it was much sleeker, clean, shiny and industrial. This was clearly a place for butchering and processing the meat of their victims, packaging it and either storing or preparing to sell it out. They were pushed through several doorways and down halls as the men and women working at the farm stared at them. Their faces unreadable behind their animal masks.

Eventually Argos and Alessandro were pushed into a large wide open room that was like the picture of hell itself. It appeared sleek and clean and sparkly looking, complete with a lot of tables and clean sinks and people cleaning the floors and dishes and packaging meat. But the meat was human. Lining either side of the room was human corpses hanging off of meat hooks. They'd been cut open and cut apart by these butchers. Pieces of corpses were being lowered into meat grinders on the far side of the room and the meat that came out was collected in buckets and brought to other men took charge of packaging it. Alessandro caught sight of eyeballs being placed in small plastic bags and then into egg cartons before it was closed up while Argos watched them chop up human meat on a table.

They also heard banging from a walk in freezer and screams coming from inside of it. Argos looked over at it and watched one of the thugs walk over to the freezer and kick it.

"Quiet down in there! We'll kill y'all latuurr so just wait yer damn turn!"

Argos looked down at Alessandro who nodded and they refocused.

"Game time?"

"Game time."

Alessandro took a deep breath and exhaled while closing his eyes. "Alright."

"Hey! Quit y'all's fuking muttering ayn' shut y'all's mowuths! You a-dyin' anyway so at least be quiet!"

Argos had heard worse last words.

"One last question: Wanna see something cool?" He finally spoke up.

"Like whut?"

Argos turned around, snapped his cuffs like they were cheap plastic, lashed out, grabbed their guns tossed them into the air, grabbed the thugs heads, tossed them through the air onto the tables, caught one of the rifles, balanced the other on his foot, turned around and started shooting the butchers in the heads, blowing large holes in their heads and spraying their blood all over the tables and walls.

Alessandro meanwhile had leaped into action at the same time as Argos, literally leaping clean over the heads, landed behind them, slipped right out of the cuffs and then smashed their heads together, knocked one off of his feet, grabbed his gun while he was falling, stole the rifle of the other, pistol whipped him to his temple, knocked him down and then Alessandro shot them both in the head while still holding the rifle in his free hand.

Alessandro pivoted, put the safety back on his handgun, and rushed down the remaining Butchers alongside Argos, both mean realizing they should conserve ammunition in this scenario and in all honesty more bullets would be wasted on these assholes.

Alessandro slid over one of the tables, grabbed a butcher knife and then he swung it at the throats of the butchers, cutting them wide open while Argos leaped clean over the tables, grabbed one of the butchers, turned him around and brutally snapped his neck. Argos took a kitchen knife from his waistband, tossed him to the floor and then he attacked one of the men who was backed against the wall. Argos stabbed the knife through his throat, proceeded to steal his knife and then he turned around and tossed said knife across the room into the neck of one of the other butchers. Alessandro meanwhile push kicked one of the thugs away from him, vaulted over a table, grabbed one of the butchers, slashed his throat and then he turned and cut the next three mens throats. Argos ran across the room, grabbed one of the tables and launched it through the air. It hit a man on the head and it smashed his skull into the wall and then dropped to the ground with him, his head leaving a trail of blood behind it. Argos paid him no mind as he ran across the room, grabbed the arm of one of the butchers, crushed the bones in it with his grip strength alone and then he stabbed him in the throat and threw him to the ground. Alessandro finished off the last of the butchers and tossed his corpse to the floor.

He and Argos fist bumped and then they turned to the freezer. Now that the room had been cleared it was time to free whomever they had locked up in there.

I would like to take a moment to discuss the inside of a walk in freezer. The temperature is probably somewhere between 0°F and -10°F. The ceiling, walls and door are four to six inches thick -- made of some kind of insulating foam like urethane covered in sheets of galvanized steel, stainless steel or aluminum. The floor is also covered in galvanized steel, stainless steel or aluminum. There are stainless steel shelves loaded with plastic bags filled with meat, poultry, fish and other frozen foodstuffs. In this particular case, cut up pieces of human meat they keep frozen. A single vapor-proof fixture provides dim lighting. A row of thick plastic curtains hangs in the doorway. Try to imagine being trapped inside of a tightly sealed, extremely cold, giant metal box. There would be three big problems you would have to worry about in such a situation: Hypothermia, frostbite and your air supply.

Now.

The normal core body temperature of a healthy person is 98.6°F. Hypothermia occurs when a person's body temperature drops significantly below normal: Mild hypothermia occurs at core body temperature between 93.2°F and 96.8°F. Moderate hypothermia occurs at core body temperature between 73.4°F and 89.6°F. Severe or profound hypothermia occurs between core body temperature between 53.6°F and 68°F. A person suffering from hypothermia will become tired and confused. He or she may have slowed breathing and speech followed by a loss of feeling or movement of their hands. Persons with severe hypothermia are at high risk for cardiac arrest and possibly death.

You lose body heat in a number of ways. You lose heat when you breathe and perspire. Large areas of exposed skin radiate a lot of heat. Heat can also be conducted from your body through contact with cold surfaces such as snow, or in this case extremely cold metal.

Even people who are not trapped for a significant amount of time can sustain injuries. For instance, brief exposure can cause frostbite, which occurs when a person’s skin and underlying tissues are frozen. Generally, the lower the temperature in the freezer, the more quickly frostbite is likely to occur. Frostbite is also more likely to affect the extremities, such as the feet and hands, which can be especially dangerous for victims who are also suffering from hypothermia and so have lost feeling in those areas. Frostbite usually takes the form of reddened skin with gray or white patches, numbness, and blisters.

Regarding your air supply. Let's say you're in a freezer that is 20 by 10 by eight feet, and it's completely sealed. That means you have 1,600 cubic feet of air to breathe. Initially the air is 20 percent oxygen and nearly 0 percent carbon dioxide. Each time you breathe, your body consumes oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. You inhale air that's 20 percent oxygen and 0 percent carbon dioxide and exhale air that's about 15 percent oxygen and 5 percent carbon dioxide.

A person at rest breathes about 2,800 cubic feet of air per day. If you do the math, you'll see that a person needs about 150 cubic feet of pure oxygen per day. There's 320 cubic feet of pure oxygen in the freezer. People are OK with oxygen concentrations down to 10 percent or so, so there's enough oxygen to last for about a full day in a freezer this size. No running and jumping around however -- oxygen is precious in an environment like this.

The other side of the coin is carbon dioxide. Once the concentration of carbon dioxide in the air gets above 5 percent, it's fatal. At 2 percent, your breathing rate will increase significantly and weakness is obvious. In a freezer this size, too much carbon dioxide is actually a much bigger problem than too little oxygen. After six hours, the effects of carbon dioxide poisoning will be noticeable.

Taking all this into consideration, you can imagine the sight that greeted the two men when Argos forced the door open: A group of battered and bruised civilians who'd been locked inside of the freezer. Their lips were blue with cold and their teeth chattered as their bodies violently trembled together desperate to find any sense of warmth. Weak and exhausted it was costing them all their remaining strength to keep fighting. The tremors were violently wracking their bodies and their teeth knocked together so violently that Alessandro was certain some of them had possibly cracked their teeth.

One man was backed against the shelves in the fetal position as he struggled to stay alive in this arctic prison. A man and a woman lay together on the floor shaking. Another person sat down with his knees drawn to his chest while his muscles shook uncontrollably shake uncontrollably in a last ditch attempt by his body to reheat. On the far side of the freezer was a smile pile of dead bodies that had obviously been in here far longer than the unfortunate four.

The first man slowly looked up at them. "W-W-W-W-h-h-h-o a-a-a-a-a-rrrre y-y-y-yoou?"

"My name is Argos Blackburn and this is my son in law Alessandro. We're here to help." Argos summarized. "Let's get you guys out of here."

Argos and Alessandro worked together to get the four of them out of the freezer. They set them down in a corner and slammed the freezer shut.

The four civilians sobbed and wept and trembled together for warmth. "T-t-t-ha-a-ankk y-y-you."

Alessandro nodded. "No need to thank us. Just doing our civic duty." He looked around the room. "OKay, uh, just hang on. There's gotta be something here we can give you to keep warm..." He went to grab some towels when the door to the room was kicked open. Alessandro and Argos immediately dived behind the tables and readied their guns.

"Looks like the backups here. Gonna be a lot of them."

"Use the guns, the knives and our surroundings. Draw the line here. Do not let them hurt the people."

"Rodger that. You ready old man?"

"Born ready, son."

A group of masked thugs barged into the room and stared in shock at the carnage in front of them. They were used to seeing blood and gore while the butchers worked but

this was a different sight entirely. They were not prepared to see the dead carcasses of their own men laying around the room in pools of their own blood. That hesitation was what Argos and Alessandro needed. They opened fire on the men and gunned down four of them, wounded the fifth and the sixth man ran around the corner. They lowered their rifles. "Alright. That's five down. Let's see now, we've got Ohio Ordnance HCAR's here....that''s .30-06 Springfield caliber, 30-round box magazine, sem-auto. I've fired four shots at the butchers plus three shots at these idiots. Twenty three shots remaining in this rifle at least. Plus the extra. How about you?" Argos asked Alessandro.

"Two shots from the handgun. I've got twenty two bullets left in it and twenty seven in the rifle and a whole bunch of these motherfuckers to deal with before we can go find the others." Alessandro drummed his fingers on the rifle. "We've also got a room full of knives and tables we can throw at them if it comes down to it."

Argos glanced at the dropped weapons. "Think you could make it over there?"

Alessandro listened to how the thug was screaming for help and running down the hallway. "He's far enough. I'm going for them." Handed the rifle to Argos, bounded over the tables, ran across the room, grabbed the dropped guns, knocked the wounded man the hell out with a brutal kick, set the guns down, slammed the door shut, barred it with two tables and whatever elese he could find and then he walked across the room and set down the guns. He and Argos divided them up and Alessandro retrieved his rifle. "Okay. Looks like we've got enough guns. Now we just have to win the shootout."

The jackal mask ran down the hallway screaming for the others. "SHIT SHIT SHIT FUK SHIT! Ay nee some fuking help! They've done got guns!"

"Who thay butchers? That there just seems impractical."

"Thay fuking livestok! They done killed thay others! They done took theuurr guns! They're a-killin' us! hey done opened thay freezer! Ay nee help! We have ta fuking contayn this here!"

Salvador tossed his giant hammer up into the air and caught it with his free hand and balanced it over his shoulder. "About fucking time." His voice boomed over the room. "It's been awhile since I got to have some fun." He snapped his fingers and pointed down the hallway. "Lead the way."

"Are you guys okay over there?" Alessandro asked the civilians they'd saved.

"F-f-fine. We're g-getting b-better. S-s-sorry....c-can't f-fight."

"Don't worry about that. Just leave the fighting to us."

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

They returned their attention to the doorway.

Whoever is down the hallway must be built like a tank or at least as heavily arrmed. This new guys footsteps echoed off of the buildings walls, announcing his arrival to all in a several hundred meter radius.

"Ssshhiiit. What in the fuck?! Do you hear that?" Alessandro asked.

"Something big is coming. Gotta be one of those freaks we saw when we got here. If I had to guess, it's either sackhead, metalface or the hammer guy."

"Yeah that's just what I need today." Alessandro groaned. "The longer we're stuck in here dealing with these shits the more danger the kids are in."

"Then we'll just have to shoot them all." Argos reasoned. "Now come on. Focus. One thing at a time. I'm sure Leo's already blasting his way out of whatever hole they tried throwing him into."

Alessandro swallowed and steadied his breathing to focus.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The thundering footsteps continued echoing around the building. The noise continued to get louder and louder as the source got closer. The hanging meat on either side of them shook on their hooks. The civilians huddled tighter than before. The stomping sounds echoed like thunder claps around them until it finally stopped in front of the doorway. Whoever was on the other end tried the door a few times in vain and then there was silence. The air was so brittle it could snap. No-one spoke up, for what is there to say? Platitudes obviously wouldn't cut it right now.

The doorway exploded and Alessandro's improvised blockade was scattered all around the room. The hammer man stepped into the room through the entrance, dragging his hammer behind him.

"Hammer man it is." Alessandro noted and he and Argos immediately opened fire on him, every shot aimed right at his center mass.

The bullets ripped through him and the hammer man stumbled backwards as bloody holes opened up around his chest from the bullets tearing through his heart and lungs. But he still didn't let go of his hammer. Instead he slammed it down onto the ground, causing an echoing boom around the room and down the hallway, and still he remained standing! So naturally the two just adjusted their aim at his head and fired there. The bullets swiftly chewed through his mask, shot holes right through it and tore up his skull. Blood and brain matter were splattered out of the back of his head and ran down the front of his swiftly disappearing face. He finally fell down against the wall and they ceased firing.

"He was certainly a tough motherfucker. That was about every bullet we had in these."

"We'll use the last of them for whomever comes in next and then use the other guns on the rest and take guns as we need them."

Alessandro was about to respond to him when he noticed the hammer man climbing back to his feet. "Argos? Are you seeing this?"

"Oh shit."

Despite all of the blood pouring down his body and that his heart, lungs, skull and brain had been ground up by the bullets, he just got right back up on his feet! They looked up at his head and they saw his brain pulsating in a bulbous mass as it simply grew right back! At the same time blood was spraying out of his chest as he seemed to grow back his organs. Argos and Alessandro looked at each other and then back to their enemy and they emptied every last bullet they had in the rifles into his head once more. It popped like a balloon and once again the wall behind him was painted with blood and gore.

The guns clicked empty so they discarded them. Argos and Alessandro took a second to grab the other rifles when the masked men poured into the room and began spraying bullets in their direction. Both men ducked down, barely able to hear the horrified screams of the civilians over the roar of gunfire. Thinking fast, Alessandro and Argos grabbed the pistols and shot at their legs. There was an exchange of gunfire on both sides but the animal masks dropped first. The Blackburns shot them dead while they had the chance. Alessandro took a chance to catch his breath. He was bleeding from a few near misses but thankfully nothing serious had been hit. "Hey old man, you okay?"

"Just fine. Got lucky there."

The booming footsteps again. They looked up at the door and saw he was standing tall again. And this time his head had completely healed. "Well shit. That's real fair. Think our luck's gonna hold out?"

"Can only hope." They went for the rifles again but this time the giant man tossed his massive welding hammer across the room at them. They barely dodged it in time! The hammer whizzed past the two men and slammed into the far wall!

"What the hell?! He tossed that giant thing like a softball!" Alessandro looked back at him. The man was already stampeding towards them! Not even caring that he was trampling his own men! (Oh this is just great! Not only can he regenerate but he's strong as an ox and he's fast as hell to boot! Just how are we supposed to kill this guy?!)

He smashed into the tables and sent them flying across the room with a swing of his arm! Alessandro flipped onto the tables before he could do so, flipped onto his shoulder and then jumped off of him and landed on his feet. Argos simply dodged left. The bruiser turned around and swung his arm at Alessandro while the latter was firing his handgun into his back. He didn't seem to notice it and just continued with his attack. Alessandro dodged the hit and the follow up from his other arm. He then dodged the next swing and the attempted uppercut, flipped backwards and fired on his eyes. The giant man took a few steps backwards and rubbed his eyes but it seemed more like an annoyance than any actual damage being done.

THERE THEY ARE! ON ME MEN! LET'S GIVE VICTAW SOME BAKUP!"

Alessandro turned around as more of them started pouring into the room and firing on them at the same time as Argos. Alessandro dived to the side and returned fire but it gave Victor enough time to recover. He ran over to Alessandro while he was frantically trying not to get shot, grabbed him by the shirt and then he flung him into a wall like a ragdoll! The meat actually took some of the impact off of him but not much. Alessandro hit the giant meat slabs, knocked them off of their meat hooks and they impacted the wall. Alessandro's guns dropped from his hands and he fell down onto the ground. Victor didn't hesitate to pick him up by the back of his shirt, spin him around and punch him across the face. It was like being struck across the side of his head by a slab of concrete. He backhanded him with that same powerful fist, then back across the face, then backhanded and then across the face again before he pulled him back and slammed him against the wall. Victor stared at the bloodied face of his broken opponent and then Victor's hands grasped his throat. Alessandro gasped for air as those powerful fists squeezing his windpipe. He frantically grabbed his arms and kicked out his feet, his struggles proving vain in the face of this iron grip. That was until Victor was flung across the room himself! Alessandro dropped towards the floor but he was caught in two powerful arms. He hacked and coughed and opened up one of his eyes to see Argos holding him gently. "Breathe easy Alessandro. I've got you."

Alessandro tried to talk to him but could only manage pained gasps for air in between hacking and coughing.

"Not bad."

Argos looked back at Victor who was brushing himself off. "Not bad. You're pretty strong."

"Well that's annoying. Hey, Alessandro, are you gonna be okay?"

He gasped for air and gently rubbed his throat. "A-A-Argos....r-r-run....c-can't...kill....it....to....strong." He choked out.

He walked over to a spot in between the equipment and the overturned tables and set him down and then he turned back to face Victor who was on his way over to retrieve his hammer. Argos simply grabbed a table and flung it across the room. Victor paused to smash it with his forearm out into the hallway. He stared him down.

"That remains to be seen. Now come on and hit me with your best shot."

The humongous towering beast of a man laughed. He flat out laughed at him. It was the natural response really. He was a super strong borderline immortal monster of a man rippling with muscle and half-blind old man just told him to give him his best shot. He shut right up when Argos cracked him across the jaw! For Argos it was exactly like hitting concrete but he had no time to worry about that now so he pushed on and followed up with a two straight punches to his neck, a punch across his jaw, a shot to his neck, a punch to his right eye, a push kick to his stomach that made him fall back against the hanging meat, a brutal punch to the neck, and then Argos grabbed him by the head, turned him around and dragged him down, kneed him hard in the face, threw him back against the wall and unleashed a brutal combination of punches on his face that knocked his head back against the metal wall repeatedly. He finished his assault with a strong lefthook, spun him around, grabbed him by the waist and suplexed him to the floor! Argos then rolled on top of him, pinned him down and began unloading brutal punches to his face.

"Damn son! Is this all you can do? Come on! I'm an old man! You can't take on an old man?" Argos challenged while pounding his face in.

He received his answer in the form of Victor grabbing his shirt and throwing him aside. Argos hit the ground hard and slid across it until he hit a pair of corpses laying on the floor. He rolled over them and sat up. He rubbed his knuckles while Victor climbed to his feet. He turned around and looked at Argos. His face looked like it was carved out of stone with a beard as thick as a gardening broom with bristles sticking out in all directions. He had a split lip and a bloody nose to show for Argos's efforts.He smiled at him with twisted crooked bloodstained teeth. Argos got up and the pair rushed each other again. Victor was more ready to attack him this time so Argos went low, grabbed his legs and took him to the ground again. He resumed punching his face in but only got in a few punches before Victor grabbed him, pulled him down and headbutted him and tossed him into a wall. He yelled out and slumped towards the ground but he managed to stay on his feet. Victor got right back up and swung at him but Argos blocked him with a forearm, pushed it aside, struck his throat with a quick jab, swung him around and smacked him against the wall.

"You've got strength I'll give you that, but you don't have the skill to use it properly!" Argos chastised him and he resumed punching him in the throat.

This continued until Victor managed to grab his arm and punch him hard in the face. Blood burst from his nose and he started falling down but then the maniac grabbed him by the shirt, raised his fist up and swung down at his face again. Then again. Then again. Every damn punch was like an anvil to his face! The assault ended with a brutal haymaker to his face that slammed Argos down on the floor. Then he kicked him up to the ceiling so hard that Argos put a dent in it and then Victor punched the old hero across the room. He crashed against the wall and dropped to the ground. Bloood poured from his mouth and he started breathing hard. Victor grunted, rubbed his soar throat and then he ran across the room to grab his hammer.

By the time Argos was able to get up again Victor was already approaching him with the hammer.

"Yeah? Yeah? Come on freak. Come on. Bring it."

"I'm gonna enjoy bashing your brains in old man." Victor giggled and raised his hammer to bring it down on Argos.

That was when bullets ripped through Victor's legs. "SHIT!" He yelled out as he fell to his knees and his hammer fell to the floor with a loud bang. Argos looked across the room to see Alessandro had recovered in time to grab one of the rifles. He nodded to Argos and he nodded back. Alessandro then unloaded every last bullet in the rifle into Victor's head. The bullets swiftly chewed through until his head gone and replaced by a bloody pulpy mess. Already knowing about his regeneration power, Argos quickly grabbed the hammer, raised it above his head and waited. The moment the pulpy writhing mass started to bubble up he swung the hammer down on it as hard as he could. SPLAT! Blood and gore and who knows what else splattered around the room and onto Argos. He kept swinging and swinging and swinging, aiming every strike from the hammer at his wounds.

After multiple strikes he finished it and tossed the hammer aside and grabbed his body, dragged it across the room, hoisted him up with one arm, turned on the meat grinder and slammed Victor down into it! The sound was like something out of nightmares as blood burst out of the top of the grinder and Victor's body jerked and trembled as he was being forced into it and blood and meat poured out of the other side. It took everything Argos had to keep him inside but eventually Victor's body just...stopped moving as the grinder jammed up. Argos let go of his legs and dropped down to the floor.

The fight was over.

"Hey...old man....you okay?"

"I've had worse....how about you?"

"I'll live." Alessandro admitted. "Can you stand?"

Argos dragged himself back up to his feet and popped his back. "UUuuuhgghhh getting old sucks. Could've pounded that guy into the dirt back in my prime." He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, fixed his nose and walked across the room until he could find a sink. He wet some paper towels and wiped his face. He then got some for Alessandro who cleaned himself up. After washing up they walked back over to the civilians and offered their hands.

"Hello again. Are you guys okay?"

"F-fine..." The stunned man stammered. "We're okay. We're fine. What about you?"

"Might need a day or two in the hospital when this is all over but we can worry about that later." Argos shrugged.

The civilians accepted their hands up. They were still in bad shape but they were feeling better now.

"Okay. Time to lock and load. We've got a family to save."

Josephina, Gloria and Michelle were marched across the farm towards the guest house. Michelle tried to look back at her daughter but a gun barrel was shoved against her head. "Eyes forward, livestock!" Michelle kept her mouth shut for the moment and continued walking.

"Divide and conquer." Josephina whispered to her quietly.

She slightly nodded and the trio waited for the right moment.

The guest house looked like a cut out from Architects Today magazine. It was beautiful. but not in the olde-worlde quaint kind of way I was usually drawn to. Everything was geometric, which I guess you could say about almost any pitched roof abode with square windows, but on this house you couldn't help but notice it. The roof was flat for a start and the door as wide as it was tall. The windows took up entire walls with only polished steel beams to break them into yet more rectangles. The look would have been entirely metallic, like a mini down-town skyscraper had it not been for the cedar beams of the external porch and the matching raised plant beds that contained only white blooms. The door was opened and the group was forced inside. The floors were polished concrete and the furniture scandinavian, high end designers only. The only compromise to comfort was the sheepskin on the floor, so clean it was hard to believe anyone had ever stepped foot on it. So these freaks had some semblance of humanity at least.

It was almost a shame they were going to be painting it in cannibal blood soon.

The trio were marched up the flights of stairs to the third floor where they were separated and forced into different rooms, each of which had thugs hanging outside of them with guns and rifles in their hands.

Josephina was sat down on a bed and she scoped the room. It was built like a small hotel room. Smooth carpeting, fancy rugs, a fluffy comfortable bed, a large TV-Screen, Bookshelves, Wine Bottles, Windows and Fancy Curtains. It was such a damn shame it was about to be ruined with bloodstains.

One of the thugs, a buff wearing blue overalls and jeans a cow mask pulled up a chair and sat down across from her with a handgun in his hands. He took a deep breath, slowly exhaled, looked at his buddies around him and then looked at her.

"Now, Ay don't want there ta be any awful hard feelings darling. Yeah yer husband done killed ayy lot av our men but he's a-bein' ripped apart by the butchers in ayy basement raheet now so. Ya know."

No response from Josephina. Who simply glared at him. "Ay think we're about even there. Now ay done won't lie ta ya. Ya are nevuurr gunna see him agayn. He's dead."

She glared.

"Y'all are nevuurr gunna see thay ...uhh old man ayn' that there othuurr guy eithuurr. They are a-bein' chopped up faw meat raheet now."

Still nothing.

"You are nevuurr gunna see yer son agayn. He is gunna be done sold tonaheet."

Nothing.

"But the last few minutes av yer life don't need-ta be painful. Ya ken relax in here. Ya ken get comfawtable. Ya ken help you ta some wahn ayn' watch tv. When it's y'all's tahm ta be taken down ta processing, we'll make y'all's death as painless as possible."

"Okay. How does that there sownd ta ya? Oh it's okay ta talk ya know."

Josephina stared down the five men surrounding her in the room and then Josephina slipped out of her cuffs, grabbed them, tossed them across the room, hit one of them in the face to distract him, lunged forward and struck the cow mask in the throat, grabbed the handgun from him, kicked him over, shot the two men behind him in the throat and then she turned around and kicked the next man in the chest against the shelf. The fifth man however was quicker than she thought and he fired on her with his shotgun. Josephina managed to evade his aim and dived out of the way. She the floor and frantically shot him down, shooting him four times in the chest before he could readjust his aim. Josephina then rolled onto her back and shot the man she'd kicked against the shelf in the throat. He fell to the floor gasping and clutching at his throat as blood poured from the bloody holes in it while he gurgled his last words. Josephina scrambled to her feet and ran behind the curtains. Seconds later two of the thugs kicked open the door with two more of them flanking them. The horrific sight of their dead allies that greeted them gave them just enough momentary pause that Josephina was able to shoot them from her hiding place. Bullets ripped right through the silk of the curtains and hit the men, shooting and wounding two of them. The others quickly fired in her direction but then Josephina was already running from behind her hiding place, their bullets ripping right through the curtains, the wall, the shelves and the wall as they tracked her movements as ran across the bed, sprung off of it and fired on both of them, the momentum carried her forward and she kicked the man on the right while shooting the other man in his eye. She then grabbed his gun, kicked the first guy out of the room, turned the gun around and blew his brains out.

Josephina shoved one into her belt loop and then gripped the rifle while peeking out of the room and she smirked at the wide open doors, fighting and sounds of gunfire.

This was promptly wiped off of her face when she heard the others running up the stairs. They were in for a fight.

"Hang on honey. Mommy and Daddy are coming to save you."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Michelle was struck upside the back of her head with the butt stroke of a rifle and she fell down onto the bed. She groaned and rolled over onto her back and opened her eyes. A man in a sheep mask laughed with the gun resting on shoulders and one foot on the bed. "Shit bitch you toughuurr than ya look. It's too awful bad you gonna be ground up faw meat latuurr. If it's any comfawt though, ay'm sure y'all ayn' y'all's kinfolk will taste darn good." He slapped her across the face and she just glared at him "Except faw that there pink haered bitch. We're a-sellin' huurr. Ay'm sure someone will buy huurr am ay right?" He laughed with his friends.

A wolf mask walked over to her cracking his knuckles. "Just because you getting ground up latuurr doesn't mean that there we ken't kik y'all's ass faw awhahl ferst though. Y'all done killed darn good men. Some right darn good men. Ayn' since the rest av y'all's kinfolk is already dead we're gonna take it out on ya bitch." He grabbed her face and laughed. "So what do ya say bitch? Ya ready ta bleed?"

She struck like a cobra, grabbing two of his fingers in her mouth, biting down and turning and tearing! Eyes, teeth, tongues, throats, feet and genitalia are not the only human body parts that are extremely sensitive and fragile. Our fingers are, too. There's also the fact that in humans, fingers have the highest number of touch receptors of any part of the body, primarily as an evolutionary consequence to the human species' tool biased survival strategy that required the use of the hands. As a result, fingers are so sensitive they could even be considered to be sensory organs on par with the eyes. The loss of hands can also be extremely disabling for the same reasons above, just as the loss of an eye can be.

Something the thug in the wolf mask was experiencing right at this moment. There was a horrific snapping of bones and tearing of flesh and sinew as she tore his fingers off!

His reaction, dear readers, was about what you'd expect.

"AHHHHHH! MY FINGERS!" He screamed out as blood spurted from the bloody stumps that he had left of his fingers.

Michelle, still holding them in her mouth, turned her head and spat them out into the right eye of the sheep mask. He recoiled as the bloody fingers bounced off of the eyes of his mask and she used the opportunity to slip out of her cuffs and give him a full power strike to his throat, crushing his larynx and causing the airway to close. In such a situation, CPR is not possible. Only surgical opening of the airway, a tracheotomy, and prompt medical attention will save the individual. Time he did not have. She grabbed his gun with one hand, grabbed his head and swung him over to his comrades. One of them moved forward to catch him and Michelle kicked the wolf mask over to them, aimed the rifle and shot two of the men in the head, spraying their blood all over the walls. The man holding sheep mask frantically grabbed for the gun on his belt. Too late. She blew his brains out. As sheep mask fell to the ground grasping at his throat, Michelle calmly grabbed wolf mask and smiled sweetly at him.

"To answer your earlier question, I think if you're going to kill someone, you should just do it."

The door was kicked open and the two thugs outside came charging in and Michelle ran forward and shoved wolf mask against them. This distracted them long enough for Michelle to shoot them both in the head, blowing their brains out and blowing their masks open. She then calmly placed her foot on wolf mask's chest and aimed the rifle at his head next.

"Amateurs."

BANG!

Michelle began securing the other guns as footsteps came charging up the stairs. Ignoring them for the moment, she walked over to the curtains and used one of them to casually wipe her mouth. She then turned and spat in a trash can.

"Just hold on kids. We're coming."
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Gloria sat down on the bed and she rolled her shoulders and scoped out the room and then the thugs around her. "Huh."

"Awright we're a goin' over this once. The last few minutes av yer life don't need-ta be painful. Ya ken relax in here. Ya ken get comfawtable. Ya ken help you ta some wahn ayn' watch tv. When it's y'all's tahm ta be taken down ta processing, we'll snap yer neck first. Quick and simple and painless. Now how does that sound to ya?"

Gloria crossed her legs and relaxed. "I gotta tell ya, I can think of worst places to be sitting. At least it's not hot in here. But I have to ask: What's with the masks? Seriously that's been bugging me since you guys showed up. Seriously they don't seem to be offer any tactical advantage and they actually seem like they would limit your vision more than anything. Do you even have any peripheral vision in those?"

The cannibals looked at each other.

"Fuk. Ay think she done might have ayy point..."

"Yeah. Ay mean why does thay ...err awful old man have us a-wearin' these things anyways?"

"Ta disguise ourselves y'all idiots. Livestok aw nahwt they ken't be done allowed ta know who weez beneath our masks."

"Even if we're gonna be a-killin' huurr raheet aftuurr this here anyways?"

"Ay don't care! Rules are rules! Thay old man done made that there right awful clear!" The wolf mask turned back to Gloria. "And you! Don't think a-tryin' ta confuse us is gonna save ya. You still dead meat livestok!"

"Fiiiine, fiiiine. Jeeze. I was just giving you boys some advice. You know, something to think about when you're back on your feet."

"What? Bitch what? Weez on our feet ya idiot!"

They were interrupted by the sounds of gunfire from the rooms around them and Gloria used the distraction to leap into action! Her foot lashed out and smashed into the pelvis of the closest man to her hard enough to shatter it! He was knocked over on his back screaming pain while Gloria leaped off of the bed, up into the air, turned around and she did a split kick into the masks of the next two men, kicking them hard enough to shatter their masks! Blood spurted from their mouths and noses as they collapsed onto the floor. Gloria broke her handcuffs, landed on her feet and she lunged forward and rushed down the last two men, slammed a punch into the throat of the man on her left while push kicking the man on her right backwards into and through the door! The men outside were stunned to see one of their own break through the door and that gave Gloria enough time to grab the man she'd throat checked, swing him around, steal his gun from his holster, shove him out through the hole and shoot the two men outside in their legs. They dropped to the floor and Gloria turned around and shot the rest of the thugs in their heads. Gloria then opened the door and finished off the men outside, grabbed their guns and left the door open while she grabbed the rest of the guns and set them down on the bed while putting as many of them around her belt and in her pockets as she could. Gloria then grabbed the shotgun and got ready to fight off the rest.

The thugs practically flew up the stairs at the sound of screams and gunfire. Their hearts were racing, their breath short and fast as their feet pounded the stairs like hammers.

"What the hell is a-goin' on up there? Those there gerls was cuffed when they done came in! They was surrounded? How the hell could they have gotten loose?"

"These are the guys who done killed Fawt ayn' Fawrest. Triky bitches must have done something sneaky ayn' done got thay jump on them!"

"We done had twenty one guys up here! Naw way three little gerls done took them all out! Naw way! It doesn't add up!"

"Ay don't like this here! We need-ta get thay brothers!"

"Ken it ya idiots! There's still twenty av us! We have them outnumbered ayn' outgunned! Now quit a-bein' ayy bunch av pansies ayn' leds put these cows down!"

(Wait. Twenty? Plus the idiots we just iced that comes to forty one total. Taking into account the number of guys they had surrounding us, plus the brothers, plus however many guys they had hiding in the buildings around the farm....oh son of a bitch! That Fort Fucker was lying!) Josephina realized. (And after we shot off his fucking arm too! Shit, it would almost be commendable if he wasn't such an asshole. Dammit. Okay, okay calm down. You're just badly outnumbered. Three of you against twenty armed lunatics. Plus who knows however many else are still on this damn farm. Plus however many Leo, Argos and Alessandro are dealing with at this moment. This has bad day written all over it.) Josephina calmed down, raised her gun, quickly poked out from the doorway and opened fire on the thugs with Gloria and Michelle joining right in. (Sit tight sweetie. Mommy's coming. I just might be a little late.)

The thugs who were leading the pack fell back as bullets ripped through their flesh. Four of them died on the spot and their allies caught them and backed away down the stairs. "BOOOOBBBBYYYY!" One of them yelled out in anguish while holding his fallen friend. The men stared down at the dead bodies of their allies for a minute before they dragged them up and placed them against the sides and grabbed their guns.

20-4=16

"YA BITCHES PLUM DONE GONE DAD GUM DID IT NOW!" They came right back up the stairs spraying bullets at the rooms. The ladies were forced to retreat further into the rooms around the corners as bullets tore apart the remains of the doorways, spraying dust and chunks of wood around the room as they ducked down and squeezed their guns.

Michelle leaned back around the corner and aimed out of the holes in the doors. Bullets sprayed back and forth as more holes were swiftly chewed through the doorway. She eventually managed to wound two of them but few of the bullets whizzing past grazed her and then another one tore through a shoulder and knocked Michelle on her back.

"CUNT ASS SHIT MOTHERFUCKER!"

She screamed out in pain as blood ran down her shoulder. She gritted her teeth, dropped the rifle, forced herself back up, lunged for the drapes, tore off a large amount, ripped open her sleeve and began binding the wound right on the spot the best she could while keeping an eye on the door.

"DJK GS DFF VORF DJEZZA GS WHLL! GIYSS DAIHVVH!"

A pair of the thugs broke through the remains of the door and were about to pull the triggers but were shot in the head with bullets fired from the handgun she'd quick drawed from her dress and fired with her good arm.

"FUCK YOU!"

Josephina meanwhile, being on the far end of the hallway, was in the best position to supply with cover fire. She leaned back out of the room as far as she safely could and fired on the thugs from her position. She gunned down a pair of them. But then five of them charged her position while spraying bullets at the doorway. Josephina ran back into the room and around the corner while bullets ripped through the doorway and sprayed against the wall.

Gloria aimed through the holes in the door to her room and fired at the men while they were running past the doorway. Her bullets ripped through a few of them but the others turned right around and fired on her room. She slipped around the corner and ducked her head down. There were nine left and they were just flat out done with this. All nine of them advanced. Three of them advanced towards Josephina's room. Three of them advanced on Gloria's room. The last three advanced on Michelle's room.

Michelle tightened her makeshift bandage and grabbed her handguns, ignoring the pain in her right arm, and raised them up. "Come on assholes. Come and fucking get me."

As if they heard her challenge the three walked into her room. However, even with the door torn up, they were still bottle necked in the doorway and up against Michelle Blackburn Berardinelli. She wasn't the superhuman that her brother was but she was still a crack shot all the same. She opened fire with both guns on the man in front, wincing at the pain shooting through her arm with each shot. She shot the man in the head through his mask and he went down. Before he had even hit the ground she was already shooting the next two men. They ducked down and backed away while exchanging gunfire with her but Michelle evaded their aim and shot them down.

A few bullets had passed by and grazed her but she'd avoided being wounded any further.

Gloria grabbed one of the corpses in her room, dragged it up and she ran towards the doorway and shoved it outside. They shot him full of holes and blood burst out of his body. He dropped to the ground and one of them realized just who they'd shot. "Oh fuck. Oh fuk me. That there were Riky. We just done shot Riky!

"FUK! W-was he alive there? Whut kind of sick shit is-"

Gloria leaned around the corner and opened fire on them, shooting one of them dead on the spot. THe others snapped out of their shock and backed away while firing on the doorway. Gloria scurried away, dropped the handgun, picked up the shotgun and ran to the far end of the room.

"Dammit all! Ay'm a-finishin' this here! Covuurr me!"

His friend nodded and the thug ran into the room and through the open doorway. He turned and fired on her but Gloria barely managed to evade his aim and she returned fire with her shotgun. A bloody hole was blown through the man's stomach and he was thrown back. Gloria sat up and exchanged fire with the last man and blew him away.

Gloria sighed with relief and dropped her shotgun. Her hand grabbed her ribs and she felt the blood running down her fingers. "Well shit. That isn't good now is it?" Gloria looked around. "I wonder...if there are any first aid kits in the bathrooms here?"

Josephina was left with the last three advancing on her position. She quickly dragged a few corpses towards the entrance to the room and piled them on top of each other and then she grabbed the last one and hid herself underneath it while keeping her hand on her gun.

"Alraheet bitch! Hope ya've done said y'all's prayers because we're a-finishin' this here now!" One of them screamed into the room and broke through the remains of the doorway and nearly stumbled over the pile of corpses on the floor. "....Motherfuck."

"Oh God. Ohhh my God. This is....This is......Done she do this here ta them?"

"Wait...where is she?" The thugs did a quick scan of the room but they didn't see Josephina anywhere. Just a pile of corpses and a dead body laying on the ground. It was then that Josephina sat up, pushed the body away and fired on the men from the floor. She shot two of them in the throat and the last one in the head. They were done. Josephina shoved the corpse off of her and sat up and took a deeeeep breath and exhaled.
"Close one. How many of these guys are there anyway?" She finished off the men she'd shot in the throat and stepped over the corpses to go check on Michelle and Gloria.

It was time for the world to be rest to a simpler way of life after all.

Thaddeus cleared his throat, hung up the phone, adjusted his suit and walked back around the corner to rejoin his daughter for their game.

Downstairs the dirty cops were trying to relax and unwind after this afternoon's haul and the loss of their co-conspirators. Their Les Collaborateurs. Their comrades. Their friends.

Or most of them anyways.

Danny Montgomery for example was obviously still fuming about being humiliated by Josephina earlier. He'd fixed his nose, bandaged it, wiped his face and he was how holding an ice pack on his nose while rambling to the others.

"Look, look, look, it's obvious, okay? Look....bitches are snakes and succubi who use their bodies to train you like a dog and steal half your stuff in divorce settlements." Danny explained to the others. "Women aren't really attracted to anyone. They're either manipulating you or you're simply not powerful or rich enough to be worth succubus-ing. Love is a fiction spun by women so that they can manipulate you! That's why! That's why everyone always says that the woman is never wrong, even when she is: They've got their hooks in! We're under attack through coercive means, they're using our male physiology against us, all of them! They're using sex for profit, which is the definition of a prostitute, therefore all women are whores! We're biologically wired to lose this war, and the only way to win is to prove that we don't need them as much as they don't need us!"

Officer Otto Vivar yawned. "Yeah, hey, isn't this why Dottie dumped your ass for Vincent Bommarito?"

"Shut up! I dumped her lazy ass! Not the other way around!" Danny insisted.

"Yeah, that's why you haven't been able to get a girl since." Otto chuckled and sipped his beer.

Danny stood up and set down the ice. "Listen asshole and get this through your fat flabby head. I. Am. A. Real. M-"

Officer Aaren Aronofsky had enough. He lunged at Danny, grabbed him by the face, shoved him backwards, tripped his feet and threw him onto the floor. He rolled head over ass and then he hit his head on a wall. Aaren walked over to him, crouched down and grabbed him by the shirt. "Danny. Shut the fuck up. I don't give a shit about your marriage problems or your issues with girls. You can blow that out your ass. But the moment you start threatening us is when I put my foot down. You even shoved a shotgun in our faces, you fucking idiot! We have saved your ass, covered for you and tolerated your outbursts but I'm getting sick of your attitude. The next time you try pulling this shit I will blow your brains out and deliver your corpse to these cannibals. Got it?"

"Y-y-yes....yes sir. Yes sir."

"Good." Aaren let him go and stood up. "I'll be taking 25% of your cut as punishment. No arguments. Now apologize to Otto."

"I-I'm sorry Otto."

"Apologies accepted moron." Otto smirked and returned to his beer.

Danny sighed, picked up his chair, sat back down and helped himself to a beer.

Aaren cleared his throat and raised his own. "Now then. I would like to propose a toast. To Lawson, Benny, Jackson and Lennon. May they kick ass and take names all the way to hell! Also we're getting their cut so cheers!"

"Cheers!" The corrupt cops called out and clinked their drinks and chugged them down.

"Hello Gentlemen." Diablos greeted the ten police who were standing and sitting around the kitchen and he and a pair of the farmhands set down ten suitcases full of money down on the table on top of each other.

Dread snapped his fingers and motioned them over.

"In total we have four hundred twenty thousand dollars here. With the others dead we will be diving it up among you which comes to forty-two thousand dollars each."

Aaren grinned. Combined with the twenty five percent cut from Danny that meant he was going home today with fifty-two thousand five hundred dollars! Danny just grinned and bore it while the rest celebrated.

The farm hands opened the suitcases and took the time to divide up the money among the police.

Once it was all divided up Danny handed ten thousand five hundred dollars to Aaren who gleefully accepted it. "Ahhhh, very nice. A pleasure doing business with you gentlemen." Aaren complimented while fanning himself with the wads of cash.

"You're quite welcome. Thank of all your aid and the sacrifices you have made for Father. Rest assured there is more where this came from so long as you continue to do good work."

Diablos stood up. "Now that everyone's been paid. I would like you to accompany us to processing to say your goodbyes to your fallen comrades."

"I-I....uhhhh...you know that's alright, I think we'll just fi-"

"I never said it was optional."

"Yeah okay."

"Great."

The police stuffed their wallets with the dirty money and then followed Diablos and Dread outside where a group of male and female farmhands carrying wrapped up corpses in plastic bags.

"Hello everyone. Is everything taken care of?"

"Theuurr unifawms are a-bein' done burned up now, suurr. Once we get these boys down ta processing it'll be like they just done disappeared off av the face av the Earth." A tiger mask girl informed him.

"Excellent work. Come along gentlemen."

The group walked across the farm in a straight line together while taking the time to enjoy this bright Summer day. When they reached the building they noticed the door was still cracked open. Thinking nothing of it Diablos pushed it open. "Hello ladies and gentlemen! How's work going? I hope you're ready for..." His words caught in his throat as he took in the sight of the corpses littering the room and hallway.

