I Shoulda Brought the Tequila, Bro!

The alarm clock blared, its robotic tune blaring and unpleasant. The windows to the balcony automatically opened, letting the simulated sunlight in, bathing the destruction within in golden light. Trash, shattered furniture, and debris littered the small apartment floor. Nameless smashed the clock, snoozing the tune.

Grunting, Nameless pulled the sheets off himself and sat upright in bed, rubbing his eyes. Looking around, he sighed. A large pile of empty beer cans littered his nightstand and the floor, and there was an open bottle of liquor on his bed.

He sighed, stood up, and walked over to his closet in boxers. Nameless studied himself in the mirror hanging from the wooden door, still amazed there wasn’t even a scratch left on his body from Mars. The only thing that remained was his mismatched iris’, one grey and one green. Professor Thaddeus had shrugged it off as a side effect of the XM-801, as most recipients typically had permanent physical changes.

The mirror reflected a semi-skinny, semi-built early-twenties man. His mop of dark black hair, dual-colored eyes, and typical sullen expression. He seemed to recall some hazy mention of Lion saying he had resting bitch face syndrome during last night’s maelstrom of substance abuse.

Nameless’s eyes widened; where was that idiot? Hastily, Nameless pulled on a dark black hoodie, his old jeans from Mars, then put his feet into his combat boots. He then put his leather belt on, the pistol and thermal knife a familiar weight. Not bothering to tie his boots, he hastily went down the metal stairs leading from his bedroom. Downstairs looked even worse than his bedroom.

There General Lion lay, snoring like an animal, covered in stains and cans on Nameless’s now ruined couch. Last night Nameless hadn’t really bothered trying to analyze Lion, being more focused on whether the man was stalking him or not.

The General still wore his clothes from last night, an odd pair of brown synthetic pants and a jean material like a jacket with a tank top underneath. Lion’s blonde stringy hair was tangled, concealing his forehead, and reaching his ears. His jawline protruded, and his slender face was solid and foreboding. Several earrings hung from both ears, a gold necklace digging into his muscular throat, all fingers bearing metal and silver rings with odd symbols on them. He appeared in his late twenties, stubble growing from his face. He obviously preferred the human form of a near bodybuilder, as his muscles fought to leap from his tight clothing.

Nameless sighed, crossing his arms. He studied the living room, taking in the burn marks, stains, and shattered furniture.

“Wakey, wakey asshole,” Nameless shouted.

Lion shouted out, his orange eyes bulging, toppling onto the ground, a pistol in his hand and an empty beer can in the other.

“You’re paying for all of this,” Nameless sighed.

Lion grunted, massaging his temple with the presumably loaded pistol.

“Asshole,” Lion grumbled.

“Says the dude who trashed my pad!”

“It was fifty-fifty, man. I got a video to back me up,” Lion mumbled, trying to sip from his empty beer can.

“Oh really.”

“Good morning to you too, bitch,” Lion spat, heaving himself off the ground and stretching.

“Oh, it’s ‘bitch’ now? Let’s see the video.”

Lion rolled his eyes and pulled out a metal disk from his pocket. He placed his finger on it, and a hologram shot out. In the screen projection, Nameless could see himself and Lion.

“Bro, you did not!” Lion roared.

“I stabbed that dude with my spear!” Nameless slurred.

“Whole ass slave rebellion, I wish my backstory was that cool.”

“You’re a prince turned warrior monk; that’s way cooler!” Nameless slurred, leaning into Lion. They clasped palms, essentially hugging.

Lion fast forwarded, and showed he had nearly fallen off of the balcony, and Nameless heaved him back up. Lion fast-forwarded again, showing them throwing knives at a picture on the wall, setting a fire in the sink, and playing slap fight. The guilt was indeed, fifty, fifty.

Nameless sighed.

“Please tell me we stayed in here all night,” Nameless grumbled.

Lion side-eyed the empty plastic bags on the floor that belonged to the convenience store.

“Urgh!”

“Dude, relax. We both outrank like half the people in this shithole,” Lion laughed.

