5. Chapter 5(1)

Chapter 5: A Family Squabble

Disclaimer: I don't own Loud House; all rights are owned by their respective owners and companies.

Los Angeles, California

Who knew an elevator ride could be so tense?

For the two occupants it's all they could feel while on the way up. Lynn and Lucy Loud, two sisters of the Loud family. A family with a complicated and unfortunate past filled with tragedy and obstacles. Even now they were all still feeling the repercussions. Each of them had dealt with them in their own way, one or two of them had almost destroyed themselves because of it. For Lynn and Lucy, they dealt with it by taking up martial arts and they weren't the only ones. Leni and Luna both sought out martial arts in their darkest hour. It was an odd thing really. To have a family consisted of a few members who know a style of martial arts and combat sports.

DING!

The elevator stopped at the floor they selected, both women walked out and headed towards their destination. If a person had exited their room. They would feel a massive amount of unease and would have activated their fight or flight response. The fight or flight response, which is also called hyper arousal, the Crumbles, or acute stress response is a physiological reaction that occurs in response to a perceived harmful event, attack, or threat to survival. Humans and animals all feel this, in this case however it would best for that unfortunate person who walks out of their room to hurry back inside and lock their door.

Thankfully no unlucky soul left their room.

Both sisters kept walking until they reached where they were going, a meeting room with a plaque that read "Meeting Room 9". Lucy was the first to enter, shortly followed by Lynn. Once inside both sisters saw the room was bigger than the last meeting room downstairs, there was also no tables, chairs or anything else in the room.

Another important thing is that they were alone.

'Perfect.' Both sisters thought in unison

Without saying anything, both sisters started to get ready for what they came here to do. Lynn took off her jacket then started to stretch out. Lucy on the other hand simply sat down on her knees waiting for Lynn with her eyes closed. Upon noticing this, Lynn thought it was strange but didn't say a word. Eventually Lynn finished up her stretches and walked in front of Lucy, who opened her eyes to look at her oldest sister with a cold perceiving gaze that unnerved Lynn a little.

"Last chance to back out of this Luce…"

Lucy almost smiled upon hearing her old nickname that Lynn, the others, and of course Lincoln used to call her. She almost did because it was Lynn who said it, along with that worried look in her eyes. Maybe her oldest sister wasn't a lost cause yet. That's more reason why she couldn't back out from this fight.

"Getting nervous Lynn?" Lucy asked rather snarky which was so unlike her. "That's so unlike you, afraid I'm going to win?"

Honestly, Lucy expected Lynn to curse her out or send her a harsh glare. She didn't expect Lynn to smile and chuckle. It was shocking because Lucy couldn't properly recall the last time, she saw Lynn laugh or above all smile. It was quite an unexpected but welcome sight.

"Haha…" Lynn stopped chuckling as she kept her small smile. "It's so unlike you to say something snarky, least of all with a smile. It's just so funny."

Lucy stared at Lynn for a good couple of seconds before she started to laugh as well, Lynn quickly joined her. Soon both sisters shared a good laugh and heartfelt moment. What was so odd and sad is that neither of them could remember the last time they shared such a genuine and happy moment. Perhaps it was all before everything went to shit. When they had their brother, when things were so much simpler.

Finally, when the laughing stopped both sisters looked at each with no ill will. Their eyes were only filled with remorse, of what they used to be. The girls they once were and what they had. Of course, they still loved each other and would honestly die for one another. Because they were family, regardless of what animosity they had towards one another.

Neither Lynn or Lucy wanted to fight but they felt like they had no choice.

"You know, I never told you why I decided to learn martial arts." Lucy smiled softly looking at Lynn. "Truthfully I did it for you."

Lynn looked very shocked by this.

"After what happened to Lincoln, we were all miserable but you were probably the most miserable out of all of us. You were always so quiet… you changed and not for the better. You never spent time with us anymore, all you did was train and get into fights. At first, I thought it was because of sports but I realized you quit all your sport teams shortly after we all got back together. You only trained with weights, cardio, and a whole lot of things I barely knew at the time. What I did know was that you were focusing your training in martial arts and combat sports. From basic karate, kickboxing, wrestling, and quite a few others if I remember correctly. You kept to yourself, it felt like you were isolating yourself from us. I couldn't stand it and since you barely talked to us, I thought training under martial arts would at least give something in common to at least talk about. Maybe even get the chance to train together? But that didn't happen did it? It only caused more of a rift between us."