"Ohhhhh shhiiiit." Aaren spoke up.

"Diablos. Wasn't Victor on guard duty today?" Dread asked his brother.

Diablos ran down the hallway and paid no more mind to the corpses whether he was trampling them or just running right past them. He briefly slammed into a wall, heavily denting it but he gave no more care to it and kept running with the others running behind him.

He finally reached the butchering room. The first thing he noticed was the corpses strewn about the hallway and the junk and debris laying around the room. As he walked into the room his eyes were drawn to the dead bodies of the butchers and then he slowly looked at the broken down meat grinder and the body sticking out of it. "NO!" He screamed and he ran over to the machine and he frantically began ripping it apart, tearing off whole chunks of the machine until he could get to the body stuck in the machine. He pulled it out and turned it over desperate to look his brother in the eyes again to check on him to assure him that he was okay. "V-Vic? Victor? Victor come on. Come on it's me. J-just regenerate. Just grow it back. Just grow your head back. Come on." He frantically begged the mangled upper half of his brother's corpse. "C-come on! Come on Victor! COME ON! VICTOR GET UP!" Diablos yelled at him and began shaking his body up and down. "GET UP! VICTOR GET UP! REGENERATE! GROW IT BACK! JUST GROW IT BACK! BROTHER PLEASE!"

"I-I don't....I don't get it....I-I thought....I thought you guys were supposed to be immortal." Otto spoke up while taking off his hat and placing it over his heart followed by the others doing the same. "I-I thought you guys couldn't die."

Dread said nothing and walked over to Diablos. He gently pulled him off of Victor's corpse and pulled him into a hug. Diablos silently sobbed and pushed his head into his big brother's chest. "We can't die. We can't. We're supposed to be immortal."

"We need to tell father. He'll know what to do. Bring Victor. Father will need to see his remains." Dread informed him firmly.

"Y-yes....yes of course." He steeled himself and wiped his face with the back of his arm.

Dread held his brothers' shoulders. "They will pay. We will make them suffer for this. They will all suffer."

"Yes brother. We will rip them to shreds."

Dread walked over to the walk in refrigerator and flung it open. The livestock were gone. He slammed it shut and turned back to the others. "Drop the corpses. They're not important. You three! Go to the torture house and check in on them then report back. The rest of you are coming back to the mansion with us."

"YES SIR!"

Three of the farmhands ran away ahead of them. Dread and Diablos lifted up Victor's corpse and they began walking out.

Thaddeus stood at the window and watched the rain begin to pour down while Macey packed away her Monopoly game. "Is it storming outside papa?"

"That it is my dear."

"Can I go play in it?"

Thaddeus chuckled. So innocent. He turned back around to look at her while the thunder boomed overhead. "Not this time. The rain is coming down a little hard today. Perhaps next time if the rain is lighter."

"Ooookaaaay."

He kissed the top of her mask. "I'll tell you what. I'll pour you a glass a milk and a bowl of cookies and then Ambrosia will read you a story."

"Will she read me the cookbook again?" Macey asked him.

"I'm sure she will. We both know how much you love that book." He rubbed her head. "I'll tell you what. I'll tell her to read you one childs book and then the cookbook. Would you like to pick out which one?"

"Little Dragons Of The Moon!" She exclaimed ecstatically.

"Perfect choice. Oh Ambrosia!"

The woman in the wolf mask poked her head inside of the room. "Yes sir?"

"It's Macey's reading time. I would like you read to her Little Dragons Of The Moon and The Cookbook."

"Very good sir."

He walked over to the refrigerator, moved aside a couple of Tupperware containers of wrapped up human remains and retreived a gallon of milk then took a glass and poured it for her. After putting the milk back away he got her a put a few cookies in a bowl and handed them to Ambrosia.

"Thank you sir. Come along now little one. Lets get reading!"

"Yay! Thank you!" Macey bounded down the hall to her room with Ambrosia following behind her while one of the farmhands put away the monopoly game.

A minute after they'd closed the door the lights went out in the house and they were buried in darkness which seemed to oppress them like an awful weight. Their only source of light was the occasional flashes of lightning from outside.

"Sir?" One of the farmhands asked him.

"Keep calm. It's just a blackout. The power will come back on at any minute"

Thaddeus was just about to sit down when the curtains closed by themselves and doors locked around the house. He quickly rose to his feet.

"What were that there?" One of the farmhands asked and raised his gun.

"Lower it. It won't hurt her anyway." Thaddeus assured his men and he began navigating the mansion on his own towards the den.

"Papa? Papa the lights won't come on and the door won't open!" Macey called out to him from her room.

"It's okay sweetie! It's just a blackout and a security measure! Just relax!" He called up to her while he walked down the stairs. "The rest of you stay where you are!"

Thaddeus continued to navigate through the mansion in the dark until he reached the den and the fireplace lit up finally giving him a source of light again that illuminated the house. There she was sitting in a Welton Wingback Chair with her legs crossed sipping brandy from a teacup dressed in a black suit over a white shirt with a black tie. Her midnight black hair was cut short this time around. Her dark outfit contrasted sharply against her ghostly pale skin. But what was most striking was her blazing red eyes that burned even brighter than the fire. She grinned as Thaddeus cautiously approached her. He walked around the room until he reached the chair opposite the one she was sitting in and he slowly pulled it out with one hand and then he sat down across from her.

A moment of silence passed between the two of them before he spoke up.

"Hello Miss Morganstern."

"Hello Thaddeus."

"How is your family doing?"

"Ah yes, very well actually. Very well. My sons are as strong as ever and getting stronger every day. Little Macey is growing like a weed and Bunny is coming into her own."

"I am so glad to hear that. The farm certainly looked like it was thriving when I arrived. Good crops this season?"

Thaddeus gave a light smile. "Oh yes. I have found that mixing blood with the soil produces excellent results."

"So you finally dsicvered the secret have you? It truly is a lost art. You really need to use just the right amount to produce the best results." She sipped from the teacup with her pinky extended outwards and then she gently set the teacup down and folded her hands on her lap. "Now down to business. Bring me the boy and we will discuss your payment."

"Of course of course. We have him locked up tightly and the rest of his family is being dealt with now. We had some minor hiccups but rest assured we are on schedule. I will send my men to retrieve him now." He stood up and walked out of the den and called up to his men. "Ah Charlie! Charlie! Take Vilmer and Edward and go retrieve young Derrick Blackburn won't you? He is the boy we just brought in. Bring him in alive thank you!" Thaddeus then returned to his meeting with Miss Morganstern.

"Yes sir!" The voices called down from above and they heard a trio of men running down the stairs with lights shining in front of them. They reached the front doors of the mansion and struggled with the locks until Miss Morganstern allowed them to be opened. It was at this same moment however that Diablos and Dread ran inside and knocked them over.

"OUT OF OUR WAY! FATHER! FATHER! WE NEED YOU!"

Miss Morganstern gestured over to the entrance with one hand and took another sip from her teacup with her other.

"Please excuse me." He pushed his chair back and walked over to the entrance. "My sons, what could possibly be the matter?"

Miss Morganstern set down the teacup and waited. Thaddeus' agonized screams did not disappoint.

Thaddeus cradled the mutilated corpse of his son to his chest and sobbed over his headless body.Thaddeus cried as if his brain was being shredded from the inside. Emotional pain flowed out of his every pore. From his mouth came a cry from so raw that even the eyes of his minions around him were suddenly wet with tears and from his eyes came a thicker flow of tears than he had cried in his life. We expect to bury our parents one day, but never our children. The whole world had vanished for him, now there was only pain enough to break him, pain enough to change him beyond recognition. The world turned into a blur, and so did all the sounds. The taste. The smell. Everything was just gone. He was his son, his immortal son and he could not be gone!

Miss Morganstern casually poured herself another cup and resumed sipping it while she enjoyed the pain radiating off of Thaddeus. It felt wonderful. She'd heard the men dying around the farm and the struggle of the Blackburns to survive. The gunfire echoing through the halls of every building on the farm and the battle cries on both sides. The Blackburns were performing better than she had anticipated. Miss Morganstern had known from the outset the enormity of the task she was putting on The Brannons but this battle was exceeding expectations. She sensed the life force leaving the dead as they were gunned down. Their blood pooling beneath their corpses and mixing with the excrement from their bowls losing control. The cadavers were littering the farm now and it made her feel amazing. The scale of what she'd set into motion was breathtaking. A soft moan escaped her lips as her tongue slid over her lips. She felt so good right now.

Thaddeus sniffled and blew his nose on a handkerchief. He wiped his eyes with another one and looked up at the others. "Who did this?" He asked quietly.

"The old man. The grandfather of The Blackburn family and the man who was with him." Diablos replied to his father.

"I see." He took a minute to catch his breath. "Did you find their bodies?"

"No father. They freed the livestock we locked in the freezer as well."

Thaddeus lowered his head and then he slowly lifted up the soggy bloodstained mutilated body of Victor Salvator Brannon and carried him over to a bed and set him down and then he covered it up with a very large blanket. Thaddeus leaned forward and rested his hands on the sofa. His shoulders heaved while he contained his anger and then he turned around to look at his sons. "Where is Charles?"

"We don't know father. We have the others checking the torture house now." Dread informed him.

"Okay. Sound the alarm. Get everyone back here. Dread, you and your brother go upstairs with the others, open up the armory room and start handing out guns. We." He paused to collect himself. "We are going to capture the boy and paint the walls with the blood of his family. Then when...when this is over we will give Victor and the rest of our fallen a proper burial."

They nodded and started up the stairs only for Diablos to pause and look back at his father. "Father? What do we do? If Charles doesn't make it back to the mansion?"

"It will be alright Diablos. Charles will be fine and everything is going to be okay. Just do as your father tells you."

"Of course. Thank you father."

"Stay strong through this son. We will be fine. The rest of you, go with him now."

They silently nodded and went upstairs with Diablos.

Ting ting ting ting ting came the tapping of the spoon against the teacup. Thaddeus steeled himself and returned to the den.

Miss Morganstern crossed her legs and rested her hands on her lap. "I must say I'm a little disappointed. It is six adults and two children against an army and yet you appear to be completely unable to handle them. At this rate I may have to cancel our business transaction."

Thaddeus was practically trembling with rage now and it took every ounce of the iron willpower he'd honed over the years to push it back down. "Rest.Assured. We have the situation under control. This is just a misstep. The boy will be delivered to you." He took a deep breath and exhaled. "Alive and we will be able to continue with our business transaction."

"I certainly hope so. It would be a shame for you to lose your chance at the table because you were unable to handle one simple task." The arrogant grin nearly made him snap but he held himself back. "I'll tell you what." She lifted her right hand and waved it over the table and black smoke was emitted from her palm which floated down to the table and then it slowly took the shape of an hourglass and then it solidified into just that. "Take your time. Gather your forces. Make a plan of action and arm yourselves. Once you are ready I will turn this hourglass over. You will then have ten minutes to kill the family and bring me the boy. If the hourglass runs out before then our business will be considered canceled and you can kiss immortality goodbye."

"Yes. Quite reasonable. Thank you for your patience Miss Morganstern."

"You're welcome Thaddeus." She relaxed in the chair and closed her eyes. "Best of luck to you in the battle to come."

Derrick and Tina were dragged across the farm with guns at their heads as the maniacs laughed at them and continued poking them in the back with their guns.

"It's gonna be okay Tina. We're gonna be fine. Our parents are gonna kick their asses and we'll be fine." Derrick whispered to Tina in an attempt to comfort her.

One of the masked men began repeatedly smacking Derrick on the back of the head. "Y'all ken cut the bullshit youngun. Ya'll are gunna whoevuurr pays faw y'all's ferst ayn' nevuurr a-seein' y'all's kinfolk again!"

"Awww it's gonna be okay! It's gonna be okay! It's gonna be okaaaaaay!" Another thug taunted them in a mocking babyish tone.

"Shit, are we even gunna get any mowney faw this here youngun? He's ayy fuking string bean!" Another man complained. "The slut maybe but ay don't see anyone a-payin' top dollaar faw the wuss."

"You Motherfuc-!" Derrick turned around to lunge at him but he was simply across the face with a rifle and dropped to the ground.

"Derrick! Derrick! Get up!"

Derrick spat blood into the dirt. He tried to sit up but the thug kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking the wind right out of him. Derrick fell right back down clutching his stomach with his mouth agape. Like a fish on dry land he opened his mouth to try and inhale but nothing came in.

"YOU FUCKERS! GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Tina screamed out at them only to be struck across the face by one of the thugs fists.

"Shut the fuk up already."

The other thug put his foot on Derrick and pushed his head into the dirt. "There now see what a-tryin' ta be ayy real man geds ya? Y'all get yer face in thay dert where ya belong, livestok!" He ground his foot on him to really rub it in and then took his foot off of him. "Alraheet now get him up ayn' bring them in!"

Derrick was dragged to his feet and he finally caught his breath with quick short breaths and he looked at Tina who held her head down but he could feel the anger rising from her. These idiots thought that they'd snuffed out their flames, when in reality, all they did was pour gasoline all over it. Right now the cousins were sharing the same train of thought.

We didn't start this fight.

We don't even know these people.

We never did anything to them.

But they hurt us all the same.

We never wronged any of them and they've spent all day hunting us down and hurting us and trying to kill us.

They're calling us animals.

They're calling us livestock.

They want to murder our family and sell us off like we're property!

No.

No.

No More.

I wanted to remain calm and wait for mom and dad.

I wanted to run away and hide and wait for our parents to save us.

I wanted to wait for our aces to arrive and save us all.

BUT FUCK THAT!

THEY HURT HIM!

THEY HURT HER!

THEY HURT US!

THEY HURT OUR FAMILY!

AND THAT IS NOT FORGIVABLE!

THEY WILL PAY!

The cousins were dragged into the house and marched up four flights of stairs. Derrick took notice of the fact that even now they were still completely surrounded with masked men and women on every floor. Every now and then some of them would glance in the children's direction before going right back to their business. Ho hum. More innocent people to sell. Business as usual.

Upon reaching the top floor they were marched down a hallway into a dimly lit room filled with people trapped in cages. "Whel how about that there? There's roawum faw two in here!" The masked man holding Derrick laughed while one of his co-workers walked over to the cage, unlocked it with a key and motioned for Derrick to be dragged inside. They threw him in and Derrick hit his head on the cage floor and bars. He shook it off and turned around to see Tina being dragged across the room and shoved into a similar cage. The masked men then locked the cages and the man with the keys stepped out of the room.

"Heeeey how about this here huh? nahwt a-talkin' shit now are y'all livestok?" A masked man asked while patting the top of the cage. "These bars are solid steel so y'all ken fawget about a-breakin' them. Nahwt that there ayy way ayy weak little shit ya evuurr could. So y'all go ahead ayn' get comfawtable alright? We'll let y'all know when it's tahm ta go on sale." He laughed and walked away leaving a pair of guards to watch the inside of the room.

Derrick waited a few minutes before he slowly moved his fingers down his jeans and fumbled for the lockpicks.

(Okay. Step one: Get out of these fucking cuffs. Step Two.)

Derrick paused and squinted as he observed the men holding him. There was a pig mask man and a wolf mask woman guarding them. The woman was tossing knives up and down and the pig had an axe. Derrick considered his options and his thoughts drifted back to what the sniper had told his family and everything they'd been telling him since he got to this God forsaken shithole: They were going to sell him. Someone wanted him specifically. They'd beaten him, threatened him, put guns to his head....but they hadn't killed him. They needed him alive for now. He imagined they were allowed to kick his ass if he tried anything but that they needed him at least intact enough to sell and that this 'Miss R', whomever the fuck she was, wanted him alive and whole.

That give him an idea.

(Step two. Wait for a distraction, then pick the cage lock. Step three. Go for the fucking axe. Step four. Get the knives, give some to Tina. Step five.....improvise.)

Derrick reached the lockpicks and he slowly pulled them out and he laid down on his back and he got to work on his handcuffs as he waited for the right moment to get out of the cage and start fighting back.

He glanced in Tina's direction. He couldn't see her two well in here but he knew she was thinking the same thing. The cousins really were cut from the same mold.

A standard pair of ratcheted handcuffs has seven main components. This includes the locking mechanism, the swivel, the chain, the double strand, the single strand, the rivet, and the ratchet teeth on the single strand arm. Some handcuffs may include additional components but for the most part, this is what the common handcuff will consist of.

As with any skill, becoming proficient at escaping handcuffs requires not only practice but also a basic understanding of how these devices operate. Since the invention of the ratcheted handcuff by W.V Adams in 1862, nearly every style of handcuff used today falls under two categories of locking mechanism: the “single-lock” or the “double-lock.”

The single-lock simply uses a spring loaded bar to keep the adjustable ratchet arm from releasing once tightened. But with this revolution in design came two great flaws. The first flaw is that there is no way of preventing the handcuffs from continuing to tighten once applied. This can lead to loss of circulation and the restrainer having to disengage the handcuffs in order to reapply them properly which, needless to say, can be dangerous.

The second flaw, which we are most concerned with, is the ease in which these handcuffs can be tampered with and unlocked. These two problems were later solved with the introduction of the double-lock by John Tower in 1879.

The term “double-lock” pretty much says it all. This style of locking mechanism utilizes two levels of security. The first level acts just like a single-lock whereas it uses a spring-loaded lock bar to stop the ratchet arm from releasing. But this time a second lock bar is included that acts as a barricade ensuring that the first lock bar cannot move while this second lock bar is engaged. This prevents the ratchet handcuffs from tightening once the second lock is in effect.

Additionally, this adds an extra procedure to those who desire to tamper and pick these handcuffs. For the sake of simplicity, the remainder of this guide will only be covering the double-lock as it is much more common and knowledge of these locks can easily be applied to single-lock handcuffs.

There are five main components to these locks and are color coded to the illustration above. These components are the lock bar, the double lock bar, the lock spring, the keyhole, and the double lock slot.

The lock bar is the first line of defense in a double lock. Its purpose to stop the cuff from opening by gripping the ratchet’s teeth. The lock bar is held against the ratchet arm by the lock spring.

The purpose of the double lock bar is to ensure that the first lock bar can’t move. This is accomplished by sliding an extruded part of the double lock bar under the first lock bar, blocking any potential movement. The double lock bar is engaged by inserting the back of the key into double lock slot and pushing the bar into place.

Picking handcuffs, as their parents had explained and demonstrated to the kids in the past, is relevantly simple. All you need to do is mimic the form and motion of the key in the locking mechanism. This can be accomplished with any small strand of hard but formable wire such as a paperclip or a bobby pin.

For the cousins, getting their lockpicks out of their pockets was the easy part. Now came the hard part: Picking the locks, in the dark, with their hands cuffed behind them.

The cousins layed down on their backs and began fiddling with the cuffs. After feeling along the cuffs and poking it with the lockpicks, they managed to insert the pick into the upper cutout of the lock, ensuring that their bent tips were pointed away from the center of the cuffs. Once the pick was in they rotated and applied tension in a counter-clockwise direction to mimic the motions of the keys. They continued to apply tension onto the double-locks until they could feel them give and felt a slight click.

Now that the hard part was over it was time to take out the single lock. They fumbled with the lockpicks in their fingers until they could insert the pick into the keyholes with the bent tip pointing towards the center of the cuffs. Once the pick was in they rotated and applied tension in the clockwise direction to mimic the motions of the keys until they finally felt it give in as the pick pushed the lock bar away from the ratchet arm and it released the cuffs. They quietly slipped their hands away from it and sat up while keeping their arms behind their backs.

Step one was complete. Now they had to wait for a distraction before they got out of here.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"We need to tell father. He'll know what to do. Bring Victor. Father will need to see his remains." Dread informed him firmly.

"Y-yes....yes of course." He steeled himself and wiped his face with the back of his arm.

Dread held his brothers' shoulders. "They will pay. We will make them suffer for this. They will all suffer."

"Yes brother. We will rip them to shreds."

Dread walked over to the walk in refrigerator and flung it open. The livestock were gone. He slammed it shut and turned back to the others. "Drop the corpses. They're not important. You three! Go to the torture house and check in on them then report back. The rest of you are coming back to the mansion with us."

"YES SIR!"

Three of the farmhands ran away ahead of them. Dread and Diablos lifted up Victor's corpse and they began walking out.

The farmhands ran across the farm like the hounds of hell were on their tails while the heavens pounded them with a relentless downpour.

"Done y'all see thay bodies in there? Holy shit how thay hell do two freaking folk kill ever'one in there?" Ricky asked his co-workers.

"It doesn't make any sense! They done had an army in there ayn' one ov the brothers! It's simple math! They should've done died!" Horace insisted, still in disbelief of what they'd seen in the processing house.

"Ay don't like this here. Ay don't like this here at all." Houston confessed to the other two. "But we've still done got the rest ov the farm baking us up right? They ken handle ayy couple ov city slikers right?"

Ricky didn't know what to say to them. They'd never been in this sort of situation before. The last family had put up a good fight but they didn't cause this nearly this much damage!

It was Horace who spoke up instead. "We'll be awful fine. We'll be awful fine. Thay awful old man will know what ta do. He'll lead us ta victawy ayn' we'll be feasting on them by tonaheet."

"Hey yeah! Yeah you right! We'll be awful fine!"

They continued running and running until they got to the butcher house and stopped cold at the night of the corpses laying outside of the entrance.

"Awwwww shit no. Naw. Naw not ya'all too!"

"Fuck." Ricky slowly approached the doors and pushed them open and they were greeted by the bullet ridden corpses of their fellow farmhands surrounded by the stink of death and its unpleasant releases. He slowly walked inside and he gradually removed his cow mask and he simply let it fall to the floor, revealing his scraggly beard, long, protruding lower jaw, crooked teeth, unibrow and a pronounced scar running down from his eye down to his jaw. A reminder from a fight that didn't go so well. He stumbled a few feet before he fell to his knees and then he sat back and looked back at the others.

"What the fuk do we do now? They're dead. They're all dead! There's just naw way! Naw way ayy human ken do this here! Ay don't even see charlie anywhere! We gotta get out ov here! We gotta run! We gotta go!"

"Ken't let ya do that there. That there's desershun ayn' they will hunt us down ayn' tear us apart if we do that there. We ken't abandon the others ayn' we done won't. Now pik up ya mask, put it bak on ayn' leds go take ayy look through thay a-buildin' ayn' see if we ken faand some survivaws."

Ricky sniffled and wiped his eyes and put his mask back on. "You raheet guys. Ay'm sawry."

"It's okay. We're just as sceered as ya riky. Come on. Let's get ta wawk." Houston helped him to his feet and they began walking through the butcher house hoping to find any survivors they could but that hope was rapidly sinking.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Man y'all see those there stupid younguns coming in here? Ay think that there punk shit his shawts!" A sheep masked woman laughed with her compatriots. "Sure don't envy them raheet now."

"Hey he's getting off awful easy. He's just getting done sold. His kinfolk's getting eaten. We're a-makin' ayy feast out av them tonight!" A deer masked man chuckled.

"What do ya think's gunna happen ta him? Aftuurr we sell him off?" A wolf masked man asked.

"Who knows? That there's nahwt faw us ta wawry about. We just keep him loked up until the client geds here ayn' then we bring him ta huurr." Deer mask shrugged his shoulders and relaxed as he started cleaning his gun.

There was a knock on the door and they immediately stood up and walked over to the door as the knocking continued.
"Must be them now."

Wolf mask stood up and took the locks off of the door and started opening it up and then the door was flung open by a soaking wet man in a drenched suit who shot wolf mask in the head and then quickly gunned down the other two.

Leo grabbed the shotgun that deer mask dropped and ran inside. "Hold on son. Dad's coming."

As the cousins laid in their cages the guards decided to pass the time.

"Hey so ay'm a-tryin' thay laheet switch here ayn' it still done won't turn on. What's with that there?" Pig mask asked.

"The laheet done burned out yesterday ayn' we just haven't gotten around ta fixing it. Don't wawry about it." Wolf mask replied. Derrick and Tina heard her mask being removed but they still couldn't see her face.

"Whel fuk it ay ken barely see in this here thing. You done won't tell the boss right?"

"Fuk, My mask is already off. Come ovuurr ayn' have ayy seat. Ay'm getting blazed if you in."

"What? As in raheet now? Aren't we done supposed ta be on duty?"

"So what? Bucephelus has the keys ayn' he's outside with the others. The livestok ain't a-goin' anywhere so leds just relax, Augustus."

There was a moment of silence before he sat down next to her. "Fuk it, light me up, Josephine. But if we get in trouble, its yer fault."

"Yeah, yeah, just sit still." There was a fiddling of clothes and then the pair put the joints in their mouths. There was some more fumbling and then Derrick and Tina heard a lighter flick on and the flame turned on and illuminated the room a bit better but then the flame erupted upwards like a flamethrower!

"JESUS!" Tina cried out as she backed up the few inches she could in her cage.

Their captors laughed and light up their smokes.

"Like that there livestok? Don't y'all wawry none! We done won't be a-usin' it on y'all unless y'all make us!" Josephine taunted them as she took a big hit and then blew it up to the ceiling. "Fuuuuuk. This here is some quality shit. Y'all are missin' out."

"Oh lawd ay have done needed this here!"

Tina crinkled her nose. "Rrrriiiiiiiighhht. I'll.....I'll take your word for it." It stank! It reeked like a skunk! It was a 3 month old stale puddle of piss and ammonia on a city sidewalk! It was just the worst thing the cousins had ever smelled!

But there was something else on Derrick's mind. The lighter. These idiots had a freaking flamethrower on them! If he could get his hands on that, it could really change things for them! Use that, use the knives, use the axe, get their hands on some guns, find their parents and kick some ass!

Derrick rolled his shoulders. They had to wait and seize the opportunity.

The gunfire from below signaled it for them.

Derrick smiled. Dad was home.

The potheads looked up as they heard the gunfire from below and they dropped their blunts and quickly stomped them out and scrambled to get their masks back on. Josephine ran over to the door and banged on it.

"HEY! HEY! WHAT'S A-GOIN' ON OUT THERE? WHAT'S A-HAPPENIN'? HEY!"

The door opened and they were ushered outside and the door was slammed shut.

"Tina. Now."

"Right."

The cousins quickly got to work on picking the locks to their cages.

They inserted their bobby pins into the locks and gave them the necessary pressure to bind the first binding pin. Once the plug binded, they could insert their bobby pin lock picks into the locks with the small hook facing into the pins. They started from the back and probed each pin by lifting it up, slightly gauging how difficult it would be to lift.

Once they had probed around and found their first binding pin it was time to get it out of the way. They used their picks to apply an upward pressure to the pin and once she reached the shear line there was a very slight rotation of the plug as the pins set.

Now that they had set their first pin they needed to locate and set the next binding. Just as before, they needed to begin probing the remaining pins until they yet again found the stiff one and gave it a little nudge to the shear line thus setting their second pin. They repeated the first two steps of locating the binding pins and setting it to fully rotate the plug as if they had a key and the lock disengaged and popped open! They kicked open the cage doors and they quickly reunited.

"Holy fucking shit I cannot believe we just pulled that off!" Tina gasped as she hugged Derrick.

"All those hours of practice really paid off huh?" Derrick laughed as he hugged his cousin. They hugged tightly and then they backed away.

"Okay, so, what's next?"

Derrick looked at the door and then to a corner in the side of the room. "I have an idea."

"What thay hell is goin' on down there?"

"We're unduurr attak. Probably one av thay livestok done got loose ayn' done got his hands on some guns. It's one guy. We're a-goin' down there ta swarm him all at once. Y'all get bak in there ayn' guard the livestok. Watch the doaws. If he makes it up here ayn' tries ta break in, ya kill him dead. Awful clear?

"Awful clear suurr."

"Woody will be a-watchin' them with y'all faw done added protecshun. Bucephelus is a-comin' with us. When we've done killed the intruduurr we'll come get y'all."

"Y'all be careful now."

"We'll fine. But thanks. COME ON BOYS! LEDS GET HUNTING!"

They ran down the hallway as the other three returned to the room.

"Now ay don't know if y'all done done heard any ov that there livestok but don't go getting any ideas! Y'all ain't a-goin' nowhere!" Josephina called into the room.

No response.

"HEY! Hey Livestock! Hey livestok! We're a-talkin' ta ya!" Augustus called out to them.

The door closed behind them and the cousins struck their masked captors from behind with the chairs as hard as they possibly could while the thunder exploded outside and gunfire and screams began filling up the lower floors.

The cousins bashed them over the back with the chairs again and again as hard as they could. The cannibals stumbled around and fell down as the chairs crashed against their backs and heads and backs repeatedly. The wolf mask girl, Josephine, went down on her knees as Tina went ballistic on her.

Derrick meanwhile continued to hit and bash the other two as they fumbled around trying to fend him off but in the dark in here they couldn't see too well so they just flailed around until pig mask was finally able to get his hand on Derrick's chair. "Gotcha livestock!" He snarled. They briefly struggled with the chair until he was able to pull it out of Derrick's grip and tossed it across the room. There was a clanging sound and a shriek as it clanged against one of the cages. Derrick yelled out and continued his attack. He punched him across his lower jaw with a right punch, then a left punch, then a right punch and then he landed a kick on his face.Unfortunately for Derrick the big lug just took his hits, grabbed his leg while Derrick was going for another kick, grabbed his shirt, lifted him up, spun around and tossed him aside. Derrick was tossed eight feet away and he landed hard on his arm and rolled across the room three more feet until he was able to stop himself. Derrick groaned and sat up. "Okay. Ow." He backed away across the floor until he was in one of the more lit up areas and he looked around for the psychopaths. Augustus picked up his axe and looked around for Derrick until he could finally spot him over in the light.

Woody also stood up. "What the fuk just hit us?"

"The fuking livestok done got loose. Get y'all's ass up ayn' help me cawral them bak into theuurr cages."

Woody glanced in the direction of the chair crashing. "Ya get him. Ay'm gunna help Josephahn."

"Done."

Augustus ran right towards Derrick. "Awful wrong playe ta hide livestok! Ay'm gonna tan y'all's stupid hide ayn' shove y'all's ass bak in y'all's cage!" He screamed at him and swung the back of the axe at him only for Derrick to dive away from him, roll up to his feet and kick him in the back only for Augustus to shrug it off. He turned back around and Derrick finally got a good look at his captor. Suffice to say he was considerably bigger than Derrick expected. Judging from his height and build he was most certainly solid muscle and at least twice Derrick's size. This was going to be hard. Augustus chuckled, apparently thinking the same thing Derrick was. "Yeah boy. You fuked."

He held the axe in one hand and punched at Derrick but he dodged his punches and then Augustus raised his axe up, turned it around and swung it down on him. Even if he wasn't allowed to kill Derrick, being hit with the back of an axe would certainly hurt like hell. Derrick obviously agreed with this statement as he dodged the downward swing and ran for the cages, bumped against his own, climbed on top of it and reached into his pocket, pulled out the handcuffs and put his hand through both cuffs and closed them. "LET'S DANCE PORKRIND!" He called to Augustus while slamming his hand down on the cage.

"Ya dumb mowtherfukuurr." Augustus gloated and ran towards Derrick and swung the back of the axe at his feet only for Derrick to jump over it, grab Augustus and swing his punch at him using the handcuffs as improvised brass knuckles. Augustus cried out in pain as Derrick's punch hit him in the eye. Derrick moved fast and kicked him hard in the balls, twice, struck his foot, grabbed him, turned around, kicked his feet out, bent forward and threw the big lug over his shoulder. He flipped and hit his legs on the cage and dropped to the floor. Derrick took the liberty to kick his axe away, rolled the big idiot over on his back, reared back and he began laying into his right eye as hard as he could with the cuff-knuckled hand. Augustus yelled out in pain and flailed around with his arms trying to shield himself and throw Derrick off. Derrick grabbed his wrist, held it as tightly as he could and he continued laying into him. Blood started to run down his eye and onto Derrick's cuffs as Augustus screamed in pain. He managed to break Derrick's grip, grab onto his shoulder, punched the kid twice in the face and threw him away. Derrick rolled away and got back up to his feet. Augustus staggered around up to his feet holding his eye and blood ran down his fingers. Derrick wiped the blood from his mouth.

"MY EYE! MY EYE! YA MOWTHERFUCKUURR YA FUCKING DONE TOOK OUT MY EYE! GODDAMMIT AY KEN'T FUCKING SEE! GODDAMMIT YA LITTLE FUCK! AY KEN'T FUCKING SEE GODDAMN IT! YA LITTLE FUCKER!"

Augustus bellowed in agony while holding his eye. Derrick got back on his feet and backed all the way up to the wall, took a few deep breaths and took a running leap over to him and he jumped up in the air and drop kicked him. Already off balance as he was Augustus was knocked on his ass. Derrick scrambled back to his feet and leaped on top of him and he started to resume punching him in the face. He landed a few more punches on his eye before he grabbed Derrick and threw him against a cage. Derrick yelled at his back the steel bars. Augustus grabbed him by the shirt and his leg, hoisted him up into the air and slammed Derrick down on top of the cage. Derrick screamed in agony as his back was smashed against steel bars and Augustus dropped down on his knees whimpering and holding his eye. There was a minute of silence as the battles waged around them and then Derrick rolled off of the cage and onto his stomach. He started coughing and hacking. He grabbed onto the cage and used it to pull himself back up but was only able to get to his knees before he nearly fell back over. He put his fist on the ground to stop himself and he looked in Pig Mask's direction. He was still whimpering in pain and holding his ruined right eye. Derrick groaned in pain and took a few sharp breaths and dragged his body back to his feet and he stumbled away. From the stomping sounds behind him, Augustus was up as well. Augustus turned around and squinted his good eye so that he could see Derrick just well enough to know where he was. He screamed in rage and charged the beaten and battered kid. Derrick knew he only had moments to come up with a solution to fight the raging rind but as he was backing away he felt his ankle hit the dropped axe. With no other options available Derrick grabbed it and swung the axe around in an arc and drove the blade into Augustus's ribs. Derrick's jaw dropped. He'd meant to hit the psycho sure but....but he didn't mean to do that!

"I...I...I-I-I...."

Derrick couldn't find the words. His hands trembled. Augustus stared blankly with his one remaining eye. His hands slowly moved down to his side where the axe was buried and he felt the blood pouring down his leg like a waterfall.

"....Mother....fffuuucker." He muttered and fell over.

Derrick backed away from him. His vision was transfixed on the axe he'd buried into another human being. Pig Mask's blood was pooling underneath him already just freely as it flowed out of his eye socket. Derrick's lips trembled and he felt bile building up in his mouth. Tears started to well up in his eyes. "I-I-I....I didn't....I mean....I didn't want to....do...I didn't...I-I..I'm s-sor....I mean....you...you tried to...."

"DERRICK!"

Derrick snapped out of his trance as he heard Tina screaming for help. "T-T-Tina....T-Tina? Tina! Tina I'm coming!"

Derrick shook his head and he ran over to help his cousin.

While Derrick had been brawling it out with Augustus, Tina had been fighting her own battle. She continued to bash Josephine on her back with the chair over over again while kicking her in the ribs. "FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU, FUCK YOU, YOU UGLY FUCKING SICK FUCK, DEAD MOTHER FUCKER, YOU! YOU THINK YOU CAN TAKE US? YOU THINK YOU CAN FUCK WITH MY FAMILY? FUCK YOU! YOU GREASY-HAIRED, BIG-ASS-FOREHEADED, SMALL-EYED, MASSIVE-NOSED, FAT-LIPPED, NARROW-NECKED, ROUND-CHESTED, POT-BELLIED, SMELLY-SCROTUM, DRIED-OVARIED, CLOCK-RAN-OUT, CHICKEN-LEGGED, FLAT-FOOTED, SKINNY-ARMED, RANCID-BREATHED, PIMPLE COVERED, INBRED-BITCH!" Tina screamed while bashing and kicking her with all of the strength she had.

*Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap!*

She continued her onslaught until Woody stepped in and swung a shovel at her! Tina saw it coming just in time to get the chair up to defend herself but the impact knocked her off of her feet. Tina landed hard on her butt. She recovered though in time to at least parry the subsequent shovel swing. Tina blocked the next two shots before the chair was knocked away from her and she rolled away to dodge the blade being stabbed down at her head. The blade stabbed into the floor and then Woody pulled it back out and swung the shovel at her head again. She dived over it, rolled across the floor and scrambled away. Woody paused to look down at Josephine.

"God dang. Are y'all alraheet?"

"Ay just done got my ass kiked ya idjit. Where done all that there come from?"

"Thay ...errr livestok done got loose. Augustus is taming thay othuurr one but we're free ta kill this here one. Ay think."

"Y'all know what woody? Don't mattuurr none if we're done allowed ta aw nahwt. Ay'm skinning this here bitch."

"Ay love ta watch ya wawk it but done won't that there ruin thay meat?"

"Ay don't fuking care. Ay need-ta make this here bitch pay. Help me up."

Woody crouched down and started helping her up.

"There y'all go. There weez. But are y'all sure y'all ken handle her?"

"She's one little gerl ayn' she just lot the element av surprise. Yes ay think we'll be awful fine. Now come on ayn' help me tan huurr hide!"

Tina took a running leap and dropkicked Josephine in the middle of her back while she was still off balance. Josephine was knocked down and Woody stumbled away from her. Tina scrambled to her feet and then went on the attack again. Using the cuffs as a brass knuckle she began throwing hard punches to his ribs. He coughed and grabbed his side and flailed at her head but she ducked under it and she resumed her attack on him. She kicked at his stomach and punched at his ib, punched him in the stomach and then she kicked him again. He withstood every punch and kick until he grabbed her leg, shoved her backwards and then he backhanded her across the face. Again, Tina went down and hit the floor. Hard.

"Dammit ya little bitch now you mighty pissing me off!" He screamed and raised the shovel up above his head and swung it down on her. She rolled to the left and the shovel smashed into the floor where her head had just been. He tried again and she rolled to the right and the shovel smashed against the floor again. The next time Tina tried to get away he put his boot on her. "Oh naw naw naw! Ya aren't a-goin' anywhere! Ay'm gunna squarsh ya like ayy bug!" He cried out and raised the shovel above his head and then he leaned forward and swung it down on her. With only seconds to act, Tina did the only thing she could. She slipped one hand out of the cuffs and slammed both of her palms against the shovel. Pain shot through her hands and arms when the cold hard steel of the shovel collided with her palms but it was better than letting it collide with her face. Tina gritted her teeth and grabbed onto the shovel. Woody pulled back but she did her best to hold onto it until after a tug of war between the two of them she lost her grip and he pulled it off of her. He was about to smash it down on top of her again but then they were interrupted by Augustus's screaming.

"MY EYE! MY EYE! YA MOWTHERFUCKUURR YA FUCKING DONE TOOK OUT MY EYE! GODDAMMIT AY KEN'T FUCKING SEE! GODDAMMIT YA LITTLE FUCK! AY KEN'T FUCKING SEE GODDAMN IT! YA LITTLE FUCKER!"

Woody stopped cold and stared off in the direction of his screaming. "AUGUSTUS! AUGUSTUS HEY! WHAT'S AWFUL WRONG? ARE YA OKAY OVER THURR?"

Tina seized on this distraction to grab the cuffs again, wincing at the pain in her fingers, forced her hand to curl into a fist, sat up straighter and punched him in the balls as hard as she could. Then again. And again. And again. And again. Woody gasped in pain and backed away from her. Tina slowly got back up to her feet, kicked his leg down and then she punched him in the eye with her improvised brass knuckles and spin kicked him in the face. Woody finally dropped to the floor and she seized on this chance to grab the shovel with her free hand. Just in time too because a knife whizzed through the air where she'd just been standing! Tina grabbed the shovel and stumbled backwards before regaining her balance. It didn't take long to find the knife thrower. The woman, Josephine, was back on her feet and holding knives in her hands.

"Are ya ready ta fineysh this here? Bitch?"

She didn't wait for a response before she ran over to Tina, hopped over Woody and she began slashing with her knives like a madwoman!

Tina backpedaled away from her and frantically tried to use the shovel to ward off her slashes but she was rapidly losing ground to her reckless slashes. This ended with her backing away against one of the cages and she fell against it. Tina grabbed the shovel and used it to block Josephine's attempted stab downwards and then while Josephine was raising her knives back up, Tina rolled off of the cage and instead the knives stabbed down in between the bars. The civilian inside screamed and ducked down. Tina got back up to her feet and she began swinging the shovel around like a baseball bat. Josephine dodged her swings however and she ran to the left and threw two knives at Tina. She ducked them, ran towards her and swung the shovel again. She caught Josephine in the ribs but her knife flew through the air and slashed Tina's shoulder. Josephine dropped to the floor and Tina was left stumbling away. Fresh blood was sliding down her shoulder.

Tina slumped to the floor gasping for breath. She was sweating and her body hurt like hell but she was still in one piece at least. "Shit. I wanna go home." She muttered to herself and she slowly stood back up and started to walk over to where she was sure Derrick was.

The heavy stomping of boots on the floor stopped Tina in her tracks. She tried to swing the shovel back around but Woody grabbed it and tossed it aside and then he tackled Tina to the floor. The air was knocked right out of Tina and the madman got on top of her, grabbed her shirt collar and he began punching towards her face. The only thing Tina could do was shield herself with her arms as he continued to rain blows down on her.

"Ya stupid stupid bitch goddammit ay'm gonna beat ya into fuking mush!"

"DERRICK!" Tina screamed out for her cousin. "DERRICK!"

Derrick snapped out of his trance as he heard Tina screaming for help. "T-T-Tina....T-Tina? Tina! Tina I'm coming!"

Derrick shook his head and he ran over to help his cousin. With no real plan, Derrick charged in head on. And by head on, I literally mean, head on. He smashed his head against Woody's and tackled him off of her. They rolled over each other across the floor until Derrick was able to get on top of him and he began punching him in the eye. Woody took several punches him until he was finally able to throw Derrick off of him. Derrick scrambled away while he was left crying in pain while holding his left eye.
While he was getting back up Derrick tripped him and then he grabbed Woody by the head and he began repeatedly slamming his face against the floor. After repeatedly smashing him into the floor ten times he finally let him go. "Ffffuck. You." Derrick spat on him and walked over to Tina. "Hey. T. Tina. Hey. Are you okay?"

"I feel like shit." Tina admitted and let her cousin help her to stand back up.

"Where's....where's the other guy?"

"....Done. D-done. He's out." Derrick summarized.

The cousins took a minute to catch their breath while the two lunatics crawled to their feet.

"....Shhiiiit. What does it take to drop these assholes?" Tina asked.

""Can you still fight?"

"A little." Tina admitted. She spotted the dropped shovel. "I'm going for it."

"Go. I've got dumbass."

They fist bumped and took a breather while they got ready to make their moves.

10.

Tina ran for the shovel and Derrick attacked the big guy. Derrick grabbed him and judo threw him over his head. Woody was slammed down onto his back and he jumped on top of him and he began laying into his eye again. The barrages of punches were doing their job and Woody's eye was being beaten in! Derrick eventually got up, dragged him to his feet, grabbed Woody's head, took a deeeeep breath, pulled him back and then he slammed Woody down against the floor hard enough to break it. Derrick stumbled backwards and fell on his butt gasping for breath.

Tina ran as fast as her battered body could go and she tried to grab the shovel but then Josephine grabbed her around the waist and knocked Tina over. She screamed and began punching at Tina like Woody had just done while Tina blocked her with one arm and she began punching her back with her other arm. They traded punches and scratched and headbutted until Tina was finally able to throw her off for the moment. Tina crawled over to the shovel, dragged herself up and she swung it around in a wild arc that smacked Josephine upside the head and knocked her right the hell out.