The General pulled a bottle of eye drops out from his jacket and gently moisturized his bloodshot eyes.

“We can’t be doing stuff like that!”

“Why? Afraid you're not, but definitely, totally is crush/girlfriend will scold you?” Lion laughed.

“The fuck are you talking about?”

Lion held his hands together, cocking his head, making puppy eyes.

“Julia is like my sister; I hate her; why does she hate me? I like her; we totally kissed on the battlefield, bro!” Lion mimicked.

“Shut up!” Nameless roared, turning his back and walking into the kitchen.

“She treats you like shit, dude; there are literally millions of girls in this place. Go find one who’ll eat a chocolate donut off your-”

“Can it, Lion.”

“We need to get you laid, my dude,” Lion laughed, following.

“What happened to the war hero with flashbacks, huh?” Nameless grumbled, opening and inspecting his empty fridge.

“Hey, I’m still a person, ya know?” Lion said.

“Keep forgetting you're like eighteen,” Nameless sighed, closing the fridge.

Nameless went over to the apartment communication console and inputted his password. A female face made of blue light hovered from the wall.

“You have three new voice messages, commander,” The AI said.

Lion snorted. Nameless gave him a dirty look.

“What did you do?” Nameless growled.

Lion pursed his lips, trying to conceal his grin with his hand.

“Me? Absolutely nothing, bro. Oh, but um, before you listen to those, it was all your idea, man.”

Nameless grimaced, looking at the ceiling, steeling himself.

“Play the first message,” Nameless commanded.

“You have a lot of nerve Nameless!” Julia’s voice shouted from the hologram.

Lion burst out laughing, running for cover as Nameless chucked the nearest object at him.

“I know that was you! Who in the ever-lasting fuck else would leave a deflated sex doll with an Earth prom date proposal on my doorstep! And who the fuck is that blonde weirdo with orange eyes? I saw him in that tree, ya know, I know he was aiming a laser pointer at my cat!” Julia screeched.

“Lemme guess, you two are cousins, right?” Nameless jeered at Lion’s face half concealed, peaking out behind the couch. Lion shot up, pointing his finger.

“That is very offensive! My people are humanoid!” He roared. “Let me catch you at a Zoo; I can take a picture of you with your cousins in the monkey exhibit!”

“End of message, commander,” The AI said.

“Do I want to hear the rest of them?” Nameless asked darkly.

“Yeah, kinda,” Lion chortled.

Lion looked down at the floor and exclaimed happily, reaching down, and grabbing an unopened beer can. He pulled the tab and gulped loudly, then sighed with relief.

“Exquisite,” Lion belched.

“Sure do love human things, don’t ya, buddy?” Nameless said.

“Hey, you fuckers know how to party. Shit, who can blame ya? You guys only live for like seventy years. My people live too long to come up with fun shit like beer and sex dolls.”

“I sincerely doubt humans are more depraved than whatever the fuck your people are.”

“Nah, I’m special man,” Lion smiled.

“Oh, you are definitely special all right,” Nameless said.

“Play the next one, blue.”

“My dear boy,” Thaddeus’s voice said.

Nameless massaged the bridge of his nose with his eyes closed.

“While I am thrilled to find you are pioneering Human and Laydren relations, I must warn you about General Lion’s brazen behavior. He must have adult supervision when under the influence; you cannot allow him to storm into my office and steal my laser pointers. The building’s security team was quite alarmed, and it took me several attempts to talk the manager down from calling the peacekeepers.

Furthermore, Laydren are, in fact, quite human-like and do not utilize litter boxes. I fail to understand why you two needed to leave me a half-hour long, shouted debate message for me on the issue, but I hope this information resolves the matter.”

“I told you they were for cats!”

“There is no way in fuck you’re perfect and call yourself Lion! I swear to the gods there is fur underneath that energy projection! You are literally a cat person; shut up! Play the next one!” Nameless shouted.

“Hello Nameless, since you were the one who managed to remove the good General from the lobby chandelier, I have assumed he is in your charge,” Cirilla’s voice soothingly said from the hologram.

