Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

AUGUST 2009

“FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!” A blonde haired boy of the age of 14 screamed as he ran through the woods in terror. Knowing what was behind him, not daring to look back for a second.

“It’s not real! It’s not FUCKING REAL!” The boy internally screamed in his head as he spotted a dark cave nearby in a clearing, and decided the best course of action would be to hide in it. 

The boy stumbled inside the cave to catch his breath, his lungs burning from exhaustion. All he wanted was to find a nice quiet place in the woods to smoke some weed and now he was being chased by some… some… thing!

“If I survive this shit… I’m going sober…” the boy mentally prayed even though deep down that he was full of shit.

That’s when he could hear the large sounding footsteps get closer and closer. That’s when the boy started to pray to every god he could think of. Jesus, Satan, …even Allah!

“ Fuck, I’m going to die… I’m going to die… I’m going to d-” His words were cut off at the sound of what seemed to be a lightning strike and a giant roar. The boy walked a little over to the cave’s entrance to take a peek outside but then had to close his eyes due to a giant bright light and the giant gust of wind that surrounded the entire clearing. He looked up at the sky and was confused by how clear the skies were. Where did the lightning come from?’

Once everything was settled, the boy finally got a good look outside and what he saw made his jaw drop. 

On the ground was a giant creature that he couldn’t fully describe since it was charred to a black crisp and three individuals wearing black suits and ties. From what he could make out, they were two blonde girls and one brown haired boy. 

The brown haired boy looked back at him and smiled and walked over to him. 

“You good?” He asked in a calm voice.

The blonde boy nodded both in shock and fear. “Who… Who the fuck are you guys?”

All the brown haired boy did was look back at his two companions and grinned white facing him again.

“My name is Alex. That’s Jecka and that’s Kelly.” The brown haired boy answered who pulled what seemed to be a badge out of his jacket pocket.

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“We’re agents of the O.D.D.”

Chapter Text

JUNE 2009

It was a warm summer morning at the Winters household. The only daughter of the family, wakes up in her bed groggily before grabbing her flip phone from her nightstand to check the time. It was a little before 8:00am.

“Ugh… Now that High School is over, am I gonna be waking up this early for the rest of my life?” she asked herself.

JESSICA “JECKA” WINTERS.

GIRLFRIEND OF ALEX YU AND BEST FRIEND OF NICOLE YU

FUN FACT: FAMILY GUY WATCHER AND APPLE JACKS ENTHUSIAST

“How is someone who actually wants to get up this early even well adjusted? If I was a suicide hotline operator I’d just tell ‘em to go for it. I’d be like “your therapist is a therapist, you think they got life figured out?” Dumb shit…” Jecka rambled before deciding to get out of bed and head downstairs for breakfast. 

Jecka made her way downstairs to the living room and as she did, she couldn’t help but notice that as she was walking down the hallway she saw all of the family photos that included her mother, shattered on the bathroom floor. Once she got to the living room, she was greeted by her father who had a nervous smile sporting his face. 

“Morning sweetheart.” her father greeted.

STAN WINTERS

FATHER OF JECKA WINTERS AND EX HUSBAND OF JOAN LYLE

FUN FACT: WIFE LEFT HIM AND HE IS NOW SINGLE AND READY TO MINGLE (…AND BEAT THE EVER LIVING SHIT OUT OF HIS DAUGHTER, THAT TOO)

“Yeah uh… Dad, why were all the family photos with Mom shattered on the Bathroom floor?” Jecka asked.

“Just- Just don’t worry about it, I’ll clean it up later.” Stan rubbed the back of his neck. 

“Why don’t you clean it up now, Dad? Before I step in it and turn into a Ripley’s episode??” Jecka glared.

“Okay, okay, I’ll get the vacuum.” Stan sighed.

“But yeah, where's Mom?” Jecka asked.

“Jessica, there’s no easy way to say this-” Stan began but was cut off by Jecka. 

“Did Mom get kidnapped??” Jecka’s eyes widened. 

“What- Now don’t be ridiculous.” Stan told his daughter, off guard from her wild theory.

“Oh I guess you’re right. The news thinks women are worthless once they turn 30 anyway.” Jecka sighed.

“Well Jesus Christ they’re not wrong.” Stan shrugged.

“What??” Jecka glared.

“Honey, your Mother and I are getting a divorce.” Stan finally admitted.

Jecka had a look of shock on her face at hearing this sudden news. “A… Are you positive?”

“For what?” Stan asked, misinterpreting his daughter’s question.

“N-No I mean… Are you sure?” Jecka asked again in clarification.

“Look I don’t mean to bring all this on you at once but I think the last fight we had was pretty much the straw that broke the camel’s back. She’s left to go live with your grandmother until we figure out who keeps what.” Stan explained. 

“Holy shit…” Jecka muttered. Now one part of her was pissed off that her Mom just up and  left her alone with her abusive father. But the other part of her was well…

“I-If you need any family counseling we-”

“THIS SHIT’S GONNA BE AWESOME!”

Yeah, that.

“How?” Stan asked in both confusion and surprise at his daughter’s reaction to all of this. 

“Two birthdays, two Christmases, too many excuses to get really cute emo tattoos.” Jecka counted the reasons off the top of her head with a grin.

“Dear I’m not sure if you should look at this as a good thing.” Stan raised an eyebrow.

“It’s not like somebody died or whatever, she’s just living somewhere else.” Jecka shrugged.

“And would you want to live with her and your grandma?” Stan asked.

“Dad, fuck no, grandma’s like the biggest bitch on Earth. Besides, all my friends and my boyfriend live here.” Jecka answered.

“Well alright, but just so you know, now that she’s gone there’s gonna have to be a few changes around here.” Stan stated.

“Changes like what?” Jecka asked, not having a good feeling about this.

“Since her income no longer contributes to the household, paying for your college is turning out to be a little more challenging than I predicted.” Stan sighed. 

“So what’re you saying?” Jecka asked in confusion.

“I’m saying you’re gonna have to get a job if you wanna continue to live here.” Stan explained. 

“Dad, what the fuck.” Jecka’s jaw dropped. 

“I know, I know, I said you wouldn’t need to but-” Stan tried to calm his daughter down but was quickly cut off. 

“She’s the one divorcing you, don’t take it out on me!” Jecka shouted in anger.

“I swear if you don’t… SHUT THE FUCK UP I WILL THROW YOUR ASS OUT ON THE STREET!!” Stan screamed in rage, causing Jecka to back away a bit in fear. 

“O-Okay, Dad…” Jecka said, nervously.

“HOW ABOUT I KNOCK A TOOTH OUT EVERY TIME YOU ACT LIKE YOUR BITCH WHORE MOTHER!? THINK I GIVE A FUCK WE PAID FOR BRACES!?” Stan raged at her, holding his fist up threateningly at Jecka. 

“Alright fine I’ll get a job! Shit!” Jecka shouted in fear. 

“STILL GONNA BE A BITCH!?” Stan screamed as he walked closer to her. 

“No no! I’ll be good!” Jecka said in fear as she backed away even more. 

“Good, cause if you’re not I will SMACK YOUR MAKEUP OFF! NOW GET YOUR ASS OUT THERE AND FIND A JOB OR YOUR MATTRESS IS GOING IN THE BACKYARD!” Stan continued to scream.

“Okay just stop yelling!” Jecka held her hands up defensively in case her Dad was going to strike her. Thankfully this time he didn’t and began to calm down. 

“Good. Cause the last thing we want is you ending up like your freeloading whore of a mother.” Stan said calmly. 

“But wasn’t she the breadwinner of the family and- Yeah we don’t want that.” Jecka decided to stop herself from making her dad even more mad.

“I’m sorry I yelled sweetheart but now that you’re 18 and Mom’s not around anymore, the parenting’s gonna be a little different from now on. Who’s Daddy’s girl?” Stan smiled as he ruffled his daughter’s messy blonde hair. 

“...I am…” Jecka said weakly.

“Good.” Stan smiled and then went to go pick up the house phone that started ringing. “Hello? …Hey Craig, yeah I’d love to donate to that underprivileged youth program.” 

“He donates to charity, how could he abuse his daughter?” Jecka quietly mocked in frustration as she walked back upstairs to take a shower, get dressed, and go to the mall to start looking for a job.

……..

………………….

………………………………..

At the mall, Jecka was explaining her current situation to her best friend. Especially about the part of her Dad threatening to beat her. 

“And he’s not bluffing?” Nicole asked.

NICOLE YU

TWIN SISTER OF ALEX YU AND BEST FRIEND OF JECKA WINTERS

FUN FACT: EX SOCIOPATH AND EX STRAIGHT GIRL (#PRIDE)

“Definitely not bluffing. I’m just gonna get my horrible job to appease him until Alex and I go to college in September.” Jecka rationalized. 

“Speaking of Alex, why didn’t you just ask him to help you out? I mean me and him kinda got a lot of fucking money from our suicidal dad.” Nicole shrugged. 

“Nicole! I’m not going to ask my boyfriend for his dead dad money!”

“Yeah true, I wouldn’t give it to you either.”

“Well that’s because you’re a bitch. Big difference.”

“True shit. But shouldn’t you like at least tell him what’s going on?” 

“I… I don’t want him to worry. If I told him my Dad beats me and is forcing me to get a job if I don’t wanna become homeless, I don’t know WHAT he would do.”

“He’d probably murder your dad.”

He probably would! And as hot as that would be, I don’t want to see my boyfriend get arrested until we are at least a week into college!”

“Keeping a secret job from your boyfriend and suffering through abuse. You got a real Disney sitcom scenario going for ya.” Nicole scoffed, rolling her eyes.

“Disney sitcoms aren’t abusive!”

“Yeah, you’re right. That’s more of Nickelodeon's speed.”

“In any case, I gotta find a job as soon as possible.” Jecka sighed. 

“But Ulta’s not hiring, Journey’s isn’t hiring, not even Popeye’s is hiring.” Nicole pointed out.

“How does a restaurant where everyone looks miserable not have a huge turnover rate?” Jecka groaned. 

“Cause the recession.” Nicole said simply, shrugging her shoulders. 

“What even is the recession?” Jecka asked. 

“I don’t know but it’s a thing you can blame shit on, the recession’s pretty cool actually.” Nicole answered.

“Yeah I’m broke cause the recession.” Jecka snickered. 

“Yeah can’t have dinner with your vegan parents, recession.” Nicole joked back.

“I wish that worked on my Dad.” Jecka sighed. 

“And your Dad wishes you worked, cruel irony.” Nicole quipped. 

At that moment, a scrawny boy with thick rimmed glasses walked up to the two girls. The pair internally groaned once they saw who it was. 

“Oh hey guys, fancy seeing you here.” Jeffrey greeted them.

JEFFREY STEVENS

FUN FACT: IS A SCHOOL SHOOTER IN 99% OF TIMELINES

“What the fuck do you want?” Nicole glared.

“Yeah we’re busy Jeffrey.” Jecka said in annoyance.

“Busy applying for jobs I take it?” Jeffrey asked. 

“Are you stalking her?” Nicole asked.

“What the- No! I saw you were running around with a bunch of application papers on my way to work is all.” Jeffrey explained, putting his hands up defensively.

“Work is all.” Jecka mocked. 

“What do you mean “work”, you have a job?” Nicole raised an eyebrow.

“That’s right! I got a job at the bookstore since I spent so much time reading the manga there.” Jeffrey crossed his arms, smugly.

The two girls looked at him in silence and then looked at each other and then looked back to Jeffrey. After a couple more seconds, Jecka spoke up.

“...Every time you talk I really wonder how you could possibly have legal sex.”

“Eh, so what, after graduation I realized that sex is kinda overrated. I’m into plenty of other stuff beyond girls and their high standards.” Jeffrey huffed in annoyance.

“Is bathing a standard?” Nicole quipped.

Jeffrey was going to argue but all of a sudden his watch suddenly started beeping which made him realize that he was going to be late for work.

“Oh I’m gonna be late!” Jeffrey shouted as he looked at his watch before glaring at the two and walking towards the bookstore while cursing women under his breath.

“...I think all the not fucking women is turning into not liking women.” Nicole deadpanned. 

“Do you think he should turn gay?” Jecka asked.

“As someone who’s like half gay I don’t think it works like that.”

“Huh… Hey wait! Do you think Ari could get me a job at Hot Topic?”

“Bitch be serious right now.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Did you forget that Hot Topic has you on a ban list after that entire protest stunt you pulled with my brother last month?”

“Fuck, I totally forgot.” 

“I don’t think you’d want to work there anyway. I go there all the time to visit Ari on her breaks and sometimes I feel like that place just isn’t hardcore enough.”

“What, because of all the Disney stuff?” 

“No, it's just missing something. Like if I ran that place the TVs would all have videos of guys getting decapitated with a Hello Kitty watermark in the corner.” 

“That’d be cool, you should apply for manager there.”

“Screw that shit. Did you forget I have fucking BANK now? I won’t need to worry about getting some bitch ass job for a while.”

“Yeah, yeah, keep rubbing it in.” Jecka rolled her eyes and out of nowhere another individual walked over to them and the pair internally groaned even more than when they saw Jeffrey.

“What’s up, bitches?” Kylar asked with a grin.

KYLAR HAWKS

(NOT SO)FUN FACT: HAS A FETISH FOR THE UNCONSCIOUS

“What the fuck do you want?” Jecka glared.

“Yeah and we don’t go to school with you anymore so you can’t just come up to us.” Nicole added. 

“Well no if anything I can do what I want since you don’t have the principal to squeal to.” Kylar argued.

“This isn’t school, it's real life, we’ll just tell the police.” Jecka argued back. 

“No you won’t.” Kylar simply said.

“How do you know?” Nicole asked.

“Don’t like 50 percent of women not even report crimes or whatever?” Kylar questioned. 

“Yeah so?” Jecka asked, confused.

“So if I punch you in the neck, flip a coin, bitch.” Kylar threatened before walking past them and leaving the mall.

“And he’s off to his dad’s dealership.” Nicole muttered under her breath.

“Yeah, what a fucking dickbag.” a new voice commented, causing Nicole and Jecka to turn around.

“Oh shit, sup Emily.” Nicole smiled. 

“Sup guys.” Emily grinned back, putting her hands in her pockets.

EMILY JAY

FUN FACT: TRIED TO SET A GUINNESS WORLD RECORD FOR MOST DRUGS TAKEN BUT WAS ARRESTED AFTER SHE PUT A BUNCH OF FLYERS UP FOR IT

“What are you doing here?” Jecka asked.

“Stealing shit and selling shit. What else would I be doing? What about you guys?” Emily asked back.

“Well my parents are getting divorced and now I gotta get a job.” Jecka answered.

“The strip club in Crystal City is hiring.” Emily offered.

“Ew fuck that.” Jecka cringed.

“What’s it pay?” Nicole asked.

“Tips.” Emily answered.

“Yeah ew fuck that.” Nicole cringed too in agreement.

“I didn’t bust my ass in high school to sell my body to guys who look like Super Mario without the costume. Besides, the only person who deserves to see my awesome tits is Alex.” Jecka huffed.

“Him and every other guy you’ve ever dated…” Nicole quietly muttered as she rolled her eyes. 

“Well ya know I work over at the Chrome Diner so if you’re down to just wait tables then lemme know.” Emily said as she walked away from the two but not before stopping herself to look back at Nicole. “See ya on Friday for band practice Nicole.” Emily waved before once again walking away from them until she was out of sight.

“...I can do better than waiter, right?” Jecka asked, turning to Nicole in worry.

“Bitch you can’t even wait for popcorn.” Nicole rolled her eyes.

“I told you I like it medium-well!” Jecka crossed her arms in annoyance as she and Nicole decided to leave the mall for today and try job searching again tomorrow.

………..

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………………………………………..

The next day rolled around and Nicole was knocking on the door of Jecka’s house. A few seconds went by until the door opened to reveal Jecka’s father who invited Nicole inside.

“Oh hello uh, Nicole right?” Stan asked unsure.

“Yeah, where’s Jecka?” Nicole asked.

“Jessica right, she’s just up in her room applying for jobs over the phone but she’ll only be a few more minutes.” Stan told her.

“Cool…” Nicole said as she rubbed her arm awkwardly.

“But uh, we can talk while she’s busy. How ya doin’? How ya doin’ today?”

“Yeah.”

“So uh Jessica never told me much about you. Especially not how beautiful you are.”

“Yeah I’m kinda perfect like that, she’s probably jealous.”

“Y’know before her mother my last girlfriend was a brunette too actually.”

“Yeah and my current girlfriend is a brunette when she doesn’t smother it in red dye so I guess we both got that in common. I’m heading up there now.” Nicole said as she walked past Stan to head to Jecka’s room.

“O-Oh! I didn’t realize you were… Hey wait! I don’t think Jessica is done yet!” Stan called up to her as she was halfway up the stairs. 

“Well it felt like an eternity talking to you so if this bitch doesn’t have a job by now I’m pretty sure you failed as a parent.” Nicole said coldly as she continued up the stairs, not even looking back.

Once Nicole had entered Jecka’s room, she noticed that she was still on the phone but it looked like she was just about done.

“Okay thanks for the job, and yeah bring your Adderall Monday.” Jecka smiled as she hung up the phone and turned around to face Nicole.

“What kinda job did you get?” Nicole raised an eyebrow at that last statement.

“Oh Emily just got me a job waiting tables with her.” Jecka informed her best friend.

“How does buying a girl’s Adderall turn into employment?” 

“Buying drugs can make you like the most connected person in town.”

“I guess I would know that if I didn’t always steal them.”

“Yeah it’s a great way to meet friends you’ll immediately cut off once you get your life together.”

“Wow working in a diner, that’s like the start of a Hillary Duff movie where she finds out her Dad has a blood diamond mine.” Nicole rolled her eyes in sarcasm.

“Did you just get here?” Jecka asked.

“No, your Dad made me wait downstairs, he kept trying to talk to me.” Nicole informed her.

“Oh… well how’d that go?” Jecka asked, a bit nervously.

“How would I word this…Your Dad REALLY wants to fuck me.” Nicole said bluntly.

“Wha- No way!” Jecka exclaimed in shock.

“Yeah way.”

“My Dad would never do that.”

“Never? Or never want to?”

“But how do you know?”

“Why don’t you just believe me?”

“Cause I don’t believe my Dad would just go up to you like “Let’s fuck!””

“No they never do it like that, I can just tell. He was way too interested.”

“Interested how?”

“He told me I’m beautiful.”

“What if he’s just being nice? If that’s all you have I don’t think that’s enough to go off of.” Jecka said as she turned around in annoyance.

“...His last girlfriend was a brunette.” Nicole simply said.

“His… what?” Jecka asked in confusion as she quickly turned back around to face Nicole.

“He told me his last girlfriend was a brunette.”

“Uh… Nicole…” 

“Yeah?”

“My Dad wants to fuck you…” Jecka cried out in a whine-like voice.

“I know.” Nicole stated.

“I’m gonna kill myself! Help me kill myself!” Jecka said as she frantically walked all around her room.

“Well that wouldn’t be technically killing yourself, now would it?” Nicole pointed out.

“I can’t go through with it alone, I’m too scared!” Jecka cried out.

“Work that job for a month, you’ll get there. Maybe you and Alex can form a couple suicide pact.” Nicole shrugged.

“Ugh… Oh hey wait, speaking of Alex, did you tell him about… my situation?” Jecka asked, rubbing the back of her neck.

Nicole rolled her eyes at this. “No I didn’t. I went along with your bad idea of not telling your boyfriend and my brother about your financial issues.”

“Oh… so how’s he doing?”

“Other than the fact he’s moping around the house cause you had to cancel a date in favor of job searching, I’d say he’s doing fine.” Nicole shrugged.

“God I’m a shitty girlfriend…” 

“Yep.”

“Bitch you’re supposed to disagree!” 

“Hey man I’m just telling it like it is.”

“Whatever… It will all work out in the end. …I hope.” Jecka sighed as she felt anxious to start her job tomorrow. 

……….

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It was Jecka’s first day at her new job and Emily was showing her the ropes.

“Yeah so uh, any questions?” Emily asked whilst playing with her hair.

“Can your boyfriend get ketamine too?” Jecka asked.

“I mean about the job?” Emily rolled her eyes.

“Oh um, don’t you have to wear a uniform?”

“We make 2 dollars an hour and the rest is in tips, I’m not wearing some ugly ass uniform.”

“Yeah I guess we gotta look our best then.”

“Besides, the manager likes it. I’m pretty sure he dates a different waitress every month anyway.” 

“Is that why he wanted a picture before hiring me??”

“Yeah. It’s basically the Playboy Mansion with more calories.”

“More like the Playboy motorhome, we’re not getting paid shit!”

“Oh he actually gives a bonus if you wear open-toe shoes.”

“Fuckin’ why?”

“I don’t know he’s 5'4 and Turkish, you think he’s gonna act normal?

“I guess it’s worth the bonus… And your boyfriend’s just okay with this?” Jecka asked Emily.

“Which one?” Emily asked, tilting her head to the side.

“The… Never mind. At least I’m not a whore.” Jecka sighed.

“Well what about your boyfriend? Does Alex know you’re gonna be working here?” Emily asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Ummm… No…?” Jecka said nervously.

“Ohhh shit. Keeping secrets from your BF. You cheating?” Emily asked, nonchalantly.

“Fuck no I’m not cheating!” Jecka shouted in offense. 

“Well 90% of the time when a girl keeps secrets from her boyfriend it’s because she’s cheating. Trust me. I’ve cheated on tons of guys before.” Emily shrugged her shoulders.

“That’s not really something to brag about… Anyways I’m not cheating on him! I’m keeping this a secret because I love him and I don’t want him to worry!” Jecka glared at the scene girl.

“Ew I don’t wanna hear all that mushy shit. I’m not some Hallmark channel watching hoe!” Emily glared back.

“No you’re just a regular one.” Jecka stated matter of factly. 

“Exactly. Anyways I gotta refill this old guy’s coffee before he starts telling me how service was better in the 60’s.” Emily says as she walks over to one of the tables with a pot of coffee in her hand. 

Jecka sighed and began to work her shift as well. Most of the time it was a pain in the ass trying to remember who ordered what but she figured she did a decent job at it. Except for when a customer splashed a cup of water at her to see if he could see through her tank top and stare at her breasts. That wasn’t that fun. Luckily it was finally time for her break so she went outside with Emily for a smoke. 

“I wish there was something more relaxing than cigarettes.” Jecka sighed as she filled her lungs up with smoke. 

“Death?” Emily suggested. 

“Yeah, by the way where’d you get your purple jeans? I want some.”

“Shop in Georgetown, they were like 200 dollars.”

“How do you blow 200 on jeans when we’re getting paid the same?”

“You think this is my only job?”

“Wow I’ve only worked one day and I can barely work this job. I don’t know why but I feel like we’re too pretty to work.”

“What’s the saying? If you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life?”

“Cool so what do you do with the second job?”

“I sell cough medicine to middle school kids and tell them it’s heroin.”

“Oh… That’s uh… something. Anyway I think our break is over now.” Jecka said as she took one last drag from her cigarette and threw it on the floor and stomped on it before heading back inside the diner.

………..

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…………………………..

Jecka has been working at the diner for a couple days now and suffice to say that she hasn’t been doing a great job. She has been coming into work late almost every shift and has been pretty shitty as a waitress altogether. It’s a good thing she’s super hot or she would have been fired day 1.

Jecka was currently browsing through the mall before her shift as she wanted to find something cuter than Emily’s new pants. 

“I wanna one-up Emily and her purple pants. Like if Daisy Duke got her laundry mixed up with Grimace.” Jecka said to herself. 

“Grimace? Are you keeping up with the Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald too?” Jeffrey asked from out of nowhere, making Jecka almost jump.

“Wh… What?” Jecka asked, caught off guard from Jeffrey’s sudden appearance.

“The Ronald McDonald cartoon? It was made by the same studio that gave us Rugrats and The Wild Thornberrys.” Jeffrey informed her. 

“Jeffrey, please don’t rape any women, they’ve had enough.” Jecka said with concern. 

“Wha- Hey I wouldn’t want that to happen to any woman… Provided she’s not mean to people.” Jeffrey replied.

“Wow.” Jecka commented.

“What’s wrong?” Jeffrey asked obliviously. 

“Nothing fixable, so I gotta go now.” Jecka said as she began to walk away but not before Jeffrey called out to her again.

“Wait but, could I talk about something with you?” Jeffrey asked before she could get away which made Jecka sigh and turn around to face Jeffrey again with a glare.

“Talk about what?” Jecka asked, annoyed.

“About… us?” Jeffrey blushed.

“Us?” Jecka raised an eyebrow.

“I just wanted to apologize and explain why things were so awkward between us in high school. And now that we’re graduated I guess it won’t hurt to come clean with this… I’ve always sort of been a secret admirer of yours.” Jeffrey admitted, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly with a blush.

“...Okay well hey I gotta go to work now.” Jecka said and just before she could get away again, Jeffrey grabbed her by the wrist, making Jecka flinch in both cringe and disgust.

“No, no I’m serious! I like your hair, and your face, and how your jeans fit your body! I also like how small and cute your feet are!” Jeffrey shouted as he stared Jecka directly in the eye, keeping a strong grip on her wrist. 

“Get your fucking hands off of me!” Jecka screamed as she kneed Jeffrey in the groin, causing him to let go of her. “Literally fuck off and go hang yourself in a Burger King playground!”

Jeffrey was clutching his crotch in pain as he fell to his knees and looked up at Jecka with an intense glare. “Rgh! I don’t get it!” 

“Your bitch ass better not try to pull out a gun!” Jecka glared back.

“I just try to be nice to girls by telling them how beautiful they are and they just throw it back in my face!” Jeffrey yelled in anger.

“Grabbing a girl’s wrist and talking about how sexy their body is isn’t being fucking nice! Especially when that girl has a boyfriend that can kick your ugly ass across the fucking street!” Jecka screamed at Jeffrey causing him to back away from her a bit.

“Hmph! It’s times like this where I wonder what’s the point of even staying alive.” Jeffrey huffed.

“For you? None. End it.” And with that, Jecka speed walked away from Jeffrey to get to her job in hopes that she won’t end up late again.

……….

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…………………………..

“Okay, I think I’m on time!” Jecka huffed, out of breath after running all the way to the diner. 

“What’re you doing here?” Emily asked, confused as Jecka walked inside.

“I’m working today aren’t I? Fuck did I get Tuesday mixed with Thursday again?” Jecka groaned.

“Hate to break it to ya but-”

“Why don’t they rename Thursday to something good like Chick-Fil-A Day??”

“Bitch you got fired!” Emily shouted before Jecka could get into one of her famous rambles. 

“No way!” Jecka exclaimed in shock.

“Yeah way, the manager got mad that you pulled away when he leaned in to smell your hair last week.”

“He fired me over that? Isn’t that like workplace harassment or something?”

“Not anymore, you don’t work here.”

“Is that how that… Was that really it?” Jecka asked skeptically.

“No, he bitched about how you give out too many napkins to old ladies ordering iced tea and nothing else.” Emily admitted.

“But he told me customer service is my first priority!”

“Yeah but saving money is his.” 

“Fuckin’ what money? He steals Chipotle napkins to use here!”

“He said it costs at least $1.50 in gas to drive over there.”

“Y’know what? FUCK THIS JOB! THIS JOB SUCKS!” Jecka screamed, causing everyone in the restaurant to stare at her. 

“...Jecka?” A voice called out to her causing Jecka to turn around and once she did her eyes widened. 

“Oh shit.” Jecka mentally cursed. 

“Jeck, what’s going on?” Alex asked, both confused and concerned as he walked up to his girlfriend.

ALEX YU

TWIN BROTHER OF NICOLE YU AND BOYFRIEND OF JECKA WINTERS

THE PROTAGONIST OF OUR STORY

“Uh… well…” Jecka replied nervously, rubbing her arm.

“She’s just mad that she got fired.” Emily answered for her, causing Jecka to quickly glare at Emily before looking back over to Alex.

“Fired? I didn’t even know you had a job in the first place. Is this why you’ve had to cancel on our last few dates?” Alex asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Well uh… Can we like talk about this outside?” Jecka asked as she looked down on the floor, holding her arm.

Alex nodded at this and the two of them walked outside until they were a couple feet away from the diner. 

“So… what are you even doing here?” Jecka asked her boyfriend.

“Well Nicole told me that they brought back the McRib and were secretly selling it at the local diner. But now I have a feeling this is what she really wanted me to see.” Alex answered as he put his hands in the pockets of his shorts.

“Damn it Nicole…” Jecka mentally groaned before giving Alex a confused look. “Wait… So you thought… that they had a discontinued McDonald's sandwich… at some random diner?”

“Yeah… now hearing it out loud… I’m starting to realize how fucking stupid that sounds.” Alex admits, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment but quickly shakes it off. “But enough about that. How come you had a job? You always talked about how you weren’t gonna get one until you graduated college. What changed?” Alex asked, getting the conversation back to its original topic. 

Jecka sighed. She knew that she couldn’t lie to him. She didn’t WANT to lie to him. So Jecka ended up telling him everything. About how her dad beats her (Although unknowingly to Jecka, Alex already knew that part due to past time loops in the first book) and how he is threatening to kick her out of the house if she doesn’t get a job. And finally explained that the reason she kept this a secret from him was so he wouldn’t have to worry about her. 

After she had finished explaining, Jecka looked up to Alex, nervous of how he would respond. Would he be upset for keeping her keeping secrets from him? Is he going to break up with her? Is she about to get fired and dumped all in the same day? Finally after what seemed like eternity, Alex spoke and said something she never even at all expected for him to say.

“Damn. Well it looks like we’re both gonna have to get jobs in order to pay for college.”

Jecka looked up at her boyfriend in both confusion and shock. “H-Huh?”

“Well NYU is a pretty expensive school and considering we both only have $50,000, it’s gonna be a bit tough but I think we can get the extra money once the two of us get hired somewhere and-”

“Wa-Wait Wait Wait! H-Hold on! What… What are you talking about?” 

“Huh? I’m talking about how we are both gonna need to get jobs if we’re gonna pay for college.” Alex answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

“Y-Yeah but I don’t understand? I thought you were given $100k not $50k and I sure as hell don’t have $50k, that’s why I’m working in the first place and… W-Wait… Are you… saying…?” Jecka asked in realization.

Alex smiled at her. “Yep. I’m splitting my money with you. We’re paying for our college together Jeck.” 

“A-Alex. I can’t take the money your dad left you… And I sure as hell can’t drag you down in working some bullshit part time job with me!” 

“It’s my money and I can decide what to do with it. And honestly? I always planned on using that money for us anyway. I just didn’t know how exactly until now. Besides, I think working the same job together would make it suck a lot less for the both of us.” Alex grinned with a laugh.

Jecka was stunned and couldn’t say a word. She felt frozen. But nevertheless, tears began to flow out her eyes and she began to cry.

“I… I don’t fucking deserve you. I don’t fucking deserve you Alex.” Jecka whimpered as she rubbed her eyes, trying to suppress the tears that kept falling.

Alex quickly enveloped her into a big hug and slowly rubbed her back in comfort as she continued to cry on his shoulder. “You… deserve everything Jeck. Even if your piece of shit Dad or anyone else says otherwise. To me, you deserve the world.” Alex whispered in her ear as Jecka’s crying began to stop and she started to calm down. 

The two broke the hug and Jecka finished wiping the tears from her eyes and looked at Alex with a small smile. “Th-Thank you Alex. Thank you.” 

“Of course Jeck. Now c’mon. I know someone who will give us a job in a heartbeat.” Alex grins as he reaches his hand out to her to which Jecka quickly accepts it and intertwines her fingers with his own. 

The two began to walk away from the diner hand in hand. Both looking hopeful for the future and ready to take on anything that the world throws at them.

….

…………

………………….

But little did Alex and Jecka know…

….

………..

………………….

…This would be the last summer they would spend together.

Chapter Text

“...So Alex?” Jecka looked to the side at her boyfriend standing next to her as they were both in their new work uniforms. 

“Yes Jeck?” Alex asked, calmly, also looking to the side.

“When you told me you knew someone who would hire us in a heartbeat… you were referring to just yourself, weren’t you?”

“Well, yes, but I told her that we were a package deal so… ya know…”

“That’s not going to stop her from trying to get in your pan-” Jecka was cut off by a cheerful voice owned by a girl with blonde hair and black roots. 

“Hey guys! I am actually like so stoked that we all get to work here together!” Kelly excitedly said. 

KELLY ANDERSON

FUN FACT: HAS NEVER HAD PROTECTED SEX AND SOMEHOW HAS NEVER GOTTEN AN STD OR PREGNANT ONCE. SCIENCE HAS YET TO EXPLAIN THIS.

“Stoked for us to be working here or stoked to have lots of opportunities to try and fuck my boyfriend?” Jecka glared at Kelly.

“Jecka, c’mon! I know Alex and I have had a history together but that’s all in the past!”

“...History?” Alex sweatdropped.

“Your masturbation fantasies don’t count as history!” Jecka shouted.

“Oh, well nevermind then. Anyways! You two should know that working at FYE requires a lot of patience and an overall love of media.” Kelly informed the two.

“Do we really have to love it?” Jecka asked.

“Well why else would you work here?” Kelly raised an eyebrow.

“For a fucking paycheck, I love money bitch.”

“I do too, but you gotta love other things. Like the customer.”

“Why would I love the customer?” Jecka asked with a blank face and once she had, Kylar ended up walking into the store.

“Oh- one’s walking in right now. Lemme show you.” Kelly told Jecka as she glanced at Kylar and began to walk over to him.

“Sup bitch, you got any Crank Yankers DVDs?” Kylar asked.

“Uh… Hi! Yeah um, not sure if we have Crank Yankers but I could look on the computer.” Kelly said. 

“Nah that’s okay, I can look around. Maybe pick up some bitches and shit.” 

“Oh yeah, give our showroom a look.”

“I’ll give you this dick, bitch.”

“And Crank Yankers… Super funny, I remember seeing it on Comedy Central once at 2 in the morning.”

“You like that show too? Wow you’re really hot.” Kylar began to look at Kelly with a lustful look in his eyes. 

