Apocalyptic Returning

Chapter 25: Ordinary Exceptions

"So, the mission was a waste." Crow spoke as he rested his legs up on the table that he, Malachi and Shen sat at.

"You know that is not true." Malachi argued. "He said he would help if we so needed it."

"So, I'm just supposed to trust you on this?" Crow questioned. "And then what happens when he never shows up."

"He will help us." Malachi said.

Before Malachi could continue any further, the door to the room swung open and Nyx entered the room. "I'm going to kill somebody if you don't deal with Muerte and Lucifer. I don't know what the fuck is their problem, but those two bastards can't go five fucking minutes without trying to kill each other."

"What happened this time?" Shen asked in amusement.

Nyx turned her head to look down at Shen, a hint of sadness in her eyes. "The mess hall is gone."

The doors to the mess hall exploded open sending a metal door flying between Lucifer and Atroz who had their sword locked against one another. Deflecting Atroz's sword into the wall beside them, Lucifer slipped under his backhand and kicked him in the chin. She then jumped back and watched as Crow and Nyx walked into the room.

"You are stronger than I first assumed." Lucifer stated while deactivating her energy.

"Both of you shut the fuck up!" Crow examined the destroyed mess hall. As he did, Atroz and Lucifer simply turned and looked at him.

"This is all the fault of that-" Atroz deactivated his sword and pointed the hilt at Lucifer. "niñe."

"You're just as much of a child as she is." Crow argued. "Fuck you guys are...FUCK! Just get the fuck out, go somewhere else you fucking fuck's."

"Damn." Nyx thought. "Haven't seen him like this in a while, brings back memories." Thinking back to a memory from long ago caused her to snicker for a second, which caused Crow to snap his head around and stare into her soul. "...Sorry."

Silence permeated through the air as Drake sat beside the bed Lina was resting in. He wondered to himself about things he could have done differently and how he wished he could have changed different things from his past. Throwing his empty beer to the side right alongside three other cans, the sound of the room's automatic door opening caught his attention.

Standing in the open doorframe was Preacher, who pulled a chair over next to Drake and sat down. "She looks a lot better than before."

"...Yea" Drake responded sorrowfully. "That girl, the one from Apocalyptic Returning, said she would be fine, just that she needed time to recover."

"That is good to hear." Preacher used his staff to push away the beer that Drake was reaching for. "Even with our resistance to such remedies, it is still a bad habit you ought to give up."

"I know and I try, but like usual, all my efforts are-" Drake spoke.

Preacher interrupted before Drake went on any longer. "Stop, please, don't do that to yourself. This, none of this is your fault, it is the fault of our enemies who have let evil take dominion over their soul."

"Jack, I think that's what his name was, he told me the one with the broken skull mask did this to Lina." Drake explained while leaning back in his chair to peer out the window at the night sky. "Who is he?"

"You are young, so you probably do not know anything about him." Preacher explained. "His name is Atroz Muerte, the one in charge of the Mexican Cartel and the entirety of Mexico. He was a warmonger during World War Three when the strength of the Cartel was near limitless."