Foggy and shuffled glimpses of memory flooded Nameless as he smiled.

“Okay, that one was kinda funny,” Nameless chuckled.

“Please ensure that he is not late for our first class tomorrow morning, ten o’clock at central Zion time. Kind regards, Cirilla.”

“Lion?” Nameless asked.

“Yeah?”

“What time is it?”

Lion checked his cracked glass watch.

“Nine forty-five, my dude. Why? Oh. Oh, shit.”

“We gotta go!” Nameless roared.

The two scrambled, running across the littered ground, storming out of the apartment. Down the hall, the elevator had a closed sign on it.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Nameless shouted.

The Lion stood in place, his eyes widening.

“I got an idea,” He said evilly.

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“No. Fuck no, nope. I dunno what it is, but no.” Nameless said darkly.

“We’re like twelve stories up, dude; we’re gonna be late if we take the stairs. C’mon!”

Lion scrambled back into the apartment, Nameless hot on his heels. Inside, Lion pulled out his communication device.

“Call a taxi,” Lion ordered.

“Calling Zion taxi company.” The device’s male A. I voice said.

“What are you doing?” Nameless asked angrily.

“Hello, Zion taxi service; how may I help you?” A female robotic voice said.

“Hi, yes, I’d like to order a taxi, special pick-up instructions.” Lion said, struggling not to laugh.

“Please elaborate, sir.”

“What are you doing?” Nameless seethed.

Lion’s head nodded to the balcony.

Nameless’s eyes widened. He mouthed no, shaking his head.

“Yeah, uh, this is General Lion from task-force Ishtar. Authentication: Zulu, one, Alpha, fifteen, Romeo, eleven, dash, nine, nine. I am conducting a special military exercise, practicing rapid exfiltration from a dense urban environment, utilizing civilian transport. Gonna need you guys to pick us up from the exact height and location I am sending right now.”

Lion plugged in the exact coordinates of the balcony.

“Sending a cab as we speak, sir; the estimated arrival time is five minutes. What is the destination, General?”

“Light Bearer Academy,” Nameless called angrily.

“En route, gentlemen, have a great day in Zion,” The robot said happily, hanging up.

Nameless held both pointed index fingers at his temples.

“What are you doing?” he emphasized.

“Lighten up, buttercup, we got this,” Lion smiled.

“How are they going to land on my tiny balcony?” Nameless asked angrily.

“They aren’t!” Lion laughed. “Shots?”

“You want me to jump off a twelfth-story balcony into a hover taxi to make it to class?” Nameless asked, astonished.

“Yeah. You got any more tequila?”

Nameless weighed his options. Truthfully, it wouldn’t be the dumbest thing he had ever done. He sighed, surrendering to whatever came to be. He pointed at the cupboard next to the fridge.

“When we get there, stay the fuck away from Aj,” Nameless growled as Lion nearly skipped into the kitchen.

“Who’s that?” Lion asked, pulling the cork from the bottle with his teeth.

“Somebody who will not join in on whatever future dumb shit we get up to.”

“Oh wait, isn’t that sniper boy? Dude, hell no! I gotta meet this guy!”

“Sniper boy?” Nameless asked.

“Yeah, I dunno; you talked a really long time about him, but he wasn’t a chick, so I didn’t pay attention. Drink up fucker!” Lion shrugged.

Lion returned with the open bottle held out.

“To the start of a beautiful friendship!” Lion toasted cheerfully.

Nameless grunted, taking the bottle.

He remembered his humble upbringing on Mars. Since arriving in Zion, he had been introduced to so many new things. And yet, despite all the comfort and ease of this new life, he had never truly felt that he had belonged. Surrounded by these luxuries, he felt almost empty; he didn’t belong here. He thought leaving Mars, a grand purpose would present itself. But so far, he had continued drifting through life as before. Yet, strangely, the chaos that was Lion almost seemed like home.

Nameless flung his head back, the burning liquor pouring down his throat. He coughed, thumping his chest as it burned down into his stomach, desperately fighting the urge to vomit.