Both women remembered what happened last time they had confronted each other, back when they were only girls. Oh, how things change. Back then Lucy didn't stand a chance against Lynn and Lucy gave Lynn that scar of hers. One way or another they both hurt each other in some way. Both still deeply regretted it.

"We never really talked or saw much of each other for a very long time after that fight. When you left, I thought about giving up but since I knew you would never do such a thing. I kept on training while trying to live my life as well. Between studying and taking care of everyone it wasn't easy but I managed somehow. Before I graduated high school, I received my black belt from Taekwondo, after graduating I decided to travel around with my friend Haiku. Eventually we found ourselves in Japan where I would spend most of my days at until now. It took 7 years, a lot of hard work and sleepless nights but I completed my training. All that leading up to now… when Lincoln left, I didn't just lose a brother. I lost a sister as well. My sister let herself be lost in the darkness, she let her stubbornness and guilt overtake her. She pushed away the rest of her family and abandoned any hopes of creating a future for herself. For years, the rest of us stood by and did nothing but no more."

Saying all she needed, Lucy got up and got into a Taekwondo stance, which was called Beom seogi otherwise known as tiger stance.

Lynn saw this stance and smirked a little.

"So, you're starting out with Taekwondo?" Lynn snorted before getting into a basic kickboxing stance. "Fine, I guess we'll hold off on bringing the serious shit out for now. Show me how far have you've progressed Lucy."

Not a word a came from Lucy as she only kept her cold gaze on Lynn. That smirk Lynn had was gone and was replaced with a serious look. For the longest time both sisters just stood there in their respective stances, perhaps sizing each other up or having some second thoughts. No one knows but them.

The entire room was very tense but quiet as well. Like the calm before a storm. That quickly changed as Lynn was the first to move and charged straight at Lucy.

Lynn went for an right hook that Lucy dodged by performing a backflip! Landing on her hands and putting herself in a handstand, Lucy went on the attack by going for few quick kicks that Lynn barely managed to block with her arms. Having enough momentum, Lucy hopped out of her handstand, landing on her feet she then went on the attack. She performed a roundhouse kick that Lynn blocked, Lucy followed that kick by doing a side kick that Lynn also blocked with her forearms. Lynn scowled as she felt the pain coming from her arms.

'Those kicks are no joke; Lucy has really progressed greatly. And she hasn't even brought out the rest of what she's learned yet.'

As Lucy went for another roundhouse kick, Lynn decided it was time to get on the offensive. Backing off from that roundhouse kick, Lynn dodged it and went for a straight jab directly at Lucy. Lucy deflected this by performing a palm block. A common block used quite often in Taekwondo to fend off from incoming kicks and punches. Lynn was quite surprise by this block, knowing a bit of Taekwondo herself. The palm block is a difficult defensive technique to master. Especially timing it so well in an actual fight, many practitioners of Taekwondo had trouble using this in sparring let alone in an actual fight.

Still, Lynn didn't let up as she went for a flurry of jabs and punches. She hoped to overwhelm Lucy with speed and reach. Since Lucy was quite smaller than Lynn, that meant Lynn had the advantage of reach. In martial arts and combat sports height and size were important for striking.

However, it seems that didn't matter to Lucy as she kept up with Lynn's quick jabs and punches by dodging or blocking. It was starting to irritate Lynn; it's been a good minute now and neither of them had gotten a decent hit in yet.

Guess it was time to change that.

Lynn went for a left hook which Lucy went to block but found out it was a feint as Lynn went for a right uppercut. The timing was perfect, Lynn smirked as she expected to hit Lucy's chin. That smirk quickly disappeared as Lucy calmly moved her head slightly back causing the uppercut to miss her by a few inches. Then Lucy did something Lynn never expected, Lucy performed a quick head-butt that hit Lynn directly in the nose!

