CHAPTER III: THE COST OF MALEVOLENCE

Banoy goes inside the orphanage and straight to Andrea's room. As soon as they got there, they didn't waste any time as Andrea immediately poured ¼ ounce of the gin in a pitcher, filled half of it with wate r, then mixed and shaked the juice powder with the remaining gin. After shaking i m t, she pours ¼ ounce of it again in the pitcher then kindles the remaining ½ ounce with a lighter; shakes it again then again pours ¼ ounce of it and repeats the same process to the remaining few. After pouring all the gin with reduced alcohol content (due to the enkindling) and mixed with juice powder in the pitcher, she stirs it so it can mix properly with the water. Finally, they are ready to get drunk with their freshly made Filipino-style cocktail, partnering it with a beer; a combination which they call "RPG" or "Redhorse (The brand of the beer) + Pineapple (The flavour of the juice powder) + Gin". Along with a tokwa't baboy (tofu and pork) dish so their stomachs won't be filled by liquor alone.

Hanging out, catching up for the two years of not seeing each other since Banoy left the orphanage, while filling their stomachs with their favourite drink and food in bliss. "How have you been these past two years? What have you been doing? The kids are asking a lot about you, you know." Andrea said to Banoy. He takes a sip of his beer and his glass of cocktail then replies, "Nothing much… just taking up a few sidelines. Barely even paying my rent and bills but I can say everything's decent somehow." Andrea replies, "Have you been eating well? I know you, Banoy. You don't bother eating if there's no one to make food for you." Banoy chuckles and replies, "I have a microwave oven at my place so I always buy those ready-to-cook food packs." Andrea flabbergastingly replies, "You've gotta be kidding… Those shits are expensive! Oh you better tell me about that job of yours." Their catching up went on and on until 6:00 in that morning. Banoy got so drunk to the point that Andrea had to help him walk to his apartment.

When they get there, Andrea struggles to take the key from Banoy's pocket and open the door of his apartment. After opening the door, she lifts Banoy inside and slams him in his bed. She then crashes beside him as well due to exhaustion. Saying, "Damn… lifting four kids all at once is nothing compared to the weight of a grown ass man." Banoy, on the other hand, is already snoring loudly.

Andrea lies sideways while looking at the seemingly in deep snooze Banoy, then slightly strokes his left arm with her index finger as if she's showing admiration at his body and tattoo. "I never said it to you, but you're a very fine man, Banoy. I've always been attracted to you and I've been secretly admiring you ever since we were kids. I've always imagined as well how it feels to do it with you. With that fine body and enormous weight, you might as well have an enormous package as well that would barely fit inside me." She said as the stroking of her index finger from Banoy's arms went down to groping his genitals. Banoy then slightly opens his eyes, revealing that he's been awake all this time and said; "I can still hear and understand what you're saying, you know. I just drank so much that it nauseates me so hard but I still have my consciousness."

Banoy thought that Andrea would feel awkward after realising he's awake, but she smirked, and proceeded to say, "Wouldn't that be better? That would be boring if we do it and one of us is asleep, right?" Banoy chuckles and says, "You're trippin' in that beer and gin, Andrea." Andrea then looks at him straight in the eye, showing genuine determination of her feelings towards him. Banoy is a bit hesitant, of course, the idea of having sex with your childhood friend holds him back so he says, "You sure you wanna d—" Andrea suddenly cuts him off by intimately kissing his lips, then continues on munching on his lips passionately until Banoy gets carried away.

Furthermore, the kissing escalates to taking each others' clothes off, escalates into passionate foreplaying, to teasing each other's sensitive parts, to fellatio, to cunnilingus, to sucking the left nipple of Andrea's soft breasts while teasing her g-spot with his two fingers and finally; to the most awaited part of rough and passionate intercourse. Despite the fact that it's Andrea's first time, she told Banoy not to hold back even though Banoy's penis would barely fit inside her tight vagina as well, she told him to go deeper in spite of that. Fortunately, it didn't bleed and considering that it's her first time, her libido is so unfathomably high that even Banoy is overwhelmed.

Nevertheless, both of their sex drives are even; it's just that Banoy didn't expect her to be that performative. As they are passionately connected to each other, they feel it soon enough that they are about to reach climax. But it feels too good for both of them to stop even after they come, especially Banoy who can't even pull out anymore due to the unfathomable pleasure so he just releases it all out inside Andrea while she releases a great amount of fluid at the same time. Both of them climaxed to each other while in a cowgirl position. Andrea then falls lying on the bed beside him, both of them panting out of exhaustion and satisfaction, hence, concluding the best sexual intercourse they ever had.

As soon as they caught their breaths, they laughed about what they just did. "I can't feel the alcohol buzz anymore, god that sex was amazing." Andrea said. Banoy chuckles and says, "Says the first timer." Andrea laughs and says, "Oh shut up! Tell me, how many times have you done this?" Banoy replies, "This is the third time, I guess. First is when I was a dancer at a bar, a widowed middle-aged woman paid me a ridiculous amount of money just for me to fuck her. Second is–" He suddenly spaces out when he remembered the moment he was sanctioned to steal information from a female casino owner and assassinate her, who he had to gain her trust, even slept with her for a few nights, and as soon as he got the information he needed, he killed her along with her goons and bodyguards; one of his first jobs in the Crimson Pool.