“Ata boy!” Lion said proudly.

The General grabbed the bottle and took a mighty swig. The hover taxi roared into view as Lion drank, it's open-door beckoning to them from the air outside the apartment.

“Let’s go, bud, can’t be late!” Lion said happily.

He slammed the cork back into the bottle, chucked it, then sprinted to the balcony, grabbing the railing. Lion vaulted nearly over the fence, but his booted foot caught the metal rail with a hollow clang. Instead of landing inside the taxi, he almost missed, clinging to the taxi frame with one hand. His body hanging from the cab.

“Yo!” Nameless roared, reaching out.

Lion looked back, giving a wide grin. He grabbed the taxi with both hands and pulled himself up and in, shambling onto the floor in between the seats.

“Yup. He’s gonna get me killed.” Nameless nodded to himself.

Nameless steadied his breathing, gathering himself. He charged the balcony, covering the distance as quickly as he could. As the railing drew closer, his mind rebelled, drowning in fear. He smashed into the guardrail, nearly toppling over it. Nameless roared, grabbing the railing with white knuckles. The ground was so far away.

The taxi was barely a few feet away, but the image of Lion nearly falling to his death was playing over and over in his mind. This was stupid; he had never been afraid of heights before. But here and now, his body was welded to that metal balcony railing.

“Hey!”

Nameless looked up to see Lion smiling, hanging out of the taxi with an outstretched hand.

“Don’t be a pussy!”

Nameless held up his middle finger, gritting his teeth.

“Either you make it or die drunk! What a helluva way to go, hombre!”

“Eat my ass!” Nameless shouted.

He could take the stairs. Who cares if he is late? Just blame it on Lion; it’s not like anyone would doubt him or be shocked. Nameless banged his fist against the railing, exhaled so hard spit shot away, falling slowly down to the ground so far away.

Nameless pushed himself off the railing, retreating into the apartment. He walked nearly to his door and stopped. He whipped back around and charged the balcony.

“You got this!” Lion shouted happily.

Nameless vaulted over the railing. For a moment that felt like an hour, he was suspended in midair, feeling like the entire world was below him. In the adrenaline-fueled moment, his mind slowing down time itself, Nameless could see the ant-like people far below.

His hand caught Lion’s as he dangled in the air.

“I gotcha,” Lion grunted.

The General heaved, grunting hard as he pulled Nameless into the taxi. They collapsed on the floor as the door closed, the cab propelling forward. They looked at each other and began laughing uncontrollably.

They took their seats, the old, cracked leather sighing as they still giggled.

“Fuck me,” Lion sighed.

“What?” Nameless asked.

“I shoulda brought the tequila bro.”

“Eh, I think being sober for our first class is the better option.”

“You’re sober?” Lion asked, eyes wide in astonishment.

“Of course, you’re still drunk.”

“None of this would work if I were sober, pal.” Lion laughed.

Lion sighed, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a silver flask, taking a sip. He then extended it to Nameless, who begrudgingly accepted it. Nameless looked out the window, watching the buildings fly by, enjoying seeing all of the other hovercars and vehicles race past them above and below.

After sipping the burning whiskey, Nameless quietly reminisced about last night’s whirlwind adventure.

“In that video, we talked about our pasts,” Nameless said slowly.

“Yeah?” Lion shrugged.

“You’re a prince?”

Lion grimaced.

“Was,” He grumbled.

“I don’t buy the warrior monk thing. Who gives up title and luxury for some lofty idea?” Nameless said.

“Someone who actually believes. Besides, let’s just say I was highly encouraged to come here.”

“You welcome back home?”

Lion arched an eyebrow.

“Why are you asking?”

“Cuz people who drink and fuck around as much as you do usually don’t have a home,” Nameless said.

“Okay, doc, ya got me. Nah, I can’t go home. Surprise, surprise, I’m the family embarrassment. Let’s talk about your shitty-ass childhood, huh?”

“What childhood?” Nameless laughed.

