Orso Fiction 024

Orso Fiction 024-Zeke's Back
“So it’s really happening…”, Frediano said sadly. “I was afraid of this.”

“Oh, you really shouldn’t be so scared.”, Zeke said with a smile. “My god is one of mercy.”

“That’s not what Father told us.”, Arduino said. “Was his treatment of the Issumatar Family merciful?”

“Oh, them?”, Zeke asked with a chuckle. “They didn’t feel any pain. On the contrary, now they’re part of the world’s strongest family…the newest addition to the Elite Eight, I might add. One could say they never really lost their position, I suppose.”

“Part of…So it is true, what they say about his power…”, Tammaro said, trying to regain his composure, with what he was looking at.

“Didn’t you hear what I said?”, Zeke laughed. “It’s all true, the nightmarish rumors circling the underworld. Even the ones that seem impossible.”

“Well…this is special.”, Sansone said. “It’s not every day one encounters a…”

“The word is ‘homunculus’.”, Zeke offered. “And isn’t it? I keep forgetting. You know I live with six of them. We’re really not so complex. A little bit of some poor sap as the blueprints. Mix in some…You know, the usual ingredients. Then some of well, the secret ingredient, and there you go. Life.”

“Now things begin to make sense. So you’re here to-“

“Just setting the table, that’s right.”, he murmured. “But I wasn’t lying when I said I hate the one I was made from. If I can kill Zach, all the better for me.”

---

“Does any of this make sense to you?”, Taylor Houston asked the tall man on her right.

“Not a word of it.”, Bradley Ratliff answered, a serious look in his eyes.

---

“But why are you here now?”, Tammaro asked. “Zach’s not back yet, and if my guess is right, you’re in no rush to have him back.”

“It’s true, I want Zach to be in his best shape when I see him again…”, Zeke purred. “But can you blame a manmade man for getting bored with the company of his brothers and sisters every day? All I wanted was…a little bit of fun.”

“You should leave.”, Frediano said coldly. “Right now.”

Zeke began to chuckle.

“I suppose you’re right. I can see I’m not wanted here anymore. I consider my invitation retracted. I’ll be on my way.”

He turned, away from the base to leave, exposing the design on his back. It was of seven orbs, forming a large circle. The topmost orb was a deep orange. In the center of the circle was an infinity sign. Something about it gave off a sinister aura.

“Get a good loooook.”, Zeke sang. “If I’m not the death of you, you’ll all become very familiar with this symbol.”

With one more smile and wink back at the base, Zeke walked off into the night. As soon as he was gone, the Ferraro brothers slowly fell to the ground.

“I didn’t think…it’d be this exhausting…to be around him.”, Sansone said.

“His killing intent…What a force…”, Tammaro agreed breathlessly.

---

When the four had recovered, they sat with the entire Primo Orso Varia and Agents, who listened intently to what they had to say.

“So…where do we begin?”, Tammaro asked.

“I was hoping you could tell us.”, Taylor said.

“I’ll give it my best try.”, Sansone said. “That man…his name is Zeke? He is the creation of a man who is rapidly gaining power in the underworld. Recently, he has gained a seat in the Elite Eight, a collection of the eight most powerful mafia families, by erasing the Issumatar Family, a proud and noble group.”

“We knew…several of their members.”, Arduino said. “Their loss was one felt by all of us.”

“Zeke said something that suggested the Issumatar…joined his boss?”

“He would word it that way…”, Frediano said. “The family Zeke serves is the Infinito. It’s rumored that their top seven members…have nightmarish powers. Their boss, a man only known as Oozaru…”

“Yes?”, Bradley asked.

“Oozaru has the power to merge people together. Fuse them, body, mind, and spirit.”

“Oh my…”, Taylor murmured.

“Indeed.”, Arduino interjected. “Oozaru likely used the Issumatar’s leaders as his most recent victims. The rest…likely slaughtered. Oozaru does not use his powers on anyone but the most powerful mafia. Beyond that, and I must stress that this was considered a rumor until tonight, we know little about Oozaru or the Infinito Family, other than that they originated, at least, in their present forms, on the West Coast.”

