Chapter 24: Erased History

The long eventful day came to its end. The sun finally left its post in order to sleep. A full moon rose to the sky and blessed the world with its pale light. The group was pretty tired, but the show must go on. Mark and Will didn't want to retire yet for different reasons.

There were three rooms. Mark stayed with Taz while Will and Rick obviously roomed together. Eve stayed with Lexi. At this moment, Mark, Will, and Rick stood at the door exit.

"You sure you don't want to go?" Mark asked for the fifth time.

Taz opened the fridge. He only wore black shorts and a silver necklace. His perfectly sculpted body was on full display. The uncaring viltrumite grabbed a bottle of water.

"I'm good." He responded calmly.

He knew why the guy kept asking. Mark didn't want to be a third wheel. Too bad for him. Nobody told him to go. Eve wasn't even going. The girls were both in their rooms, getting ready for bed. No partying for them.

"Alright then. Your loss." He spoke in a disappointed tone.

"Peace out!" Will exclaimed. Rick chuckled as they left.

The trio were so focused on themselves that they forgot to close the door. A group of girls in the hall just happened to walk past as Taz reached for the door. Whatever conversation they were having stopped as they instinctually glanced at the moving figure in their peripheral vision. Their eyes roamed his muscular form as he closed the door.

As the stoic man gulped down his water. The voices of the group outside grew loud again. It was obvious that they were talking about him. They had probably seen Rick plenty of times in the hallway. Taz was a new face.

As he made his way toward his room, the bedroom door to his left opened. Eve walked out in a pajama shirt and shorts. Her eyes lingered when seeing the shirtless viltrumite.

"Wow. Are you trying to give us eye candy?" She joked. The young elite shrugged while downing his water.

"Eye candy?!" Lexi chanted from the room. Since the door was still open, she heard Eve's words.

The sound of scrambling could be heard before her head peeked from around the door. Her eyes widened as her brain created a permanent image of his figure. The intense gaze made Taz sweatdrop for a second. The blonde's hair was wet, implying that she just got out of the shower. A white towel was wrapped around her body.

"......" Once Taz finished his water, he locked eyes with the perverted beauty. She devoured him with her eyes and smiled.

"Hmph." She hummed before turning around and closing the door. The young elite threw away his bottle and walked to his room. Eve sat down on the couch and turned on the TV.

…

…

…

Time passed and it eventually became late in the night. After lazing in his bed for a while longer, he sat up and reached into his bag. The viltrumite suit was revealed. Taz causally slipped on the outfit and raised the hood over his head. It was time to see what the orphanage was hiding.

The soldier quietly opened the window and flew out. There was no sound as he took to the clouds and accelerated. About ten minutes after he left, his door slowly opened. An almost naked Lexi tiptoed inside. She was only wearing a crop top and panties.

"Taz?" She whispered.

Hearing no response, she crawled onto the bed. A sigh of disappointment escaped her pretty little lips. As she got under the covers, she could still feel his warmth. That meant he only left recently. How come she didn't hear him?

Her arms and legs wrapped around the pillows. The blonde couldn't help but breathe in his scent. After lazing in his bed and basking in the recent warmth, she decided to wait until he returned.

…

…

…

The wind blew against his face as he flew at an adequate speed. There wasn't a reason to accelerate at crazy speeds. The orphanage was supposedly in the same city. Only a few moments later, he found his target. St. Lucy's Orphanage.

His waist cape fluttered as he slowly descended. In front of him was the large building covered in white and gold. On first glance, one would think the people here were living quite well. Everything was extremely clean.

Taz floated to the side of the building and looked for any unlocked windows. It would be smarter to gather information first. After a few seconds of field testing, he finally came across an open window. One of the orphans or sisters may have shirked their duties.

Even though he wanted to be lowkey, he wasn't going to tiptoe around. The young elite made his way into the premises. A bunch of tables and chairs littered the room. He was in the cafeteria.

With his hands behind his back, the stoic viltrumite strolled across the spacious room. His feet left no sound due to the material of his suit. The ground and walls were polished marble which made it even easier to be silent. He eventually found himself in a large hallway.

There weren't any people around since they were most likely asleep. With his supervision, he could see only a few nuns walking around on their late night escapades.

After a bit of searching, Taz found himself in front of two large swinging doors. They seemed a bit heavy for ordinary people. It was obvious that certain people weren't allowed here. The soldier casually pushed against the doors.

SSSSSSSSS

A hissing sound reverberated from inside the material. The mechanics and gears were unlocking and turning as the door eventually opened. His overwhelming strength made the structure look like playdough. Once he was inside, his eyes narrowed.

Another spacious room presented itself to him. It was a spherical room with no corners. The walls were made of one way glass that allowed the moon to shine through. It illuminated the area with its light. Taz couldn't help but feel like this place was sacred.

Directly facing him was a desk and chair. The wall behind it only had a single picture, which covered almost its entirety. The borders were golden and implied the importance of the photo. The young viltrumite felt familiar with it for some reason.

The portrait showed a young boy with milk chocolate skin. His hair was as white as snow. It was obvious that he was of supernatural origin, especially seeing his eyes. They were a beautiful golden color which gave off a sublime radiance. His shimmering eyes were halfway open, his expression resembling one of sleepiness. Laziness. The boy sat on a chair while facing the supposed camera.