“Hey! You told me all about the campfires and your little Vagabonds.” Lion jabbed happily. “At least you had others; it’s just been me on this fucked up journey.”

It was then that Nameless realized something. They were the same person. Lone fighters, no purpose, no home, no support aside from chosen friends, no true family. If anything, Nameless might have wound up worse off than Lion was if he had been born into that life. He was still cautious in trusting Lion; he wasn’t human after all, not to mention a loose cannon, to say the least. But he was genuine and, so far, loyal, just like a Vagabond.

“So, you’re stuck with us?” Nameless asked, breaking the silence.

“Yeshur. At least until Thaddeus gets sick of me. They always get sick of me.”

Nameless laughed.

“Can’t imagine why,” he sighed.

“Hey, just wait till you see me in action. This is my blow-off steam mode; you’re gonna want me by your side out there in the field.”

“Jumping off a balcony into a hovercraft twelve stories off the ground, drunk, is you blowing off steam?”

“Yeah.”

“Can’t wait to see what you do in game-mode.”

“It’s a Scourge thing, man. We hate authority, don’t fit in with military-type folk, but we’re damn good at violence.”

“What are Scourges?” Nameless asked.

Lion sighed.

“Didn’t Thaddeus explain it to you?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Nameless said. “But I want to hear it from an actual Scourge.”

“But you’re a Scourge too, right?”

Nameless nodded.

“I was gonna say, I know my memory ain’t that bad. Zion wants to keep a Scourge per team with a white hair; that way, we don’t go crazy and ruin the mission. So basically, Scourges are mighty, enhanced beings. We fuck shit up. But we are also like super unstable. Really good in combat, shit at life, ya know? Think of us as the big red button you break glass and push when shit goes really, really, really sideways.

Each Scourge is a unique man. Some of us remember our past lives, like you and me. Some like Rachel are just ridiculous angels of death, others are super stealthy, and some can physically insert themselves into different planes of reality. It’s crazy, man. One good Scourge is better than a nuclear weapon if used right.

That’s why the white hairs control and regulate us so much. Imagine how much damage an entire unit of Scourges could do!” Lion smiled.

“Doesn’t this class have a bunch of Scourges, though? I think you, me, this Rachel, and several others.”

Lion scowled.

“Yeah. Thaddeus is kinda trash-daddy. He takes in the Scourges no one else can handle and does a lot of weird missions and worlds. Shit, after the thirteen from your Mars came here, a lot more Scourges started popping up in the multiverse. We used to be like super rare man.”

Nameless nodded.

“So, what are your powers?” Nameless asked.

Lion smiled.

“Your old Earth history had dudes called ‘berserkers’. I like that term; it fits pretty well,” Lion grinned.

“You can also smell lies.”

Lion chuckled and nodded.

“It’s a curse here, man; the whole place smells like shit to me.”

“Any other powers I should know of?”

“Nah, we’re both golds; that’s ‘bout it,” Lion shrugged.

“Golds?” Nameless cocked his head.

“Yeah, the color of our energy is gold.”

“What do the colors mean anyway?”

“Gold is brave and strong, purple is sly and witty, blue is astute, red is anger and hate, black is focused, grey and white are scholarly,” Lion recited.

“Which means?” Nameless asked.

“If you're gold, you’re strong as shit. Combat oriented. Purple is more like you're stupid smart and can outmaneuver an entire army. Blue is Zion; they can zip through reality and live a really long time, white hair bullshit. Red doesn’t mean bad guy; it just means you’re a mean mofo. I worked with a red energy white hair; he was nuts, bro. Black is stealthy, but don’t underestimate them man. There are black energy light-bearers out there that can run your shit. Grey and white are like Cirilla, super Zion, very smart, can probably portal you across a galaxy easier than sneezing.”

“Why do they all have white hair?” Nameless chortled.

Lion shrugged with his hands in the air.

“Dunno, but they run this place, so something crazy, I guess.”

The taxi shuttered as they began landing.

“You ready for school, kiddo?” Lion chortled.

“Yeah, let’s do this,” Nameless sighed, opening the taxi door.