“Uh… Hahahaha.” Kelly fake laughed as she looked a bit uncomfortable.

“Even though Kelly is a huge slut, I guess not even she would stoop low enough to fuck Kylar.” Alex thought to himself. 

“Damn I’m so funny.” Kylar complimented himself.

“Yeah she thought it was funny.” Alex said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

“So you wanna go out later?” Kylar asked Kelly.

“Go… with you?” Kelly asked, a bit creeped out.

“Yeah there’s a pretty sick motorcross rally in town.”

“Uh… I’m at work…”

“Yeah no I said later.”

“Why don’t we look for that Crank Yankers DVD?” Kelly asked, trying to change the subject.

“You’re a fucking bitch. I hope you get drugged and kidnapped.” Kylar glared before leaving the store in anger.

“...Love the customer huh Kelly?” Alex deadpanned.

“Look guys, this is retail. Every now and then you get a few bad apples.” Kelly sighed.

“And what exactly is the coherence rate of people shopping here?” Jecka asked with an unimpressed look at Kelly’s excuse. 

“Well they’re buying CDs in 2009, they can’t be the brightest!” Kelly huffed in annoyance.

“...Fair enough.” Alex shrugs.

……..

……………..

…………………………..

A couple of hours have passed and Alex and Jecka had finally finished their first shift at FYE and were currently leaving the mall. 

“I wonder what un-burnt Domino’s tastes like.” Jecka wondered out loud.

“Probably less shitty… But still pretty shitty.” Alex answered but then all of a sudden stopped dead in his tracks. Jecka looked over to him in confusion.

“What’s wrong?” Jecka asked. 

Alex was looking behind them for a few seconds before turning back to face Jecka. “Uh… nothing, sorry. Just got distracted is all.” Alex answered before continuing to walk with Jecka who just shrugged it off as they left the mall.

“Weird… For some reason… It felt like we were being watched.”

………

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……………………………..

Alex and Jecka have been working at FYE for a week now and today was payday. Which meant that at the end of their shift they would get their paychecks for the week. It was finally time to clock out when Alex and Jecka went to Kelly to collect their paychecks.

“Hey guys, so regarding your paychecks… we may have a little problem…” Kelly said nervously. 

“Bitch don’t make me choke you.” Jecka said, extra annoyed over the fact that she just had to deal with fucking Crispin of all people right before their shift ended. 

“Jesus, chill out! Do you need anger management?” 

“What we NEED is our fucking money Kelly.” Alex said, also annoyed over having to deal with Crispin.

“Well so do I!” Kelly exclaimed.

“What the hell does that mean?” Alex asked in confusion.

“The computers went down an hour ago totally out of nowhere.” Kelly informed the two.

“So?” Jecka asked, still not getting it.

“So if the computers aren’t working we can’t log the hours to print our paychecks.” Kelly explained. 

“Can’t we call regional to fix it?” Alex asked.

“I already called regional. The entire phone line is down! Which is weird because regional is never down!” 

“Okay… well what about corporate?” 

“Ugh… Let’s look in the break room…” Kelly sighed as the three of them went to the back of the store and began searching through the break room for a number they could call.

“Is there anything on those shelves over there?” Jecka asked as she searched through some drawers. 

“No, just fake Justin Timberlake autographs we gave out for an event.” Kelly sighed.

“Wow, that's evil.” Jecka commented. 

“Yeah… fake autos are pretty low.” Kelly agreed.

“No- who the fuck would want HIS autograph?” Jecka clarified.

“Tons of people.”

“Like who?”

“Like girls who only get tattoos when they’re drunk on spring break.”

“Hold on girls, I might have found something.” Alex said, causing the two girls to turn and walk over to where Alex was as he was standing in front of a cabinet. 

“What did you find?” Kelly asked.

“Mostly menus for takeout places but stuffed way in the back were these contact forms from an old FYE.” Alex answered, handing the forms to Kelly so she could get a better look at them.

“Franconia Road… No…”

“No what?” Alex asked.

“That’s not an old FYE… That’s the OTHER FYE!”

“What other FYE?” Jecka asked, confused.

“The adult video branch… For Your Ejaculation.” Kelly answered.

“...You just made that shit up.” Alex said flatly.

“No, I’m serious! I wonder if they’re having the same problem we are?” Kelly wondered out loud, scratching her left cheek.

“What I’m wondering is who the fuck still buys porn in 2009? Haven’t people heard of RedTube??” Jecka asked.

“In any case… I guess we should go there to check it out.” Alex sighed.

“Go where? To the porn store?” Jecka asked.

“It’s better than doing nothing here…” Kelly sighed.

“And here I thought I’d never have to get involved with porn just to get a paycheck…” Jecka also sighed as the three of them left the store to head to the adult video branch.

………..

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…………………………………

After a bit of driving in Alex’s new car, the trio made it to the adult video branch of FYE. And when they arrived, they happened to find the last person they ever expected to see. 

“Hello, feel free to browse arou-OH SHIT NOT YOU TWO!” their ex school counselor shouted, seeing Alex and Jecka.

EDWARD JEFFSTEIN

(NOT SO)FUN FACT: HAS A MINOR FETISH (AND NO, NOT THE PEOPLE WHO WORK IN COAL MINES)

“What the hell? Why do you work here?” Alex asked in confusion.

“If you must know, some of us school faculty get summer jobs outside the school season! Now I don’t want any trouble from you two! I know what the both of you did to Mr. White and Coach Colbey and even Ms. Ames!” Mr. Jeffstein shouted in fear as he backed away from Alex and Jecka.

Alex simply rolled his eyes at this. “Okay first of all, we’re not here to turn you into the police even though you 100% deserve to rot in a cell. And second of all, my sister was the one who got Ms. Ames fired, that wasn’t us.” 

“Well… then what do you want?” Mr. Jeffstein asked a bit calmer but still keeping his guard up.

“We want our fucking paychecks! Our system is down and we wanted to see if the same thing was happening here.” Jecka explained.

“Hmph! Well, you would be right. I was just off in the other room troubleshooting the network. It’s quite frustrating when your store takes in so much revenue and you can’t print a simple paycheck.” The ex counselor informed the three.

“Revenue?? Once again, how do these places stay in business when fucking RedTube exists?” Jecka repeats her question from before. 

“Poor naive girl. Donning the uniform yet not understanding the business it represents.” Mr. Jeffstein sighed, seemingly having forgotten his fear of the amber eyed girl. 

“I’m a manager and I don’t even get it.” Kelly deadpanned. 

“You really think we just offer the slop on RedTube with longer runtimes? We would’ve gone out of business years ago.” Mr. Jeffstein informed her.

“I saw a bitch stretch her whole ass open on RedTube. What could you possibly have wilder than that?” Jecka asked.

“And then she made me watch that video with her…” Alex shuddered at the memory. Sometimes he wondered if his girlfriend was a porn addict. 

“...Things mere individuals lack the connections to acquire… Acquire discreetly that is. Things only a traditional distributor would have the high profile carte-blanche to gain access to. Things that wouldn’t stay uploaded for long on even the most unsanctioned of online spaces. The home to these things is an unregistered warehouse where only the most elite of corporate congregate.” Mr. Jeffstein explained in the most cryptic way possible. 

“How are big titty bitches takin’ dick not enough for you?? You seriously need illegal porn!?” Jecka shouted in disgust.

“Yeah and this is kinda off topic, what about our paychecks??” Kelly asked, starting to get impatient. 

“Funny how this tangent rounds back to being the answer for your original question. When you have something special, people tend to tamper with it.” Mr. Jeffstein said.

“Who?” Kelly asked.

“Those who have the resources to tamper with the cyber security of FYE evidently. They’ve made staggering progress and attacked our financial networks this time.” 

“Well I’m over this middle management shit, where’s the warehouse?”

“What do you want the warehouse for?” 

“If corporate’s there then maybe they can handwrite our checks in person.” Alex theorized. 

“Yeah so where is it? I wanted to buy a nose-stud and this is fucking up my whole weekend!” Kelly shouted, getting annoyed.

“I can’t tell you anything of the sort. At least not for free…” Mr. Jeffstein smirked.

Alex had decided he had enough of this bullshit and began to smirk himself, coming up with an idea. “Ya know… just because we weren’t here to turn you into the police, doesn’t mean we still can’t.”

That certainly got the school counselor’s attention as he began to sweat a little with a frown on his face. “Wh-What do you mean?”

“We got video evidence of you trying to ask my sister out on a date from when she was still 17. We never happened to get around to it but maybe it’s time…” 

“Y-You’re bluffing!”

“I could be…” Alex shrugged then got up to Mr. Jeffstein’s face and smirked. “...But is that something you’re willing to risk?”

“...Dammit! Alright… All I can give you is this…” Mr. Jeffstein said as he rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Alex. Alex unfolded the paper and on the paper was some sort of riddle.

“The FYE secret inventory is a rarity much like a city of crystals… Not to be seen through. But seen under.” Alex read the paper out loud.

“What… The fuck does that mean?” Kelly asked Mr. Jeffstein with a glare.

“A riddle solved only by people who’ve laid eyes on the secret warehouse.” Mr. Jeffstein answered.

“I just want my money…” Kelly whined.

“Let’s just go… Maybe we can ask someone to help us solve this…” Alex sighed as the three left the store and drove off in Alex’s car, in hopes of solving this riddle.

……..

………………….

……………………………..

“What… The fuck does that mean?” Nicole asked the three of them in a similar way Kelly had. 

The three decided to head over to Alex’s house to ask his sister if she had any ideas of what the riddle could be. Luckily for them, Nicole was home rehearsing with Emily and Ari. 

“I don’t know, that’s why we’re asking you!” Jecka said.

“How the fuck would we know how to solve some crystal riddle?” Emily asked her.

“Fuck off bitch I wasn’t asking you!” Jecka glared.

“Oh don’t be a fucking skank just because you’re still mad about the whole diner thing.” Emily rolled her eyes.

“I think it’s kinda fun that you guys are on some riddle solving hunt.” Ari smiled.

ARI WILSON

FUN FACT: THE ONLY CANON GAY CHARACTER IN THE CLASS OF 09 UNIVERSE (BUT THAT WON'T STOP THE FANDOM FROM MAKING EVERYONE GAY >:D )

“So do you have any idea what it could mean Ari?” Alex asked, hopefully.

“Oh I have no clue. It’s a pretty stupid fucking riddle. Why do you need to solve this again?” Ari asked the FYE trio.

“If we can’t solve this then we’ll never find corporate to give us our paychecks.” Jecka explained.

“Damn so little words to protect so much illegal porn.” Nicole quipped.

“But what about the part that says not seen through but seen under?” Kelly wondered out loud.

“Again, why the fuck would we know?” Emily asked.

“We wasted like an hour coming here. This is hopeless, let’s just go.” Kelly sighed.

“Wait! What about your end of the deal? You gotta drive the three of us to the metro now!” exclaimed Nicole.

“You didn’t solve the riddle!” Jecka pointed out.

“Besides, why can’t Emily or Ari drive you?” Alex asked.

“Emily’s car is totaled and Ari’s parents are using the car. Besides, you never said we had to solve it, you just said you needed our help.” Nicole responded

“Yeah and you didn’t help. You didn’t even try.” Alex rolled his eyes.

Nicole sighed and swiped the paper from her brother’s hands to give the riddle another read.” “Okay “city of crystals”-Maybe it’s an antique shop! Are you happy now?”

“You’re just wasting our time.” Kelly said, crossing her arms.

“You’re wasting your life working at FYE.” Emily glared.

“Says the hoe working at a diner!” Kelly snapped back.

“Wait a second guys! Nicole, don’t we pass by Crystal City on the way to Capitol Heights?” Ari asked her girlfriend.

“Yeah? We always pass by that place. You know that.” Nicole said, unsure of where her girlfriend was going with this.

“A rarity much like a city of crystals…” Jecka muttered the first part of the riddle.

“That’s gotta be it! Awesome job Ari!” Alex complimented.

“No problem. It was pretty fun to figure it out!” Ari grinned.

“Looks like we are getting that ride after all.” Nicole smirked.

“Finally. We can’t have a good band rehearsal without some really good ecstasy.” Emily commented. 

“Why do you need to ride a train all the way to Capitol Heights? You can get X from some white guy at a party school here.” Jecka pointed out.

“Yeah but that is way too overpriced from a guy who’s gonna keep blowing our phones up.” Nicole shrugged.

“Okay I guess it’s worth it.” Jecka reasoned. 

“Alright let’s get going.” Alex said and with that, the six of them got into his car and drove to the metro.

…….

…………….

……………………………..

“God why does it smell like piss??” Jecka gagged as the six of them were all sitting on the metro train. 

“And why’s all the graffiti so racially charged?” Ari cringed at the spray paint art that spelt out I HATE N-okay well you get the picture.

“And would it kill ‘em to put padding on the seats?” Kelly asked out loud.

“Welcome to the metro.” Alex, Nicole, and Emily all said in unison,

“THE NEXT STOP IS: CRYSTAL CITY. STEP BACK, DOORS CLOSING.” The metro loudspeaker rang out for everyone to hear.

“So… Do we get off at the next one?” Jecka asked, unsure.

“Did you not just hear the intercom?” Nicole raised an eyebrow.

“I’ve never done this before!” Jecka defended.

“Yeah we don’t know!” Kelly backed Jecka up.

“Yes, you bitches get off at the next one. Holy shit.” Emily rolled her eyes.

“Why are you guys friends with her? She’s so mean.” Kelly asked Alex and Jecka, referring to Emily.

“Cause she’s not as stupid or slutty as you.” Jecka answered. 

“Makes sense now.” Kelly admitted in defeat.

“So how crazy do you think this illegal porn stash is?” Nicole asked the three FYE employees.

“Yeah sis, just say that out loud in public like that.” Alex rolled his eyes.

“Come on dude, you know that no one on the train ever gives a shit about what people say.” Nicole shrugged.

“Well what do you think?” Alex asked.

“There’s probably a bunch of murder videos. You think guys whack off to girls getting killed? Not even hot girls, just anyone.” Nicole wondered.

“Why would that even cross your mind?” Kelly asked, a bit concerned and creeped out.

“Sorry let’s talk about iCarly, is that more your level?” Nicole asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

“Fuck iCarly that bitch is so annoying!” Jecka shouted.

“Which one?” Kelly asked.

“All of them!” Jecka answered.

“You show your girlfriend iCarly ONE TIME and this is how she reacts whenever someone brings it up. I should probably never mention how I like it more than Drake & Josh or she’ll kill me… and probably withhold sex for a week which would be even WORSE!” Alex thought to himself.

……….

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……………………………………

After about 20 minutes on the train, it finally stopped at Crystal City and with that, the six split up and Alex, Jecka, and Kelly got off the train. As soon as they got off they saw that there was a mall right next to the platform and decided that would be the best place to look for an FYE in. But as soon as they entered, they noticed that the mall here was eerily quiet compared to the one back in their hometown. 

“What kinda mall is this? There’s no Best Buy or Chipotle or anything.” Kelly whispered to the other two.

“Yeah and how are these stores in business when we’re the only people in here?” Jecka whispered back.

“Shoe shine places and watch repair shops, it’s so dated. Just tunnels with pointless stores.” Kelly continued to whisper.

“Why the fuck are you guys whispering?” Alex asked, confused.

“...Actually I have no fucking clue.” Jecka scratching the back of her head, the tone of her voice now normal.

“I get what you two mean though. It’s like an underground society lost in time. All these stairways going down here and no one notices.” Alex commented. 

“Underground… Like the riddle!” Kelly realized. 

“City of crystals, not seen through but seen under… No fucking way!” Jecka shouted, coming to the same realization.

“Looks like we’re on the right track after all.” Alex grinned.

“But could they really fit a whole warehouse down here?” Jecka wondered, skeptically.

“If they could fit a Taco Bell Express down here then they can fit anything.” Alex semi-quipped.

“But it just keeps going and going though. Even if we’re near it, how do we find it?” Jecka asked.

“Maybe we can try the directory?” Kelly suggested.

“Oh yeah we’ll just look for the listing that says illegal porn warehouse.” Alex replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

“Doesn’t matter. We can’t stop now. We are getting our fucking money if its the last thing we do!” Jecka exclaimed, making a fist into the air. And with that, the three walked even deeper into the mall.

……..

……………….

…………………………………..

The three of them had been walking deeper into the mall for over an hour now. At this point they had absolute zero clue where they were. 

“Okay what is this?” Jecka asked, looking at the scenery around them.

“Are we lost?” Kelly wondered.

“Who the fuck knows. Every hallway here looks like it’s from the 80’s.” Alex shrugged.

“Every pizza place has the same overly air bubbled crust… Every sandwich shop has a different line of off-brand chips… Did you see the toy store without any actual name brands or video games? It was just wooden dolls, what kid wants that?” Kelly asked.

“It’s like the twilight zone of low-rent retail that can survive off 3 customers a day.” Jecka joked.

“And we can’t even go in off of impulse… cause… WE DON’T EVEN HAVE OUR PAYCHECKS! THE COUNSELOR LIED TO US SO WE’D LOOK FOR NOTHING! I HATE FYE! I QUIT!” Kelly cried out, finally unable to take it anymore.

“Your emotions are so not worth $8 an hour…” Jecka sighed.

“I would honestly rather be homeless at this point… or working at some weird underground 3Ad dungeon…” Kelly also sighed, emotionally drained.

“What the hell is a 3Ad dungeon?” Alex asked with a raised eyebrow.

“It’s just this fuckin’ weird business behind us.” Kelly said as she pointed to a garage door with “3Ad” spray painted on the door. Alex and Jecka took a closer look at it.

“I think that’s just graffiti.” Jecka said.

“There’s a 3Ad gang?” Kelly asked.

“If enough rappers make mixtapes then eventually.” Jecka shrugged.

“But why would this be the only graffiti down here?” Kelly wondered.

“Bitch is this Dora? How the fuck should I know?” Jecka asked in an annoyed tone.

Alex squinted at the sign and slightly turned his head. “Ya know… It kinda looks like FYE upside down.” Alex pointed out which caused both Jecka and Kelly to do the same, making them gasp in shock.

“No way… This can’t be it.” Jecka said, dumbfounded.

“Even if it is, it’s closed anyway.” Kelly sighed.

“Yeah… I don’t really think that an “illegal porn warehouse” would just be commercially open.” Alex said.

“There isn’t even anyone to let us in.” Kelly added.

“Yeah look at that lock, they’d need a weird-ass Best Buy logo key.” Jecka quipped as she pointed at the odd shaped lock.

“It’s kinda shaped like my manager’s tag…” Kelly muttered as she held up the lanyard around her neck.

“...No fuckin’ way.” Jecka looked shocked.

“Do you think it will fit?” Kelly asked the two.

“Only one way to find out. Put it in Kelly.” Alex told the bleach haired girl.

Kelly did as Alex said and it turned out her manager key was a perfect fit. However the door still didn’t open. Alex then suggested to Kelly that she should try turning the lock now that the key was placed in it. Kelly did exactly that and sure enough, the door began to open.

“Holy shit it’s actually moving!” Kelly exclaimed in surprise.

Once they had stepped inside, what befell them was indeed a warehouse with what seemed to hold hundreds, maybe even thousands, of cardboard boxes packed away on different high shelves. All of which they could only assume to contain illegal porn inside. 

“This is insane…” Kelly muttered as they began to look around.

“There’s like rows forever, it just keeps going back.” Jecka noticed as she walked further down.

“I never thought there’d be such a collection of fully alphabetized illegal porn.” Kelly said out loud to herself. 

“And I never thought I would ever fucking hear a sentence like that come out of someone’s lips.” Alex deadpanned.

“GUYS! Do NOT go down the R section!” Jecka said with wide eyes, speed walking back to them.

“They probably have way worse. I wouldn’t put it past them to have a child porn aisle.” Kelly shrugged.

“Aisle? They got a whole wing for it.” Jecka said, fully serious as she pointed to a sign that literally said CHILD PORN WING.

“EW OH MY GOD! It literally can’t get worse than this!” Kelly gagged.

“Yeah it can, they got two wings for it!” Jecka pointed to a second sign that said CHILD PORN WING (BASED ON THE WORKS OF DAN SCHNEIDER).

“Oh no… That’s genuinely terrible.” Kelly cringed.

“I know, who would get turned on by Amanda Show?” Jecka wondered.

“So are the corporate executive guys even here or has this all just been a wild goose chase?” Alex wondered out loud.

“We might’ve shown up after business hours.” Jecka guessed.

“You think their hours are better than hours?” Kelly asked.

“I don’t see why you’d have hours at all with a fuckin’ business like this.” Jecka said.

“Hey FYE has really high standards, we’re number 1 in the country.” Kelly defended.

“At what? Child porn? Wow, I'm so honored.” Jecka rolled her eyes in sarcasm.

“And didn’t you scream five minutes ago that you quit FYE?” Alex sweatdropped.

“Quit FYE? Now why would you do that? You’ve come so far.” A familiar voice rang throughout the warehouse. The trio looked back to see the school counselor who had just entered the warehouse with an eerily calm smile on his face.

“Oh fuck.” Jecka’s eyes widened. 

“What’re you doing here!?” Kelly asked in fear.

“I work here, I thought you knew. Though what I didn’t know was that you would actually find the secret of all secrets.” Mr. Jeffstein said, putting his hands in his pockets.

“You’re putting porn on a REALLY high pedestal.” Kelly cringed.

“SHUT UP!! YOU’RE IN NO PLACE TO ACT SMART WHEN YOU CAN’T EVEN WATCH YOUR TAIL!” Mr. Jeffstein shouted. “Do you realize what we do here? How we keep the fabric of society together? Without this warehouse, chaos would ensue over half the nation.”

“WHO THE FUCK NEEDS ILLEGAL PORN TO NOT GO INSANE!?” Jecka shouted, unable to hear the bullshit that was coming out of the counselor’s mouth.

“Mailmen, delivery boys, even the valets who park your car. Without their preferred outlet society would crumble, this enterprise exists parallel to only the government itself.” Mr. Jeffstein answered.

“Wouldn’t they need like therapy instead?” Kelly asked.

“Therapy is controlled by this over-feminized society, escapism cannot be sanctioned.” Mr. Jeffstein stated.

“What Fight Club fan website did you get that from?” Alex quipped, dryly.

“Seriously? Ugh, kill me.” Kelly cringed.

“With pleasure.” Mr. Jeffstein grinned evilly as he took his hands out of his pockets to reveal a gun pointed right at Kelly.

“OH SHIT!” Jecka shouted.

“AHHHHHH!” Kelly screamed in fear.

“FUCK!” Alex screamed out, as he began to reach for a certain stopwatch in his pocket.

“I can only use this once… If I can rewind time here then I can’t stop this asshole once and for all…” Alex thought to himself but his blood ran cold when he felt nothing in his pocket.

“OH SHIT OH FUCK I LEFT THE REWINDER AT HOME!” Alex mentally cursed as he looked at Mr. Jeffstein in fear as he began to put his finger on the trigger. 

“NO! DON’T DO IT! PLEASE!” Alex begged. 

“Don’t worry. You two are next after I’m done with her. I won’t keep you alive to turn me into the police somed-” And before he could say another word, a sword was thrusted into Mr. Jeffstein’s back as it came out of his chest.

“Wh… What…?” Mr. Jeffstein muttered in shock as he dropped the gun onto the floor. The sword was quickly pulled out of him and the counselor stumbled for a bit before dropping to the floor, dead. A large pool of blood began to pour out of the dead counselor’s wound and standing over his body was a man who looked to be in his mid to late 40s with red hair and a beard to match. He wore a black suit and tie and looked at the dead counselor with an unfazed expression. 

The three 18 year olds looked at the man that just saved them in shock. Unable to speak, they just stood there frozen for a few seconds before Kelly finally spoke up. 

“Th-Thank you. Y-You fucking saved us.” Kelly said, shakingly. 

The man stared at the three before putting his blade back into his sheath without a single word. He then walked over to Alex with a serious expression.

“Are you Alex Yu?” The man asked. 

“Y-Yeah… Who the fuck are you?” Alex asked in confusion.

The man however ignored his question and then looked over to Kelly. “And you… You’re George’s kid aren’t you?” 

“H-Huh? How do you know my dad?” Kelly asked, confused. 

“Literally who the fuck even are you!?” Jecka asked, unsure whether to feel safe or not. 

“Hmph… Might as well just make this easy.” The man said as he pulled a small metal ball out of his pocket and threw it on the ground.

“The fuck is tha-” Jecka was cut off by the ball releasing a massive amount of gas, causing her, Alex, and Kelly to all pass out on the ground.

The man who was covering his nose and mouth with his hand, waited a few minutes for the gas to clear before taking a cell phone out of his pocket and began to hold it up to his ear after dialing a couple of numbers.

“Hey, it’s Leon. I got the Yu kid. George’s daughter is here too. And another girl as well. …Take all three of them back to headquarters? You sure? …If you say so.” And with that, the man hung up the phone and looked once more at the three teens. 

“Didn’t think I’d have to take three unconscious bodies out of an illegal porn warehouse but here we are… This place is fucking disgusting, I might as well burn it to the ground while I’m at it…” The man sighed as he surprisingly had no issue picking up three limp 18 year old bodies off the ground and hauling them over his shoulders.

“Alright you three… Let’s head over to the O.D.D.” The man said to himself.

LEON STRONGHART

S RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D

Chapter Text

“So when I yelled at that Asian kid on the street to fuck off, you’re saying he was just asking for directions?” Emily asked Nicole and Ari as they walked back inside Nicole’s house, carrying a bag of ecstasy.

“Pretty positive. What the hell did you think he wanted?” Nicole raised an eyebrow.

“I thought he was trying to mug us!” Emily defended.

“Dude he was nine.” Nicole deadpanned.

“Muggers start out young nowadays! Didn’t you see all those gang signs he was throwing at me!?” Emily argued.

“Bitch he was using sign language. The kid was deaf!” Nicole pinched her nose in frustration. 

“Well shit I would be too, did you hear how loud his mom screamed at me? He’s probably a victim of child abuse.” Emily shrugged.

“Hey that reminds me, haven’t we been getting complaints lately from Nicole’s neighbors about how loud we are during rehearsals?” Ari asked.

“Bitch we all live in white neighborhoods. They’ll complain about anything.”  Emily rolled her eyes.

“Let’s just take this shit already, if we’re gonna get yelled at for being too loud by a stay at home dad with a telescope aimed directly at my bedroom window, I'd rather not be sober for it.” Nicole grumbles as she opens the bag of drugs. 

“Nicole?” A voice calls from across the room, causing the girl in question to quickly stuff the bag inside her pocket and turn around.

“Yeah Mom?” Nicole asks.

ANGELA PETERSON (FORMALLY ANGELA YU)

MOTHER OF GABE, ALEX, & NICOLE YU

FUN FACT: HER LAST (AND 8TH) EX HUSBAND WAS HER DIVORCE LAWYER (YOU’LL NEVER GUESS HOW THEY MET)

“I just wanted to check in on you before I head to work.” Her mom says, walking up to the three of them in her kosher deli work uniform. 

“Oh. We’re just getting ready to rehearse.” “And get fucked up.” Nicole replied, keeping that last part to herself.

“Okay, that’s fine. …Hey honey? Do you know where Alex is? His shift ended three hours ago.” Angela asks her daughter in worry. 

“Oh, he’s on some Nicolas Cage bullshit adventure to find the holy grail of illegal porn.” Nicole answered truthfully.

“Very funny Nicole.” Angela rolls her eyes in sarcasm. “Where is he really ?” 

“...He’s at Jecka’s.” Nicole lied this time. 

“See? Was that so hard? I suppose I won’t call him then. I wouldn’t want to interrupt the two. They are just the cutest together, aren’t they honey?” Angela smiles warmly. 

“Yes, they’re couple of the century.” It was Nicole’s turn for sarcasm. “Don’t you have Jewish meat to prep?” Nicole reminded her mother about work. 

“It’s not “Jewish meat”, it’s-” Angela stops herself to look at her watch. “...I’ll be back around 8:00. And make sure not to play too loud. Recession and all.” And with that, Angela leaves the house and shuts the door behind her. 

“So you think that Alex and them found that warehouse?” Ari asked the two. 

“Who knows?” Nicole shrugged. “If they did, they’re probably in some bullshit. Like the FBI kidnapping them and getting sold off to the Taliban."

“...Jesus and that’s one of your SOBER guesses.” Ari muttered in astonishment. 

“Yeah, speaking of which, open that bag already. I wanna get prepped before we begin playing.” Emily told Nicole.

“Yeah I gotchu.” Nicole said calmly, taking out the bag of ecstasy once again.

  …….

………………

…………………………

“...I wonder how it’s REALLY going for him right now?”  

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“....Huh…?” Alex thought to himself groggily as he began to stir. His eyes began to adjust but all he could see was darkness. There seemed to be a bag over his head and his hands were bound behind his back.

“That guy… Did he fucking kidnap us? Wait… WHERE’S JECKA!?” Alex widened his eyes and was about to call out for her until he heard the sound of a woman’s voice groaning. 

“Ow… fuck… Where am I?” a voice called out and Alex recognized it immediately. 

“Jecka!? Are you okay!?” Alex shouted.

“Alex!? I’m fine but where are you!? I can’t see shit!” Jecka panicked. 

“I think I’m right next to you! But it seems like we’re both tied up…” Alex grunted in frustration as he tried to break free from his restraints but it was fruitless. Eventually, another voice began to stir.

“Aw man… Did I get roofied AGAIN?” Kelly muttered as she began to wake.

“Kelly!” Jecka exclaimed.

“You okay?” Alex asks. “...Again?” Alex wondered at Kelly’s wording choice but quickly shook it off.

“Yeah I’m okay… Man, did Kylar jinx us when he said he hoped I would get drugged and kidnapped?” Kelly winced. 

“Can either of you get free?” Alex asked the two but they both said no. 

“Damn it! What the hell is going on!?” Alex thought to himself but soon enough that question would be answered with what happened next.

“It seems they’ve finally woken up.” An unfamiliar voice rings out, causing the three teens to perk their heads up from underneath the bags. 

Almost immediately, Alex’s bag was removed, as well as Jecka and Kelly’s and they could finally see their surroundings. It seemed to be some sort of conference room. And they weren’t alone. Five adults who looked like they were all in their 30s or 40s were in the room with them. The one who removed the bags from their heads was standing over the three with a stern expression on his face. He also happened to be the one who kidnapped them in the first place. 

“Alex Yu… It’s so nice to meet you again.” One of the men who was sitting in a chair said with a smile on his face. He was an older looking man with black hair and a suit. Alex got a closer look at him and gasped in realization of who he was. However, Kelly had a bigger look of disbelief on her face.

“D-Dad!?” Kelly exclaimed in shock and looked over to who was sitting next to him. “Mom!? What the hell is going on!?” Kelly asked, completely dumbfounded. 

“Now sweetie, I know you might be confused and scared but nothing bad is going to happen to you or your friends.” Kelly’s mother gave the three a reassuring smile. 

“Why the fuck should we believe you when we are literally tied up!” Jecka glared. 

“We apologize for that but we couldn’t have you running off in hysteria as soon as you woke up.” Kelly’s father explained and as he did the man who kidnapped them untied each of their bindings, causing all three of them to rub their wrists as they were set free. 

Alex was the first to stand up. He stared at the group for a few seconds before finally speaking up. “So… who the hell are you guys?” 

Kelly’s father stands up from his chair and walks up to Alex with a smile. “We are the Oddity Defense Division. Or simply just ODD.” 

“Oddity… fucking WHAT now?” Jecka tilted her head as she began to stand up as well. 

“We are a secret global unit organization that only the highest members of every country’s government know about. This is the United States branch.” Kelly’s mother added. 

“You see…” Kelly’s father began to walk around the room. “...We are responsible for overseeing every strange phenomenon that goes on in the world. As well as protecting the planet from mythical, supernatural, or even extraterrestrial threats. A terrorist organization threatening to nuke a country? Hard pass. An extremist group holding American citizens hostage at gunpoint? Not our problem. But when haunted spirits suck the souls of innocent people, or when aliens from Planet Irk come to invade, or even…” Kelly’s father gives Alex a quick look. “...When a goddess creates brand new timelines for the sake of a single human… THEN we pay attention.” Kelly’s father finishes his explanation. 

Alex looked down on the ground and then back up at Kelly’s father with a stern glare. Alex didn’t say anything so George continued. “Now… Why don’t we introduce ourselves? I know you and I have already met but for your blonde friend there,” he says as he turns to Jecka,  “I am Kelly’s father, George. It is nice to meet you.” George smiles.

GEORGE ANDERSON

S RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

“And of course this is my lovely wife Mary.” George smiles at his wife who, like her husband, also had black hair and a suit as she smiles back at him. 

“It’s very nice to meet you Alex. I’ve heard all good things from both my husband and Kelly. Especially Kelly.” Mary says with a sly grin.

“M-MOM!” Kelly blushes a deep red color while Jecka gives her a death glare. 

“I’m only teasing dear.” Mary chuckles. 

MARY ANDERSON

S RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

“And I see you’ve met Leon already.” Mary says, referring to the tall red haired man who only nods at them but doesn’t say anything more. Mary then looks from the back of her chair. “Rose? Wouldn’t you like to introduce yourself?” Mary asked sweetly.

The “Rose” in question rolled her eyes. She was a woman who seemed to be in her late twenties who sported long red hair and green eyes. Her uniform, unlike Leon, George and Mary's, was a lot less orderly as her jacket was off revealing only a white collar shirt with rolled up sleeves exposing her midriff slightly from below. The first three buttons of her collar shirt were undone which exposed a generous amount of cleavage where a black tie was fitted in between them. 

The woman scratched the back of her head and sighed. It seemed she was the type to hate doing introductions. “The name’s Rose.” is all she said before leaning back into her chair to stretch. 

ROSE WATTS

S RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

“Now Rose… what did the Director say to you about sticking to the uniform code?” Mary asked, still retaining the same smile as before. 