A pair of dainty arms wrapped around his neck from behind. The other figure was a beautiful woman of asian descent, seemingly just hitting her middle ages. Her silky black hair flowed down her back. A mole could be seen right below her smiling lips. The weird thing about her was her mysterious purple eyes. They were empty, like those of a broken doll.

If anything, it seemed like she was a bit insane. The hollow look in her eyes gave the impression of depravity. Taz gazed at this massive portrait for a long time. At the bottom of the portrait was a signature that read 'The Lockharts.'

'Who are they? Why do I feel…kinship?' He wondered.

A few moments later, footsteps echoed behind him. One of the nuns must've heard the opening of the door. When she saw the white and grey hooded figure standing in front of the photo, she froze.

"Who are you? You're not supposed to be here!" She exclaimed. Her hand reached into her gown and pulled out a gun. A clicking sound could be heard as she took off the safety.

"........" Taz continued to stare at the portrait while ignoring the woman. Her voice indicated that she was young, probably close to his age.

'When did nuns start walking around with pistols? Is that normal here?' He thought.

The woman frowned seeing that there was no response. She slowly approached him with the gun pointed at his head. When she reached his side, her hands trembled. She was too innocent. It didn't seem like she'd be able to do anything.

"I'll-I'll shoot! Robber! Get out of here!" She demanded.

Before she could even pull the trigger, the gun crumpled into metal scraps. Her eyes widened with shock and fear. This man before her wasn't normal. Taz finally looked at her. When she saw his features, she felt a bit calm for some reason. The younger face made her feel less fear. His expression was one of indifference.

"Who are these people?" He asked while gesturing to the portrait.

"What?" She responded, not really sure if she should answer.

"If you're going to run away, at least tell me who they are first."

Hearing his words, the nun clenched her fists. She immediately pointed her finger at him.

"Why would I run from you? You're just a kid with powers! Hmph! I'll make sure you don't steal anything." She exclaimed.

The nun had silky brown hair and bright blue eyes that resembled the ocean. The newfound courage she had was a bit comedic.

"Enough. Answer the question." He said. He had things to do. The young woman crossed her arms.

"The Lockharts are our benefactors. That's all I know." She said. Taz frowned.

"...That's it?" He responded in disappointment. The girl shrugged.

"Are you disappointed?" She mocked. The stoic viltrumite turned to her with glowing eyes. She needed to understand that her life was in his hands.

"Speak out of turn again, and you die." He threatened. The nun recoiled back in fear. After a few seconds, she pouted. Taz rubbed his temples. He'd been doing that a lot recently. This girl's emotions were all over the place.

"Where are they now?" He continued.

"I don't know. Nobody does. We've never even seen them in person. Not even Mother Teresa, the head nun."

"Their names?"

"I don't know…"

"Then what do you know?"

"It feels like…I served them in a different life."

"...Like a maid?"

"Exactly like a maid."

"Hmm." Taz grunted. Turning to her, he eyed her features. The nun frowned.

"What?" She questioned.

"What's your name?"

"It's Lucielle. Why?"

"....." Taz ignored her question. Now that he knew what there was to know, it was time to focus on the task at hand.

He opened up each drawer from the desk. Files upon files were revealed to him. Lucielle watched with suspicion.

"You're not going to tell me your name?" She asked.

"No."

"What? Why?!" She complained. It was pretty impressive how comfortable she'd gotten with her potential killer.

"Not another word." He ordered. The innocent nun shut her mouth with a frown.

After skimming through files at incredible speeds, the elite finally found something worthwhile. The orphanage was having illegal dealings with an organization known as Team 7. Looking further into it, he found some info on them.

'They're an offshoot of the government…' He realized.

Taz wondered if Cecil knew this was going on. If so, then the old man's life would now be on a timer. The viltrumite's goal was to erase any evidence of their DNA. It was already enough for him to have it, so testing their products on children seemed a bit off-brand.

The stoic man eventually came to the conclusion that Cecil wasn't involved. It may be higher up on the political ladder. He would destroy it nevertheless. Utilizing his supervision, he scanned the entire orphanage. There wasn't anything out of place.

"Impossible." He muttered. There had to be something here. The young viltrumite walked around the room before looking down. Instantly, he saw an entire facility beneath the orphanage.

He could drill a hole in the ground, but that would be pretty loud. He could be as rowdy as he wanted once he found the DNA. There had to be a way to get there from this room.

Lucielle couldn't understand what this guy wanted. He threatened her, looked through some files, and was now just walking around the room. After a few moments, he stared at the moon. The light beamed down into the room, giving no need for built-in lights.

Taz stepped out of the way and found a specific point where the moonlight shone the brightest. On the ground next to the portrait was a small patch where it was abnormally bright. The viltrumite stomped on that area.

BAM

A small banging sound resided before gears turned. Mechanics unlocked and hissed as the ground next to the desk opened up. A flight of stairs was revealed which went all the way down to the facility.

"Whoa…" Lucielle muttered. She had no idea this was here. Taz glanced at her before going down the steps.

"You've served your purpose. Leave." He ordered.

The nun gave an expression of disbelief. Anyone would be frustrated after seeing a secret entrance and not being able to check it out. Unfortunately , she couldn't go against his words. Lucielle slowly left the room with its now wide open doors.

Taz's figure quickly disappeared as he went deeper underground. It was time to search and destroy.