Souls of the Fallen

Memory Lane

Reno helps the larger man up after the risky interaction with thug thugs. The names he mentioned cause Hendrix to frown.

"You know how many people that come through this diner?" he says while dusting himself off. The busy sidewalk returns to its normal bustle with no police activity, despite the multiple firearms discharging. Hendrix returns his view to Reno. "Lucky for you, those two were unforgettable. How did they affect you? Wait lemme guess... They're your parents. You look just like your mom, youngster. There's no mistaking it." Lucas reaches him the shotgun. "This white one isn't their's right?" he asks while raising an eyebrow at Lucas.

"No, sir. The other one inside is my brother. There's only two of us. No bastards or adopted siblings..." Reno walks past him and pauses. "I should get back to him actually. He's pretty socially awkward."

Riku watches as they talk about him from the small window on the diner door. The patrons are still eating casually. It shows that they are unbothered by the nonsense that has taken place outside.

Akira approaches him from behind. With a gentle tap, she says, "Excuse me... Your friends need to be careful with their powers. This city isn't a good place to be using them so freely."

"We just left a city that incarcerated Eons. We're getting used to the prejudices," Riku says. "Thanks for the warning though."

"It's not the police that's the worry here. There are gangs that 'collect' Eons with similar powers and force them join. It's like then normies and their color wars."

Riku tilts his head a little. "How do you force someone to join a gang?"

Akira's demeanor darkens slightly. "Trust me they have their methods." There's a beat of silence between the two. Akira steps back. "They should be back soon. Relax... your lemonade is waiting for you." She gestures down the aisle, towards his booth. The door opens behind him.

Reno pauses in the doorway. "You good?" he asks his brother.

Riku nods. "I should be asking you that..."

Reno smiles and pats him on the shoulder. He looks at Akira. "He didn't say anything stupid, did he?"

"No, sir," she answers with a polite bow. Hendrix and Lucas slide past them at the door. "Sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for the assistance. We'll get your food ready as soon as possible." Her attention is pulled from them as a man in a booth raises his hand. She crosses paths with Lucas while heading to the customer. He runs a finger across her butt.

She whips around and snatches his mohawk. He bends at the knees as Akira plants her foot in his back. The once kind waitress folds the aggressive boy backward until his head thumps against the floor. Lucas yells as he receives his punishment. Akira pulls a steak knife from a pouch on her apron and puts it up to his neck. "I tried to ignore your bullshit advances, but you will not touch me!" She gets closer to his face while he squirms on the ground. "Get up, get to your seat, and get your shit together..."

Lucas looks up at the angry worker kneeling over his face. Her face is now fully exposed to him. The right side of her face has patches of pale skin around her 'eye' and from her cheek down to her jawline. Lucas looks at her in shock, not from the knife on his neck, but from the ocean blue Eon crystal that is in her eye socket. "Y-Yes, ma'am. Sorry... I'll behave."

Hendrix watches from the stove. "That's enough, Akira. Kill him later. Mr. Davis needs attention." She angrily pushes off as she stands. With a little readjustment and pampering, Akira restores her gentle appearance and walks away to tend to the patron. Reno walks up to Lucas and grips his shirt. Lucas holds the red area of his neck as he's yanked upwards. Reno shoves him towards the booth. "Ay!" Hendrix speaks out to Reno. "Give me a moment and I'll join you boys for a chat."

Reno nods and walks with Riku to the booth. Lucas is now seated in the window seat with Reno blocking him from the walkway. "What is your problem?"

"I saw an opportunity and I went for it," Lucas says. He continues to rub the back of his head and sore neck. "I saw some shit though!" he excitedly whispers. "She's an Eon, dude! She's hiding a shard behind that hair! I saw it when she was threatening me. She also has a weird skin problem... Like she doesn't know if she wants to be white or brown."

"That's vitiligo... How are you so ignorant?" Reno asks.

"I thought that was when people got really dizzy for no reason. Is that shit contagious?"

Reno looks at him with pity for his lack of knowledge. "That's verti... nevermind." He cuts the conversation short. Reno turns his attention to Riku. "The chef is going to talk to us about mom and dad. He said they were 'unforgettable'."

Riku swirls the ice in his lemonade. "I wonder what they did?"

Reno shrugs. "No clue but hopefully it leads to some useful information about their whereabouts." They sit and sip their drinks for a moment until Akira returns to their table with their food.

"Hamburger, no cheese." She slides Riku his plate. "Cheeseburger for you." She places Reno's plate in front of him. The last plate resting on her arm is obviously Lucas' strips. She glares at him. "Chicken." He nods as she recklessly drops it on the table in front of him. "Enjoy..."

"Sorry about your condition!" Lucas suddenly says. Reno holds his burger inches from his open mouth. He slowly turns his head to look at Lucas with awe, mouth still open. Riku bites into his burger as his eyebrows lift up, expecting things to get interesting again. "You know, your vertilago. I hope you can find a cure." His intentions are clearly in the right place but his stupidity is burning Reno's and Akira's ears.

"Are you two as dumb as he is?" she asks.

"Nope! Far from that level of idiot..." Reno mumbles.