“Aw shut up! That old bastard secretly likes it anyway! Besides why are you giving me shit when Stone here is still in his fucking pajamas!” Rose shouts as she points to a brown haired man with a buzz cut across the table from her who seemed to be in his early thirties and was fast asleep. And sure enough, he was sporting a pair of plaid pajamas and a sleeping mask as he snored off, leaving a small puddle of drool on the table from his mouth.

After hearing Rose shout, the man suddenly wakes up with a jolt and removes the sleeping mask to reveal… a pair of dark shaded sunglasses? “H-Huh!? I’m up! I’m up! Fuck did I miss?” The man asks as he looks frantically around but then immediately lays his head back on the table again. “...Tired.” is all he says before lightly snoring once more.

MASON STONE

S RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

“Well dear, it is true that Mason may be out of uniform but at least he isn’t dressed like a whore.” Mary said calmly, keeping the same innocent smile on her face as before.

“THE FUCK DID YOU SAY TO ME BITCH!?” Rose roared as she quickly got up and stomped her foot onto the conference table and held up her fist in front of Mary with an intense glare.

“I’m only stating what anyone can plainly see.” Mary continues to smile despite the slight hint of malice in her voice.

“Now ladies, I think we’re getting off topic here…” George sweatdropped at the two as they continued to stare menacingly at each other but everyone’s attention was quickly diverted once someone spoke up.

“...So you are the guys that Chrona told me about?” Alex asked as he stared at George with a serious look on his face. A small droplet of sweat beaded down his forehead as he eventually found the courage to ask that single question.

George turns back to Alex as he smiles and nods. “That would be correct. Mind if I ask what exactly she has told you about us?” 

“All she told me was that you guys have some pact with her people. And… how you guys were the reason I almost died for good.” Alex glared.

“Um, can we get a little context here? Who the fuck is Chrona? And what are you talking about Alex?” Jecka asks in confusion. 

However both Alex and George were too absorbed in their conversation to notice any of Jecka’s questions. 

“If you’re referring to when we stored those tears of space time into your body… I’m afraid we didn’t have much choice. For that I deeply apologize for the pain it must have brought you. But we were confident that you would be able to survive.” George told the angry boy.

Alex kept his glare on George for a few more seconds before his face began to relax and he let out a deep sigh. “Well… It’s all over anyway so I guess it doesn’t matter anymore.” Alex grumbled, putting both his hands in his pockets. 

Jecka and Kelly looked at each other. They seemed to both be out of the loop on what they were talking about. Jecka decided to make a mental note of asking Alex for an explanation later. Right now there were more pressing matters. LIKE GETTING HER FUCKING MONEY!

“...So can you guys give us our paychecks?” Jecka asked out of nowhere which made the entire room go quiet for a few dozen seconds.

“...I’m sorry?” George blinked a few times in confusion as he was clearly put off by Jecka’s question.

“Like yeah the world has some secret shadow organization. Big whoop. But all I care about is getting my fucking money!” Jecka glared.

Alex couldn’t help but laugh a bit at his girlfriend’s priorities and turned to face George again with a grin. “You heard her. Since you kidnapped us, it's on you guys to make sure we’re well compensated.”

Rose’s eye twitches at this and stands up from her chair once again. “WE DON’T OWE YOU GUYS SHIT!” The redhead yelled at the smug Alex. 

“Rose…” George said, trying to calm the hothead down. Rose sat back down in her chair and grumbled. “Now would you mind filling us in on what money you are referring to?” George asks calmly.

Alex, Jecka, and Kelly then explained to him their entire journey up until this point. George looked over to Leon who simply nodded at what they were saying since he was the one keeping surveillance on Alex in the first place. 

“I see…” George said as he rubbed his chin in thought and then gave the three an apologetic smile. “Well I’m afraid since we don’t work with FYE, we can’t give you your money.” 

“Oh for FUCKS SA-”

“But I CAN offer you something else instead.” George quickly cut Jecka off before they had another hotblooded woman cussing out in the conference room. 

“...Something else?” Jecka raised an eyebrow at this. 

“Indeed. In fact… I believe we can help each other out.” George smiled as he looked at his daughter, Jecka, and lastly over to Alex. 

…..

…………

………………………..

“...How would you three like to work for ODD?”

Chapter Text

“...Work for you guys?” Alex asked in surprise, unsure of what he had just heard.

“Think of it as a summer internship. Paid of course. You would be acting as new recruits in the O.D.D. Being assigned missions and following orders.” George explained. 

“And the pay?” Jecka asked with a raised eyebrow. 

“You would be heavily compensated for your time here. For the three months you would be working here I would imagine that the overall estimate of which you would be paid would be…” George then took out a pen and paper and quickly wrote on it before handing it to Jecka who quickly took a look at it and once she did her face became as white as a ghost.

“....HOLY FUCKING SHIT THAT’S A LOT OF ZERO’S!!!” Jecka screamed, almost fainting at the amount that was shown. 

Alex quickly took the paper from Jecka’s hands and his eyes almost bulged out of his socket at the sheer size of that number. “H-H-Holy fuck! This is more than enough to pay for an entire four years of College! And even then we would still have plenty left!” Alex exclaimed as his hands were shaking. “...And this is JUST for three months!?” Alex looked at George in bewilderment. 

George chuckled at Alex and Jecka’s reaction before nodding. “Yes, ODD is a very lucrative organization. You’ve been to our house before after all so it should be no surprise on how we live the comfortable lifestyle that we do.” 

Kelly stared at her father and mother in silence. She wasn’t sure what to exactly think. She knows she isn’t exactly the smartest person in the world. But to think her own mom and dad would be keeping such a huge secret from her… it honestly stung a bit. 

She thought everything would be fine between them once they started spending more time at home and with her but now she had to wonder if she really knew her parents as well as she had originally thought. Was this even the entire truth they were telling them? Or were they keeping even more secrets? And now they wanted her to work for them just like that? She wasn’t exactly sure how to feel about any of this. 

Mary began to notice the contemplative look on her daughter’s face and decided to speak up. “Sweetie…” Mary began as she stood up from her seat and began to walk forward, causing Kelly’s head to perk up and look at her mother. “...Me and your father are terribly sorry that we’ve lied to you for so long. But you have to understand that our job is extremely confidential and we just thought it would be in your best interest to live a normal life. If you don’t want to do this, then we completely understand pumpkin.” Mary finished as she gave her daughter a hug to which was well reciprocated. 

“I… I do want to do this.” Kelly admitted before breaking the hug and looking at her mother and father with a smile. “I think it would be fun to work with you guys.”

George smiled at his daughter before turning his attention back to Alex and Jecka. “And you two?” he asked. 

Alex and Jecka looked at each other. After the bullshit they just went through, they weren’t exactly eager to go back to working at FYE. With the money they would each be getting, it was enough to move in together right after college. Although Alex wasn’t fully sure if he trusted this organization, he trusted Kelly and figured her parents could be trusted too. After a few seconds, Alex and Jecka smiled at one another and turned back to George as they both nodded in agreement. 

“Excellent. Now you three follow me. You should meet the Director.” He then turned to the other agents behind him. “Is he in his office?” 

Leon then shook his head. “He’s on a mission with Yuri. Not sure when they’ll be back.”

George hummed in thought at that news. “The Director taking a mission? Must be important then. Oh well. I can just give these three a tour then.” George smiled as he went towards the door of the conference room and opened it, gesturing to the three new recruits to step inside. “Let’s get you guys settled in.”

……..

……………

……………………………..

“I set my clocks early 'cause I know I'm always late!” Nicole sings out as her, Ari, and Emily finish their cover of A Little Less Sixteen Candles A Little More "Touch Me" by Fall Out Boy.

“That time was pretty good.” Ari complimented as she put down her drumsticks. 

“I guess… We were still pretty off key in the middle part.” Nicole grumbled as she drank from a bottle of water. 

“WE WERE FUCKING AWESOME! WE ARE ALWAYS FUCKING AWESOME! EVERYTHING IS FUCKING AWESOME!” Emily screams as she continues to strum her bass guitar. 

“Holy shit Emily how much did you ta-WHY IS THE BAG FUCKING EMPTY YOU BITCH!?” Nicole shouts as she looks over at the ecstasy bag they left lying on the couch. 

“I TOOK A LOT!” Emily screams with an almost crazed grin. 

“YEAH, NO SHIT!” Nicole yells back. 

“Come on guys, let’s not fight.” Ari says as she takes Nicole’s hand and rubs the back of it with her thumb. 

Nicole looks at Ari who smiles at her and that was enough for Nicole to calm down a bit. “I’m still pissed off that this bitch took all our drugs…” Nicole grumbled. 

All of a sudden, Nicole’s doorbell rang and before either her or Ari could answer the door, Emily quickly went over and opened the door to see who it was.

“Hi! We’re the Sunset Scouts! We’re selling cookies and wondering if-”

“FUCK OFF!” Emily screams as she slams the door in their face and looks back at Nicole and Ari with a grin and thumbs up. “NO INTERRUPTIONS!” 

“.......Maybe we need a break.” Nicole deadpanned as she stared at Emily.

“Yeah a break sounds good…” Ari nodded her head in agreement, still not taking her eyes off of Emily.

………

…………………

………………………………….

“And finally, this is the main room. Where we monitor the globe for any anomalies taking place.” George said as he had just finished showing the three new recruits a tour of the facility. Alex, Jecka, and Kelly had never really been inside a top secret government building but they figured it was pretty standard to the non secret government buildings (Not that they have ever been in one of those either).

The main center of ODD was a very large room which seemed to be the size of a football field with different desks and computers lined up next to each other. In the center, there was a large round table with comfy chairs all around it. 

In the very front was probably the largest monitor any of the teens had ever seen. On the monitor was ODD’s logo which seemed to be a pair of wings, however the left wing was an angel wing and the right wing was a demon wing. In between the pair of wings was a question mark. Alex thought that it was a bit of a strange logo but decided not to speak on it. 

There seemed to be hundreds of agents in that room, some were filing papers, others were talking to one another, others were doing reports on the work computers. Alex even noticed a guy playing that new game called Minecraft on his computer but decided not to be a snitch and kept quiet. 

“Holy shit, a lot of people work here huh?” Jecka commented. 

“Yes, we have around 500 agents at our disposal here at ODD.” George answered. “Before we end this tour, do any of you three have any questions?” 

The three shook their heads. Before George could say anything else however, a new voice spoke up from behind the teens. 

“...Kelly? Is that really you?” 

Kelly’s head perked up at this and turned around. Alex and Jecka turned around as well and saw a face that neither of the two had recognized. He had looked around their age, he had dark skin, a buzz cut with black hair, and other than wearing the same uniform as the rest of the agents, he had a moon shaped silver earring on his right ear.

Alex and Jecka looked over to Kelly who seemed frozen, her mouth gaped like a dead fish. They both raised an eyebrow at this. This was clearly someone who Kelly seemed to know.

“C-Cyrus…?” Kelly muttered out. 

The two stared at each other for a few seconds before Kelly ran and jumped into his arms, causing the boy to almost stumble back. Alex and Jecka were pretty surprised to see Kelly actually do something that seemed wholesome for once. They were even more surprised to see that Kelly was actually shaking. Not to mention she was… Was she crying?

“I… I thought you were gone. I thought you left forever. Where the hell did you go!? I missed you so fucking much!” Kelly cried out, fresh tears were releasing from her eyes. 

“I’m… I’m sorry Kelly. I shouldn’t have left you like that… But… I couldn’t see you. This job Kelly… I just… I didn’t want you to get hurt.” The boy now known as Cyrus put Kelly down.

Kelly stared at him for a few seconds before turning to her father with a glare. “...You knew.”

George could sense where this was going. “Kelly…”

“You fucking knew and didn’t say anything to me… You didn’t say shit… WHAT THE FUCK DAD!?” Kelly screamed at him. 

“Kelly… like your mother said before, we wanted you to live a normal life. Cyrus… he wished for the opposite of that and at a young age he was recruited into ODD because of his talents. So yes Kelly. We both knew that Cyrus never ran away because he has been working with us this entire time. Again Kelly, we are sorry.”

“...All you keep doing is apologizing for shit like it’s no big deal. Un-fucking-believable…” Kelly turns from her father and walks away from them. 

“....So uh are we gonna get any context from what happened just now or…?” Jecka asked with a blank look on her face once Kelly had left the room. 

Cyrus sighed before looking at the two of them and smiled. “Me and Kelly grew up together. Five years ago I left to join ODD. I… I must have really hurt her.” Cyrus looked down, a painful expression clear on his face but then quickly shook it off. “Sorry, I haven’t even introduced myself yet. My name is Cyrus.”

CYRUS GREEN

A RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

“That’s cool.” Jecka replied, a bit disinterested in making any new friends at her new job. 

“I’m Alex and this is Jecka.” Alex replies, introducing themselves. 

“Jecka? A unique name for a beautiful girl.” Cyrus grinned with a wink, his personality somewhat changing from normal to well… flirtatious. 

“Ew.” Jecka cringed in disgust while Alex glared at him a bit. Cyrus however, did not seem at all affected by Jecka’s rejection or Alex’s glare and simply chuckled. However, that smile quickly vanished as his head perked up and stared at Alex.

  “Wait…. Are you… Alex Yu?” Cyrus asks, hesitantly.

“I… am?” Alex confirmed, a bit confused at his reaction. 

“Sorry if that sounded weird it’s just well, we’ve had a file on you for the past couple of months because of well you know. I just wasn’t expecting you to actually join us.” Cyrus explained. 

“...It’s only for the summer.” 

“I see… well-”

“Cyrus. I think you should allow our new recruits to get some rest. After all, I plan on assigning them their first mission tomorrow.” George smiled as he put a hand to the boy’s shoulder. 

“...Yes sir.” Cyrus said with a serious look before walking away from them. 

“Now then…” George turns to Alex and Jecka. “You two will be escorted by Leon back to your homes. He will also be picking you up early in the morning to be assigned your first mission. I look forward to our continued cooperation.” George smiled as he extended out his hand to shake Alex’s. 

Alex stared at George’s hand for a brief moment before accepting the handshake. “Yeah… Hey, what about Kelly?” Alex asked, curiously. 

“She will be going home with me and her mother later on. As you just saw she isn’t exactly in the best mood right now so it’s best to let her calm herself in the meantime.” George answered with a sigh. “Anyways, I should get going now. I look forward to seeing you two here tomorrow.” And with that George left them to go check on his daughter. 

“So…” Alex began. “What do you think?” Alex asked, turning to Jecka. 

“Think of what?” Jecka asked, confused. 

“About like… all of this. I mean I know we agreed to it for the money but this is all pretty fucking insane.”

“Oh yeah like I completely agree but at least this job sounds a lot better than doing some weird shit like getting paid for strangers touching my feet.”

“That’s… an oddly specific example.”

“Yeah, not sure why that was the first thing to come to my head. Sounds like some shit a basement dweller loser would want to happen to satisfy their hidden fetishes.” 

“So… Jeffrey?”

“100% Jeffrey.”

……..

……………..

……………………………….

Kelly had been walking around the facility for an hour now. She was a lot calmer than she was earlier but still pretty pissed at both her mother and father for keeping such a big secret from her. Sure, she could understand why they didn’t want her involved with her job. But to keep Cyrus a secret from her for so many years… That hurt a lot. They have known each other since they were little kids. He was her first friend, her first crush, and eventually when they got older her first… well you know. 

Kelly ended up finding herself staring into an office room. And to her surprise, Cyrus was sitting on the computer chair, filling out some forms. It wasn’t long until he looked back from his chair and smiled. 

“Kelly! I see you’ve found my own personal office. Pretty impressive huh?” Cyrus grinned.

“...Yeah.” Kelly looked down a bit. 

Cyrus frowned at Kelly’s demeanor and sighed. “Kelly…” he stood up. “I’m really sorry for hurting you like I did. I didn’t want to leave but… I had to. And please don’t blame your parents either. I was the one who told them not to tell you about me.” Cyrus confessed. 

Kelly’s head perked up and stared at Cyrus. “...What? Why?” 

“Because Kelly… This job is dangerous. I know your parents think you can handle it now but personally I’m scared every day something bad will happen in this job. I never wanted you to find out about me because I didn’t want to see you hurt. I never stopped thinking about you Kelly. You are still my best friend. Please believe that.” 

Kelly blushed a bit at his words. She had almost forgotten what it was like when a guy poured his heart out and not just so they could use her as a walking cum dump. Kelly was both touched and if she were to be completely honest… a bit turned on by his words. In almost an instance, she couldn’t help but forgive him. And she wanted to show her appreciation…

Kelly walked over to the door without a word and shut and locked the two of them inside.

“Uh, Kelly? Why did you do that?” Cyrus asked in confusion. 

Kelly continued to stay silent as she turned around and took off her shirt in front of him. She then gave him a lustful look. “Pants. Off. Now.” 

Cyrus’s mind had shut down for a good few seconds before he could comprehend what she just said to him. Eventually he dumbly nodded with a grin quickly forming as he began to loosen the belt of his black dress pants. “Yes ma’am…” 

…….

………………..

……………………………….

“Nicole? Mom? I’m home.” Alex announced as he stepped inside and once he had his jaw dropped to the floor. The living room was a WRECK. The walls were graffitied, the couch was ripped up, and the television was smashed to pieces. And in the middle of it all were Nicole, Ari, and Emily who were bruised and battered as they stared at Alex with an awkward look while they had a bit of blood all over them and it was apparent that it wasn’t their own since none of them were cut up. 

“.....Hey bro. Find all that illegal porn?” Nicole said nonchalantly. 

“....Do I even have to ask?” Alex said dryly. 

“Okay so like Emily told these Sunset Scouts to fuck off and they eventually came back with more of them and it kinda turned into an all out war…” Nicole rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment. 

“But we kicked ass in the end! Thirty 12 year old girls were no match for three kick ass 18 year old rockstars!” Emily grinned. 

“Thin mints… So many thin mints where thin mints shouldn’t go…” Ari shuddered as she held herself, clearly looking traumatized. 

Alex stared at the three as his right eye began to twitch in frustration of having to now clean up all this shit before their Mom came home from work. 

“I hope Jecka doesn’t have to deal with bullshit like this when she’s home…”

………

……………………

………………………………….

“Dad, I’m home.” Jecka announced as she opened the door to her house. 

Stan, Jecka’s father, stood up from the couch and looked at his daughter with a questioning look on his face. “Jessica, why are you home so late? Your shift should have ended hours ago.” 

“Oh, uh… I was asked if I could work a double shift so I thought this could be the chance to earn some extra money so…” Jecka tried to think up a quick explanation. 

“Oh that’s great to hear! I’m glad to see you take some initiative. You’ve done this house and my heart very proud.” Stan smiled. 

“Your heart?” Jecka tilted her head and then her eyes widened as she quickly backed away. “Are you gonna molest me!?” 

“Of course not! I mean medically speaking! The doctor said to avoid any and all stress to prevent cardiac arrest. I’m at that age y’know.”

“Oh yeah, well good luck with that.” 

“I don’t think it’s so much luck as it is you. As long as you stay on this new productive path I’ll be okay. No pressure, sweetie.”

“Uh yeah Dad, sure.” 

“Everything okay? You don’t sound that enthusiastic.”

“It’s work. What exactly do I have to be enthusiastic about?”

“You should feel good about contributing to society, making a fair wage.” 

Jecka couldn’t help but roll her eyes at this. “How exactly does working at FYE contribute to society?”

“Because you’re contributing to your local community by selling them DVD’s. Back then people took even the jobs at the very bottom far more seriously.” Stan explained. 

“I wonder why.” Jecka remarked in sarcasm.

“Because back then people cared about contributing to a community. Remember those 4 months after 9/11? How together we were? That might be the last time we’ll ever see this country just get along.” Stan answered with a sigh.

“Dad you were pulling Arab guys out of cabs and beating the shit out of them, how is that getting along?” Jecka raised an eyebrow.

“We were having fun.” Stan shrugged. “Anyways can you start getting the cable bill?” 

Jecka looked confused at her father’s request. “But I wasn’t even supposed to pay that one. Don’t we have internet?”

“I need you to chip in since I upgraded to get the Food Network.”

“What do you need the Food Network for?”

“Well I figured it was time to learn a few recipes since your truckstop turnstile whore of a mother won’t be cooking for us anymore.”

Jecka frowned at his answer. Not just because she had to help pay even more money but from how horrible he kept talking about her mother. Sure her mom was sometimes a bitch but she was also good to her at times too. 

“Dad, do you really have to call her that?” Jecka asked as she took a step forward towards her father. 

“Don’t you… FUCKING TALK BACK TO ME!!! I WILL SMACK THE SHIT OUT OF YOU!!!” Stan roared as he lifted up his hand. 

“OKAY! OKAY! I’M SORRY I’LL PAY IT!” Jecka backed away in fear. 

Stan then began to clutch his chest in pain as he glared at his daughter. “Ugh! I can’t believe you’d do this to your own father!”

“Do what!?” Jecka shouted in confusion.

“CAUSING ME CHEST PAINS! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME!?” Stan screamed before slapping Jecka smack across the face with enough force that caused her to fall back onto the floor. She held her now red and soon to be bruised left cheek in pain as fresh tears began to flow from her eyes. 

“I-I’M SORRY! PLEASE STOP! Pl-Please st-stop hitting me…. I’LL BUY THE FOOD NETWORK! S-So please…” Jecka begged, eyes blurred from tears as she flinched and curled up into a ball out of fear from her father. 

Stan stared at his daughter in rage for a few more seconds before almost like a switch, his face became a nice, polite, and calm smile. “That’s nice, dear. Have fun at work tomorrow.” And with that Stan walked upstairs to get ready for bed. 

Jecka continued to cry on the floor. It hurt so much. It was almost unbearable how this was how her life was going. She wished Summer would end already so she could move away and live at college with Alex. 

……..

……………..

………………………..

“I can only hope that once again, tomorrow will be a better day…”

Chapter Text

It was early in the morning over at ODD. In a conference room, standing, were three individuals who sported brand new black suit and tie uniforms. All three were yawning out of exhaustion with bags clearly visible underneath their eyes. One would assume it would be because they were up so early. Well yes, that could very well be a factor but each of these three had a different reason as to why they were so tired. 

“I can’t believe I had to spend all night helping Nicole clean up her war with the Sunset Scouts. I don’t even wanna know how a little girl managed to get duct taped to our living room ceiling! Thankfully we got out of that mess without someone getting arrested...” 

“FUUUUUUCKKKK… He was even bigger than I remembered… I haven’t been fucked like that in soooooooo long… God what a night~”

“...............I hope I put on enough makeup to hide the bruise.”

“Glad to see you three are up and ready.” A voice grunted out, causing all three of them to snap their heads towards the now open door as a familiar face had just stepped in. The very same face that brought them here in the first place. 

“We figured since this is your first mission that we’d give you guys both a fun and not so difficult task.” Leon said as he shut the door behind him and walked up to the three. 

“Why the fuck do you have to give us the report? You’re the guy who basically roofied us.” Jecka grumbled irritably. 

Leon rolled his eyes at this. “There was no time to explain the fact I was taking you kids to a secret government institution. Besides I think saving your lives from that pedophilic psychopath kinda balances that out. Now then-”

“Say you’re sorry.” 

Leon stopped himself midsentence. “...Excuse me?”

“If you want us to actually give you any fucking respect then say you’re sorry. If I wanted to be drugged by someone twice my size I would date an NBA player. Now say you’re FUCKING SORRY!” Jecka glared, in a way that Alex had never seen before. 

Alex had seen Jecka mad before. Pissed off even. This wasn’t that. She was LIVID. He understood why Jecka would be mad at something like this. He himself was pretty annoyed by what happened too. But this felt like it was about more than just the whole kidnapping thing. After all, she wasn’t like this yesterday when it actually happened. Alex was concerned for his girlfriend but decided not to ask her about it until they were alone. 

Meanwhile, Leon stared at Jecka for a few seconds as her glare was unwavering. Alex couldn’t tell if Leon was surprised at Jecka or simply didn’t care. After a few more seconds of silence Leon gave a small sigh as his stern eyes turned into a more relaxed state. 

“I’m sorry for what happened. You’re right. I can’t pretend that what I did was okay. In a job like this you sometimes forget how numb you are to the things you need to do…. I didn’t get to fully introduce myself to you guys yesterday. My name is Leon and I look forward to mentoring you kids.” Leon gave a small, tired smile as he reached for something in his suit. 

“Whatever…” Jecka sighed and then had a look of confusion. “Wait… mentor?”

“Yep. I have been assigned to basically be in charge of you guys and teach ya the ways here.” Leon shrugged before taking a file out of his inner pocket and handing it to Alex. 

“I thought like my Mom or Dad would be helping us out?” Kelly asked in a bit of a disappointed tone. 

“As much as they would like, they are too busy with attending to intricate matters here in ODD.” Leon explained. 

“Intricate matters like?”

“.... confidential intricate matters.” Leon corrected which just made Kelly pout. “It’s still your first day. Don’t jump the gun too fast now.” 

“So this is…?” Alex asked, referring to the file that was handed to him as he opened it with both Jecka and Kelly peeking over each one of his shoulders. 

“Your first mission. A ghost has been living in Las Vegas, Nevada, for quite some time now. Normally as long as they behave, we usually ignore those who have not passed on. But of course, this one in particular has been causing quite a bit of trouble. He has been possessing the bodies of both men and women so they can gamble their life savings away until they go bankrupt. We don’t know how long this will go on before he either physically hurts someone or gets a host of his killed. Your three’s mission is to put a stop to this spirit whether it be passively or by using brute force. It is entirely up to you. If it’s the latter then you’ll have to take these.” Leon hands Alex a pill bottle. 

Alex looks at the contents of the bottle with a raised eyebrow before looking back to Leon. “And these are…?”

“They are an experimental drug. But we have tested them and they do in fact work without any harmful side effects. They essentially give you the ability to physically touch ghosts or spirits for 24 hours. Do what you think needs to be done.” Leon explained.

“Wait, hold the fuck up for a second. We’re going all the way to the other side of the country?? How the hell do we even get to Vegas?” Jecka asked, confused. 

“I will be escorting you there via private jet. You have three days to complete your mission once you arrive.” Leon answered.

“And… what happens if we don’t complete it in three days?” Kelly asked, concerned. 

“Then it would seem that you are after all not O.D.D. material and will be fired immediately and have your memories of your time here completely erased.” Leon explained. 

The three froze at that. Their memories would be erased. They couldn’t help but feel a bit queasy at the thought of that. Especially Kelly who had just discovered a huge family secret and an even huger revelation of a long lost friend. 

“Wait, hold on.” Alex waved off his hands in the air. “If we’re gonna be gone for a maximum of three days then how would me or Jecka explain that to our families?” 

Jecka’s head perked up at that. Her boyfriend had a point. If she was gone from home for three days without an explanation then her Dad would… Jecka shuddered at that thought and instinctively touched the left side of her cheek. 

“We already took that into account. We not only have the ability to erase memories. We can also alter them. For your families, it will be like you were home for the entire weekend. So there's no real worry there.” Leon shrugged.

“Wow. And that really works?” Alex asked, a bit impressed.

“You’d be surprised what people can believe when their memories are tampered with. I mean people still believe that all those melting ice caps are caused by global warming when it’s really because- …Nevermind.” Leon scratched the back of his head. “Come on. Let’s get your butts on the jet. The sooner we do the sooner you guys can complete your first mission.” Leon told them as he led the three out the door.

“And then after we can begin to unlock each of your Anomabilites…”

……………

………………………………

………………………………………………………….

The three had just stepped into the Caesars Palace hotel with their bags in hand. The ride to Vegas wasn't a bad one. It was probably the nicest flight that Alex and Jecka had ever taken. Once they had landed, Leon told the three that the hotel reservation was under his last name and told them that while they stayed in a hotel, he himself would be staying with the jet. 

The hotel lobby itself was incredible. Marble gleamed underfoot, a smooth, pale expanse etched with veins of gold and cream. Above, the ceiling soared, a vast dome painted with classical frescoes—cherubs and gods, chariots mid-charge, clouds that curled like breath caught in a dream. Light spilled from enormous crystal chandeliers, catching on the edges of the gold leaf that trimmed the columns and archways, making everything shimmer like a mirage.

In the center of the lobby, a grand fountain burbled—a round marble basin where life-sized statues of Roman deities stood frozen mid-pose. Neptune with his trident. Venus with a teasing glance. Water trickled over their feet in delicate rivulets, and the sound was almost hypnotic, drawing you deeper inside. Both Jecka and Kelly stared at the fountain in amazement, their eyes gleaming in reflection of the rushing water.

Bellhops in crisp uniforms moved with efficient grace, their footsteps silent on the polished stone. Over the murmur of conversation and the occasional rattle of suitcases, the distant chime of slot machines leaked in from beyond the lobby, as if to remind you that this palace, for all its splendor, belonged to Las Vegas. Alex wasn’t a gambler but even he couldn’t help but wanna play some games despite being underaged. 

“Holy fucking shit. This job rocks!” Jecka grinned with an excited expression that Alex couldn’t help but find pretty adorable. 

“I gotta say, I don’t really have any regrets so far.” Alex chimed in. “Let’s go check into our rooms.” Alex told the two girls who nodded in response as they headed over to the receptionist desk. 

After giving the name “Stronghart” to the receptionist, the trio were a bit surprised to find out that Leon had reserved only two rooms instead of three for them. Alex stared at the two room keys in his hand as they walked away from the receptionist and proceeded to hand one of the keycards to Kelly. 

“You get this room. Me and Jecka will get the other.” Alex told the hypersexual. 

“Whaaaaat. No fair. How come I have to stay in a room by myself?” Kelly pouted.

“Because me and Alex are dating obvi.” Jecka replied.

“Ugh this sucks! You two are gonna get your fuck on while I’ll be stuck alone like some loser.” Kelly moped. 

“We’re just here to get work done Kelly. Not fool around.” Alex rolled his eyes as he waved her off with a scoff, trying his best to sound professional.

“Exactly. We don’t get horny 24/7 like you do! We are competent workers.” Jecka smirked, her arms crossed as she closed her eyes and nodded, also acting very professional.

Kelly then proceeded to give both Alex and Jecka a “Are you kidding me?” look while Alex coughed awkwardly in his fist while Jecka looked to the side as she rubbed her neck whilst whistling a tune to herself. 

“That’s what I thought!” Kelly glared.

“Kelly, if you’re that envious, then just find a guy here in Vegas to bring back to the room with ya. Me and Alex don’t really give a shit.” Jecka shrugged.

“I guess…” Kelly sighed. 

“Either way, let’s go to our rooms and put our bags away. Then we can start scouring the city for that ghost.” Alex declared as the other two agreed. 

Alex and Jecka opened the door to their room and couldn’t help but look in awe at how nice it looked. A king sized bed with a flatscreen TV in front of it. A beautiful view of the city from their window that Alex couldn’t help up but stare from. 

Jecka wandered into the bathroom — or rather, the sanctuary disguised as one. Heated floors. A freestanding tub, deep enough to drown stress and time with a sturdy shower head over it. On top of the ceiling where the light should be, a chandelier of glass droplets shimmered, like frozen rain. Everything here had been designed not just with care, but with the quiet intention of comfort.

Jecka stepped out of the bathroom and plopped herself on the large and comfy bed in relaxation. “Ahhhh, fuck this is nice.” Jecka remarked, happily. “This job just gets better and better.” 

Alex couldn’t help but smile like an idiot at seeing his girlfriend so happy. “Hope you don’t take that back when we eventually have to fight some dead guy.” Alex chuckles.

“Ugh, don’t remind me…” Jecka grumbles as she puts her hands to cover her face. “Ya know, I didn’t really give it any real thought before but… this is all pretty fucking insane. Like all this shit really exists in real life. Ghosts, Vampires, Aliens, all that supernatural shit is honest to goodness real. I mean this is like a fucking movie or something but it’s not. Like this is actually happening to us. It’s pretty overwhelming…” Jecka sighed as she sat up from the bed. 

Alex frowned a bit and walked over and sat beside her on the bed. “Try not to overthink it. Yeah, it’s a lot for sure but let’s focus on what’s happening right now. Like you said, this is all pretty amazing. Not every job gives you a sort of work vacation on your first day. Leon told us we have three days so if we manage to finish this up early then we can just spend our remaining time here and have fun.” Alex smiled as he put his hand on top of hers. 

Jecka smiled at Alex’s touch and leaned her head on his shoulder. “Good point.” Jecka smiled as she closed her eyes for a few seconds, comfortable with where she was before quickly standing up with a determined look on her face.

“Alright! Let’s go ghostbusters on this thing’s ass and get this over with so we can FUCKING PARTY!” Jecka shouted as she pumped her fist up into the air. 

Alex chuckled and stood up as well. “Not like we can gamble though, considering we’re underaged. It also probably wouldn’t be a good look if our new job caught us doing something illegal while on the job.”

“......You’re only saying all that responsible shit because you forgot your fake ID aren’t you?”

“........Maybe.”
………….

………………………………….

………………………………………………………………

After unpacking their suitcases and changing into sets of clothes that didn’t make them stand out, the trio spent most of the day walking around the city. Before they went to the hotel, Leon gave Alex a sort of remote-like device that would be able to signal when the ghost would be nearby. So far, no dice. Heh. Dice. Vegas humor. They saw some pretty amazing sights while they were looking. From the Punk Rock Museum to the tiny version of New York that Vegas had. 

The city smelled like everyone who lived here was a chain smoker. Now Alex enjoyed a cigarette every now and then but even he was getting put off by the stench. His girlfriend on the other hand was less bothered by it than he was. In fact, Jecka was lighting one up as they walked together. 

“We’ve been walking for hours. How have we not found this thing yet??” Kelly whined. 

“Well we’re kinda looking for something that can become invisible in a city that has over 600,000 people so it’s really no surprise we haven’t found one on the first day.” Alex rolled his eyes at Kelly’s whining. But even he had to admit he was getting tired as well. 

“Hey Alex? How about we take a break and get something to eat? I’m starving.” Jecka said as she batted her eyes at him in a way that he couldn’t possibly refuse. 

“....Alright. I’m getting kinda hungry too.” Alex sighed. 