He got lost for words after remembering all that because he can't say anything about his job to Andrea. Fortunately, Andrea reckoned that his second experience might be traumatising for him so she just proceeded to check the time, "Oh look, it's already 7:40. Damn I need to go back to the orphanage. The kids will wake up at 8 and I need to make their breakfast." Andrea said. "Let me walk you back, to return the favour of carrying me all the way back here. Besides, it might be difficult for you to walk after that." Banoy said. Andrea chuckles and says, "Okay, besides, you should visit Mrs. Castro and the kids, they haven't seen you for two years too, you know." Banoy nods and replies, "Alright, let's go."

Meanwhile, at a Thai restaurant at the Crimson Pool open-area rendezvous, Marcus is having a meal with the Crimson Pool's chairman, Arief Han, a middle-aged adult with grey hair and beard always seen wearing a maroon suit with floral design matched with maroon trousers. While Mr. Han and his men, all wearing white suits and trousers, are voraciously slurping the noodles, chewing on the beef and drinking the soup of a Guay Teow noodle soup while Marcus who doesn't have a bowl of it in front of him watches them eat as he refused Mr. Han's treat. "You sure you don't want one, Mr. Eisenhower? Doesn't this make you drool?" Marcus replies, "Please don't mind me, Mr. Han. Just enjoy your meal, besides, I just had a meal at my place earlier." Mr. Han then slurps the soup, emptying the bowl as if he inhaled it and replies to Marcus, "Well then, let's get down to why I called you here, Mr. Eisenhower. One of our hit list, Ben Schroder, which is a job you took and sanctioned to your party, is demanded by BIOME to be killed immediately. Or else, they will assign someone from their organisation to do the work instead."

Marcus sighs and replies, "With all due respect, Mr. Han. The client who requested this job is Luminous Industries, the company that I represent. So I don't think that BIOME has the right to meddle with this." Mr. Han nods and replies, "I understand. But unfortunately, BIOME is an organisation authorised by the government to do whatever the fuck they want, so Mr. Eisenhower, I suggest you comply with their demand and get things done immediately before it gets ugly, unless you want to lose the bounty on Mr. Schroder's head." Marcus pulls out a cigarette from his pocket, lights it, takes a hit from it, blows the smoke while sighing, then replies, "My party plans to get it done tonight, until when do BIOME wants him dead?" Mr. Han began smoking a cigarette as well and said, "Before sunset. They wish to get rid of him that bad immediately, because apparently, the kind of information that the retired researcher has in his head could jeopardise their allegiance with the Saksanian Empire. BIOME has implanted a microchip in his body so they'll check his vitality and know if he's still alive before sunset."

Marcus has already finished his cigarette, presses it on the ashtray beside him and replies, "Alright, then. I'll inform my party right away, it's nice having this meeting with you, Mr. Han." When he was about to leave the restaurant, Mr. Han suddenly brought up something; "By the way, Mr. Eisenhower. One of your party's members, the Embroidered Berserker in particular, is truly an exceptional wet-work operative isn't he?" Marcus looks back and replies, "He really is a formidable asset, what about him sir?" Mr. Han opens his phone and shows him a stolen photo of Banoy walking inside an orphanage along with a woman who appears to be Andrea. "One of my men saw him earlier and recognised him. And I think the terms before becoming a member made it clear that a bounty hunter must be alone to benefit with his own bounty and must sever all ties with innocent folks." Marcus sighs and replies, "I'll talk to him about it, Mr. Han. It seems that my operative forgot about the rules and I should remind him as soon as possible. I sincerely apologise on his behalf."

"Alright then, please remind him as well the consequences if he ever does this again." Mr. Han said.

Back at the orphanage, Banoy walks along the hallways with Andrea while greeting the children they come across with, especially those he already knows since way back. Until they came across with the headmaster of the orphanage, Mrs. Alma Castro. Surprised to suddenly see him after two years, Mrs. Castro approaches him, "Is that you, Banoy? Wow, I'm really surprised, but very glad to see you again here ever since you left!" Banoy smiles and replies, "It's very nice seeing you again, Auntie Alma." He says as he and Mrs. Castro hug in reunion. "How have you been, boy? You've grown a lot." Mrs. Castro said. "I'm doing fine, auntie. Work's been stressing me out so much so I have to work out to release it whenever I have time." Banoy replied.