“Present forms?”, Taylor asked.

“The members…their physical appearance, is altered. One soul, the original, remains mainly dominant, but the body, mind, and soul, are slightly altered with each addition.”

“I see.”, Bradley said. “What does this mean for us? The Apostles appearing…the Skulls, the Roses…all this reeks of a plot.”

“I have a theory.”, came a voice from the back of the room. Everyone turned to see Scott Deisher, the Primo Outside Advisor. He stepped to the front. “May I?”

“Please, share.”, Frediano invited him.

“I’ve done a little bit of research myself.”, Scott began. “The Elite Eight will be meeting in roughly one and a half years. Is it…too prideful to assume that the Infinito consider the Orso Guardians, Officers, and Agents, worth absorbing?”

“I see no hubris in that.”, Sansone said.

“So, with whatever method, they created the Apostles. They arrive, wreak havoc, and make the Guardians leave to train, to make them even more worth absorbing. Meanwhile, they organize the Skulls and Roses, into testing the Officers and Agents. So, while they’re putting most of their chips on the Guardians, they’re not ignoring the other two sets.”

“All very sensible so far.”, Arduino agreed. “But one thing I should note is this; Oozaru is, by reputation, a notorious collector. It would not surprise me if he was after the rings of the Orso Family, to add to his collection of souvenirs of destroyed familes.”

“And are we to believe now that Oozaru is working with Uncle Osvaldo and Aunt Sonia?”, Tammaro asked. “I knew they were no good, but that’s a whole ‘nother deep dark pile of nasty.”

“If I may continue.”, Scott said, not rudely. “The Infinito fear a backlash for those who favored the Issumatar. They desire to increase their power as much as possible before the meeting with the other seven families.”

“That makes sense.”, Taylor said. “So, what is means for us is…”

“We need to be able to beat up everyone we know is a threat right now…and then be ready for someone way worse.”, Bradley said.

“That’s the long and short of it.”, Arduino said. “Your work is cut out for you.”

“Awesome.”, Brad said. “Zach’s going to love hearing that.”

“I wonder how he’s doing, anyway.”, Taylor murmured.

“Let’s all look up at the ceiling and think for a moment. Maybe we’ll get a vision about how he’s doing.”, Mike suggested. Everyone looked at him like he was an idiot. He shrugged. “It works sometimes.”

---

Mr. Cockley threw three punches in rapid succession. Zach threw up his hands to block the first two, but the third sent him to the ground. Cockley smiled down on him.

“That’s the first time you’ve been able to block two of my punches.”, he said warmly.

“I didn’t get the third one", Zach said. "Let's try it again."

"I think that's enough physical training for now.", Mr. Cockley said. "Why don't we celebrate, with me telling you exactly what you'll be learning, along with a whole mess of other trivia?"

"You know I'm a sucker for exposition, Grandmaster.", Zach said with a smile.

"Well, this is one any mafia boss should know.", Mr. Cockley said. "You, of course, do not, as you seem to be making all this up as you go along."

"It's a system that's worked so far.", Zach agreed.

"Well, here goes...Before the mafia world came into being, there were many warring gangs. Eventually, a man, and his six closest friends, rose above, and conquered the criminal world. He chose seven other families to help him run things."

"Right, this is the story of the Elite Eight. I know this one."

"Oh, good. Then I'll skip to the important part. How he did it."

"Oh, this, I don't know."

"This is the part that so few people do. Its a tale erased from history, so that it can't be attempted again."

"Except for how we're going to attempt it."

"Being me has its privledges.", Mr. Cockley said. "Now, there's an old song the Devino Family pass down, just in case some of the descendants of the original seven can recreate the miracle they performed. It goes-and remember that it is translated from Italian, and I'm going from secondhand information here. Don't expect it to rhyme in any way."