The three managed to get inside a Vic & Anthony's Steakhouse. Despite the restaurant almost closing, it was still fairly packed. Once they sat down, they ordered their food which only took about 30 minutes to arrive and they immediately dug in. 

“Mmmm.” Kelly hummed as she enjoyed her quarter ounce steak. “What are the chances that ODD will give us a mission to go to Bermuda next?” Kelly sighed dreamily. 

“Don’t jinx it.” Alex said as he munched his way through his large burger. “We’ll probably get something shitty like paperwork. I imagine that’s how government jobs operate.”

“Well this isn’t exactly a normal government job, is it?”

“Well… no. But-”

“I’m full!” Jecka smiled happily as both Alex and Kelly turned to her and sweatdropped to see the barely eaten spicy chicken sandwich in front of her. 

“You only took like five bites.” Kelly muttered in astonishment.

“So?” Jecka tilted her head to the side.

“You’d be surprised but that’s actually more than usual.” Alex sighed. 

“Maybe we should start splitting dishes when we go out to a restaurant…” Alex made a mental note to himself.

“Holy shit look at that guy go!” 

“How can he eat that much!?” 

“That’s sure hell of a way to get diabetes.” 

These comments echoed throughout the restaurant which caused the three 18 year olds to turn their heads to where all the commotion was coming from. A man seemingly in his forties was scarfing down every dish the restaurant had. As if he hadn’t had a single bite of something in years. 

“Jesus Christ. He is somehow eating more than Gabe does on Thanksgiving.” Alex’s eyes widened. 

“Maybe he’s like one of those professional eater guys you see on TV.” Kelly guessed.

“Or maybe he lost all his money and is trying to eat himself to death.” Jecka joked.

Alex chuckled. “Maybe. It’s still pretty impress-”

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

The three jumped at the loud beeping near them. Thankfully the restaurant was already so loud that no one else had noticed it. Alex quickly fished through his pocket to pull out the remote that Leon had given him earlier. Sure enough, that was the source of the sound. This caused the trio to look around the restaurant frantically.

“It’s here!?” Jecka exclaimed in shock.

“I guess so! But where??” Kelly asked out loud. 

“...You don't think the ghost is in that guy right now do you?” Alex asked the two blondes as he pointed to the guy still chowing down.

“I mean… I guess that would make sense. But how do we know for sure?” Jecka asked. 

With that, Alex began to stand up. “Let’s try the direct approach. Either I’m right or this guy just thinks I’m some other nutjob in Vegas.” Alex says before walking over to the man who had been eating like his life depended on it. 

The man had obviously not noticed Alex walk up over to him as he was busy stuffing his face. That is until he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see a smiling Alex. 

“Hey there Mr. Ghost! You mind coming with us?” Alex asked politely with a grin. 

The man’s eyes widened and quickly got up from his seat and pushed Alex to the floor before making a sprint out of the restaurant. 

“Hey! That asshole just dined and dashed! Does he know how much he fucking owes us!?” One of the employees shouted. 

“Fucking knew it!” Alex shouted before running after him. 

“Alex!” Jecka called out but it was too late. Alex was already out of the restaurant chasing after that man. “Let’s go Kelly!” Jecka turned to her friend who simply nodded before running out as well to chase after Alex and the man. 

“More dine and dashers!? Fucking Vegas! I knew I should have never left Mexico and just kept moving blow for Hector…” The employee grumbled to himself.

……

…………………

………………………………………

“YO CASPER! GET YOUR UNDEAD ASS BACK HERE!” Alex shouted as he chased the man throughout the streets of Vegas. He was quickly catching up with him and it wasn’t just because Alex was simply in shape. It just so happens when someone eats a lot of food in one sitting, they tend to move very slow. Weird huh?

The man saw he was gaining fast as he pushed through many people out of his way, causing bystanders to fall over as he continued to run amok. That’s when he suddenly had a very smart idea of quickly running into an alley between two buildings because typically that’s how chase scenes end. And wouldn’t ya know it? As soon as he ran into said alley, he was immediately tackled to the ground by Alex.

“Ha! Sucks for you dude! Don’t you know this author hates writing chase scenes?” Alex boasted.

HEY! THAT’S ENOUGH OF THE FOURTH WALL BREAKS! -Author

The man grumbled something incoherent as he glared at Alex before all of a sudden, his eyes turned completely white and mouth gaped open. Out of his mouth seemed to be some form of blue mist which skyrocketed up into the air and turned into the form of a man. 

This man, although transparent with a tint of blue color shining on his floating body, seemed to be a man in his thirties with dark brown hair and a twirly mustache. He wore a plaid suit that looked like it came from the late 1800s or early 1900s. And of course, his attire was completed with a black bowler hat on top of his head. 

The ghost looked down with a glare at Alex whose eyes widened. Sure, Alex knew what they were looking for but to actually see a real living ghost in person was still a bit of a culture shock for him. Or I guess in this case you could call it a reality shock. The ghost didn’t say a word before flying upward and disappearing into the night sky before Alex could udder a single word. 

“Damn it! I was too fucking dumbfounded to even talk to him! God I’m stupid!” Alex mentally slapped himself as he kicked a trash can to the ground, the shock of seeing an actual ghost quickly fading. Alex has seen a real life goddess before. It kinda feels like a ghost should be kinda below that on the surprise scale. 

“Alex!” 

Alex quickly turned around to see Jecka and Kelly running toward him. “Did you get him?” Jecka asked as her and Kelly stopped to catch their breaths as she stared at the unconscious body on the ground.

Alex shook his head. “No. It left the body. I did actually see the ghost though. I didn’t even get a word in before it flew off.”

“Oh…” Jecka looked down for a bit before giving a comforting smile. “Well look at it this way. We got super close on the first day. I think that’s some pretty good progress. Don’t ya think?”

Alex stared at Jecka and smiled. He felt a little better when he considered how Jecka put it. “You’re right. There’s always tomorrow.”

“Oh thank god. Does that mean we’re done for the day?” Kelly asked, out of breath. 

Alex nodded. “Yeah. I think it’s best we go back to the hotel and start again tomorrow.” 

With that the trio decided to head back to the hotel. It was a long, quiet walk back but they eventually made it without any issue. They went straight to their rooms with Alex and Jecka saying goodnight to Kelly as she entered her room while Alex and Jecka entered theirs. 

“Fuck, I am exhausted.” Alex sighed as he shut the door behind them. 

“Tell me about it. All that walking killed me.” Jecka groaned as she took off her shirt and tossed it to the floor. 

“At least you didn’t have to run for 10 minutes after some guy who looked like he belonged during a time when segregation was socially accepted.” Alex joked as he stripped down to his underwear whilst going through the dresser drawers for a pair of sweatshorts which he began to put on. 

“No you’re right. I just chased after the dumbass who made the guy run in the first place by saying “Hey there Mr. Ghost! You mind coming with us?”” Jecka mocked as she unhooked her bra and threw it on the bed as she rifled through the drawers for a pajama shirt. “Ugh, I wish we could have gone shopping.” Jecka whined.

Alex yawned as he walked towards the bed and quickly got himself under the covers. “Hopefully we can if we are actually able to finish this up tomorrow.” Alex replied as he laid his head down on the cool pillow as he put his arms over his head. 

Alex closed his eyes for five seconds before opening them again when he felt something on top of his legs from over the covers. Alex opened them and couldn’t help but grin a little at what he saw.

“.....I see you haven’t put on a shirt yet.” Alex said as he stared at his bare chested girlfriend. 

“Nope.” Jecka grinned back. 

“And I don’t suppose you’re gonna put one on anytime soon?” He sat up.

“Not at all.” She moved closer.

“Then I guess Kelly was right about one thing…” He cupped her face. 

“No shit she was…” She closed her eyes. 

TWO HOURS LATER…

“....Ya know I guess we can afford to sleep in a little.” Alex said with a laugh as he stared up at the ceiling from the bed, sweat dripping from his forehead.

“Definitely…” Jecka smiled as her head laid on her boyfriend’s chest as the two began to close their eyes and succumb to sleep. 

……….

……………………….

……………………………………………..

“......So you guys just aren’t going to explain why you ended up waking up at one in the afternoon?” Kelly asked as she took a bite out of her sandwich she got for lunch. 

The trio were walking down the streets of Vegas once again looking for the ghost but once again they were having no luck so far. Heh… Luck… More Vegas humor…

“The weather seems very beautiful today. Wouldn’t you concur Jecka?” Alex smiled in a polite and out of character tone as he purposely decided to avoid Kelly’s questions. 

“Why yes Alex. Yes, it seems to be a lovely outing today. Quite.” Jecka replied, as well trying to sound polite, proper, and innocent as she too ignored Kelly’s questioning. 

“....You guys are so full of shit.” Kelly grumbled to herself as she finished her sandwich. 

…………..

……………………..

…………………………………………

The trio were currently in one of Vegas’s most profitable casinos, walking around to see people win life changing money only just to lose it. As they walked further in, they had to deal with bullshit like hookers trying to get Alex to pay them for a blowjob or drunk men hitting on Jecka and Kelly with the latter having to be pulled back by Alex and Jecka from actually going with them. Eventually they found themselves in a large empty room.

“Woah. What’s this room for?” Jecka asked, her voice carrying an echo from how spacious the room was. 

“Looks like a ballroom. Probably for special events.” Kelly shrugged. 

“Yeah, there's nothing here. Let’s head back.” Alex said and as they turned to leave, the door they came from slammed shut, making the three jump. Alex quickly ran to the door and tried to open it but unfortunately it was locked. 

“What the fuck?” Jecka said, now on edge. 

“Now what the hell do you three blokes want with me?”

The three quickly turned their heads to see the ghost that Alex had seen last night as it stared at them with an annoyed expression. However, this was the first time that Jecka and Kelly had seen the glowing spirit. 

“HOLY SHIT IT’S AN ACTUAL FUCKING GHOST!” Kelly screamed out loud. 

“HOLY FUCK IT’S BRITISH!” Jecka screamed, equally freaked out. 

“THAT’S WHAT’S FREAKING YOU OUT ABOUT THIS!?” Kelly screamed at Jecka. 

Alex still wasn’t used to a sight like this but decided to steel his nerves and walk forward to the spirit. “My name is Alex. And you are?”

“....John.” The spirit answered simply. “Now once again, what the fuck do you three want with me?”

“We’re agents of ODD. We’ve been tasked to get you to stop possessing bodies and making them gamble their shit away. People already do that willingly here. They don’t need to do it against their will.” Alex said calmly. You can either stop now or we will have to use force.” 

John glared at them seriously before suddenly suppressing a laugh into his hand. “Holy shit mate! “Stop now or we will have to use force.” Did you practice that in the mirror? What a fucking laugh!” John mocked before bursting out laughing. 

Alex’s cheeks burned a little out of embarrassment as he looked back at Jecka and Kelly and saw that even they were trying not to laugh. Alex felt a little betrayed but also kind of had to agree he sounded like a major fucking dork just now. 

“Guess we’re doing this the hard way.” Alex grumbled before taking out the pill bottle out of his pocket that Leon had given him yesterday. He took one of the pills out and swallowed it. He then proceeded to lunge himself at John only for Alex to go through his body and fall onto the floor. 

“....And what exactly was that?” John sweatdropped. 

Alex groaned as he fell face first onto the floor. “The fuck…?” He took out the pill bottle again and read the label that was on it. “Takes one hour before effects begin to kick in….? Well… shit.” 

“Look, I don't plan on stopping anytime soon. I like possessing bodies and gambling. Especially when I get to enjoy meals again.” John shrugged. “In fact…” John then turned to the two girls who were staring at him nervously. “...Let me show you.” John said before he quickly flew toward them and went inside of Kelly’s body. 

“Holy fuck! Kelly!” Jecka shouted in worry as Alex began to pick himself up and his eyes widened as Kelly wore a now crazy grin. 

“See what I mean? It’s a riot init?” Kelly’s voice echoed out, now sporting a British accent.

“Kelly!” Alex shouted out in worry. 

“I know a wealthy girl when I see one. It’s gonna be fun to use this body and drain this one’s pockets.” John in Kelly’s body grinned. 

Then all of a sudden, that grin faded away and they suddenly looked confused. “Wh-Why does this body suddenly feel… excited when I mentioned I would be using it…?” British Kelly asked, the tone of their voice now sounded nervous. 

“GUYS HE’S INSIDE ME! HE’S INSIDE ME!” Kelly’s real voice came out of her body in an excited tone which made John cover their mouth, their eyes widened. “H-How the bloody hell did you do that?” Her British accent returned. 

“GHOST! PLEASE LEAVE MY BODY AND GO INSIDE IT AGAIN! IT FELT SO FUCKING GOOD!” Kelly’s face drooled with a lustful expression before she quickly shook her head and now had a frightened one.

“ST-STOP THAT AT ONCE! THAT IS… THAT IS INCREDIBLY INAPPROPRIATE!” British Kelly shouted with a deep red blush beginning to form on their face. 

Alex and Jecka just stared at the now possessed Kelly and then looked at each other and then back at their possessed friend. 

“So… what exactly do we do here?” Jecka asked, sweatdropping at the scene in front of her. 

“I… I don’t know… I almost kinda want to see how this plays out…” Alex admitted with an equally bewildered expression as Jecka. 

“No, yeah, same here.” Jecka slowly nodded, still astonished at the scene playing in front of them. 

“IMPOSSIBLE!” British Kelly shouts. “WHAT IS WITH THIS-”

“SEXY!” Kelly interrupts.

“-GIRL!?” British Kelly finishes with an exasperated pant as sweat beads down their face. “I-I suppose I must acknowledge that you have quite the impressive mind to resist a complete possession… HOWEVER-”

“Aw shucks.” Kelly interrupts him again with a bashful grin from his praise as she rubs her neck in embarrassment.

“SHUT UP! I SAID HOWEVER! HOWEVER… I CAN STILL CONTROL WHAT THIS BODY DOES AND I CAN DO MANY HARMFUL THINGS TO IT SO WHY DON’T YOU JUST SUBMIT AND…” Kelly’s body came to a halt as their eyes widened. “Why… Why is she getting even more turned on than before!? WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH THIS-”

“INCREDIBLY ATTRACTIVE!” Kelly interrupts.

“-WOMAN!?” British Kelly finishes with exhausted pants as Kelly’s body finally collapses to the floor on her back which then the spirit quickly escapes Kelly’s body and goes over to Alex and Jecka with a deep bow. 

“PLEASE FORGIVE ME! I WILL NEVER POSSESS ANYONE EVER AGAIN NOR WILL I EVER COME TO THE STATE OF NEVADA EVER AGAIN! JUST DON’T PUT ME BACK IN THERE!” John begs. 

I think he’s forgotten that he’s the one who voluntarily put himself in her body… Ah well.” Alex thought to himself and began to clear his throat. “Yes well… If you leave and never come back then you won't have to be subjected to our friend here.” Alex pointed to Kelly who was rubbing the bump on the back of her head from suddenly collapsing on the ground. 

“Y-Yeah! That was just a taste of what she can do to you so you better fuck off quick!” Jecka shouted, also going along with what was happening. 

“Y-Yes! Of course! Thank you! You’ll never hear from me again!” John said before flying out of the building as quickly as possible. 

The three then stared at the ceiling he flew out into and then at each other. There seemed to be an awkward silence filling the room.

“So…” Kelly began. “...Mission accomplished?”

……..

………………..

…………………………….

Alex and Jecka were currently walking back to their room at the hotel. They were both physically and emotionally exhausted after what they just went through. 

“Well that was… not exactly how I imagined us completing our first mission.” Alex muttered. 

“How did you imagine it?” Jecka asked.

“Not like that. I think I might be scared of Kelly now though.” Alex admitted. 

“Hey where is Kelly anyway?” Jecka asked.

“I think she said she would catch up. She had to go take care of something. Not sure what though.” Alex shrugged as the two finally reached their hotel room door. Just as Alex pulled out the keycard, a voice shouted out. 

“Hey Alex! Hey Jecka!” Kelly’s voice rang out causing the two of them to turn around to find Kelly being carried over some dude’s shoulder with five other dudes and five girls behind him all going inside Kelly’s hotel room. 

 Alex and Jecka stared at Kelly with a “what the fuck” look as she gave the two a double peace sign and a wink and said “You two are welcome to join in at anytime.” and with that, Kelly’s door closed in front of them. 

Alex and Jecka then looked at each other. Alex gave Jecka a stupid happy smile as if he was about to ask something. Jecka however did not have such an amused look. 

“No.”

Alex learned a valuable lesson that night when he slept on the floor. 

………

…………………

…………………………………

“Congratulations on completing your first mission.” Leon smiled at them as the three were walking towards the jet. “I gotta ask, how did you do it?” 

Alex, Jecka, and Kelly froze at this and began to sweat. “Uh… we just… asked nicely and he listened.” Kelly lied with a blush, not feeling like explaining the real story. Alex and Jecka just nodded at this. 

“Hm I see. Well I’m sure your father and mother will be looking forward to reading the Memory report.” Leon shrugged as the three entered the Jet and sat down in the seats. 

That sentence almost made Kelly’s eyes bulge out of her socket. “....Me-Memory report?” 

“Oh right, I guess I forgot to mention. After every mission it is mandatory that every agent’s memory is scanned so we have a detailed record of what went on in each mission. Don’t worry it doesn’t hurt or anything. It only takes like five seconds.” Leon explained as the jet began to take off. 

Alex and Jecka’s eyes widened at this and began to look at Kelly whose entire face was deep red as she began to violently shake and sweat profusely. Not only would her mother and father know how they got rid of that ghost but they would also see what happened… last night. 

“Y-Ya know… I think I want my memory erased after all…” Kelly shakingly said, embarrassed tears began to come out as Alex and Jecka tried their best not to laugh at their slutty friend’s situation. 

Unbeknownst to any of them, the spirit, John, was watching the jet take off into the sky. He let out a big sigh of relief once the jet was out of sight. 

“Finally… Good riddance to that wretched girl… But still I suppose I am a man of my word… Off I go.” John thinks to himself as he flies away from Las Vegas and the state of Nevada. 

“....They said they were from ODD, didn’t they?” A small smile then began to appear on John’s face. 

…………

…………………………….

………………………………………

“How nostalgic…”

Chapter Text

“Once again, congratulations on completing your first mission.” Leon complimented the three. 

It was the day after Alex, Jecka, and Kelly had come back from Vegas. Alex and Jecka were both surprised to find out that what Leon said was true and that their families were all under the impression that they were home for the entire weekend. 

“Yeah, we’re pretty fuckin awesome like that.” Jecka smiled. 

“Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report. Please don’t let Mom and Dad read the report.” Kelly silently prayed over and over in her head. 

“So do we get another mission now or how does this work exactly?” Alex asked.

“Well, truth be told. You three still aren’t official agents yet.” Leon admitted which shocked the trio. 

“You telling me we let Kelly get soul raped by ghost for nothing?” Jecka glared, clearly agitated.

“Can we PLEASE call it something else?” Kelly whined, embarrassed. 

“Like what? Phantolested? Spirited Assault? Ghost-Busted-Inside-You?” Jecka asked, tilting her head to the side. 

“......Soul raped is fine.” Kelly sighed. 

“If you two are done…” Leon raised an eyebrow at them, regaining their attention. “You three have only passed the first out of three requirements in becoming an ODD agent. The first requirement was that you would have to complete a mission all by yourselves. Now the second requirement is that we must unlock your Anomabilities and have you ranked in the agency.”

“.....Our Anoma-fucking-what now?” Jecka asked, completely lost. 

“Anomabilities.” Leon repeated and the trio gave him blank looks. “...Guess I have to explain huh?” Leon sighed but continued. “You see, Anomabilities are latent hidden abilities that are actually in every single human on Earth once they are born. These abilities come in many varieties such as super strength, elemental powers, invisibility, psychic links, or even…” and just like that, Leon disappeared in the blink of an eye which shocked the three.

“...Super speed.” a voice behind them whispered as the three jumped and turned around in shock.

“Holy shit!” Alex exclaimed, almost falling backwards. 

“What the fuck!?” Jecka shouted.

“I feel like I’m past the point of being surprised anymore so I’m just gonna roll with this.” Kelly said plainly. 

“You mean… We’re gonna be able to do cool shit like that!?” Jecka asked, starting to get excited. 

“Not gonna lie. That kinda kicks ass.” Alex grinned. 

“Wait if we were gonna get powers anyway… Why couldn’t we get them before you sent us out on a mission?” Kelly asked. 

“Well it’s tradition that you must take on your first mission without any powers to see if you truly are ODD material. That’s why this is the second requirement before becoming full fledged members.” Leon explained.

“Okay… So how do we even get these anomaly abilities?” Alex asked.

“Anomabilities.” Leon repeated once again. “And we have a special room that exists to forcefully break them out of the shell inside your souls.” 

“This isn’t gonna like hurt is it?” Kelly asked, a bit nervous of the description.

“Of course not. A quick and painless procedure.” Leon reassured the teens. “Every single person in the O.D.D. has had to go through with this. Now it’s your turn.” 

Alex, Jecka, and Kelly looked at one another briefly before looking over to Leon and nodding. With that silent confirmation, Leon had led them to an elevator that none of them had been shown on the tour when they first arrived. Once they got inside, they were led pretty far down and after a couple dozen seconds it stopped. Once the elevator doors had opened they were shown a very bright room that looked like some kind of lab. There were tons of people in lab coats and goggles instead of the usual uniform that agents of ODD wear, working on various tasks. 

“This is our lab. Where we experiment on different mythical and extraterrestrial objects. Or even create extraordinary things on our own.” Leon answered as they walked further into the lab only to be stopped by a woman they were all too familiar with. 

“Mom!” Kelly happily greeted her mother who donned a lab coat over her uniform. 

“Hi sweetie. I heard you finished your first mission. I am so proud of you. I can’t wait to read the memory report when I get a chance.” Mary smiled sweetly and Kelly just looked to the side with dread and sweat beading down her forehead in response. 

“So uh Mrs. Anderson! What are ya doing down here?” Alex quickly changed the subject with a fake cough. 

“Ah. You see Mary here is actually our lead scientist. She has made incredible discoveries that have only benefited ODD and the hopes of mankind.” Leon answered. 

Kelly quickly snapped out of her funk at this news. She had no idea just how incredible her mother was. Kelly knew she wasn’t the brightest bulb in the room but hearing how the woman who birthed her is actually this incredible scientific genius filled her with pride.

“Aw shucks Leon you’re gonna make me blush.” Mary rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. “But you know I’m a married woman so please don’t flirt with me if you value your testicles.” Mary threatened with the same sweet smile she always wears.

“It was just praise….” Leon sweatdropped. 

“That’s what they ALL say. Now what are you four doing down here anyway?” Mary asked.

“I’m taking them to get their Anomabilities.” Leon answered and in response Mary squealed like a schoolgirl and hugged her daughter tightly, her right cheek rubbing up and down Kelly’s left cheek. 

“MY BABY IS GETTING HER POWERS! I’M SO PROUD OF MY LITTLE PUMPKIN!” Mary gushed with affection which only embarrassed Kelly, made Alex chuckle, and while Jecka would never admit it, was a bit envious of how affectionate Kelly’s parents were towards her as she looked away to the side, slightly frowning. 

“M-Mom! That’s enough!” Kelly tried to pry her Mom off her but her grip was a lot stronger than she thought. Eventually, Mary let go of her daughter who was trying to compose herself.

“S-So uh… I guess you and Dad have powers then?” Kelly asked, scratching the back of her head. 

“Of course we do sweetie!” Mary answered with a smile. 

“R-Really? So what’s your power then?” Kelly asked, instantly curious.

“Well it’s-”

“Dr.  Anderson? We need your assistance! Billy’s skin turned purple again!” a voice called out, causing Mary to stop and look back and sigh. 

“When the hell is he gonna stop eating those fucking berries! Jesus Christ… I’m sorry sweetie. I have to get going now. I’ll come see you once you unlock your Anomabilities! Leon, you know where the chamber is I assume?” Mary asked the red haired man who nodded in response. 

“Perfect! See you when you’re done!” And with that Mary hurried off to another room in the lab. Once she left, Leon led them onwards to the deepest part of the lab where they were greeted with a giant metal door and a large computer. 

“This is where you three will unlock your abilities.” Leon explained. “Once you step inside, I will activate this machine and well it’s just gonna do its thing.” Leon shrugged as he booted up the computer and began to prep it. 

The three teens stare at the big metal door as they begin to open slowly. After a minute, they completely opened and the teens were faced with a completely white room with white walls, a white floor, and a white ceiling. 

Leon looked back to see the three teens staring like idiots and rolled his eyes a bit amused. “Go on, get in.” Leon said as he waved his hand, gesturing to them to walk inside. 

As soon as the three of them stepped a foot inside, the big metal door immediately shut behind them. 

“So… what now?” Jecka asked out loud. 

“Can you guys hear me alright?” Leon’s voice echoed throughout the room. 

“Yeah we hear ya.” Alex confirmed, looking up at the ceiling. “So do we just like stand here or…?” 

“Yep. We’ll get started in just a second. Booting it up now.” Leon said and there was an uncomfortable silence for a few seconds until he spoke up again.

“So uh… ya know how I said that this was going to be quick and painless?”

“Uh… yeah?” Kelly said nervously.

“I kinda lied…”

With that, the entire room became red. Alex, Jecka, and Kelly’s bodies immediately hurled to the floor in immense pain. This pain was worse than anything any of them had felt in their entire lives. Screams echoed in the chamber. And they wouldn’t stop.

Leon looked at the door as the screams persisted and sighed. He turned around and scratched the back of his head as he walked off. 

“This is always the worst part… But it always has to be done….” Leon said to himself out loud before heading back to the lab to see one of the lab assistants that didn’t seem to be doing anything.

“Hey you.” He called out to him which prompted him to come over. 

“Yes sir?” He asked. 

“They’re gonna be in there for a while. Play some good old fashion montage music. Something fitting.” Leon told him as he walked off. 

“You got it boss.” The lab assistant gave a salute as he pulled out a vinyl disc from his lab coat pocket (because why not?) that was labeled ‘HAPPY MUSIC’ and walked off to play it. 

Leon looked behind his shoulder one last time at the hallway that led to the chamber. He sighed once more, put his hands in his pockets and walked out of the lab.

“....Good luck kids. See ya in a few hours.”

………

………………

………………………………….

THIRTY MINUTES IN

🎵Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream🎵

🎵Make him the cutest that I've ever seen🎵

Alex had vehemently thrown up on the floor from the intense pain as he screamed for his life. His lungs burning on the inside, his chest feeling as if it was on fire. Pain was an understatement. 

ONE HOUR IN

🎵Give him two lips like roses and clover🎵

🎵Then tell him that his lonesome nights are over🎵

Jecka violently pulled her hair. Her entire body felt like tiny knives were sticking through her skin slowly and sturdy. She kicked her feet in the air as her entire being shook. Blood dripped from her nose as she began to hyperventilate. It was enough to make her pass out. But she didn’t. It was more like her body wouldn’t allow it. 

THREE HOURS IN

🎵Sandman, I'm so alone🎵

🎵Don't have nobody to call my own🎵

Kelly slammed her fists onto the floor. She grit her teeth to the point where she felt like they would shatter. Her eyelids were bleeding. Tears flew through but all that came out were deep red droplets as if the sky rained blood. She was slowly losing her sanity. The need to bite her tongue off and kill herself to end her suffering has never felt so tantalizing.

SIX HOURS IN

🎵Please turn on your magic beam🎵

🎵Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream🎵

Alex, Jecka, and Kelly laid down on the floor. Their bodies were convulsing. They seemed conscious but their eyes were rolled far back into their head as they continued to twitch with spit and blood drooling out of their mouths. Finally, after what felt like an eternity in Hell, the red lights in the room turned off, returning the room back to its original white state. Then the pain had finally ceased. And the three finally lost consciousness.

……..

…………….

…………………………….

Alex slowly opened his eyes. He found himself in what looked like a hospital room. He looked to the left and saw two other beds that had Jecka and Kelly both still sleeping. He then saw his arm was connected to an IV. It took a few seconds but he managed to get his bearings together.

“Fucking christ… where am I?” Alex groaned. 

“ODD’s infirmary.” a voice that Alex didn’t recognize spoke up. He looked to his right and saw a man he hadn’t met before standing there smiling with a soda can in one hand and another hand in his dress pants pocket. He had long black hair that seemed to be tied into a ponytail. 

“Uh sorry but… who are you?” Alex squinted at the man in confusion.

“The name’s Yuri. I’ve been away from headquarters for a bit and just got back today. Wanted to see how our new recruits were doing. Want a Dr. Pepper?” The man grinned as he waved the can in front of Alex’s face.

YURI ARSENE

S RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

“Um… okay?” Alex answered, a bit put off by the offer but accepted the can regardless. His arms felt a bit weak but strong enough to take the soda from him. He stared at it before opening it only to receive a burst of soda to the face. He stared at the now fizzy can for a few seconds and then back at Yuri who he could tell was biting the inside of his cheek to suppress a laugh.

“....Are you fucking serious?” Alex deadpanned.

“S-Sorry… I j-just co-couldn’t help myself…” Yuri restrained himself from bursting out laughing. 

Alex just continued to stare at him with an ‘are you kidding me?’ look. Before he could take a note from his sister and tell him off in a way that will make him feel suicidal, he noticed that Jecka began to stir awake.

“Fuck… I don’t think I’ve been this badly bruised since Dad got drunk the night Obama was elected…” Jecka groaned as she opened her eyes.

“Jecka!” Alex called out to her, relieved that she was okay.

Jecka looked to the left and smiled although her smile was a bit weak from the drowsiness she was feeling after just waking up.

“Alex! Are you alright?” Jecka asked. 

“Well, I’m not feeling 100% but I’d say I’m not doing horrible. What about you?” Alex asked in return.

“Yeah, same here.” Jecka answered and then looked over to Yuri who was grinning at her. “Um… Are you like the doctor or something?”

Yuri only shook his head with a smile. “Nah. I'm an agent like you are. My name’s Yuri. Want a Dr. Pepper?” He asks as he holds out another unopened can of Dr. Pepper. 

“...Stop.” Alex sweatdropped.

……….

………………….

………………………….

About a half hour passed and all three were now awake. Leon, Mary, and George were now in the room along with Yuri. 

“Glad to see you kids are awake. And… sorry about lying. I just figured you’d be reluctant if I told you what it was actually like.” Leon rubbed the back of his head. 

“So… you all had to go through that too?” Kelly asked them.

“We certainly did pumpkin. It’s honestly the worst part about joining ODD but it needs to be done to bring your Anomabilities out of you.” George explained. 

“So we have like… super powers now, right?” Jecka asked, unsure.

“That’s right.” Mary smiled sweetly.

“And I helped!” Yuri flashed another grin. 

“No you didn’t…” Leon deadpanned. 

“So uh… what happens now?” Alex asked the four S ranked agents. 

Leon looked at the three of them and smiled. 

……..

………….

………………..

“....We see what you got as your Anomability.”

Chapter Text

It took quite a bit for Alex, Jecka, and Kelly, to stand and feel well enough to leave the infirmary. They were actually pretty surprised and confused on how well they were only after an hour or two of bed rest. From what they just went through, they all figured that they would be completely bedridden for a couple of days at LEAST. 

Leon had led the three of them to an ODD training room. They looked around and noticed different sets of workout equipment and what looked like practice dummies for sparring. 

“Alright you three, it’s time to show me what you got.” Leon said as he put his hands in his pockets, turning to face the three.

“....Uh so how are we supposed to know what they are and like use 'em’?” Alex asked as he felt around his body. “I mean, I don't really feel any different.”

“All you need to do is picture in your mind that you want to use your ability. Even if you don’t know it yet, your body will instinctively respond. It will become as natural as breathing and-” Leon was interrupted by a shine of light in the corner of his eyes as he, Kelly, and Alex both turned around to see Jecka, who was looking at herself with a stunned expression as lightning began to envelop over the course of her body. 

“HOLY SHIT!” Jecka screamed out as she looked over herself excitedly. “THIS FUCKING ROCKS!” 

“....Like that.” Leon finished as Alex stared at his girlfriend in awe. 

Leon then took a device out of his pocket. It looked like a high tech version of those self scan things you see at grocery stores. He activated it and scanned Jecka’s entire body. After he was done, Leon took out a tablet and began to stare at it. 

The electricity eventually departed from Jecka’s body as she stared at Leon with confusion. “Uh what’s that for?” Jecka asked. 

Leon looked up from his tablet. “This? It tells me what your Anomability is and the rank you will start out with in the agency.” Leon answered. 

“Rank?” Jecka echoed. 

“ODD agents are composed of five ranks. D rank, C rank, B rank, A rank, and S rank. The rankings are based on your current strength, power, and Anomabilities. S ranks like myself are the highest while D ranks are the lowest. But don’t worry. Just because you get a low rank now doesn’t mean your rank can’t improve. If you further your Anomabilities and get stronger then your rank will rise. But that is entirely up to you. There are lots of agents here who are content with their rank and don’t wish to improve. When I first started here I was a C rank but I gradually made my way to S in time.” With that Leon finished his explanation and showed the tablet’s screen to the three of them. Specifically Jecka. 

“Jessica Winters. Your Anomability is called Electra . It’s a basic elemental Anomability where you have control over lightning and can utilize it depending on how smart and imaginative you are. Elemental Anomabilities are actually more common than you might think. But lightning is definitely one of the more powerful ones so kudos to you. Your current rank is D rank by the way.” Leon said.

Jecka was too busy admiring herself to really care that her rank was the lowest one. She was still finding it hard to believe that she could even do all this in the first place. Her first thought was to show Nicole so they could do some fun shit with these powers but then remembered she would probably get fired if she told anyone.

“Jessica Winters. Prefers to be called Jecka. She was never meant to get involved with ODD in the first place unlike her two friends. Alex because I was under orders to recruit him and Kelly because of her connection with her parents. I can’t help but wonder why I was told to bring her along with them instead of erasing her memories… Does the Director see something in her that I don’t? From first impressions she seems to be a stubborn yet empathetic young woman. She reminds me of… No. Nevermind.” Leon sighed as he finished his thoughts and then looked over to Alex and Kelly. “C’mon you two. Just like Jecka did, calm your mind and picture yourself using your Anomability.” 