It wasn't hard enough to break anything but it sure hurt as Lynn recoiled back a little in pain. She backed up and got ready to defend against any other form of attacks. But as Lynn did this, she noticed her nose was now bleeding. Nothing was broken but that head-butt burst a blood vessel.

First blood had gone to Lucy.

'A head-butt… should have known Lucy would try that. Guess she knows more than just standard Taekwondo. She also knows self-defense Taekwondo.'

Taekwondo, a Korean martial art that is characterized by its emphasis on head-height kicks, jumping spinning kicks, and fast kicking techniques with kicks and striking above the waist height only. It also rather new unlike most Korean martial arts, Taekwondo was developed during the 1940s and 1950s by martial artists who were also trained by many different martial arts as well. With many different martial arts around at the time in Korea, around 1955 many leaders of martial arts began discussing in earnest the possibility of creating a unified Korean martial art. So, Taekwondo was slowly invented but didn't really catch on right away. Eventually, Taekwondo was also adopted for use by the South Korean military, which increased its popularity among civilian martial arts schools.

Over time Taekwondo branched out into many different forms and styles. Along with many different sets of rules for them too. One of which was called Taekwondo self-defense is known as kinuo and it forms one of the 20 main principals of the art. The self-defense applications would be difficult to use in sparring as they are designed primarily to cause injury or quickly incapacitate an adversary. There are two main concepts in Taekwondo self-defense for real life combat situations, an experienced Taekwondo practitioner is versed following. Linear techniques and Circular techniques. They can also be called hard or soft techniques as well.

Linear techniques include mostly punching, kicking, head-butts and other striking maneuvers. Force is countered it with force and all limbs are involved in stopping an adversary. Taekwondo kicks have a wide reach that keeps attackers at a distance. With proper execution attackers may be incapacitated with a single blow, which lessens the number of attacks in encounters with multiple people

Circular techniques, these emphasize redirection and manipulation rather than strength. The adversary can be manipulated into a position whereby a lock, stranglehold or a finishing move can be applied. Grappling techniques are used both as a means of securing an adversary and escaping from an adversary's grip. Soft self-defense techniques like the stranglehold or joint lock can be used to subdue the attacker, avoiding dealing permanent injury.

This meant there was more to Taekwondo than simply kicking.

'You've really have grown up little sis… I only wish I was there to watch you grow.'

Both women paused their fight, they simply stood there staring at each other. Both had dropped their respective stances. Lynn wiped the blood coming from her nose, taking a look at the blood smeared on her hand. She let out a chuckle and brief smile before locking eyes with Lucy.

"Been awhile since I last saw this much blood, last time I saw this much was when I finished my training. Never expected you to do a head-butt. Then again, this is a fight and anything goes. Which means I don't have to pull my punches."

Hearing this almost made Lucy raise an eyebrow but she kept her composure.

Getting back into her Taekwondo stance, Lucy saw Lynn get into an odd stance. Lynn pulled her right arm back while turning her hand into a tightened fist. Her feet and legs were positioned oddly, like she was getting to launch herself at Lucy. Which was something Lucy was ready for.

"Last chance Lucy, give up and we can act like this never happened." Lynn said in a serious tone and expression that almost sent a shiver through Lucy. "Because now the kiddie gloves are off… I don't want to hurt you."

The look Lynn had on her face, Lucy knew Lynn was being very serious. None of that arrogance Lynn used to have when they were kids. That Lynn disappeared after the bad luck incident. Truthfully, Lucy missed that Lynn. The Lynn who was also outgoing and never afraid to back down, though that Lynn did indeed have many faults. Faults like those that make us human. We can overcome those faults and become better, sadly Lynn replaced those faults with different ones. Ones that were going to destroy Lynn if Lucy didn't help her.

That's why she couldn't back down.

"I'm afraid I can't do that Lynn, not until I pull you away from this path of self-destruction."

Lucy expected Lynn to shout in anger or laugh by how outrageous it sounded. Instead Lynn gave Lucy a sincere smile.