Outside the taxi door, the Light Bearer academy stood proudly. The building was white marble, with giant pillars holding up the roof. As the two approached, Nameless could see hundreds of statues, both human and not, carved into the marble, making the building seem more like a painting of thousands of heroes than an actual structure. Nameless remembered seeing buildings like this in Rome and Athens, but this was on a much grander scale.

At the base of the two center columns stood open a great door. Over the great door were enshrined bold gold letters that said something in Latin.

“Per has portas intrant fortes, fortes, protectores crostini,” Nameless said in wonder.

“Did you just have a stroke?” Lion asked in concern.

“It’s Latin, but the people who enshrined it fucked it up. The brave, the brave, the protectors of tomorrow’s gates enter through these. The words really mean the strong, through these gates, the courageous, the protectors of tomorrow enter,” Nameless sighed.

“Oh! So, it’s some old dead Earth language. Dude, the buildings all over this level are covered in those weird words. A whole bunch of picture-bird people gibberish too,” Lion chuckled.

“Makes sense the Egyptians and Romans were here first,” Nameless sighed.

His eyes widened.

“Lion, were you alive when the first humans came to Zion?” He asked.

“Nah not this life, but my dad was. Why?” Lion chuckled.

“Please don’t tell me all our gods were white hairs,” Nameless shuttered.

“Hey, Light Bearers. Happens to all of us, man. Most religions get it right; Zion is like western and eastern theologies combined, from what I remember from Earth Studies. We Laydren abandoned our old gods and adopted the Great Truth when we realized places like Zion were the ones pulling the strings,” Lion laughed.

Nameless shook his head as they began climbing the many steps up the building. As they ascended, passing dozens of different kinds of people, Nameless noticed Cirilla standing with her hands held together at the top. Her now short white hair tucked behind one ear, her blue eyes kind, her slender body covered by a grey dress with red lining. She stood with the posture of a great teacher, an almost permanent half smile on her face.

“Here we go,” Nameless sighed.

“Good morning, you two,” Cirilla nodded cheerfully as they closed in the distance.

“Morning!” Lion called.

“I see we had a successful military exercise,” Cirilla smirked, a twinkle in her eye.

“I’m sorry-” Nameless blurted.

Cirilla held up her hand.

“Young man, out of all the heroes I have trained, that was frankly one of the least stupid stunts I have seen pulled. But that was very dangerous; you two know better!” She scolded.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Both nodded abashedly.

“Come inside; we are about to begin,” Cirilla said kindly.

“Is Thaddeus here?” Nameless asked as they walked into the building.

“Oh yes, and he has some choice words for you too,” Cirilla chortled.

Inside the building, the entrance hall was massive, the left and right sides occupied by twelve-foot-tall statues of past heroes. Nameless studied them all in wonder as they walked past them. Some wore ancient armor, others had modern weapons, and others bore Zion-like armor and energy. The ceiling was covered in a gorgeous mosaic, mimicking neoclassic old Earth art depicting Light Bears flying and fighting.

As the three walked to the end of the hall, they descended the stairs leading into the sub-level of the academy where the classrooms were. On this level, the academy spread out underground, its hallways and rooms branching out like the roots of a great tree. Cirilla gestured towards a particular door, and they walked in.

A circle of seats stood inside the classroom, the walls lined with books and instruments. A good teacher could instruct a lifetime’s worth of education to a small number of students within these walls. Everything one could imagine was along the walls.

“Ah! Here we are!” Thaddeus chuckled.

“You fuckers!” Julia roared.

“They have already been reprimanded, my dear; you need not press it any further,” Cirilla nodded.

“Like hell! You probably just scolded them a little!” Julia seethed.

“Who’s that guy?” Aj grumbled, holding a bloody Mary in his hand, far more hungover than the new arrivals.

“Everyone, meet our newest Scourge, General Lion,” Nameless sighed.

“Is that sniper boy? Sup snipey?” Lion smiled.

“The fuck he just call me?” Aj growled.

“Great, another Earther,” Sammy groaned.

