The Time from Before

Rendezvous

Harper let out a long sigh, feeling the tension in her throat. She was stressed beyond measure, and she wanted nothing more than to get out of this hellhole.

"I can't fuc–" She caught herself mid-sentence, quickly turning her head to the left. She saw a man standing next to her, his identity unknown to her. "Uh..."

"Don't worry, you can speak your mind." The man said, his voice calm and friendly. "I won't judge you."

"It's best if I don't." Harper said, sighing again. She wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. The sun was blazing hot, and she felt like she was melting.

The man chuckled to himself, lifting his hand above his eyes to shield them from the bright light. He looked at the chaotic scene in front of him with a curious expression.

"What's your name?" He asked Harper, trying to make some conversation.

"Harper." She answered, without much enthusiasm.

"Rank?" He continued.

"Who even are you?" Harper raised an eyebrow, feeling annoyed by his questions. She didn't know him, and she didn't care to know him.

"Fair point, Harper. It's nice to meet you, even if this..." He paused, searching for the right word. "Situation is unfavorable."

"Unfavorable? You're an ass. Tell it as it is." She said, rolling her eyes. "This is a nightmare. I'd rather be stationed on the goddamn sun than do guard duty with these fucks."

...

"That's a little crude. Barbaric, even." He said, laughing heartily. He seemed amused by her attitude.

"I've signed all the papers. I've gotten everything sorted." She said, rubbing her eyes with her fingers. She was exhausted, and she just wanted to leave this place as soon as possible.

"You've turned everything in?" He asked, turning his head to look at her.

"I swear to God, if another person asks me that question, I'm going to do something I'll regret. Shut up." Harper snapped, turning to her right, leaving the man to stand by himself.

...

"She's nice." The man said sarcastically, turning his head back to the scene in front of him. He watched as about thirty soldiers were fighting each other in a brutal brawl. Officers and other commanding staff were trying to break up the fight, but they were failing miserably. "Maybe I should authorize the use of non-lethal..." He hummed.

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"This should be it..." Allen muttered to himself as he checked his PDA. He lifted his gaze and examined the building in front of him.

The building he was looking at had a set of windows, something akin to a restaurant. Or maybe a coffee shop. Or a cafe. Something like that, but... different. The style was familiar, but it just didn't feel exactly right.

"This is a cafe, right?" Allen asked the Agent beside him.

"Oh. Yeah, it is. You know what that is?" Agent 3 spoke, a creeping smile forming on her lips.

"Humans invented that, miss. Just wait until you hear of a coffee shop." Allen shook his head, looking down at his PDA.

"I've always wanted to taste coffee, but Agent 4 hasn't let me." Agent 3 said, pouting slightly.