Tina slumped to the floor using the shovel to support herself.

Leo quickly finished off the men and women stationed around the first floor and proceeded up to the second. All of the gunfire around the first floor had alerted the rest of the cannibals to his presence however and they were coming down to the first floor to attack him. Leonardo took a stairway in the kitchen up to the second floor and as he was turning the corner landing he was greeted by a trio of thugs who opened fire on him. Leonardo jumped backwards and hid around the corner. The bullets drilled into the wall but they missed him at least. Leonardo waited for them to stop shooting and then he turned back around and returned fire with the shotgun. The buckshot spread out after being fired and he got one of the three in the head and the other two were shot in the face with the pellets tearing through their faces. They recoiled from the pain and Leonardo charged up the stairs, pumped the shotgun in order to eject a spent round of ammunition and to chamber a fresh one, closed the distance, struck one of them across the face with the butt of the shotgun and then grabbed and shoved him against his friend with one hand and then shot them both at once with the shotgun. A nice big hole was blown through both men and they dropped to the ground. Leonardo grabbed a handgun from one of them, shoved it into his belt, pumped the shotgun and continued running through the house. A group of the guards spotted him and opened fire so he quickly ducked around the corner into an alcove and took a second to close his eyes and lean his head against the wall.

Everything hurt. His head hurt, his back hurt, his chest hurt, his arms hurt, his legs and feet hurt, his body was wracked with pain from his gunshot wounds and his fight with that Sackhead freak. He was soaking wet, covered in injuries, had lost a considerable amount of blood and he'd used his powers more than he had in a long time on top of all of it. He was exhausted. He was absolutely exhausted. But he was still standing. His legs begged him to give in, to let go and drop to the floor, but he was still standing. Because his family needed him. So he gritted his teeth and pushed through the pain. He ignored it, fought it, worked through it, using it to fuel his strength. With the passing of each moment the pain only seemed to get worse and worse but he used it to empower himself instead. He grunted, determined to block out the pain and ignore the voices begging him to stop.

Leonardo set the shotgun down, grabbed two of the handguns, took a deep breath and leaned back out from around the corner and he began rapidly squeezing the trigger so fast the shots all sounded like one! Six men dropped to the ground and Leonardo mentally counted how many bullets he had left in each gun. Sixteen in his right hand and twelve in his left. Plus the other guns he had on him. He could do this. He had more than enough bullets for all of these assholes in particular, then he could go find the rest of his family and they could take out the rest of these animals.
Then they were going home together, dammit!

Leonardo shot down three more of them, shooting three bullets from the gun in his right hand, thirteen left, stuffed the other one into his belt, then he grabbed the shotgun and then he tore down the hallway until he found a door and he kicked it open, ducked inside and then he waited for them. Corralling them into the doorway would make for an easier fight than running around blindly or hiding in an alcove. He grabbed some coasters, shoved them into his pockets and then he pointed the shotgun at the door.

"Who in thay hell is this here guy?" Silas asked the others as they stared at the corpses Leonardo'd left in his wake.

"This here guy. This here guy done killed thay trukers, thay snipers ayn' he probably escaped frawum thay butchers. Does somebody wan-ta tell me what the hell we're gunna do against him?" Silas asked.

"We don't. We wait faw ever'one ayn' then we charge that there roawum ayn' shoot him into tiny little pieces." Jed reasoned.

"Ay'm awful fine with a-waitin'. Are y'all fine with a-waitin'?"

"Ay'm always fine with a-waitin'."

The cannibals waited until their reinforcements from the third floor could regroup with them.

"Where's the intruder?"

"In there."

"Aren't ya gunna go aftuurr him?"

"He's been a-killin' fuking ever'one! We was a-waitin' on ya!"

"Oh. Raheet. Whel, we're here now, so leds go kill this here mowtherfuker!"

"YA HEAR THAT THERE YA PIECE AV SHIT? WE'RE ALL COMING FAW YA AYN' WE'RE GONNA FUK Y'ALL UP! YA ARE NEVUURR GONNA SEE YER'S YOUNGUNS AGAIN, BITCH!"

Leonardo waited until they reached the door and they knocked it down and began pouring in before he leaned over, pointed his shotgun and pulled the trigger. He blew some heads off and they fell back. Leo quickly pumped it and then he fired again and killed more of them. Blood sprayed around the walls, doorway, Leo and their comrades. Leo advanced on them, pumped the shotgun and fired again. The masked killers regrouped and returned fire in the direction of the room, forcing Leo to duck behind cover as the bullets tore into the doorway. He checked the shotgun. It was empty. "Shit." He tossed it away and grabbed the handguns instead and waited.

The criminals slowly approached the door and they walked inside only to be met with gunfire hitting two of them in the face. Two bullets down. Ten bullets remaining in his left hand.

There was a brief pause and then they leaned into the room and began spraying the room with gunfire. Leo ran across the room, tumbled over the bed, landed hard on the floor and ducked his head down as gunfire tore into the wall and bed. Leonardo lowered himself down to the floor, raised his guns and fired at a spot on the wall. The gunfire ricochet off of the wall and hit three of them in their throats and grazed the others. Five from his right hand and two from his left. That left eight in each gun.

"FUK! WHO AW WHAT IS THIS HERE GUY? HOW DONE HE DO THAT THERE? WHAT THE FUK ARE WE UP AGAINST?" Leewon demanded while the other three sank to the floor clutching their throats as blood poured down freely between their fingers

Porsha screamed. "OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! HOW DOES THAT EVEN HAPPEN? WHAT DID HE DO? OH SHIT!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP! QUIT Y'ALL'S BITCHING AYN' LEDS KILL HIM ALREADY!" Bucephalus shouted at them and resumed shooting at him with the others.

Leo gritted his teeth and sat up and backed away as gunfire chewed into the wall and tore up the bed. He frantically pulled out the coasters, tossed them up into the air, pointed his guns at them and shot the coasters. The bullets ricochet off of the coasters and each other and rained down on the thugs. A couple of them were hit in the head but they weren't deterred and ran towards him. Four left in each gun. He dropped them and grabbed for the guns with more bullets in them and he sat up straighter. Time to end this shit.

"Kind faheet bitch. But you all out av ammo now boy."

"Where's my son?!" Leonardo shouted at them.

"What's it mattuurr now?"

"Depending on your answer, your death will be either painless or long and painful. Your choice."

"That there's ayy darn good one boy. KILL HIM!"

Leonardo glared and quickdrew his pistols.

That was when automatic gunfire sprayed into the room and began gunning down the cannibals from behind! Leonardo seized this chance and he opened fire as well. In a matter of seconds there were corpses and wounded men littering the floor. Leonardo took a few deep breaths and he looked in the direction of the doorway.

"When you walk in front of me, I shall always have your back. When you walk behind me, I shall always be willing to lay down my life for you." A familiar voice spoke into the room. "And so long as you walk beside me, I shall always call you my brother." Alessandro quoted as he slowly walked into the room. "Hey brother. I figured I would find you here."

"ALESSANDRO!" He ran over to hug his brother in law. "Goddamn! Is it good to see you again!"

Alessandro laughed as he hugged him back. "Ahhh shit I've missed you man."

They soon parted and Leo looked him over. "You look like shit."

"You and me both Leo. You and me both."

"So, hey, where's....where's my father? Isn't he with you?"

"Argos and I split up. We rescued some hostages from a walk in freezer they'd been locked inside of. He's taking them to the guest house to check in on the ladies. I knew you'd walk right out of whatever pit they threw you into, so I came here hoping to find you and the kids."

Leonardo breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay. Thank God. Alright. Lets see....I'm sure Josephine and the others have already mopped up whichever idiots tried to fuck with them, so they should be loaded up by now. Lets do the same and find the kids." Leo walked over to one of the wounded men on the floor, rolled him over and punched him across the face. "Alright asshole. Time to play Leonardo says. Leonardo says: Take us to our children. Now."

The terrified man raised his hands up in defense. "Yeah, okay, okay, ay'll do it. Ay'll whatevuurr ya say. Just please. Please don't kill me."

"Don't worry. We're gonna need you for information anyway." Alessandro assured him. "Now march."

"K-keys....the keys....Bucephalus has them."

Leonardo and Alessandro walked up the stairs with him. Alessandro had the keys around his fingers and they kept their guns trained on the man they'd made their tour guide. They followed him up to and around the third floor until they reached the room.

"Okay. In here. They're in here. Now, there will be three folk guarding them but they don't have guns. Ay swear. One av them has ayy shovel, the othuurr has knives ayn' the therd one has an axe."

"Leave them to us. Unlock the fucking door." Alessandro ordered and shoved the keys into his hand.

The trembling man nodded and fiddled with the keys until the door unlocked and they pulled it open. Leonardo shoved him inside onto his knees and they stepped inside guns at the ready.

Derrick and Tina shielded their eyes as light flooded into the dark room again. "DERRICK?!"

"D-dad? Dad? Dad is that you?" Derrick asked as he climbed to his feet.

"DAD!" Derrick and Tina yelled out upon seeing their fathers again.

Leonardo and Alessandro lowered their guns and ran over to hug their children.

"DAAAAAADDDD!" Derrick yelled out while embracing his father as tightly as his battered form could manage. He started to tear up from the relief of seeing his father again and the pain he was in and the sinking realization from what he'd just done. "Daaaaad. Dad. Daaaaad."

"Ssshhh it's okay Derrick. It's alright. We're here now. It's okay son. Daddy's here. You're gonna be alright buddy." Leo whispered to his son while holding him close to his soaking wet chest.

"Daaaaaadddyyyyyy!" Tina sobbed into Alessandro's chest while her father knelt down and hugged her.

"It's alright honey, let it out, it's alright. It's going to be okay now." Alessandro assured his daughter.

After a few minutes of crying, the kids sat down as their parents stood back up. Alessandro got back to his feet easily enough but Leo needed a second to balance himself and push off of the floor as he slowly climbed back to his feet. "We're proud of you both. Did you use the lockpicks?"

"Yeah we did!" Tina exclaimed. "We picked the locks just like you were always showing us but then we got into a fight with these three guys but we beat them up!"

"T-Tina wait!"

"Three huh?" Leo gripped his gun and scanned the room. He and Alessandro spotted the man and woman unconscious on the floor but Leonardo was the one who saw the third man laying in a pool of his own blood with an axe buried into his side. "My God."

"D-dad....I-I'm sorry! I can explain! I swear!" Derrick insisted.

Tina shrieked as she finally noticed the dead body in the room.

"Oh kiddo." Alessandro whispered.

Leonardo walked across the room and he cautiously knelt down next to the corpse and felt for a pulse. Nothing. He was dead. Leo looked back to his son. "Derrick. What happened? Did he hurt you son?" He asked slowly. "You can talk to me son. It's okay."

"D-Derrick....Oh God. I thought you said you only knocked him out?" Tina asked him.

Derrick was trembling. "I"m sorry daddy. I'm so sorry. I didn't want to. I didn't mean it but...I-I d-didn't....., h-he was going to....I didn't have a....a....h-he...honest! I ccouldn't..." He choked on his words as he struggled to come to terms with what he'd done. "D-dad....I didn't m-m-mean iiiiit....didn't have choice....h-he was going to kill us and and and and and I...I grabbed it and....I didn't mean it..." Derrick fell to his knees. "Oh Gooood Dad! WHAT HAVE I DONE?!"

Leo pulled his son into an embrace. "It's okay Son. It's okay. Listen to me. It's going to be okay. I need you to let it all out son. Come on, there you go. It's alright." He waited until his son calmed down and then he sat down with him. "Listen to me son, what you did here today, it was the right call to make. You shouldn't go out into the world looking to kill people of course but there are bad men in the world, bad men who will kill you for the flimsiest of reasons if they get the chance. You cannot give them that chance. If you can, remove yourself from the situation and call for help. But if you find yourself trapped in a violent situation with no way out, then you should fight like hell to stay alive. Hit them hard and fast and fight to disable them so that they can't hurt you back. If it comes down to it though, if all other options are exhausted and you don't have any way out, then you should be willing to take your attacker's life to protect your own." He paused before continuing. "Now here this, like I said before, don't go out into the world just looking to kill people, but you should still be willing to do it to protect yourself. This?" He poked Derrick's chest. "What you're feeling right now? This anguish? That is good. That is how you should feel. It is not a good sensation to take a life, especially at your age. I joined the military and had that hesitance trained out of me. I've seen how hellish war can be, so I can make that choice to protect you and our family. But this...moments like this? They don't feel good and they shouldn't. Do you understand son?"

"Y-yes dad. I understand." He wiped his eyes. "I understand dad. But...I don't know. I still feel shitty about it."

"Good. That's how it should feel. It means you're still human inside."

"....Are you mad?"

"Not all son. I've been where you are now. The word is empathetic."

"Okay."

"I love you son."

"I love you too dad. Always."

"Always."

"Daddy is that true?" Tina asked Alessandro.

"It is. Everything Leonardo just said is right. Like he said, killing people really should make you feel shitty. You're not supposed to enjoy it."

She looked down for a minute and then back up at her father. "Where are mommy and grandpa?"

"I'm sure Michelle's fine. If we can take these idiots then so can she. Grandpa Argos is checking in on them now. We'll rendezvous with them after we're done here."

"Okay dad." She looked over at her cousin. "Hey Derrick? I'm sorry."

"It's alright Tina. I'm sorry I fibbed." He rubbed his arm.

"Hey kids, you want to help me get these people out of there?" Alessandro asked them.

"Yeah, sure." They hurried over to the cages and began unlocking them to free the trapped civilians. Leo watched them for a minute and then he walked over to the henchman they'd dragged into the room earlier. He was currently sitting a corner holding his bleeding arm. He swallowed as Leonardo approached him. "If it's all thay ...err same ta y'all. Ay'd like ta surrenduurr."

"Well isn't that convenient? I happen to have a few more questions for you, dumbass."

"Ay have ayy name suurr."

Leo kicked him. "Shut up and stick to answering my questions. My first question is about the freaks on this farm. Now obviously there's been a hell of a lot more than sixty of you people like that sniper told us. But we can handle all of you guys. What bothers me is the big guys on this farm. The ones in charge. Earlier I fought a fatass giant with a sack on his head. He was strong as hell and he could regenerate from his wounds. I had to blow him apart to kill him and I'm guessing he's not the only powered here. So tell me: What are we up against here? How do their powers work? Tell me everything you know."

Alessandro looked up from the cage. "Hey Leo! Now that you mention it there was another guy like that who fought me and Argos. We barely won."

"So I was right. It sounds like all of the big guys here are powered." Leo muttered to himself. (Shit. This just got a lot more complicated.) "Alright dumbass. Hurry up and talk!"

There was a long pause and then he slowly raised his bloodied hand in surrender. "If ay tell y'all what ay know, will y'all spare my life?"

"You have my word. We'll even wrap up your arm."

The man nodded. "Well, goo'ness gracious, ser, that there's ayy mighty kind thing yer doin'. Alraheet. Ay'll tell ya ever'thing ay know about the Brannons."

"Alright, so, the Brannons, they're cannibals. We all are."

"I'm aware." Leo growled.

"R-right! R-right! Whel, uh, thay Brannons, they eat folk, sure, but they get mawe out ov it than nawmal folk do. When they eat someone aw something, they absawb it into themselves. It's why they're so awful strong. It's why they ken't die. They eat folk ayn' convert them into spare parts they ken use ta regenerate frawum."

Derrick stopped and looked back at the man. "Wh-what?"

"Oh....God." Tina bent over and covered her mouth with her hand and Alessandro rubbed her back. (That explains it. I thought something was up with hammer guy's regeneration but Jesus fucking Christ! What kind of monsters are these people!) "C-come on honey. Over here. Derrick? Can you handle the cage?"

"Yeah. I-I've got this. Don't want her throwing up on the cage. Just take five Tina."

She nodded and walked over to a corner with her father.

Leonardo looked like he was going to be sick before he recovered and gathered his wits about him. "So...that explains Sackhead. Regeneration generally does not work that way. Jesus." He paused for a minute before looking down on the cannibal. "Continue."

"There's several members av thay kinfolk stationed here. Dread Brannon, he's the awful big guy, the strongest av the brothers, the one with the skull mask. Diablos, thay one with thay mask a-coverin' his yapper, is thay next strongest ov thay brothers. He ayn' Dread are taheet togithuurr. They're always togithuurr. Next, there's Victaw Salvataw Brannon, th-the one with thay hammuurr. He's one ov theuurr father's favawites."

"Already took him out!" Alessandro called over to them.

"Hooooo shit. Seriously? Oh goddamn, thay old man is gonna go ballistik..."

"Focus!"

"Oh, raheet. Whel, then ya have romulus, thay guy who likes ta wear vests. He likes ta play soldiuurr out in thay woods with us. With real guns."

"How good of a shot is he?" Leo asked.

"One av thay best on thay farm. Next ta our snipers."

Considering what Leo had seen so far that wasn't exactly high praise but this one certainly sounded like one of the more dangerous lunatics here.

"Elaborate."

"H-he scawed ayy headshot with ayy beretta M9 at 45 meters." Just under the limit of the weapon's effective range. Not too shabby.

"Aftuurr him, ya done got Charles. The awful big little brothuurr"

"Let me guess: Sackhead?"

"Y-yyyeeaaah. He done hates that name...."

"Hated. Past tense. I blew him to pieces."

The man just stared at Leo like he'd seen a ghost. "Ohhhhh shiiiit thay old man is gonna kill ya...."

"You let me worry about that. Who's next?"

"Chunk. The little brothuurr. He done developed an a-eatin' disawduurr aftuurr Jak done ran away."

"Jack?"

"Jak brannon. He ayn' chunk was buddies bak in the day, but then jak done ran away. He's thay ...uhh only person ta evuurr escape. Nahwt even the awful old man could faand him. Rumaw has it he done went ayn' done hid in Shepard but. but the awful old man, he stays out av there. Everyone does"

A wise choice. If half of the weird shit he'd heard about that town was true, even these lunatics wouldn't stand a chance. But there would be time to discuss that later. "Who else?"

"Bunni. I know you met her."

Derrick shuddered.

"Ayn' then there's little Macey. She's the youngest av the kinfolk. Miss Ambrosia takes care av huurr mowst av the tahm."

"And that is?"

"She's mighty preytty. She's the boss's secretary. Handles thay ...uhh day ta day stuff. She keeps one av the two keys on huurr ta open the vault where the boss keeps the blayk books."

"I heard about that from your sniper friend. That's where he keeps all of the information on his clients right?"

"Yeah. The way ay her it, there's four books in there at least. Ya'll nee thay keys ta open it ayn' get them."

"Trust me. That won't be a problem for me. So how strong is Bunni? Do we need to worry about Macey?"

"Oh please don't hurt Macey! She's just a kid!"

Leo's death glare made the cannibal hunker down and back up further against the wall. "Bunni. Information. Now."

"She's awful strong. Stronguurr than she looks but she's young so she's one ov thay weakuurr members ov thay kinfolk."

"Nothing to worry about then. What about the old man? Your boss. What can I expect from him?"

"...Thaddeus is thay ...uhh strongest ov us all. He's even stronguurr than Dread. He's invincible."

"I'm guessing his regenerative abilities are stronger than the others too in that case?"

"Correct."

Wonderful. It sounded like blowing him to pieces would be the only way to kill him then. Which meant his energy guns were their only chance.

"Alright. The next question then: Where's the matriarch of this family? I'm going out on a limb here, but I'm assuming creating life by himself isn't one of that monster's powers."

He nodded. "You supposing raheet. Mayella Jezzebelle Brannon. The awful old woman. She done went on ayy vacashun awhahl ago, done took some av thay daughters with her, on ayy cruise ship. Done took ayy pauurr av the jakals with huurr as ay recall"

"Woah woah, who are the jackals and who are the daughters?"

He swallowed. "The boss is gonna rip me in ayy half."

"You should be worrying about me. Now talk."

"Becky, Jo, Lorraine, Cherry Brannon. The daughters ov the kinfolk." He swallowed and explained the appearances of the sisters to them.

Becky: This lady has large gray eyes that are like two pools of mercury. Her silky, curly, black hair is worn in a style that reminds you of a lionfish's spines. She is tall and has a thin build. Her skin is ruddy. She has knobby ears. Her wardrobe is businesslike, with a lot of orange and yellow.

Jo: This lady has almond-shaped beige eyes. Her fine, straight, ebony hair is worn in a style that reminds you of a turtle's shell. She has a feminine build. Her skin is tanned. She has thin eyebrows. Her wardrobe is sexy and bizarre, with a mostly orange and yellow color scheme.

Lorraine: This girl has almond-shaped blue eyes. Her fine, straight, yellow hair is worn in a style that reminds you of a strange headdress. She has a thin build. Her skin is pale. She has delicate ears and a weak chin. Her wardrobe is professional, and is mostly green.

Cherry: This woman has deep-set eyes the color of blueberries. Her luxurious, curly, lemon-yellow hair is worn in a style that reminds you of a trailing ribbon. She has a wasp-waisted build. Her skin is ruddy. She has prominent cheekbones. Her wardrobe is businesslike, and is completely black and red.

"Ay don't know who the jakals are. Ay don't know who they mighty are. But they're. they're animals. Even by the kinfolk's standards. They're like theuurr hitmen."

"Okay so a bunch of psychos in jackal masks then? I'll have to look into that after we're done here. Are they powered too?"

"Thay awful old woman ayn' thay daughters are. Ay don't know about the jakals"

Leo sighed. "Answer me this then. Who is Miss R?"

"Misser?"

"Miss.R. The woman who hired you assholes to attack us in the first place! Who is she?"

"I don't know!" The man yelled out frantically. "If she's ayy client then huurr infawmashun will be in thay blayk books!"

"Great. Fucking wonderful." Leo took a minute to calm down and then he put his guns back in his belt. "Well I suppose that's all the questions I have for today. Thank you dumbass. You've been very helpful. Let me give you a hand." He knelt down and grabbed the psycho and dragged him to his feet. "Theeere you go."

"S-so th-that's it right? Y-you'll let me live right? Ya done promised ya would!"

"And rest assured. I am a man of my word." Leo assured him with a gentle voice before slugging him across the face so hard that he went halfway through the wall!

"HOLY SHIT!" Derrick yelled out.

Leo just let the psycho fall back down to the floor and he then he took off his mask, gave him a patdown and dragged him over to the cages. "Lets bind his arm and get these scumbags locked up."

Granted of course they only had to lock up three lunatics in the cages. The corpse was locked up because they didn't have anywhere else to put it and to get it out of the way. Leo took hold of the axe because he might as well take an extra weapon.

Tina frisked the woman and found her lighter. "Hey Derrick? Derrick is this the one?"

"Yeah that's it!" He raised his hand and Tina tossed it over to him. He caught it and gave it a look over. "Now let's see here...alright, yeah, I see how this works. Pretty simple really. One of them must've customized it. You've got some brass tubing, some superglue, butane fuel as the propellant at the top of a pop rivet and the igniter...not bad. This could be useful."

"Hold on." Alessandro glanced at his nephew. "What kind of a modification are we talking about here?"

"It's a flamethower Uncle Alessandro. We saw it."

"It is! It seriously is! FWOOOOSH!" Tina exclaimed. "They were lighting doobies on the flame."

"...You are way too young to know what those are."

"Blame it on TV and music dad."

Despite the horrible situation they were in the family nevertheless laughed over this to relieve the tension they felt and to relax. "Alright, alright. Keep that on you buddy." Leo told his son from where he was sitting down to rest.

Derrick walked over to his father. "Dad are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm alright. Just a few bruises and some blood loss. Nothing serious son. I'm alright." (Maybe a few cracked bones too. Make that yeah. There is certainly some cracked bones in there.) He noted grimly. (Whatever. I've been in worse spots than this and I've always come out on top. I'm not going anywhere. Neither is my family.) "Hey listen to me Derrick, we are going to be okay. No matter what these people throw at us we are going to be okay. This will be over before you know it and we'll back home safe and sound."

"You're the best dad. Best in the whole fucking world."

"Hey now. You watch your language young man."

"Yes sir." Derrick and his father laughed.

"Now go on. Get those people out of there."

"You got it dad." He pocketed the lighter and hurried over to the cages.

After a few minutes of fiddling with the cage doors, they got the civilians out of their cages. They stood tall and stretched and looked around.

"Hi." Derrick waved to everyone. "I'm Derrick Blackburn. This is my cousin Tina, my Uncle Alessandro and my dad is over there. His name's Leonardo. What are your names?"

One of the men stepped forward to introduce himself. Standing short and athletically built with fair skin, this man has an overly sensitive feel about him. He has deep-set light brown eyes and his very short, fine, black hair is styled with a crew cut. His clothes are poorly-fitting. "Well, hello. My name is Herschel Harkey. You, uh, jumped on my cage earlier."

"That was you sir?"

"Yes it was." He replied awkwardly.

"Oh. Sorry about that."

"Quite alright. You saved our lives after all young man. Rest assured I am, we are, so grateful to you. You're our hero Derrick."

Derrick laughed. "Oh come on, all we did was fight. Our family are the real heroes here. So, uh, who's next?" He asked while looking over the rest of the civilians.

Jania Justus introduced herself next. Standing 6' 2" tall, and of average build with fair skin, this woman has a very meek feel about her. She has dark brown eyes and her mid-back length, straight, black hair worn in a bun. She usually wears clean, formal clothes that are revealing. "Hello. I'm Jania Justus and I was abducted like the rest of you. I don't really know how. One minute I was driving, the next there were these trucks...I think there was a collision and then I woke up here with those....animals looking down on me and I was dragged in here." She shuddered. "There...others here. We weren't the first ones. But, every now and then, the animals would come in and drag them out. Then a replacement would be brought in." She sniffled. "We never saw them again."

Alessandro figured there only two possibilities as to what happened to the victims who were dragged out. Neither of them were good. Considering what they wanted Derrick and Tina for, the poor souls were either sold off to some sick fuck or ground up in the kitchen. "I'm sorry you had to go through all of that Jania. But rest assured we're here now and it is going to be okay. These guys still have their black books. Once we deal with them we can find the books and use them to track down their clients and the captured civilians. It is going to be okay. None of these sickos are going to hurt you again okay?"

Jania choked back tears but still nodded her head in agreement.

The next person to step up and introduce himself was Whitley Wojtowicz. Standing 5' 8" tall, and slender with caramel skin, this man has a snooty feel about him.
He has cold light brown eyes and his short, curly, red hair is pulled into a bun. His expensive but tacky clothing is tattered but obviously used to be form fitting.

It went on from there as the next thirteen people introduced themselves: Quiana Quail, Chere Clyme, Reynalda Riles, Louanne Lewter, Tyesha Tischler, Joseph Joiner, Branden Buehler, Kenisha Krauth, Sandy Senior, Akiko Auger, Velma Vrba, Martha Mutch and Randi Resh.

"It's very nice to meet all of you, I'm just sorry that it is under such poor circumstances." Leo apologized to them. "Forgive me for asking this out of the blue so soon after meeting all of you but does anybody here have firearms training? We've got guns all over the downstairs floors."

Half of them raised their hands and Leo did a headcount. Eight people. Not bad. He'd hoped they'd get some more gunners but he could work with this. "Okay. That's good. Now for the rest of you, I'm give you a crash course in the rules of handling firearms so listen up."

1. Always Keep the Muzzle Pointed in a Safe Direction

[Always Keep The Muzzle Pointed In A Safe Direction] This is the most basic safety rule. If everyone handled a firearm so carefully that the muzzle never pointed at something they didn’t intend to shoot, there would be virtually no firearms accidents. It’s as simple as that, and it’s up to you.

Never point your gun at anything you do not intend to shoot. This is particularly important when loading or unloading a firearm. In the event of an accidental discharge, no injury can occur as long as the muzzle is pointing in a safe direction.

A safe direction means a direction in which a bullet cannot possibly strike anyone, taking into account possible ricochets and the fact that bullets can penetrate walls and ceilings. The safe direction may be “up” on some occasions or “down” on others, but never at anyone or anything not intended as a target. Even when “dry firing” with an unloaded gun, you should never point the gun at an unsafe target.

Make it a habit to know exactly where the muzzle of your gun is pointing at all times, and be sure that you are in control of the direction in which the muzzle is pointing, even if you fall or stumble. This is your responsibility, and only you can control it.

2. Firearms Should Be Unloaded When Not Actually in Use

Firearms should be loaded only when you are in the field or on the target range or shooting area, ready to shoot. When not in use, firearms and ammunition should be secured in a safe place, separate from each other. It is your responsibility to prevent children and unauthorized adults from gaining access to firearms or ammunition.

Unload your gun as soon as you are finished. A loaded gun has no place in or near a car, truck or building. Unload your gun immediately when you have finished shooting, well before you bring it into a car, camp or home.

Whenever you handle a firearm or hand it to someone, always open the action immediately, and visually check the chamber, receiver and magazine to be certain they do not contain any ammunition. Always keep actions open when not in use. Never assume a gun is unloaded — check for yourself! This is considered a mark of an experienced gun handler!

Never cross a fence, climb a tree or perform any awkward action with a loaded gun. While in the field, there will be times when common sense and the basic rules of firearms safety will require you to unload your gun for maximum safety. Never pull or push a loaded firearm toward yourself or another person. There is never any excuse to carry a loaded gun in a scabbard, a holster not being worn or a gun case. When in doubt, unload your gun!

3. Don’t Rely on Your Gun’s “Safety”

[Don't Rely On Your Gun's Safety] Treat every gun as though it can fire at any time. The “safety” on any gun is a mechanical device which, like any such device, can become inoperable at the worst possible time. Besides, by mistake, the safety may be “off” when you think it is “on.” The safety serves as a supplement to proper gun handling but cannot possibly serve as a substitute for common sense. You should never handle a gun carelessly and assume that the gun won’t fire just because the “safety is on.”

Never touch the trigger on a firearm until you actually intend to shoot. Keep your fingers away from the trigger while loading or unloading. Never pull the trigger on any firearm with the safety on the “safe” position or anywhere in between “safe” and “fire.” It is possible that the gun can fire at any time, or even later when you release the safety, without you ever touching the trigger again.

Never place the safety in between positions, since half-safe is unsafe. Keep the safety “on” until you are absolutely ready to fire.

Regardless of the position of the safety, any blow or jar strong enough to actuate the firing mechanism of a gun can cause it to fire. This can happen even if the trigger is not touched, such as when a gun is dropped. Never rest a loaded gun against any object because there is always the possibility that it will be jarred or slide from its position and fall with sufficient force to discharge. The only time you can be absolutely certain that a gun cannot fire is when the action is open and it is completely empty. Again, never rely on your gun’s safety. You and the safe gun handling procedures you have learned are your gun’s primary safeties.

4. Be Sure of Your Target and What’s Beyond It

[Be Sure Of Your Target And What's Beyond It] No one can call a shot back. Once a gun fires, you have given up all control over where the shot will go or what it will strike. Don’t shoot unless you know exactly what your shot is going to strike. Be sure that your bullet will not injure anyone or anything beyond your target. Firing at a movement or a noise without being absolutely certain of what you are shooting at constitutes disregard for the safety of others. No target is so important that you cannot take the time before you pull the trigger to be absolutely certain of your target and where your shot will stop.

Be aware that even a 22 short bullet can travel over 1 1/4 miles and a high velocity cartridge, such as a 30-06, can send its bullet more than 3 miles. Shotgun pellets can travel 500 yards, and shotgun slugs have a range of over half a mile.

You should keep in mind how far a bullet will travel if it misses your intended target or ricochets in another direction.

5. Use Correct Ammunition

[Use Correct Ammunition] You must assume the serious responsibility of using only the correct ammunition for your firearm. Read and heed all warnings, including those that appear in the gun’s instruction manual and on the ammunition boxes.

Using improper or incorrect ammunition can destroy a gun and cause serious personal injury. It only takes one cartridge of improper caliber or gauge to wreck your gun, and only a second to check each one as you load it. Be absolutely certain that the ammunition you are using matches the specifications that are contained within the gun’s instruction manual and the manufacturer’s markings on the firearm.

Firearms are designed, manufactured and proof tested to standards based upon those of factory loaded ammunition. Handloaded or reloaded ammunition deviating from pressures generated by factory loads or from component recommendations specified in reputable handloading manuals can be dangerous, and can cause severe damage to guns and serious injury to the shooter. Do not use improper reloads or ammunition made of unknown components.

Ammunition that has become very wet or has been submerged in water should be discarded in a safe manner. Do not spray oil or solvents on ammunition or place ammunition in excessively lubricated firearms. Poor ignition, unsatisfactory performance or damage to your firearm and harm to yourself or others could result from using such ammunition.

Form the habit of examining every cartridge you put into your gun. Never use damaged or substandard ammunition — the money you save is not worth the risk of possible injury or a ruined gun.

6. If Your Gun Fails to Fire When the Trigger is Pulled, Handle with Care!

Occasionally, a cartridge may not fire when the trigger is pulled. If this occurs, keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction. Keep your face away from the breech. Then, carefully open the action, unload the firearm and dispose of the cartridge in a safe way.

Any time there is a cartridge in the chamber, your gun is loaded and ready to fire even if you’ve tried to shoot and it did not go off. It could go off at any time, so you must always remember Rule #1 and watch that muzzle!

Discharging firearms in poorly ventilated areas, cleaning firearms or handling ammunition may result in exposure to lead and other substances known to cause birth defects, reproductive harm and other serious physical injury. Have adequate ventilation at all times. Wash hands thoroughly after exposure.

7. Always Wear Eye and Ear Protection When Shooting

[Always Wear Eye And Ear Protection When Shooting] All shooters should wear protective shooting glasses and some form of hearing protectors while shooting. Exposure to shooting noise can damage hearing, and adequate vision protection is essential. Shooting glasses guard against twigs, falling shot, clay target chips and the rare ruptured case or firearm malfunction. Wearing eye protection when disassembling and cleaning any gun will also help prevent the possibility of springs, spring tension parts, solvents or other agents from contacting your eyes. There is a wide variety of eye and ear protectors available. No target shooter, plinker or hunter should ever be without them.

Most rules of shooting safety are intended to protect you and others around you, but this rule is for your protection alone. Furthermore, having your hearing and eyes protected will make your shooting easier and will help improve your enjoyment of the shooting sports.

8. Be Sure the Barrel is Clear of Obstructions Before Shooting

Before you load your firearm, open the action and be certain that no ammunition is in the chamber or magazine. Be sure the barrel is clear of any obstruction. Even a small bit of mud, snow, excess lubricating oil or grease in the bore can cause dangerously increased pressures, causing the barrel to bulge or even burst on firing, which can cause injury to the shooter and bystanders. Make it a habit to clean the bore and check for obstructions with a cleaning rod immediately before you shoot it. If the noise or recoil on firing seems weak or doesn’t seem quite “right,” cease firing immediately and be sure to check that no obstruction or projectile has become lodged in the barrel.

Placing a smaller gauge or caliber cartridge into a gun (such as a 20-gauge shell in a 12-gauge shotgun) can result in the smaller cartridge falling into the barrel and acting as a bore obstruction when a cartridge of proper size is fired. This can cause a burst barrel or worse. This is really a case where “haste makes waste.” You can easily avoid this type of accident by paying close attention to each cartridge you insert into your firearm.

9. Don’t Alter or Modify Your Gun, and Have Guns Serviced Regularly

[Don't Alter Or Modify Your Gun, And Have Guns Serviced Regularly] Firearms are complicated mechanisms that are designed by experts to function properly in their original condition. Any alteration or change made to a firearm after manufacture can make the gun dangerous and will usually void any factory warranties. Do not jeopardize your safety or the safety of others by altering the trigger, safety or other mechanism of any firearm or allowing unqualified persons to repair or modify a gun. You’ll usually ruin an expensive gun. Don’t do it!

Your gun is a mechanical device that will not last forever and is subject to wear. As such, it requires periodic inspection, adjustment and service. Check with the manufacturer of your firearm for recommended servicing.

10. Learn the Mechanical and Handling Characteristics of the Firearm You are Using

Not all firearms are the same. The method of carrying and handling firearms varies in accordance with the mechanical characteristics of each gun. Since guns can be so different, never handle any firearm without first having thoroughly familiarized yourself with the particular type of firearm you are using, the safe gun handling rules for loading, unloading, carrying and handling that firearm, and the rules of safe gun handling in general.

For example, many handgun manufacturers recommend that their handguns always be carried with the hammer down on an empty chamber. This is particularly true for older single-action revolvers, but applies equally to some double-action revolvers or semiautomatic pistols. You should always read and refer to the instruction manual you received with your gun, or if you have misplaced the manual, simply contact the manufacturer for a free copy.

Having a gun in your possession is a full-time job. You cannot guess; you cannot forget. You must know how to use, handle and store your firearm safely. Do not use any firearm without having a complete understanding of its particular characteristics and safe use. There is no such thing as a foolproof gun.

"Everybody got that?"

There was a chatter of agreement from them. Leo smiled. "Oooookay." He groaned and stood up. Derrick noticed his father noticeably wincing in pain as he pulled himself up.
He was still slouching for a minute but then he straightened up and smiled at his son to reassure him he was okay. "Now listen up everybody! We've got reinforcements on the way so we're going to grab every gun we can carry and then hole up in the Guest House with the rest of our family, hunker down and fight like hell to hold them off long enough for them to arrive. Once they arrive we'll knock these assholes dead. I promise you. This nightmare will be over before the night is through and you'll all be on a first class plane ride home."

"Excuse me?" A man raised his hand. Standing short and wide-bodied with tan skin, this man has a thuggish feel about him. He has knowing blue eyes and he is (naturally) bald. He usually wears clean, ambiguous clothes that are poorly-fitting.

"Yes Branden?" Leo asked him.

"I'm sorry to say this, but, couldn't we just steal some cars and get the hell out of here?"

"That's a good idea, don't get me wrong, but there's a few problems. We don't have any keys. I could hotwire but that could take time and we can't guarantee how far away we'll get. Besides, these assholes are bound to be on alert by now. They'll have any vehicles locked up and secured. We could try hoofing it but they know the terrain better than we do, the mud and rain will slow us down and I don't like the idea of dragging the civilians who'd just been freed from being locked inside of a freezer through a rainstorm."

"Okay yeah those are all fair points sir." He puffed up his chest. "Guess we're fighting then. Alright! Lock and load. Show us where the guns are."

"That's the spirit. Follow us!"

Leo and the others took the keys and checked the other rooms around them. They found a scattered few civilians locked inside of cages and freed them and guided them out of the house, grabbing as many guns as they could carry on the way out while Derrick and Tina tried not to look at the corpses all over the floor.

The group crossed the rainy farm and trekked through the mud and dirt while Leo lead them to the house where he'd been dragged earlier. They grabbed armfuls of guns and then Alessandro lead the group to the Guest House where Josephina and the others were waiting.

Argos, Alessandro and the civilians made their way across the farm slowly and quietly. They slipped behind parked vehicles and houses and cover whenever they could and kept their heads down. Compared to fighting Hammerhead, blasting their way out of the processing house had been a simple task. However, while the Blackburns weren't overly concerned about the minions, fighting even one of the Bricks out here in the open while they had three half frozen civilians to worry about would be problematic. While Argos and Alessandro were armed to the teeth, the civilians had towels wrapped around them, as many as the pair could find for them in the processing house, as they were not in any condition to fight.

Alessandro poked his head out from behind a corner and looked around for the cannibals. "Hey. Coast is clear." He motioned for them to follow him.

Argos looked back at the civilians. "Hey, I need you to hold on just a little longer okay? I know our ladies. They'll have cleared out whatever building those psychos tried to put them in. Once we get to the house you'll be able to dry off and warm up alright?"

The shivering people nodded their heads. "Just hold on a little longer and stay behind us. You'll be okay."

They followed behind Alessandro. Argos and Alessandro kept their guns ready while observing the area but fortunately there were no signs of the lunatics. Nevertheless they proceeded with caution through the rain and the mist until they finally made it to the Guest House.

Alessandro peeked through the window and then crouched back down. "I don't see anyone."

"Me either. Meaning they either all went home or the ladies have already taken care of them."

They slowly crouch walked towards the door and stood back up and leaned against the wall. "Ready?"

"Ready."

"Stick behind us." Alessandro told the civilians. Argos placed his hand on the doorknob and pushed it open and they ran inside guns at the ready.

No sign of the cannibals. The civilians hurried in behind them and the wind closed the door.

"Hey. You smell that?" Alessandro asked Argos.

"Yeah. Just about. That's death. Judging by the stench of it, we're looking at quite a lot of corpses."

"Considering we're not seeing any sign of whatever dirtbags they would've had stationed in here or any reinforcements, I think we can safely say that the ladies cleared them out."

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"

They looked up at the top of the stairs to see Josephina standing tall with a rifle in hand. "You don't get a second warning!"

"Josey! Josephina it's us!" Alessandro called up to her.

"Alley? Argos?" She slowly lowered the rifle and her murderous glare was replaced with a big smile. "Hot damn it is you!"

"Good to see you too Josephina. I hope you don't mind. We made some friends on the way."

"Bring them on up here. We've got fresh towels, blankets, some first aid and baths. We can turn on the warm water for them."

"Alley? Alley is that really you?" Michelle ran out of a back room and over to the railing. A giant smile returned to her face upon seeing her husband again.

Alessandro beamed and ran up the stairs with Argos and the civilians and he practically leaped into his wife's arms and they kissed right then and there. It seemed to last forever. Just the two of them with their arms around one another in the middle of this hellhole.

When they finally parted they laughed and she pressed her head against his chest.

"Goddamn I've missed you guys."

"Come on. It'll take more than some roid raging rednecks to bring us down." Alessandro joked. "I'm just glad you're okay."

Argos put one muscely arm around Josephina's waist as they hugged.

When they finally parted, Argos asked the big question. "Is Gloria okay?"

"She's....stable. At least for right now. We got in a gunfight against a small army. Michelle and Gloria were hit. Come on. I'll tell you all about it while we're getting the hot water ready."

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Michelle! Gloria! You still with me? Sound off!" She called down the hallway.

"Josephina get your ass in here!" Michelle called out to her.

She ran over to the bathroom where Gloria was collapsed against a wall and Michelle was frantically tearing through the shelves for any medical supplies she could find. "Ohhh shit! Shit!" Josephina ran over to her. "Let me see it."

Gloria winced and removed her hand from her bloody wound. "S-sorry....took a hit. It's bad...oh motherfuck this hurts like a bitch!"

"Ohhh shit. Shit. Listen to me Gloria, I need you keep pressure on that for a minute okay? You listen to me. You're going to be alright. We can still save you. It's going to hurt like a bitch. But we can still save you. I swear it." She fought back tears and hugged her sister. "You're going to be okay. You're gonna be okay."

"Jesus Josey I fucking heard you." She rested her head on her sister's shoulder. "Now quit your dawdling and get to work."

"Right. Yeah. Okay. Just stay with us alright? I love you." She turned to Michelle. "What have we got?"

"....Not much. Christ Josey we need to get her to a hospital."

"Reinforcements are still en route. We just need to last until then." She looked over the medical supplies. ".....Alright. I think I can work with this. I think. It's going to be a field surgery."

They nodded to one another, turned on the water, rinsed and cleaned their hands and quickly began running around the upper floors of the guest house until they could find some sewing kits and other supplies and dragged them to the bathroom. They cleaned their supplies and gave Gloria a pillow to rest her head on. Next they cleaned a wash cloth and got it wet. "Alright, Gloria? It's time to go to work. We can save you but it's going to hurt like a motherfucker. We have some sleeping pills here but-"

"No. No pills. Need to be awake for this. In case we get attacked."

