From whence we came

"Fuck bro, I haven't had a normal day since I became a commander bruh." Lee told Jimmy and Mohammed.

"Kinda your fault bro." Jimmy said.

"You pulled us out of hiding, and made us work." Mohammed told him.

"I know, thank God we have the day off bruh." Lee said.

"Only if there are no problems that occur that deserve our direct aid." Mohammed said.

"Shut the fuck up you dweeb." Both Lee and Jimmy told him.

"What are we gonna do bruh." Lee asked.

"I don't know bruh, just hang out with Diana or some shit bruh" Mohammed said, "Both of y'all are in relationships."

"Oh yeah, you're single!" Jimmy loudly pointed out. Everyone else in the cafeteria heard him. Many girls were alerted and conceived plans to pull him.

"Bro, shut up. I know bruh." Mohammed said.

"Man, who do you like?" Lee asked him.

"Please don't be mad, Keller." Mohammed said.

"You dirty bitch!" Lee said as he hopped onto the table and grabbed his collar. Everyone turned to see what was happening with wide eyes and open ears.

"Fuck, sorry. Go on, tell me why." Lee told him.

"Well, her eyes are pretty, they're just like yours. Umm, I guess she's mature. Uhh, look, I just like her, okay?" Mohammed said.

"Bro said your eyes are pretty." Jimmy told Lee.

"Woah, I don't swing like that bro." Lee said.

"Oh my god." Mohammed whispered as he rubbed his eyes.

"I don't care if you like my sister, okay? She isn't even my biological sister. She introduced me to you guys. But, I will do some horrendous shit if you do something bad to her." Lee told Mohammed.

"Yeah, I know. You're like the devil bruh. You can kill with no mercy." Mohammed said.

"How do you do that anyway? How can you just kill or beat the shit out of someone without feeling a bit of guilt or mercy?"Jimmy asked.

"Well, it's something called hiding your negative emotions. Oh, and experience." Lee told him.

"Damn." Mohammed blurted.

"Oh look at the time, sorry boys, I gotta go!" Lee said while looking down at his wrist and walking away.

"Bruh." Mohammed sighed.

"He doesn't even wear watches bruh." Jimmy said.

In the bathroom of his room, Lee threw up everything he had eaten. His breakfast and his lunch, flushed down the toilet. He sat there, hopelessly spilling his guts out.

"Fuck man." He looked down at his skin and saw what looked to be cracks on his arms. He poked at them, and then recognized their color. Oroborn was growing on his skin.

His eyes widened and he grit his teeth. Sweat rolled down his face, and he began shivering. Pain then filled his chest, and he threw up again. After a few hours, he finally felt sane enough to leave. When he walked out, Diana had a worried look.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. I'm just feeling a bit down at the moment." Lee said as he walked to the bedroom.

He tried sleeping but the shivering was endless. Diana tried to calm him by hugging him, but still nothing changed. So in the middle of the night, Lee got up out of bed and left the base. When he got down to the main deck, there were few people. All of them stared at him with curiosity. Among them was Keller, eating a sandwich while disassembling a rifle. She got up and ran up to Lee.

"Where are you going at this time?" She asked him.

"Home." Lee simply said. As he walked off, Keller grabbed all of her stuff and followed him. He rented an ATV for 2 weeks and they started driving towards a city in the outskirts of the plains region.

As they got closer to the city, they noticed that it still had working electricity and running water. Maybe it was the fact that there was one of many BHPA bases nearby. They keep them out of danger from mutants and cultists alike. As they drove into the city, they were met by a gate that made them show their registration. As Lee handed the officer his badge, the officer noticed a bright red symbol of an octagon.

"Oh sorry, you may proceed." He said as he opened the gates.

The octagon is the main symbol of the BHPA. Different ranks have different colors. And within the top rank, there are prefectures that show which level they are in that rank. From the least power to the most power, the ranks go from brown, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and red. Within the red ranks, there is a light red, regular red, and dark red. Lee's badge had that of a light red symbol. Any agent or operator with the rank of purple or higher has the authority to enter any public area without the need of paperwork or a visa.

Although people can very easily replicate this, the BHPA have put in place special procedures to conclude if they are real or not. These badges are made of a very rare metal, which is only found on some of the floating islands.

As Lee and Keller drove up to an apartment building, the entire thing was destroyed. And in the center of it was a giant hole that was filled with ruble.

"Go to the city hall." Keller said.

"I know." Lee feared for the worse, and so they drove off. Lee skirted into the parking lot and practically sprinted out of the car. He rushed inside of the city hall and cut everyone in line. He pushed away a large man with black sideburns and tons of body hair.

"Hey, you can't just cut in front of everyone!" He yelled, Lee turned around and showed him his badge.

"Oh. I'm very sorry." Lee turned back around and slammed his badge down.

"Give me the files for Gerome Ming and Fiona Ming!" He demanded.

"Sir, it says here that they are deceased." The receptionist told him.

"How, what's the cause of death?" Lee demanded again.

"There was a terrorist attack not long ago. There was a group of cultists and this polar bear-"

"God damnit! It's that fucking polar bear again! When will this bitch stop!" Lee interrupted as he slammed his fist into the desk. He created a small crater in the desk and he squeezed his fist.

He sighed, "Thank you for the info." They then slowly walk out in disappointment.

As days passed, Lee and Keller had no idea how to cope with reality. They both fell into a deep depression, rarely leaving their rooms or even eating. Lee had piles of work that needed to be done, and Keller had so many bills and payments that needed to be filled out. But as time passed, Keller began to see that it made no sense to grieve over something that's already gone. If it were up to them, they wouldn't want to see their daughter in such a state. And so she got better and better, gradually getting her life back together.

But Lee had no real way to grasp his feelings. Ever since he was young, his guardian was his teacher who taught him the basics when he was just a toddler. And then that faithful day when that cultist attacked him. He would never forget that day. His one and only parent figure ripped away from him. Then he was put into foster care, where he met Keller and her family. She introduced him to her friends, and all went well. A family that cared and cherished him. One that he never had. But for that to be taken from him again, he couldn't sleep over it.

How could anyone? He thought. The one thing that you loved the most was gone, and now you have to live with the fact that you did nothing about it. He grew tired and wanted to sleep, but the images of his family came back just to haunt him. He cried himself to sleep, and stayed away from everyone, even Diana. He kept to himself, just like he did years ago.

Then that restlessness turned into fear and paranoia. What if they attacked the base? What if they attack when everyone is asleep? What if more people got killed? He feared for the worst, and he would hide from reality by listening to music. When he did, he could escape away from the real world. But really, it was just to hide the fact that he could do nothing about it.

Soon, this fear turned into hatred. He hated the cultists, the terrorists, and himself. He hated himself for not doing anything to help. Hate himself for being such a weak bitch. But most of all, he hated the cultists. A racist group of defiant murderers that would do anything to stop hybrids from living. Lee hated them, every single one. Especially that polar bear. But soon, he was guilty and conflicted with his life.

Why couldn't it be him who died? Why wasn't it someone else? Why did it have to be his parents? But at the same time, he feared death. He feared himself losing in life. But he also feared for other people. He sympathized and empathized with so many people, and so it was hard to see them lose as well. He didn't know what to do with his life. But soon, all of these negative emotions.

Darkness, restlessness, fear, hatred, guilt, all turned into motivation to keep going forward. Unlike Keller who went back to her normal life, Lee began to better himself and before he knew it, he was back in shape. He looked like his old self again. His body was lean, yet not skinny. He had muscle but not too much. He was agile and nimble. He was like a fighter, one that would never stop until he reached his goals.