“I will allow you that because you deserve to call me that once for the things I have done.” She smiles. “It’s true. Nothing but meat chunks and debris left. I sure hope the same doesn’t happen to you all. It would be a shame seeing all your skins lay on the ground like hunted little foxes.”

Before anyone can respond, the waiter returns back with their orders. “Here you all g—” She stops in her tracks, seeing the new woman at the table with them. “Oh, my… I didn’t expect another to join you all. How… foolish of me.” Her attitude from earlier is swift away. There is a glint of her eyes staring at her as Miss Bones stares back.

“What a lovely waiter you are. Your ears are so noticeable. You remind me of a jackrabbit.” She chuckles.

“T-thank you, ma’am…” She sets the tray down on their table. “Is there perhaps something you would like to have as well?” she asks.

“Only a spare cup. I understand Kubo order jasmine tea in that kettle. He is so kind as to share it with me,” she answered.

“Yes, yes.. one extra cup for you, I’ll get that right away. In the meantime, I hope the patrons with their current orders enjoy it very much. I’ll return shortly,” she says, walking off.

“My, what a lovely girl. And her age isn’t much older than you all, either. Her bones are aged twenty years, another lovely informational quirk of my Remnant.” She taps the table once again, staring at the teapot.

“I will tell you all one thing, little foxes. You’ve caught the attention of my boss, and when his attention is caught on an ambition, he doesn’t sway away from it. It’s one trait about him I admire. However, I am not a blind follower. One can not have faith in something without evidence to themselves even if fabricated by their own fruition, can they?” She peers up at a television. The image of the kids from a week ago still shows as the nation calls for an increase in spending in the fight against the Remnants.

“Those who aren’t like us seek to kill us. It is because what we do is seen as bad in their eyes. Though I will tell you all, our cruelty isn’t founded on simple sadistic nature.”

“Bullshit!” Okazaki yells. It echoes in the empty restaurant.

“You expect us to believe that blatant lie!? After what you did to our classmates!? That was cold-blooded, no buts about it!”

“Y-yeah! And what about your friend, huh!? He tried to kill us, too. If Usagi didn’t save us, we’d be dead!” Keiko adds.

“You’re right,” Miss Bones answers. “What we did was evil. I didn’t say the action wasn’t evil. Our reasoning, however, is not. Just like the faithful crusades of old, who killed in the name of their faith, a sin upon itself and an evil to mankind, in their own reasoning, they were relieved of their sins. Be it through the course of righteous justice.” She smirks.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

“Shut the hell up!’ Usagi bounds up about to attack.

“Usagi!” Kubo screams, seeing her about to pounce. Before she can, the vial breaks and a swish of bone marrow rushes up and wraps itself around her mouth and neck. A rope of bone ties and drops her to the table, unable to breathe as she realizes it tied her ankles and wrists together as well. Her body is completely entrapped.

Her eyes meet Miss Bones. Her unwavering smile. The pure outclassed nature of the predicament.

“My, my, I can’t say I would have expected you to be the one to do it. If anything, I would have expected the bad boy to be the one to do it, but instead, he jumped back when he saw the vial break. You’re the one with that fire in your belly, that bravery of a lion, and the fangs to match.” She lowers herself to her level.

“I do love anomalies. They show that not everything is set in stone, and I find it simply wonderful.” She grabs underneath her chin, her hand freezing and uninviting. “Don’t you agree?” Everyone stands back, afraid to see her do more to her if they make a move. Kubo clicks something out of his jacket and points it at her head. It’s a gun.

Miss Bones, remaining unbothered, looks his way. “A gun? You’ve become more fearful for your life ever since you left us, haven’t you? And not just any gun, either. That’s a model meant to be easier to kill us, isn’t it? A magazine of bullets seeking to penetrate our power?” One of her fingers rides along the gun, not showing any hostility but a fascination with it.

“And you’ve got your hands on one? You must know people we don’t even know about. How extraordinarily intriguing.”

“I know this won’t kill you. We both know there aren’t nearly enough bullets in this weapon to do so. But if you hurt any of these kids, I won’t hesitate to test my luck,” he declares.

“You’ve always had a knack for getting yourself out of trouble, haven’t you?” She loosens her bony bounds from Usagi. She sits up, gasping for breath.

“It’s honestly so sad you’re only human. You would have made for a lovely Remnant.” She stands up. “Do offer my apologies to the waitress. I made her get a cup that is no longer needed. And I apologize for the inconvenience of your resting time. I’m sure we all will see each other again real soon.” She smiles and walks off.

“That… woman…” Usagi gasps out, her lungs begging for air.

“You really shouldn’t have attempted that. Because we were never going to win with any move we pulled there. None of us.” He points the gun at them.

“Hey, what are yo—” Keiko begins to say before stopping, noticing something in the barrel.

“You see it, don’t you? She locked the gun up with bone residue before I even pulled it out. It wouldn’t have fired even if I pulled the trigger.” He puts it down. “Now you kids understand what we’re truly up against.”

“She… thought that far ahead?” Ishimoto says, bewildered.

The waitress returns with the cup. “Here you go… I—wait, did that lady leave?”

“Yes. She apologizes for the inconvenience,” Kubo says, pouring himself a cup.

“My, you all seemed to put me through a bit of trouble there, but let go and live a better life or something like that, they say!” She smiles, returning back to the kitchen.

Takei stares down at the remaining bone fragments. She can’t get it out of her mind. Is this the bone of an animal or a person?

“None of you can hold back anymore. Now we know for certain that they’re gunning for us, and if we’re not ready, that’ll be the end not only for us but the world. I’m trusting you, kids, to do your best in training and honing your skills. This is dire,” Kubo says.

They all nod in agreement.

“Thinking as far ahead as she does, she also seems to have given us a warning.” He pulls out a card that was placed in his pocket. Nobody had seen it before, but she had placed it right when she was getting up. It reads, ‘Mr. Pond will test your skills in three days.’

“I’m sure you all know what this means.”

“Yeah…” Usagi manages to catch her breath now. “I’m not letting that bastard go this time…”