“Whoah, check yo’ self before you wreck yo’ self girly; I ain’t from Earth,” Lion grimaced.

Julia stomped over, staring Lion in the face. Her eyes widened, and she backed away slowly.

“That’s not a human,” Julia gasped.

“Looks pretty human to me,” Aj sighed.

“Nah, I’m not.” Lion laughed.

The Vagabonds gasped. Over in the corner, commander Anatolievich got up from his seat, slowly walking over to Lion.

“Zis is not human?” The Russian asked, cocking his head with his hands in his pockets.

“I heard of Laydren shapeshifters,” Commander Mai called from his perch on the opposite side of the room. The Martian Listener sat cross-legged on a desk, tucked away in the shadows.

Nameless studied the men. Commander Anatolievich was still massive, his broad shoulders jutting from underneath his bomber jacket, a pistol, and dagger perched on his army cargo pants. Commander Mai, Auntie Mai’s nephew, was a petite teenager. Barely nineteen, a crew cut and a dark black Listener uniform covering him. His Earth Chinese descent defined by a broad and sharp face.

“Yes, but he is an exceptional Light Bearer, and I think you will find his mentality very Vagabond-like,” Thaddeus chuckled.

“Only Martians can be Vagabonds,” Sammy said darkly.

“Once Hera and Spider are back, we can circle back to that topic,” Nameless sighed.

“How is Hera?” Julia asked.

“Should be up and about this week, my dear,” Cirilla nodded.

“With just a few months of recovery, I’m sure she’ll be back to her old self,” Thaddeus nodded.

“Still no word on Cap?” Aj asked.

A dark look overshadowed Thaddeus and Cirilla’s faces.

“No, but we will find him, lad,” Thaddeus said.

Suddenly, chiming rang out from the announcement speakers.

“All students and instructors, report to the assembly hall,” A woman’s voice said.

“Let’s go, children,” Cirilla called.

AJ, Nameless, and Lion walked side by side down the hall. Hundreds of pupils and white hairs were leaving their rooms, the tide of people flowing deeper underground. As the pupils milled out of the room, Julia walked past Nameless, shooting him a dark look.

Lion pulled out his flask and took a swig. Aj greedily eyed it. Lion smirked and offered the flask. Aj sipped, his eyes lighting up.

“What’s in this?” He stammered.

“The good shit, hombre,” Lion cackled, taking back the flask.

“Where’d you find this guy?” Aj laughed.

“Let’s just say it all started with some drinks in a park,” Nameless huffed.

The crowd emerged into the assembly hall. The hall resembled a Greek-style theatre, with the seats ascending like ridges up towards the ceiling. The vagabonds sat nearly in the back, with Thaddeus and Cirilla. The crowd anxiously murmured, a thousand worlds worth of pupils all different skin tones and clothing styles.

“Attention!” A man shouted.

The hall all shot up, every person standing at attention as three people walked on stage. A woman and two men. Even from a hundred feet away, Nameless could sense their power, his hair standing on end.

“That’s Bellum!” Aj whispered in awe. “The fucking God of War is here!”

“Blessed Maruintor,” Julia whispered in shock, her eyes wide, recognizing her patron goddess from Mars.

Nameless studied the tall, dark man on the center stage, his long black hair, humble clothes, and slender face. It was the actual Nameless One. As Nameless studied him in awe, they locked eyes. Fear nearly shattered Nameless’s mind, a thousand needles seemingly piercing him. He hadn’t felt this sensation since a vector had stared at him.

“Take your seats,” Bellum barked.

The crowd sat; the hall was silent.

Bellum was a massive man, easily six feet eight inches tall. He wore dark armor, a mace strapped to his back, his bald head glistening, his face and limbs covered in sub-dermal tattoos. His skin was the color of charcoal and glistened in the bright overhead light.

The woman Maruintor was stunning, her graceful body covered in a white silk dress, yet the material bent with her body. A golden wreathe adorned her majestic brown hair. Nameless had the feeling she could just as quickly kill as dance in that tunic-like dress. Her silk white skin was peppered with perfect makeup, and silver specks of glimmer beneath her eyes.