Alex and Kelly closed their eyes and tried their best to picture themselves using any kind of ability but no matter how hard they tried, nothing seemed to happen. 

Kelly sighed. “This isn’t working.” 

“Keep trying. You’ll get it.” Leon told her as he pulled out a carton of cigarettes, took one out and lit it.

“Isn’t there some other way?” Kelly asked, getting annoyed that Jecka was able to do it so easily. 

“No.” Leon answered simply as he took a drag from cigarette.

Kelly closed her eyes once more and tried again and again but it still wasn’t working. Maybe she was just a failure? Maybe she couldn’t be like her parents, Jecka, Alex, or even Cyrus. Maybe she was just a huge disappointment. 

“God damn it! THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!” Kelly screamed and all of a sudden, a burst of wind enveloped the entire room which blew both Alex and Jecka off their feet and hurled them across the floor. The only one who stood on his feet was Leon, although he was pushed back a few inches and the cigarette flew out of his mouth. 

The wind then subsided as Kelly’s eyes widened, her jaw unhinged. Kelly took a step back as she stared at both Alex and Jecka who were still on the ground looking at Kelly in surprise.

“See? Was that so hard?” Leon asked with a small smile as he used the scanner to analyze Kelly and look at the results on the tablet. “Hmmm…” Leon murmured. 

“I uh… Guess it’s some kind of wind power?” Kelly asked, rubbing her arm. 

“....Close.” Leon said after a few more seconds of looking over at the tablet and then back at the girl in question. “Your Anomability is called Natural Disaster . You can utilize forms of any natural disaster in combat. What you just displayed was a small burst of a hurricane. It’s a powerful Anomability but as of right now you have almost zero control of it so without training it, it's practically useless. As for your rank… Kelly Anderson, you are a B rank.” Leon finished. 

“Wow… Alright.” Kelly wasn’t sure what she was expecting her power to be but it definitely wasn’t anything like that. But regardless, she was pretty excited about learning how to use it. 

Leon continued to stare at Kelly as she was too busy in thought over her Anomability. Leon hummed as he stroked his beard slightly as he began to ponder as well. 

“Kelly Anderson… Not only does she have a powerful Anomability but her starting rank is B which is actually pretty rare among fresh recruits. Although… It's no wonder considering who her parents are. Besides Alex for obvious reasons, she may have the best potential out of any new recruit we’ve gotten in recent years. If she can start taking this job seriously then a future as an S rank agent isn’t exactly impossible for her…” Leon quickly broke out of these thoughts as he noticed that Alex and Jecka were still on the ground. 

“C’mon you two get up! Don’t just lie there with your mouths open like you’re ready for a dick to be shoved in, get off your asses!” Leon barked as Alex and Jecka quickly scrambled to get off the floor with Jecka getting up first and then holding out a hand to help Alex up. 

“Alex. Jecka and Kelly both have their Anomability now. We’re all waiting on you.” Leon told him as Alex just got up to his feet. 

“Alright. Alright. Calm do-” Alex was cut off by electricity pulsing out of his hands just as he put them up defensively. It was just like Jecka’s except Jecka’s lightning was yellow. This lightning was pure white. 

Alex stared at his hands and looked over to Leon who was raising an eyebrow. “I guess I have the same thing Jecka has.”

Leon hummed in thought as he scanned Alex with the device and looked at the tablet once more. He then looked at Alex and then back at the tablet. Then at Alex again. Then at the tablet again. And so on. Finally after what felt like forever, Leon spoke up. 

“Alex… go touch Kelly right now.” 

“WHAT!?/YES!” Jecka and Kelly shouted out. 

“NOT LIKE THAT! JUST TOUCH HER SHOULDER OR SOMETHING!” Leon yelled, a vein forming on his forehead. 

Alex raised an eyebrow, confused where Leon was going with this but complied nonetheless as he approached Kelly and placed a hand on her shoulder and let go.

“So what’s exactly the point of this?” Alex asked as he waved his hand in the air only to cause a giant burst of wind that knocked a few of the training dummies over. 

“Uh… what the fuck?” Alex asked as he stared at his hand.

“Yep. That confirms it. Alex Yu, your Anomability is called Copy . It’s just as it sounds. You can copy other Anomabilities via touch. It looks like you can only copy one at a time but whether or not you will be able to potentially copy multiple abilities at once in the future is entirely on you Alex. As for your rank, it's C rank.” Leon explained.

For some reason, Alex wasn’t surprised at this. He doesn’t know why but for some reason… he expected this to be his ability. He wasn’t sure why or how but deep down it’s almost as if he had some familiarity with it. But how?

Leon stared at Alex as he processed this new information. 

“Alex Yu… The human that made a deal with a goddess. I had an inkling but now it all makes sense. We always wondered how Alex was able to use Chrona’s powers, even if it was only temporarily. But to be able to access your Anomability before fully unlocking it… It’s unheard of. At least that would be the case for normal people. After all, both Alex and Nicole Yu are… Well enough about that.” Leon quickly shook off those thoughts and cleared his throat to get the attention of the three new power users. 

“You three have completed your first mission. You three have gotten your Anomabilities and ranks. Now, before you three can become official agents of the O.D.D., there is one final requirement left.”

“Which is?” Jecka asked.

Leon smiled. “....The initiation Exam.” 

……

………………..

…………………………………..

“So it's basically some sort of final test?” Jecka asked Kelly’s mother. 

The three were back in the main room of ODD headquarters. Along with them were Leon, Mary, Rose, and Cyrus. They were there to inform them what the Initiation Exam consists of and what to expect. 

“That’s right.” Mary smiled. “You three along with the other new recruits will be put through a series of physical obstacles using your Anomabilities. It’s quite fun.”

“Other new recruits?” Alex questioned.

“You didn’t think you three were the only new recruits ODD was getting did you?” Leon asked with a raised eyebrow. “Truthfully your recruitment was a bit more unorthodox than usual but before you three came along we had already recruited ten other members. They will be joining you three next week in the Initiation Exam.” Leon explained.

“And you better not think this shit is gonna be easy either. It’s really going to be testing you and your Anomabilities.” Rose crossed her arms as she leaned back on a table.

“But we just got them!” Kelly complained. 

“That’s why I am personally training you three on using your Anomabilities for every day until the exam.” Leon told them.

“This is gonna suck isn’t it?” Jecka complained.

“Just think of it like Clark learning to control his powers.” Alex said, reminding his girlfriend of her favorite show. 

“Yeah but there’s a difference between actually doing the hard work and sitting on the couch watching a show while stuffing my face with medium well popcorn…” Jecka sighed. 

“...medium well?” Leon sweatdropped.

“Eh, it won’t be too bad.” Cyrus finally broke his silence as he hopped off the table he was sitting on and grinned. “I’ll make sure to take it easy on ya guys once the exam starts.” 

“Huh? What do you mean Cyrus?” Kelly asked him.

“Oh, right. I almost forgot. Cyrus here will be conducting the exam for the new recruits.” Leon explained as he then gave the 19 year old in question a slight glare. “And no Cyrus, you’re not being biased and making it easy on them. Also, we don’t want to have a repeat of last year.” 

“What happened last year?” Alex asked. 

Rose then walked over to Cyrus and pulled on his ear which made him wince in pain. “This horny little fucker here banged every new female recruit because he can’t keep his dick in his pants.” 

“To be fair, it’s a pretty big dick Rose. I know you’re secretly dying for it.” Cyrus commented with a sly grin which only made Rose pull on his ear harder making him profusely apologize. 

“I should report your ass to the Director for sexual harassment ya know.” Rose glared, not letting go of his ear.

“Oh Rose honey, in his defense you ARE dressed like a cum dumping slut. It’s no wonder he thinks you’re easy.” Mary smiled sweetly at the red haired beauty. 

A very visible tick mark appeared on Rose’s forehead as she finally let go of Cyrus as she marched towards Mary whilst cracking her knuckles. 

“The FUCK did you say to me you Mary Poppins acting little bitch? You wanna throw down?” Rose glared. 

“I suppose I could if you are content with spending the rest of the day in the infirmary. It’s time for your daily STD test after all is it not?” Mary sweetly said, her composed expression unwavering.

“Girls, we CANNOT afford to replace another entire new boarding room due to one of your arguments.” Leon sighed which was enough for them to cease their bickering as Rose grumbled and Mary hummed softly. 

Alex and Jecka sweatdropped as they stared at what had just happened as Kelly smiled from ear to ear at her childhood friend after learning what he had done. 

“He SO gets me.” Kelly beamed with a light blush.

“Anyways…” Leon coughed into his fist regaining everyone’s attention. “The training will come surprisingly easy to you three. I didn’t mention this before but unlocking your Anomabilities doesn’t just grant you powers.”

“What do you mean?” Alex asked.

“Think of it as if you were born with a shell around your heart. We call this a Soul Shell. Inside that shell is the pinnacle of human evolution. Otherwise known as Anomabilities. All humans are born with this invisible shell protecting their heart and soul but also holding them back from their true potential. We broke that shell inside you three when you stepped into that little room. When your Soul Shell broke, all of your natural abilities increased by 100%. Strength, speed, reflexes, and even recovery. I’m sure you three were surprised at how quickly you were able to recover in the infirmary. That’s proof in itself that you three are now like the rest of us. Enhanced human abilities with different powers in each one that can only be described as an anomaly. Thus the term; Anomabilities.” Leon finished his explanation.

“.....Yeah I’m still fucking lost.” Jecka tilted her head. 

Rose couldn’t help but laugh while Leon just pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly frustrated. 

“Just get your asses back in the training room already. You start now.” Leon huffed in annoyance. 

……

…………

……………………..

And with that, Alex, Jecka, and Kelly, began a week of absolute Hell.

Chapter Text

For an entire week, Alex, Jecka, and Kelly were pushed to their limits by Leon and his extensive yet brutal training methods. 

DAY ONE

“C’mon Alex. Don’t be a pussy. Keep that fridge over your head.” Leon told him as Alex struggled to lift a 700 pound metal commercial refrigerator over his head. 

“Th-The fact I can lift this thing at all is already a fucking miracle. You we-weren’t kidding when you said our str-strength would increase…” Alex said as his entire body trembled from having to lift something so insanely heavy. Sweat constantly dripped from his forehead to his bare chest. Never in all his life had Alex wanted to stop lifting something yet Leon wouldn’t let him.

“And as for you two…” Leon quickly turned around and sweatdropped as he stared at the two girls that were clearly distracted to do any of their training. “First of all, wipe your noses. You’re both dripping blood all over the floors. Usually that’s a sign of hard work but uh… not in this case. In fact you can both give me 100 pushups for every drop of blood you just spilled right FUCKING NOW!” Leon screamed that last part to make sure they got the message across, which thankfully they did as they scrambled to the floor and began to count. 

DAY THREE

“You think Rocky had to do this kind of training?” Jecka asked her boyfriend as she threw three quick left jabs at a practice dummy. 

“Well uh… Rocky was a boxer and we have special powers so…” Alex shrugged as he kicked a practice dummy across the other side of the room.

“But wasn’t Rocky special too?”

“Yeah… that’s a different kind of special though Jeck…”

“Jecka.” Leon walked over to the two. “Your reaction speed is still pretty slow. Try using your Anomability to increase the speed of your hits.”

“Uh alright…” Jecka said as she activated her Electra ability, readying to strike with her right arm. And before Alex could even blink, the training dummy was nowhere to be seen. He then turned his head to the other side of the room to find a training dummy or at least the remains of one, scattered over the floor, remnants of electricity surrounding the broken pieces. 

“....Sylvester Stallone ain’t dodging that one.” Alex said in awe. “Kinda hot…”

“Fuck yeah! I’d like to even see Mike Tyson get up after that one! Bet his lisping ass won’t see the day where a white bitch knocks him out!” Jecka grins excitedly. 

DAY SIX

“Alright Kelly, this is the big one. You sure you can do it?” Leon asked.

“I… think so? Probably? I dunno.” the blonde with black roots shrugged. 

“You got this Kelly… heh heh… yeah…” Alex lazily laughed as he laid on the floor, watching the ceiling.

“Yeah… use your fuckin pffft I dunno fuckin… outside powers or whatever… heh…” Jecka chuckled, her eyes half lidded.

“Are… Are you two fucking HIGH!?” Leon stared in shock.

“We-Well we were going to that lab thingy again and uh… like we saw these thingies and like it was Alex’s idea soooo…” Jecka droned on.

“Awwww you bitch, why… why… why you saying stuff like that…? Mannnn…” Alex rolled over in a fit of laughs. 

“.......Do it.” Leon told Kelly as eyebrow twitched in anger as he looked at the two agents currently high on who the fuck knows. 

Kelly blinked at her two friends and then sighed before lifting her foot high into the air and slamming down on the ground, causing the floor to violently shake under them. Kelly, after practicing this for a few days now was able to quickly gain her balance, as was Leon. Unfortunately for the other two who were already on the floor, they went from a fun high to an insanely scary high in just one second. 

“Ohhhhhhhhh SHIIIIIITTTTT GET ME OFFFFFF!!!!!” Jecka shouted in fear as her body flopped around the ground. 

“I’M FUCKING GONNA DIEEEEEE!!!!” Alex screamed, curling into a ball and rolling around. 

“Call your mother over here to sober them up before I decide to fire them…” Leon muttered angrily to Kelly who frantically nodded and ran off. 

“What a fucking mess… Who knows how they’ll end up doing tomorrow…”

DAY OF THE EXAM

In the outskirts of the Nevada desert, there resides the military airbase known as Area 51. Known to the world at large, (or in this case, basement dwelling virgins that use the internet all day), as a facility that is famous for its secrecy and its association with conspiracy theories, particularly those involving extraterrestrial life and UFOs. Now, while that may or may not be true, what people actually don’t know is that underneath it is a small base that is owned by ODD. This base is used for new ODD recruits to be tested on their skills and Anomabilities. 

In other words, to partake in the Initiation Exam. 

“Is this place usually this empty?” Jecka asked as she looked around the military airbase. 

“No.” Cyrus shook his head smiling. “Once a year we have the occupants clear the building out in order to hold the exam. They would just get in the way.” 

Currently Cyrus was escorting Alex, Jecka, and Kelly through Area 51 to the elevator that would lead them down to the testing grounds for the exam. 

“I just can’t believe that we would be back in Nevada this soon. I really hope that ghost doesn’t come back and tries to possess my body again.” Kelly sighed. 

“....You know when you say that with an excited grin and drool dripping down your face, I’m inclined to call bullshit.” Alex rolled his eyes irritably to which Kelly immediately shook out of her trance and viciously wiped her mouth. 

“Anyways… Does this place actually have alien stuff?” Alex asked Cyrus who gave a small nod. 

“Sure does. Although this place is only a smaller secondary base compared to ODD’s main headquarters and laboratory, it still serves its main focus on experimenting and researching the extraterrestrial. Of course the whole United States Air Force thing is a front in the first place. Unfortunately we’re not here to see the super cool alien shit. Will have to take a raincheck on that one.” Cyrus casually shrugged as they finally reached the elevator. 

Cyrus took out a keycard from his jacket pocket and waved it over the elevator button panel which made a quick beep noise. He then pushed the downward button and within seconds the elevator opened for them to step through. 

“This is as far as I go. I’ll be up here conducting the exam for you all. The other recruits are already down there. And as much as I would actually like to make it easy on you guys, I rather not face Rose’s wrath.” Cyrus shuddered and instinctively touched his left ear at that last part. 

“No prob Cyrus! We understand! …Kiss for luck?” Kelly asked with half lidded eyes to which Cyrus only replied with a sly grin before grabbing Kelly by the waist and shoving his tongue down her throat. 

Alex and Jecka uncomfortably watched the make out session for a few seconds. It wasn’t until she saw Cyrus groping Kelly’s ass that Jecka felt like she had seen enough. “If you two are gonna fuck in here can you at least go somewhere else!? Maybe you’ll find where they store the alien probes while you’re at it!” Jecka quipped with a glare. 

Cyrus ended the kiss and smiled at Jecka while Kelly was in a daze. “They actually keep them in room 7B if you must know.” Cyrus informed Jecka to which Kelly shook out of her daze and became star eyed.

“REALLY!?” she asked a little too excitedly. 

“I can show you if you pass the exam.” Cyrus smiled. 

“....Please for the love of God stop.” Alex groaned. 

The three were now inside the elevator. The last thing they saw before it closed was Cyrus giving a thumbs up and grin as it began its descent. 

……..

……………

…………………….

Back at ODD headquarters in Washington D.C., agents were hard at work in the main computer room. At least they were trying to be. A few of the lower ranked agents sighed in frustration as they hit the side of their monitors just in time for an S rank agent to walk in.

“Um sir? The computers are freezing again.” an ODD agent calls over George who looks over at the monitor the agent was using. 

“Hmm… Third time today. Well I guess just get one of the lab techs to have a look. The software might be worn out or something.” George shrugged before walking out.

The agent sighed before staring at his computer again but this time with a perplexed look.

“Huh? These files were just here. Where did they-”

“HEY! WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT PLAYING THAT GOD DAMN MINECRAFT GAME!?” George’s voice bellowed from the other side of the room. 

“At least that’s better than the time Phil got caught watching German porn…” the ODD agent shuddered in thought, his mind seemingly forgetting his confusion from earlier.

……..

…………………

……………………………………

“...Are you guys nervous?” Kelly asked her friends as they elevator went down. 

“Not really. When I’m nervous I throw up. So on the plane ride here, I went into the bathroom and forced myself to throw up like one of those anorexic girls.” Jecka smiled.

“Oh so THAT is what that smell was…” Kelly put a finger to her chin. “Man, I wish I thought of doing that.” 

“If ya did, I wonder if Cyrus still would have kissed you.” Alex joked. 

“He would have if he loved me!” Kelly crossed her arms with a smug face. 

“Right…” Jecka rolled her eyes and before they knew it, the elevator finally stopped.

Alex suddenly began to feel that nervousness that Kelly was talking about. Those elevator doors were about to open and reveal the other ten recruits that were asked to join ODD at the same time as them. He couldn’t help but wonder what they would be like. But before Alex could ponder anymore on that, the elevator doors opened and the three of them were faced with what seemed to be a room similar to ODD’s training room. At the far end of that room were two giant metal doors that were closed. Above those doors was a large television screen that was turned off. Inside this room were completely new faces as they all turned to stare at them as they stepped out of the elevator door. They all seemed to be around the same age as them.

“So you guys are the last ones huh?”

“About time you got here.” 

“Looks like we can finally fucking start now.”

“Let’s not blame them my fellow comrades! I am sure they were busy being good citizens!” 

“This fucking guy…” 

One of them stood up and walked over to the three. He was a very hefty man with pale skin and black combed hair. Alex figured he was just as big as Gabe was. He had his ODD uniform on in a peculiar way. While the rest of his outfit was fine, his jacket was tied around his neck like if he was wearing a cape. He struck a heroic pose at the three. 

“Allow me to introduce myself! My name is Ken! The future greatest hero of this world! It is an honor to meet fellow citizens that wish to join ODD’s cause for the greater good!” 

KEN LIONEL

D RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: WEIGHTLESS

Alex, Jecka, and Kelly just have him blank stares. After a few seconds of awkward silence, Jecka looked over to the other agents. “....Is he special ed?”

“That’s the first thing I asked him. I don’t think so. He is just regular weird so it’s okay to bully him.” a girl came up to Jecka with a smirk. 

This girl had long blonde hair styled into pigtails. She had red lipstick that complimented her beautiful face. Unlike the man next to her, her uniform was pristine without a single wrinkle.

“Name’s Trixie. Hope you three are actually cool unlike the rest of these losers here.”

TRIXIE PARKS

D RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: REVERSAL ILLUMINATION

“Why are you such a bitch?” a new voice caused them to turn around to see a fairly tall asian man with freshly cut black hair. He calmly kept his hands in his pockets as he sent the pigtailed blonde a nasty glare. 

MILES LING

D RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: MINI

“Dunno. Maybe it’s in my DNA?” Trixie rolled her eyes with a scoff, seemingly not affected by the man’s insult. “Why are you such a boring waste of air?” 

“C-C’mon guys! C-Can’t we just get along?” A skinny boy with light brown hair stuttered. He had a bowl cut with rectangular glasses so thick you couldn’t see his eyes. Alex and Jecka couldn’t help but think that he looked like Jeffrey’s long lost brother. 

CODY MOON

C RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: SWAP

This apparently did tick Trixie off as she stepped towards the quivering boy. “What? Just because your rank is higher means you think I’ll listen to what you have to say, you shrimp dicked virgin?” She harshly glared which made the boy cower even more. 

“N-No… I-I didn’t say…” Cody tried to explain himself. 

“Just leave the kid alone.” A bored voice interrupted Cody’s rambling. They turned their heads to see a girl sitting on the floor, not making eye contact with any of them as she seemed busy going through her phone to make any pleasantries. She had long dyed shaggy pink hair that was put up into a pony tail that reached to her middle back that went through the backside of a plain black baseball cap she sported. Her uniform was the same as everyone else with the exception of her ODD jacket which was tied to her waist instead of being worn. She continued to stare at her phone with a neutral expression as she blew a bubble with the gum she was currently chewing. 

ZOEY RYMES

B RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: PHOENIX

Trixie gave an annoyed look to the pinkette and then back to Cody. She rolled her eyes and walked away from him with a scoff. “Whatever.” She quickly turned back to Jecka. “You seem cool. Let’s chat.” she grinned.

“Sure.” Jecka shrugged with a small smile and the two went off to the other side of the room to talk. 

Alex and Kelly figured to go off in different directions too and meet more of the people that haven’t had a chance to speak yet. 

Kelly walked over to two men who seemed to have been talking to one another. They eventually noticed Kelly walk up to them and gave a small grin. One of them sported a brown mullet. She could tell as soon as he grinned that he had an upper gold tooth and reeked of weed. The other was a few inches taller than the other man. He was bald but had a gray fedora over his head. He also had a strong stench to him but this one was of smoke due to the large cigar he was currently smoking. 

“Hey big bro. Not every day a smokeshow like her walks up to us.” The boy with the mullet slyly grinned. 

FRANKY CAIN

C RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: BLAZE

“You’re gonna scare the lady off if you talk like that. Don’t be a fucking idiot.” The fedora wearing man sighed.

VICTOR CAIN

C RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: CAGE

“Um… alright. Well uh hi, my name is Kelly. And uh… sorry I think I’m just gonna go.” Kelly began to walk away feeling a little creeped out. Usually she liked it when men flirted with her but that was only when she felt they were attractive enough to her to allow it. These two did not fit that criteria. 

………..

……………………….

…………………………………………

Alex walked over to someone who seemed to have been distancing themself from everyone else. He had shoulder length black hair and a lip piercing. His eyes were closed, his entire body relaxed. Before Alex could even get a word in, he spoke up first. 

“Your name?” he asked.

Alex stared blankly at him. He felt that this guy was just trying to look cool for the sake of being cool and that kind of annoyed him. He hated when guys did that. “It’s Alex. What’s yours?” 

“Zack.” is all he responded with. 

ZACK DIME

A RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: WEAPON MATERIALIZATION

“Alright cool. So uh you excited for the exam?” Alex asked but got nothing in response. It’s as if he felt like he heard all he needed to hear from him and began to tune Alex off. Alex quickly walked away from him a little irritated and went over to go see what Jecka was up to. 

“Dick…” Alex grumbled to himself. 

…….

…………………

…………………………………

Meanwhile with Kelly, she had accidentally bumped into someone as she was trying her best to get away from the two brothers. This 6 foot tall girl had brown hair in a short pony tail. Her ODD jacket and white buttoned shirt were nowhere to be found on her attire. What was replaced was a white tank top that gradually showed off her very muscular arms, toned stomach, and large chest. 

Kelly once had told Ari that she never really thought about swinging both ways unless another guy was involved. But judging from the drool that was coming off her mouth as she stared up at the tanned beauty, she was beginning to reconsider that stance. 

“S-Sorry about that.” Kelly blushed. 

The muscular woman smiled down at Kelly. “Don’t worry about it.” She then squinted her eyes and began to stare at Kelly intensely. She then proceeded to feel up Kelly’s arms which made her back away in surprise. 

“Wh-What are you doing!?” Kelly stammered with a red face.

“Hmmm… your muscle build is lacking. But I suppose it’s not completely skinny for a workout newbie.” She shrugged with a soft smile. “My name is Tara by the way. Nice to meet ya.”

TARA STEELE

B RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: COMBO HARDENING

“....Do you own a strap on?” Kelly asked without hesitation.

“What?” Tara asked, completely thrown off by the question.

“What?” Kelly asked back as if she didn’t just ask a bizarre question.

………

………………….

…………………………………….

Alex found Jecka still talking to Trixie and decided to check in. “Hey Jeck.” he greeted.

“Um, can we help you?” Trixie asked, confused as to why this guy was talking to them. 

“No, it's cool. He’s my boyfriend.” Jecka turned to Trixie. 

“Oh.” is all Trixie replied with.

“What do you mean oh?” Jecka raised an eyebrow. 

“Like I mean… why?” Trixie asked, confused. 

“Well I mean first of all he’s hot. Not Ryan Sheckler hot though obvi.” Jecka crossed her arms. 

“Ew. Ryan Sheckler?” Trixie cringed.

“Bitch do NOT try to lose the only person who’s being nice to you right now!” Jecka glared. 

“Alright, alright, chill.” Trixie rolled her eyes. “Man, what’s taking them so long? Shouldn’t it have started by now?” Trixie asked, trying to change the subject. “I mean how long have we all been in here?” 

“24 minutes.” a new voice called out which made the three jump, only to turn around to see a woman with dark skin and even darker hair that completely covered her forehead with her bangs as her hazel colored eyes that were behind a pair of red glasses stared deeply at a book she seemed to have been reading. 

“Jesus Christ! Don’t do that you fucking weirdo!” Trixie shouted, calming her heart.

“....Sorry.” is all the girl replied with. A calm and collected expression lay on her face as she turned the next page of her book, seemingly no longer paying the three of them any mind at all. 

ALICE ALBRIGHT

A RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: HEAVENLY MIND

“The hell is up with this place and the silent types?” Alex sweatdropped. 

“Anyway back to what I was saying, the hell is the hold up?” Trixie groaned as she pulled out her phone to relieve herself of the boredom she was feeling but only to find her phone to be completely unresponsive. 

“The hell? My phone won’t work…” Trixie said irritably. 

“Really?” Jecka asked and proceeded to take out her flip phone and blink in surprise. “Hey, me too!” 

Alex’s eyes widened as he took his phone out as well and was surprised to see that it also was not working. 

“Hey!” Trixie shouted, gaining everyone’s attention. “Do any of your phone’s work!?” Once she had asked that, everyone immediately took out their phones only to shake their heads at her in response. 

“What the hell is…” Trixie stopped herself and looked over at Zoey who was still on her phone. “Hey! How come your phone is working!?” she pointed to her in an accusation type of way.

“It’s not.” is all Zoey replied with as she chewed her gum whilst continuing to stare at her phone, refusing to make eye contact. She then quickly showed her phone to everyone to prove she wasn’t lying before staring at it again. 

“Has it been broken this whole time!?”

“Yes.”

“Then why have you been looking at it this whole time!?”

“Better than having to talk with you.” Zoey replied, blowing another bubble with her gum. 

Before Trixie could cuss out Zoey with every swear word in the book, the large television above the metal doors had finally turned on which caused every new recruit in the room to look up. On the screen was a person that no one in that room recognized. Mainly because this particular person was wearing a silver skeleton mask with a black crown on their head. 

“Hello there new recruits of the Oddity Defense Division. I’m sure this might come as a bit of a surprise to all of you but allow me to introduce myself. My name is King.” The masked person greeted them with a voice modifier, disguising their voice. 

Everyone looked at each other in confusion. Was this how the Initiation Exam started? They all couldn’t help but ask that same question in their heads. However they figured that question would soon be answered so they all kept quiet and listened. 

“Now, you are all here today because you are here to take part in the Initiation Exam. And I am here to tell you that… there has been a bit of a change in those plans.” King calmly said which surprised everyone. 

Murmurs and whispers filled the room unsure if this person was being serious or if this was all just an act to get them ready for the exam. Neither were 100% sure which option was more likely. 

“I’m sure that some of you are doubtful but I am speaking only truths. You see, you were all absolute fools to join an organization like ODD. And I am here to punish you for that. Those who still don’t believe me well…” 

King proceeded to grab the camera that was currently showing them on the screen and moved it slightly to the left to see in the darkened background behind them was a man tied up in a chair with blood, bruises, and cuts all over his face and body. The man was slumped over seemingly unconscious. At first it was hard to tell who exactly was in the chair but after the camera managed to focus, it was quite apparent who it was to everyone in that room. Especially to one recruit in particular. 

“CYRUS!” Kelly screamed out in fear, her eyes widening at her childhood friend beaten so badly to the point she could have only barely managed to make out his face. 

Everyone else was too stunned to speak up. Cyrus was an A rank agent. Whoever this ‘King’ person was must be extremely dangerous if they managed to leave the horndog agent in such a state. 

They couldn’t see King’s face due to the mask but they could all tell that behind it was a smile of pure malice forming as the camera panned back to the figure in question.

“Now then…”

…..

……….

……………………………

“...Shall we play a little game?”

A/N: Hey guys. Just wanted to let you know that chapters are gonna start being once a week instead of twice a week until further notice. I’ve been very busy lately and it feels like I am constantly on a deadline to get a chapter out to you guys so often. It’s just really overwhelming. I am not blaming any of you guys though. I’m just blaming myself for trying to be an over achiever lol. It will go back to twice a week someday but I can’t say when for now. Hope you guys can understand! (PS: I’m sure some of you are gonna be confused by the names of the Anomabilites since I didn’t explain what they were with each person’s introduction but that was my intention. Their powers will all get explained, I just want to see you guys try to guess what they could be based on the names alone. Some might be obvious. The others not so much. Anyways see ya guys next week!)

Chapter Text

“What’s happening?” a frantic Mary quickly walked into the command center of ODD. 

The command center was in chaos. Agents ran around in a panic as they scrambled from one computer to another. Every S rank agent was on standby watching the biggest computer monitor in the room. Each of them had a very stern expression on their face. 

“It’s exactly how it looks. Every ODD computer has gone offline.” Leon sighs. 

“Every single one?” Mary echoed, as she joined her fellow S ranks. “That’s impossible.” 

“It should be impossible. And yet here we are.” Mason yawned, rubbing his tired eyes from behind his dark shaded sunglasses.

“Will you take those fucking pajamas off already! And why are they Wizard of Oz themed!?” Rose barked at the narcoleptic agent. 

“My niece likes em’.” Mason shrugged. 

“Guys, please.” George sighed, desperately trying to get back on track. “Here is what we know. As of two hours ago, different computers have been freezing multiple times throughout the day. We even had a few agents report that some files seemed to have gone missing from those computers. We first assumed that it was some bug in the software. But as of ten minutes ago, every single computer in the compound had simultaneously shut down. It’s no mistake. This was deliberate.” 

“And what did the Director say?” Mary asked. 

“I just spoke with him.” Yuri piped up, putting his hands in his pockets. “He wants all of us S ranks to discover who is behind this. Actually… let me rephrase that. He only wants us S ranks working on this.

“Meaning?” Rose crossed her arms with a furrowed brow.

“....I get it now.” Leon grimaced. “ODD is the most secure organization on the planet. And this type of attack… was way too coordinated.”

“So you’re saying…” Mary’s eyes widened, finally understanding what Yuri and Leon were talking about. 

“Yeah, I’m afraid so.” Yuri sighed as he leaned back against the round table of the room while Leon took out a cigarette to light. 

“This… is an inside job.”

……

…………………..

……………………………………….

“A game?” Alex repeated that word in his head as a bead of sweat dripped from his forehead while he stared at the monitor screen. “What the hell kind of game does he mean? Just what is this guy planning?”

“If you all truly wish to join this shithole of an organization then I can only assume you are all willing to die for it. And THAT is exactly the kind of game I wish to play. A game where if you lose then you lose your lives. After all, it is not as if ODD will truly mourn any of you. You are all just pawns to them. Soldiers that can be discarded at any time so the world can continue to remain ignorant to the unknown. This is a contract. And by being here, you have all just essentially signed it.” King’s voice spat with a venomous tone. 

With that, the big metal doors that were set below the monitor had opened. It was clearly inviting all the recruits to start walking in but no one moved a muscle. After all, why would anyone voluntarily play a game that could lead to their demise? But of course, it didn’t seem like they had a choice as to everyone’s surprise and shock, the floor beneath their feet had begun to move as if they were standing on one of those escalators you see in an airport. 

Unfortunately for all of them, the floor moved too fast for any of them to react in time and they were forcibly put inside the next room with the door quickly shutting behind them. The room they were now in was quite large. It was surprisingly enough, roughly the size of a football field. 

The most notable feature however, was the giant gaping 80 foot wide hole from one side of the room to the other. Square platforms were lined up above the hole with spikes sticking up from deep below. It was clear that this would be instantaneous death for anyone who would fall below. King then spoke up again from a new monitor that was on the farther side of the room.

“Your first challenge is a simple one. Make it from one side to the other without falling. Those who make it shall be able to move on to the next round. Oh, and of course you will be on a time limit of thirty minutes. If you have not reached the other side by then, then you will be executed on the spot. Good luck.” The monitor screen then changed from King’s mask to a countdown from 00:30:00. 

Silence filled the room. At least until someone decided to speak up.

“Don’t tell me you guys really believe this bullshit?” Trixie rolled her eyes. 

Jecka, who was still in shock at what had just happened, looked over to Trixie with a frightened expression. “Wha-What do you mean…?” Her voice asked, shakily. 

“Yes! Please explain, my fellow comrade Trixie!” Ken’s voice boasted, causing said girl to flinch out of annoyance. 

“Yeah! Did you not just see what happened to Cyrus!? What the fuck are you talking about!?” Kelly stomped over to Trixie, clearly pissed off. 