"Okay." She gave her a smaller pillow and Gloria opened her mouth. She bit down on the pillow and nodded. (This is gonna suuuuuck.)

Gloria removed her hand from the wound and Josephina swiftly began wiping at it with the washcloth while Michelle held her down. After cleaning the wound, she pressed down on it to have the blood pool out freshly to the side. Next, she took the knife and made a small incision around the wound. Gloria bit down on the pillow and moaned into it but held on. With her wound open enough to work on, Josephina took the tweezers and got to work on her wound. "Just hold on sis." She jabbed the tweezers into her cut and Gloria howled against the pillow and bit down harder but she did her level best to remain still. "It's okay. Its alright. You're doing fine, Gloria." Michelle assured her. "Just stay with us alright? You need to stay strong. You're gonna be okay. Just stay with us."

Josephina steeled herself while she worked the tweezers until she was able to grab the bullet and she slowly pulled it out and extracted it. She threw the bullet away. Next, she rewashed her hands and cleaned the wound with another cloth and grabbed the sewing kit while Michelle placed a wet wash cloth on her head. "Okay sis. Hard part is over. We're gonna get to the sewing now okay?"

Gloria muttered something through the pillow and nodded. Josephina resumed her work and used the sewing kit to stitch her wounds shut. It took time and effort but she eventually succeeded in sewing up her bullet wound and cut the thread with scissors. She sighed and sat down. "Gloria? Gloria we're done. Are you still with us here?"

"Fuck. This. Farm." She muttered.

The girls sighed with relief and cleaned up and wrapped what bandages they could find around her torso.

They carried Gloria onto a bed and laid her down on it so she could rest. Josephina sat down at a desk and rested her head.

"Fucking shit. Never thought we'd have to do that out in the middle of nowhere like this." Michelle said quietly while stroking Gloria's hair. She turned to Josephina. "How are you holding up?"

"Just had to perform surgery on my own sister." She sobbed. "Not doing so good."

Michelle crossed the room and hugged Josephina close. She embraced her in return as she cried into her shoulder. Michelle couldn't blame her. This had been one of the worst days of her life. She'd seen her husband, Michelle's own beloved brother, get shot, they'd been separated from their children, had to fight a building full of monsters and performed a field surgery on her sister. "Jesus Christ Mich. I just want this fucking day to be over."

"There there just let it out. We saved her alright? You saved her. This is a shitty situation but you knew exactly what to do. You took initiative and you saved her life. Once this is over we can get her some proper nanosurgery and she'll be all better alright? We'll be okay. We'll all be okay. We're going to kill these fuckers and go home. We're all going home together. Just let it out for right now girl."

She hugged her and rocked back and forth until she finally got it all out of her system. Josephina wiped her eyes and blew her nose and then she went to the bathroom and washed her face. When she came back, she was steel once more. "How about you? Your shoulder looks bad."

"It looks worse than it is. I'll be fine. Better after we blast our way out of here."

"Right." She took a deep breath and exhaled. "Alright. For now, let's gather all of the guns together and then come up with a plan."

"Good idea."
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"So that's basically where we are now." Josephina explained to Argos and Alessandro while the civilians were washing off with the warm water. The clean clothes the family could find were laid out for them.

"Fucking hell. A field surgery all the way out here in the boonies. Never thought I'd see the day." Alessandro whispered while brushed Gloria's hair with his hand.

"Still. I'm proud of you. You kept cool, wiped out an army and saved her life. Really took that military training to heart." Argos complimented them.

"Josephina did all of the real work. I was the assistant." Michelle admitted.

"Don't be like that Michelle. You were as instrumental in saving her as I was."

She gave Josephina a thumbs up.

"You keep fighting okay? You keep on fighting." Alessandro ordered Gloria. "You're gonna be okay." He hugged her as gently as possible and then he walked back out into the hallway and he and Michelle hugged in a tight embrace that seemed to go on forever.

"Alright. I'm going to get Leo. Knowing him...I've got a good idea on where he's gonna be by now."

_______________________________________________________________________________

The family trekked across the farm through the pounding rain. They took a long way around to the Guest House so that they could stay behind cover. Granted all of this mist and rain pouring down on them would make it hard for the lunatics to see them anyway but better safe than sorry. Especially given their horrible fighting conditions. The rain had become a living fabric, something you could reach your hand through and let your fingers play in. This wasn't just rain it was the heaviest downpour that Derrick had ever seen. His mind drifted back to science class for the moment. Rain occurs when the water vapor "held" in warm, moist air condenses into liquid water and falls. For heavy rain, the amount of moisture in the air mass must be disproportionately large compared to its size. There are several weather events where this is typical, such as in cold fronts, tropical storms, hurricanes, and monsoons. Rainy weather patterns like El Niño and the Pacific coast's "Pineapple Express" are also moisture trains.

Heavy rain can also trigger any one or more of the following events.

Runoff: If heavy rains arrive more quickly than the ground can absorb water, you get runoff--stormwater that "runs off" the land instead of seeping into the ground. Runoff can carry pollutants (like pesticides, oil, and yard waste) into nearby creeks, rivers, and lakes.

Flooding & flash flooding: If enough rain falls into rivers and other bodies of water it can cause their water levels to rise and overflow onto normally dry land.

Mudslides: If rain is record-breaking (typically more rain in a few days than is normal over a month or year) the ground and soil can liquify and carry unsecured objects, people, and even buildings away in debris flows. This is exacerbated along hillsides and slopes since the ground there is more easily eroded away. Here in the U.S., mudslides are common in Southern California. They're also common in Europe and Asia, especially India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan where they often lead to death tolls in the thousands.

Tornadoes: In a supercell, the most common source of tornadoes, as the storm approaches you there will be steadily increasing rain following by heavy rain and hail followed by a tornado that may or may not have rain around it. Supercell thunderstorms are often classified as either high precipitation or low precipitation supercells. In high precipitation supercells, the mesocyclone and the tornado (if there is one) is often wrapped with rain. Low precipitation supercells usually have the rain out front of the tornado but none around it.

Derrick considered the likelyhood of each of these. He didn't think they'd have to worry about mudslides out here. Runoff might be a problem but since he didn't know where any rivers or lakes would be, he wrote that off for right now. So that left flooding or tornadoes. Right now it looked like flooding was the order of the day. Fine. He figured so long as they could get to high ground, they'd be able to just wait these jerks out until the military showed up in their air carriers and helicopters and kicked all of their asses. But a tornado, out here of all places, would tear the farm apart and kill everyone unless all of the houses had basements. It was likely but he wouldn't bet his life on it.

Unless you're a high level superhuman you just don't fuck with a tornado.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by his father giving them the signal. "Alright. Coast is clear. Lets move people."

They followed behind Leo slowly and carefully as they walked around in a wide circle on their way to the Guest House. They were almost there when they heard an alarm blaring from The Mansion that echoed around the farm even through the thunder booming overhead.

"Oh God. Please tell me that's not a tornado siren!"

"No....no that's not a tornado siren. That's an alarm being sounded. They're going to gather all of their men at the mansion then come after us with everything they've got." Leo looked back at the group. "RUN!"

They followed Leo through the wall of water and howling winds towards the Guest House. Thick icy sheets of rain obscuring their vision worse than the mist while their feet splashed through the muddy water covering the ground.

When they arrived at The Guest House they immediately pushed open the door and fled inside. Leo then slammed the door behind him. "Ohhh my god. What the hell is up with this weather?"

Josephina leaned out of one of the rooms. "Who goes there?!"

Leo's smile returned. "Honey is that you?!" He called up the third floor.

"MOM!" Derrick called up her.

"SWEETIE!"

"AUNTIE JOSEY!" Tina squealed in joy.

"MY BABY!" Michelle called out to her while she ran out.

The family and their allies raced up the stairs to the third floor where the kids set their guns down and embraced their mothers. "MOOOOOMMMMM!"

Michelle laughed and spun her daughter around. She ignored the pain in her shoulder and just held her baby girl close. Her wound didn't matter. The fact that her little girl was soaked to the bone didn't matter. All that mattered was that she was safe. "Oh Tina. My little baby girl! My little sunshine! I missed you I missed you I missed you!" She kissed her forehead over and over and over and over and over.

Tina just laughed and held onto her mom. "I missed you too mom. Missed you too."

"MY BABY BOOOYYY!"

"Love you too mom." Derrick managed to say with a big wide smile while Josephina squeezed him. "You're the best."

Argos smiled and watched them. "You kids okay?"

"Better now Grandpa!" They both said to him.

Michelle finally let go of Tina so she could run over and hug Argos. She embraced her soaking wet husband. "Thank you for bringing our baby back."

"No force on Earth could've stopped me." Alessandro assured her.

Josephina walked over to Leonardo. "I was worried about you honey."

"I was worried about you. But you seem to have handled things here."

"For the most part anyway. How are you feeling?"

"Like I need a vacation. We're going on a tropical cruise. First chance we get. I swear it." Leo smirked.

Despite everything, Josephina finally had to laugh. "Oh Goddamn it. You are never going to change Leo."

He spread his arms out to the side and shrugged. "It's why you fell in love with me."

She held his hands. "Thank you though. For saving the kids. For saving our son."

"What's family for?" Leonardo asked. They leaned forward and kissed.

Derrick and Tina held their grandfather like they would never let him go. "Grampaaaaa!"

He laughed and hugged them both. "Little wet out there isn't it?"

"Maybe just a little." Tina giggled.

"Oh God we have so much to tell you about Grandpa."

"Same here. But first lets see if we can find some clothes for you guys in these closets. Then we can sit down and come up with a plan together."

"Wait a second!" Derrick looked around. "Grandpa Argos? Where's Aunt Gloria?"

"She's okay for now. Your Aunt Gloria got hurt and she's sleeping it off right now. We have her in a back room."

Leo stepped forward. "Show me."

___________________________________________________________________________________

Time passed. They came back up to the first floor feeling even worse than when they went inside. They stopped in the middle of the hallway surrounded by corpses.

"They're all dead. They're seriously dead." Horace sniffled.

"Ay don't get it. That there asshowwl were half dead when they dragged him inside. So how in the hell could he have done killed ever'one like this here? He were just one guy ayn' we've done got an army in here!" Ricky exclaimed while looking at the corpses.

"He's ayy Powered. That there's how. Y'all know how damn tough they ken be." Houston noted.

"Yeah. Even thay ...err mawe nawmal ones are toughuurr than nawmal folks like us raheet?" Ricky asked him.

"Raheet."

They took a look around at the corpses surrounding them.

"But. But this here is still scary as hell. It's fuked up is what it is. What thay hell are we done supposed ta do now?" Horace asked his companions.

Ricky hugged himself. "Honestly ay'm with ya Hawace. Ay'm sceered as shit raheet now."

Houston paced around for a minute before throwing up his hands and turning around to face his companions. "We don't have ayy choice. We tell thay old man."

"Tell him what? That Charles could be dead? That ever'one's dead? That we didn't faand anything?"

"Ay know y'all feel but we didn't do any ov this here. That there asshowwl done this. We just done found them aftuurr thay ...err fact. We be honest. We tell thay old man thay truth ayn' we let him figure out how ta kill them."

"It's bettuurr than a-tryin' ta lie ta him aw running away." Horace agreed.

"Alraheet awful fine. Fuk it. We tell him the truth. It fuking suks but we have ta tell them what done happened." Ricky agreed.

"Ya guys ready?"

"We're ready."

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thaddeus sat in a chair silently steeling himself for the coming battle while the alarm blared. He noticed Miss Morganstern's own silent annoyance at the continued blaring of the siren and while he said nothing, he'd be lying if it didn't bring him a small amount of amusement.

Around the house his men continued to arm themselves with as much guns and ammunition as they could carry. As more of the farmhands and his family continued to pour in they were updated on the situation and armed.

This continued until Ricky, Horace and Houston ran inside dripping wet from the rain. "B-Boss! Boss we need-ta talk ta ya!"

"Excuse me."

Miss Morganstern gave a curt nod and began counting down.

"Yes gentlemen? What is the word in the house? Did you find Charles? Did you find my son? What about the livestock?"

"Whel ya see that there's just it boss. We didn't faand thay shootuurr aw Charles but ever'body else in thay house is dead. The butchers ayn' guards ayn' ever'one."

"They're all dead suurr. It's just like in thay processin' house. We're sawry."

Thaddeus's lips trembled. As their message echoed over and over in his mind. His blood pounded in his ears. His heart thudded in his chest. His hands shook. His feet tingled and his vision disfigured as if he was looking through a fish-eye lens. "What, but, no, h-he can't, that's... not... right..." He stammered out. Had he truly lost another son to these men? But why? HOW?! They couldn't die! He couldn't understand it! They were his flesh and blood! They had his power! His family's power! They simply could not die! Nothing could kill them! Nothing could take his sons from him! Nothing! NOTHING! Then he bends over double, hands on his knees, struggling to regulate his breathing but it came to him in gasps and he felt like he was going to black out. His heart was hammering inside of his chest now like it belonged to a rabbit running for its skin. The room span around him and he struggled to stay standing, trying to make everything slow to something that his brain and mind could cope with. He felt sick for the first time in his life. He wanted to call his wife. Call an ambulance but the phone was too far away. It was too far away, too far away, too far away. He didn't know who to call or what their numbers were or who to call too far away, his sons were dead. They were dead and gone and taken away from him! Breathe, gone, too far away...."

"FATHER!"

He looked up to see his sons holding him now. They stood around him together. United. In their fear and as a family. His sons. He could not let them down now. Not now. His sons. Yes. He still had them. He could not fail them. He could not let them down here. He straightened up and held his head in his hands for a minute and then he slowly slid them up and over his hair and he looked at his sons.

"Yes. Forgive me a moment of weakness. This day has taken much from us. Prepare for war. Grab any and all remaining guns and break out the body parts we have refrigerated. I must speak with Ambrosia but I will rejoin you shortly. Thank you my sons." He hugged his sons together for a minute and then he walked up the stairs to speak with the secretary while his sons followed behind him to carry out his orders.

Miss Morganstern quietly giggled like a schoolgirl in the chair with her legs crossed and one hand in front of her mouth.

____________________________________________________________________________________

The Family gathered together in a back room around Gloria Stoneshire as she slept with a wet rag on her forehead. Michelle gently pulled up her shirt to expose their improvised stitches.

"We did the best we could to help her. We got the bullet out and stitched her wound closed but she still lost a lot of blood. She needs a hospital." Josephina explained to them somberly and pulled her shirt back down.

"We all do." Leo noted sadly.

"Dad is Aunt Gloria gonna be okay?" Tina asked Alessandro.

"Don't worry about her son. She's as tough as your Aunt Josephina and your mom. She'll pull through once we get her to a hospital. We just have to hold out for right now."

"I'm sorry Aunt Gloria." Derrick told her quietly while holding her hand. "But we're gonna get these guys for you. You just watch."

"At any rate, we can't allow those bastards to make it to this back room. Any of them."

"Alessandro filled us in on The Bricks. We should factor them into our strategy."

"Come on guys. We need to get you changed into something fresh while we plan." Michelle told them.

The family began to file out out of the room but Derrick took a look back into it and he saw something across the room that caught his eye. He ran back into the room and grabbed it.

"What'cha got there Derrick?"

He came back out carrying a bottle of alcohol.

Michelle held up her hand in a stop motion. "Derrick, I understand the sentiment but this is hardly the time."

"Nonono. Aunt Michelle, look." He held up the bottle to her while pointing at something on the label.

"Let me see here....80 proof?"

"Exactly." Derrick grinned. "We learned about this in our history and science classes.

Proof is the government documentation of a distilled beverage’s alcohol content. In the U.S., if you cut the number in half, you get the actual amount of alcohol in the bottle. Eighty proof means 40 percent of the liquid in the bottle is alcohol.

Proof began here during our 18th-century whiskey trade. Whiskey took off when farmers realized they could make 10 times the money on their corn if they distilled it. As the market soared, so did watering down the booze for even more money.

Suspicious buyers came up with a “gunpowder proofing” testing method. They mixed the whiskey with gunpowder and lit it. If the gunpowder exploded, the liquor had no water in it and it was “proofed.” And so was anyone standing nearby. This became the official term for pure whiskey.

Alcohol itself is flammable, so any alcoholic beverage will burn provided the alcohol content is high enough. The basic rule of thumb is anything 80 proof or above will light, and the higher the proof, the easier the alcohol will be to ignite." He explained quickly and fished the lighter out of his pocket. "And lookie what I've got."

"Heeeeyyy waaait a minute now." Leo looked at his son's hands and the drapes and beamed. "I've got an idea."

Josephina quickly caught on. "It'll be easy enough to bottleneck them at the entrance. What we need is a way to damage their big guns enough to wear down their regeneration. Their regenerative abilities are certainly potent, but even their cells can only regenerate so many times, after which the cells (and tissues, and organs) will start to fail, limiting how much they could regenerate and shorten their lifespan. They can only handle so much damage before their regenerative abilities are burnt out. Fire can help with that. At the very least the flames will even the odds and give us a head start."

"It's settled. We burn them then." Michelle nodded her head.

"Should be enough booze up here. I'll see if we can make some molotovs." Alessandro decided.

"Wait!" Tina held up her hands. "If we do this won't it risk burning all of us with them?"

"It's fine Tina. If it gets too bad I'll snuff it out like last time." Leo assured her.

"Okay then." Josephina clapped her hands and they walked out to the civilians who had been conversing among themselves. "Everyone. Your attention please. We have a plan on how to do deal with these cannibal creeps but we're going to need your help to do it. So listen closely. Because you're gonna fucking love this."

_______________________________________________________________________________

Ambrosia meanwhile had been busy reading stories to Macey while she ate her flesh cookies made from human body parts mixed with cookie dough. It was a simple enough recipe. Half a cup blood, half an ounce of pineal gland extract, one crushed eyeball and half a cup of finely chopped skin with some sprinklings of M&Ms and chocolate chips. Once the cookie dough was mixed, the children shaped the dough into little balls and placed them on a cookie sheet in the oven, bake well and let them sit before placing them in the refrigerator to chill until it was time to eat.

Macey merrily ate her cookies and drank her milk while listening to Ambrosia's latest story.

There are some places in Texas I advise you to go to: San Antonio. Austin. Poteet. Dallas. La Vernia. Just to name a few if you want to experience real Texas in a breathtaking way.

And then there’s Kosciusko, Texas, a place that I would never bring up in normal conversation. It’s a place you don’t go to. It’s a place you drive far away from when nighttime falls. It’s a place where your car stops and stalls and you feel sweat beading down your neck as you try to jiggle the keys in fear.

You don’t go to Kosciusko. Ever.

Pull up Google maps and try to find the town–here’s a hint. You won’t. You’ll go immediately to a marker labeled “Kosciusko Meat Market” but no indicator that there’s a town anywhere. There’s no street name called Kosciusko Street or Avenue. Just “Kosciusko Meat Market”.

It’s really more or less an abandoned town. Only about ten people reside there and country separates them all in between. There’s a meat market, like I said, and an old dance hall that people used to go to back in the 1970s. There used to be a school who resided there but they merged with Poth ISD way back in the 1970s.

Even the history of Kosciusko is lackluster: a simple Polish town that was established as a rural trading point for settlers as they headed to San Antonio. No battles were fought there. No historical significance.

Except, technically, one.

The story of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a fabricated story based on Ed Gein, who murdered and sewed skin of women together. Urban legend steadfast hold onto the belief that the real incident of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre happened in Poth, Texas.

This isn’t true because in reality, it was Kosciusko where the legend began. Poth got attached to it because Kosciusko lived and died with a very difficult sounding name. When the movie came out, the locals murmured and whispered among themselves that Kosciusko’s secret and dark past had been taken by Hollywood and transformed into a slasher film, complete with a cannibal family and bloody corpses that lined the grounds.

It’s a coincidence. The film had nothing to do with the town. But have you ever seen something that was so eerily coincidental and similar that you couldn’t help but feel a connection? Even the lonely, isolated feeling of the landscape felt like the harsh, hard ground of the ghost town.

Kosciusko is home to a violent clan of inbred cannibals that live in the countryside, kidnapping and raping victims before eating them alive. If the victims didn’t already will themselves to die by that time, anyway. Nobody exactly knows where they came from but rumor is that they were simply “left” behind when people started to move away. It’s agreed that they’re Polish descent and otherwise unintelligent humans, but that’s all anyone can say.

Right before Texas Chainsaw Massacre came out, a young, naked, and bloody man drove his car into a streetpost in Poth, Texas, and got out, screaming wildly in the dark of the night. The police and ambulance came, bringing him to a hospital center in Floresville.

After sedating him enough to clean him, the nurses and doctors found irregularities. He was bruised and bloodied and his flesh had been stripped on his thighs and buttocks, like a knife had been skinning him. He had no tongue and was unable to speak. His wrists were hanging off the joint, as if it had been bound so tightly that it was essentially severing them clean off. His ankles were shattered and broken and it seemed like it was pure will and luck that he even made it that far to Poth, in a car nonetheless.

The police detectives gave him a pen and paper and asked him what happened. The only thing he wrote was Kosciusko and died a day later from injuries and infections.

His body was studied by the medical examiner of San Antonio, who took interest in the case, and the medical examiner promptly remarked that this would be his last autopsy, as this was the worst he’d seen. Shortly after he signed the papers, the medical examiner resigned and moved out of Texas.

The medical examiner reported that the young man had been held captive for a week or so, bound by something tight, like rope or chains. His circulation was cut off in many parts of the body, requiring amputation of the fingers and toes. There was several infections raging in his body that would have eventually, by miracle had not, killed him. He was also tested positive for tetanus and fragments of rusty metal were found in his bloodstream. He was dehydrated, starved, and raped repeatedly in the rectum, mouth, and a hole in the base of his spine was found to be filled with semen. Shockingly, this did not result in paralysis and the doctor still can’t explain it.

His tongue was missing and the doctor presumed that it was cut using the same rusty blade as the fragments found in the bloodstream, as well as the skinning of his thighs and buttocks. He was also tested positive for HIV, which wound up quarantining the hospital. Blood, traces of seminal fluid, and rotted meat were found in his stomach as well as a wristwatch.

The guess is as good as anyone else’s on how this poor man escaped his captors. The doctor theorized that maybe, he freed himself by dislocating his wrists and slipping out of his bonds. How he was able to run was pure will to escape and survive and the car he might have stolen on a highway or from his captors. A informal police report differs, suggesting the man was meant to be tossed in the river nearby and overpowered his captors while in the car and operated it into a frenzy.

The weirder mystery was the word Kosciusko. It wasn’t any difficulty to see that he meant Kosciusko, Texas, so the police began to search out there, starting with the Kosciusko Meat Market. There, all they found was an elderly couple running the store as usual and selling pork rinds in plastic bags. A detective bought one to eat on the search and eventually, that was all the search actually accomplished. Nothing was found and nothing was gained. Nobody in the small town had seen or heard of the man and nobody reported a car missing or stolen.

The detectives returned several times back over a course of months, attempting to secure more information. However, they were largely unsuccessful and considered the case had run cold.

The last time they were there, they went back into the Meat Market. A young girl of maybe six or seven was sitting behind the counter, eating a type of Polish candy.

One of the detectives decide to go ahead and try to talk to her. He first bought a bag of pork rinds to try and start conversation, which she returned with energetic favor. She seemed pleasant enough, as any six year old would be.

Then he offered her one of his pork rinds to curry favor. She declined.

“Momma says I only eat those if they made of piggys.” She said. The detective laughed a bit and told her that they were made of pig, hence “Pork” rinds. She shook her head.

“No. They’re not. I seen Grandpa make ’em. He gets a shipment of skin every month and while they’re screaming and crying and hollering, he takes the skin right off and tosses it in the fryer.”

Immediately, the detectives become unsettled and leave, opting to hand over their pork rinds to lab. They then dispatch and attempt to find the old couple. Every time they go to the Meat Market, it’s closed. And every time they try to find them, everyone in the town doesn’t remember them.

After some digging through the history books and birth certificates to locate the identity of the couple, the detectives learn a terrifying fact: everyone in Kosciusko is related. There’s no deviancy in the family trees. Any settlers who immigrated there was blemished out mysteriously.

The results come back. Now, this was back in the day where forensics did not exist so DNA testing was a science-fiction fantasy. The inspectors determined the pork rinds were of “untraceable origin…but were definitely not made of pork or any hog products”.

This resulted in a search and seizure of the town. The town of Poth dispatched and requested help of several towns to seize all people of Kosciusko. People were arrested and kids were transferred to Poth where they could not be in their families’ possession. Violence and fights broke out. Homes were destroyed and torn apart in ravage police searches.

In one home, they found equipment with noticeable blood. In another, fragments and bone were found. In yet another, teeth were buried under the soft ground.

Nobody was talking. And nobody was saying anything.

This was before DNA so the police couldn’t determine what the blood was. The household claimed they butchered their own livestock. The teeth came from burying it for the Tooth Fairy. Bones and fragments were from slaying pigs with hammers.

The rabbit hole went too deep and the police didn’t know what to do. So they shut down Kosciusko and ferried the kids to the Poth ISD schools. When they could no longer hold the townspeople in custody, the townspeople moved out of the homes and went deeper into the country so they couldn’t be found.

Then the movie came out. Texas Chainsaw Massacre. And everyone was utterly convinced someone in Kosciusko sold the story.

Of course, it was just coincidence. The two are unrelated and the case of Kosciusko never went solved. By that time, everyone knew to stay away from Kosciusko and the kids who were shipped to the Poth schools were bullied so hard that eventually, they too left for the isolated countryside.

The thing is, now Kosciusko is trying to open up the doors again. The dance hall is open and the meat market is under new management. Kosciusko is trying to sell itself as a “historic” town and bring business back to the ghost town.

People have gone there for the dances and insist that there’s a homely, cowboy like charm to the place. And the pork rinds can’t be beat.

And the nice old couple who runs the meat market are just the best people, I hear.

"The End." Ambrosia said merrily while closing the book.

Macey laughed and clapped while she chewed up the last cookie. "I love the happy stories Amby!"

"Happy stories really are the best aren't they?" She took a tissue and dabbed at her mouth. "There now, you got it all over your face again."

"Awww shucks! I'm sorry!"

"It's alright now." She finished cleaning her face.

"Aunty Amby? Is daddy okay?"

"I'm sure he is. Listen to me, nobody can beat your father. At anything. He's the best. Everything is going to be okay."

"But....but I heard him crying earlier!"

"It's alright Macey. Nobody is going to mess with you guys." Ambrosia assured her and gave the little girl a hug.

She smiled and hugged her right back. "Thanks Amby."

"You're welcome. Just remember that I'm here for you alright?"

"Always?"

"Always. Now how about you go ahead and lay down for a nap alright? I'll sing you a lullaby."

She giggled and put her mask back on and got under the covers. "That's a good girl. Now I promise you. By the time you wake up, this will all be over and all of the bad people will be dead."

Ambrosia held her hand and she began to softly sing to her.

"♪♫♬Bayu Bayushki Bayu
Do not lie down near the edge of the bed
The grey wolfie will come
And grab you by your tiny side
He'll grab you by your tiny side
And drag you to the forest...
Drag you to the forest...
Down under a willow shrub.
Don't come round, wolfie, don't wake up our Masha.

Bayu Bayushki Bayu
Do not lie down near the edge of the bed
The grey wolfie will come
He'll grab you by your tiny side
And drag you to the forest...
Drag you to the forest...
Down under a raspberry bush.
And then one raspberry will fall down
Right into Katenka's mouth.

Bayu Baushki Bayu
Do not lie down near the edge of the bed
The grey wolfie will come
He'll grab you by your tiny side
And drag you to the forest...
Drag you to the forest...
Down under an aspen tree.
Don't come round, wolfie, don't wake up our Masha.

Bayu Bayushki Bayu
Do not lie down near the edge of the bed
The grey wolfie will come
He'll grab you by your tiny side
And drag you to the forest.
And drag you to the forest where Nana lives and bakes buns,
And sells them to the little ones, and Vanusha gets them free of charge.♪♫♬"

Macey yawned and closed her eyes beneath her mask to go to sleep. "Sleep tight little one." Ambrosia turned the light off and quietly stepped out of the room. She had just finished closing it when she came face to face with Thaddeus. "S-sir! Oh, forgive me. Sorry, y-you startled me."

"I am sorry Ambrosia. This day has been long....how is she?"

"She stuffed herself and now she's sleeping it off."

"You're a good woman Ambrosia. Thank you." He motioned for her to follow him and they stepped down the hallway and then he looked back at the room before continuing. "Now listen to me very closely Ambrosia. I need you take the black books and the girls and leave. Run as far away as possible. Keep your head down and stay out of sight. If this all blows over I will call you back here."

Ambrosia's words caught in her throat. Running? He actually wanted her to run away? Why? From what? How dangerous was this family that they could possibly scare him this much?

"Sir, forgive me for questioning your decisions but are you sure that's wise?"

Thaddues took a moment to collect himself before he continued. "I have two of my sons today Ambrosia. I do not want my little girls anywhere near this battlefield until this is over." He took his necklace off and held it up. "Now. Come along. We must get the books. Do you have the girls emergency bags packed?"

"Ah, yes sir. I have them packed with fresh clothes and supplies every day just in case."

"Excellent work. This place would fall apart without you."

"I'm just doing my job sir."

They walked into a spare bedroom at the end of a winding hallway and then they walked over to a closet and Thaddeus opened it up and spread out the clothes. They placed their thumbs on two hidden buttons designed to blend right in with the wall in the back of the closet. A section of the wall slid down to reveal a hidden compartment with two keyholes on either side of it. They slid the keys inside and turned them simultaneously. The compartment opened up and Ambrosia took the books out. Ambrosia took a second to look up at the ceiling of the closet with all of the little holes inside of it. If anybody tried breaking into the compartment to try and force the books out the spikes would shoot down out of the ceiling and impale the intruder. This rarely came up of course because only she and Thaddeus knew where the books were and they were the only ones who had the keys to it. But there was one time they found an intruder dead from the death trap. He was subsequently chopped up for meat. No need to waste it. Afterwords they had to get a new carpet.

She took the black books and held them to her chest. "Mr.Brannon...." She took a moment to close the door before lowering her voice. "Sir...regarding Miss Morganstern....what should we do? I'm sorry to say but we've already lost most of our manpower and even if everyone attacked her at once we'd still lose."

"We just need to retrieve the boy. Do not fret so much. I will handle her. Just take the girls and do as you are told."

She set the books down and put an arm around him. "Be careful sir. You're handling a live grenade. No...more like a lit stack of dynamite in the dark surrounded by gasoline."

Thaddeus couldn't help but smile. "You have a way with words. Take care of yourself Ambrosia."

"Be careful sir. And hey, if we make it through this, lets all get drunk as hell."

"Nothing would make me happier after today."

They parted and shook hands. Ambrosia gathered up the books and walked out of the room to retrieve the children.

Thaddeus took a minute to collect himself before adjusting his suit and stepping out of the room to speak with his sons.

That was when he heard the music playing from downstairs.

Smile · Jimmy Durante

Smile,
Though your heart is achin'
Smile,
Even though it's breakin'
When there are are clouds in the sky
You'll get by...

If you smile
Through your fear and sorrow
Smile,
And maybe tomorrow
You'll see the sun come shinin' through,
For you...

He quickly walked downstairs to find Miss Morganstern playing a record while she waited on him.

"Hello again Thaddeus. I hope you don't mind. I just felt like entertaining myself while I waited." She turned her head and looked into his eyes with that smile on her face. It wasn't vicious, not insane, stoic or deranged. It was the smile she had on her face when they first met. Her smile was calm, gentle, serene...almost enlightened as she looked into his eyes. Just like that time he understood the truth of what he was looking at. She was the eye of the storm, the apex predator and a calm center of destruction and her politeness, calmness and serenity was so inhuman that it was more terrifying than any fury. "I hope nothing's wrong."

"No. Nothing's wrong. Please enjoy your accommodations. Excuse me."

She relaxed and waved him off.

Thaddeus walked back up the stairs to rejoin his sons to prepare for the coming battle.

___________________________________________________________________________________

It didn't take them long to prepare their dinner. They had a lot of practice with it after all and the tables were covered with chopped up and well prepared human remains. Stews of meat, vegetables, eyeballs and fingers in bowls. Another stew in a large pot with a severed head inside. Plates of meat, vegetables and ears and fingers. Bowls of beans and brain matter. Prepared brains. Chopped up arms and legs separated on plates.
Trays of severed hands, feet, intestines, heads, hearts and other assorted body parts. Various guns covered with chocolate sauce and whipped cream. Knives covered in butter and sheets of metal prepared like salads.

This was what known as The War Meal. They ate meals like this prior to going into a big battle to stock up on fresh body parts to ensure their regenerative abilities were at their peak while also absorbing the guns and blades into their system to be used against their enemies. It wasn't quite as big it would usually be since the enemy was on their front doorstep. Normally they'd have a much larger meal more intricately prepared before going into a big battle but time was of the essence.

They had gravely underestimated the Blackburn Family and took them lightly. It had cost them dearly. They had lost over a hundred farmhands and two of their family members to the Blackburn Family. It was a loss that weighed heavily on all of them. The empty chairs on either side of the table only served as a grim reminder of what they'd taken from them.

They would pay. That was the unanimous unspoken agreement of the Brannon Family. They would all pay. They would all die.

Thaddeus stood up and held his hands out to either side of him. His sons on the right and left him grabbed his hands and each others hands and bowed their heads.

"Thank you, God for this food. For rest and home. And all things good. For wind and rain and sun above. But most of all those we love. Amen."

They all said at once before Thaddeus sat down to eat with his sons and Diablos and Dread removed their masks. Diablos had very sharp teeth that had been filed down like he was an alligator or a shark along with two prominent tusk like teeth on the far sides of his mouth and his tongue had 13 piercings in it. Diablos meanwhile looked much more mutated. Besides the metal spikes he had implanted in a row moving up his skull to the back like hair and the resulting protrusions that went through his skin, he had a tan skull like face that looked similar to his mask, complete with fang like teeth that looked similar to his brother's filed teeth.

"To Charles and Viktor." Thaddeus said and raised his glass.

"To our fallen brothers!" They said and clinked their glasses.

They drank their wine and then they began devouring all of the food in front of them. Human, weapons and metal. They devoured all of it.

Miss Morganstern turned off the record player and looked up at the ceiling. "Now, now, gentlemen. I know you've been through a lot today but take care to mind your table manners. More importantly. You should know that Big G's love is not unconditional. Thanking him for the chance to devour the meat of human beings you've butchered? That is going to bite you in the ass on the other side." She refocused her eyes on the hourglass on the table.

(die Geduld. die Geduld. die Geduld. It's almost time for the climax. I just need to have a little more patience. I've waited years to see my darling in action again. What's a few more minutes?)

__________________________________________________________________________________Heads propped aloft by the crutch of dogmatic belief, savoring each other, feasting upon flesh--knife and fork, delicate spoon. Each course far from complete, they gorge through eroded faces, evidence of features strewn to rot in the panic of the fading sun. Hugging like chums until folded into one writhing mass, they remain dexterous enough to balance an apple: proof of perilous symmetry. In the distance, the white mission weeps under the weight of the impending torrent. Even the mercy of the mountains can't protect from the ruin of man.

Bitter washes over.
Irresistible sweet meat.
Taste buds flicker out.

The family ended their feast of human flesh, body parts and weapons. They washed their hands and the plates.

The Brannons and their forces assembled together on the first floor and looked at Thaddeus at the top of the stairs.

"This day has been long and much has been taken from us. We have lost friends and loved ones to these intruders who think themselves above the natural order of the world. We will correct this misunderstanding. These intruders are no longer simple livestock. They are our enemy and we will annihilate them without mercy. We will tear out their hearts and feast on them as we paint our walls with their blood! Tear our their eyes! Snap their spines! Strangle them with their own intestines! Empty all of your ammunition into their corpses! Make them scream for mercy as we tear them apart! They will know that this is THe Brannon Farm! This is our home! This is our world! Here we are LAW AND THEY ARE NOTHING BUT MEAT!"

His forces cheered for him and Thaddeus let them go on for a bit before he continued. "The Boy who is with them. Derrick Blackburn. He alone will be spared and brought back here to our client. To Miss Morganstern. But only after he has watched us bathe in his family's blood and we drag him through the mud by his broken leg like the worm he is...Now. Come with me my family. Let us march to battle. Let us wreak our vengeance upon this rebellious meat! It is time for The Blackburn Family TO REAP THE WHIRLWIND!"

They roared in approval as loud as they could to shake the house like the booming thunder above them.

Thaddeus descended the staircase and joined his forces. "Come along with me. It's time to slaughter the livestock."

"They're in the Guest House." Miss Morganstern told them casually. "Beee carefuuuulll."

"Thank you. We'll have him back here."

"Remember." She tapped the hourglass.

"We'll have him back here. Feel free to help yourself to refreshments until then. Good day Miss Morganstern."

He opened the door and stepped out where Ambrosia was pulling out in a car with the girls in the back. Thaddeus paused to watch them and then he blew a kiss to his daughters. "Stay strong girls. I'll call you back to the farm when this is over." He whispered and then steeled himself again.

The Brannons and their forces marched towards the Guest House while Miss Morganstern turned the hourglass over.

The Brannon family weren't the only ones getting ready for the upcoming battle. The Blackburn family had been scavenging the Guest House for anything they could find to help them in the battle. They'd managed to scrounge up a few things that when combined together could be used to change the tide of the battle.

OUT Filter Mate® Potassium Permanganate Water Treatment Iron Filter Regenerant, Beauty 360 USP Pure Glycerin and Table Sugar could be mixed to cause small explosions which, when combined with their improvised molotov cocktails and their plan for the curtains and alcohol, could be used to burn away the Brannons.

Bleach and vinegar which when mixed together could make Chlorine Gas. That would be placed near the entrances to the house along with Chloromine gases mixed from Bleach and Ammonia and Chloroform mixed from Bleach and Rubbing Alcohol. They had no doubt that the regenerative abilities of The Brannons would protect them from the effects of the gases, but that meant that they'd be too busy fighting off the effects to notice the smell of alcohol on the curtains until the Blackburns lit them up. Besides, the henchmen and corrupt cops wouldn't be protected by any form of regeneration and it would stop them in their tracks and thin the herd.

Besides, any damage to them was a hit to their total regenerative abilities and taxing their healing factor was part of the goal here. The Blackburn family didn't necessarily need to win this though that would be ideal. They just had to hold them off long enough for reinforcements to arrive. Hopefully by then The Brannon Horde would be weakened enough that their reinforcements could finish them off with whatever arsenal they brought with them.

They found a few more tools and weapons they could use around the house. Perhaps most importantly, they found a surprising amount of duct tape which they used to tape books, cookie sheets, pots and pans and other random objects to their bodies and under their clothes. It wasn't a perfect solution and it made it a bit awkward to move around but it was better than having absolutely no protection from their super strong enemies. If their improvised armor could help them take even one extra hit then it would be worth it.

Leonardo Blackburn was sitting down on the floor with his eyes closed as he tried to rest his battered battle worn body and gather his strength.

Derrick quietly sat down next to his father and waited for a minute before he spoke up. "Hey dad? Dad are you okay?"

He smiled and put an arm around his son. "Just resting my eyes kiddo. Just taking a break. It's been a long day for all of us."

"Tell me about....the sooner we get home the better." He patted his chest feeling the books and cooking sheets he had duck taped around his body underneath his shirt. "Maaaan this feels weird."

"Beggars can't be choosers son. This is a really bad situation to be in so we had to improvise with what we had laying around."

"Improvise, Adapt and Overcome." Derrick nodded his head. "But still, I never thought we'd ever actually put ideas like this into practice."

"Danger always strikes when everything seems fine.
" Leo reminded his son. "You gotta be ready for anything and you never know when learning new tricks could save your life."

"Who said that quote?" Derrick asked his dad.

"Kambei Shimada. He was played by Takashi Shimurai in Seven Samurai. It's an old school movie but he was certainly right. After we get home we can make some popcorn and watch it together. Would you like that? Watch a samurai movie with your old man?""

"I'd love to dad." Derrick admitted. "Hold up though, I thought you were more of a gunslinger."

"Oh don't get me wrong, gunfights and Westerns are my jam but that doesn't mean I don't appreciate other genres." Leo explained to his son.

Downstairs the rescued citizens, Herschel Harkey, Jania Justus, Whitley Wojtowicz, Quiana Quail, Chere Clyme, Reynalda Riles, Louanne Lewter, Tyesha Tischler, Joseph Joiner, Branden Buehler, Kenisha Krauth, Sandy Senior, Akiko Auger, Velma Vrba, Martha Mutch and Randi Resh, were working with the Blackburn Family to come up with some improvised weapons.

"Next we need to measure 2 parts sugar to 3 parts KNO3. Be careful not to breathe it." Michelle explained to them while pouring the ingredients into a bucket they'd emptied out. The citizens did the same with their own. It started to smoke from the mixture of the two. "Now add one tablespoon of baking soda to the mixture." She did just that and then passed it around to the others. They added in their own tablespoons and then they closed the lid on the bucket and shook it thoroughly. Once it was all mixed up, they opened the lids back up and added in hot water. "Good good! You're doing great! Next we're going to mix it up until it's a clear black liquid everyone. Ready? Mix!" They followed her lead in mixing it all up further with spoons until they had a nice black liquid and then they poured that into clear plastic containers. "Get the newspapers and fold them up and put them on top of each other until everything is soaked!"

They followed her lead and placed the folded up newspapers they'd separated into layers and placed them on top of each other until they were soaked. Once this was done?

"We're done with them for now. Take them out and let them dry for the next 10 minutes while we prepare the rest. You guys are doing good. We're proud of you."

Alessandro meanwhile was working with the papers that Leo had quick dried earlier before he sat down to rest. He wrapped the layers into compact rolls, secured them with tape, wrapped tinfoil around them to hold everything together and then he taped that up and inserted fuses into the bombs for the finishing touches.

At the same time, Josephina was working on mixing the chemicals to create disorienting mixtures to weaken the enemy. Their regenerative powers were astounding to be sure and it would certainly kick whatever they could come up with in here but any damage done to them would be something that weakened their overall powers so it would be worth it. Out of simple household materials and tools they found laying around the Guest House she'd developed multiple explosives and a few more chemical mixtures.

At the same time Argos was putting together Newspaper Nail Knife Bats. He rolled up wet newspapers, folded, unfolded, folded and unfolded again. Then he inserted the knives and nails just right or left of the folds and then he folded again so that the nails were pointing outwards and then he taped the papers together and laid the melee weapons out in a row. They weren't perfect solutions but he knew the psychos wouldn't see them coming. They'd function as a last resort in case they ran out of ammo. One last extra weapon to swing at their eyes as he'd instructed them to use if they got in too close.

Derrick walked down the stairs and waved to his family. "Dad and Aunt Gloria are doing alright. So. Came back down to see what I can do to help out."

"You can start distributing these kid." Argos offered.

"Hell yeah." Derrick bounded over and picked up the Nail Knife Bats and began handing them out to everyone.

Tina was on lookout and keeping watch out the window. "How far away is our backup anyway?"

"Nancy's house is pretty far away from here but I know for a fact that they're en route and they're bringing an armory. We'll just have to hold out until then."
Josephina explained. "Any sign of them out there?"

"It's a bit hard to tell with all of this rain and mist but I don't see any people out there." She closed the blinds and stepped back to the kitchen where Derrick handed her a bat. "Oh sweeeeet."

