~Angels of Mayhem~ Warren Worthington

-7-

'This life has been a landscape of pain and still, flowers bloom in it.'

+^+

"Ren! We're back!"

Asura, followed by Quinn and Salem walked into the warehouse they called home. Sure, the white haired woman missed the outside but she also missed Warren and almost felt bad about leaving him alone.

As they walked in, Asura more like skipping in, they noticed that the building was eerily quiet. They expected loud music or at least some kind of welcome from Warren. But nothing. "Warren?" Asura tried again as she looked around for her feathered friend but he only got silence which made her panic.

She grew a tower to get to the second level only to see that Warren wasn't there at all. He was gone. He left. Tears started to fill her eyes as she slowly came down. Salem and Quinn looked at their friend with concern, the latters a little more masked then the others. "He's g-gone." Asura choked out as she started to cry.

"Oh, honey..." Salem immediately walked forward and pulled her into a tight hug as the white haired woman started to sob into her chest. "I'm sorry. I know you really liked him." Asura only nodded into her as she cried. He was really gone.

On the other side of the warehouse, Quinn was looking around. Something didn't feel right. They didn't know each other that well and only spoke a few times over beer but she had seen how he looks at her. It was obvious. Warren wouldn't just leave everything he had here. He wouldn't just leave her...right?

A sliver glint caught her eye as she turned to the warehouse wall. Sticking out was four large metal feathers. Quinn pulled one out and muttered, "What the..." Suddenly she got very angry and smoke emanated from the palms of her hands as a small explosion bursts and melted the metal. The two other women jumped at the loud sound and looked to see Quinn's scrunched up eyebrows and pupils dilated. "...Quinn?"

"This is bullshit!" The woman in question yelled as she stomped over to the two of them. "We gave him food, sustenance, a home! And does he do?! He fucking leaves without so much as a note!" She yelled before Asura quietly pulled away from Salem and walked over to her frustrated friend. She placed a hand on her arm, making Quinn whip around to look at her. She was pulled into a tight hug, the petite woman standing on her tiptoes as she pulled down her friend.

Quinn immediately relaxed in her arms and whispered, "I'm sorry, As..." Salem walked over and joined as the white haired mutant thought about what could have happened.

'Why did you leave, Warren?'

***

It had been a few days, almost a week, since Warren left and Asura hadn't come from her platform room. She had huddled herself up there, cuddling into the blanket she had given Warren. She hadn't eaten much, only picking at her food little by little but not a lot.

She cried silently at night, wishing he would come back, but spent her days sleeping and not doing anything. It was so unlike her. Normally she was the first up, cleaning and making herself food but now, nothing.

Asura was cuddled into the covers of her makeshift bed, holding onto one of her pillows like a person with Warrens blanket covering her. Her brain was full of thoughts of why he left. Had she done something? Did he always want to leave? Why didn't he tell her that he wanted to leave? Sure, she didn't want him to leave but she couldn't keep him captive against his will.

Salem was incredibly worried about her friend. She had never seen her this way before. Ever since she had known her she had been sunshine and smiles. And Salem knew why. Asura had been trying to make up for all the bad she had done. Trying to clean her ledger of red. For the first time, Salem didn't know how to help Asura. She had always before, like instinct, but now...nothing.

Quinn had a different way of showing her emotions. She always had. She wasn't mad at the fact that Warren left, it was the fact that his leave made Asura like this. An emotional blob. Quinn didn't know what to do to help her, that was normally Salem's job, so she didn't. She blew up stuff instead. Outside of course but still. She didn't like emotions.

"Hey, honey..." Salem started as she climbed up the ladder to Asuras makeshift  room and cautiously crawled over to her. The woman in question was rolled up into a blanket burrito with only pieces of white hair poking out. She only groaned at the sound of her friends voice, maybe a sleep or not, Salem couldn't be sure. "Do you want to, maybe, come out of the cocoon? Maybe eat...or something?"

The blanket cocoon shook her head which made Salem sigh and continue, "Ok, Asura, you have to come out of the blanket. It's time. I understand that Warren leaving without saying anything was a low blow but you have to take care of yourself. You know that what he would have wanted." Asura could tell that Salem was having a hard time being tough with her, as it wasn't something she had to do often. It was normally Quinn who told her off.

The white haired woman untangled herself from her blanket prison only the wince and hold her head as something was being broadcasted. 'Hear me inhabitants of this world,' The voice of male with a British accent but there was something else. He seemed...pained, angry, regretful. Asura had clutched onto Salem as she pressed on her temple in slight pain. She shouted down to the ground for to Quinn, "You're hearing this to right?!"

"Yeah! What the hell is happening?!" She shouted up, wincing slightly at the end as the voice started again. 'This is a message. A message to every men, woman, and mutant in the world. You have lost your way. But I have returned. The day of reckoning is here. All of your buildings, all of towers and temples will fall and the dawn of age will rise. For there is nothing you can do to stop it from coming. This message is for one reason alone. To tell the strongest among you, those with the greatest power...protect those without.'

The male voice stopped and the pain went away. Salem and Asura climbed down from the bedroom and looked at Quinn. She was looking at them with wide eyes, "What the hell just happened?" She said with bewilderment.

"I don't know. But...I think that was a message sent by someone very powerful..."