“We have grave news; there has been a massacre,” Maruintor called. “Yesterday, the Dark Axium struck a deadly blow to our ranks. It pains me to say, but eight professors and thirty students have lost their lives.”

As she spoke, Mistress Zion walked onto stage.

“By the command of the Council of Zion, from this point forward,” Mistress Zion called. “The war captains now have executive control over the task forces. War Captains Bellum and Maruintor shall take Ishtar and Belgrave and deploy to dimension Zeta-835 immediately to recover the bodies. War Captain Nameless shall envelope task forces Vagabond, Zygros, Merion, and Turga to begin counter-insurgency operations.”

“This is the darkest day Zion has had since the founding,” The Nameless God called. “We must stand together and do our duty. We are the bulwark against such wretched evil; all liberty passes are revoked. Every Light Bearer in this room can now be considered an active member of ‘Operation Swift Justice’. War Captain Maruintor, if you would be so kind, please recite the names of the dead.”

The Goddess of wisdom and beauty cleared her throat.

“Professors of Zion: Professor Anoryia, Professor Boris, Professor Annette, Professor Benjamin, Professor Pops, Professor Elizabeth, Professor Jerome, Professor Bartholomew, and Professor Zeke. The pupils have yet to be identified.”

Several students in the crowd cried out, some weeping. Pity and remorse filled Nameless; what a horrible way to find out that your professor had died. He didn’t want to imagine losing Thaddeus or Cirilla.

“As you all know, the Service Medal of Bravery and Excellence is the highest award Zion may bestow upon a Light Bearer. According to evidence given to us by the Scryers, a student stood to the last. Though he was unsuccessful, Zion would like to honor his sacrifice for his fellow pupils,” Mistress Zion called. “By honor and duty, the consul of Zion has decided to posthumously award the Service Medal of Bravery and Excellence to a student called: Captain Spider.”

Nameless felt they had walked off stage and punched him in the face.

“No,” Julia softly sobbed. Sammy was sniffling. Cirilla held her hand over her mouth. Aj was stone quiet, his eyes glaring pools of hate. Anatoli and Mai were silent, an understanding expression of sympathy on their faces. Lion was shaking his head. Nameless looked over at Thaddeus; the old man’s chin was trembling.

“Will the student’s professor and taskforce leader please come forward and receive the medal?” Mistress Zion called.

Nameless’s legs were locked. He felt numb; this didn’t feel real. It had to be a nightmare. Slowly, Nameless moved. As he walked, Thaddeus stood in place.

“C’mon, old man,” Nameless whispered.

Tears filled the old man’s eyes. He shook his head.

“I can’t move,” He whispered, tucking his chin.

Nameless gently grabbed his shoulder.

“We’ll go down together,” Nameless nodded.

Slowly, the professor walked foward. Together, they walked down the aisle, descending the steps. As they neared the stage, Nameless could feel all eyes on them. Nameless would rather of plunged into another green-lit bunker again, than walk onto that stage. They mounted the steps and stood at attention. Mistress Zion came up to them and handed Nameless the medal.

It was a gold star, with a white ribbon tinged with blue seams. The medal was housed in a pure white velvet box. Nameless held the award in his hand.

“He died like a true son of Mars,” Bellum nodded.

“We will hunt them down,” Maruintor said softly.

“He certainly was a vagabond,” The Nameless One said.

“What was he doing there?” Nameless whispered.

“The little one had been jumping from worlds; this was one of several instances he had fought the Dark Axium,” Mistress Zion said.

“But why was he there?” Thaddeus shuttered, his voice breaking.

“Steel yourself, man; you are a professor of Zion,” Bellum grunted with gritted teeth.

“We would like to take his body back to Mars,” Nameless said as he put the medal in his

pocket.

“We will arrange all of that later. Take your seats, gentlemen,” Mistress Zion said calmly.

The two nodded and drifted back upwards.

“Take this night to grieve; tomorrow, the Light Bearers of Zion go to war,” Mistress Zion called.