"Remember. It's a last resort move for if we get cornered."

"I know but it's still cool." Tina gripped it with both hands and raised it to the ceiling. "It's nice to have some real weapons....by the way? What happened to your ax?"

"That....I mean...Dad has it. I couldn't stand to use it." Derrick admitted. "Come on. Lets see what else we can do here."

Tina pulled her cousin close and hugged him. "We're gonna be okay, Derrick. We're all together now and we're gonna be okay. Mom says it'll be over soon."

Derrick lowered his bat and wrapped his spare arm around her. "I know cuz. I know. We're gonna kick their redneck butts right out of their own farm."

They patted each other on the back and walked back over to the adults to implement their strategy.

"So do you guys do this all the time?" Herschel asked while mixing chemicals.

"Not all the time. Only when it's necessary. It's all part of basic training." Michelle informed him. "Mirage Division." Okay, so that's just a prettier name for the Guerrilla Division but these guys didn't necessarily need to know the specifics.

"Oh hey I've....never heard of that."

"We keep out of the papers." Josephina pointed out. "It makes our job easier."

"What kind of jobs? Was it stuff just like this?" Jania asked them.

"Similar but uh we haven't fought cannibals in a long time. Also we usually have more preparation time but we're good at improvising too."

"When this is all over...would you please teach us how to be badasses like you?"

"Heh. Our line of work isn't for the faint of heart but we can certainly teach you some real survival skills and point you towards excellent physical trainers."

"I'd love that. Thank you."

Whitley accepted his bat from Derrick. "Thanks kiddo."

"We all gotta do our part to chip in if we're gonna win this." Derrick smiled.

"Hey with a bunch of superheroes like this at our backs how could we possibly lose?"

"Soldiers but we appreciate the sentiment." Alessandro laughed.

Argos wrapped his hands up in bandages. "You're right about one thing though. We're gonna kick these assholes assholes and we're all going home together. You'll be home safe and sound before you know it."

"You guys really are angels. You're Guardian Angels sent from Heaven to save us." Quiana Quail beamed.

"Just soldiers and two kids. We appreciate the sentiments though."

"Excuse me, Mr.Argos? Mr.Alessandro?" Chere Clyme raised her hand. "But, you said earlier that the hammer man....you said you shot his head off and he still regenerated and had his mind? How do you think that's possible?"

Alessandro shrugged. "Who knows? It's either because their nervous system retains the information or they have some kind of genetic cellular memory function."

"Ohhhh okay. So we're fighting flatworms?" Tina joked while handing out the weapons.

That got a few laughs while they continued to make their preparations and assemble their weapons and mix the chemicals.

Upstairs, Leo placed one hand on his bandaged stomach just below his ribs and he placed the other hand on his chest. He took a regular breath and then he took a slow, deep breath. He breathed in slowly through his nose, paused for a second or two, and slowly breathed out through his mouth. Leo did this slowly several times until he had a calming rhythm. As he inhaled, he imagined that the air he was breathing was spreading relaxation and calmness throughout his body while sweeping away the stress of his body. As he repeated his breathing exercises Leo eased his mind into a relaxed level of consciousness. Relaxed but alert. He'd been fighting since the trucks attacked them and he needed to rest and let his body recharge. This building was going to become a battlefield soon and he was going to need all the strength he could muster to win and save his family.

As Leo entered this meditative state he used his internal energy to increase his body's natural healing. It wasn't a perfect solution, it certainly wouldn't heal him all the way before the Brannons arrived, and it certainly wasn't his preferred method compared to an actual hospital but the old military tricks were still handy in a pinch.

In the room next door to him, he could tell Gloria was doing the same as him, even if she was doing so unconsciously. He could only hope she woke up before things got too dicey. They were going to need her.

Everyone prepared. Guns were handed out. The trap was set. They took their positions.

Akio Auger kept her eyes peeled to the window until she finally saw the cannibals marching across the farm. "They're coming!"

They scrambled out of the room and Martha whistled sharply twice. It was time for war.

Thaddeus and his family stopped outside of the Guest House. He stared up at it for a few seconds before he turned to his sons. "They're waiting for us. In all likleyhood they will be armed with every gun they've stolen from us. But it won't save them. We are still going to butcher them regardless. Diablos! I want you to circle around and climb up the back of the house to the back window on the third floor. Dread! You climb up to the roof. Once the fire fight starts, I want you both to break in. We'll catch them by surprise and tear them apart before they know what's happened."

"Yes father!" They agreed simultaneously and embraced their family in the pouring rain.

Pulling apart, Diablos ran around the building to the back and Dread quickly dashed around to the side. He shoved his guns into his pocket and he began climbing up the side of the building, literally digging his hands into the wall with his incredible strength and breaking his feet into the wall to make handholds while his brother did the same around the back.

"Uhhhh hey? Do you guys hear that?" Randi asked the pair in the room with him.

"Yeah it's...behind us." Martha slowly peeked out from around the corner out the window and then she suddenly pulled back and motioned for the others to hide around the corner in the shadows. "He's coming. The metal mask man. He's climbing up the wall!"

"Shit! Shhhiiiit! They can do that now?" Randi whispered.

"It looks like it."

They hugged the walls while he climbed past the window and then Martha ran to the hallway. "Guys! We've got a problem: They can climb walls now!"

"Awww fuck. That's just great." Josephina hissed. "Are they coming up the side?"

"One of them is...I think another might."

Leo looked up at the ceiling. "Considering how strong they are? I believe it. I'm guessing he's going to try and come down through the ceiling. At least one through their and another through a window. Maybe two. It doesn't change the plan we'll just need to be careful."

Outside, Thaddeus grabbed the doorknob and tried to force it open. The door bumped against something and stopped. He tried again. Nothing. "Okay fuck it." Thaddeus reared back and punched the door hard enough to obliterate it and blew the shelf that had been placed in front of it to splinters!

Michelle's eyes widened. "Holy shit that's what you were all fighting?"

"Yeah." Leo growled. "These guys hit hard. Avoid close combat."

Thaddeus Brannon walked into the Guest House drenched head to toe from the rain but his eyes were still blazing with hatred. The first thing they saw however was the pile of farmhand corpses waiting for them. Thaddeus stopped cold for the moment and his sons and the farmhands and crooked police too were mortified by the sight.

Leo kept his eyes trained on the first floor. Step 1: Psychological Warfare.

"Oh fuking hell fathuurr. What thay hell kaand ov psychos do something like this here?" Romulus asked him.

Chunk ran a hand through his hair. "Ay know who weez when ay say this but this here is messed up."

Lonnie, one of the farmhands, took a step back. "I uh, I, mean, do we even have enough ferepowuurr faw these assholes?"

Upstairs the family tensed as they waited for them to make their moves.

"It doesn't matter." Thaddeus growled. "It doesn't change anything. We have work to do." They were on a time limit. They had to finish this quickly. They didn't have time to mess around. "Follow me."

"Uh, sir?"

"They will pay with their blood and we will eat their hearts." He snarled and swatted the corpses out of his way and stomped on the others. "LIVESTOCK!" Thaddeus bellowed up at the third floor loud enough to rattle the windows.

"HEAR ME LIVESTOCK! I AM THADDEUS BRANNON! I AM THE HEAD OF THIS FAMILY AND GOD OF THIS FARM! I AM THE LAW IN THIS ENTIRE FUCKING STATE! YOU HAVE SLAIN MY MEN AND KILLED TWO OF MY SONS! GIVE ME YOURS AND WE WILL MAKE YOUR DEATHS QUICK! YOU HAVE ONE CHANCE BEFORE WE COME UP THERE AND TEAR YOU LIMB FROM LIMB!"

The response came in the form of Leo simply forming a sniper rifle, stepping forward and firing a focused beam from the barrel at one thousand eight hundred forty and nine hundred nine thousandths miles per hour. Thaddeus saw the sniper rifle though and while he tried to dodge the shot, this instead simply resulted in the beam taking off the upper right side of his head instead of putting a hole through the center of it. The beam kept going and took out a few of the henchmen before continuing on outside and shooting a hole through the ground. Thaddeus fell on his back to the screams of his sons and the shock of their minions.

Thaddeus tried to talk but with half of his brain missing it just came out garbled and incomprehensible. He raised a trembling hand to the missing chunk of his skull while his body frantically tried to regenerate it. A follow up beam took out the upper left chunk while the family flung down their homemade bombs and chemical mixtures on the cannibals, to be followed up with a hailstorm of bullets. Leo gritted his teeth and turned around and raised his rifle towards the ceiling. Now then. Where would the climber break through?

The cannibals were expecting a firefight but they were most certainly not expecting this kind of resistance! Tear Gas, Chloroform Gas, Smoke Bombs, Explosives and Molotov Cocktails were flung down to the first floor with pitch perfect accuracy! The result was a cloud of fire and smoke as the gases from the chemicals mixed together. The madmen coughed and hacked and sneezed and cried out from within the cloud as the flames covered their bodies. The Brannons stumbled through the smoke while their farmhands and crooked cops screamed in pain from the flames as they fell to the ground.

With the first volley a success, Josephina gave them a signal and The Blackburns rose up and began spraying gunfire down to the first floor. The bullets rained down like the pounding rain outside. The farmhands and cops were ripped apart by the hailstorm of bullets but the Brannon Sons remained standing. Even as The Blackburns focused their gunfire on them, they remained standing. The fat one was standing in front of his father with his burning back to the family, using his own body as a human shield to protect his wounded father.

It was noble, Josephina thought to herself. She could understand his feelings and respect why he was doing that but all the same, The Brannons had started this war. Now it was time for The Blackburns to end it.

Chunk coughed and hacked. "Sh-shit! Shiiiit! This here is awful bad! We need-ta get pa out ov here!" He choked out.

His brother tried to say something but his voice only came out as a loose and wet cough, like thick phlemy mucus was sliding up and down his throat with each violent expulsion of air. He instead motioned for him to follow him out. They grabbed their father and ran outside. Bullets tore into Chunk's back until they slipped outside around the corner.

Josephina signaled for them to stop.

Chunk collapsed outside and bent over sharply as if he'd been punched in the stomach. Drops of blood and vomit splattered his lap and knees
to be washed away by the pouring rain while the bullet holes that covered his back bled all over the ground. Whatever was in that cloud was downright nasty! Between the coughing, hacking, wheezing, sneezing and disorientation, it was clear their bodies were trying to fight off something bad.

On the bright side the rain was quickly snuffing out the flames.

By slow, torturous degrees, the coughs eased in intensity and then slowly, slowly passed.

"Ch-Chunk? Chunk are ya are ya alraheet there?" Romulus asked him.

"Ay feel like shit but ay'm alraheet." Chunk groaned as his stomach finally settled and his back pushed out the last of the bullets. His wounds closed back up.
"Oh shit what thay ...err hell were all that there?"

"cRhEmIcAsL." Thaddeus gurgled out while the upperhalf of his head grew back. Blood spurted out of his skull while tissue regenerated. "hOsHeOlUd cHvEmIuCaLs. JtHeNy mUsEtE'V MwXiDe tChEm aLtL ToGhEtHrE WhIlE Ew wEbRjE PrReApInAg." He sat up but his head was still facing down and his body remained slumped over and limp. Like he was a marionette left on a shelf. He slowly moved his legs underneath his body and then he stood up again. His suit was ruined. It was covered in burns, bullet holes rain and mud but Thaddeus was still standing strong regardless. He dusted off his chest. "I underestimated them. I didn't expect a laser beam when I went in there. That's on me. But this time there will be no such surprises." He turned to his two sons and smiled. "Thank you for protecting me my sons. I owe you both a feast when this business is done."

Chunk wiped the rain from his eyes and stood tall with his father. "We love ya Pa."

"We really do father."

"And I love you my sons." He raised his arms and clenched his fists and organic guns grew out of them. Organic replicas of the guns he'd consumed earlier. "Now then. Lets go get some fucking payback."

His sons grinned and followed suit.

Inside the family kept their eyes focused on the doorway while the cloud slowly dispersed. They could now clearly see the bullet ridden burnt bodies of the farmhands and crooked cops. The majority of them were dead on the floor with a few remaining wounded stragglers. Josephina was particularly amused as she saw Officer Broken Nose rolling on the ground in pain coughing and hacking with snot and blood pouring out of his nose. With his legs all shot up he was no longer a threat. The same went for the rest of the wounded. They were in no condition to keep fighting and could be safely disregarded. That meant the family could focus their attention on The Brannons. At the very least they had them bottlenecked at the entrance. If they tried to come through their, the family would light them up again. Even if they did make it to the stairs, The Blackburns had prepared another surprise for them on the way.

They were snapped out of their thoughts as the Guest House started to shake. There was a loud booming sound from the ceiling. It was so loud that they thought it was a thunder clap! The booming sound continued to grow louder and louder and louder as cracks spread around the ceiling! After a brief pause there was one last loud BOOOOOOOOM! and then a twenty foot hole opened up in the ceiling and Dread dropped down with guns growing out of his arms!

Unfortunately for him, his big display just gave away his position so while Dread was dropping down, Leo simply raised his sniper rifle and he fired another energy beam from it that punched a hole right through his head! Metal mask and all!

Diablos' body dropped to the floor unceremoniously with rain pouring down on his body. He had barely hit the floor though before bullets ripped through the rear window! Leo dived out of the way while the family scattered to the right and to the left. Diablos broke into the house and left halfway into the hallway. He landed next to his brother's body and took a moment to check on him.

"Dread? DREAD! DREAD GET UP! DREAD!"

There was no response but for the squishy squelching noise of his head regenerating. He sighed with relief and returned his attention to the family. He walked down the hallway spraying bullets from his arm-guns at the doorways while the family and the civilians crouched down on the floor around the corners while bullets ripped into the rooms. Leo laid on his side and kept his gun pointed at the door. Once he was close enough, Leo pulled the trigger. An energy beam shot through the doorway and shot off the masked madman's feet! "FFFFUUUUUUUUCCCK!" He screamed and fell on his face! Leo slammed the door open and pulled the trigger again and took off his head! He turned around and did the same to the other guy while he was starting to get up. His body collapsed all over again. Leo took a few sharp breaths and then motioned for the others. They followed Leo, surrounded the cannibals and began spraying gunfire into them.

They were soon joined by the rest of the civilians. The Blackburns stepped out of the rooms they'd hid inside of to avoid the gunfire. Josephina looked over the ledge to see the others were now running up the staircase like freightrains! She and Michelle smirked and tossed Molotov Cocktails down on the stairs.

The Brannons had been so blinded by rage they never noticed the alcohol soaked curtains the family had laid on the stairs earlier. Not until the flames ignited the alcohol and caused it to combust!

The Brannons were lit up like a bonfire which was only exasperated by the molotov cocktails thrown down on them. They screamed in shock and recoiled which gave The Blackburns enough time to resume raining bullets down on them.

"Hey! Hey guys!" Leo called to the civilians. "We need more guns over here!"

Half of them split off from the circle of gunfire and ran to the barricade they'd set up and joined the family in raining gunfire down on the Brannons while the rest of them circled around the two on the floor and resumed shooting them. Leo kept his sniper rifle ready and split his attention between the Brannons on the floor and the barricade, ready for whichever group got up first. Just because it looked like they had things up under control didn't mean they were going to drop the guard.

This proved to be the wise decision because Thaddeus was still standing. He shielded his face with his arms and turned his head back to his sons. "Chunk, Rom, I'm going up there. I'll draw their attention. I need you two to go down to the second floor and then break into the third floor. Take them by surprise."

"But father!" They protested.

"Do as I say!" He shouted at them over the roar of gunfire. They immediately obeyed and doubled back down the stairs, still on fire. Thaddeus gritted his teeth. Being set on and surrounded by fire and pumped full of bullets was not a pleasant feeling. But now as not the time to fret over minor injuries. His body would heal regardless of whatever tricks they used. A pity they did possess the same gift. Thaddeus crouched down and jumped off of the burning stairs hard enough to break them apart and flung himself up into the air and over their barricade heedless of the gunfire spraying his body. He raised his arms and pointed them at the family and released the bullets he'd consumed earlier. Gunfire erupted out of his arms and sprayed the area. Randi tackled Martha out of the way of the bullet spray, saving her life but he was still hit by a couple in the leg which went right through them! Akio was hit in the arm and in the stomach. Quiana got out of the way but she was grazed by the bullets. Branden rolled over to a wall and curled up in a ball while the gunfire sprayed the floor around him. Leo managed to dive out of the mad spray of bullets from the burning man though and he raised his gun again. Thaddeus landed in front of his sons and the rain poured down on his burning body and snuffing out the flames. He turned around and pointed his gun arms at the family but Leo was a step ahead of him and he fired a beam through his heart. Thaddeus spat blood out of his mouth and recoiled. Leo quickly followed this up with another blast while the family laid down suppressing fire and the and the civilians ran around them and pulled the wounded to safety.

"Unggh! Owwww wh-what? What just...RANDI!" Martha screamed as she grabbed onto him. "Randi! Oh My God! Oh GOD! Can you hear me? God please stay with me man!"

"GAAAAAAH! MY LEGS! MY LEEEEGS!" He screamed. He gritted his teeth through the pain as he heard her voice and he opened one eye. "M-marth? A-a-are you?"

"Fine...I'm fine. Thanks to you."

"Th-then....worth....it." He smiled briefly and then passed out.

Akio gasped for breath and held her wound with a trembling hand while she was pulled out of there by Whitley.

Quiana rolled along the floor and came to a stop, blood dripping down her right leg. "Ahhhhh shiiiit! This huuurts!"

The others moved in and grabbed her and pulled her back while bullets continued to be pumped into Thaddeus until they ran out of ammo!

"Shit!" Josephina tossed her rifle aside and switched to a shotgun. Michelle slung a rifle from around her shoulder and Alessandro tossed his shotgun aside for twin pistols.

Thaddeus Brannon however....remained standing. He was doubled over with blood pooling on the floor from his bullet ridden flamebroiled hole covered body but he was still standing. He straightened up and smirked at the family. Flesh began covering his wounds once more. "Is that really the best you motherfuckers can do?" He asked as blood gurgled from his mouth.

rbfxstudio.com/portfolio/badiali-team-burn/

Leo changed his rifle into handcannons again and began to squeeze the triggers. That was when the floor underneath them exploded! The family was scattered and thrown into the air as Chunk and Rom broke through it. Leo did manage to pull off the shots but they went wild. Taking chunks off of Thaddeus's shoulders instead of blowing him apart and continuing on to blow apart the far wall like it had been hit by bombs! Thaddeus turned around and stared at the massive hole where the wall used to be. "My word....that would've been a problem." He turned his attention back to his sons. "Well done my sons. Excellent timing." He complimented them as the Blackburns landed hard on the floor.

Chunk beamed with pride at his father's compliment. "Thank you father! Are you alright?"

"Give me a minute and I will be." He took notice of what remained of his suit and sighed. He tore the burnt hole ridden remains and threw them away. "I am going to need a new suit though."

"Uuuuggghhh whaaat happened?" Diablos asked as he stood up. His body pushing bullets out while he finished regenerating. With his face mask removed the family could finally see what was beneath it. A set of elongated razor sharp teeth with an inhumanly large smile.

"It seems we had a little bad luck brother." Dread explained. His face resembled the skull mask he wore but with sharper teeth and exposed gums.

"You're feeling better now. Good. Welcome back my sons." Thaddeus grinned while his body regenerated, closing up the holes and growing his skin back. Chunk and Romulous took his place under the rain while Thaddeus stepped forward and Diablos and Dread stood tall once more. The Brannons stood together now and stared down The Blackburns and their allies.

"We've got wounded. What do we do?" Michelle asked Leonardo.

"Take them into the bedrooms. Tell them to do what they can. This is between families anyways." Leo whispered back.

Josephina raised one hand and motioned towards the bedroom where they'd stashed some of the medical supplies they found. The civilians took the wounded inside.

"Father?" Diablos asked.

"Leave them be for now. We'll kill them after we're done here." Thaddeus explained as his flesh grew back followed by his hair.

The flames that had been licking at Chunk's and Rom's bodies were snuffed out and their flesh began growing back.

The last of Diablos' and Dread's wounds closed up and they stood tall.

"Focus all of your fire on the father. He's the real threat here. The others will be easy pickings when he's dead." Thaddeus informed his sons quietly.

(....is probably what he's thinking.) Leo reasoned. (But the energy blasts should still be enough to blow away any incoming gunfire. I can't fault his strategy however. Because I'm going to be targeting you too Thaddeus. Once I blow you apart I'm sure your family will fall apart with you.)

(A good idea Mr.Blackburn.) Thaddeus complimented internally as he guessed what Leo was planning. (But I'll be prepared and jump in the air to dodge your blasts. I might lose my leg but I can grow those back regardless. But you cannot heal yourself like we can, can you?) Thaddeus smirked. (Go ahead and make your little plans. I'm already prepared.)

While Leo kept his face expressionless he noticed Thaddeus's slight smirk. (You really need to play more poker games motherfucker. I've already guess what you're planning and I'll just aim up at you.)

Diablos did a headcount of the Blackburns. (One. Two. Three. Four....where are the others? There should be another woman, an old man and two kids....so where are they hiding? IN ONE OF THE ROOMS!) He realized and looked at the rooms on either side of them. (But the only ones that haven't been opened yet are on either side of us!) "Father! There are still more of them!"

That was when a door banged open and handfuls of already lit bombs were tossed at them. They caught a brief glimpse of Argos Blackburn and the children before he pulled them backwards around the corner. Rom attempted to open fire on them but then the smoke bombs went off, obscuring their vision and spraying them with tear gas and chloroform gas all over again.

(DAMMIT NOT AGAIN!) "SCATTER!" Thaddeus yelled at his sons. He grabbed Diablos and Dread and leaped backwards with them out of the smoke, over the edge and down to the second floor where he stuck his feet out between the railing and the wall to stop himself from falling down further. He tossed his sons onto the floor.
Chunk and Rom meanwhile dove for the hole in the floor they'd made earlier down to the second floor to escape the smoke cloud. They landed on their feet but they were still left coughing and hacking for a minute.

Speaking of smoke, it was currently traveling upwards from the burning stairs. Leo covered his mouth with one arm and advanced on the stairs and fired a pressure blast down at the flames to snuff them out. It took a lot out of him but it did its job in snuffing out the climbing fire and heat and smoke.

The Blackburns didn't have time to rest though because gunfire began ripping through the floor. The Brannons were concentrating their gunfire on the ceiling above them which happened to also be the third floor! "Doors!" Leo called out to them and the family ran into the various rooms while the hallway was torn up by the gunfire.

Thaddeus motioned for his sons to keep firing while he ran down the hallway, stopped in front of a door, pushed it open and looked up at the ceiling. He smirked. This was where they'd taken their wounded and he had to assume that, if none of them had been hit yet, then at least one of them would be hiding in here. He raised his arm guns to the ceiling.

Rain pounded the mansion roof while she walked across it to the ledge. Not a single raindrop struck her. She walked through the sheet of unrelenting rain and it parted to make a path for her. The rain fell around her but not on her. She was dry as she'd been inside. Miss Morganstern crossed her arms while she observed the battle. A devilish smile on her lips. "We've come to the climax at last. Lets make it a good one boys and girls. I want to look back on this night and remember everyone giving it their all. Especially you, Derrick. It's time for you to prove yourself to me."

Leo put his back to the wall while he listened to the spray of gunfire. They wouldn't be able to get back into the hallway until they ran out of whatever the hell they were using for ammo. He couldn't see them but he could hear them clear as day and how many were shooting. One. Two. Three. Four. Four of them were shooting up the hallway to force them to hide. Four. That left a fifth one. Leo guessed it was most likely the old man on the move using the sound of their weird arm gun things to mask his movement. Taking that into account, Leo had to guess where he'd come from. (Lets see. There are wounded in here and he saw them being moved in. Therefore it stands to reason that he realized that a couple of us would fall back into here and would attack us through the floor where we can't see him coming from...which means...) He pointed his guns at the floor, took a deeeep breath, and used his power to fire focused laser beams through the floor. They cut through it and he slowly moved them right and left respectively.

Down below the floor, Thaddeus was just about to fire up through the floor when freaking laser beams cut through the floor! He leaped back and pulled one arm back but while one of them cut through his left shoulder and the other one went down his right arm and completely melted through it! His right arm was flash melted off. Completely destroying his arm guns with it! Thaddeus screamed in agony but he still managed to release a spray of bullets up at the ceiling from his remaining arm that tore through it and up into the room above them!

The bullets tore up through the floor and went wild but a few of them grazed Leo's left arm and two of them drilled into it! Leo dropped his gun and it faded away into light as Leo fell to the ground. "Shit! Shit and piss and fuck!" He shouted.

Thaddeus grabbed the stump of his shoulder and rolled around on the floor. "Damn, fuck, bloody hell, shit and arseholes! Fuck fucking fuckity fuck!" He screamed! He rolled over to a bed, grabbed onto it with his spare arm and pulled himself up to his feet. His arm would regenerate. He'd be fine. But he was not going to waste this chance. The father of the family was up there and judging by the blood dripping down from the ceiling, he'd hit him. Thaddeus walked under the dripping blood and opened his mouth to taste his blood. It fell down on his tongue and he swallowed it with a sinister smile. He was going to enjoy feasting on his heart. Thaddeus leaped over to a table and then he jumped up to the ceiling, punched through the ceiling and grabbed Leo and pulled him down through it!

The civilians were about to try and help Leo up to his feet when Thaddeus pulled Leo through the floor! An entire chunk of the floor broke apart underneath them as Thaddeus fell back down to the ground while holding onto his leg! He slammed Leo down on the floor hard enough to shake the room! A chair fell over, things fell off of tables, the mirror and tables rattled and pieces of the ceiling fell down on them both.

Leo was smashed into a five foot crater on the floor hard enough that it rattled the room below them. Thaddeus gasped for breath while he pulled himself to his feet. He smiled down at Leonardo laying on his back in the crater and laughed. Flesh was bubbling from his shoulder now as his body got ready to regenerate his arm. "A good effort. A very good one....but in the end....this is the difference between us." He spat on Leo and crouched down to grab him with his remaining arm, pulled him to his feet and casually flung him into a wall. Leo hit it hard enough to send a web of cracks from where his body impacted and then bounced off of it and landed on his face. As Leo was trying to push himself back up, Thaddeus stomped over to him, kicked him up the ceiling hard enough to break off pieces of it, grabbed Leo on his way down and turned around and threw him to the door. Leo broke through the door and kept right on going to the door across it like a fastball!

Despite the pain from his battered body Leo still managed to re-summon a gun, point it at Thaddeus and pull the trigger in between breaking through the door and flying to a wall. A bright blue ball of energy the size of a basketball was released from the pistol, tearing even more stamina and strength from Leo, and it rocketed through the air and struck Thaddeus hard in the chest. There was an explosion of blue light from inside of the room and Thaddeus's chest was blown wide open! Leonardo went through the door, continued across the room, broke a lamp and slammed into the far wall. He fell down on his face. Thaddeus meanwhile had been blown backwards through the cracked wall he'd smashed Leo into.

Leonardo spat blood onto the floor and rolled over onto his stomach wheezing in pain. "Dammit....dammit....fucking shit that hurt!" He wiped his mouth with his good arm and rolled over onto his back. "Owww fucking hell."
(Dammit all. Should've seen that coming. Fucking idiot. If it wasn't for the padding we'd improvised earlier....that might've finished me.)

He ripped his jacket and quickly tied his arm wounds. Could've been better but he wasn't going to complain. With this done he quickly reformed the gun and fired another shot through the rooms over to where Thaddeus was laying and blasted a hole clean through his forehead. That would keep him down for awhile at least.

"What the hell was that?" Diablos asked his brothers. "Was that father?!"

"No. That wasn't him. The man who flew out the door just now....was the Blackburn man." Dread snarled. "Having said that....those lights were different from before. They could be much more powerful...Chunk! Rom! We'll check on father! You two go and finish off The Blackburn man. Shoot him full of holes and tear him apart. Do NOT hesitate! Do I make myself clear?!"

"You've got it big bro!" They both yelled and the four of them ran towards the rooms.

Leo gritted his teeth. "Come on you inbred hicks!"

While all this had been going on around the house, Argos was guarding the children, Gloria and the previously half-frozen civilians, who were hiding in a closet bundled up with blankets and warm clothes, while the battle was waged outside. The gunfire and explosions and screams echoed around the Guest House while the children hid in a corner holding their ears. Argos clapped two hands together. "Hear me now children....children!"

Derrick and Tina looked up at him. "Grampa?"

"Yes, listen me please. I'm going to help them. I can't stand by and listen to this anymore. The two of you need to stay here with Gloria and the others. Until she finishes recovering you two will be their only defense. We need you to stay here and watch over them."

"What?! But Grandfather please! Please let me help! We prepared for this just like everyone else did! Please let me help you!" Derrick pleaded.

Argos crouched down and placed a hand on Derrick's shoulder. "Derrick....tell me. When you realized you took your first life. How did you feel? Come on now. Be honest with me."

The sight of the man bleeding all over the floor with the axe buried in his body, the blood pooling around his corpse, the bloody axe blade buried in the side of his gut, the unnatural jerky movements of his body as the life flowed out of his body, his last few steps, the blood. The blood the blood the blood the blood the blood the blood the blood the blood. The corpse of a man who Derrick killed.

"It sucked....it felt terrible...I just...I wanted to throw up. I tried to stop him but I couldn't."

"That's good. That's a good way to see it. War is not glamorous. There is many a boy today who looks on war as all glory, but children, it is all hell. Killing is not easy and it shouldn't be. That's why we have it trained out of us at a young age. So that we can be prepared to defend ourselves, our loved ones, our homes and our nation. Because war is sometimes necessary when diplomacy fails. There will be times when you have to fight to defend those things you love and sometimes that does unfortunately mean taking lives. It's a necessary evil but that does not mean you should ever enjoy it. Do you understand? You do not want to experience that feeling every again do you?"

"N-no. No sir...."

"Good. Then stay here. We'll handle this. It'll be okay children." He hugged them both. "And don't worry. No one will harm you ever again."

The children hugged their grandfather back and he grabbed some guns. "Stay here. Stay down. Stay safe. I love you." He saluted the children and ran out to help his family.

Derrick stared down at the shotgun laying in front of them. His hands slowly curled into fists.

"Derrick!" Tina grabbed onto him. "Were you even listening to Grandpa?"

"I was. But." He held up his hands. "But still. Dammit. I want to help."

"Come on Derrick. You heard everything going on out there. We're safer in here. Let the adults handle it. They know what they're doing. We got fucking lucky earlier! Come on! I understand how much you want to help! I want to help them too! But what you're talking about is su.i.cide!" Tina grabbed his arm. "We can't help them. So we need to stay here. It's common sense."

Derrick said nothing and just nodded his head.

"Ahhhh geeeeezzzeee!"

The kids turned around as their Aunt Gloria woke up. "Can't a girl sleep off a bullet wound in peace? How long have I been out?"

"AUNT GLORIA!" They jumped on her and hugged her close.

"Woah! Hey! Kids? HI! Uh, wait, what's going on?"

"Cannibal assholes are in the Guest House and all Hell has broken loose!" Tina exclaimed.

"Mom and dad and the others are all fighting them now but they've got fucking superpowers!" Derrick shouted. "They need your help!"

"Wait, what? The cannibals are Powered? The fuck? What the fuck did I miss?"

"Uhm!"

Gloria sat up and turned around to look at the people currently bundled up in a closet. "S-sorry to interrupt." A man greeted her meekly. "M-my name is Bryan Gross. Hello Miss Gloria. Nice to see you're awake. Your family saved us. We were trapped in a freezer."

"...Who the hell are these guys?"

Tina gently hugged Gloria. "You've been out for awhile Aunt Gloria. Let us catch you up to speed."

Around this same time, the Cannibals were running to the end of the hallway only to be greeted by Josephina and Michelle opening fire with their guns!

The cannibals screamed when the bullets ripped into their eyes. Blood spraying out of their wounded eyes and running down their faces. It gave the family some breathing room. Even if they could heal, with their eyes splattered, they'd still be blind until they regenerated them.

"GO! NOW!" Michelle yelled at her while Alessandro descended the stairs to take her place backing up his wife.

Josephina ran down the stairs and past the cannibals into the bedroom where Leo was laying against the wall. She crouched down next to him and gently placed her hands on him. "Leo? Honey? Honey are you alright?"

Leo lifted his head up and lowered his arm for the moment. "Hi sweetie." He coughed. "Ugh. Crap. And I spent all that goddamn time healing earlier too."

"Can you stand sweetie?"

"S-sure...I think. Maybe. I might need a minute. Shit. These guys are strong Josey. Avoid close combat at all costs." He looked down at his wounded arm. "Hey honey? If it's not too much trouble?"

"Oh sure. It's alright. I've got you." She started wrapping his arm better while they talked. "Jesus. I heard the fight. It was like bombs were being dropped in there."

"Sounds accurate. He ripped me through the floor. Ceiling. Both. Whatever. Right through it. With one goddamn arm. Hurt like hell. Thanks for the padding. Didn't negate all of it but it helped."

She finished binding his arm up. "There we go. Where did those come from? Did he shoot you?"

"Yeah he got me but I melted his other arm off so I still came out ahead I think. Thanks, Snuggle Muffin." He joked.

"Love you too Stud Muffin." Josephina smiled. "Anyway. Did you get him?"

"I...think so? I was being thrown across the house. So. Not sure. I blew him open at least. Son of a bitch why can't they just die already?"

"We spent all that time preparing and I'm guessing they did the same thing. Assuming their regenerative powers are indeed fueled by eating human people, they must've been feasting on human flesh the whole time."

"Oh that is just so pleasant. At this rate we'll have to either blow them apart or just keep hammering them until they stop getting back up."

"Well you're the only one with the firepower to do the former and God only knows how long the latter will take. How are your wounds?"

"I'm alright. Might not be using my other arm though but my remaining one will suffice just fine...give me a hand up?"

"Always." Josephina helped her husband to stand back up.

In the opposite room, Thaddeus's arm finished regenerating and the gaping hole in his head closed up. He blinked his eyes and coughed blood onto the floor. After regaining his senses he shook his head and rubbed his eyes with his hands. After a few rubs he pulled his hands out and he looked at his newly regenerated arm. "Well it's about time." He ran his arms over themselves while he stood up and then he placed a hand on his chest to check his chest wound. It was mostly healed by now. Not important right now. They had work to do.

At the staircase, the cannibals had been held off with relative success. Being unable to see The Blackburns left them at a distinct disadvantage until Diablos grabbed Chunk by the back of his head, pulled him back and threw him in the direction of the gunfire.

"TAG IN BROTHER!"

Michelle and Alessandro dodged him, split up and resumed firing on them. Chunk meanwhile was launched through the air and he fell back down to the first floor where he slid to the doorway. Rain fell on his head.

"Fuck you Diablos. Seriously." He grumbled.

Meanwhile with the family divided up this gave the cannibals a chance to recover. Diablos covered his eyes with his arms and hunkered down to protect his head until the wounds could heal while Michelle divided her attention between him and Dread and Alessandro focused his attention on circling around Romulus.

However with their attention focused on the sons of the family, they left themselves open to an attack from Thaddeus Brannon who rushed them from behind and struck Michelle! She cried out as she was thrown through the air towards the opposing wall. Alessandro had to break off of his attack to grab her. He threw away the gun and he jumped through the air, tackled her and he wrapped his arms around her and they rolled across the floor for a few feet before coming to a stop. "Micchy? Michelle are you alright?"

"Nnngghhh uuurgh, owwwww." She groaned. "What the fuck just hit me?"

"That would be me young lady." Alessandro and Michelle looked up to see Thaddeus approaching them with his remaining gun arm at the ready. "This game has been entertaining but I am well past tired of your bullshit children. Time to die already!"

Alessandro whipped out a handgun from his back pocket and swung it around to shoot him but a spray of gunfire from Thaddeus punctured his shoulder. He yelled in pain and fell to the floor.

"ALLEY!" She screamed and grabbed onto him. Her usual tough and stoic demeanor disappearing immediately at the sight of her husband's bullet wounds. "ALLEY! OH MY GOD!" Michelle was interrupted when a hand grabbed the back of her hair and pulled her to her feet and boot stomped on Alessandro's chest.

"Alley she called you. Short for Alessandro or long for Al? Well whatever the case." Thaddeus turned his arm to point the gun barrels right at Michelle's head. "You were with the old man when you killed my son, correct? Take a good look now livestock. Because I want this to be the last thing you see."

Alessandro immediately lost all concern for his wounds and began slamming his hand on Thaddeus's leg to push him off to no avail. Michelle however used his monologuing to her advantage to pull out a knife and throw it up at his eye. He snarled as the blade pierced his eye but responded by lifting her in the air and he began to squeeze his arm to pull the 'triggers' in his arm to blow her head apart but then a spray of machine gun fire erupted into his head forcing him to drop her back down to the floor.

"GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF OF MY DAUGHTER!" Argos Blackburn shouted at Thaddues over the roar of bullet fire.

Michelle used this opportunity to sweep his leg and trip him up. She then looked back and smiled. "Dad."

"Hey kiddo. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine but Alley's hurt!"

Thaddeus Brannon rolled away and pulled the knife out of his eye and tossed it aside. He stood up seething with rage as his sons recovered from their wounds and rejoined them. The bloody bullets were pushed out of his face and the holes closed back up. "I am really getting tired of this shit!" Drool started to dribble down his mouth. Veins started popping up around his body at random and his muscles quivered. Alessandro grabbed the handgun he'd dropped and fired up at his head but Thaddeus blocked them with his arm.

"You and us both motherfucker." They turned to see Leo and Josephina approaching them from behind. Romulus and Dread attempted to open fire on him but Leo blasted them away.

Thaddeus screamed in blind rage and began waving his arm around at random spraying bullets around the hallway. Michelle dived out of the way and Argos did the same while running and grabbing Alessandro and diving into a room. Thaddeus turned around and tried to shoot the Blackburns but they ducked back into the room.

He continued to spray the bullets around the hallway in the vague direction of the family members while they hunkered down. Even Diablos was forced to duck and cover. "F-Father? Father j-just calm down please! Please! Please calm down!"

Thaddeus gave no indication he heard his pleas as he continued spraying gunfire around the hallway in a circle until at long last his organic guns ceased firing. He gave it a few more tries but nothing came out. Thaddeus turned around and looked around briefly and then he charged the first member of the family he spotted: Michelle. He ran like a freight train at her as she was standing up.

"Oh no you don't!" Argos yelled at him and fired in his direction but he was interrupted by a spray from Diablos who was currently running in their direction.

Romulus and Dread picked themselves back up and healed their injuries. "Seriously. What the fuck is happening?" Dread asked his brother.

"Ay don't get it. Why ken't we seem ta kill these guys?" Romulus asked in return, equally as freaked out about this as Dread.

They were getting tired. They'd never had to fight anyone this long. They were used to just steamrolling all of their opposition without much of a fight. But these guys. These fucking guys! They weren't going down and they just kept coming back for more and dealing more and more damage to them.

True, the Brannons were blessed with amazing healing powers, which granted them astounding regenerative abilities along with incredible endurance and durability in a fight, but like with any physical activity, they went through the motions of fatigue and breathlessness upon exerting themselves. Normally, their healing powers would keep those in check by quickly healing out any sorts of tears, clearing out lactic acid buildup and clearing up associated strain being placed on their muscles. In other words, their cardio vascular system was able to be hyper utilized in a fight.

The problem came from the fact that they kept taking damage which was also wearing out their regenerative abilities, which was causing the exhaustion to buildup. Expelling the devoured bullets through the absorbed firing mechanisms of the guns they'd eaten was also starting to cost them.

On top of all of this their father was apparently having a nervous breakdown now!

They had to finish this fast. The longer this dragged on the worse it would be for them.

"Lets take them together."

"Excuse us!"

They looked up to see the assembled rescued civilians standing on the stairs and the landing now as well. "Would you mind surrendering already?"

The brothers looked at each other and then back to the civilians.

"I'll take them." Rom informed his brother.

"I'll kill the Blackburns. Best of luck, brother."

"You as well brother." The two split up. Dread lunged for the Blackburns and Romulus went for the civilians.

"So that's our situation in a nutshell." Derrick explained to Gloria while checking the shotgun.

"hooooookaaaaay that's a lot to take in." Gloria nodded her head and then she began grabbing weapons around the room. "You two stay here. I'm going to help them."

"What? Aunt Gloria come on! You gotta let us help you!"

"I'm pretty sure Argos's orders were to stay here right?"

"Well, yeah, but I-"

"And your parents would want you both here safe right?"

"Right." Tina nodded her head.

"And you've got a good idea of how strong and deadly these guys are, right?"

"I mean..."

"Yes or no Derrick?"

"Yeah. I do."

"Then stay here. This is not a fight for children." She locked and loaded and then she crouched down and hugged the nice and nephew. "Please understand. We love you and we could not bare it if anything happened to either of you. Okay? You understand me?"

"Y-yes Aunt Gloria."
"Yes Aunt Gloria."

"Good." She hugged them tightly and let them go. "Stay here. Block the door. We'll come find you when this is over." Gloria grabbed the shotgun and proceeded out the door.

Derrick watched her go and then he pulled out two handguns from underneath the blanket.

"Oh for the love of-" Tina took one of them from him. "Haven't you heard a word anybody has said to you?!"

"I did." Derrick said as he sat down in a chair and set down the handgun and stared at it. "Loud and clear. It's just that....I love them too."

"I get it okay? I get it Derrick. But we can't beat these guys!" Tina explained to him, hoping to finally get through her cousin's thick skull. "We could barely take down those idiots in the cage room and these guys are Powered! Look, I want to help them, believe me, I do, but we're no match for those guys! The best thing we can do is to sit down, bar the door like they said and wait this out until they either beat the bad guys or the cavalry arrives and takes them down for them! Everyone out there is bleeding and fighting for us! So we can be safe! If we go out there, if we get killed, it would tear them apart and everything they've gone through today to save us would have been for nothing! They do not want us out there Derrick! They want us safe!" She took a deep breath before continuing. "Besides. What are you going to do if you go out there anyway? You gonna run out there like John McClane and gun down everybody? What if you freeze up? What if you get shot? What if you get taken hostage? What if they get killed defending you? We need to stay here Derrick!"

Derrick balled his hands into fists. "I...I know that. I know that. I know that by all logic I should stay here and stay safe but I can't! Can't you hear them?! Can't you hear what's happening out there?" The screams echoed around the Guest House, mixing with the explosions and gunfire, a chaotic symphony of battle to accompany the thunderstorm raging outside. But for Derrick the only thing he could focus on was the screams and shouting of his family. "They're fighting and bleeding out there for us while we're just....hiding in here! I feel like a freaking coward dammit!" He slammed his hand down on the table. "I-I just want to help them. We have to do something dammit! I can't just stand here while they're in trouble!"

"You can't." Tina repeated to him while spreading her arms out to either side of herself. "Look man, I'm sorry, but you have to use some common freaking sense here. You can't go out there."

Derrick stared her down for a minute before sighing and shaking his hand and hopping on the bed. "Goddammit." He flopped down on his back. "Tina, look, I'm not gonna fight you on this or anything like that.....but this fucking sucks. I just wanna help them. But you're right. We can't just go charging out there like bulls in La Maestranza. We need....a strategy. We need a plan." He laid on the bed for a whole minute before an idea suddenly took form in his mind. He grabbed the blanket in his hands and pulled it up and down and up and down before he suddenly sat up.