"I just tend to keep my mouth shut when I feel my dumb side trying to escape. Once he's out, I can't promise anything..." Riku says with his mouth full of his meal. "This is better than I expected!" He continues to chew as happiness rises in his demeanor. His feet kick and he bounces slightly while rocking from side to side.

Akira shakes her head and looks at Reno. "You must be the brains of this poor operation."

"Unfortunately..." Reno mumbles. "We're all very different, so our dynamic kinda works... kinda."

This makes the waitress giggle. She places a hand on his shoulder. "I feel for you."

Reno smiles back. "Thank you for understanding my struggle."

"What struggle?" Hendrix's voice comes from behind them. "You boys seem to be doing fine. I'll take things from here, Akira." He dismisses her with a pat on the head. She fixes her hair and walks off with a smile. Hendrix slides into the booth on Riku's side without warning. Riku's burger misses his mouth from getting bumped toward the window. He wipes his face while repositioning in the booth. "So! The brothers, Malik! What brings you to my diner?"

Reno puts his burger down and wipes his hands clean. "Our parents were drafted into the war, as you most likely already know. After traveling the world during their service, they have been declared MIA by the government. Riku and I are now looking for them."

Riku digs out the postcard that has the diner on it. Hendrix takes the card from the sticky-fingered teen. "That your signature?" he asks with his mouthful.

"Yeah... So you little twerps really are Regina and Kendrick's kids," Hendrix says with a smile. "Those two were something special, ya know?" He appears to get lost in the picture on the postcard as he drifts down memory lane. "They saved my business and left me with a treasure worth more than they knew."

"Would you care to explain?" Reno asks.

"Sure. It's not a long story really. The diner was running at a much slower pace than you see today. It was primarily because I sucked at cooking and didn't know it. When they and their company passed through the city, they caused the crime to settle down for a bit because of their presence alone. This allowed more people to get out and do things more safely in the city. I got more customers but kept getting complaints.

"One day, they came into the place out of uniform. They had a kid with them and took a spot at the booth we're in right now actually. The kid looked a little dirty and had a patch over her right eye so I assumed it wasn't theirs. They ordered and tried to feed the kid. She refused to eat more after sampling it, causing Regina to try it herself. Her face wrinkled and I knew there was an issue. If a homeless kid doesn't want your food, then you're fuckin' up! Your mom offered to help me with my recipes and even taught me some of her own.

"For the next few days, she worked the kitchen with me while Kendrick patroled the city. The whole time spreading word that the diner had the best food in town. People came to see what was what and with her in the kitchen, things worked out perfectly. The kid sat at the bar and had conversations with the patrons and eventually softened up to be the beautiful young woman she is today. She's the treasure your parents left with me. They couldn't travel with an orphan so they trusted her in my care." He looks over to Akira with a smile. "My only issue is that she deserves more than this ragged old town. Especially with all of the constant harassment she receives due to her condition."

"Yeah, Reno told me about her vertilago," Lucas says. "It's weird looking."

Hendrix frowns at Lucas. "I'm talking about her being an Eon, lil' fuckboy! It didn't stop you from touching her inappropriately." He settles down from his quick fit of agitation. "There is a gang leader that comes here often to offer me money for her. He says once he gets tired of asking, he's just going to wreck the place and take her. As a matter of fact, the twerps from earlier are from his family."

"She mentioned to me that they collect Eons with similar abilities to work for them," Riku says. "What's her power?"

"Akira controls water. The essence of life, some say. Pontus caught her using it once when she was cheating on her cleaning duties," Hendrix chuckles. "He's been on her about it ever since... Now, I don't let her out of my sight."

"I'm guessing Pontus is the leader you spoke of?" Reno asks.

"Yeah... I expect a visit from him tomorrow. Especially since you whooped up on his boys." Hendrix's face fills with shock. "Holy shit it just hit me! You used ice powers to save me earlier! They saw you! They may want you too!"

"Cool," Reno says calmly. "I'll go in her place, wreck their shit, and leave the city when I have all that I need from here."

Hendrix smirks. "You're a bold one. He also controls ice... A few of his followers control water, ice, but one that stands out has the power of storms. Beware of that kid. He's quiet but you shouldn't underestimate him."

"I'll be fine. Back on the topic of our parents though. Do you remember if they mentioned anything about being unreachable or out of the realm?"

"Nah... Not that I can think of," he says while scratching his chin. "They only left me with some good food and a young child." The chef slides out of the booth. "I'll let you talk to Akira for a bit to see if she knows anything." He walks to her side across the trailer. After pointing at the booth, he pats her in their direction. 

She rejoins the boys with a limp wave. "Hendrix said you have questions for me?"

"Take a seat," Reno gestures across from him. "Relax... It's nothing too intense." Riku looks at her while picking his teeth. He pats the cushion on the booth and slides over to give her space. She sits and adjusts her clothes.

"Whatcha got?" she asks. Before Reno could fire off the first question, the door to the diner opens. Akira watches the customer entering without blinking. He takes the last seat at the bar and starts looking around. The man dressed in tattered jeans, a black tee, and a black fitted cap turns to see Akira in the booth. He grins and gives her a wink.