“If any of you actually have a fucking brain then it’s obvious that this is all part of the Initiation Exam. They clearly want us to take this as seriously as a life and death situation!” Trixie scoffed, crossing her arms. 

“But Cyrus-” Kelly tried to argue but was immediately cut off by Trixie. 

“He is obviously in on it! He most likely set this whole thing up and what we saw was just some fake doll! It’s not like we really got a good look at him in that dimly lit room, and we couldn’t even hear his voice!” Trixie jabbed a finger at Kelly’s chest who glared at the pigtailed blonde. 

“But we don’t know that for sure.” A new voice spoke up and everyone turned to see Miles. “What if we’re all in actual danger? We could be dealing with an actual psychopath here. Our best bet is to somehow escape from this “game” of his.”

“Oh? And how do you plan to do that?” Trixie spat.

“Simple. See that small hole next to the door we just came through?” Miles pointed and sure enough there was indeed a hole that was small enough for a small rodent to fit through at best. 

“....Yeah? And?” Jecka tilted her head.

“My Anomability is called Mini . I can essentially shrink down to the size of a coin at most. I should be able to fit through so I can escape and contact ODD headquarters for help.” Miles stated calmly. 

“Well if you wanna fail the exam then suit yourself.” Trixie shrugged as she walked over towards the hole and jumped, landing on one of the square platforms with ease. “See you losers on the other side!” the girl mocked as she leaped over to another square. 

“...Bitch.” Miles mumbled before shrinking down and running through the hole. 

Jecka looked over to Alex. “So… what should we do?” 

“Well if we are in actual danger then I say we play his game for now. At least until he is able to get help.” Alex sighed as he hated seeing his girlfriend look so scared. 

“O-Okay…” Jecka slowly walked forward to the edge of the large pit and looked down to see the stone spikes at the bottom, which caused her to stumble backwards onto the ground in a panic. “Th-There’s no fucking way I can make that… this is insane!” Jecka began to hyperventilate. 

Alex crouched down and held Jecka’s hand, rubbing his thumb on the back of her hand. “Deep breaths Jeck. Deep breaths.”

Jecka’s amber eyes stared into Alex’s blue ones as her breathing became less rapid. She slowly nodded her head at him and was able to get up steadily. “Sorry…” Jecka muttered. 

“Don’t be. It’s a fucked situation after all. But I got an idea to get across.” Alex told her.

Jecka looked up at her boyfriend in surprise. “You do?” 

Alex nodded. “Charge yourself up using your Anomability. I’ll do the same with yours. We will both jump together and make it to the other side. You ready?” Alex asked, still holding her hand. 

Jecka looked over to the pit and then back to Alex. She hesitantly nodded and began to charge up her Electra ability. Lightning enveloped all over her body as it did Alex who simply used his Copy ability. 

“One… two… three… JUMP!” Alex shouted and the two jumped. To the others who were watching them, they were gone in a flash, only to reappear on the other side of the gaping hole in front of the door that leads into the next room. 

Jecka still had her eyes shut tightly before hesitantly opening them to see that not only were she and Alex still alive, but they managed to make it all the way across a 80 foot wide gap in just one jump.

“Ho-Holy shit! WE DID IT ALEX! WE ACTUALLY FUCKING DID IT! FUCK YEAH! FUCK YOU SPIRIT HALLOWEEN MASK LOOKING MOTHERFUCKER!” Jecka shouted out at the turned off TV monitor whilst flipping it off. 

Alex laughed at this before looking back at the other side that they just came from. “I hope Kelly can make it here alright. I think we managed to be the first ones he-” Alex’s sentence was cut off as he turned to see that both Alice and Zoey were already on this side with them as the glasses wearing girl was reading her book while the pinkette was staring blankly at her non working phone.

“Wh-When the hell did you two make it!?” Alex asked, completely thrown off. 

“We went while your girlfriend was having a panic attack.” Zoey said simply, not making eye contact while Alice just nodded her head with a hum of agreement. 

“Well alright…” Alex sweatdropped at the two before looking back over to see that the rest of the other recruits were making their way over by jumping from one stone column to the other.

Except for one that is. 

Alex looked up and his eyes widened as he saw Ken floating over the entire gap while striking a superman pose for whatever reason. It wasn’t long before he gently landed onto solid ground in front of Alex. 

“So uh…” Alex was going to ask but it looks like Ken read his mind before he could speak.

“Fear not my dear comrade! For I shall explain! You see, my Anomability is called Weightless . Which means I have the ability to turn myself, others, and even objects the ability to fly via touch. Though the effects only last for one minute, it is quite the handy ability for the future hero of the world!” Ken once again struck a pose in a way that told Alex that he must have gotten bullied worse in High School than Jeffrey ever did.

Alex felt like saying something but it looked like his now calm downed girlfriend beat him to the punch. 

“So you see the irony in you having an ability called Weightless right?” Jecka snickered. 

“Yes it is true! My body shape does not match the name of my power! However! Once someone is saved by me then they will never forget what I look like!” Ken struck a pose, unfazed by Jecka’s mean comment. 

“Oh.” is all Jecka said, a bit disappointed that her dig at him was ineffective.

The next one to appear on the other side was Kelly who simply kept conjuring a burst of wind to help her leap the stone columns quicker. 

“Hey, that wasn’t so bad!” Kelly smiled. “I think I’m kinda getting the hang of this!”

“I would hope so considering we had a week to prepare.” Alex said dryly. 

“You mean during the week you and Jecka got high off of some space drug?” Kelly crossed her arms. 

“....Okay fair enough.” 

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………………………………….

Miles had managed to find his way back to the elevator. Unfortunately, the power was turned off. Luckily he used his Anomability to slip through the elevator door crack and began to climb up the shaft. It didn't take too long before he found himself back onto the main floor. From there he climbed into a vent, shrunk down and ran through to find a room where he could contact headquarters from. 

About five minutes of crawling through vents led him to find a room that had a large computer. He returned to normal size and jumped down from the vent. No one seemed to be in the room but it was clear that this was the same room that this King person was using when he appeared earlier on live feed. He went straight for the computer in hopes of getting into contact with headquarters. 

Sitting in the chair in front of the large monitor, he turned on the computer and it didn’t take long before something curious had caught his eye. 

“These files… they’re all from ODD… Even right now, new ones are being sent to this single computer. There must be hundreds… Why are these here?”

“Well then…” a voice from behind Miles spoke up. He swiftly got up from the chair and turned around to see a man there. A man who was holding the same skull mask with a crown on it that he had just seen moments ago. King. 

“This won’t do.” King spoke with an annoyed tone. Not only has one of the agents of his game escaped. But he was also investigating places where he shouldn’t. And to top it all off, he was looking at his true face.

 Miles looked like he had seen a ghost with as wide as his eyes were. He couldn’t believe who was standing in front of him with that mask in hand. After a few seconds he had finally found his voice. 

“You’re…”

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One after the other, everyone else managed to make it over the pit well within the time limit despite not being able to use their powers to help them with this particular challenge. First came Trixie, followed by Zack, Tara, Victor, Franky, and Cody who almost didn’t make the last jump but was luckily caught in time by Alex who rushed over to grab his hand and pull him up. 

“Th-Thanks.” Cody stammered, a bead of sweat going down his forehead as he pushed up his glasses.  

“Don’t mention it.” Alex smiled and then looked over at the monitor which began to turn itself on. On screen was the familiar skull mask they had come to know.

“Congratulations on getting through the first hurdle without anyone dying.” King praised, his voice calm and collected. “However… if there is one thing I despise more than anything in a game… it’s cheaters.”

Everyone tensed up at that. They had a feeling who King was referring to when he said “cheater”.

“I just don’t think you all truly understand how serious I am about this game. So I believe I am forced to set an example for each of you.” King spoke in a low and cold tone. 

That is when the ceiling above the pit had begun to shake. Everyone looked up at this, unsure of what was happening. That is when a hole began to open up in the ceiling above along with a blood curling scream. Whatever it was that fell deep into the pit below was falling too fast for any of them to see. That is when everyone decided to look down and what they saw made all of their blood run cold.

What they saw was the corpse of their fellow recruit Miles Ling as he was pierced all over throughout his body from the stone spikes below. His entire front body was drenched red with blood as spikes stuck out from the back of his head to out of his forehead and mouth. His eyes were no longer in his sockets, all that was in place were the red stained spikes. These injuries remained consistent throughout his throat, chest, stomach, pelvis, arms, and legs. Instant death. 

Alex stared at the body in horror as he almost felt sick. If he hadn’t seen so much death from time looping in the past then he would probably lose his lunch. Unfortunately he couldn’t speak for a few of the others. 

Jecka, Kelly, and Cody had convulsively vomited into the pit, their chest feeling heavy as hot tears left their eyes upon seeing the grotesque corpse. It wasn’t long before Jecka had let out an ear piercing scream of horror and fear. 

Those like Alex that managed to keep themselves from letting anything out just simply looked at Miles’ corpse in terror. Even the level headed people such as Alice, Zoey, and Zack have managed to slightly break their calm facade at what had just happened. Trixie in particular was frozen as her body trembled. Her once confident demeanor gone in an instant. 

“I… I didn’t think… I… I didn’t…” Trixie muttered sporadically.

At the very least, people who may have had doubts before, were now sure of one thing. 

This wasn’t an exam. 

This was a game of life and death.

…….

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…………………………….

AGENTS REMAINING: 12

Chapter Text

TWO WEEKS AGO 

(WHILE ALEX, JECKA, AND KELLY WERE IN LAS VEGAS)

“AND STAY THE FUCK OUT!” A Dave & Busters manager screamed and slammed the door of the establishment into the faces of Nicole, Emily, and Ari who were holding their instrument cases in hand.

“Fucking asshole, he didn’t even pay us.” Nicole complained. 

“You’re the one who spat in that guy’s face in front of his son’s birthday party.” Emily pointed out as they walked over to her car. 

“He literally asked us if we could play topless next month for his own birthday.” Nicole defended. 

“Yeah, Nicole! We’re in the music business now! That’s what happens! If anything we could have charged him double our usual rate!” Emily argued as she unlocked the trunk of her car to put away their instruments.

“It doesn’t feel like much of a business if we’re playing at twelve year old birthdays…” Ari grumbled, putting away her drumsticks. 

“I still can’t believe you can drive this piece of crap after you wrecked it.” Nicole commented at Emily’s badly damaged car as all three of them got in.  

“I still can’t believe you didn’t get arrested for drinking and driving.” Ari also commented.

“Yeah well, when you know the secret language then you can get out of literally anything with a cop.” Emily said as she started her car. 

“....Is it head?” Nicole deadpanned. 

“How’d you know?” Emily smiled as she backed out of the parking lot and drove off. 

“Didn’t someone actually get arrested though?” Ari asked.

“Yeah, it was the Arab dude I hit.” Emily shrugged. 

“Guess he didn’t know the secret language.” Nicole quipped. 

“He didn’t even know English. But I guess whatever language he DID speak, he said it loud and angry enough to the point where the officer had his gun aimed at him. Dude wasn’t even armed.” Emily whistled. 

“And here I was beginning to think cops were starting to become less racist than airport security.” Nicole rolled her eyes before suddenly widening them and turning to Emily. “Hold on, is this the guy that owned the deli on main street?” 

“I think so.” Emily hummed. 

“Aw man! That guy made the best sandwiches! What the fuck!” Nicole whined. 

“Just find a new sandwich place.” Emily suggested.

“The only other place that makes sandwiches good like that is a 20 minute drive from my house!” Nicole grumbled. 

“I can always drive you babe.” Ari smiled at her girlfriend as she put a hand on her shoulder from the backseat.

“Yeah, I know… I’m just getting sick of asking for rides all the time. Mom bought me and Alex a car but I can’t even use it since I don’t have my license yet.” Nicole sighed. 

“Then why not just get it?” Emily asked. 

“I would… but like, don't you have to go to driving school and shit? Isn’t it super boring?” Nicole asked. 

“Yeah it is but think of how totally worth it it’ll be once you finally get to drive that car of yours!” Ari pointed out. 

“Hm good point.” Nicole muttered, as she scratched her cheek.

“Plus we won’t have to keep driving in a car that Emily fucked a police officer in.” Ari added.

“It was just head!” Emily glared in the rear view mirror.

With that, Nicole had finally made up her mind.

“So… where’s the local driving school?”

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………………………………..

PRESENT DAY 

(AREA 51)

Miles Ling was dead. They may have only known him for an hour at most but it was still affecting some of the recruits based solely on how gruesome his death was. One recruit in particular seemed to have been more shaken up than the others. 

Trixie Parks, who seemed to have been the most confident of the recruits upon meeting her, was a trembling mess at the corpse of the man she cussed out only moments ago. 

“Th-This is real… This is actually fucking real… I gotta… I gotta GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!” She screamed as she fell to her now wobbly knees as she began to hyperventilate. 

“Now that you all understand just how serious this is, you may continue.” King announced from the monitor as the doors opened, allowing them to enter the next room. “And let me add that those who refuse to participate will share the same fate as Miles there. I’ll see you all in the next room.” And with that, the monitor shut down. 

“...What now?” Jecka asked out loud, recovering from the horrific sight she just witnessed. 

“We keep going. Not like we have a choice.” Zoey sighed as she was the first to enter the doors. 

After a few seconds, everyone else slowly made their way inside. With Trixie being the last of them to step into the next room, the doors automatically shut behind them. At first glance, the room that they were now in didn’t seem like any life threatening death trap was waiting for them.

If anything, it was just an empty room with nothing but iron doors and a monitor on the other side of the room. But on closer inspection it seemed the walls were lined up with hundreds of small lit up buttons that covered almost the entire room. The monitor then turned on to reveal King once again. 

“As you can see, in this room the walls are aligned with multiple buttons. However, only three of them can unlock the doors that lead into the next room. Push the wrong button and instant electrocution. Don’t even try to break open the doors using force. You have all already witnessed what happens to cheaters. Your new time limit is 10 minutes. I recommend getting that door opened before then if you don’t wish to be crushed.” And with that the monitor cut to black as the countdown began and the walls began to slowly close into one another. 

“Fuck!” Alex exclaimed as everyone went over to inspect the walls. 

“Man, what is this shit? All these buttons look the same!” Franky huffed. 

“There’s clearly a trick to this…” Victor muttered. 

“....There is.” A voice spoke up, causing everyone to turn to the source. 

Alice stood there, examining the walls with a neutral expression. 

“How so?” Zack asked, turning to the girl in glasses. 

“All of these buttons are the exact same. Not even a small discrepancy between each one. In other words, every button in front of us is rigged.” Alice explained. 

“So you mean this jackass made a puzzle we can’t solve? What, does he want us to just die here and now!?” Franky spat.

Alice shook her head at this. “No. I don’t believe so. From what we have been shown of King, he is taking this seriously. I don’t believe he would want this “game” of his to end so early.”

“So what do you think then?” Alex asked Alice, curious to see where she’s going with this. 

“Using my Anomability, I have already found the three buttons we need to press.” Alice stated calmly. 

“Y-You have!?” Jecka exclaimed. 

Alice nodded and looked down to the floor. “The buttons… are hidden deep underneath the ground.” 

Everyone looked downward in disbelief. This asshole really buried the actual buttons they needed to escape literal death and put a bunch of fake ones up to psych them out. What a fucking joke. 

“So… how do we get them?” Kelly asked. 

“We break the floor and dig I guess.” Zoey shrugged.

“But didn’t he say we can't break anything open?” Jecka asked, rubbing her arm. 

“No.” Alice shook her head. “He said we can’t break the door open.”

“Ohhh… Then yeah bust that shit open.” Jecka crossed her arms as her eyes darted a little nervously as she saw the walls were getting closer and that they had eight minutes left and counting. “And… maybe hurry.”

Alice nodded at this. “Instead of digging one at a time, it would be much more efficient to dig all three at the same time. If anyone here has an Anomability suitable for breaking into the ground, I would speak up now.”

Kelly’s head snapped towards Alice and slowly raised her hand. “O-Oh… I can use my ability to break open the ground with an earthquake.” 

“Perfect. Go stand near the doors we just came out of. That’s where one of them is buried. Anyone else?” Alice asked. 

Tara raised her hand confidently. “I can handle this. My Anomability is called Combo Hardening. The more I punch a surface, the stronger and harder my skin becomes. I can crack a hole here easily.” 

“Alright that’s good. Come stand next to me. The second button is right under my feet. Now, we need one more.” Alice looked around until one hand shakingly raised upwards. 

“I-I can do it…” Trixie shakingly said. She was finally starting to get over what had just happened and is seemingly returning to a more calm state of mind. Trixie then held her hands outward and closed her eyes. At that moment all the light that was shining from the fake buttons on the walls had surprisingly begun to pour out and fly towards Trixie’s body as if she was absorbing it. 

“My Anomability is called Reversal Illumination. I can absorb light and use it in many different ways. Such as firing a laser to cut open the ground.” Trixie explained. 

Alice nodded. “The last button is near the doors we exit from.” And with that, the three diggers got to work on finding those buttons.

Kelly kicked ground hard on the spot Alice told her to. The entire floor shook, causing everyone to almost fall but results were achieved as it caused the ground beneath her to break apart. 

Kelly began to shuffle through the piles of rubble with the help of Alex and Jecka. Eventually, Kelly pulled out a square device with a red button smack in the middle and immediately pressed it. The button turned green and an unlocking sound could be heard coming from the door. 

“Got one!” Kelly shouted out and then looked over at the timer. Five minutes left. 

Meanwhile, Tara had repeatedly punched the ground and the more she did, the more it began to break down. The once hardened stone floor soon turned to gravel beneath her fists as she dug through it to pieces of rubble to find another button. She immediately pressed it and just like the one Kelly had found, it turned green and another unlocking sound could be heard coming from the doors. 

“Two down and one to go!” Tara grinned as she stretched her muscles and looked over at the timer. Two minutes. The walls were starting to get close to the point where it was beginning to get tight. 

Trixie was dripping sweat from her forehead as she continuously fired a laser into the ground from her palms. She panted. Her powers took a lot out of her. But it was worth it if she could get out of this hell alive. It took a bit but she eventually made a hole deep enough for her to climb into and start digging though rubbles of stone concrete. She eventually found the final button and pressed it, causing the doors to finally begin to open. 

“The door!” Kelly exclaimed as the walls were getting close. Thirty seconds left. Almost everyone ran as fast as they could to the now open doors, entering the next room.

Jecka was the last person to leave the room until she heard a scream from behind. 

“HELP! I’M STUCK!”

Jecka turned around to see Trixie hadn’t gotten herself out of the hole she had made yet. Her foot was somehow wedged into the hole she made. She desperately yanked on her leg but it made no budge. Fifteen seconds left. 

Trixie held out her palm ready to fire another laser to get unfree but nothing came out. 

“N-No… I… I used it all…” Trixie began to panic. 

“HELP! PLEASE FUCKING HELP ME! I DON’T WANNA DIE! I DON’T WANNA DIE!” Trixie cried, tears flowing from her eyes out of fear and desperation. Ten seconds.

Jecka felt a lump in her throat at the state of the one new person she met that she felt she could talk to in here and before she knew it, her body moved on its own as she grabbed Trixie’s hand from the other side of the door, pulling as hard as she could. 

“Don’t worry! I got you! Just hold on!” Jecka pulled and pulled. Five seconds.

“PLEASE DON’T LET ME DIE!! PLEASE! I WANNA SEE MY MOM AND DAD AGAIN!!! I DON’T WANNA DIE! I DON’T WANNA DIE!” Trixie screamed in desperation. 

“I got you! I got you!” Jecka yelled as she closed her eyes and then pulled with everything she had. She eventually felt little resistance as Jecka took a giant leap back whilst still holding her hand and landed on her back, just in time for the walls to close in on one another.

Jecka panted, out of breath, her eyes still shut tight. But she was still holding on to Trixie. 

“See? I told you that-”

Jecka opened her eyes. 

Opened her eyes to see herself holding a severed arm, dripping with blood. 

“-I got you…”

Jecka screamed.

I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you. I got you.

……

…………….

…………………………

I got you.

AGENTS REMAINING: 11

Chapter Text

ONE WEEK AGO 

(WHILE ALEX, JECKA, AND KELLY WERE TRAINING)

Nicole walked inside the local driving school with an open mind. All she had to do was sit through a few classes, get some driving practice in, and pass her test. She had just gotten her learners permit the other day and was eager to finally get her license. At least she was until she saw who her driving instructor was. 

“M-Mr. Colby!?” Nicole’s eyes widened in shock.

“Well if it isn’t my favorite ex-student.” Mr. Colby smiled slyly.

JACOB COLBY

(NOT SO)FUN FACT: HIS BIGGEST FANTASY IS TO EAT LUNCHABLES OFF OF A NAKED GIRL’S CORPSE (SPECIFICALLY THE HAM AND CHEDDAR ONES WITH THE RITZ CRACKERS THAT MY MOM WON’T BUY FOR ME ANYMORE BECAUSE I’M 23 YEARS OLD)

“Please tell me I’m being set up and you’re actually just Ashton Kutcher wearing a really really lifelike skin suit…” Nicole whined.

“Sorry hotcakes, but after your asshole brother and sexy friend got me fired, I’ve finally taken on my true calling as a Driver’s Ed instructor. So in a way, I should thank them.” Mr. Colby grinned.

“Your “true calling” is to be in a small confined space that has lockable doors with newly turned 16 year old girls? Yeah, that sounds about right.” Nicole thought irritably. 

“How about you “thank them” by signing my classroom hours sheet and help me get my license faster?” Nicole asked dryly. 

“Now, now. That wouldn’t be fair to your classmates now would it?” Mr. Colby said, gesturing to the two other students who were already sitting in chairs. And to Nicole’s horror it was the two people she hated the most in the world. 

Kylar and Jeffrey. 

“Hi Nicole!” Jeffrey waved happily. 

“Sup bitch.” greeted Kylar. 

“Why the fuck are you two here?” Nicole grumbled as she sat in a chair that was the furthest away from them. 

“Well ya see, I’ve always just relied on my Mom to drive me around. But ever since she got a new boyfriend, she’s been telling me to get my license. At least this way, I can finally drive myself to my favorite anime stores!” Jeffrey explained happily. 

“You gonna drive yourself to the nearest middle schooler’s house too?” Nicole mocked. 

“Wha-HEY!” Jeffrey glared. 

“And what about you?” Nicole asked Kylar as she turned to him, ignoring Jeffrey’s cries of offense. “Last I checked, you not only had a license but a car as well.” 

“Bullshit cops pulled me over and found out my license was a fake so I’m being forced to go here as part of my sentencing.” Kylar grumbled as he fished through his pocket and threw his fake license onto the table for Nicole to examine. 

“Guess you also don’t know about the secret language…” Nicole quietly quipped as she grabbed the fake license and looked at it in confusion. “This… is made of cardboard with a photo of you drunk taped on it… You even spelled the word license wrong… as well as your own name??” 

“Yeah, genius right? That way when the cops pull me over drunk they will just assume that’s how I always look from the photo. The ONE time I decide to fucking drive sober! I’M NEVER EATING AT ARBY’S AGAIN!!!” Kylar slammed his fists on the table. 

“That’s the spirit Kylar! Use that rage responsibly on the road when you deal with Mexican pedestrians and hookers that upcharge ya for creampies!” Mr. Colby praised.

“.....I think I just made a huge mistake.” Nicole whined as she hung her head in frustration.

……...

…………….

…………………………..

PRESENT DAY 

(AREA 51)

Jecka continuously screamed as she threw the severed arm onto the floor. She quickly backed away from it as she scrambled to get off the floor and basically almost tackled Alex. 

“I DON’T WANNA BE HERE! I DON’T WANNA BE HERE ANYMORE! WE NEED TO GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW!” Jecka hyperventilated as she gripped Alex’s suit, her knuckles turning white. 

Alex stared at Jecka, unsure of how to respond. All those times he’s seen death throughout his junior and senior year of high school, he was pretty numb to this kind of stuff. Sometimes he forgets that’s not supposed to be normal. 

“Jecka… I-” Alex tried to find the words but he was immediately cut off by someone separating the two and grabbing Jecka by the shoulders. It was Zoey. 

Alex was going to ask her what she was doing when all of a sudden, a loud smack sound rang across the room. 

Zoey had slapped Jecka. 

Jecka’s eyes widened as she faintly touched her now red colored left cheek. She winced as fresh tears that came from her panicked state earlier had now stung her face. 

“HEY! WHAT-” Alex went over to scream at the pink haired girl but an arm stopped him in his tracks. Alice’s arm to be exact. She looked over at the scene playing in front of them, not even bothering to make eye contact with him. Alex stared at her for a brief second and decided to listen and let things play out as he stared at both Zoey and Jecka. 

“You need to get it together! We’re in a fucked up situation but we won’t get anywhere unless we keep a cool head!” Zoey yelled in Jecka’s face, surprising almost everyone. In the short time they’ve known the pink haired girl, she wasn’t one to really speak up or show any real emotion. 

“But-” Jecka tried to speak up but was cut off immediately by Zoey gripping Jecka’s tie. 

“I don’t care! Crying and freaking out will only get you killed right now! What, do you just plan on relying on your boyfriend to protect you like you’re some damsel!? Newsflash! You’re not! Just like the rest of us, you are strong enough to hold your own against more shit than the average person could handle! So start fucking acting like it!” With that, Zoey let go of Jecka’s tie, causing the blonde to stumble back a few inches as she looked at the girl in the black baseball cap in shock as she went over to stare at her non-working phone in silence once more. 

Jecka stared at the ground in an equal deafening silence. If this had been Jecka a couple of weeks ago, she probably would have cussed out or insulted this girl and ended it with a slap of her own. But she knew this wasn’t the time for that. This wasn’t like getting into stupid shit with Nicole like flirting with a police officer to avoid getting arrested for stealing the tip jar at Starbucks. They were in some very real life threatening shit that honestly felt overwhelming for an 18 year old to have to deal with. 

She accepted this job for the money but she had no idea that this is what it would lead her to. If she were being honest, she would go back to working at FYE in a heartbeat. But… she made her choice. Her, Alex, and Kelly all did. Now they had to live with those choices. But she wouldn’t let herself die with them. So with a deep breath, she looked up and stared at Alex, Kelly, and everyone else.

“...I’m sorry.” Jecka apologized. 

“Don’t be. As long as you don’t become a liability then it’s fine.” Zoey said coldly as she continued to stare at her phone. 

“I can’t really figure her out…” Alex thought as she stared at the pinkette. He then turned his attention to Jecka and smiled at her, letting her know in a way he was proud that she was willing to keep her mind together considering the situation. The blonde just slightly smiled and nodded in return, silently telling her boyfriend that she is okay now. 

“Now then…” Zack spoke to break the tension in the room. “What now? This room we’re in is a lot like the one we were in when we first arrived. Just an empty space with the door we came through and the door we need to exit through.” Everyone looked around their surroundings and he was right. There was nothing in here besides the doors and monitor. But of course, it didn’t take long for that monitor to turn on again. 

“For someone so confident and foul-mouthed, I expected Trixie Parks to make it farther. I have to say, I am very disappointed.” King spoke up. 

Jecka glared at the monitor. Even though she wasn’t freaking out anymore, she was still very much livid. She absolutely hated whoever this fucking bastard was who was playing with their lives. She clenched her fists but remained quiet to hear him speak more.

“And the way she spoke of her family before she died. It’s laughable really. You already signed off to leave your family to your demise when you agreed to take part in working for ODD and yet you cry about wanting to see them again. As I said before, ODD sees nothing of you but as soldiers that can be disposed of at any given moment. All I am doing is speeding up the process that will inevitably happen anyway.” King continued on. 

“In any case… you all must be wondering what the next challenge is. I’m going to be blunt. The next door won’t open until at least one person is dead. Doesn’t matter how or who. You have one hour to decide or all of you will die in that room.” With that, the monitor shut off, making everyone stare at one another in dread. 

“Is he serious?” Tara asked in astonishment. “He wants us to kill each other?”

“It would appear so.” Alice put a finger to her chin. “I was willing to play along but it seems we may have no choice but to try and leave this game using force.” 

“Are you fuckin’ serious lady? Did you forget what happened to that Miles guy when he tried to flee?” Franky asked in annoyance. 

“I suppose you have a better idea?” Alex asked, crossing his arms. 

“...I do.” Franky’s brother, Victor responded. All of a sudden, each member except for Victor and Franky, suddenly had a square cage appear out of thin air around them.

“Hey!” Kelly shouted out, trying to break the bars but to her surprise, even attempting to use a small earthquake with her Anomability, it had no effect. 

“What the fuck are you doing!?” Alex asked, angrily. 

“I just trapped you all with my Anomability. It’s called Cage and it is just as it sounds. I can create cages out of thin air to trap anything and anyone. It doesn’t even matter if you have Anomabilities of your own because they cannot be destroyed physically.” Victor explained. 

“And what exactly do you plan to do with us?” Alice asked calmly. 

“Me? Nothing. My brother on the other hand…” Victor looked over to his brother whose body bursted into flames. 

“My Anomability is called Blaze. I can engulf my body in flames and attack with it. Perfect for burning alive rats trapped in cages!” Franky grinned.

“We won’t be killing all of you. Only one of you. It is the only way to advance after all.” Victor stated calmly. 

“YOU SICK FUCKS!” Alex screamed, trying to burst out of the bars but to no avail. 

“So bro? Who we gonna kill?” Franky asked eagerly. 

“I’m leaning towards the two D ranks that are left with us. They could potentially hold us back after all.” Victor stated, referring to Jecka and Ken. 

“What!?” Ken exclaimed in shock. “You can’t kill me! I still haven’t become the future hero of the world yet!” 

“Um… If I can get a say in this… then I would rather you kill him over me.” Jecka looked nervously. 

“Yeah bro let’s kill the fat one. She’s too hot to kill.” Franky licked his lips. 

“It doesn’t matter which one, just do it.” Victor sighed. 

But before Franky could move an inch, every single cage began to shake and rattle which shocked the two siblings. It didn’t take long for the cages to break apart piece by piece in only five seconds flat, freeing everyone in the process. 

The bars of the cages then began to float in the air, aiming their pointy ends towards Franky and Victor. And around the many broken pieces of bar was a single girl floating around with them, her once hazel colored eyes glowing bright blue behind those red glasses. Alice glared at the two brothers but she still seemed calm and collected despite that. 

“Well… I suppose this can count as self defense.” Alice frowned at the two. 

……..

………………..

……………………………….

“Anything?” George asked his wife who was doing her best to activate the main computer in the control room. 

“Well I’ve managed to reboot the computers so we can turn them on but it’s going to take a bit to figure out where the files are being transferred to. At least an hour.” Mary sighed. 

“Hmm…” George crossed his arms as he leaned against a wall. “How do you think she’s doing?” 

“Kelly? I’m sure she’s doing fine. I won’t be surprised if she passes with flying colors. Why do ya ask?” Mary smiled as she typed away at the computer. 

“Well… Doesn’t all of this seem perfectly timed to you?” George asked.

“You mean us being hacked right around the time of the Initiation Exam? The thought did occur, but I’m confident that Cyrus wouldn’t let anything bad happen to them.” Mary answered. 

“Even so… I should give him a call, just to be safe.” George said as he rummaged through his pockets, looking for his phone.  

“If you must. But even if something did happen, those new recruits are no slouches. Especially the one I personally hand picked.” Mary smirked as she leaned back from her computer chair to stretch.  

“You mean the Albright girl right?” George asked, pulling out his cell. 

“Dr. Clockwork put me in charge of ODD’s science department when he retired. It’s only natural that I find an apprentice of my own to take over for me when I retire or if something were to ever happen to me.” Mary yawned. 

“I wish you wouldn’t talk like that sometimes. It just stresses me out.” George sighed. 

“Sorry honey. I just can’t help but consider every possibility. The blessing and curse of a scientific genius like me.” Mary dramatically sighed with a chuckle at the end. 

“You’re a genius alright. Just not a very humble one.” George rolled his eyes with a chuckle of his own. “So you really think she’s the one fit for the job? I mean, I don’t think I had a chance to really read upon many of the files for the new recruits.”

“She’s the only one fit for it if you ask me. Not only does she have an absolutely gifted intelligence but she also possesses the Heavenly Mind Anomability.” Mary stood up from her chair to stretch her legs.

George’s eyes widened a bit at this news. “She does? Only one other person in history has had that Anomability…”

“Indeed. After all, the ability grants her the ultimate control of telekinesis, allowing herself the powers to move, assemble, or disassemble any object on earth, create force fields, fly, and even manipulate any solid, liquid, and gas based on their molecular level.” Mary sat back down in her chair, resting her chin on the palm of her hand. 

“In other words, if you had to compare her to every agent that is within ODD…”

……..

………………

……………………………….

Agents Franky Cain and Victor Cain are seen stuck to the walls in front of Alice with the other agents staring in shock behind her. Multiple broken bars of the cages Victor had made were seen pierced in both brothers bodies, large amounts of blood splattered across the walls as they leaked out of their fresh wounds. Alice stared at the two corpses with a neutral expression on her face as she pushed up her glasses to the bridge of her nose, as she slowly floated back onto the floor, her glowing blue eyes now returning back to their hazel color. 

…….

……………..

………………………………….

“...she is a genius among prodigies.”

AGENTS REMAINING: 9

Chapter Text

THREE HOURS AGO 

(WHILE ALEX, JECKA, AND KELLY ARE IN AREA 51)

“Alright Nicole, you ready to begin?” Mr. Colby asked the ponytail brunette as she got into the driver's seat of his car. 

After a brutal week of dealing with Jeffrey, Kylar, and Coach Colby, Nicole finally got both her classroom and driving hours. All that was left for her to take was the driving test. And she was pretty confident that she could actually pass in something for once. But there was still only one obstacle in her way. Mr. Colby.

“As ready as you are to drive with the 16 year old cheerleader that’s after me…” Nicole muttered under her breath. 

“Perfect!” Mr. Colby shouted before digging through his pocket and pulled out a small bottle. He then poured the contents of the bottle that contained some kind of white powder onto the dashboard of the car before snorting it up his nose. 