"I've got it! Tina! I have an idea! I know how we can help them without fighting! You're right. We can't match any of them physically. So we're not going to. We're going to resolve this with our brains and I'm laying on our solution." Derrick slid off the bed, threw the blanket off and began slapping the bedsheets. "Did your parents ever tell you about bedsheets?"

"Holy shit that's brilliant D!"

Derrick grinned. "We're on the same wavelength. We're gonna tie some sheets together. The average story of a house is ten feet right? A king sized sheet is about twelve feet long. Even if these aren't? We tie enough of them together and we'll be able to shimmy our way down and out of here."

"But! It's pouring out there! So we'll need something on the ground to soften the impact in case we fall." Tina pointed out, joining in on the plan with Derrick. "So for that? We throw the mattresses, pillows and cushions out first. It's not exactly a bouncy castle, but they'll still cushion us if we fall."

"Good idea. As for where we'll go hide? The answer is simple. If all the bad guys are here? We'll just go to the mansion. It's got more places to hide and it's probably got more weapons we can use and if I was these assholes? That's where I'd hide our stolen belongings, keep their car keys and keep their phones. We can call for help from there. I know we've got backup incoming, but they need to know what's been going on here and what they're up against. Same with the police."

"Woah woah woah!" Tina raised her hands. "I'm fine with calling our family for help but do you really want to get the police involved? After what those other assholes did?"

Derrick crossed his arms and thought it over before replying. "Yeah, those guys were dirty swine, but I don't think they've got the entire police force, just their own little squad."

"And your proof of this is?"

"IIIII don't have any. It's just a gut feeling. Besides, when we tell them that the Brannons are fucked sideways anyway? They won't have any choice but to play along to save their own butts. Lets not forget about the confession video we got earlier. With all of the evidence littering the farm? It'll be impossible to cover up. Regardless, we need to focus on escaping right now and worry about that when we get to the mansion. Lets grab some jeans, sheets and towels and get to work."

The cousins clasped hands. "Operation Bedsheet Is GO!"

"Uh, excuse me?" The cousins turned to the people who'd been hiding in the closet. They were standing up now ready to try and help them get out of here. "But couldn't we escape out the front door while they're distracted?" Bryan asked them.

"If it was Tina and myself? Maybe. We might be able to get out before they see us. The problem is, we could also potentially get shot during this, and secondly, I don't want to abandon you guys. We helped you guys escape once before. We're gonna do it again!"

Mary S. Linn wiped her eyes with her fingers. "You kids. We owe you and your family so damn much!"

"Don't worry about it. Just pay it forward." Tina smiled. "Lets focus on getting out of this madhouse right now."

"Okay! Tell us what we can do to help?"

"For now!" Derrick yanked the blanket off of the bed and set it aside. "Lets get these sheets off and the cushions out the window!"

So it went that they teamed up. The civilians helped the children to get all of the sheets and covers off of the bed, pillows and cushions in the room and then they shoved all of those out of the window. They landed in a muddy puddle and were immediately pounded by the rain. This taken care of they began tying the sheets together to form a rope.

"Are you kids sure these are gonna work?" Charles Perez asked them.

"Sure it will." Derrick assured him. "Once upon a time, two inmates in a prison escaped their cells by tying bedsheets together, an old woman did the same to escape a burning apartment and a man once used bedsheets to climb down a fourteen story building on TV and our parents showed us how to do it."

"You met my father earlier, Alessandro?"

"Woah that was him huh? He's a major badass!" Charles exclaimed. "They saved us from the freezer and then they wiped out an entire building full of those scrumbags!"

Tina laughed while they tied the sheets. "Yeah, he and Grampa are awesome aren't they?"

"You all are. We've never seen kids as tough as you two." Mary complimented him.

"We're just doing what our parents taught us." Derrick replied to Mary. "Which brings me to my next point. We need to tie the rope to something heavy enough and sturdy enough to hold our weight. This could be a heavy bed frame, the foot of a sturdy desk or a bookcase. Whatever we tie our ropes to, we should make sure that in order to hold us up, it should weigh substantially more than us in order to hold our weight. That won't be hard for me or Tina, but to test if an object will hold you weight, try moving it with all of your strength. If you can't get it to budge, it should most likely be able to hold your weight."

A quick look around the room and they spotted a Philomena 7 Drawer Dresser. With its antique-inspired design and rustic appeal, this charming seven-drawer dresser lends Provençal sophistication to any bedroom in your well-appointed home. Made with a solid and manufactured pine frame and knotty pine veneers in a distressed white finish, this charismatic design showcases a rectangular silhouette, elegant moldings, and four lathed bun feet. While each drawer features handsome pewter knob hardware, and full-extension metal ball bearing glides, the top drawers are lined with felt to protect your delicates, and the lower four drawers offer ample space to accommodate the rest of your wardrobe. More importantly, the overall product weight was 173 lbs. More if its full.

It was perfect. They worked together to push it around the room to the window. From here they tied the end of the rope to it and piled as much on top of the dresser to weigh it down as they could.

"Alright this is a good start but I want to gather more sheets and cushions." Derrick said firmly, clearly taking charge of this group. "We should open the door slowly, cautiously, and then make a break for the room across from us and repeat what we did here." He was interrupted by a sudden realization. "In addition....hmmmm...."

"What's up Derrick?" Tina asked him.

"One of the psychos jumped up to this floor earlier and was spraying gunfire. I know that people have been shooting guns all over the place in here, but in that specific instance, there's a chance that we got some wounded. Considering all of the gunfire we're still hearing, I think we can surmize our parents at least are still fighting, so that leaves the other rescued civilians. We should go check on them. If they have any wounded, we can tie them to the healthier men and women while they lower themselves down. Once we make it to the mansion we'll be able to, hopefully, find some more medical supplies to help them."

"Should we split up?"

"No. We should stick together. I know we're not all fighters but we'll still have a better chance if we move as a team." Tina replied. "So! Priority! Find any wounded and help them to get back here and then we can figure out who's leaving with them strapped to their backs. Odds are we'll find more sheets while we're doing this anyways. Operation Bedsheet has another mission parameter but it's still the same plan."

They turned to face the civilians. "You guys ready?" Derrick asked them.

"Ready as we'll ever be, Sergeant Blackburn."

Derrick grinned. "Then lets find these guys and get the fuck out of here."

They gathered and divided up the remaining weapons in the room so they all at least had one, along with Derrick carrying a smoke bomb with him and two bottles of alcohol in his belt, and then they slowly approached the door. Derrick unlocked it and took a deep breath and he tried to open it slowly but the howling wind from the raging storm outside blew it wide open! "WAH!" Derrick had to grab it with both hands to prevent it from slamming it against the wall.

"What the hell?! I thought we were still inside? What's going on?"

Tina peeked out of the room to figure out what the deal was. "Ohhhh my God." She whispered as she took in the sight of the battlefield the hallway had been turned into. The far wall was flat out gone! It looked like it had been blown apart by something! The wind blew the pouring rain into the battle ravaged hallway. There was another hole in the floor where something else had broken through, a gaping hole in the ceiling and many smaller holes littering the floor around them with plenty of blood laying around the hall. "Did all this happen while we were hiding away in the bedroom?"

"So this....this is what a powered warzone looks like. I've never even dreamed it could be this intense." Charles whispered as he looked around the hallway.

"Hey Tina!"

"Yeah Derrick?"

"See if you can find a shirt or two in the closet or something. Ball them up and set them down where the door would slam down. That way if the door does slam against something, it will only hit cloth and it won't make as much noise."

"Good thinking!" She ran to the closet, rifled through it until she found some spare clothes, balled them up and set them down on the spots where the door would hit.

"The door has been silenced."

"Then lets move out."

They proceeded into the hallway. (If I was a betting man? I'd wager that my dad did that to the wall. I pity the poor soul who was on the wrong side of it.)

The group cautiously walked around the hole in the floor while the battle waged underneath them. They opened the blood trails to one of the far rooms and Derrick slowly opened it up. The room had two large holes in the floor and Randi, Akio and Quiana laying on the floor. They had bandages wrapped tightly around them but it was clear from the first aid kits laying on the floor that they'd only received as much medical attention as could be provided in their current situation. Martha and Branden had been left to watch over them while the rest split off from them to fight the lunatics.

(I was hoping I was wrong but it looks like we've indeed got some wounded here.) Derrick lifted up his hand and waved to them. "Hey guys. Are they alright?"

Martha shook her head. "It's bad. We've done all we can for them but without proper medical attention..."

"I get it. That's why we're busting out of here." Derrick turned back to the others. "Who can carry the wounded down with them?"

"I can carry any one person with me while I'm shimmying down the sheets." Charles raised his hand.

"Akio looks pretty light. I can carry her with me." Mary volunteered.

"Then I'll carry Quiana." Bryan decided.

"Carrying? Bedsheets? Do you kids have a plan or something?" Branden asked him.

"Classic Bedsheet Escape Rope." Tina smirked.

"But we're gonna need your help to do it." Derrick informed them. "To tie the bedsheets, throw out the cushions and tie the wounded to the carriers on our way out."

Branden and Martha stood up. "We're in. Tell us what we need to do."

They worked together to carry the wounded to the room and set them down safely, then returned to the other room, grabbed whatever they could use, and then they carried the necessary escape materials to the room with them. They threw the mattress, pillows and cushions out the window where they landed on top of, around and next to the others. Then they repeated this with the bed in the next room. With their landing zone effectively set up, they worked together to tie the bedsheets, pants, towels and whatever else they could use to make one super long escape rope. Next, the wounded were tied to the escaping civilians to the best of their abilities. Once everyone was tied tightly together, Derrick gave them the thumbs up. "The wounded go first. Remember to meet up at the mansion. It'll be empty and easy to hide in until this all blows over."

"Damn kids. You are some born tacticians." Martha complimented them.

"Just doing what our parents taught us."

Bryan gave him a thumbs up and tested the ropes one more time before he slowly climbed out of the window while the rest of the team held the dresser and ropes steady until he was safely down on the bed sheets. They pulled the soaking wet sheets back up and offered them to Mary. She nodded and grabbed them and wrapped the sheets around her arms. "Just hang in there Akio. We're getting out of here." She slowly climbed out of the window and down the side of the house. It was a challenge with the roaring wind and pounding rain but she gritted her teeth and kept her grip on the ropes until she made it down to the mattresses and she jumped down on them. They repeated the process. Pulling the rope back up, giving it to Charles and then keeping an eye on things while he climbed down.

In a matter of minutes the wounded had all been evacuated from the Guest House.

Derrick pulled the sheet rope back up and showed it to the others. "Alright. That's six evacuations already. Who's next?"
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Downstairs, Herschel Harkey, Jania Justus, Whitley Wojtowicz, Chere Clyme, Reynalda Riles, Louanne Lewter, Tyesha Tischler, Joseph Joiner, Kenisha Krauth, Sandy Senior and Velma Vrba had surrounded Romulus and were shooting the hell out of him. He crossed his arms and hunkered down and then he leaped forward and blindly struck at Herschel but he leaped out of the way. By throwing himself down the staircase, rolling a few feet and then he stopped halfway down. "Owww….did not think that through."

Romulus meanwhile had crashed into a wall and broke through it into the room behind it. His blood soaked bullet ridden body slid across the room until he stopped himself and he turned around to face the people.

"Did I get him?"

"DID HE JUST BREAK THROUGH THE WALL?" Velma screamed. "WHAT IN THE SEVEN BARRELS OF FUCK?"

"Redneck fucker's super strong remember?" Whitley reminded her and they resumed shooting into the room. He grabbed a bed, picked it up and threw it out at them.

"SCATTER!" Jania screamed at them and they ran away from it. The bed missed the group, flew across the hallway and broke apart against a wall.

"I am getting so fucking tired of getting shot today!" Rom yelled at them and charged out of the room.

In the opposite room, Leo was currently dodging for his life from Dread's blind enraged punches. Blind because they shot him in the eyes and he was currently covering them with one arm while they regenerated and attacking with his free arm. He ducked an enraged haymaker and it crashed against the wall and broke a large crater into the wall. Leo skidded backwards and turned around gasping for breath. "Oh shit you weren't kidding about their punches."

"Yeah they're stupid fucking strong." Leo gritted his teeth and fired at Dread's leg and blasted a hole through it. Dread collapsed down on one leg. "SHIIIT!" He swore and he pulled a chunk out of the wall, turned around and threw it at Leo's face. Leo managed to blast it away however and the beam kept going and blasted a hole through his hand! The beam kept going forward and blasted a hole through his shoulder as well!

"GAAAAARRHHHG! DAMN! DAMN YOU! I'M NOT DONE YET!" He screamed and flung himself forward with his good arm and his legs at Leo. However while he'd regenerated his eyes, he still had the hole in his leg so his balance was off and Leo was able to dodge him and Dread smashed against the opposite wall. He still managed to break a hole through it with just the sheer force however. He pulled himself free and that's when Josephina shoved her shotgun against his face and pulled the trigger. The shotgun blast exploded against his face and blew his eye away again. Already off his balance enough from the hole in his leg Dread was knocked down on his back. Josephina pumped the shotgun, shoved it against the bloody mess that had been his right eye and fired again. Pumped and fired. Pumped and fired. Pumped and fired. Pumped and fired. Rinse and repeat until his face was reduced to a bloody mess and her shotgun clicked empty.

Leo and Josephina took a minute to catch their breath as they stood over his body hoping that he'd finally stop moving. After the minute passed though it looked like they'd finally won. Josephina sighed with relief and tossed the empty shotgun aside as she walked over to Leo. "Hey sweetie? You alright?"

"Will be when this is done." He offered his hand to his wife. She smiled and leaned down to help him up. That was when he saw Dread standing up behind her. "JOSEY LOOK OUT!"

The monstrous man grabbed Josephina by the back, spun her around and smacked her across the face hard enough to throw her across the room into an upper part of the wall. She crashed against it and onto a table, broke it and rolled off of it onto the floor.

"You fucker." Leo seethed and fired his energy gun at Dread and blasted him across the room and pinned him against the wall with a continuous energy beam. "DON'T YOU EVER LAY A HAND ON HER! DO YOU HEAR ME?!" He rose to his feet and continued pushing out more and more energy from the gun, pumping it all into Dread as the beam began melting through his torso. First his skin, then his muscles, then his bones, then his organs and then out of his back. Leo howled in rage and raised the beam upwards, melting through the rest of his body and the wall behind him until he'd shot a beam upwards, through his body, through the wall and out of the building into the sky, destroying a chunk of the house. The smoldering lower half of Dread's body dropped to the floor. Followed shortly by Leo collapsing and gasping for breath. "J-Josey? Josey!" He rolled onto his back and tried crawling across the room, sweat dripping down his face, pain shooting through his body with every movement. "Oh God Josey. Please be okay. Please." He pleaded.

Outside of the room, a few of the civilians smacked against a wall while the rest of them continued pumping lead into Romulus from behind. He staggered and fell to his knees but he managed to take the continuous spray of bullets as he crawled over to an overturned table and he grabbed it and flung it backwards at them. He managed to hit Jania and knocked her out cold. Rom staggered to his feet and then he leaped into the air and tried to punch down at them but they got out of the way. However he still managed to grab onto Sandy and he threw her into a wall and knocked her unconscious. He turned to face the others and he stumbled towards them. Herschel frantically shot him as he backed away from the towering blood soaked cannibal stomping over to him until his gun clicked empty. Rom smirked and punched him. Herschel raised his arms and the gun in front of his face but the sheer force behind his punch still bent the gun and launched him backwards into the third floor stairs and knocked his lights out.

The rest of them circled around him and resumed firing on Rom with all of the ammo they had left until the beam of light shot through the wall and rose upwards at a 90 degree angle before dissipating. The sheer suddenness of this made all of them stop exactly what they were doing and stare at it.

"What the hell was that?" Velma asked in amazement.

Romulus stammered as he stared at the hole in the building. It came from the bedroom. The bedroom where Dread had been fighting the Blackburns. "D-Dready? B-brother?" He stammered and he limped towards the room. "D-dread? Dread are you there? P-please be okay. Y-you're always okay. You're the big brother." He looked into the room where the man was crawling towards his wife. "D-dread? Dread? Dread? Where is he? Where's Dread?"

Leo turned over on his back.

"Wh-where is he?" Romulus asked him. He looked lost. Horrified. Like a little lost child. It was only natural, Leo knew, from the exhaustion, the current loss of blood, the loss of another one of his brothers and witnessing a display of power unlike anything he'd ever seen in his life. It was all finally beginning to wear them down.

Leo could only shake his head no while he pushed himself up in a sitting position and reaching behind himself. "He's with his brothers now." was all he could say to the man.

"Noooo. Noooo. No no no no no no no no no no! NOOOO! NO! NO! He's my brother! Give him back! Give me back my brother! BRING THEM BACK!" He screamed and rushed Leo who pulled out his handgun and firing on his eyes. He blew them out but he was still coming at him! Leo closed his eyes and braced himself for impact but then Josephina tackled him away from Leo, landed on top of Romulus and swung the melee weapon they'd whipped up earlier into his socket. With Rom distracted for the moment she frantically got off of him and she stumbled backwards. "J-Josey?" Leo asked her.

She turned back to him and forced a smile. There was blood pouring from a broken nose and a bloody lip down her mouth but she looked okay. She spat the blood onto the carpet and crouched down next to her husband. "Not gonna lie...that hurt like hell."

"You...you're okay?" Leo asked her and raised a shaking hand up to his wife. She grabbed his hand and helped him to his feet.

"Takes more than that to bring me down Leo." She wiped her mouth and turned back to the civilians. "This is our chance! Finish him now!"

"Oh r-right! Right! You got it!" Everyone who still could stand grouped up together and pumped as much ammo as they could into Romulus's body until his bullet ridden body finally stopped and a puddle of blood pooled underneath him.

Whitley poked the cannibal's corpse with his gun. "Please tell me he's finally dead."

"Looks like it." Josephina said to them while wiping her face with a blanket. "Good thing too. Because we're starting to run on empty."

"Hey there Miss Blackburn. Are you two okay?" Velma asked them.

Josephina spat blood onto the floor and dropped the blanket. "Fine as we can be." She fixed her nose. "Nnngh. Anyway, that's another two down. By my count that means there's three left."

"We need to check our wounded. Anybody who can't keep fighting can hole up in one of the rooms." Leo told them. His breathing was ragged, he was shaking and he was sweating bullets but his voice still commanded authority. "Divide up the guns that still have ammunition too. Now we shot a lot of these guys down on the first floor. I say we divide and grab those if we can, use them against the remaining cannibals. We can do this. Together. We're gonna win and we're all gonna go home. Free as birds. Together."

"Hey, sir? Leonardo, I mean, was that giant ray of light just now....that giant freaking laser death ray thing....you?" Herschel asked him.

"I got angry. I'm sorry. Shouldn't lose my temper like that. I promise not to do it again." He exhaled. "Probably couldn't do it again even if I wanted to. This has been a bad day."

"And it is about to get much worse for you livestock." A voice growled from the stairs.

They turned to see Chunk marching up the stairs, his shirt covered in blood dribbling down his chins. He glowered at them and sucked down a chunk of flesh he'd been eating. Any wounds they'd given him earlier had been completely healed by now. Judging by the fresh blood all over him and how long he'd been down there it was very likely he'd been feeding on the thugs they'd gunned down earlier.

"What's our play?" Josephina whispered.

"We'll hold him up here. As long as we can. While we're fighting, make a break for the first floor, grab any guns you can, come back and unload on him." Leo whispered back.

"Are you sure about this? You're in bad enough shape as it is."

"I'll be fine honey. Go."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Chunk meanwhile had been looking at the corpse of his brother bleeding all over the floor. He was just laying there in a puddle of his own blood and waste and not regenerating. His fists trembled with anger. "You...you are all going to be massacred for this!"

"Oh kiss my ass you fat bastard!" Herschel shouted back at him. "You're eating your own freaking people you cannibalistic sicko!"

"QUIET!" He shouted back and lunged at Herschel and slammed him into a wall. The others backed away and opened fire with everything they had left but they were low on ammunition from fighting the rest of the family and the barrage of bullets wasn't enough to put him down with the fresh flesh in his system restoring his regenerative abilities. However it gave Josephina the opening she needed. She kissed Leo on the cheek and then ran out of the room and bounded down the stairs, taking them several at a time to get to the first floor as quickly as she could. The sight on the first floor nearly made her vomit. The corpses had huge bite marks all over them. Several of them had large chunks of their body missing. Josephina nearly broke down crying. Sure they'd shot a large number of bad guys in their lives but this? This was just evil. Flat out evil.

"My God....these are your own men you animals!" She refocused herself and began walking around gathering what guns she could carry. That was when she noticed a trail of blood leading away from the doorway. Josephina grabbed an assault rifle and followed it to its source. The dirty cops from earlier. They were wounded and huddling in a corner out of sight.

"Well now. Well, well, well. How karmic is this?" Josephina asked them. "Don't try anything. Slide your weapons over to me. You try to shoot and I'll gun you down."

They raised their hands defensively. "P-please....we were wrong. We were wrong. We never should've signed up with them." Otto pleaded.

"No shit they're cannibals for Christ's sake. Weapons. Now. Don't test me. I have a family to save."

"Please, don't shoot. We have families too." Danny begged.

Josephina had no sympathy. It was because of these bastards that they were here in the first place. She raised the rifle.
"Slide the weapons now or I will take them."

One by one they lifted their weapons and slid them across the floor over to her. Among them were two welcome sights: The Magnums that had been stolen from them earlier. She quickly tucked them into her belt along with the other guns and she smiled. This could be it. This could be the break they needed to finish this.

"Thanks for the weapons. Stay here and stay quiet. If you're still alive when this is all over you're going to prison. Have fun with that." She turned around and marched back to the stairs. "You should've thought about what would happen before you signed up with these monsters!" Josephina called back to them.

Upstairs the fight was not going well. Velma, Jania and Whitley were down. Each brutal punch from him that landed sent them flying through the air. They crashed into the walls and were out of the fight. Chere, Reynalda, Louanne and Joseph were the only ones still standing beside Leo to fight him. They circled Chunk and unloaded all of the ammunition they had left into his body while he covered his eyes with his arms and let his body take the bullets until...

"Shit! Shit I'm out!" Chere cried out.

"Dammit me too!" Reynalda exclaimed.

Leo tossed the empty handgun away.

"Guys? Guys he's not dead yet! What the hell do we do?" Louanne asked them.

"You die." Chunk growled at them as his body pushed the bullets out and he lowered his arms. Leo used the opportunity to throw the knife nail newspaper bat into his right eye. Chunk screamed and backed away while Leo motioned to the others to get back.

"Joseph! You see that gun on the floor over there? Michelle dropped it earlier. Go grab it now while we have the chance! The rest of you fan out!"

"Huh? What? Oh there! I see it! You got it sir!" Joseph told Leo and he ran over to it as fast as he could. He'd almost reached it when a woman suddenly ran past him. Joseph paused mid-stride as he watched her rush down the hallway.

The others backed away while the cannibal pulled at the bat until he pulled it free of his eye and he tossed it away. "Nice try!" He shouted and rushed Leo who took a deep breath, lunged forward, kicked his leg, grabbed his arm and tattered shirt and threw him over his shoulder onto the floor! Leo backed away while Chunk rolled over and started standing right up. "You think that hurt me?!"

The answer came from a shotgun blast to the face that made him stumble away. He turned back to see who'd attacked him only to be blasted again. Then again. Then again. Then again. Then again. He fell on his ass while the shotgun continued to be pumped into his face until it clicked empty and then his assailant tossed the shotgun aside, pulled out handguns and began shooting up his face with both of them at once.

Leo laughed as he recognized their savior. "About damn time you woke up Gloria."

"Sorry. Got shot." She quipped while continuing to fire the guns into the fat man's face until they clicked empty. She tossed them aside and walked over to Leo. "There now. That wasn't so tough."

"Don't take your eyes off of him. They can regenerate."

Gloria Stoneshire turned around and looked at the bloody pulp she'd turned head into. "You're kidding? Even after all of that?"

Leo just watched him while his head began to bubble up while blood sprayed around him and his skull began growing right back. Her eyes widened. "Holy shit that is disgusting!" She looked at Leo. "Well? Nuke him already!"

"I can't....I'm spent."

"You're what?!" Gloria asked him.

Leo pointed to the hole he'd blasted through the building. "It's been a long day. JOSEPH! GUN! NOW!"

Joseph Joiner ran back over to them carrying the guns Michelle and Alessandro had dropped earlier and tossed one of them to Gloria. "So you're with them huh? Nice to meet you. I'm Joseph."

"Gloria."

The Cannibal stood up shakily as his head finished regenerating. He spat blood on the floor and glowered at them. "Which one of you did that?"

"That'd be me motherfucker." Gloria smirked and she and Joseph fired on him simultaneously while Josephina shot at him behind. He roared in rage and rushed them only for Joseph and Gloria to spread out, dodge him and circle around behind him. Josephina briefly stocked firing on them so they could do so. Gloria looked back at her and smiled. "Morning sis! Sorry to keep you waiting!"

"Welcome back Gloria!" She greeted and stepped forward to fight alongside her sister while Chunk stumbled forward and then turned around to face them.

"Now hold on....where did you get those?"

"Oh these?" Josephina teased while tossing a gun to Leo. "You left them laying around on the floor down there dumbass. You've become so reliant on your regeneration that you only focused on fueling that and left such useful tools laying around on the floor like a rank amateur!"

"Wait? Fueling it?" Leo asked her while he checked the gun. It was acceptable.

"His own men. He ate whole chunks of them." She glared at him. "Isn't that right?"

"Tch! Yeah so what? They were useless farmhands anyway! So long as we win who gives a shit what happens to them? It's all meat at the end of the day anyway!"

"That's enough." Leo took the safety off of his gun. "I don't want to hear another word from you fatass. Your own men. Your own people." He felt a second wind rising up in him. "Lets fucking dance you pig. We're going to grind you into pulp!"

"Take your best damn shot!" Chunk spat at him and leaped up to the ceiling and tried to bring his hands down on Gloria but it was so telegraphed that she easily dodged him, leaving his punches to break through the floor on impact. He pulled them right back out and lunged at Leo with a wild haymaker but he dodged Chunk as well. Chunk's missed punch broke a crater into the wall. He snarled at him and pulled it back out to continue attacking them. Leo dodged his next punch, then the follow up, then the next, evading his punches with simple head movements. Even in his tired battered condition he could easily evade such punches like his name was 'Lightning' Lars Dixon. After dodging around a few of his punches, Leo found his opening and quickly emptied the entire clip into his eyes. Chunk recoiled and screamed in pain while grabbing his eyes. Josephina and Gloria quickly moved in and swept his legs. As he went down, they unloaded all of their ammunition into his skull and Joseph joined right in. When they ran out of ammo? Josephina simply discarded the one she had, pulled out a shotgun from her belt and resumed firing on him and then handed some guns to the others. They resumed firing until he stopped moving and his bullet ridden body was laying in a puddle of blood. It didn't take long for him to start regenerating his head again though but this time instead of continuing to blow him apart Josephina simply grabbed a discarded shotgun and walked around the body to where the head was regenerating in a pulpy mess. She reared back and shoved the shotgun barrel right into the mess. Leo quickly caught on to the plan without needing to be told and he ran over to join her, grabbed the butt of the shotgun and pushed into the mess as deep as it could go. The shotgun was now barrel deep down inside of the mess which would be more than sufficient.

Leo and Josephina stepped back and high fived each other. "Excellent strategy honey!" Leo complimented his wife.

"One of the best ways to shut down a regenerator: Take out their brain and then ensure it can't grow back." She smirked.

"Excuse me? But what exactly did that do?" Joseph asked them.

"It's simple really. We blocked it up. Even if he does have brains spread throughout his entire body or however the hell his regeneration works, the core of his being, what makes him....him, is housed in the same grey matter as the rest of us. So even if he can still grow it all back he's essentially brain dead so long as the gun is taking up space in the middle of his skull." Josephina explained coldly.

Joseph's eyes widened in shock and he looked down at the cannibal's body. He swallowed and stammered out a response. "Y-yeah, okay that's...yeah. Alright. That's uh....t-that's...y-yeah."

"Forget him." Leo checked his ammunition and then shoved it back into the gun. "There's still two more. Lets check our wounded and then divide up our remaining weapons and end this nightmare."

While Leo, Josephina, Gloria, Chere, Reynalda, Louanne and Joseph were divvying up their remaining weapons and checking the injured, two more fights were unfolding on the other end of the hallway.

Michelle slid backwards across the floor and bumped her head against a dresser. She shook it off in time toll aside to dodge an attempted punch from Thaddeus that broke a hole right through the concrete floor. It was enough to make the whole room rattle and a few bottles of wine fell off of a shelf onto the floor. She scrambled to her feet and put some distance between them. Thaddeus just laughed at her and pressed the attack, swinging his arm at her in an uppercut that she dodged to the left to avoid. As the wind swept past her hair she whipped out a second knife and flung that at his head but this time he just swatted it aside and came in with a straight punch but she dodged to the side, kicked off of the dresser and rolled across the floor and then got back up to her feet while Thaddeus pulled his hand out of the broken wall.

"I'm impressed livestock. You're a nimble little rabbit but I'm going to skin you all the same."

"Just for the record, Buffalo Bill, if you're going to call me anything, call me Michelle Motherfucking Berardinelli. The least your inbred hillbilly ass could do is get my name right."

"I'll be sure to write that down when we're packaging your remains!" He snarled and ran at her again and launching into a wild fury of punches. Michelle slipped a quick jab, a scarily fast right uppercut, ducked under a left hook, leaned back to avoid a right hook, came back up, slipped his jabs, ducked under a backhanded right hand and then she jumped back to dodged a grabbing left hand but that was when his foot lashed up and caught her in the stomach. Michelle's jaw dropped as she felt the wind get knocked out of her and she was launched into a dresser hard enough to break the shelves and knock pieces off of it. Michelle fell to her knees holding her stomach. Pain raging through her body. She coughed and hacked while blood, saliva and what she assumed was likely some bile dribbled out of her mouth.

"About damn time." He walked over to her, grabbed Michelle by her face, pulled her back and slammed the back of her head against the dresser. Michelle screamed in pain as her skull was smashed into the broken wooden drawers repeatedly, breaking them apart further. Blood began running down her head but Thaddeus was not done with her yet. He lifted Michelle up by her head as high as he could and then he slammed the back of her head against the floor, pulled her up again, reared back and threw her into a mirror across the room. She broke it apart on impact. The glass shards cutting through her clothes and into her flesh while she flew through it and the sides of the mirror and she hit the wall behind it and dropped to the floor. Thaddeus walked over to her, grabbed the desk and shoved it across the room, sending the Chelsea Desk Hutch hurtling across the room and into a wall where it broke apart and spilled its contents everywhere.

Thaddeus rolled Michelle over with his foot and then kicked her up into the air into his grasp. He raised her above his head and raised his knee to finish her off. That was when she swung her arm down with the nail bat in hand right into his right eye just as he was bringing her down. The sudden pain of a knife being driven into his eye caused him to fall back and drop her. In seconds Michelle's arms were wrapped around his neck and she twisted and pulled him down and flipped Thaddeus over as she slammed down onto the floor. Her hands fumbled around until she felt the bat and she started repeatedly punching it down into his eye with all of the strength she could manage. She hammered into his eye socket further and further with every blow until he slapped one of her hands away. Michelle rolled herself across the room and then stopped herself on a wall. She fumbled around to get her bearings and slowly pulled herself up to her feet.

Michelle was trembling now. It felt like her skull had been cracked open and she could barely stand up. Blood was pouring down her face and back from her wounds and she knew she couldn't keep fighting this guy. She hacked and coughed and hugged the wall for stability. Once her legs finally stopped shaking she turned around to see Thaddeus pulling the bat out of his eye and throwing it aside. He snarled and stood up holding his eye socket while blood seeped between his fingers. He glared at her through his remaining eye and then lunged at Michelle with a brutal haymaker punch but she dived past him, taking advantage of his momentary blindspot, and slid to safety while his punch was left to smash into the wall and break right through it. While he was pulling his arm out of the wall Michelle was booking it across the room until she fell against a television. With no other real options available Michelle gripped it with both hands, put one foot on the desk and pulled and pulled until she pulled the 120 lb television away from the wall. She turned around and faced Thaddeus, lifted the whole damn thing above her head and stepped forward and smashed the whole thing onto his head! They both dropped to the floor, Michelle gasping for breath and resting against the desk while Thaddeus fumbled with the TV in confusion over what he now had covering his head.

This lasted a minute until he got his bearings and then he began pushing and pulling the television trying to pull it off of himself. When this didn't work he instead resorted to slamming his fists against the television in a rage until he broke enough of it apart to free himself. As he was getting up and throwing off the rest of the broken television from his face though he felt Michelle tackling him across the room while he was still off balance until he crashed against a bookcase. This did nothing to him of course but Michelle wasn't done yet! She dropped him, rolled over to the side of the bookcase and she grabbed onto the sides of it, pushed against the wall with her foot and she screamed and then pushed over the one hundred pound bookcase and made it fall down on top of him! She took a breather and stumbled over to a wall and slid down to the floor.

Whatever damage this did, if any at all, was negligible and after a few seconds the bookcase began shifting and shaking until it began rising back up into the air while the books fell down on the floor. Thaddeus rose right back up to his feet while holding the case up above his head.

"Ohhhhh crap." Michelle groaned. She pulled herself back up again and raised her fists again. Thaddeus flung the bookcase at her like a fastball but Michelle timed it, jumped on top of the bookcase, slid across it and she dropped down to the ground but she quickly dropped to her knees gasping for breath while the bookcase slammed into a closet and completely destroyed the closet doors. Thaddeus walked over to her while Michelle was trying to get back up. She swung up the nailbat at him again but he caught it and kneed her in the stomach hard enough to lift her up into the air. He grabbed her by the back of her shirt and lifted her up into the air and then he slammed her down onto the floor hard enough to make her bounce of off of the floor. He kicked her back into the air and drove a brutal punch into her stomach. Then he dragged her across the room and tossed her out the window.

Michelle broke through the glass window and soared out into the pouring rainstorm. She fell down the two stories of the house down to the muddy ground below where she landed in a muddy puddle with a splash and she skidded a few more feet before stopping. Thaddeus smiled in triumph and hopped out of the broken window and landed on the muddy ground below. He walked over to Michelle while she rolled over and crawled on the ground.

That was when a shrieking voice shot through the night and made Thaddeus stop in his tracks. Both their faces turned in the direction of it.

"MOOOOOMMMMMM!" Tina shrieked from her spot on the mattress landing pad.

Thaddeus Brannon stared at the assembled livestock desperately trying to escape the Guest House. He immediately took notice of the people running away carrying their wounded and the wet towels wrapped around them and then he took a look at the dirty wet mattresses laying in the mud and the mess of a rope leading up to the third story window. He had to admit it was more clever than he expected of children. His thought process was interrupted when he saw the boy dropping down from the rope down onto the mattresses. He dropped down the last few feet to land on his own and their eyes met. For a brief minute everything else around them faded away. There was no storm. There was no rain. There was no warzone. There was no one else here. It was just Thaddeus Brannon staring down at a lost sheep that had wandered into his slaughterhouse. He'd found him. Finally. After all of this time. After all of the death and carnage and struggle the boy had delivered himself to Thaddeus. The game was over. He just had to slaughter the livestock and deliver the boy to Miss Morganstern and this would all be over. Their sacrifices had not been in vain after all. They'd won. They'd won. All he had to do was deliver the boy and immortality would be theirs!

A smile returned to his face. A smile that was a little too wide and showed too much teeth and gum as he spoke to him.

"Hello. Boy."

Water poured down Derrick's face as he trembled in the face of the man staring at him across the backyard. He couldn't be sure if it was from sweat and fear or from the rain and cold or some combination of all four. One thing was certain though. From the sudden dryness of his throat and the tightness of his chest it was clear that they were staring down the leader of the farm. The father of the cannibals. The man who'd set this entire nightmare into motion. Thaddeus Brannon. He opened his mouth and swallowed some rainwater to relive the dryness in his throat and he wiped his eyes from the rain. He placed a hand on Tina's shoulder and gripped her wet shirt as tightly as he could. Tina tried to pull away but Derrick grabbed her arm with both of his and held her back.

"LET ME GO DERRICK! LET ME GO! THAT'S MY MOMMY! YOU HAVE TO LET ME GO! WE HAVE TO HELP HER!" She screamed desperately.

"We...can't. We can't. I-if we rush over...he'll rip us apart." Derrick told her while he trembled in place. "We can't rush in half-c-cocked...h-h-he'll k-kill us. P-plan! We need another plan!"

"Like what?! He's right there! He has my mom!"

Derrick reached back behind himself and tapped the smoke bomb while scanning the area. "I have....part of one. We need to get her out of there but if we fight he'll splatter us....ooookaaaay. The mist. Tina the mist!"

"Mist and water and.....muuuuud." Tina realized. "Go low. Hide in the mist. Mud in his eyes. Distract him."

"I still have a smoke bomb." Derrick informed her. "We time it right you guys can get her out of there. I'll lure him inside, throw as much alcohol on him as I can find and then set him on fire then run back out while he's burning. Best I've got."

"Are you crazy?!" Tina demanded. "He'll rip you apart!"

"We can't get Aunt Michelle out of here while he's outside with us and I can't burn him out here. This is the only chance we have." Derrick let go of her arm and smiled at his cousin. "It's fine. I'll be okay. Now come on. Lets go save your mom."

"Derrick...." She sniffled but sucked it up and wiped her eyes. "Okay...okay lets do this. And Derrick?"

"I know. I love you too cuz."

They fist bumped and walked forward to challenge Thaddeus while he began walking towards them with his arms outstretched.

"There now. That's good little rabbits. Be smart and come with me now."

"Ready?" Derrick asked her.

"Set." Tina nodded.

"Go."

They immediately broke into a run to the right with Thaddeus already moving to block them. Tina went into a slide through the muddy ground to stop herself while Derrick kept running as fast as he could go and then diving into a slide on his stomach across the ground just before Thaddeus could grab him. He disappeared into the mist covering the ground. "Really?" Thaddeus asked sarcastically. "You really think some mist is going to hide you?" Even with the limited visibility of this downpour he could find them easily. "Its not like you just turned invisible boy. Make this easy on yourself and give up already."

Derrick commando crawled across the mud while Thaddeus stomped towards him. There was a lot of grass and bone-chilling mist to hide him briefly but he wasn't sure how long it would work for. He couldn't hear him too well over the storm but he was pretty sure the madman was coming straight for him. He began balling up clumps of mud into a ball while he waited for the old man to catch up. The fumy and filmy mist hid him for over a minute while he waited as the old man stomped around until at long last Derrick felt something touch his leg.

"Found you!" Thaddeus snarled and his hand snapped down and grabbed his shoulder and pulled him into the air only for Derrick grab his arm and then putting both feet on his chest and then Derrick flung the mud into his eyes. It didn't hurt him at all of course but the point was to blind and distract him. It certainly disoriented him for a moment but he kept his grip on Derrick's shirt regardless. So he improvised and ripped his wet shirt and slipped out of it and landed on his butt on the muddy ground. So now he was shirtless out in the freezing cold pouring rain. The only thing he had left on around his upper body was the books and padding that had been strapped to his body earlier. No time to worry about shirts now though. He scrambled to his feet and ran for it.

Thaddeus wiped the mud out of his eyes. "You try my patience boy!" He snarled at the wet shirt hanging down from his hand. He threw it to the ground and looked around for him. "SHOW YOURSELF BOY!"

"Over here dicksplash!" Tina called out to him. He turned to face the direction of her and suddenly had two more large clumps of mud splat against his eyes before Tina ran again.

"COME AND GET ME PEPPERIDGE!" Derrick called out to him while he was wiping the mud from his face. Thaddeus flung it off of his face and screamed in rage while he rushed down Derrick, leaped into the air and attempted to bring his foot down on him which Derrick narrowly dodged by sliding across the wet ground. Thaddeus's foot barely his head as it slammed down on the ground hard enough to make a hole in it. Flashes of lightning illuminated the darkness and Derrick could see Tina and the others were circling around to help Michelle. Good. He just had to keep the old man focused on him and try not to get killed. He rolled back over and reached back and pulled the pin on the smoke bomb. While he counted down the seconds until that would be ready to go he took a calculated risk and ripped off the tape from the padding and dropped most of it except what was on his torso. They would just weigh him down anyway.

Next Derrick pulled out his handgun and opened fire on Thaddeus but even after emptying the whole clip into him the old man just kept walking towards him before suddenly lunging forward and smacking the gun out of Derirck's hand and then slapped him through the air. Despite the fact that his hand only struck the books he'd taped to his chest and that it was a glancing blow Derrick still felt the wind get knocked out of him like he'd been tackled by a heavyweight quarterback in a football game! He was thrown backwards a shocking eight feet before he hit the muddy ground and slid across it for several more feet. He coughed and hacked out saliva. (Sweet JESUS! What the fuck just hit me?!)
He tried to push himself up but his hand slipped on the ground. He sucked in air between his wheezing gasps. Thaddeus swiftly closed the distance between them, determined to just grab the kid and end this. Derrick crawled away from him. "A little more. Just a few more seconds..." He whispered to himself.
Eleven.
Ten.
Nine.
Eight.
Seven.
Derrick pulled out the smoke bomb and flung it at Thaddeus.
Four.
Thaddeus caught it and crushed it in his grip.
The smoke bomb went off and blinded the old man with a cloud of smoke. Derrick frantically scrambled to his feet and booked it towards the back door of the Guest House that the family had unlocked earlier just in case the needed to use it to escape. They never thought they'd be running back inside through it. He leaped up the steps once he was close enough, ran through the door, left it cracked open and then he frantically ran into a bed room and began grabbing alcohol bottles off of the wall and poured a few out onto the blanket of the bed. Both sides of it.

Thaddeus brushed away the smoke and ran out of it. "Booooooyyyyyyyy!" He bellowed. A quick look around the yard gave away the half open door. He ran towards it like a freight train and broke straight through it without slowing down.

(Hey God? If you're up there? If you're watching this right now? Please, please, please, please, oh please let this work!) Derrick prayed silently while got ready. If, IF this worked, he had a slim chance of survival. He could run around the old man and get the fuck out of here while he was distracted by the flames. This was his only chance. A straight up fight was absolutely not an option. If this plan failed, he was dead.

Thaddeus broke through the door and was met with a barrage of alcohol bottles as Derrick frantically flung all of the ones he had left towards Thaddeus like rocks. They might as well have been pebbles for all of the good they did. The bottles shattered against his face and drenched him in their contents but the broken glass accomplished nothing and slid off of his face harmlessly. "Enough." Thaddeus rushed Derrick down while he was pulling out the bat and grabbed him by the throat. He slammed against the wall, grabbed his right arm and crushed the radius and una bones in his arm like he was snapping a twig. There was a sickening crunch and Derrick screamed his head off. "Ahhh how wonderful. I've waited all day to hear you make that sound boy." He sneered while listening to Derrick's bloodcurdling scream of agony. "In fact that sounds so nice I think I'll do the other one next. Then I'll break your legs and dangle your broken mangled body in front of your detestable family! I will make you watch as I slaughter them one by one and then drag your worthless carcass through the mud to deliver you to the gates of hell!" He increased his grip on Derrick's throat and dragged him closer to look the beaten boy in his eyes. He let go of Derrick's broken arm and let it dangle weakly in the air. "The last thing you will see this day is me ripping the heads off of the remaining livestock and bathing in their blood while you beg for mercy!" This was it. This was the last chance. Derrick had no other tricks left. No guns. No smoke bombs. No mud flinging. No running or hiding. It was time for his last resort weapon. Derrick locked eyes with Thaddeus and choked out three simple words while raising his left arm and flicking open the lighter.

