Revolution

4- Guns and Bruises

In the morning of Adrian and Elissah's task, an electric motorcycle was sent to the alley beside their apartment building. Beth saw ARMN members park it in the said spot a few hours before dawn. And yet here she was, up at seven in the morning.

The pair took their time to prepare, but within the period, the twins didn't talk to each other. It made Adrian and Arlene uncomfortable but who were they to interfere?

When they were ready, they made their way down to the alley. In the middle of the concrete path was the MR-activated electric motorcycle. It was all black and could snugly fit the two of them. Elissah did not like that fact but she quickly dismissed the thought. She did not need sexual tension. This was all normal.

"I'm driving." She typed the password for activation with her ringed hand on her leg.

"You sure?"

"Are you sexist?"

Adrian scrunched his eyebrows together. "No?"

"Is that a question?"

"No. Do you know how to drive this thing?"

"Of course. You're safe with me. What are you waiting for? Wear your helmet."

Adrian placed his hands on the edge of the seat.

"It's okay to hold on to me. I don't bite."

The travel time was much faster than if they rode a car. Self-driving cars could have been everywhere but that did not help the traffic in the National Capital Region, which was still heavy, just not as bad as in the past.

The store of the seller was located in a high-end neighborhood. It was locally registered as an eco-friendly packaging shop and customers regularly visited. Nobody could ever suspect the place. Even the staff was nice which was rare in a time where people were constantly in virtual (better) reality.

Adrian and Elissah approached the front desk. "We want to meet the manager."

The woman, about five feet tall, tucked a loose strand of dyed hair behind her ear and smiled at Adrian who nodded in return. "Password?"

"ARMN 156327."

She led them to the backroom where she opened a door to what looked like a pantry—except it was not. It was an elevator. They rode it to basement 2 where they were met by a group of manly men dressed in expensive leather jackets, triggering Elissah. They looked like the trying hard men in old action movies. Pathetic.

"The ARMN sent some freshies today." A short yet charismatic man stood up. He looked like Dwayne Johnson except he was tiny and had hair which was gelled as if in a 60s film. He was also wearing eyeliner which was a trend in a completely different decade. He must have been Von.

Elissah fought the urge to correct him. She'd been part of the organization since she turned fifteen. Adrian was the only freshie. But even if she did correct Von, he would still respect Adrian because A, he was a man, and B, he was a foreigner.

"We would like to get the guns right now sir."

"Looks like somebody's rushing. Do you have a tight schedule dear?" Von shifted his attention to Adrian. "You would make a great addition to my unattractive minions. That face will give us all the great deals and women."

"Can we please be frank?"

"Who's Frank? Why would I want to be him?" He just had to top his look with stupidity, huh?

"I meant to be direct to the point."

"I love your accent." The short man grinned then cleared his throat. "So, the point is, there have been changes with the price. You see, guns have become more expensive with all those labor strikes in China. The previous deal just won't work." He stared at the pair expectantly, calculating their next move, hoping it will be in his favor.