"One with a heart of air, to dance through suffering

One with a mind of water, to reflect serenity

One with a body of stone, to both fortify and invade

One with a soul of fire, to burn away the darkness

One with the strength to overcome weakness, like a tower striking at the sky

One with the weakness to overcome strength, like the horizon continuing until the end of the earth

And the seventh."

Both were silent for a moment.

"Are you not going to ask me what that means?"

"I was kind of hoping you'd just...do that without me asking."

"Fair. Well, each of those traits were a trait the original Devino Guardians possessed. By focusing their energy into that trait, they were able to externalize a unique power. The powers were referred to as the 'Points of Perfection', because each one elevated the Devino Guardian into a whole new state of being. Are you beginning to understand?"

"You, and the other Arcobaleno, will be teaching us the same techniques..."

"That's right. You seven are capable of using the Points of Perfection."

"And I have the strangest feeling that 'the seventh' is the one I'll be learning."

"This is true."

"And if it wasn't even explained a little in the song, its the weirdest one."

"This is also true."

"I'm excited.", Zach said with a grin."'The seventh'...it's has a nice sound to it."

"I told you that Zeke won't know what hit him...", Mr.Cockley reminded him. "Tomorrow morning, we'll begin to teach you why."

"One question...Is these techniques are so powerful...why haven't I heard of them before?"

"Because you rushed into the mafia world without an idea of what you were doing.", Mr.Cockley reminded him with a smile. "But, to be serious, the Points of Perfection are among the best-kept secrets in the mafia world. In addition, they are nearly impossible to learn. A normal man would require one hundred years worth of training. However, myself, Mrs. Fagley-

"Mrs. Sotir."

"If you insist. Mrs. Sotir, Miss Adelmann, Miss Perouty, Mrs. Dorwart, Mr. McHugh, Mr. Delise, and myself, are teachers of unparalleled quality. By the end of this year, you will have endured one century's worth of training. The exact method...well, that's our secret."

"I see. Well, tomorrow morning, right? I should get some sleep. Night, Grandmaster."

---

"It's four days before our meeting with the Skulls.", Bradley reminded the Varia, some time after the meeting. "I don't think I have to remind anyone how important this fight will be."

---

"The fifth letter...", Taylor murmured, skimming it in front of the Agents. "I suppose we can expect the Roses to drop off the fifth Ferraro tomorrow. When the sixth comes, we'll be there to meet them..."

---

Scott stood on Century's roof, looking out over the town.

"So its war, then.", he said to the night sky.

---

Alex Carroll received a text that night. He opened it, and murmured the words aloud.

"Sorry about the slip-up earlier. But I have a way to make it up to you. Meet me in the woods outside Century. I'll pass along all the information we've gathered about the Skulls and Roses, all as my apology."

Alex closed his eyes, considering. Then he nodded to himself. Risk was an inevitable part of gaining such an advantage. He would go.

---

Matt Iannone sat on one of the benches outside Century, thinking. He had known Alex had been speaking to Zeke. Why hadn't he said anything? Was it fear? Was he afraid of causing Bradley or Taylor more problems? Had that hesitation caused Alex to fall deeper into Zeke's schemes? If he had been stronger, or smarter...he would be able to fix the family's problems himself. No, he told himself. Those two weren't what he needed. It was courage that the boy knew he really suffered a lack of.

No more, he decided. He would change himself. He would follow Zach's example and erase fear from his heart.

---

Zeke smiled, reflecting on the night's events.

There is a phenomenon called "serendipity" that is, in short, acheiving a fortunate but unintended side effect of one's original plan.

Zeke had no way of knowing it, but serendipity was occuring for him at this very moment.

---

"Alex?", Matt called, seeing the boy exit the base through the darkness. "Where are you going?"

"I'm...headed out.", the tall boy said, unable to think of a way to tell him without seeming suspicious.

"You're going to Zeke, aren't you?", Matt asked, emotion in his voice rising as he stood. "I won't let you."

-

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