"Fuck your mercy." He flicked the button and a jet of flame erupted outwards from the lighter and across Thaddeus's face. The alcohol was ignited immediately and burst into flames. Thaddeus screamed and dropped the boy. Derrick continued spraying the mini-flamethrower at him he fell to the floor and set him ablaze. He coughed and grabbed his throat while desperately sucking in air. This was the time. He had to move now! Derrick sprayed the blanket and the booze soaked comforter erupted into a bonfire. He pocketed the lighter for a moment, grabbed the blazing blanket and flung it at Thaddeus. The flames engulfed him as Thaddeus screamed and thrashed around wildly. He ripped the blanket apart but it was too late. He was already wreathed in flames. His blind thrashing broke apart a wall and a shelf and a dresser but only served to spread the flames around. Derrick staggered to his feet and ran past him while holding his broken arm. The heat licked at him but it was of little concern at the moment. He ran into the room across from this one and staggered over to a wall containing another few bottles of alcohol. He grabbed what he could and pulled the caps off with his teeth, spat those out and ran back over to the doorway where Thaddeus was starting to calm himself down. Derrick reared back and flung the remaining bottles at him. The bottles shattered against Thaddeus and against the floor where the fumes ignited it and set the carpeting and the broken wood littering the room ablaze.

The room was swiftly covered in flames. Derrick ducked back around the corner and knocked down the last few bottles in the room, caught them, opened them and poured them out on the blanket. He dragged that out of the room and flew it on the floor. Fishing out the lighter again, Derrick flicked it until it came back on just as Thaddeus was storming towards him and set the blanket on fire. Just like the other one it burst into flames with the currently blazing Brannon standing right on top of it. Thaddeus fell over and went down on one knee howling in rage.

Derrick backed away from the heat washing over him while spraying the lighter in Thaddeus's direction hoping and praying the raging flames would be enough to slow him down. He coughed as smoke began blowing into the room. It wouldn't be long before he absolutely had to get out of the house. But not yet. Not until he was sure he'd done everything he could stop this madman. If he got up again, if he chased them outside, Derrick knew he wouldn't be able to get away and it would be game over. He had to make sure to stop him here.

Derrick continued spraying the flames in his direction until it finally ran out of oil. Derrick tried it again a couple more times. No good. It was empty. He walked around the room until he found a chair and he began dragging that around the corner towards the window.

The burning door was thrown across the room and Derrick spun around to see Thaddeus stomping into the room. He was absolutely wreathed in flames. There was so much fire you'd think he was more of a demon than a man. It was impossible to survive that much fire! No human could just walk through all of that!

But he wasn't normal was he? He was a monster. A regenerating monster who fueled his healing factor with the flesh of man. As the monster straightened up and turned to look at him Derrick felt a twisted combination of the raging heat from the flames and the icy grip of death surrounding him.

No weapons. No backup. No tricks. No lighter. Just a battered fourteen year old kid with a broken arm against a nigh indestructible super strong maniac that wanted nothing than to rip off his head.

He couldn't fight. There was absolutely no chance of winning that. He couldn't fight but maybe he could still escape. Derrick glanced at the doorway. The flames were surrounding it sure but he heard Thaddeus break down the back door when he came in. That meant the cool air and rain would be pouring in. Maybe, maybe if he was able to get past Thaddeus and ran like hell through the flames he could head outside and let the rain snuff them out. Stop drop and roll in a torrential downpour. It was a slim chance but it was the only one he had. Additionally with the flames covering his body, Thaddeus's vision would be obscured so he might not be able to grab him like he did earlier. At least Derrick hoped not. Because there wouldn't be any getting away this time if he grabbed again. Thaddeus would snap his neck like a stick and rip him apart. He couldn't go out the window. By the time he broke that open the old man would be on him. This was his last chance.

"Alright. Lets go."

Thaddeus' only reply was to howl in rage at him.
Derrick screamed back. Not out of pain or fear. Not this time. This was time was simple rage like Thaddeus. He was meeting his war cry with his own. Accepting his challenge. Thaddeus pushed off of the floor hard enough to break and flung himself across the room towards Derrick who leaped on top of the chair and over to the desk. Thaddeus smashed the chair to pieces and lunged at Derrick again but Derrick was already taking a running leap off of it. He rolled across the floor and landed in a crouched position while Thaddeus's punch broke a crater in the wall. Blinded by the flames and fury he pulled his arm free of the wall and struck the desk and launched it across the room. The desk and the mirror attached to it broke into pieces on the other side of the room and landed in the flames. Derrick ignored the screaming pain from his arm and ran to the broken desk and gritted his teeth. This. This was going to fucking hurt.

Derrick leaped on top of the burning wood and ran across it through a wall of intense heat that threatened to burn his very lungs and cook him from the inside. But even as the flames surrounded him Derrick did not stop running. He pushed through the wall of heat and the flames surrounding him and ran into the torrential downpour outside. Derrick threw himself to the ground and rolled around from side to side as the water doused the flames.

Derrick Blackburn had never been so grateful for a rainstorm in his life.

He laid there on the cold muddy ground while the last of the flames were extinguished. Half crying in pain and half laughing. He felt like shit. He looked like shit. He beaten and exhausted and had a broken arm laying on the cold hard ground beside him. He was also pretty sure he'd have some burn scars from all this but he was alive. He'd gone toe to toe with a Powered and held his own.

"Beat that with a fucking stick." He laughed.

"I'mma beat you with a stick if you ever do something this stupid ever again." Tina chided him. He opened his eyes and looked up at her.

"Hiiiii Tinaaaaa."

"Goddamit cuz. You're a stupid lunatic you know that?" She asked as she teared up.

"I know." Derrick replied quietly. "Can....can you help me up? I'm not sure if I can stand on my own."

Tina smiled and took his outstretched arm and pulled him up. She tried to grab his other arm only for Derrick to frantically insist otherwise. "Nononono not that one! Not that one!"

She stopped and looked at how it dangled. "Shit. D-did he?"

"Fucker broke it. Yeah."

"Bastard." Tina spat and helped her cousin to his feet and let him rest an arm around her while they slowly walked away from the guest house. "Where are the others?"

"Heading towards the mansion with mommy. I sent one of them around to the front to tell your parents where we're going."

"Good idea."

Tina looked back at the flames. "....Is he?"

"I don't know. But we should get out of here either way. Come on."

Aug 2, 2019 at 8:37pm SuperKamiGuy1 likes this

Quote Edit

Post by SuperKamiGuy1 on Aug 2, 2019 at 8:37pm

While this had been going on, the last of the cannibal family had been engaged in his own fight.

Alessandro fell against the wall and fired on him from the gun in his good arm. Fifteen handgun bullets were emptied into Diablos' chest for all of the good that did. He just glared at the wounded man while taking every bullet. Since he'd ran out of devoured ammunition Diablos switched to using raw strength and he flung himself forward and punched at Alessandro's head but he dodged out of the way just in time. The cannibal's fist struck the wall and broke a sizable hole in it. He pulled his hand out and kicked at him but Alessandro dodged him again and circled around the cannibal and raised his gun and fired on his face point blank. Diablos had learned from before though and he was able to lower his head at least so that his skull took the bullets instead of his eyes. Four bullets point blank to his skull and he didn't even slow down. Instead he barreled through and slammed his palm against Alessandro's chest and launched him backwards into a closet door. He gritted his teeth and cursed out loud as pain shot through his already wounded shoulder and his impact broke the door. Alessandro dropped to the floor while blood poured down his arm. He pulled himself back up and fired on Diablos again while he was running at him. He hit his head and his arm before landing the last set of bullets in his eyes. Diablos screamed in pain while blood poured down his eyes but he threw himself forward through the air and attempted to land his punches at his head only for Alessandro to drop down and roll underneath him while Alessandro crashed through the already broken doors and crashed into and through the wall behind them while Alessandro left a bloody trail on the carpet from his wounded arm. He grabbed onto the bed with his good arm and pulled himself back up. "Hey! Old man! You feeling alright?"

Argos stood up from the spot where he'd been knocked into earlier. "Just fine you little punk. Is your arm alright?"

"Feels like shit." Alessandro joked through the pain. "Do we have a plan?"

Argos nodded and walked over to the bed while the thuggish brute was getting up and throwing off the clothes that had piled on top of him. He lifted the bed up and pulled out the hammer he'd hidden there earlier just in case they ever had to get into a fight down here on the second floor. He raised it up and dropped the bed back down while Alessandro followed his lead and grabbed the blanket off of the bed.

Just as Diablos was stepping out of the closet Alessandro threw the blanket over on top of him to block his vision. Diablos easily ripped it apart but this still freed Argos up to step forward and he pulled it back and then he swung it forward with his full strength right into Diablos' face so hard he sent him flying right back into the same hole in the wall from before! Saliva and spittle flew out of his mouth as he gasped from surprise and he crashed into the wall headfirst! Diablos dropped back down to the floor and groaned. He sat back up and he wiped his mouth. "Wh-wha? What happened? How did he-" Diablos stopped talking as he recognized the sledgehammer Argos was wielding now. "Th-that hammer....that hammer...where did you get that?"

"Do you mean this?" Argos asked as he slammed the handle down on the floor. "I took it from the other maniac who tried to murder us earlier."

"You? You did it? You did it?" He trembled in anger. "YOU KILLED VIKTOR?! YOU KILLED MY BROTHER?!"

"It wouldn't have been my first call but he tried to murder us. He brought it down on himself. Just like the rest of you who tried to murder our family. Surrender boy. This fight is over."

Diablos screamed and pushed himself to his feet and he charged him head on while still screaming in blind rage. Argos swung the hammer at him again which Diablos barely blocked and the impact still knocked him backwards into a wall. He shook his arm from the impact as whatever damage was done simply healed. He attacked Argos again while clasping his hands and swinging them both at Argos while he swung the hammer! The impacts canceled each other out and the hammer swung around in the other direction. Argos held onto it though and he swung it back around and slammed it down and Diablos raised up his arms to block it. The impact made his body shake and cracked the floor underneath his feet but he still remained standing and he pushed the hammer off of himself and he stepped forward and grabbed onto Argos and swung him around into a wall. He slammed into and dropped to the floor. Diablos continued screaming and tried to slam his fist down on him only for Alessandro to use this chance to swing the nail bat around into his right eye! Diablos recoiled and stumbled backwards. Alessandro pressed his attack and he leaped into the air and his feet lashed out and he kicked the nailbat even further in! He landed on the floor and he stepped in and he slammed a haymaker into with his good arm and pushed it even deeper into his eye and then Alessandro dropped down and swept his feet. Diablos dropped to the floor and he rolled around on the floor holding his eye while still screaming.

Alessandro backed against the wall holding his wounded shoulder while Argos pulled himself up and he used the hammer as support to help him stand up.
"Alessandro? Are you alright?"

"I need to tend to this while I have the chance....can you hold him off?"

"Gladly." He hoisted up the hammer again while Diablos finally pulled the bat out of his eye and he threw it away. He scrambled to his feet and bellowing in blind rage.

"Fine then. Come at me if you wish boy. But remember. I am old for a reason."

Diablos charged him blindly and he tried to slam a brutal punch on Argos who swung the hammer into his jaw in an upward swing! Diablos' head jerked upwards as he was sent sliding backwards. He spat on the floor and rubbed his jaw and attacked him again only for Argos to turn around and swing the hammer into his stomach and launched him into a wall near to the closet. While he was doubled for the moment Argos stepped in and swung the sledgehammer in an upward arc right into his face hard enough to launch him up into the air and he slumped down to the floor holding his bleeding eye. He tried to stand up only for Argos to swing the hammer at him again only for Diablos to block it with his arms. Diablos cursed while taking the repeated hits until he was able to step forward and he grabbed the hammer with both hands. The impact nearly pushed him backwards until he gritted his teeth and pushed back against the hammer. They struggled with each other until Diablos let go and he lunged forward and elbowed him backwards and then he backhanded him across the room. Argos flew over the bed and he nearly went out the window but he kept his grip on the hammer and while his head and shoulders broke through the window he kept the hammer tilted sideways and gripped with both hands and it bumped against the sides of the window and it kept him from falling out. He gritted his feet and he sat up. Alessandro stopped what he was doing to help him back inside. There were a few bloody cuts on his body from the glass but other than that he was fine. Argos got back up as Diablos leaped on top of the bed and then back down onto the floor. He struck at Alessandro who rolled past him, gripped the torn sheets and finished bandaging his wound and he got back up to his feet. Diablos ignored him for the moment and he grabbed Argos and he tried to pull him up only for Argos to punch him in the eye and he tossed Argos away. He hit the wall and he dropped to the floor. "Damn I'm getting tired of that."

He roared and rushed him but Alessandro got in his way and he threw knives at his eyes but Diablos blocked them with his arm and he tried to punch him only for Alessandro to flip over his head and kick the back of it. As he was stumbling forward Argos pushed his body up and he swung the hammer in an upward arc and that hit him square in the face hard enough to throw him backwards. Alessandro grabbed him and he suplexed him onto the floor on his head. Alessandro let him go so Argos could step in and he brought the hammer back and swung it down on the back of his head hard enough to break the floor! Argos pulled it right back and he slammed it back down. Pulled it back and slammed it down. Pulled it back and slammed it down. Pulled it back and slammed it down. Pulled it back and slammed it down. Rinse and repeat until a sizeable hole had been made in the floor and Diablos' head was reduced to a mess of blood and bone. Argos dropped to the floor gasping for breath while Alessandro did the same.

After a short rest they got up and Argos helped Alessandro to his feet and they walked to the door.

"He's gonna regenerate again at this rate."

"I'm aware." Argos commented. "But it'll be easier to deal with him out here with more room to maneuver. Besides we need to look at your wounds."

They walked out of the room and Argos set Alessandro down. Leo walked up to them looking like he'd just fought a war. "Hey Alessandro. Hey dad. Are you okay?"

"Arm hurts and I feel like I got hit by a car." Alessandro said quietly. "But I'm fine besides that."

"Just a few scratches on my part." Argos nodded.

"Where's Michelle?"

"She was in that room but we don't know who won in there." That was when Derrick's ear splitting scream of agony echoed throughout the house. Followed shortly by Thaddeus's own cry of pain and the distinct smell of burning alcohol and flesh and cloth.

"DERRICK!" Leonardo screamed in horror.

"Did that come from downstairs?!" Josephina asked im shock. "What is he doing down there? Did someone hurt him?"

"....Hey? Do you guys smell that?"

"Smells like....smoke and something burning?" Alessandro looked over the side and he saw the reddish yellow glow of flames. "Shit that's fire! Derrick's down there! Where's Michelle?!" He dragged himself to his feet and Leo grabbed onto him. "Woah there! I've got you man. Come with me now. Gloria! See if you can find them! Josey! Circle around!"

"Already ahead of you!" Josephina called back while running to the stairs.

"Right!" She ran into the bedroom and kicked open the room to find it had been apart from a brutal fight. There were books strewn everywhere, broken bookshelves and a torn apart television set and a broken shelf and mirror and dresser but no sign of either fighter. What she did notice was a broken window. She ran to the window and looked outside to see Tina running back around to a door. "TINA! TINA! WHERE'S MICHELLE?!" She yelled over the storm.

"Huh?" She skidded to a stop and looked back up at the window. She smiled and waved. "AUNT GLORIA! MOM'S HURT! WE'RE TAKING HER TO THE MANSION FOR TREATMENT! DERRICK SET THE BAD GUY ON FIRE! WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!

There was a brief pause as she absorbed this information before she suddenly screamed at Tina loud enough for the rest of the family to hear her clearly.

"DERRICK DID WHAT?!"

"DERRICK! H-HE USED ALCOHOL AND A LIGHTER, I THINK, TO SET THE BAD GUY ON FIRE! FWOOOSH! I GOTTA GET HIM OUT OF THERE!" Tina called up to her aunt before running towards the door.

"TINA! DO NOT GO TOWARDS THE FIRE!" Gloria shouted down to her.

Leo and the others stepped into the room. "What's going on? Where are they?" The family asked.

"Uh, apparently, Derrick set a guy on fire, still figuring that out, Tina is running to help him and Michelle is being taken to the mansion by the others."

"How the hell did they even get down there?" Leo questioned.

"Bedsheets?" Alessandro guessed.

"Bedsheets." Leo agreed. "Come on. W-we need to go. We need to get down there. We can't help them up here."

"Right. Lets go..." Alessandro nodded and Leo continued supporting him as they walked out of the room and down the hallway.

Michelle had rushed liked the wind down the stairs and she jumped off the last few steps and then she spun down the hallway. She stopped halfway as she saw the growing inferno on the other side of the hallway. "DEEERRRIIIIIIICK!" She screamed down to the other end of the hallway. "DEEEERRRRIIIIICKKK! DERRICK IT'S MOMMY! WHERE ARE YOU? YELL OUT IF YOU CAN HEAR ME!"

No response came.

"DERRICK!" She screamed again while advancing towards the flames. She was fully prepared to brave the rising flames should that be necessary. "DERRICK! MOMMY'S COMING! YELL IF YOU CAN HEAR ME!"

As she got closer she saw a figure stumble out of a room and collapse in the center of the flames. "DERRICK!" She ran towards him. Flames be damned! Her baby boy needed her help! "Derrick it's me! It's mommy! It's okay now! You'll be okay! I saw a fire extinguisher in the kitchen earlier! I'll just grab that and take you outside and you'll be just fine!"

"Sounds.....gooood." A gravely voice spoke to her.

Josephina stopped in her tracks as the burning man stood back up again and walked out of the flames.

"Come a little closer. I could use some fresh meat right about now." Thaddeus asked her.

"Where is my son?" She demanded.

"I will feast on you woman. I will snap you like a twig and consume your meat."

Josephina pulled out the magnum and shot out his knees.

Thaddeus roared in pain and fury while he fell to his hands and knees. "Wrong answer! Last chance! Where is my son?!"

Thaddeus grinned through the pain while he looked up at the woman. "I broke him. Like a twig."

Josephina shoved the magnum against his forehead and squeezed the trigger. Four magnum bullets exploded through his skull and blew it open. His burning corpse collapsed on the floor. She tossed the empty handgun aside and looked out into the flames with her fists trembling. She took a deep breath and screamed into the inferno.

"DEEEERRRIIICK! I'M RIGHT HEEEEERREE! YELL IF YOU CAN HEAR ME! PLEASE!"

"MOM?" A voice called out to her.

"D-Derrick? Derrick is that you?" Josephina called back to him.

"MOM! MOM IT'S ME! I'M FINE! I'M WITH TINA!" Derrick called to her through the flames as the rain pounded the two of them. "I'M GOING TO THE MANSION! WE'LL MEET THERE!"

Josephina's heart swelled. Her baby was alright. "MANSION! GOT IT! WE'LL BE RIGHT OUT!"

"Josey?"

She turned around to see Leo and the others descending the stairs. She wiped her eyes. "He's okay. Our boy is okay."

Leo sighed with relief. "Takes more than some cannibal to take our boy down. Michelle's with the others and they're going to the mansion too. They're okay. Relatively. Come on. Lets get out of here."

Josephina embraced her husband and Alessandro at once. "Yeah. Lets get out of this shithole."

The family turned to leave but Josephina suddenly stopped them. "Hey....Argos? Can I ask a favor?"

"Sure thing. Whats up?"

She pointed to the trail of blood. "I saw those dirty cop assholes hiding down there earlier and disarmed them. If its not too much trouble? Could you carry them out?"

"HUH?! Wait a minute, why the hell do we care about those dickheads?" Gloria asked her. "They got themselves into this, they dragged us into this, they can get themselves out!"

"No doubt but there's a method to my madness. They can give the real cops information about what went down here and about the criminal activities of The Brannons, plus potential clients we don't know about. Besides. I want them to go to prison."

The rest of the family understood very well where she was coming from. You've got to be kind to be truly cruel after all. Corrupt cops don't exactly have it good in prison. Child killers have it even worse. Child killing ex-police officers? Blood in the water.

"Dad? Could you?"

"Sure." He dropped the hammer and walked around the corner to grab the dirty cops. He expected to find them huddling in a corner in fear but while they were indeed huddled together they weren't awake. It looked like they may have fainted from fear. Their eyes were rolled into the backs of their heads and their mouths were foaming. "The hell happened to you guys?" He questioned. He snapped his fingers a few times but they didn't wake up. He slapped a few of them. No go. So he just shrugged and grabbed and dragged them outside.

As they were walking outside they saw one of the civilians they'd saved earlier waving to them. "Heeeeeyy! Tina sent me around to come see you guys! They're going to the mansion!"

"I know. They told us." Leo smiled and gave him a thumbs up. "Thank you. You guys are awesome."

"I should thank you. We couldn't possibly pay you back for everything you've done for us today."

"Don't mind us. Just pay it forward." Leo told him. They walked towards the mansion together while sirens blared and lights closed in on the farm.

Thaddeus Brannon woke up in a pond. He screamed in pain and shock but it only came out in a gurgle due to being underwater. He flailed his arms and legs blindly until he was able to find the right way up and he swam to the surface. His hand broke through the water and grabbed onto dry land and he pulled himself to his feet gasping for breath and hacking and coughing. When he finally caught his breath he dragged himself back up and looked around in confusion. Where was he? How did he get here? The last thing he remembered he was staring down the woman in the Guest House and he was on fire. He got shot a few times and then there was nothingness. He certainly didn't remember falling down in a pond.

Thaddeus coughed out water and thumped his chest while he finished healing.

"I regret to inform you Thaddeus but let your chance slip through your fingers. The game is over and you've lost." He turned around to see her blazing red eyes staring at him through the darkness as Miss Morganstern approached him. "So I'm going to have to terminate your employment."

Thaddeus stepped backwards into the pond. "Y-you....you thought this was a game?"

"Well to be more precise I've been treating our arrangement like one since we first met." She confessed casually.

"I...you...what? How? Why? M-my farm....my family....my men....why?"

Miss Morganstern shrugged. "I could explain the history between me and Derrick and how far back it goes but I doubt you'd understand. The overall point of course being that today was a test for both families and for him in particular. He passed. They passed. You failed." She continued walking towards him. "Now you gotta pay the price."

Thaddeus's rage overwhelmed him. "YOU-YOU-YOU DEMENTED HARLOT! YOU SELF RIGHTEOUS BITCH! MY SONS ARE DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!"

"Not that I care about that but isn't that your fault for accepting the assignment in the first place and failing to properly prepare your men?" She reasoned.

The last of his reason left him and Thaddeus charged him and swung a haymaker at her face with every ounce of strength he had. She smiled and stopped his hand with an open palm with arm bent. Miss Morganstern stopped him cold without budging an inch. "Goodbye Thaddeus." She said cheerily before crushing the bones in his hand like they were made of paper. Thaddeus screamed and tried to pull his hand back to no avail. He dug his feet into the ground and pulled back his arm but he still couldn't free himself from her grip until she let go, grabbed onto his upper arm and tore it right off! Blood sprayed from his wound and he fell back holding the bloody stump of his arm. Miss Morganstern tossed the severed arm into the pond and then raised her right arm up into the air. Thaddeus caught a glimpse of her true face. The face behind her haunting beauty. The face of a monster from the worst of his nightmares right before she cleaved him open from the shoulder down to his leg with a knife hand slash. Blood spewed from his mouth and his open wound. "I-I gahhh uuugggh urgh gaahhhh." Was all he managed to gargle out before she grabbed his throat with her bloodstained hand.

Auf Wiedersehen, Thaddeus Brannon. Auf Wiedersehen. Blitz einfrieren."

Thaddeus tried to scream but no voice came out of him. Only a gasp of frigid air. He tried to struggle free but his body refused to move as a freezing cold spread through his body from the inside out. His body glowed blue and his body went rigid as the freezing cold rapidly spread through his insides and out of his body. It washed over the marrow of his bones and froze his blood before penetrating his muscles. Icicles began drilling out of his skin while the ice covered spread over the outside of his body. In moments the inside and outside of his body were completely covered in ice.

"Now for the finale. Verbrennen!" The ice statue quickly began flashing red until it burst into flames. She laughed and dropped him to the ground. His icy corpse shattered into pieces and the flames consumed them. There was nothing left of Thaddeus Brannon.

She turned around to watch the flames of the Guest House. "You've done well today my love. Take some time to rest because I will have more tests for you in the future." She placed her hands into her pockets and walked away. "Now then. Time to retrieve the girls."

As the storm finally started to clear up the family was illuminated by the lightbeams of headlights. Doors opened and a small militia of armed men and women stepped out of their cars. A muscular woman dressed all in black stepped forward into the light with a machine gun strapped to her arm and a Kevlar vest on her chest. "Oh come on man. Please tell me I didn't miss all the fun."

"By about a minute or two. Hi sis." Leo greeted her awkwardly.

"Leo? Son of a bitch you look like shit, bro. What happened to you?"

"We fought an army and a couple of them were Regenerating Bricks. Delta Class at least."

"A bunch of Delta Classes did this to you guys? How? Wait, where's Michelle? Oh shit where are the kids?!" Nancy asked in horror.

"At the mansion. Come on. We'll fill you in there."

An older woman walked to the front of the family with a sword strapped to her waist and twin handcannons in her hands. She twirled the guns and holstered them. Despite being as old as Argos she still looked like she could still run an army kitchen given half a chance. Her figure was surprisingly muscular despite being in her twilight years and she walked with the authority of a Drill Sergeant. Her grey hair was tied back in a tight ponytail and her nose is a hawk’s beak, her small eyes are sharp as she scans the room. She is dressed in military fatigues. This old woman is Beatrix Charlotte Blades Blackburn. The Alpha Female of the Blackburn Militia. "Well hello Argos! You're looking well."

"Just a little a few scratches honey. It's been a long day for us. Thanks for coming all the same though. Did you bring any first aid kits."

"They're in the trunks. Boys! Be dears and retrieve them."

"YES MOM!" They replied and ran to the backs of the cars to grab their first aid kits.

She noticed the battle torn police officers. "Who are these gentlemen?"

"Corrupt cops who worked for the cannibals here. They dragged us here and tried to kill us." Leo admitted. "Beat us with electric sticks and shot me a few times."

Beatrix's face twisted into a scowl of seething rage. "...I would like to speak to these men later provided they survive their wounds." She switched back to looking kind and gentle. "Anyway. Lets get out of the cold. You said you were heading to that mansion over there? Then please by all means lets go get out of the cold. Come, come, come. Come along. Lets get inside and patch you boys up. I need to see my grandchildren and you can tell us all about your adventures today!"

Leo laughed. "God I love you mom."

She walked over to him and pressed her hands to his and Alessandro's cheek. "Oh look at you two. All of you. You fought a war all by yourselves. You're very strong young men. Very brave. Come inside and lets get you patched up. The police are on their way with the firefighters and EMT's. You'll be okay."

The family crossed the farm to the mansion together.

Back inside of the burning Guest House, Diablos Brannon stumbled out of the bedroom coughing and hacking to discover there was fire everywhere! The fire had spread from the first floor up to the second floor and now the ceiling was ablaze as well! He covered his mouth from the smoke. "FATHEEEERRR! FATHER WHERE ARE YOU?!" He cried out in the inferno. "FATHER! CHUUUUNNNK! ROMULUS! DREAAAADDD! WHERE ARE YOU GUUYYYYSS?! COME ON! WHERE ARE YOU?!" He walked through the flames relying on his regeneration to protect him from the fire. "FATHER! GUYS! WHERE ARE YOOOOUUUU?!" He continued walking through the fire until he tripped over something and fell on his face. He turned over on his back and looked down to see he'd fallen over the butt of a shotgun that was trapped inside of the burning corpse of his brother. "CHUNK! CHUNK NO! NO PLEASE NOT YOU TOO! PLEASE NO!" He shook his brother. "Please! Please get up! Please! come on! Just regenerate already please!" No response. No movement. Nothing. His brother just stared blankly at the ceiling while his body burned in the flames. "NOOOOO! PLEASE NO!" As he was shaking his body he noticed the corpse of his other brother Romulus. "ROM! NO! NOOO! PLEASE! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE! FATHEEEERR! FATHER! PLEASE HELP US! FATHER WHERE ARE YOU?!"

There was no response. Not from his father. Not from his brothers. He was alone. Diablos screamed at the ceiling in anguish as the Guest House burned down around him.

Quieting down he lowered his head to the floor. "Guys....I'm sorry. I couldn't....I couldn't save you. I couldn't help any of you....I couldn't stop them." He grabbed a random gun and climbed to his feet. "But I will make this right."

Derrick was laid down on a sofa while Tina covered him a towel gently. "How are you feeling?"

"I wanna go home."

"Me too cuz. Me too." She kissed his forehead. Tina turned her attention to the others. "How's my mom?"

They looked up from where they were dabbing at her wounds and cleaned the mud off of her. She'd slipped herself into a meditative healing trance for the time being until they could get her to a hospital. "We're doing the best we can but we need a professional in here. She needs a hospital."

"We all do..." Tina noted sadly as she placed a warm rag on Derrick's forehead. "I just hope the others get here soon."

"TINA!" They looked up to see Josephina pushing open the doors with the others following suit.

"AUNT JOSEY!" Tina smiled as she ran over and hugged her. She laughed and lifted up Tina and swung her around. "I'm so happy to see you again!" Tina exclaimed as she teared up again. "We wanted to help you guys but we weren't allowed to so Derrick came up with a crazy plan to escape using sheets and whatever else we could get our hands on and then we threw cushions out the window to soften our falls and the landing but then the evil old guy showed up and we had to fight him and we threw a bunch of mud and smoke at his eyes and then Derrick set him on fire and then we ran here! He hurt my mom!"

Alessandro limped over and placed his good hand on her head. "Looking good kiddo. We're proud of you. Both of you."

Tina broke down crying and hugged her father. He just smiled and held her.

Leo walked over to his son and brushed his hair back. "Hey son. Are you alright?"

Derrick started to sob. "D-dad....he broke my arm....two places at least. I think."

Leo knelt down and rested his head on his sons forehead. "It'll be okay Derrick. You're going to be alright. They won't hurt you anymore. I promise. The cavalry's here."

"C-cavalry?" Derrick asked his dad. He tilted his head up and saw the rest of the family walking in. "Please tell me I'm not dreaming dad."

"It's alright son. We're all together now and it's going to be okay." He placed an arm over him. "I'm proud of you. You really hung in there today."

"Mommy's little trooper." Josephina sniffled as she crouched down next to her son.

"I learned from the best." Was all Derrick said before closing his eyes. "Now...if you guys don't mind....I'm gonna take a nap."

"Yeah. That sounds good."

"God, Poor kids." Alden Blades grimaced. "If only we'd gotten here sooner."

"We're here now. That's all that matters." Levi Hawkins replied to him.

"Did she say that Derrick set a guy on fire? Are we going to discuss this?" Phoebe asked.

"Later." Beatrix told them. "Let them rest for now. Get to work and patch them up already!"

"Yes mom!" They all said at once and spread out around the room to tend to their wounded family members and the civilians they'd rescued.

Time passed and the sirens sang through the night and the lights shined around the farm. A lone figure limped across the farm holding a handgun in his hand. He slowly straightened back up as his wounds slowly healed. He'd taken a lot of damage today. Much more than ever had in his life. His regeneration was slowing down as he ran out of absorbed material. It seemed impossible. Inconceivable. They had an entire army and the Blackburns were but seven!

But somehow they turned the tide on their own. They turned livestock into an army and wiped them out. They wiped out their entire army. They killed the farmhands and they killed the truck drivers and they killed their snipers and they killed his family.

He knew The Father was powerful but the others? What were they? What manner of human were they? But...were they human? Or something else? Humans? No. No humans could do what they did here today. The Blackburns were not humans. They were demons from Hell who'd come to punish him and his family for the things they'd done in their lives.

It was all that woman's fault. Miss Morganstern had set all this in motion. She knew this would happen. She had killed them all. Well almost all of them.

But all was not lost. Aurora still lived. His sisters still lived. His mother still lived. The Jackals still lived. Diablos would not survive this day but they could carry on their vengeance. The demons had won the battle but they would lose the war.

He clenched his fist as he approached the mansion. It was time to join his family.

"That's it boys keep working on them. EMT's are here. We'll be okay now!" Beatrix informed them as she bandaged up Leo.

Nancy and Josephina finished tending to Derrick. "Okay then. I think he's going to be okay. A little hospital time and they'll all be fine."

"Great." Josephina sat down and rested her head against the arm of the sofa. "I am so tired of this place."

"You can tell us all about it later. Just rest your head now. It's over. You guys are okay now."

That was when the door was slammed open and Diablos Brannon walked inside.

The family sprung into action with guns at the ready.

"You have got to be kidding me." Leo groaned. "Don't you assholes ever stay down?"

"Who's this guy bro?" Nancy asked him without taking her eyes off of the bald monster.

"Bad guy. He's one of the cannibals." Leo summarized while stepping in between Diablos' line of sight and Derrick and whipping out his magnum.

"Seriously? Doesn't look like much." Alden pointed out.

"Looks can be deceiving. We've been shooting these guys all night. We took his head off a few times but he just grew it back." Argos informed the family.

"Stand down, Diablos Brannon!" Josephina shouted at him while she pulled herself to her feet. "You're exhausted and wounded and we've got you outnumbered! Our family is fresh and armed to the teeth. There are police right outside! Drop the gun and surrender! You've lost!"

"My...brothers....my....father. My family." He mumbled.

"Listen to her, jaws. This is over. You've lost. Be smart and lay down with your hands on your head while you still can." Leo told him.

"No." He shook his head. "I go now to join my family."

"DON'T DO IT!" Leo shouted at him.

Gloria pushed Tina against her and covered her ears.

Diablos Brannon raised the handgun and pointed it at Leo and pulled the trigger. It clicked empty.

The family opened fire on him and the ran of bullets ripped through him. It was over in seconds. Diablos' bullet ridden hole covered corpse dropped to the floor.

The Nightmare Was Finally Over.

The police poured into the mansion and the family obediently lowered their weapons and set them down on the floor and stepped back from them.

Officer Jimmie Rothenbach looked around the room at the battered battle worn family members and the newly arrived members of the family who were dressed like their own military group and then he looked down at the still unconscious wounded policemen on the floor. "Attention everyone! My name is Officer Rothenbach! We received your calls earlier and we saw the videos of the snipers confession online. We have ambulances waiting outside and more on the way should they be needed. I apologize for being late but there was blockage on the road. Are you the Blackburn Family?"

"That's us Officer." Leo told him.

"You guys look like you've been through quite an ordeal. I'm sorry you had to face it alone." He looked down at the bullet ridden man at his feet. "Okaaay. What did he do?"

"He was one of the kidnappers Officer." Josephina informed him. "One of a number of Delta Class Regenerating Bricks who ran the murder and trafficking ring here. We thought he'd been dealt with earlier but he came in here with a handgun so we defended ourselves."

"Clearly....where are the others?"

"Burning up in the Guest House." Gloria answered. "Due to unforeseen circumstances that occurred during the fight against The Brannon Family, the house caught on fire and it spread out of control. We were able to down the Brannon Family long enough to escape while the fire finished them off." It wasn't entirely untrue. Perhaps a half-truth but there were some things better left unsaid.

"And what about those guys?" He asked as he looked at the wounded officers.

"Murderers and butchers like the rest of them." Leo growled. "They're the ones who originally abducted us and brought us here." He lifted up his shirt to show the wounds he'd received. "Shot the hell out of me earlier. I had to cauterize the wounds so I didn't bleed out."

Officer Caroline Holan shook her head in disbelief. "There's no way. I know these guys. They wouldn't do something like that..." (Okay, maybe Montgomery.) She noted internally.

"You can ask them when they wake up. Trust me they're not loyal. To the badge or to their other employers." Gloria said while giving the wounded officers a death glare.

"Hrrmmmm. Okay. We'll get this sorted out later. Right now you folks look like you need a hospital trip and a spa day. We'll let them take it from here while we search the premises and figure out whats all happened here."

"That sounds good. We'll be happy to answer any questions you have when we've had some rest." Leo sat down and raised one hand up. "Officers, please, my son."

"He'll be fine. We've got good doctors here. Come on Carol. Lets let them do their job."

While the family was being loaded onto stretchers, helped into ambulances and looked over by the doctors and the firefighters sprayed the hoses at the house fire, the police officers spread out around the farm to investigate.

"Alright this is Officer Bruce Check proceeding into one of the houses and what the hell?!" Officer Bruce Check exclaimed suddenly as he and Officer Louis Sanfilippo pulled open two large doors and were greeted by the hallway full of corpses that Leonardo Blackburn had left in his wake.

"Oh my Goooood!" Officer Sanfilippo shrieked. "What in...who the....h-how does....what the hell am I looking at? Are we sure the Blackburns weren't the bad guys here?"

"Oh Jesus what is there's what....one two three...ten....twenty? More?"

"Oh God that is too many to count....we gotta go in. Come on. Watch my back."

"We'll go through together man." Bruce assured his partner and they proceeded into the Torture House.

Officer Mohammed Valverde and Officer Arabella Brandstrom were having a similar reaction as they proceeded through the Cage House.

"Please tell me there are some survivors here...." Officer Valverde asked in almost pleading voice.

"Doesn't look like it. Not on the first floor." She answered sadly. They proceeded upstairs. More corpses littering the floor with bullet holes everywhere. Either in the walls or in the farmhands.

"....Any idea why they're wearing the masks?" Officer Valverde asked her.

"Honestly I'm not sure I want to know." She shuddered while counting the bodies quietly.

There was nobody left alive on the second floor either. There was a room full of bodies to compliment the hallway they'd just traversed but no survivors. They proceeded upstairs to the third floor slowly and cautiously to find the doors open. They peeked into the rooms one after the other. The first few were empty but they hit the jackpot when they stepped into the room to find the three remaining farmhands locked in the cages.

"WE SURRENDER! WE SURRENDER! ARREST US PLEASE!" They pleaded while banging on the cages.

"STMCPD! Let us see your hands!" The police officers told them while illuminating the room with the lights on their guns. They immediately raised their hands in surrender.

"We wanna make full confessions. Please. You gotta get us out of here!"

"I'm calling this in." Mohammed informed his partner. "Hey guys we've got survivors here! Three of them! They've been locked in cages. One of them has an injured shoulder and broken teeth. The other two are battered but they seem alright. They appear to be informed about what happened here. Sadly everyone else we've found in the house are dead. Can we get some help up here?"

"Rodger that. We're sending the hospital workers your way now. See if you can get them to talk in the meantime." Rothenbach advised.

"Yes sir." They held out devices that looked combinations between cell phones and walkie-talkies and turned them on. The gadgets would broadcast the audio and video information to the others and their servers all at once. "So boys. Before we step in and unlock the doors how about you tell us everything that happened here?" Arabella asked them.

"Okay. Where do you want us to start?"

"I think I'm gonna be siiiiick." Officer Elijah Bartley groaned as they walked through the Processing House.

Officer Erwin Beltz nodded in agreement. "It's like an army swept through here. This is insane! Everyone here is dead!" He replied as they cautiously stepped over the corpses of the farmhands while recording the walkthrough of the house. "Did the Blackburns do all of this? The bodies look like they've all been here for awhile so I doubt that the family members who just got here did it but if the others were dragged here against their will then how did they manage to do all of this? What? Did they steal the guns?"

"Maybe? But if that's the case how many of them were locked in each building? If all of these guys had been armed it would've had to have been an army of them in each house to fight their way out and we're supposed to believe seven or so people wiped them all out?" Officer Elijah shook his head. "This is too freaky. It's like something out of a nightmare or a horror movie."

"That sounds about right to me. Lets see. Not much point in calling out for survivors in here because....yeah." They continued forward until they walked into the meat room and screamed in horror. Not from the blood covering from the floor. Not from the corpses. Not from the miniature warzone the room had been turned into. What made them scream was from the human meat around the room. The meat hanging down from the ceiling. The ground up meat in the packages. The chopped up human remains. It was a slaughterhouse. This building was used as a slaughterhouse.

"Hey am I seeing things or is there a giant hole in the roof up there?" Officer Rothenbach asked Officer Holan while the firefighters used the hoses and cold spray devices to snuff out the flames while listening to the confessions from the three caged cannibals.

"It certainly looks like it. It could be from whatever caused that flash of light we saw earlier."

"Could one of them have been powered? A Blaster?"

"Considering how far away we were when we saw the light? Whoever did it would've had to been a real powerhouse. I-I've never seen anything like that."

"Then that must've been what caused the fire. But that wouldn't explain how everything else got set ablaze. Especially with that rainstorm earlier. You'd think that would've snuffed them out."

"Do you think that something else caused it?" She asked him.

"It seems likely but we'll need to ask forensics after they look this place over." He rubbed his chin. "Anyway." He returned his attention to the holo-videos floating in front of him where the cannibals were confessing their crimes. "Dear God, what is wrong with these people?"

"Sick freaks. They're sick." She sighed. "At the very least we'll get to know that they'll be receiving justice."

That was when the topic took a turn that horrified them to their core.

"It was around that time I think that the old man recruited the cops."

"Wh-what...what did she just say?"

"We don't know how but he brought them into the fold and paid them a fuckton of money to help them out every now and then and then to look the other way when the family went hunting. It was good money too. As well as they paid us. Thaddeus had the police eating out of his hand. So long as they got paid they didn't care what the Brannons did."

"Th-then...the guys...."

"The Blackburns must've been telling the truth. It's the only thing that makes sense here." Another holo video came up and he took one look at the roomful of butchered human meat and threw up while his partner recoiled in shock and covered her mouth with her hands.

"J-Jimmy?"

"Yeah, I'm here." He finished heaving and straightened back up. "Okay. Analysis. The Blackburns are innocent. No way they could've done this. No way. Oh Jesus those are human remains! What the hell is this farm?"

It took him a minute to regain his composure before he spoke up again. "Alright. As far as I can tell this was a case of self-defense. A team of corrupt lawmen abducted them to be butchered for a family of cannibalistic murderers but the Blackburns turned the tables on them and killed the cannibals in self-defense and in doing so exposed a vast criminal conspiracy."

"The question is, will the courts see it that way?"

"Look at this place. Nobody is going to want to go to bat for some cannibalistic hired hands who worked in a place like this while lawyers, assuming they don't have them already, will be climbing over themselves to defend The Blackburns. They'll be fine. Come on, Lets wait for forensics." He said and turned around to watch the ambulances drive away with the family inside of them.

A week passed with the Blackburns and their friends laid up in the hospital. Fortunately thanks to modern advances in medicine and medical technology they were able to recover from their wounds completely in two to three days at best while the remaining four days were spent recuperating in the aftermath of the procedures. Additionally, Josephina requested from Beatrice to call in some favors prior to the procedures and then they paid for the most expensive ones the hospital provided, The Full Recovery Human Enhancement Procedures for her immediate family. This way the procedures did not just heal their wounds but they improved their bodies to a small extent by making their muscles and bones denser and making them stronger as a result while also improving Thalamus efficiency and compartmentalize sensory nerves as well as the speed at which the nerve clusters fired in their brain to a small extent. The procedures were extremely expensive but the family were able to afford them with their own money and connections. During their recovery period they were coached on focusing their senses and how to get used to those while getting used to not crushing cups and silverware in their grips. Paper and plastic cups were provided to the kids in the meantime along with plastic silverware until they had a better grip on their talents.