“Are… Are you doing fucking cocaine right now?” Nicole’s eyes widened a bit. 

“Don’t worry about it, just start driving.” he said as he picked up his clipboard and pen. 

“Alright…” Nicole murmured before starting the car and began to drive off. 

…….

………………

………………………….

Ten minutes have gone by and things have been pretty smooth. Except for Mr. Colby, who Nicole had noticed, had been violently twitching. 

“Uh… if you die do I still pass?” Nicole asked, not taking her eyes off the road. 

“Pull in over here.” Mr. Colby instructed, ignoring Nicole’s question.

“...You mean into this Burger King parking lot?” Nicole asked. 

“Yes. Yes. Yes. I’m getting hungry AS FUCK!” Mr. Colby screamed that last part. 

Nicole didn’t really have a response to THAT, but she needed to pass so for now she had to listen to what he said and pulled into the parking lot which Mr. Colby got out right after and entered the fast food restaurant. 

A few minutes went by as Nicole was going through her phone to respond to some texts she had gotten from Ari and Emily. Then all of a sudden the passenger door swung open and out came Mr. Colby wearing a Burger King crown with a Burger King bag in one hand and a… gun in the other?

“START THE DAMN CAR!” Mr. Colby yelled.

“WH-WHAT!?” Nicole shouted. 

“START THE DAMN CAR RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!!” Mr. Colby screamed and Nicole backed out and pressed her foot on the gas and began to drive away at a dangerous speed. 

“WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING!?” Nicole screamed. That’s when she noticed that the bag that Mr. Colby was carrying didn’t have any food in it. Rather it had a shit ton of money instead. 

“DID YOU ROB A FUCKING BURGER KING!?” Nicole shouted. 

“I HAD TO! THEY WERE GONNA GET MY ORDER WRONG! THEY ALWAYS GET MY ORDER WRONG!” Mr. Colby screamed, and before they knew it, three police cruisers were behind them. 

“THIS IS INSANE! I’M PULLING OVER!” 

“YOU PULL OVER AND I BLOW YOUR BRAINS OUT!”

“GO AHEAD!”

“AND I WILL FAIL YOU!”

“GOD DAMMIT! FINE!”

This was not how Nicole imagined her driving test to go. But she was too far in to give up now. Even if it meant being in a police car chase. Unfortunately for Nicole, she didn’t count for two things. One: She was still a very newly experienced driver. And two: The author hates writing chase scenes. So it didn’t take long before she eventually crashed into an ice cream truck. 

“Fuuucckkk that hurt…” Nicole rubbed her bleeding forehead as she felt a bit dazed from the crash. If it wasn’t for the airbag that deployed, she probably could have been hurt a lot worse. 

Mr. Colby tried to make a run for it after the crash but it didn’t take long before he was shot in the arm by a cop and tackled to the ground. As Nicole watched the officers put him in handcuffs, Nicole grabbed Mr. Colby’s clipboard and pen and put a checkmark in the box that said PASS next to it. She then noticed a few officers begin to approach her from the car. 

“I wonder if it counts as cheating if you use the secret language while in a relationship…” Nicole grimaced. 

…….

…………………

………………………………

All of the recruits stared at the fresh corpses of Victor and Franky impaled to the wall. It didn’t matter if they had already seen a few other deaths today. For most of them, it still wasn’t a sight to be used to.

“Jesus Christ…” Jecka muttered. 

“I feel sick again…” Cody held his stomach. 

“I apologize you all had to see that.” Alice stated, not looking behind to face everyone. 

“They were fucking crazy anyway. No sweat.” Tara shrugged. 

“It had to be done.” Zack crossed his arms, unfazed by Alice’s violent act.

Alice sighed and turned around to finally face everyone. “In any case, I think it’s quite clear what needs to happen now.”

“Go into… the next room?” Kelly guessed. 

Alice shook her head. “No. We escape this game.”

“But… King said he would kill us if we tried.” Jecka said nervously. 

“If we continue playing this game of his then we will all die eventually.” 

“H-How do you know that?”

“Think about it. Do you really think he is letting us play a game where in the end those who “survive” it, get to go home and back to work at ODD? No. He has made it clear since the beginning that those who work for ODD are awaiting a death sentence. He won’t let any of us live. That has been the plan since the beginning.” Alice explained. 

“If that’s really the case, then why not kill us from the beginning? Why make a game of this to begin with?” Alex asked. 

“I can think of two reasons. Either one, he is just a sick individual who gets enjoyment from things like this. Or two, he is stalling for time.”

“Stalling for time? For what?” Alex raised an eyebrow.

“I can’t say for sure. But considering that he knows all about ODD and that he is able to access this facility, it’s logical to presume that a rogue ODD agent is behind this.” Alice summarized. 

“I see…” Alex put a finger to his chin in thought. 

“I can’t force you all to join me. But if you truly want to leave this place alive, then escaping is the only way to do it. Besides, Miles went alone when he tried. We are stronger in numbers. So who is going to join me?” Alice asked everyone. 

Everyone looked at one another. Unsure of what to say. But one individual walked forward to join Alice’s side.

“If I am going to become the future hero of the world, I can’t stand by and bend to the rules of some heinous villain! So count me in!” Ken stood proudly. 

“I ain’t dying to some sick bastard’s game. I would rather die fighting.” Tara grinned as she made her way over to Alice’s side as well. 

“Screw it. Why not?” Zoey shrugged as she walked over as well. 

Zack just silently walked over without saying a word. 

“Well… I guess it’s better than playing this sick fucking game…” Kelly rubbed her arm as she walked over. 

“That’s for sure…” Alex nodded in agreement, walking over. 

All that remained were Cody and Jecka. 

Cody looked at the others and sighed. “Well… if everyone else is gonna…” Cody walked over. Now only Jecka remained decisive. 

“I…I’m scared.” Jecka stated.

“It’s normal to be scared. But do you wanna feel scared and live? Or feel safe and die?” Alice asked. 

Jecka thought over those words and after a few seconds, nodded her head and walked over to join everyone else. 

“Let’s get the fuck outta here.” Jecka gave a determined look. 

Alice nodded at this. “Good. Now, before we do this I should warn you all. From how this game of his has been going, it is pretty safe to say that King has an Anomability that allows him to control the floors, walls, and basically the entire structure of this building. It explains why holes can be made open in the ceiling and why the walls can close around us.”

“That… makes sense. So is there any point in being sneaky with this? Or should we just force our way through?” Alex asked. 

“Forcing our way through seems to be our only option, the second King knows what we’re doing he will manipulate the room to kill us. We are gonna run as fast as we can back to the elevator that brought us down here. Be prepared to dodge, block, or destroy any attempts King makes to stop us from reaching the elevator. Does everyone understand?” Alice asked, and everyone nodded.

And with that, they all ran.

……..

………………

……………………………..

King frowned behind his mask as he stared up at the monitors in the control room. But he also wasn’t completely surprised. 

“I suppose this was inevitable to happen… I wonder how many of you can make it up here to me.” King pondered to himself, as he began to activate his Anomability. 

……….

…………………

…………………………..

The building was shaking as everyone ran. The closed walls inside the third room blocked the way. But luckily Tara and Alex, who copied her Anomability, were able to punch through the walls until they reached the second room with the giant hole and spikes.

However, the square platforms that were originally sticking out of the hole began to collapse and sink into the ground with the spikes. Clearly King’s work. 

“I don’t suppose I can convince you all to return back to the game?” A voice rang out from the monitors but no picture came this time. 

Everyone ignored King’s question as Alice ordered Ken to make everyone float with his Anomability. As Ken did just that, Alice was able to focus her mind and used her power to move everyone quickly across as the spikes that were at the bottom of the deep hole began to rise up in an effort to pierce them.  They barely made it to the other side and had finally managed to get back into the room where they all had met for the first time. 

“The elevator!” Jecka shouted as they stared at the other end of the room and began to run towards it in a hurry. 

That is when spikes began to form around the walls, ceiling and floor, attempting to once again pierce everyone inside. Everyone there was dodging to the best of their ability. Some stumbling but still effectively evading the spikes. 

As they ran, Alice used her powers to forcefully open the elevator doors. “Everyone get inside now!” Alice shouted as she managed to be the first one inside. Spikes attempted to surround her inside the elevator but using her ability, she was able to hold them in place and keep them from sprouting. 

“Jecka!” Alex shouted as he grabbed her, and using Jecka’s electric powers, made a quick dash inside the elevator, effectively putting them both to safety. 

Everyone else was still running as fast as they could. Eventually, Zoey, Zack, Cody, and Ken had managed to join them and get inside the elevator safely. 

Tara and Kelly were behind mostly due to Tara punching her way through the spikes to get by and Kelly sticking with her for support. Unfortunately as they were running, it only took one trip over a formed curb in the ground to make Tara fall onto a formed patch of spikes, thus piercing her vital organs around her body, ending her life. 

“FUCK!” Kelly shouted in horror as she stopped to look back at the muscle girl. 

“KELLY NO! DON’T STOP TO LOOK BACK! KEEP RUNNING!” Alex screamed at her. 

Kelly quickly scrambled to keep running and join her friends but just before she could make it to the elevator, she had tripped over her own feet and landed on the ground in a thud. As she looked up, she saw spikes coming down onto her from the ceiling.

“KELLY!” Jecka screamed for her friend. 

Kelly shook in fear as her body couldn’t move. All she could do was quickly close her eyes to await her painful death. 

But it never happened. 

Kelly slowly opened her eyes to see the spikes that were just about to pierce her face had slowly begun to retract to the ceiling and disappear. In fact, it seemed that the whole room was no longer moving and had stood still. With this opportunity she quickly got to her feet and joined the others inside the elevator. With Kelly being the last one inside, Alice shut the elevator door and forced it to go up. 

“Th-Thanks for that…” Kelly looked at Alice. 

“...That wasn’t me.” Alice admitted which shocked and confused Kelly. 

“Wait huh? Th-Then why did the spikes stop…?” Kelly asked. 

Alice stared at Kelly for a few seconds before looking to the side. “I don’t know.”

“In any case…” Zoey spoke up. “Once we get back up to the main floor, we need to get outside immediately. From there we can find a way to get in contact with headquarters. We can’t risk being inside for too long since that bastard can shape this entire building at whim.”

“There’s also the chance we might have to fight King himself in order to leave.” Zack added as he crossed his arms. 

“Whatever happens from now on, keep your guard up. We already just lost someone trying to escape. We can’t let that happen again.” Alice finished as the elevator stopped, signaling that they had reached the main floor. 

“Alright…” Alex muttered as the elevator doors opened. “Lets leave this fucking place already!” 

……..

………………

…………………………..

“Like I said, everything is fine here. In fact we’re just about to wrap things up. …Yeah I know. We’ll see you soon. Bye.” King hung up a cell phone and placed it on the desk he sat at. All of a sudden, behind him the door to the control room opened. 

“There you are. So it looks like your little pawns have escaped your game.” A woman with short curly brown hair wearing an ODD uniform walked over to King with a smirk. 

“The game’s not over yet. In fact, this just sped things along to its finale.” King said as he began to remove his mask. A silver moon shaped earring drooped down from his ear as he placed the mask onto the desk next to his phone. 

“Right…” The woman rolled her eyes and then gave him a serious expression. “Don’t think I didn’t notice what you did. Sparing the Anderson girl’s life. I hope you aren’t going to let your personal feelings get in the way of our true goal…

….

………

…………….

…Cyrus.” 

AGENTS REMAINING: 8

Chapter Text

Cyrus looked at the woman with a stern look for a few seconds before turning away from her. 

“...She’s more useful to us alive and as a hostage. Don’t forget that she is the daughter of two S rank agents.” 

CYRUS GREEN

“KING”

A RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: MATTER MANIPULATION

The curly haired brunette rolled her eyes in response to Cyrus. 

“Right… And not because she is your childhood friend huh? If we plan on taking over ODD then we need to have every potential threat to us eliminated.”

VICKY QUEENS

D RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: DISGUISE

“The boss put me in charge of this assignment Vicky. Therefore you don’t have a say in this. So for right now, Kelly Anderson is off limits. Understand?” Cyrus glared with a venomous tone at the end. 

“Hmph. Have it your way. In any case, it won’t be long until her mother figures out that the files taken from headquarters are being transferred here. Did you send them all to the boss yet?” Vicky asked and Cyrus nodded in response.

“We also can’t let those rookies escape this facility. I assume you have a plan for that?” Vicky raised an eyebrow. 

“As a matter of fact, I do. Call in Ace and Wyatt. Let’s find out who the “winners” of this game will be.” Cyrus proclaimed as he lifted his King mask off the table. 

…..

………….

…………………………

ODD HEADQUARTERS

CENTRAL COMPUTER ROOM 

George hummed a tune as he put his phone back into his pocket. 

“What did Cyrus say?” Mary asked her husband. 

“He said everything is fine on his end. Guess I was worried for nothing.” George gave a relieved sigh, thankful that nothing seemed to be wrong over at Area 51.

“Ya know, if you were that worried you could have just gone over there yourself to check on things. With your Anomability you could be there like that.” Mary snapped her fingers for emphasis. 

“I could, but I want to show Cyrus I trust him to get things done on his own.” George smiled. 

Mary smiled at her husband in return. “It almost seems like yesterday when we found him. It’s a shame he never let us officially adopt him. I know that it would have made Kelly happy.” 

George chuckled at this. “I’m not so sure. Kelly had a crush on him ever since she was a little girl. It was probably for the best if we didn’t.” 

“I don’t think that would have stopped her anyways.” Mary stretched her arms. 

“You’re right.” George smiled as he began to fondly reminisce.

…..

“Daaaadyyyy! Guess what? I’m gonna marry Cyrus when I’m older!” A nine year old girl giggled. 

“No way! That’s gross! Don’t make me do it Mr. George!” A ten year old boy retorted, sticking his tongue out in disgust. 

“You’re so mean!” she whined. 

“Only because you’re so annoying!” 

“Am not!” 

“Are too!” 

…..

George then began to slightly frown at a bitter memory.

…..

“Dad… where did Cyrus go? Why isn’t he with us…?”

“I’m sorry Kelly but… Cyrus won’t be living with us anymore.”

“What the fuck!? Why!?” 

“He… finally got adopted by a family. He moved away.”

“That’s fucking bullshit! We’re his family!”

“I’m sorry Kelly…” 

…….

“….Do you think we made the right choice? Having Cyrus join ODD at such a young age? We could have let him have a childhood. Just like Kelly. Maybe Kelly wouldn’t have been so lonely when we were away for work.” George turned to his wife. 

Mary pondered this. “Well… don’t forget that when that incident happened, we had no choice but to let Cyrus join at that time. Besides, it all worked out in the end. Kelly and Cyrus are now reunited and Kelly works with us.”

“Yeah… you’re right.” George conceded. 

“At least Cyrus hasn’t done anything to make me distrust him…”

…….

…………..

…………………….

AREA 51

MAIN FLOOR

The recruits ran as fast as they could throughout the facility, desperate to reach the entrance door. 

“Alright everyone.” Alice gained everyone's attention as they continued running. “As long as we keep running straight, we'll reach the main doors.” 

At least that was her plan until the entire building began to shake again. Only this time it was a lot bigger than before. The hallway they were running down seemed to expand and get wider. It seemed as if the entire building was shifting before their very eyes. Then while everyone seemed distracted, three walls rose up from the floor to the ceiling, separating the eight remaining recruits into pairs of two. 

“Jecka! Kelly!” Alex shouted out from one of the newly formed hallways as he banged his fists onto the newly formed wall. No response was given back. It seemed that as they were separated, they were each moved to a different part of the facility. 

“Damn it! What the hell is that asshole up to now!?” Alex shouted to himself. 

…….

……………

……………………………

AREA 51

COMPUTER ROOM

Cyrus kneeled to the ground panting. 

“Th-That’s the last big one for a while. Any more like that and my energy will be depleted…” Cyrus muttered to himself before standing up and facing three figures that were behind him, one which included Vicky. 

“Okay, here’s the deal. I changed the entire interior structure of Area 51. Do you three remember the plan?” Cyrus asked which all three of them nodded. 

“Good.” Cyrus put on his King mask once more, activating the voice changer from inside. 

“Let’s finish this game.” 

…….

…………….

……………………………

AREA 51

SOUTH WING

GROUP 1

KELLY & ALICE

“Do you think everyone else is okay?” Kelly asked Alice as they ran together through the newly formed facility. 

“Can’t say for sure. But what I can say is that whatever King had planned next, he needed us split up to do it.” Alice responded.

The two kept running until they found themselves in what looked like a parking garage. Except instead of it being filled up with cars, these were filled with what seemed like spaceships. All of them were a hundred times bigger than the average SUV. 

“What is this place?” Kelly asked out loud. 

“This must be where Area 51 stores their alien crafted ships. All collected by ODD, of course.” Alice theorized. 

“Wow. Right on the money. No wonder Mary Anderson picked you.” A sly sounding voice interrupting both of their thoughts. 

The two girls looked up to see a boy around their age with short blonde hair and red dyed tips sitting on top of the biggest ship in the garage. He stared at the two with a grin, showing off his razor sharp teeth. 

Kelly looked a bit intimidated by him but Alice stared at him with a calm and collected expression. 

“Judging by your uniform, you’re an agent of ODD are you not?” Alice asked. 

“Another one correct! Although that already seemed pretty obvious don’t ya think?” He grinned. 

ACE ANDREWS

C RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: BOMBER

“And I suppose you aren’t going to let us pass?” Alice asked. 

“Ding ding ding! Three in a row! I think you deserve a prize!” Ace laughed and snapped his fingers, causing one of the ships next to the two girls to spontaneously combust, engulfing the area in flames. 

Alice had just barely managed to put up a barrier in time to shield both of them from the blast. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that if they needed to move on from this room, then this man would have to be taken down first. 

……

…………….

……………………………

AREA 51

WEST WING

GROUP 2

ZOEY & CODY

“I hope everyone is okay…” Cody said meekly as the two ran forward.

“Who knows. But as long as at least one of us manages to escape and call for help, that’s still a victory.” Zoey remarked, her black cap overshadowing her eyes. 

“That’s why none of you will be leaving.” A voice interrupted them, making the two agents freeze in place. 

Standing before them was an older man in his late 30s. A bit on the bigger side with a large lumberjack beard and bushy black hair covering his eyes. But still donning an ODD uniform all the same. 

“Guess Alice was right about a rogue agent being behind this…” Zoey muttered, getting in a defensive position. 

“Shit shit shit…” Cody backed away, hiding himself behind Zoey. 

“Not even your bones will be left to tell anyone what happened here.” The man growled as his body began to grow slightly, his teeth becoming sharper, his eyes dilating which then took on a yellow color. 

His clothes began to rip and with it, fur grew from all over his body. A few more seconds and his transformation was completed. And what stood in the place of the burly agent was something that only Cody and Zoey had only heard of in stories. 

“You two are so fucking dead.” The creature shouted out with a howl at the end. 

WYATT SPADE

B RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: WEREWOLF

“We’ll see about that…” Zoey scoffed, her eyes beginning to glow as her hair began to engulf in pink colored flames. 

Cody gulped in fear as he made sure to stay back as far as he can from the fight in front of him.

……..

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………………………………

AREA 51

EAST WING

GROUP 3

JECKA & ZACK

“God dammit. I’m so sick of this shit… I hope Alex and Kelly are okay…” Jecka thought to herself as she ran alongside Zack, turning along another corridor and into what seemed like a lounge area. 

“Do you know where we’re going!?” Jecka asked Zack who didn’t respond back which only ticked her off. 

“I’m so sick of the hot emo shtick! The only person who can pull that shit off is my best friend Nicole! Not talking doesn’t make you cool, just an asshole!” Jecka ranted. 

All of a sudden Zack stopped in place, almost making Jecka trip over her own feet. 

“Hey! Why’d you-”

“Listen.” Zack spoke. 

Jecka stayed quiet and sure enough she began to hear footsteps fastly approaching where they were. This made her tense up and gulp, silently hoping it was someone they knew. Thankfully, once she saw who it was, she was able to rest easy. 

“Alex!” Jecka shouted out in glee.

“Jecka!” Alex smiled, running towards her. 

“Thank god you’re still alive. Have you seen Kelly?”

“No… not yet. At least, not since we were separated. We should look for them together.”

“Yeah… let’s g-” Jecka was interrupted by a knife thrown from behind her which stabbed Alex’s hand.

“Fuck!” Alex screamed as he held his hand in pain.

“ALEX!” Jecka screamed and looked angrily at Zack who threw the knife. “The fuck are you do-” Jecka was once again interrupted by the sound of another knife falling to the ground. Only this time the knife came from Alex’s hand. 

“How did you know?” Alex asked with a wicked grin.

“Was Alex trying… to stab me?” Jecka’s eyes widened. 

“Thought I could get rid of that blonde bimbo but I guess it couldn’t be that easy…” Alex’s face began to morph in change as he became a few inches shorter, his chest bustier and hair more curly. It was quite apparent that this wasn’t Alex at all. It was a woman. 

“You’ve got quite the good eye on you. As expected of an A rank agent. Even if you’re still a newbie.” Vicky grinned. 

………

………………

……………………………….

AREA 51

NORTH WING

GROUP 4

ALEX & KEN

“Not to worry Mr. Alex! This future great hero will keep you safe and sound!” Ken proclaimed with his chest sticking out as they ran. 

“Why the fuck did I get stuck with this guy…” Alex thought, annoyed, but those thoughts quickly dispersed as Alex and Ken both saw something familiar just up ahead. 

“It’s the entrance doors! Fuck yeah!” Alex grinned, as they could now finally leave this hellhole and get some help. 

Unfortunately, those few seconds of hope were gone in an instant as iron bars sprung up from the floor, blocking any entry out of the building. 

“God dammit!” Alex shouted, gripping the bars as he could clearly see the Nevada desert from the windowed doors. 

“Perhaps we could bust through?” Ken thought out loud. 

“You could… but I won’t let you.” A familiar voice rang out causing Alex and Ken to turn around from the doors. 

“King…” Alex glared as the masked man himself stood before them. 

“Alex Yu… the man who made a deal with the Celestial known as Chrona…” King summarized.

“What about it?” Alex spat. 

“ODD scouting you because of your little timeloop adventure with the Goddess of time is a curious thing is it not? ” King calmly asked. 

“So fucking what?” Alex asked, confused. 

“I see… So he hasn’t been told the truth of why he was REALLY scouted by ODD…” Cyrus hummed in thought behind his mask.  

“He has no idea of…

……..

……………

…………………………

…the shared destiny he carries with himself and his twin sister; Nicole Yu.” 

Chapter Text

AREA 51

SOUTH WING

GROUP 1

KELLY & ALICE

“That was a good block right there.” Ace cackled as small fires and smoke began to fill throughout the room. 

Kelly coughed as the black smoke managed to fill a bit into her lungs as tears stained her eyes from the flames. “Fuck…” 

“You okay?” Alice asked. 

“Fine… it’s just… a lot of smoke.” Kelly coughed. 

Alice nodded at this. She looked up at the rouge agent with a glare. 

“You’ll find that you won’t be able to use your powers so carelessly here. Even the slightest movement could trigger an explosion. I would be pretty fucking stupid if I thought I could take on a B rank and an A rank head on by myself.” Ace sneered. 

“Just tell us what you have done with Cyrus! I know you have him tied up somewhere!” Kelly shouted at the flamehead. 

Ace quirked an eyebrow at this but then realized what she meant. 

“Ahhh… That’s right. Vicky disguised herself as Cyrus to make the recruits think he was being held hostage. I almost forgot about that.” Ace chuckled a bit to himself. 

“Wh-What’s so funny!?” Kelly glared. 

“Nothing. Nothing.” Ace put his hands up cheekily. “In any case. You won’t be seeing Cyrus anytime soon dollface.” 

“I wouldn’t say that…” Alice muttered under her breath before using her powers to lift Kelly up into the air, shocking both her and Ace. 

Kelly was then flung across to the end of the room which did in fact trigger a few more explosions, but she was flying way too fast for them to touch her. After a few seconds, Kelly landed safely towards the exit doors of the garage, who quickly got to her feet and looked back to Alice in worry. 

“Just go! Go and rescue Cyrus! I’ll deal with this guy!” Alice shouted from the other side of the garage. 

Kelly stared in shock but then gave her a determined look and nodded as she went out the doors, exiting the giant garage. 

“Tsk!” Ace’s eyebrows furrowed. Pissed off that he managed to let one of the recruits get away from him. But he quickly shook this off and looked back to Alice with a new grin.

“Go rescue Cyrus you say? That’s pretty funny coming from you. I know you’re smart enough to have already realized it by now, am I right?” Ace rested his chin on the palm of his hand. 

Alice stayed silent for a few moments before speaking up. “...It’s best if she finds out the truth for herself.” 

“...How kind of you.” Ace said sarcastically. 

……..

…………………..

……………………………………….

ODD HEADQUARTERS

CENTRAL COMPUTER ROOM 

“There we go… Now just… FINALLY!” Mary shouted to herself happily as she stared at her computer screen. 

“Now let’s see where the transfer of files was coming from…” Mary mumbled as she typed away and after a few seconds her eyes widened. 

“...Area 51? That… can’t be right.” Mary thought nervously. 

“Hey… George?” Mary turned around but saw her husband was not there. 

“Right… He went to get lunch. I should go-” Mary’s thoughts were interrupted by a sudden video call coming from her screen. 

The signal was coming from Area 51. Mary hesitantly clicked ‘Accept Call’ and braced herself for what was to come. 

“Mrs. Anderson! I’m glad I was able to reach you!” The person on the other side of the call shouted out in relief as Mary’s eyes blinked in surprise at who was calling her. 

“Oh, it’s you!” 

…….

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…………………………………

AREA 51

SOUTH WING

ALICE VS ACE

“So… I’ll give you one last chance to walk away if you want to live. I’m positive you won’t want to end up like those two boys I skewered.” Alice glared. 

“Oh yeah, I saw what you did to those two brothers. Pretty scary stuff. But unfortunately for you, you can’t use your Anomability here without risking the trigger of an explosion. And I know I can’t beat you in a head on fight. But that’s when I came up with this idea. I may not look like it but I love games and puzzles. So I came up with a game right here for us to enjoy!” Ace clapped his hands in glee. 

“A game?” Alice quirked an eyebrow. 

“Let me explain.” Ace cleared his throat. “You see, my Anomability is called Bomber and with it I have the ability to set up explosions in any inorganic material. Therefore this parking garage is just one big mine field but there is a twist. One of every five spaceships in this parking garage is actually not triggered to explode. If you can figure out the pattern and get to me without triggering an explosion, then you win. Now-” Unfortunately for him, he would never get to explain the rest of his puzzle to her.

What happened next left the rogue agent speechless. Alice had created two giant barriers surrounding the entire garage that pushed each and every space ship towards each side of the wall, both destroying and triggering every single explosion to go off but luckily Alice’s barriers were powerful enough to absorb the impact of the explosions until all that was left was black smoke surrounding the garage which blinded Ace’s eyesight. 

“Fuck! Where is she!?” Ace internally panicked. 

“Making shit complicated doesn’t mean you’re smart.” A chilling voice sent tingles down Ace’s spine as the smoke began to clear to see Alice floating, a faint blue glow surrounding her. 

“Sometimes, the simplest solution is the smartest.” Alice mocked before lifting the last spaceship that Ace had been standing on into the air with him still on it. 

“H-Hey!” Ace shouted as he tried to balance himself from the sudden lift up. He stared into Alice’s eyes with nothing but fear. 

“Y-You’re a fucking monster!” Ace shook. 

“That sounds ironic considering you had a hand in the deaths of a couple innocent agents. But I suppose a pitiful and quivering imp like yourself would still cower at the sight of a real devil.” Alice said calmly before ripping the spaceship to pieces with her mind, allowing Ace to fall from where he was standing with an ear piercing scream being the last thing he could hear from himself before splatting onto the concrete floor in an instant death. 

Alice sighed as she gently floated back down to the ground, staring at the third fresh corpse she had created today with her own hands. She didn’t enjoy killing. But it was a necessity in this line of work. She quickly ran off out of the parking garage, hoping that she might be able to catch up to Kelly. 

…….

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……………………………….

AREA 51

COMPUTER ROOM

After running for a few minutes, Alice found herself in the room that Cyrus had been monitoring them as King. She quickly found opportunity in this and sat down in the chair and accessed the large computer. 

After a few moments, Alice had managed to send out a video call to ODD headquarters in hopes someone would respond. Luckily, someone did and it was her mentor of all people. 

“Mrs. Anderson! I’m glad I was able to reach you!” Alice shouted out in relief as Mary’s eyes blinked in surprise from the other side of the screen.

“Oh, it’s you! Alice!” Mary smiled. “How is the Initiation Exam goi-”

“Mrs. Anderson I’m sorry to interrupt but we are in desperate need of help here!” Alice cries out, stunning her mentor into silence. 

“I need to tell you exactly what has been happening at Area 51!” 

A/N: Sorry for the short chapter but I have been busy with starting a new job but I will still manage to get chapters out for you all. They just may be on the shorter side like this one for a few coming up. Or not at all! Not sure yet but I just wanted to tell you of that possibility. Anyways, stay tuned!

Chapter Text

AREA 51

WEST WING

GROUP 2

ZOEY & CODY

“I have to admit…” Wyatt licked his lips. “I’m pretty excited that I get to kill you. It’s not everyday I get to meet a fellow agent who has an Anomability that can transform themselves into a mythical creature. I wonder just how powerful your Phoenix ability is.” 

Zoey gave no response back. She just got into a defensive position. The pink flames coming from her hair, glowing brighter than ever. 

“Not one for small talk? Fine. I’ll try to make this quick. Then I’ll kill the little nerd behind you.” With a roar, Wyatt lunges. 

The floor cracks under his launch. Zoey leaps upward, spiraling, wings suddenly sprouting from her back as they whipped the air into a cyclone. Wyatt’s claws swipe inches from her feet as she ascends in a burst of pink fire. The heat singes his skin, but he doesn’t flinch.

Cody backed away from the two clashing as he stared in astonishment, fidgeting with his thick circular glasses. Zoey twists midair, aiming both hands downward. She slams her fists onto Wyatt’s chest. It crashes into him like a meteor. The stone beneath him melts, but from the fire, he bursts forward, fur burned away but skin rapidly healing, eyes burning brighter with rage.

“He has a healing factor like me…” Zoey notes in thought but those thoughts quickly diffuse as Wyatt grabs her by the ankle mid-flight and slams her into a wall, cracking it with the impact. She coughs up a bit of blood, wings flickering but then her body erupts in a vortex of pink fire, her form vanishing in a blaze.

Wyatt stumbles back rubbing his scorched arm with a growl as he looks around, wondering where she had vanished to. She reappears behind him, floating, her fists wreathed in pink flame.

“Don’t drop your guard.” Zoey whispers, then punches Wyatt in the spine, sending him flying through the same cracked wall. 

Wyatt lands hard, blood trailing from his mouth. But before Zoey can close the distance, he takes a deep breath and howls. A sonic wave erupts from his mouth that sends Zoey flying backward, as she desperately begins to cover her now bleeding ears. 

“Shit… I messed up.” Zoey grimaced. 

Wyatt groaned as he dusted himself off, his fur stained a bit with his own blood. He glared at the pink haired agent with frustration. 

“I underestimated her. She’s pretty tough after all… Maybe I should change tactics…” Wyatt thought to himself and then looked over to Cody who was still trying to hide himself from the fight. 

Wyatt then licked his lips at the cowardly agent. If he couldn’t kill her right away, then he should at least kill one of them since he has the opportunity to do so. 

Zoey noticed where his gaze was heading and her eyes widened a bit. She launched herself to where he was but it was too late. At great speed, he lunged towards the unsuspecting Cody and managed to bite his shoulder, his fangs sinking deep into his skin. 

Cody let out a blood curdling scream as he desperately tried to pry the wolf’s mouth off his shoulder but to no luck. But before Wyatt could tear him any further, a flaming kick had struck his mouth causing him to tumble a couple feet back as he fell to the ground, covering his burnt and bleeding mouth. 

“That fucking bitch…” Wyatt growled. His tongue felt around inside his mouth and that’s when he noticed he was missing a fang. It turned out that when Zoey kicked his mouth, his fang broke off and was still plunged into Cody’s shoulder. 

“You good?” Zoey turned to Cody who was clutching his shoulder in pain as he had fallen to his knees. 

“I… I think so…” Cody whimpered. 

“Maybe you should run off somewhere and I’ll handle him alone.” Zoey flew off to clash with Wyatt once more. 

Cody began to try and stand back up, his legs wobbly. “She… She’s right… I hate fighting. I only wanted to join ODD for desk work, not field work anyway… I gotta get out of he-” His thoughts were broken as all of a sudden his eyes grew to the size of dinner plates as he began to hyperventilate. He held his head in anguish, sweat dripping from his forehead as the only thing he could hear was the sound of his own panting. 

“No… No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. Not now… NOT NOW! STOP IT!” He cried internally before he suddenly went limp, his body crashing to the ground.

Zoey delivered a swift kick to Wyatt’s ribs. He howled in pain but was able to quickly attack right back as he lunged his claws deep into her chest, piercing through. 

Zoey coughed up blood as her healing factor worked effortlessly to heal the wound and recover the lost blood but it was beginning to become too much for her to bear.

Wyatt grinned as he threw her across the hall as she landed pathetically on her back. Zoey grit her teeth in pain as she clutched her wounded chest. It would take a while for her healing factor to recover from this kind of wound. But it seemed like Wyatt had shown no indication of stopping as he made his way over to her, licking his lips with bloodlust. 

“That’s more like it. The more pain you’re in, the more fun this is for me. But I have to say you’re really cute like this. Maybe I could have some fun with you before I kill you.” Wyatt stared lustfully at Zoey’s now torn attire. 

“This fucking bastard…” Zoey felt revolted at this man’s words. But there was nothing she could say or do. She still needed about two more minutes before she could start moving normally again. 

Wyatt then suddenly jumped in the air, prepared to have his way with the pinkette. All Zoey could do is close her eyes and wait for the inevitable to happen. At least until a single word echoed in the ears of her and Wyatt. 