"I love you Lucy, I love everyone in our family. I've made mistakes, really dumb and terrible mistakes. I was a real stubborn, competitive, superstitious, immature, spiteful, uncaring piece of shit. Maybe I'm still that person? Only thing that changed is that I'm a fucking drunk and that I know how to hurt people better now. All I know how to do is hurt people, especially those I love. I destroyed our family Luce… I hurt my family beyond belief. Only thing I can do is try and bring Lincoln back and pray that everything goes back to normal. Sounds stupid but it's all I can do. I'm way past saving Lucy, all I can do now is try make things right my own way. And that's by hurting people…"

After hearing that, it took everything in Lucy to stop herself from yelling at Lynn. Never in her life has Lucy heard something so stupid. All of this was stupid, searching for Lincoln and this fight. Lucy wished things weren't so stupid, she wished her family would stop being so stubborn. Most of all, she wished Lynn would pull her head out of her own ass and stop blaming herself for what happened. They were all there when they cast Lincoln out, they were all to blame for what happened. The only people innocent in this were Lincoln and Lily.

"Lynn, stop this foolishness—"

Before Lucy could finish, Lynn's expression became very serious as she disappeared in the blink of an eye! Lucy's eyes grew wide in shock as she prepared to defend herself. Unfortunately, she was too late to properly block as she felt an enormous amount of force hit her in the chest. Lucy only had enough time to look down and saw that Lynn had punched her in chest with a very powerful punch. The absolute force of the punch threw Lucy off her feet and launched her directly in the wall!

SLAM!

Upon impact, Lucy coughed up blood as she found herself smashed firmly in the wall. She didn't completely break through the wall but caused quite a large dent that held her in place for a few moments, eventually she fell to the ground landing on her knees. It was safe to say she had the wind completely knocked out of her. Not just that but she could tell a few of her ribs were broken as she felt a sharp severe pain as she breathed and coughed. Another problem was that she was coughing up some blood. Which meant her either her lungs, esophagus, trachea, or something else internal was hurt pretty bad.

It hurt like hell to breath, but Lucy slowly got up. A look of severe pain filled her face with a bit of blood around her mouth or falling down. The young goth woman locked eyes again with her sister, Lynn dropped her guard to give Lucy a guilty yet worried look.

"That's my power with the kiddie gloves off, I broke your ribs and probably injured or ruptured something internal. Could be serious, it'd be best to stop right now. You're lucky that punch didn't do more serious damage, like a broken rib puncturing a lung or hitting something important related to the heart. I love you Lucy… I could never forgive myself if I killed you. You're very skilled but I'm stronger than you. And I'm not just saying that to be arrogant, there's a reason why I have that much strength."

There are times where Lucy would say Lynn was just boasting. Sadly, that Lynn was gone and standing in front of Lucy right now was a whole different person. A person who knew when to be boastful and when to be dead serious. Lucy knew that there was merit to what Lynn was saying. The power behind that punch was monstrous, not even during her grueling training has Lucy encountered such strength before. Such strength was something only Lucy heard about from rumors and outrageous tales that her masters told her. While Lucy always knew Lynn was strong, especially when they were kids.

Lynn's current strength seemed on a whole other level.

'How is she so strong? I know she's pretty well-built, no doubt she still trains with weights and by other means. But the strength she's displayed is something else all together. It doesn't make any sense, given the power behind that attack. Lynn should be built like a monster like Lana but she's relatively average. How is she so strong?'

Lucy observed Lynn earnestly, looking up and down to see anything out of the ordinarily.

"I'm guessing you're already wondering how I've gotten stronger, while it's true I still do weight training and find other ways to help increase my strength. It's really something internal that I wasn't aware of until Lisa brought it to my attention. Tell me, didn't you and everyone else find it odd that I was pretty strong when we were younger. Hell, I was pretty strong even as a toddler. Our parents simply thought it was nothing, since I was pretty healthy and didn't really have anything obviously wrong with me. They along with everyone else wrote it off that I was just special. Heh, oh how little they all knew. Turns out it has something to do with my genes…"

The confusion on Lucy's pained filled bloody face caused Lynn to sigh as she started to take off her jersey. Once it was off, Lynn dropped it to the floor and spread her arms presenting herself to Lucy. What Lucy saw shocked her immensely. Only wearing her jeans and a red sports bra, Lynn's body was slim and lean but she had well-defined muscles befitting a bodybuilder who's been weight lifting all their life. Thought she was not big and bulky, Lynn definitely had very lean and powerful muscles. Another important thing Lucy noticed that there no ounce of body fat on her. No one would have really noticed Lynn's physique given she wears her jacket and that somewhat baggy sports jersey all the time.

