Wishbones and Cracked Skulls

Chapter 01: It's not always in the right color

Wishbones and Cracked Skulls

Chapter 01: It's not always in the right color

Renato watched closely as an innocuous bottle of shampoo was handed out to him from a calloused hand with fraying manicured fingers and its chipped black nail polish. The shampoo was his favored brand, something not overly pricy as everyone would have not expected from a man with a reputation for valuing his appearance.

(That particular brand gets the job done in managing his finicky hair texture and type, in addition to the scent that is just the right amount of minty smoke to be appealing while not hindering his job with leaving scent marks.)

As for why Renato is eyeing the innocent bottle suspiciously, it was because it was being handed to him by the resident civilian from their group of elites. Skull, the anomaly in their gathered assembly, is a vision of teenage emo punk with his bright purple to orange hair, amethyst eyes, dark makeup, piercings and biker get up. Not until a certain incident, the lot of them, except for Luce, were baffled by the choice of adding a civilian stuntman in forming a group meant for the Underground World's Greatest Elite.

And he is enlisted as the strongest Cloud, mind you.

As far as clouds go, Skull is an anomaly, but how would they know? There's not much Clouds roaming in the underworld, but typically they are nothing what Skull is.

Fearful, whiny, happy-go-lucky, naïve and far too smiley (too kind, too warm and too emotional for their side of business) for someone who's flame stereotype are to be aloof and cagey and territorial.

But due to his lack of any impressive skills other than his death-defying stunt driving, Renato and the others had chalked it all up to his civilianess for the lack of a better word and trouble to try and understand him.

Though after a certain mission that is now labeled as the Cathartic Incident, Renato and the others – even Luce who knew everything about them except for Skull – was surprised that within the cowardly whiny brat was a terrifyingly skilled swordsman.

(They were surrounded, not a lot of ammos to spare for Renato, Colonello and Lal, Verde's robots and other trinkets spazzing out after a vicious – dead – storm user let hundreds of storm needles rain, Fon had a broken forearm from a lucky – dead – lightning who got a hit in and all of them accounted for are slowly entering flame exhaustion from all the enemies coming out of the woodwork.

(Skull was passed out, having been hit by a deadly little poison after – stupidly, unselfishly – covering for Viper and Fon. He's fine – thank God, he might be an idiot, but he's their idiot – after the combine efforts of Fon, Renato, Verde and Viper. Fon burning away the poison, Renato rejuvenating the rapidly dying cells, Verde erecting a barrier of pure lightning and Viper distracting any enemies coming close. Lal Mirch and Colonello roared in fury, wreaking havoc to the famiglia that dared to hurt one of their own.)

It was all hopeless, and one of the bastards managed to get close to Skull where they had tucked him away for safety. They won't make it, some asshole most likely set them up to move away from their Idiot little by little, and now they're too surrounded to make a move to protect him.

Their flames flared in the same tune of desperation. Exhaustion forgotten for keeping their youngest safe. Right in his ribcage, Renato felt the jolt of true fear that he thought he would never feel again.

The feeling is as awful as he remembered it to be.

"Don't you dare!" Fon roars, flinging a shmuck to the side with a swipe of his none broken forearm.