Not counting the meeting, it was a rather normal day for the Howlers. Since there was school the next day, the teenagers didn’t stay too long in the pool club, either. Each of them went back home, continuing their ordinary lives. Right now, the gang was on a reaction basis. They would wait to see the moves of the others first before they themselves acted.

However, what none of them could have known was just how special tonight actually was going to be. It certainly wasn’t a night where they could have afforded to relax.

What used to be one of the grey colour gang bases was currently being used by the Grey Elephants. It had been empty for a while and not even grey colour gang members were allowed to return to the place until now. The reason for that had been kept a secret, though.

Outside, next to the warehouse around the back, there were three large delivery trucks. They were stationary, but there were several members inside, all ready to move.

The orphans from the Black Rock Orphanage had just arrived at what was supposed to be their new home. Kevin, as the oldest kid from the orphanage. He was surveying the area, since it didn’t exactly look like your typical orphanage.

‘I can't look worried in front of everyone. I was the one that convinced Suzan to accept this deal. If this place actually ends up being worse than the orphanage, then it would be my fault, not hers.’ Was the thought running through the head of Innu’s best friend.

All the other kids turned to look at him for guidance. After Innu he had been with the Black Rock Orphanage the longest, so he knew them all and could see the worried, cute look on their faces.

“It will be okay.” Kevin reassured them with a smile on his face. The men slid the door open. As soon as the orphans saw the inside, the faces of all the kids turned into big smiles.

The warehouse had been completely converted. There were now nice warm yellow lights illuminating the inside. There were many coloured matts on the floor, play houses, climbing frames and even charming beds for all of them.

Surprisingly, there were already some other kids present, ones that looked to be around their age.

“Please, make yourself feel welcome.” The man gestured with his arms open. “Just like all of you, these kids are from some other orphanages. Given the lack of funding for orphanages in Slough’s area, our boss had us gather all of them here in an attempt to create a safe haven for them.”

However, the smaller children didn’t listen. They were already over the moon, and had run inside to play with the other kids. Unsurprisingly, they were quickly making new friends, all of them enjoying the new shiny toys that would have been a pipe dream in the old orphanage.

From what Kevin could see, including them, there had to be around fifty children or so. Regardless, the place didn't feel cramped at all since it was a large warehouse.

“There are plenty of staff to cater to all your needs. Just go ahead and have fun.” The man prompted those hesitating once again.

Looking around, Kevin found a few older looking kids, but just like him, they didn’t seem too excited to be here. They seemed to just sit on their beds, being antisocial, while the smaller ones played around.

Truth be told, Kevin wanted to do the same, but he was finding the whole situation weird.

‘There are so many people looking after us? Why would a private corporation invest so much money into multiple orphanages? Could it be true that the owner really just used to be an orphan himself?’ Kevin started to scratch his head as he thought about it more.

‘Ah, am I just overthinking the situation? No, I am the responsible one now. I should try to talk with the others and find out if they noticed anything strange first.’

Walking over to the beds that were stacked on the side, the young teenager greeted the ones on the bed with a hesitant wave. A friendly girl with short cute bangs and short blonde hair actually waved back. Noticing her actions, an afro haired kid gave Kevin a sign to sit next to them. Seeing their reaction, Kevin felt like they were more approachable compared to the rest.

“Hi there, my name’s Kevin.” The thirteen-year-old introduced himself. “I don’t want to bother you, it’s just… you know… at my orphanage there isn't really anyone my age. It's kinda nice to see others that kinda understand my situation for a change.”

The two smiled and welcomed Kevin, understanding what he meant. Sure, Kevin went to school, but he didn’t really associate too much with the others, too afraid of his secret getting out. If anything, he would more likely get bullied for being different compared to the others.

The three of them got talking as Kevin asked them multiple questions, mainly about how long they had been there. Apparently it hadn’t been long at all. The girl had been there for two weeks, whereas the kid with an afro had come in one week after her from a different orphanage.

From the sounds of things the people treated them nicely, they were given good food and an allowance when they went out, but there were some strange conditions that Kevin didn't know how to feel about.

For one, all the kids were now being homeschooled. It did explain the school looking equipment towards the back of the warehouse. The schools were informed of the decision that had been made. Honestly, Kevin didn't know if this was a good thing or bad thing for him, since school wasn’t the best of places.

‘I guess this place might be alright, but I still can’t shake that something feels off.’ Kevin thought.

“Don't look too worried.” The blonde haired girl whose name was Birdie replied. “This place is fun, even though this area kinda sucks. Honestly, they won't let us go out on our own. A group of us have to head somewhere accompanied by one of those adults, which I guess is a good thing with this sketchy area.

“Still, if you're lucky, you might get adopted quite quickly. I don't know how they do it, but they seem to have some list of people wishing to adopt us. Not counting your group, we were down to half the initial number from when I came here. Sometimes even a bulk of us get adopted at once. It’s crazy. I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

Birdie seemed like a nice kid who was all smiles, which was why Kevin didn't want to say anything negative, but the last fact that she had just told him was like the final nail in the coffin for him. There was definitely something up with the place, and the young boy needed to find out what it was.

It just wasn’t normal. Where were these adopters before? A simple google search would have shown them all the orphanages they could have gone to. Even if they did have a lost mass marketing for so many people to get picked up and so quickly?

‘I’m really hoping that I’m wrong about all of this. Otherwise, I might have convinced Suzan to do something terrible and put us all in danger. First… let's make sure my imagination is not running wild and find out what exactly is going on here.’

——

At the same time, driving in a fancy car was a fairly large man. Next to him was his long time friend, still wearing his sunglasses, despite it already being late.

Up ahead, they could see the warehouse.

“Are you ready?” Brandon asked Raven. “Today is the day this whole city falls and breaks into chaos. We both agreed that there is no better time than now… don’t tell me you’re starting to feel guilty now?”

“No.” Raven shook his head. “The way I see it, it's either the lives of some orphans or ours, and I can’t exactly afford to die yet. Not until I find out what happened to my brother.”

“Good, then we will get the show on the road. The last orphanage has arrived. The war will begin tonight.”

******

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