Andrea then cuts in between their conversation and says, "Oh yeah, you never told me about your job." Considering that he's not supposed to disclose his affiliation with Crimson Pool, he doesn't know what he will say his job is so he only replied, "Oh… just in the constructions, I mean we don't have much of a choice in this kind of society aren't we?" Andrea nods and says, "Right, yeah, I should've known." Mrs. Castro then brings up Banoy to have a meal with them at the orphanage's canteen while he's there. "While you're here, Banoy, why don't you come have a meal with us? I bet you missed my cooking." Mrs. Castro said. Andrea jokingly says, "He's been eating ready-to-cook meals from convenience stores for the past two years, auntie, he would love to have real food once again." Subsequently, Banoy then proceeds to eat with Andrea and Mrs. Castro that morning along with the kids in that orphanage, missing Mrs. Castro's cooking; he savours every sip of the sour soup and every bite of the tender pork along with the vegetable partnered with rice of Mrs. Castro's signature pork sinigang. After filling his stomach in bliss with that heavenly dish along with good company, he spends the whole morning with them, hanging out with the people he's with ever since Dolores died.

However, while spending time at the orphanage, he noticed an African-American teenage girl gazing straight at him from the hallways while he's at the quadrangle. The girl seems to be an orphan as well being taken care of, but it bothered him so he asked Andrea and Mrs. Castro who she is. "I didn't know you guys are taking care of kids from other districts. Who is she?" Banoy asked. Mrs. Castro notices her as well and then answers Banoy, "Oh her, she came here for refuge last year, saying that both of her parents were killed by a tax collector when they weren't able to pay their debt. She's been wandering around this district ever since, she said that her family came here in the Indonesian district two years ago for vacation. But ever since Franz Vogel became the chancellor, they weren't able to go back to the African district and were forced to settle here. And of course, a piece of shit people in this district took advantage of that struggle, forcing her parents to labour and debt bondage."

Banoy, stunned about what Mrs. Castro just told him, says; "Damn… that's too cruel… and unfortunate. It must've been very difficult for her." Mrs. Castro nods and replies, "Indeed… that's why we're doing our best to take care of her and somehow cheer her up. Though she's just one of the kids with very cruel experiences to which they ended up here." Banoy slightly remembers what happened in the Southeast Asian district four years ago and replies, "I agree."

After spending the whole morning at the orphanage, he bids farewell to Andrea and Mrs. Castro, "I'll see you guys when I see you, I guess." Banoy said. Mrs. Castro replies, "Don't be like that, you can come visit here whenever you want, you know." Banoy chuckles and says, "Alright, Auntie Alma, I'll definitely visit here whenever I'm free." He then says goodbye to them and starts walking back to his place, but something startles him once he arrives at his place and walks inside his apartment..

A man wearing a grey long-sleeve polo, black trousers and brown leather shoes, taking a smoke in that alley while sitting on his couch and having a bottle of beer. Banoy was startled to see that man because it appears to be Marcus. "Taking a stroll around the district, huh, kid? I hope you don't mind me taking one from your fridge." Marcus said. Banoy replies, "Jesus fucking christ, Marcus, what the hell are you doing here man?" Marcus immediately replies, "What the fuck are you thinking having a little reunion with your good old orphan friends!?" Banoy sighs in the feeling of getting cornered and says, "Well… shit, I was just checking on them. They're like family to me, you know."

Marcus replies, "Yeah, well, the rules says 'sever' your ties not just fuckin' 'don't have a chat' with them. A b–" Banoy cuts in while he's speaking, mockingly continues what he has to say. "A bounty hunter must be alone to benefit with his own bounty and must sever all ties with innocent folks. Yeah, yeah, I know. Come on, man, I never even gave them a hint about this job! Much less tell them about it!"

Marcus sighs, along with blowing the smoke from his cigarette, and says, "Consider this a warning; the next time that I'm the first one to see you coming out of that orphanage, I'll withdraw all the donations to it like you demanded in every job that you accomplish. But when one of Mr. Han's men see you again, which I as well dread for it, they will unhesitatingly get rid of every person you know. I hope you understand that." Banoy looks down a bit and says, "Alright… alright." Marcus then finally brings up the real reason why he visited Banoy, "By the way, BIOME demands to get rid of Ben Schroder before sunset instead of within today. They're afraid that the retired researcher might jot it down into a file and sell the information to the highest bidders. Will you be able to do that with the rest of the party?"

Banoy replies, "I have no problem with that, but it would be a bit more difficult this time since it will be done in broad daylight. Since it's a rush, will you tell them to raise the bounty?" Marcus replies, "They wouldn't refuse that, I guess. Anything with their infinite budget will be done to get rid of any information that might compromise them." Banoy nods and says, "Alright, then, where's the rest of the party?" Marcus replies, "At the parking lot, waiting for us." They then walk out of the apartment unit and take the stairs down to the parking lot where their van is being parked. Marcus knocks at the van door, one of the mercenaries inside asks, "Who is it?" Marcus replies, "It's us."

The mercenary then opens the van door, revealing all four of them with all their gears on. "You guys don't have to bother with this, you know?" Banoy said to the mercenaries. Eka, one of the mercenaries, replies to him, "Likewise, asshole." Marcus cuts in the slightly heated conversation and says, 'Alright boys! Let's get this shit done, shall we?" Marcus goes inside the van with Marcus as Eka moves outside for a bit to go to the driver's seat. He then starts driving to go to the whereabouts of their target, Ben Schroder, the retired BIOME researcher with a two million bounty on his head only to get rid of him and the confidential information he apparently possesses.