The crooked cops and cannibals could go right ahead and fuck themselves with fire pokers as far as the family were concerned.

During the investigation of the mansion the police had found the family's phones and stolen wallets along with piles of evidence of the Brannon's murderous cannibalistic ways. Thanks to the confessions from the criminals, the Blackburns were protected under the laws of self-defense and were being hailed as heroes for stopping them and blowing the lid off of a conspiracy.

And So!
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tina walked towards Derrick's room and knocked on it.

"Come on in! I'm awake!"

She opened up the door and poked her head in. "Heeeeey D! How are you feeling today?"

Derrick set down the small cup full of green paste he'd been holding in his right hand. He swallowed it down and made a disgusted face. "I am never, ever badmouthing airline food again. I swear this stuff tastes like that Spearmint Tremor drink we tried at that Middle School Carnival.....mixed with Onion-Banana juice."

"What do you have against Spearmint? It's basically Mint Ice Cream in a drink." She asked as she crossed the room.

"My point exactly." Derrick smirked.

"Good to see your sense of humor's returned." She said while pulling up a chair. Both cousins were dressed in the hospital patient scrubs of the hospital and Tina had switched from her usual pigtailed look to tying her hair up in one long ponytail like Nana Blades.

The paste they were drinking was designed to help them to the changes the procedures had made to their bodies as the nanomachines broke down and passed out of their bodies harmlessly. The doctors told them that they were going to be drinking these for the next week before they would have to report to their physicians for a check up to be sure their bodies had achieved an equilibrium with the adjustments.

"A few more days of these and I might just lose it again." Derrick joked. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm a bit tired from the treatments but I'm doing okay. What about you? Any more burns?"

Derrick flexed his right arm. "The doctors say I'm all healed up. Even my bones have healed back stronger than before." He rolled up his sleeve to show his arm. "Check it out! I don't even have a bruise anymore! Hell I don't even see a single burn."

Tina walked around to the other side of the hospital bed and ran her fingers up and down his arm. "Your skin feels tougher than before but other than that you're as good as new! It's like that old timer never even...." She trailed off and looked up at him.

Derrick was silent for a minute before he replied. "Broke it like a twig. The doctors said it was my Radius and Ulna bones and the damage was extensive. Even if the burns weren't a problem I wouldn't have been able to use my arm for a long time."

Tina held his hand with both of her own. "I should've been in there with you."

"Don't worry about it Tina. You didn't do anything wrong you just stuck to the plan we made up on the spot. Besides, I knew what I was doing when I went in there...kinda." Derrick reassured his cousin.

"Kinda? Kinda?!" Tina asked him in shock. "That maniac had superpowers and you were seriously making things up as you went?! What in the actual Hell, Derrick?!"

"It wasn't entirely made up! I had an idea of what I was going to do in there!" He insisted. "I just ran into a little bad luck is all! I got my arm broken, that was not planned, but I adapted and improvised! It worked out didn't it?"

"Worked....out? You got burned alive!"

"I got burned but not entirely. Besides there was a rainstorm right outside I figured I'd be relatively okay if I could make it out there." He rubbed his arm. "But yeah. Rolling around on a broken arm. I think that actually worse than the flames."

She sighed and pressed her head against Derrick's. "You really are the biggest dummy I know. What the hell were you even thinking taking him on like that?"

'I had to do it.' Derrick wanted to say. 'I had to face him. I had to be the one to do it. He came after us because of me. Because some sick psychotic bitch had a kill-boner for me and because of that everyone got hurt. An entire farm got turned into a warzone and tons of people died and the people we freed got hurt and our family got hurt. Everyone was dying and screaming because someone targeted me. So I had to make it right. I had to make him pay for it.' but instead all he said was.

"I didn't want you get to hurt and we needed to get your mom and the other injured people out of there. So I made a calculated risk. That's all."

"I know exactly what you were thinking you big dummy." She hugged him close. "And don't you ever do something that suicidally stupid ever again okay? We're family. Family supports each other. If, God forbid, something like this ever happens again, promise you'll let us help you."

"Again?" Derrick held her close. "Okay. I promise. But Tina? I want you to promise me something too."

"Sure what's up?" She asked as she pulled back.

"Tina. We need to get stronger. We need to keep getting stronger. Faster. Smarter. We need to start training harder than before." He told her firmly. "So that if, IF, something like this ever happens again? We'll be ready. Promise me that Tina."

Tina nodded her head. "I promise Derrick. I'll talk to my parents about it and we'll see if we can get Miss Yenfer to help out."

"Good idea. She's a badass." Derrick smiled. "I'll do the same. It'll feel good to practice with my dad again after all this. Speaking of whom!" He finished the drink and nearly doubled over before he forced it down. Tina giggled with amusement and Derrick made a face at her. "New taste buds. Urgle."

"Speak for yourself. I think they taste great."

Derrick blew a raspberry at her and he turned and slipped his feet into slippers and walked out with Tina. Once in the hallway the cousins had to take a minute to adjust to the bombardment of smells and sounds around the hospital before they were able to make their senses settle down and move on. "Lets see...I think dad is...down three doors from here on the right. Sounds like mom is in there too. We're gonna need to knock."

"Good idea."

The cousins walked down the hallway until they arrived at his dad's room and Derrick knocked on it. "Hey dad you decent?"

"Coming!"

(TMI Mom!)

Josephina pulled her shirt back down while she got off of the bed and she walked over to the door and opened it up. "Derrick! Tina! Hi! How are you feeling today?" She asked the kids while Leo adjusted his shirt and smiled at the kids. Josephina just leaned forward and hugged the two.

"Better than yesterday or the day before that. I'm ready to go home." He smiled.

"Feeling like a million dollars." Tina informed her aunt.

"As well as the two of you should." Josephina said while she hugged them tighter. She then took a few seconds to roll up Derrick's sleeve and check his arm. "Good as new. Thank heavens."

"What can I say, they've got some darn good tech in here." He said.

They walked across the room and Derrick quickly hugged his father. "DAD!"

"Hey son." He hugged his son as tightly as he could. "You all good to go?"

"I've been ready to go home for over a week." Derrick replied honestly. "How you feeling?"

Leo grinned and gave his son a thumbs up as he was stepping back. "Not a scratch on me and my bones have healed up completely. The upgrades helped of course."

"And you were a walking talking army before? You'll be unbeatable dad!"

"Or at least close to it." Leo shrugged. "We're stronger but we're not invincible. That was the mistake the rednecks made. Remember: No matter how tough you are, you're still a mortal man and you can get hurt, so you always have to be careful. Don't ever start thinking you're invincible because anybody can have a bad day."

"I know dad and that's why I was hoping we could resume training when we get home."

"I was hoping you'd ask that." Leo grinned.

"That goes double for you Tina." Michelle told her daughter as she walked inside looking brand new aside from the hospital scrubs. "I've already called Yen and she'll be assisting us."

"Sweet! That's exactly what I was going to suggest!" Tina rushed over and embraced her mother. "I've missed you mommy."

"There there now honey. You did great back there." Michelle assured her daughter while hugging her back. "You two took charge and saved a bunch of people and you even saved me. I couldn't be prouder of you kids."

Tina just sniffled and hugger her tighter while Alessandro walked inside and ruffled his daughter's hair. She didn't say anything. She just looked up at her dad and nodded.

Derrick sat down on a chair and crossed his legs and fist bumped his dad.

"Just so you know son: We'll be kicking it up to eleven."

"I wouldn't expect anything less dad."

Argos stood in the doorframe while he watched the rest of the family. He just smiled. His family had been through hell and back and come back stronger in more ways than one. He could not possibly be prouder of them. It was going to take time to pick up the pieces from this disaster but he knew they'd be alright. So long as they stood together they could face whatever the world threw at them.

"Mister Blackburn?"

Argos turned around to see Officer Jimmie Rothenbach approaching. "Hello Officer."

He cleared his throat and looked up at the musclebound giant. "I'm glad to see your family has recovered after such a horrific ordeal. I would like to once again personally apologize for the atrocious actions of our rogue officers. I assure you we will make this right."

Argos placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "It's all right lad. What happened was their choice and they will pay the price for the greed. Besides, their employer has already been punished for his atrocities and my family survived. All is well." He took his hand and lowered it. "Is there anything else?"

"Yes. Please come with me." He lead Argos away from the room while the rest of the family celebrated. The policeman showed him a picture. "You might not recognize the blonde woman in this picture but we discovered that she worked alongside the cannibals as a secretary of sorts. Her name was Ambrosia Arthuria. We believed she escaped the farm prior to our arrival presumably with the youngest of the family, the two daughters, in tow. It took awhile but we tracked her down at a seedy hotel where she'd been hiding. Unfortunately by the time we found her, she was dead."

"She's dead? How? Was it suicide?"

"We don't think so. I think someone wanted her kept quiet. She was found with a gaping hole in her chest so she was either killed by the world's quietest shotgun or a strong punch to the chest."

"I...see. What about the children?"

Officer Rothenbach shook his head. "Gone. In the wind. We've got APB's and Amber Alerts out for them but no dice so far. On the bright side we found the black books you guys mentioned. Which, once we've finished going through those and checking all of the information? It'll be passed up to the feds and they'll start a bigger investigation to all of the cannibals clients. I'm sorry you guys had to experience the horrors you did but thanks to your efforts, a whole lot of psychos are about to be tracked down and locked up. Justice will be served. I promise."

Argos shook his hand. "Thank you very much Officer."

"No Mister Blackburn. Thank you."

He shook his hand a little while longer and then Argos walked back into the room where the family was celebrating their recoveries and showing off their freshly healed bodies. "Hey guys. Got some good news! They found the black books. The sickos conspirators are getting tracked down!"

The family cheered!

Time passed and the family had their fresh clothes delivered. Fancy suits and fine dresses for the adults and a simple jean, t-shirt, jacket and shoes combo for Derrick and a suit and dress combo for Tina. After a final check up with the doctors the family were given the green light to go home. The family signed some papers to let the hospital know where to send the green fluids and medications to fuel their recovery. Of course hospital policy dictated that they had to go out in wheelchairs initially but it wasn't a problem. After everything they'd gone through it was perfectly relaxing.

The family were wheeled out into the shining sun where the rest of the family and the civilians they'd saved were waiting for them roaring with cheers. After the sudden sensory overload died back down and the cousins were able to open their eyes they saw their parents standing up and offering their hands. The cousins looked at each other and then they accepted their parents hands and stood tall together.

Leo, Josephina, Derrick, Michelle, Alessandro, Tina, Argos and Gloria stood tall in the sunlight with people cheering them as heroes.

The nightmare was over and a new day had dawned for them. Now they could pick up the pieces from this ordeal and move forward towards the future.

Despite everything they'd just experienced Derrick had the biggest smile on his face as he pumped his fist into the air.

"DON'T MESS WITH THE BLACKBURNS!"

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
ggg

On the way to his next class, Josh took his phone and looked on the board to see if there was any new responses from the Howlands. No luck. He sighed and closed out before slipping the phone back into his pocket. Granted it probably wasn't too big of a deal. He was sure that they were fine but it was still a bit weird that Professor Howland would skip the day without letting anyone know why or canceling the class at least. At any rate he had to get to his next class. He criss crossed the campus until he arrived at the building where his art classes were taking place. He smiled and walked inside.

The art class naturally took place in a large, multi-room studio and shop, where their professor was currently stomping her foot impatiently while she talked on the phone. "Come on Howland! It's me! Pick up already! I've been trying to call you guys all morning. Your cells aren't picking up and neither are your house phone. If you're taking the day off at least call it in! Call me back the moment you get this!" Morgana Di Sandro told the answering machine before hanging up. "Seriously. What is with him today?" She noticed the class staring at her and laughed it off. "ANYWAY! Hi class! I hope everybody is ready to stretch their artistic muscles today!" Their professor slipped her paint splattered apron over her head and her gloves on and she finished setting up the classroom while the students got ready and took their seats.

Josh and the other students got to work.

When his hands moved over the canvas it was almost like his mind was directing his hand without him. His hand moved instinctively from one point to the next as he slowly built the picture as it developed in his own mind. He built a fantastical world that was a reflection of his own mind. There was something else too that he couldn't quite place but whenever he painted he felt closest to the Lord and it gave him a sense of peace and relaxation. Josh relaxed in his seat and let the room drift away from him as he lost himself in his work.

It was only natural then that his eventual finished work was more bizarre than he'd originally intended.

His work is a deceptively terse, process-oriented complex tapestry consisting of conflicts that inhere in postmodern urbanism which is reminiscent of the joie-de-vivre of the marginalized that was part landscape, part abstraction with a sociological series of words consisting of bold graphic shapes as scaffolding for the expanses of poured acrylic which was reminiscent of mankind's positions and roles amid the sea of chaos that was modern life. The picture displayed improvisation, choreographed gestures and reenactments as suggestive of the value of autonomy within modern civic participation while simultaneously displaying contemporary life, culture and science as suggesting a ritual action.

"Well alright then." Josh said to himself. Now what to call it?

After some deliberation he settled on Civic Chaos.

"Well done Josh!" Morgana complimented him. "Very Rochester!"

"Being compared to Hamlin is an awesome compliment. Thank you ma'am."

"You earned it. Keep up the good work." She assured him and moved on to working with the other students.

Once the painting was done with the students moved on other projects. Drawing, carving and making paper-mache designs.

By the time the class was over he was helping a partner in the class create a man sized rocket ship out of clay, kneading to make it pliable. It was a self-hardening clay so there was no need for heating it.

Self-hardening clay, also known as air-dried or non-firing clay, is a direct modeling material that cures naturally and does not require mold making and casting to achieve a finished piece. In addition, this modeling clay does not need to be fired in a kiln.

There are three basic types of self-hardening clay. The first type, Claystone®, works like Plastilina and is usually used over an internal armature for support. Claystone® can be worked indefinitely while moist.

The second type of air-hardening clay, Boneware, is used for solid, direct modeling that in essence will be supported by its own bulk.
Read More/Less

Boneware will remain soft and pliable as long as it is moistened with water and overlaid with a damp cloth when not in use. Boneware contains a natural hardener, but not fiber, to reduce shrinkage and will generally feel and react more like ceramic clay to the touch and in workability.

Another type of self-hardening modeling material can be either air-dried or oven-baked to give it more durability. Sculpture House offers Della Robbia, its own brand of this type of air-hardening clay.

Pieces made from these clays are for display only; that is, they cannot be used to sculpt functional pieces and should not be left out in the elements. They are porous and cannot hold liquids unless its inside surface has been thoroughly sealed. After the finished piece has air dried and been sealed, it can be decorated for display by using a variety of paints, stains or dyes.

Once they were finished building and sealing the clay rocket, they set about painting it until it looked like just like a rocket ship. Josh and Maddison put their names on holo-cards and turned it in.

"Hey thanks for the help Maddison."

"No problem Josh. That was a lot of fun. I loved your painting too!"

"Oh wow thanks! You know I just kinda let the Lord guide my hand."

"Wow really? I should try that if that's the kind of results the good lord gives you."

"Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me. Psalm 139:10. Trust me there, he is always there for us and he loves everyone."

"...Out of curiosity has he told you where Mr.Howland is?" Professor Sandro asked them.

"Not as of yet. We've been asking on Blackboard but nobody knows anything yet."

"Hmmmmm. Guess I'll have to swing by his house later. Well all in good time. Anyways. Great work today everybody! I'm really feeling your artistic spirits!" She said to them excitedly.

The students continued working until class ended and turned in their assignments.

Nicole meanwhile was hard at work taking some hardcore notes in her physics course as the professor explained The gravitational constant as a quantum mechanical expression.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211379716000292

A quantitatively verifiable expression for the gravitational constant is derived in terms of quantum mechanical quantities. This derivation appears to be possible by selecting a suitable physical process in which the transformation of the equation of motion into a quantum mechanical wave equation can be obtained by Einstein’s geodesic approach. The selected process is the pi-meson, modeled as the one-body equivalent of a two-body quantum mechanical oscillator in which the vibrating mass is modeled as the result of the two energy fluxes from the quark and the antiquark. The quantum mechanical formula for the gravitational constant appears to show a quantitatively verifiable relationship with the Higgs boson as conceived in the Standard Model.

The basic concept in quantum physics is the particle wave duality, which implies that a particle can dually be described by a mechanical equation of motion and by a quantum mechanical wave function. This wave function is the solution of a wave equation. The wave equation is obtained by a transformation of the particle’s equation of motion in a way as conceived by Dirac [1]. Although Einstein’s geodesic equation of motion [2] is the most generic of all, it is, so far, not adopted as the axiomatic base for the particle wave duality description. This is probably due to the mathematical complexity of 4D space–time. It is also the reason for the failure to unify quantum physics with gravity. Instead, Dirac derived his wave equation from the Einsteinian energy relationship of a particle in motion. Therefore, the equation is relativistic, but only special relativistic and not general relativistic. In this article I wish to develop the particle wave duality on the basis of Einstein’s geodesic equation in 2D space–time and to compare it with Dirac’s result. Next to that, I wish to motivate that the 2D space–time approximation is a justified modeling of a realistic physical process. This enables to relate gravity and quantum physics to the extent that the gravitational constant can be formulated as a quantitatively verifiable expression of quantum physical quantities. The concepts as will be outlined in this article, are invoked from previous work by the author [3]. Section 4 is devoted to a comparison of the 2D quantum mechanical wave equations as derived respectively by the geodesic approach (Section 2) and Dirac’s approach (Section 3). This will result into an expression for the gravitational constant (Section 5). In Section 6 a physical process is selected that will deliver the quantity values. The result is subject to a relativistic correction (Section 7). The final result is discussed in Sections Result, Discussion.

The equations in this article will be formulated in scientific notation and the quantities will be expressed in SI units. Space–time will be described on the basis of the “Hawking” metric (+,+,+,+).
The geodesic approach toward a 2D wave equation

Let us consider two frames of Cartesian coordinates
and . The first one is the frame of a stationary (“lab frame”) observer O. The second one is the (“center of mass”) frame of an observer co- moving with a particle P. Time and proper time are normalized on the vacuum light velocity such that and , where . Under stationary conditions, the 2D geodesic equation can be written as [4],(1)

The quantities
and are elements of the metric tensor. They determine the way how the frame of the co-moving observer – by considering functions and – is transformed into the frame of the stationary observer. In particular(2)

The adopted stationary condition means that the metric tensor components are supposed to be independent of time t. The geodesic equation expresses that the straight space–time path
of the co-moving observer, is observed as a curved path by the lab frame observer. It is the consequence of expressing a presupposed field of forces into a metric tensor. The second part of (1) can be integrated into(3)where is an integration constant. Considering that in flat space–time (, we have . In the case of a conservative field of forces, the local space–time interval is invariant, i.e., , so that(4)

From (4), (3) we get(5)

This result is consistent with the integration of the first part of (1) under consideration of (3).

Under the axiomatic quantum mechanical hypothesis(6)
where is the rest mass of the particle in consideration, and where is Planck’s (reduced) constant, we get from (3), (5),(7)

The two parts of (7) can be joined to a semantically correct quantum mechanical wave equation. This can be done by differentiation of the second part and addition to the first part after multiplying with
, resulting in,(8)

The equation is temporally of first order and spatially of second order. It guarantees the positive definiteness of the wave function. This means that the spatial integral of squared absolute value of the wave function is time-independent. This is required to obey the semantics of the wave function, which states that its squared absolute value expresses the probability that the particle is at a certain moment at a certain place. As this certain place must be somewhere, the spatial integral has to be time-independent. Eq. (8) has a similar format as Schrödinger’s equation. The difference is in the right-hand part. In Schrödinger’s equation this part is the (spatially dependent) potential energy of the particle in motion. Here, it is replaced by a quantity that expresses the metric curvature of space–time.
Dirac’s approach toward a 2D wave equation

Dirac derived his relativistic quantum mechanical wave equation for a particle moving in free space from a heuristic elaboration of Einstein’s energy relationship(9)
where is the three-vector momentum (, not to be confused with ), squared as(10)or equivalently,(11)

Under consideration of the required semantics, Dirac expanded and transformed this quadratic equation into a set of two linear ones,
where are the Pauli matrices, so that(12)

If the velocity of the particle is small with respect to the light velocity, we have
, so that from (10),(13)

From (13) and the first part of (12), and adopting the minus sign to avoid a meaningless result, it follows(14)

After substitution of (14) into the second part of (12), we get, under consideration of (6),(15)

Mutatis mutandis, and now adopting the plus sign in (13), we get(16)

Eqs. (15), (16) can be summarized as(17)

Eq. (17) is known as the Pauli–Schrödinger approximation of Dirac’s equation. The solution is a two-component wave function, with a dominant component and a minor (spin) component that can assume two states.

If a particle is subject to a field of forces, Dirac’s Equation as formulated in (17) does not hold. Potentially however, its format can be preserved if the operators on the wave function are redefined in a suitable way. This is known as the application of the Principle of Covariance. This involves a redefinition of the operators in the wave equation, implying that derivatives of the wave function are replaced by covariant derivatives. In particular,(18)
where is a dimensionless generic coupling factor and where, generically, are the components of the four-vector potential that characterizes the field forces, and where is the scalar part of the field. In the case that the field is characterized by a scalar only, we get for the dominant wave component from (17), (18),(19)

Comparing the geodesic approach with Dirac’s approach

Comparing (19) with (8), it is concluded that, under non-relativistic conditions, the particle’s wave equation in a conservative scalar field of forces derived by the geodesic approach and Dirac’s approach, are equivalent if(20)
where is a function of the metric components and (not to be confused with the quantum mechanical coupling factor

).

Let us proceed by considering conditions as often assumed in general relativistic gravitational problems. These are, isotropy and weak field condition, implying(21)

This enables to rewrite (20) as(22)

This expression relates the space–time curvature with the potential energy of the particle in motion. In the particular case that the potential field shows a spatial quadratic dependency, the wave equation represents a quantum mechanical oscillator. This is true if(23)
where the normalization parameter is introduced to make the constant dimensionless. Elementary algebra shows that (20), (22) are equivalent if(24)

Eq. (24) imposes an interrelationship between the particle’s potential energy and its rest mass. This may seem an over-constraint. Actually, it is not, because the rest mass energy curves space–time and the potential energy is a manifestation of the space–time curvature (otherwise equating the geodesic approach with Dirac’s approach would be meaningless).
The gravitational constant

Energetic fields are formats of energy, similarly as massive particles in rest. All formats of energy are subject to Einstein’s field equation. Accepting the universality of this principle beyond the realm of gravity, justifies applying Einstein’s field equation to nuclear energetic fields. One side of this equation is the Einstein tensor (
), which is expressed in quantities that can be derived from the metric tensor. The other side is the energy momentum tensor (), which contains quantities that can be derived from the energy present in the space as characterized by the metric tensor. There is a proportionality factor involved, known as the gravity constant. The full expression is(25)

Here,
and are respectively the so-called Ricci tensor and the Ricci scalar, which can be calculated if the metric tensor components are known [1], [4]. Let us start by calculating the energy momentum tensor. This presupposes knowledge of the spatial energy density. We wish to proceed under the assumption that all energy is comprised in the potential energy of the moving object and that the energy density is given as (see Appendix I),(26)

The viability of this assumption will be shown for a particular physical process, to be discussed in Section 6. From (26), it follows that(27)

Note that the index
applies to the spatial dimension and to the temporal dimension. It follows straightforwardly from (27), (23) that,(28)

The more difficult part is the calculation of the Einstein tensor from the Ricci tensor
and the Ricci scalar , to be obtained from the metric tensor . Because of the 2D isotropy condition, the calculation results into rather simple expressions [4],(29)(30)

Note:
and is short for differentiation and double differentiation (after ) of the parameter , and is the inverse of the matrix . Application of (21), (23) on (29), (30), gives(31)so that(32)

From (25), (28), (32), under consideration of (24), the gravitational constant
follows as,(33)

This result means that it is possible to express the gravitational constant into quantum mechanical quantities, provided that we can identify a physical process that can be modeled as a harmonic 2D quantum mechanical oscillator where the mass of the object in motion is extracted from the field’s potential energy.
The physical process

In this section, it will be claimed that such a process exists. It is the basic quark dipole, known as the pi-meson. It is commonly accepted that the quark masses have their origin from an omni-present scalar field of energy, known as the Higgs field [8]. This field is functionally described by a Lagrangian density
with two characteristic quantities and , such that [7, p.363](34)

Usually, the source term
is omitted, because it is simply stated that an unknown source sustains the field. But let us consider the consequences if we do not wish to accept an incomplete Lagrangian density description. To do so, let us compare the Lagrangian density of the Higgs field with the Lagrangian density of the type(35)

Let us further suppose that the source is a three-dimensional Dirac distribution
. Application of the Lagrange–Euler Equation yields a differential equation for the spatial behavior of the field’s potential energy. In this case,(36)

The solution of (36) is(37)

If
and , where is the electric charge of a pointlike source and is the free space electric permeability, this expression represents a Coulomb field. Generically it represents a field with a format that corresponds with the potential as proposed by Yukawa [5] to explain the short range of a nuclear force. It can also be viewed as a screened Coulomb field, which originates if the free Coulomb flux is suppressed by a surrounding space charge, such as first described by Debije [6]. The Debije shielding is observed in a wide variety of physical processes, particularly in plasma physics and in astrophysics. In these processes the Debije shielding length

may range from values as large as 105 m to values as small as 10−9 m.

Unfortunately, the high non-linearity of the potential energy term
in the Lagrangian density of the Higgs field, as shown, in (34) prevents the analytical derivation of a spatial description of the Higgs field from a pointlike source . But if we cannot solve the spatial field equation analytically, why not solving it numerically? The way how to do has been documented in a previous work [3a], in which it has been shown that the potential that satisfies the wave equation derived from (34), is closely approximated by,(38)

This field shows far field characteristics corresponding to the Yukawa ones, next to near field characteristics with opposite direction that represents a short-range force. We identify the far field force as the force that is commonly known as the weak force (short for force responsible for weak interaction) and the scalar near field force as the strong force (short for force responsible for strong interaction). The nuclear force is the combination of the two, such that the field, as shown by (38), is given by(39)

If we identify the quark as the source of this nuclear field, a nice picture is obtained. Any quark couples to the field of any other quark with the coupling factor
, such that it feels a nuclear force described as(40)

where the quantum mechanical coupling is supposed to be equal to the square root of the electromagnetic fine structure constant (g2 ≈ 1/137, see Appendix I). This means that any quark is repelled by any other quark under influence of the far field, but attracted by the near field. As a consequence, structures are possible to exist that are composed by two quarks or three quarks, which are holding each other in a stable equilibrium. Similarly as Lorentz did in the past for electrons, we may suppose that the masses of these structures will primarily, if not all, be determined by the fields that result from the potential fluxes from the composing quarks. In this model, two quarks, positioned at a spacing 2d apart, compose a structure, the center of mass of which will vibrate around the position just half-way the two quarks. Therefore, this quark dipole, to be identified as meson, can be modeled effectively as an equivalent single-body quantum mechanical oscillator with a certain effective mass that is built by the energetic fluxes from the quarks.

The far field component (weak force) can be conceived as the scalar part of the four-vector potential (A1, A2, A3, A4), of a field with the characteristics of Proca’s generalization of a Maxwell field, described by a Lagrangian density of the type,(41)
where the vector components Jμ represent the sources of the field, possibly exclusively consisting of the pointlike well . In the past, such a field has been considered as a candidate to explain the origin of nuclear forces indeed. It has been abandoned because the

term spoils the gauge constraint that is required to obtain the covariant format of Dirac’s equation. Stueckelberg, however, has shown that the gauge constraint remains valid in the case that the vectorial Proca field is supplemented by an additional scalar field. In Stueckelberg’s time, there was no rationale for this artificial escape. Within the context of this article it makes sense, because the scalar near field in (39) may serve the purpose. The justification for it is shown in Appendix II. A side effect of this solution is the removal of a possible renormalization problem associated with the inverse square potential format of the scalar near field.

The meson is subject to a quantum mechanical wave equation, which will be developed within the center of mass frame. As noted before, the two constituting quarks will hold each other in a stable equilibrium. This enables us to develop a one-body equivalent of a two-body oscillator. Although such oscillator resembles a classical one, there is a fundamental difference. In the classical case, we have two masses and a (potential) field in between. In the classical case, the energy captured in the two masses is much larger than the energy represented by the field. In the model to be developed here, the other extreme is adopted: the bare mass of the bodies is supposed to be negligible as compared with the field energy. It makes the oscillator relativistic, because the mass in the wave equation is no longer the mass of the two bodies, but it is an equivalent mass that captures the energy of the field. In spite of the relativistic nature of the model, the center of mass view allows applying the Pauli–Schrödinger approximation of Dirac’s wave equation, describing a linear motion of an effective mass between the quark centers. Therefore, we write,(42)

Here, 2d is the quark spacing,
the non-relativistic effective mass of the center, its potential energy and the generic energy constant, which will be subject to quantization. From (32) we have,(43)

The potential energy
can be expanded as(44)(45)

The two quarks in the meson settle in a state of minimum energy, at a spacing
, determined from the condition(46)so that ; and (at

).

The quantum mechanical oscillator as represented by (42) is subject to excitation. This means that the energy constant
is subject to excitation. Under the approximation of the potential energy by a quadratic polynomial as (44), the constants associated with the vibration energy , are equally spaced. The frequency is given by the generic basic relationship [9],(47)

A particle-antiparticle conjunction, as in the case of a meson, has particular characteristics. All mass is in the binding energy between the two particles. This allows the conclusion that the spacing
between the quark and the antiquark is determined by half the wavelength of a single harmonic energetic standing wave (boson) with phase velocity c, so that(48)where is a dimensionless constant with order of magnitude 1, introduced for corrections because of the crude modeling and where is the energy of a bosonic mass particle responsible for change of energetic states of the meson. This boson is known as the weak-interaction boson. Its energetic value is known in the lab frame from experimental evidence of nuclear decay processes, but will be subject to relativistic correction in the center of mass frame. From (48) it follows that(49)

(Note: the value of the effective mass

is irrelevant within the scope of this paper. Eventually it comes manifest in the lab frame as the rest mass of the meson).

Under consideration of (48), (49), the gravitational constant, as expressed by (33), can thus be written as,(50)

This analysis has been made in the center of mass frame, i.e., the frame of the co-moving observer. The energy
is known in the lab frame as . The co-moving observer experiences the lab frame velocity as the lab frame speed of the pi-meson. Owing to this particle-antiparticle structure, the pi-meson flies at near light velocity . Therefore, (50) is subject to a major relativistic correction, so that, effectively,(51)

The relativistic correction will be considered in the next section.
The relativistic correction

The composite field of three quarks in a baryon, relatively far from the internal structure, as built-up by three contributions of the type as defined by (39), shows the same behavior as that of a single quark. It has both the characteristics of the attracting near field and those of the repulsive far field. If the inter-baryon interaction is represented by a massive bosonic particle with a certain spatial range and if this range is one or more orders of magnitude larger than the range of the intra-baryon interaction bosons, the inter-baryon behavior is just a scaled behavior of the intra-baryon behavior. In that case a similar potential function can be defined for the remnant field of the baryon similarly as (39), with the only difference that the
-value has to be scaled. Therefore, supposing that , the inter-baryon field can be defined as(52)

Other baryons may couple to this field, with some dimensionless coupling factor
. Identifying the interacting bosons as pions with rest mass energy (=135.0/139.6 MeV), we have(53)

According to this model, in non-excited state, the distance 2d between bound baryons therefore is, typically,(54)

The pions travel at near light speed. As shown by Watkins [10], this speed
can be determined from the half life value , in proper time denoted as. It is based upon the relationship between the temporal decay rate and the spatial decay parameter . The decay behavior of particles in proper time is given by(55)

From the half life definition, given by(56)

It follows from (55), (56) that(57)

The relationship between spatial decay and temporal decay is frame independent and given by(58)
so that from Eqs. (55), (56), (57), (58) after relativistic correction for ,(59)so that, for , under consideration of (53),(60)

Result

Summarizing, we have (51), (60),

The result of this analysis is summarized in Table 1. The left-hand column shows the values of the physically known quantities. The middle column shows the known dimensionless constants as they are established in this theory. The right-hand column shows that the known value of the gravitational constant is obtained for the parameter value

. This value is in agreement with the presupposed order of magnitude 1.

Table 1. Numerical result for the gravitational constant, calculated from quantum mechanical quantities.
Physics This theory Calculated
ℏc = 193 MeV fm α = 0.69
m′0π = 139.6 MeV k2 = 2.36
= 1.59 × 10−16
t0π = 2.603 × 10−8 s k0 = −1/2 G = 6.67 × 10−11 m3kg−1s−2
m′W = 80.4 GeV d′min = 0.8526
g2 = 1/137

In view of the order of magnitude of the quantities involved, this attempt to unify gravity with quantum mechanics yields a surprising fit of the theoretically calculated value of the gravitational constant with the experimentally established constant of nature.

The credibility of this result can be underlined with an interesting observation. It has to do with the 126.5 GeV particle, discovered in 2012 by CERN and identified as the “Higgs boson” of the Standard Model. The energetic value of its mass is known to be a function of the quantity
in the functional definition of the Higgs field as given by (38). In particular [7, p.364](61)

The Standard Model, however, is unable to establish theoretically based values for the two Higgs quantities
and

. That prevents a calculation of (61). Interestingly, though, the theory as outlined in this article, may do. How? Similarly as the boson of the electromagnetic field, neither the boson of vectorial far field, nor the boson of the scalar near field are observables. They can only show up by “signatures”. There is no reason why the view on the Higgs field as developed in this article would exclude the possibility that photons interact with the Higgs field as spread by quarks. Such interactions would produce new particles of the same kind as predicted in the state-of-art theory. Let us try to calculate the mass equivalent of such new particles under application of the relationships as developed in this article.

As shown by (38), the equivalents of the quantities
and in the common functional description of the Higgs field are the spatial field quantities (for is strength) and (for its spatial range). It has been shown in Eq. (49) that the strength quantity can be determined from the weak interaction boson (=80.4 GeV), as(62)and that the spatial range quantity follows from the ratio , calculated from (48), (49) as,(63)

(Note that, unlike the individual quantities
and , the numerical value of this ratio is frame-independent). It has to be emphasized that the results (62), (63) have to be credited to the general relativistic view on the physical quark dipole. Applying (38) on (61), we have(64)

From (62), (63), (64), and Table 1, it follows that,(65)

This theoretically established energy value

of the “Higgs mass” is close to the measured value by CERN. Within the context of this article, it may be regarded as a confirmation of the viability of the relationship between gravity and quantum physics as expressed by (51), (60) and the numerical result given in Table 1.
Discussion

It will be clear that the validation of a formula that expresses the gravitational constant in quantum mechanical quantities is an important contribution to the on-going challenge in present theoretical physics to relate gravity with quantum physics. It will also be clear that a claim that this can be done without conceiving a new theoretical framework beyond the established ones, will be regarded as controversial. Nevertheless, in this article an attempt to do so has resulted in a formula that can be easily numerically verified in an outcome that nicely fits with the well-known established experimental evidence. This numerical result cannot be denied. The theoretical steps might be subject to criticism, but the criticism should then answer the question why such a result is possible if something is wrong with the basic approach. So, let me summarize the approach, thereby stipulating different angles of view as compared to present theory. Among the various steps taken, there are three major ones. One of these is the view that Einstein’s field equation is universal, therefore also valid beyond the realm of gravity and, therefore, applicable to nuclear energetic fields as well. The second one is the view that Dirac’s approach for deriving a quantum mechanical wave equation from an equation of motion can be made more fundamental by taking Einstein’s geodesic equation as a starting point rather than restricting it to Einstein’s expression for relativistic energy. The third one has to do with the Higgs field. Similarly as in present-state quantum theory, the Higgs field is considered as a field from which energy can be subtracted for the purpose to give mass to particles. The view taken, however, is that the lack of a source term in the formulation of its Lagrangian density is unacceptable. Accepting a pointlike source as in conventional field theory, enables the derivation of a spatial field description, albeit that a numerical approach is required to do so. The logical step taken is, to identify the quark as the pointlike source of energy. This is not all. The most essential element in this third step is the split of the Higgs field into two different components: a bosonic vectorial far field in terms of Proca’s generalization of the Maxwell field and an additional bosonic scalar near field with a narrow spatial reach. Owing to these characteristics, there is no need to explain the origin of massive nuclear bosons as a consequence of the interaction of mass less particles with a scalar field. Instead, the nuclear force bosons come forward by definition, similarly as photons show up in a Maxwell field.

Finally, I want to emphasize the difference between the
term, which specifies the spatial range of the nuclear force, and a physical mass term , such as in Proca’s original formulation. Owing to the invariance of the ratio , the energy of a “H-type” Proca boson remains, similar as a photon, the same in any inertial frame. If somebody tries to bring the Proca boson to rest, the term changes in coherence with the change of

. It is for that reason that the quantum of the Higgs field cannot be identified as an observable massive boson. Experimental data on observables (like many fermions) are “hard”, but experimental data on non-observables, like bosons flying at (near) light speed, are “soft”. They show up as “signatures”, which are interpreted with a theory in mind. A signature that supports the theory as developed in this article is the theoretically derived value for the mass of the 126.5 GeV “Higgs particle”, which in present-state theory needs to be empirically established. This is a second major result of the analysis presented.
Appendix I. Electroweak unification

In the physical process as described in Section 6, the nuclear field is conceived as an energetic field similar to that of an electromagnetic field. The spread of an energetic flux by pointlike wells creates a spatial field, which, in Maxwell’s theory, is characterized by its energy density, i.e. the amount of field energy per unit of volume. The nuclear equivalent of the Maxwellian field density can be found on the basis of the unification hypothesis. Within the context of our physical process this hypothesis is, in SI units, formulated as:(A1)
where and are the scalar parts of respectively the electromagnetic potential and the nuclear potential, is the elementary electric charge and the free space electric permeability. The hypothesis states that the square of the nuclear coupling factor is equal to the electromagnetic fine structure constant (). The justification of the unification hypothesis has to be provided by experimental evidence. For its validation, see [3]. The energy density of the nuclear field can now expressed in similar terms as the electric energy density of the electromagnetic field, i.e., as(A2)

Appendix II. Stueckelberg’s gauge constraint

In 1938, Ernst Stueckelberg [11], [12] showed that, under particular circumstances, the elegancy of the Principle of Covariance on the basis of minimum substitution, can be maintained for Proca type fields. This will be the case if, next to a Proca field, an auxiliary scalar bosonic field
, will be present, such that Proca’s Lagrangian is modified into, [12],(B1)This modified Lagrangian density remains unaffected under the gauges,(B2)

Therefore, it is allowed to use the covariant Dirac equation in a Proca field of forces if an auxiliary scalar field is present as well. Let us try to identify the near field (strong force) as defined in (39) as Stueckelberg’s auxiliary phantom scalar field. First of all, we have to cope with the r2-term in the denominator of the near field expression, which is not compatible with a pointlike source. This would suggest that the source of the scalar field is a dipole rather than a monopole. Unfortunately, although the dipole shows an inverse square behavior of the energetic flux indeed, it shows an angular dependency as well. The escape comes from a reconsideration of the axiomatic principle as adopted by the author in his sequence of papers. It has to do with the numerical fit of the spatial expression (38) with the functional expression of the Higgs field. Curiously, another expression gives a fit with a similar accuracy. The fit is obtained by(B3)

This can be rewritten as,(B4)

This allows to incorporate the sources of the vectorial far field and the scalar near field into a complete Lagrangian description. Moreover, we may invoke the generalization proposed by ‘t Hooft and Veltman, by including an additional real parameter
, [12], [13], such that,(B5)

Applying the Euler–Lagrange Equation yields two wave equations. Describing the pointlike sources for the far field and near field, respectively, as
and , and defining , we get for the scalar part of the time independent (vector type) far field,(B6)and for the time independent (scalar type) near field we get(B7)

By comparing (B7), (B4), obviously

. It may seem that both equations have the same format as the Klein Gordon equation, which has erroneously been derived for fermions as a fore-runner of Dirac’s Equation. The presence of the source term, however, make these two bosonic equations different.

It will be clear now that, under the modification (B3), the Stueckelberg mechanism allows to give a spatial description of the functionally defined Higgs field. The field can be assigned to a single composite source that produces a vectorial Proca type (weak force) far field and a scalar type (strong force) near field. For reasons of simplicity, I wish to stick to the two-parameter formulation as expressed by (38) rather than by the four-parameter equivalent (B4).

But her mind was on the riddle of the missing professor. Where could he be? The students had tried to contact him through E-Mails and Online Messages but there hadn't been any contact back. She was sure that it was something mundane of course but there was still something nagging at her. Something she'd buried deep inside of herself a long time ago that was telling her to investigate it thoroughly. To get to the bottom of this mystery. Nicole pushed it back down. She'd buried that part of herself in Tempesmere. It was fine. There was a logical explanation for all of this she was sure. The police could handle it with their technological advances and investigative skills. No need for her to get involved.

"Miss Noble? Could you explain the solution of the Dirac equation to the class please?" Professor Jimmy Turner asked her.

"Oh, sure." Nicole cleared her throat and stood up and spoke out to the class. "The solution of the Dirac equation for an electron in a Coulomb field is systematically treated here by utilizing new insights provided by supersymmetry.It is shown that each of the concepts has its analogue in the non-relativistic case. Indeed, the non-relativistic case is developed first, in order to introduce the new concepts in a familiar context. The symmetry of the non-relativistic model is already present in the classical limit, so the classical Kepler problem is first discussed in order to bring out the role played by the Laplace vector, one of the central concepts of the whole book. Analysis of the concept of eccentricity of the orbits turns out to be essential to understanding the relation of the classical and quantum mechanical models.The opportunity is taken to relive the great moments of physics: From Kepler's discovery of the laws of motion of the planets, the development is traced through the Dirac equation up to modern advances, which bring the concepts of supersymmetry to bear on the derivation of the solutions. How was that?"

Professor Turner gave her a thumbs up. "Well done Nicole! Thank you very much!" He smiled and returned to his lecture.

"Thank you sir." Nicole replied and sat back down.

"Teacher's pet." She heard someone at the far end of the second to last row whisper under his breath. She hummed and returned to her notes.

After lunch the students split up to go their respective classes with a couple of them accompanying Derrick across campus to the fitness center.

Once inside the men and women split up to their respective locker rooms and got changed. Derrick put on a black muscle shirt and shorts and hung up his college uniform in his locker. He put on some gloves and did a few pre-workout stretches. (It's just your nerves. It's just your nerves. You didn't get enough sleep and it's got you on edge. It's fine. Everyone's fine. The Brannons are gone. Dead and buried or locked up. Gone. They're all gone and none of their minions are coming after you again. Even if they do? Just kick their asses all over again. You're fine. It's fine. Now perk up. You've got benching to do!) Derrick smiled, clapped his face and loosened himself up for the workout.

"'Ey geeza 're ya feelin' okay?" Randall asked him.

"Feeling fine. Just one of those days you know?"

"Oh trust me I kna. Ya 'ave ter learn ter take it easy once in a while. If you're always on edge you'll just wear yourself out. Tearn ter smell the roses mate."

"Yeah I know. Come on, lets bench." He laughed and walked to the door into the fitness floor.

The moment he stepped inside Derrick forgot all of his concerns.

"Glad you could come." Dolores greeted him in a black tank top and shorts.

"You ready to sweat?"

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