“Swap.” 

Suddenly, Zoey found herself where she had left Cody lying earlier as she noticed his glasses were on the ground next to her and in her place, Cody was standing in front of the werewolf user. 

“The nerd?” Wyatt asked internally before Cody moved at inhuman speed and blitzed right past him. 

“When did he…” Wyatt muttered to himself and then suddenly noticed something felt to the ground in front of him. 

It was his arm. 

Wyatt screamed out as he felt where his arm was, not even realizing that it had been severed off. 

“MY FUCKING ARM!!!” He screamed as he looked back towards Cody with panic. 

“How did he even…?” Wyatt’s eyes widened as he saw a familiar object in Cody’s hand.

“He cut my arm off… with my own fang?” Wyatt fearfully stepped back out of instinct, his knees collapsing to the floor. 

Cody began to chuckle darkly before going into a crazed laugh, shocking both Wyatt and Zoey who couldn’t help but stare at him. 

Cody’s hair which was normally a bowl cut was now messy and curly. With his thick glasses off you could finally see his sharp green eyes. Cody looked back at the two of them with a razor sharp grin. 

“FINALLY! THAT FUCKING DORK WENT TO SLEEP! NOW I CAN REALLY CUT LOOSE!” He screamed out in joy. 

……

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……………………………………

ODD HEADQUARTERS

S RANK BREAKROOM

“Nothing beats a good ol Subway sandwich.” George whistled to himself as he opened the community fridge and took out his six inch sub. 

He went to sit down and saw that Leon and Yuri were also sitting and eating. He decided to go sit next to them.

“Mary found anything yet?” Leon asked, taking a sip from his water bottle. 

“Not to my knowledge. I’m positive she will soon though.” George shrugged as he unwrapped his sandwich.

Yuri grinned. “Hey George? Need a thirsty beverage to go down with that sandw-”

“If you offer me a Dr. Pepper just for it to explode in my face, I’m kicking your ass.” George bit down on his sub. 

Yuri held his hands up in defense as he laughed. “So George, I was reading a file on one of the recruits and I have a question about the one you personally picked.” Yuri decided to change the subject. 

George looked up from his sandwich to Yuri. “You mean Cody?” 

Yuri nodded. “I’ll be honest. He doesn’t seem the type of guy that warranted a personal recommendation from someone like you. So I gotta ask, why did ya pick him?”

“Well… there’s a bit of a story to that.” George admitted. “But to put it simply, he ended up getting involved in one of my missions and I saw potential. So instead of mind wiping him like we would with any civilian that gets involved in an O.D.D. mission, I decided to bring him here. His Anomability is called Swap. He can essentially swap places with anything or anyone in a room with him, as long as he can see what he is swapping with. But for Cody, it has a… unique handicap, if you could even call it that.” 

“What do you mean?” Leon raised an eyebrow. 

“You see… for all of his life Cody has suffered from Dissociative Identity Disorder. And in order to use his Anomability, whether it is willingly or not, must swap minds with his other personality in order to use it.”

Leon and Yuri were a little put off by this news. 

“I see…” Leon mused. “So what’s this other personality of his like?” 

George scratched the back of his head at this. 

“I’ll be blunt…” George began.

……..

……………….

…………………………

“Get up.” ‘Cody’ grinned psychotically. “GET UP YOU FUCKING DOG!” 

Wyatt carefully got up, still clutching the area where his arm used to be. For the first time in his life, Wyatt was terrified. And of a sniveling little brat that didn’t look any older than 19. 

Zoey stared in astonishment. To her, Cody was acting like a completely different person. When she had first met him, he seemed to be like the biggest stereotype of the nerd that gets beat up in those 80s movies she watches. But right now, even she could feel chills go down her spine as he smiled sickly at them both. 

“It's been so long since I’ve had fun like this!” ‘Cody’ grinned excitedly. 

……..

…………………

…………………………..

“…He’s a serial killer." 

A/N: Surprise! New chapter already! :0

Chapter Text

ODD HEADQUARTERS

S RANK BREAKROOM

“A serial killer!? Are you out of your fucking mind letting a guy like that into ODD!?” Leon shouted. 

“Look, I get why you can see this as something to worry about but… Cody is a good kid.” George crossed his arms. 

“I don’t see the big deal. If anything that sounds pretty cool!” Yuri laid back in his chair in a carefree tone. 

“Can you be serious for once Yuri…” Leon groaned and turned back to George. “You said he got involved in one of your missions? What exactly happened?”

George took a bite of his sandwich and then sighed.

 “It’s like this…” 

THREE MONTHS AGO

“A cult trying to summon a dragon… Why do I always get the weird assignments…” George sighed as he trekked through the woods of New Mexico. 

George took out a notepad from his pocket and skimmed through it. “Now if Mary is correct, which she always is, the ritual should be being held in the coordinates ahead…” George muttered to himself and then looked up from his notebook to see bits of fire surrounding nearby trees. 

George ran towards the trail of smoke that went along with the flames and managed to find a clearing. And what was in front of him left him shocked. 

Over a hundred cult members were found lying dead on the grass with what seemed to be from slashing attacks. And in the middle of it all was a headless 50 foot tall red dragon, towering over the bodies like a giant building. But what really caught George’s attention was the young boy that seemed around the same age as his own daughter, sitting on top of the dragon’s corpse as he licked the blood off his two knives with a psychotic grin. 

George slowly walked up to the dragon’s corpse and looked up at the boy sitting down. “Did you do all this, young man?” George’s eyebrows furrowed. 

“This is no normal boy. He took down all these people and a mythical creature without his Soul Shell removed. He doesn’t even have an Anomability…” 

The voice calling out to him from below seemed to have gained the boy’s attention as he jumped down from the dragon to the green grass below. The boy stared at George with an excited grin. 

“Die.” 

……..

……………

………………………….

FIVE MINUTES LATER

“Hey, it’s George. Got a bit of a situation. Me? Nah, I’m fine.” George spoke through his communicator as he was sitting down on a large rock in the clearing. 

George was covered in slashes across his body, tears in his uniform could be seen all over. But to him, they weren’t a big of a deal. The boy on the other hand was lying down unconscious a few feet from him. George looked over to him. 

“This kid wasn’t such a bad fighter. For a normal human anyway… I guess this is the killer I heard about that has been terrorizing the town a couple miles from here. Now what to do… Do I just wipe his memory and leave? I can’t very well in all good conscience just leave a murderer here. Maybe we should lock him up in Labyrinthatraz? No… He’s not involved in the supernatural… Well at least not until today. Maybe I should just hand him in to the local police?”

As George thought more on what to do with him, the boy began to stir awake. George noticed this and got up from where he was sitting, ready to have to knock him out again if need be. 

“Wh-What’s going on…? Where am I?” The boy asked, a bit scared. 

George blinked in response. He was certainly not expecting this. This kid seemed to be quaking in fear as he looked at his surroundings. He was like a completely different person right now. The boy’s face paled as he saw all of the cult member corpses. 

“Oh no no no no no no… I did it again… I did it again…” The boy held himself. 

“Are you alright?” George asked, startling the boy, seemingly finally acknowledging his presence. 

“Wh-Who are you?”

“George. And you are?” 

“C-Cody…” 

“Cody… When I got here, it seemed like you killed all these people and that dragon over there. Is that what happened?” 

“I… I don’t know. I guess so… I… don’t really have any control over what Lucas does…” Cody looked down at the ground in shame. 

“Lucas?” George quirked an eyebrow. 

“Oh uh… Lucas is this part of me who well… comes out sometimes… I… I can’t control him. Lucas has done… I… I have done… horrible and unforgivable things to innocent people… I… I don’t know what to do…” Cody broke down, crying as he held himself in panic. 

George looked at Cody with a saddened expression. He felt bad for the kid. He really did. A few more seconds passed by when suddenly George came up with an idea. He’s not exactly sure how his coworkers would feel about it. But he knew that at least Mary would be supportive in his choices. That was all he really needed. 

George formed a small smile and held out his hand to help Cody up. Cody looked up to George before hesitantly reaching his hand over and grasped it, allowing himself to be pulled up to his feet. 

“Here…” George began. “Come with me.” 

……..

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………………………………

PRESENT DAY

“And that’s pretty much the case.” George explained, finishing off his sandwich. 

“I understand that you feel bad for the kid but aren’t we at risk if he switches to this ‘Lucas’ character? Couldn’t he turn on us at any given moment?” Leon pointed out. 

“I’m sure we can keep this killer in check if need be!” Yuri chuckles. 

“Look… Cody says he just wants to do desk work but… I see so much potential in him. After all, the main reason he agreed to join us is because he wants to learn how to control Lucas. And if there is anywhere he can do that, then I believe it is here.” George finished. 

“Well… I guess I’ll just leave it to you then. But just know that you’re responsible for anything he does!” Leon pointed at George. 

“And don’t YOU forget that you’re also still responsible for that little trio of the Yu kid, the Winters girl, and my daughter.” George smiles. 

“GEORGE!” 

The three S ranks turned to see Mary at the door of the breakroom, panting as if she ran all the way here in a hurry. 

“Mary? What’s wrong?” George asked. Mary looked at George with a look of panic on her face. A look that George had rarely seen on her. 

“You need to come with me. NOW!” 

……

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AREA 51

WEST WING

“FUCK! IT’S GOOD TO BE BACK!” Lucas cackled. 

Zoey and Wyatt stared in shock at the sudden switch of the once timid agent. Wyatt was still holding on to where his arm used to be as he grit his teeth in pain. But he knew he couldn’t back down now. Cyrus was counting on him to get his part of the mission done. Wyatt stumbled back up to his feet, as he tried his best to ignore the pain of having his arm severed. He then lunged forward at Lucas. 

Lucas swiftly dodged Wyatt’s attack with ease. As he dodged, Lucas quickly slashed Wyatt across the face with his makeshift fang-knife. Wyatt winced but still managed to keep his focus on the fight. 

Wyatt managed to grab Lucas by the arm and throw him back a couple feet away. Lucas grinned as he managed to make a safe landing. He then ran forward and Wyatt got into a defensive position, readying himself this time for one of his quick attacks. But to much of Wyatt’s confusion, he wasn’t running towards him but rather his severed arm as Lucas lunged at it and it looked like he was aiming to stab the severed limb. 

“What the hell is he plan-”

“Swap.”

At that moment, Wyatt’s body had completely swapped places with his severed arm as he was now inches away from Lucas’s weapon. Before he could even have a chance to react, Lucas plunged the fang right into Wyatt’s throat. Wyatt’s eyes widened as he tried to grab his throat to alleviate the pain but it was too late. He was already drowning in his own blood as he succumbed to death almost instantly. Wyatt’s eyes stayed open and didn’t blink again as he automatically transformed back to his human form, a pool of blood surrounding his entire body. 

‘Holy shit…” Zoey’s eyes widened at the massacre she just witnessed. 

Lucas smiled evilly as he stared at the former werewolf before him. He then quickly turned his head towards Zoey. An even bigger smile was put on his face. 

“You’re next.” Lucas laughed as he quickly swapped Wyatt’s corpse in front of him for Zoey and readied to strike but unlike Wyatt, Zoey was prepared for it as she blasted a ball of pink fire at Lucas making him crash into a wall. 

“Tsk!” Lucas clicked his tongue in annoyance as he stared at the pink haired girl in front of him. 

“Good thing my wounds are healed up again. Can’t believe I have to fight Cody now… or well I guess Cody’s body anyway.” Zoey thought to herself. 

Lucas lunged but Zoey was a lot faster than Wyatt was and managed to dodge just in time. She launched herself away to create some distance between the two as she then quickly crouched down and put her hands on the floor and suddenly the entire floor was covered in flames, causing Lucas to scream out at his burning legs. 

Lucas jumped and ran up the wall, launching himself off it and getting ready to strike at Zoey. 

“DIE YOU FUCKING FIRE FREAK!” Lucas screamed out. 

Zoey didn’t budge an inch. She didn’t attempt to dodge. Instead she actually let herself get stabbed in the shoulder. She winced but she withstood the pain. Until the moment she was able to put her plan into action. 

Lucas grinned as he managed to actually stab her but then his eyes quickly widened as he realized he couldn’t pull the fang out of her shoulder because she wrapped a tight grip around his wrist. Zoey then put on a grin that matches Lucas’s own. 

“Word of advice. No matter how confident you are, never try to get close to a dangerous flame.” Zoey said swiftly before engulfing her entire body in fire which of course made its way towards Lucas as well as he screamed out in pain. 

While he was distracted from the painful burns, Zoey was able to connect a fist to Lucas’s face as she punched him with all her might, sending him flying to the ground, his body unmoving as he landed. 

Zoey panted as she pulled the fang out of her shoulder and tossed it to the floor. Zoey walked over to the body of Cody/Lucas as she quickly went over to check his pulse. He was alive. Just unconscious. Zoey bit her lip as she raised her fist, coating it in flames as she readied herself to finish him off. But she hesitated. Images flashed in her mind of the timid yet kind agent she had come to meet.

Zoey sighed as she lowered her fist, the flames dispelling. She leaned against the wall as she slid down against it, sitting down as she let her healing factor work itself. She stared over at the unconscious Cody and couldn’t help but feel bad for him. 

“Sorry you have to deal with a guy like that…” Zoey closed her eyes, letting herself rest after such an exhausting ordeal. 

………

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AREA 51

EAST WING

GROUP 3

JECKA & ZACK

Vicky held onto her bleeding hand but still kept a confident smile onto the two agents in front of her. 

“I guess that was your Anomability huh?” Vicky asked Zack. “I’ve heard of it. It’s called Weapon Materialization right? You can form and create weapons from any object in your possession right? Doesn’t matter if it is big or small.” 

Zack didn’t respond and remained quiet. But Jecka had a lot to say instead. 

“Okay bitch, I don’t know if you think you’re some fucking comedian by pretending to be my boyfriend but you are in for it now!” Jecka shouted at Vicky before turning to Zack. “Go kick her ass!” 

Zack looked over to Jecka and then looked over to Vicky. 

“No.” 

This shocked both Jecka and Vicky.

“Wha-What the fuck do you mean no!?” Jecka asked, her voice sounding a little nervous. 

“She would be too easy to kill. That’s boring.” Zack replied before going over to sit down on a comfortable looking couch. 

“S-So what are we gonna do!?” Jecka asked in a panicked tone. 

“I’m not gonna do anything. You are weak. You were nothing but a burden to all of us during that death game we played. You don’t belong at ODD so I have no problem with this woman killing you. Don’t worry though. I’ll make sure to kill her once she is done with you.” Zack relaxed. 

“Wa-Wait.. You can’t be fucking serious right?” Jecka asked, scared as Vicky began to slowly approach her, pleased by this new development. 

Zack shrugged at Jecka’s fearful state. 

“If you wanna prove me wrong…

……..

………………

…………………………………………

“...then you will have to defeat her yourself.”

Chapter Text

AREA 51

EAST WING

“Are you seriously fucking kidding me right now!?” Jecka shouted at Zack who said nothing in return. 

Jecka quickly turned back to Vicky, only to get punched in the gut. 

“FUCK!” Jecka coughed as she held her stomach in pain. 

“This will be too easy.” Vicky sneered, kicking Jecka in the face as she fell to the ground. 

“You fucking bitch…” Jecka groaned, her mouth bleeding. 

“What a joke…” Vicky smirked as she repeatedly kicked Jecka in the ribs. “YOU? In ODD? I can’t believe you were even given a chance! They should have let the pedophile in that porn warehouse finish you off!” 

“All you are is some perc popper that peaked in high school and got good grades either by pure luck or you just slutted yourself out to every teacher behind your emo looking boyfriend’s back!” Vicky grabbed Jecka by the hair, bringing her face close to hers. 

“And you wanna know a secret?” Vicky whispered in Jecka’s ear. “You were never supposed to join ODD in the first place. Only the Yu kid and the Anderson daughter were. But you… You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and happened to be there with those two when they were brought in to be recruited. Don’t you get it? You were an accident. Just. A. Giant. Mistake.” 

Jecka’s eyes widened as she faintly recalled an old memory.

TEN YEARS AGO

WINTERS HOUSEHOLD

“You’re drunk this early in the morning? Again Stan? Really?” Jecka’s mother, Joan, glared at her husband in frustration.

“Oh just GET OFF MY FUCKIN BACK! FOR ONCE!” Stan shouted from the living room couch, trying to watch the Price is Right.

“Mommy? Daddy?” An 8 year old Jecka who had just woken up, was spying on her parents from the staircase, confused and a bit scared of why they were fighting.

“Can you not scream like a lunatic!? Jessica is still sleeping!” Joan crossed her arms. 

“Ya know we wouldn’t have had this problem if the condom didn’t break!” Stan spat. 

“WHAT’S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN!?” Joan shouted, forgetting her earlier pleas of staying quiet. 

“IT MEANS I’M SPENDING HALF OF MY LIFE SAVINGS ON A FUCKING ACCIDENT!” Stan stood up wobbly, beer bottle in hand. 

“SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU DRUNKEN SON OF A BITCH!” Joan screamed. 

“OH WHY DON’T YOU SLEEP WITH ONE OF YOUR INTERNS AGAIN YOU FUCKING WHORE! MAYBE THEN YOU’LL GET KNOCKED UP WITH ANOTHER MISTAKE!” Stan shouted from the top of his lungs, throwing the beer bottle at the wall, shattering it to pieces. 

“MAYBE I WOULDN’T HAVE CHEATED IF YOU WEREN’T A FAT FUCKING MONSTER THAT ACTUALLY KNEW HOW TO PUT A CONDOM ON THEIR TINY DICK CORRECTLY!” Joan grit her teeth, tears visible in her eyes. 

“AH HA! SO YOU ALSO ADMIT SHE’S A MISTAKE!” 

“AN UNPLANNED PREGNANCY ISN’T A MISTAKE! IT’S JUST A… HAPPY ACCIDENT!”

“OH YEAH!? IS A FAILED ABORTION ALSO A “HAPPY ACCIDENT” IN YOUR BOOK!?”

“FUCK YOU!” 

Jecka wasn’t able to hear the rest after that. All she could do was silently cry to herself on top of the stairs. Knowing that no matter how much they would tell her that they loved her from now on, she would always know the real truth deep down. 

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…………………………………………….

PRESENT DAY

Jecka stayed silent for a few moments. Her hair overshadowed her eyes as she stared at the floor, not even flinching at the tight grip that Vicky had on her head. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Jecka spoke. 

“...So what?” 

Vicky’s smirk faltered for a second as it was replaced with a look of confusion. “Huh?” 

Jecka looked up at Vicky with a glare. Fear no longer showed on her face. But replaced with a look of anger and a hint of determination. 

“SO WHAT IF I’M A MISTAKE!? AN ACCIDENT!? I’M STILL HERE AREN’T I!?” Jecka screamed as she coated her entire body with electricity, shocking Vicky and sending her flying back into a wall. 

“UGH!” Vicky grunted as she almost felt her spine break as well as dealing with the after effects of being suddenly electrocuted. 

Jecka slowly walked over towards Vicky, a new sense of calm rushed over her. 

“I don’t give a rat’s ass about this agency so say whatever you want! I’m just here for the fucking paycheck I was promised! Don’t underestimate what a broke bitch who doesn’t want to fuck ugly strangers is willing to do to get her goddamn money! But for right now… what I really want to do…” Jecka coated her entire fist with lightning. 

“IS DROP YOUR 4/10 LOOKING ASS RIGHT HERE AND RIGHT NOW!!!” 

Vicky scoffed at this as she got up, dusting herself off. “Drop MY ass? That’s funn-” Vicky never got to finish that sentence as a fist struck her mouth at lightning speed. 

Jecka put her hands up, remembering the combat training that Leon had taught her a couple days ago. 

“Hmph. Fine bitch. You’re on.” Vicky spat blood out of her mouth as her form began to change. “Don’t think that I’m only limited to disguising myself as people!” 

Vicky had changed into that of a hawk in the blink of an eye. The hawk dove, talons aimed for the Jecka’s throat but before impact, she shifted again, morphing into a heavy panther mid-fall. 

The weight of the beast crashed down, pinning Jecka as pain flared within her. Sparks sprayed wildly throughout Jecka’s body as the beast’s weight crushed the air from her lungs.

Jecka’s panic sharpened into fury. She slammed both palms into the ground, releasing a shockwave that rippled outward. Stone cracked, air burned. The panther shrieked as she changed back into her human form.

Vicky quickly got off of Jecka and jumped back from the range of sparks surrounding her. 

“Fuck. I can’t afford to get so close to her. I’ll just be at risk of getting electrocuted. This bitch… How did she learn how to fight in such a short time!? She seemed so weak when we observed her earlier!” Vicky grit her teeth in pain, one knee unconsciously placed to the ground as she held her arm. 

Jecka managed to get to her feet as she held her hands up again defensively, seeming a lot more confident as she looked at the state of her weakened opponent. She couldn’t help but think back to how Leon helped her. 

FOUR DAYS AGO

ODD TRAINING ROOM

“You’re able to combine normal attacks with your Anomability, but you’re still sloppy.” Leon crossed his arms as he stared at the blonde. 

Jecka panted as she rested the palms of her hands on her knees. Exhausted from the most she has ever worked out in her life. 

“Do I… really have to do this combat shit? I mean, no offense but I feel like I’m way too attractive for it…” Jecka grumbled. 

Leon rolled his eyes at this. “Let me ask you something. Have you ever been in a situation where you felt like your life was going to end?”

Jecka paused at this. To be perfectly honest… There have been a few times where she thought she was going to die. One moment in particular comes to her mind the most. 

 “I WANNA FUCKING KILL MY WIFE!!!”

“Oh my god--what!?” 

“SHUT YOUR MOUTH BEFORE I BLOW YOUR FUCKING BRAINS OUT ON THE TILED FLOOR!!!” 

“NO! NO! PLEASE DON’T! I’M SORRY!”

Yeah. That wasn’t a fun day for her. 

Leon took Jecka’s silence as a sign of confirmation. “You have the power to fight back now. But you may also run into others with powers that can surpass your own. That’s why you need to get stronger. Remember this Jecka. All three of you are my responsibility. Not just Alex. Not just Kelly. You are just as important to me as they are. That’s why I want to help you be better.” 

Jecka stared into shock at his words. This wasn’t something she was used to hearing from such an older figure. 

“IT MEANS I’M SPENDING HALF OF MY LIFE SAVINGS ON A FUCKING ACCIDENT!” 

Jecka bit her bottom lip as she stared at the floor. “Do you think me being here was an accident? Am I… a mistake?” Jecka asked quietly so Alex or Kelly who were training at other sides of the room couldn’t hear. 

Leon stayed silent at Jecka’s question. A few seconds went by before he decided to answer. 

“An accident? Yes.”

Jecka clenched her fists. 

“But a mistake? No.” 

Jecka’s head lifted up at this. Eyes slightly widened.

“I believe nothing happens by mistake. But if you have doubts, then I urge you to prove yourself wrong.” Leon then began to walk off to see how Alex and Kelly were holding up. 

Jecka wasn’t sure how to respond. She wasn’t even sure how to feel. She wasn’t even sure why she asked what she asked next. 

“Wh-Why are you even trying to help me?”

Leon stopped in place. He still had his back turned to Jecka at this time. 

“Well… two reasons. One: Like with Alex and Kelly, I was ordered to. And two: …Pushing kids to want to be better is what a guardian does.” With that Leon walked off. 

Jecka watched him walk off in silence. She wasn’t sure why but in that moment of time, a small smile appeared on her face. As if she wished she was given advice like that a long time ago by someone else.

…..

…………..

……………………………….

PRESENT DAY

“Fine you bitch… I see how it is. It seems like you really are confident you can take me down now.” Vicky chuckled as she shakingly got back to her feet. “But could you take down someone you care for!?” Vicky began to change shape once again. 

“I’m an intelligence agent after all! I did research on every new recruit! I know what your friends and families look like! I know how to use love as a weakness!” Vicky cackled as her transformation was completed. 

Vicky was now Jecka’s father. 

“Well!? You think you can strike down your own fa-” The face of Jecka’s father was punched to the ground at full force. 

Jecka got on top of them. “YOU! I HATE YOU! I FUCKING HATE YOU SO MUCH!” Jecka repeatedly began to punch that despicable face. 

“YOU LIKE TO BEAT ME HUH!? YOU LIKE TO MAKE ME FEEL FUCKING SCARED HUH!? HOW’S THIS THEN YOU MOTHERFUCKER!? YOU DRIVE MOM AWAY! YOU FORCE ME TO GET A JOB IF I DON’T WANT TO BE HOMELESS! I HOPE THAT TICKING BOMB OF A HEART OF YOURS FINALLY EXPLODES SO I DON’T HAVE TO SEE THAT STUPID FACE ANYMORE! YOU ARE THE WORST FUCKING DAD IN THE WORLD!!!” Tears blinded Jecka’s eyes as she kept striking down at her opponent, making sure that every punch was coated in electricity.

After a few more punches, Jecka fell over with exhaustion. Vicky had lost consciousness and turned back to herself a while ago but that didn’t seem to matter as even her regular face was unrecognizable at this point. 

Jecka was staring at the ceiling as she lay on the floor panting. She looked over to where Zack was and saw that he was giving her a thumbs up with a neutral expression. Jecka used the last of her strength to flip him off before wiping the tears from her eyes.

And for the first time in a while…

………

……………….

……………………………………..

…Jecka felt strong.

Chapter Text

ODD HEADQUARTERS

CENTRAL COMPUTER ROOM 

“...And this is all true?” George asked, his eyes closed as he crossed his arms, gripping them tight at hearing this news. 

“I’m afraid so. All of it. The deaths of some of the new recruits, Cyrus’s betrayal and our current predicament.” Alice confirmed on the screen. 

“Please… Please at least tell me Kelly is okay.” George held his breath. 

“Last I saw her she was fine. But that was a few moments ago. She doesn’t know Cyrus is behind this and I don’t know what will happen once she finds out.” Alice replied. 

“I see…” And with that, George walked off, his fists clenching tight. 

“Mr. Anderson? Where are you going?” Alice asked, confused. 

“Off to Area 51 huh?” Mary asked with a knowing and sad look on her face as she stared at the ground. 

“Cyrus is my responsibility. And I won’t let a single hair be harmed on our daughter’s hair. I promise you that Mary.” With that, George vanished from that room out of thin air. 

GEORGE ANDERSON

S RANK AGENT OF THE O.D.D.

ANOMABILITY: WARP

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AREA 51

NORTH WING

GROUP 4

ALEX & KEN

“In any case… I suppose it doesn’t matter of ODD’s intentions on your recruitment Alex Yu. Because you and everyone else will soon be dead.” King spoke to Alex and Ken calmly. 

“Yeah? Well guess what asshole? If you want them dead then you’ll have to kill the two of us first!” Alex shouted as Ken nodded furiously.

“Exactly my thoughts Mr. Alex! As the future hero of this world, it is our duty to vanquish this villain!” Ken stood in a heroic pose. 

“....Is this fatass special ed?” King asked out loud, sweatdropping.

“...Something like that.” Alex nodded, sighing.

“I AM NOT!” Ken shouted out. 

With no further comments, King began to attack. He stomped the ground, and the floor suddenly rippled like liquid. Spears of stone shot upward, sharp enough to impale. Alex’s reflexes flared as he lunged forward, brushing one of the stone lances. The lances rose in the air, but instead of stabbing down, it floated up like a drifting shard of paper. Alex had copied Ken’s Anomability and made the lances float harmlessly towards the ceiling, no longer under King’s control. 

“Gotcha.” Alex smirked. 

King glared and once again he had made the battlefield shift. A wall of concrete swelled up, aiming to crush them. Ken darted in, slapping his palm against the oncoming mass. Instantly, the wall lost all weight and drifted harmlessly upward. But Ken clenched his fist, and the floating concrete twisted midair, folding into jagged shards before raining back down with terrifying speed.

Ken breathed heavily but gave Alex a thumbs up regardless. “Not to worry Mr. Alex!” 

But that moment of relaxation was soon gone as the ground turned to quicksand beneath Ken’s feet. He sank instantly. Alex leapt in, mimicking King’s ability this time as he managed to stop the ground from sinking further. He hauled Ken free, both men now panting as the floor turned back to normal. 

“You see it, don’t you?” King called, voice calm but sharp as glass. “Everything you counter, I reshape. It doesn’t matter if you copy mine or any of your friends' abilities. I control the field itself.”

King noticed that Alex was currently off guard and smirked from under his mask.

 “Let me demonstrate.” 

With that, King stuck out a hand, getting ready to turn the floor beneath Alex’s feet, and the ceiling over him into sharp impaling stone. Unfortunately for King, Ken had seemed to notice exactly what he was thinking. Ken’s eyes widened as he turned to his side to see Alex still catching his breath. 

“MR. ALEX!” Ken shouted, and without thinking…

He shoved Alex to the side and took his place. 

ONE YEAR AGO

“Hey Ken!” A high schooler sneered as he shoved Ken’s shoulder against a locker. 

“I heard you did Tyler’s homework for him! I want you to take care of my chemistry homework. Got it?” The bully grinned, gripping Ken’s shoulder in the process. 

“I can’t… I have plans tonight.” Ken looked down sheepishly. 

The high schooler was silent for a few seconds before snorting and shoving Ken to the ground. “Plans? What plans?” he laughed, kicking his ribs.

“Is going to an all you can eat buffet your definition of “plans”? Listen here you Grimace shaped son of a bitch, get this shit done by Monday or I’ll perform my own science experiment and see how much of you can get stuffed in that tiny locker.” The bully laughed as he threw his homework papers on top of Ken and walked away. 

Ken dusted himself off and grasped the papers in his hands as he got up. All he could do was sigh as he put the papers in his backpack.

………

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…………………………………………..

Ken entered the Virginia Hospital Center and went up to the reception to check in. He took an elevator until he arrived on the third floor. He walked a bit passing by some rooms until he stopped at one. 

And his depressing frown from earlier turned around to a sincere smile. 

A girl around the age of 15 was in a hospital bed, staring up at the TV above her. She had short black hair in small pigtails and pale skin. She looked over to her door and smiled as she saw who stepped in. 

“Ken!” The girl smiled and then began to cough. 

“My dear sister Bella! How are you doing?” Ken walked up to her with a heroic pose as he ruffled her hair and began to sit down next to her. 

“Just a lot of coughing today… No biggie!” Bella gave a thumbs up. 

“Well since you’re feeling okay…” Ken pulled out a container and gave it to Bella. “I stopped by grandmas and she made her special recipe of brownies just for you.” Ken smiled as Bella opened the container with stars in her eyes. 

“Oh my god… I LOVE Grandma’s brownies. It’s like crack except it’s not.” Bella shoved one in her mouth. 

Ken smiled at his little sister, enjoying her brownies.

“Aren’t you gonna have one?” Bella raised an eyebrow. 

Ken twitched at this. “Oh um…”

“Is going to an all you can eat buffet your definition of “plans”? 

“I’m… not hungry.” Ken muttered. 

“Oh…” Bella looked down a bit. “Are they bothe-”

“H-Hey so uh I talked to your doctor about the… surgery.” Ken quickly changed the subject. 

“We can’t afford it…” Bella gripped her hospital blanket. 

“Not yet, but we will. You’re talking to a future hero here!” Ken struck a pose which made her laugh. 

“You keep saying you’ll be a hero ever since we were little, isn’t that joke getting old?” Bella laughed. 

“I’m serious! I’m going to get a job and we are going to pay for your surgery! You will be the first person I save! I promise!” Ken said in a serious tone. 

Bella’s eyes widened a bit at her older brother’s proclamation and smiled. 

“Hey Ken?”

“Yeah? What’s up?”

……

………….

……………………….

Ken was walking through the hospital halls with his hands in his pockets deep in thought. How WAS he going to pay for the surgery? 

“Hey kid.” 

Ken turned around and saw a man wearing pajamas and sunglasses. 

“...Hi?”

“I heard you might need some money.”

Ken blinked at this and stared blankly. “I’m uh I don’t want to do sex work.” 

The man’s eyes widened behind his sunglasses. “Wh-What?? No! That’s not what I meant. Just… here.” The man handed Ken a business card. 

“My name is Mason Stone. I am an agent for the Oddity Defense Division. Also known as ODD.”

Ken just stared at the card in silence. 

“...You want to be a hero right? This is as good a place as any.”

“Uncle Mason!” 

The two men turned their heads to see a girl with brown hair that seemed around Ken’s age approach the pajama-wearing agent with a smile. “They finished with checkups. Can we go home now?” 

Mason smiled. “Sure thing, super star. I’ll be right there.” The girl then walked off towards the elevators. 

“I know what you are going through. Trust me. Give me a call.” Mason walked off with his niece. 

Ken stared at the two going down in the elevator and then stared back at the business card. 

“ODD…”

….

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PRESENT DAY

It felt as if time was slowing down as Alex watched in horror as Ken had pushed him out of the way and closed his eyes. The last thing Alex saw once he landed on the ground was Ken smiling before he was impaled through the stomach and out his back. Blood poured everywhere from his wound to his mouth. It didn’t take long before his entire body went limp and never moved again. 

“Wow…” King commented. “Didn’t expect that. I was aiming to kill Alex Yu but he was getting pretty fucking annoying anyway. Looks like I did him a favor. I’m sure all that fat poured out of his stomach along with his blood don’t you agr-” 

King was cut off as a giant hand made of stone formed out of the ground and grabbed him tight by the waist as Alex moved at incredible speed and punched King right in the face, breaking a piece of his mask off to the point his left eye was now visible from it. Blood began to pour from his forehead beneath the mask and drip through the newly made hole. 

“I’m gonna kick your fucking ass…” Alex seethed in anger. 

“Hey Ken?”

“What’s up?” 

“Why DO you wanna be a hero anyway?”

“Well… you know that I get bullied a lot right?”

“Yeah…” 

“No one… has ever tried to help or defend me so I figured…” 

“Figured what?”

“If I can save at least one person, then someday…

……

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……………………

…maybe they could save me too.” 

AGENTS REMAINING: 7