"Like I said, while I do weight training I only do it when I'm able to. I'm mostly on the road and barely have time to find a proper gym and equipment. As time passed and we got older, I found out I had more developed muscles than I should have given the training I was doing. Even after slaking off my weight training I still didn't lose any muscle, finally I went to Lisa to see what was happening. Man, oh man you should have seen the look on our faces once we knew what was up. Turns out I have genetic condition called Myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy; I still don't know all the science crap behind it. All I can say is what Lisa explained to me. The condition I have reduces body fat and increases skeletal muscle size, I have twice the usual amount of muscle mass along with increased strength. Apparently I had this condition my whole life, crazy that no one noticed it before. Guess that's how come I was so strong when we were younger. Who would have guessed I'd be a freak of nature on top of being a shitty person?"

Myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy; a rare genetic condition characterized by reduced body fat and increased muscle size. Those affected by this have up to twice the usual amount of muscle mass in their bodies. Affected individuals also tend to have increased strength, thus what Lynn just displayed. It is up to debate if those affected with this condition have any medical or mental problems, many scientists speculate that the muscle tendons or heart could experience problems. Though there are so very few cases of people having this condition, studying and understanding it can be rather difficult. Which meant it was just speculation.

All of this was a lot to take in, Lucy had no idea Lynn had a genetic condition that affected her so greatly. Although she always knew Lynn was something special, especially when they were kids. She never would have guessed it be something so crazy, how the hell didn't anyone in their family take notice of something this important? How couldn't she have noticed? Her of all people! They spent the first half of their lives together as roommates. No matter how Lucy kept trying to make sense of it, she always came back to the same conclusion.

She should have known.

Coughing up some more blood, Lucy hunched over in pain as her chest still hurt like hell. By the way she was reacting it was safe to say she should seek medical attention soon. But she wasn't going to do that just yet. No doubt she was hurt but she wasn't out just yet. Sucking it up, Lucy ignored the pain as she breathed. Starting to slowly stand up straight, Lucy wiped away any remaining blood off her mouth with her arm. She then looked up giving Lynn a smile that surprised her.

"A freak, huh?" Lucy wheezed out as she shook her head slightly. "Who would have guessed we'd have so much in common? I'm not going to ask why you never brought any of this to our attention because it's your own business. Though… I'm pretty sure you probably didn't care."

The smile Lucy had turned into a look of indifference, one that Lynn also had.

"I'm ashamed to admit I underestimated you… I apologize for that. Given how I was taught and who I was taught under, I've shamed myself and their teachings." Lucy spoke in a tone of indifference as she bowed respectfully, ignoring the pain coming from her chest. "I vow to do better, which means I shall no longer hold back. Or as you like to call it, I'm taking the "kiddie gloves" off. So, prepare yourself big sister. The true fight begins."

Just as Lucy was finished talking, she quickly rushed at Lynn faster than she could track. Acting on instinct, Lynn closed her fists and got ready to defend herself. However, Lynn was shocked as she never got to pull back her arm and get ready to throw a punch as Lucy suddenly appeared in front of her. In an instant, Lucy wrapped her right hand around Lynn's wrist and started to apply pressure to it. Immediately Lynn could feel immense pain coming from her wrist which was tightly locked in place by Lucy.

"What the—"

THUD!

Whatever Lynn was about to say never came out. Because Lucy had used Lynn's weight and strength against her by quickly twisting Lynn's wrist along with the rest of her arm. Once Lucy started this, she pulled Lynn down by using her own power and arm against her resulting in Lynn being slammed face first onto the floor! Lynn never knew what hit her as the left side of her face was slammed against the floor. She also wasn't prepared by what Lucy did next. Lucy quickly pulled Lynn up in the air off her feet, this shocked Lynn greatly because Lucy did this with only her right hand which was still locked with Lynn's wrist. How could someone with such a small size and average built lift someone like it was nothing? Lynn didn't have time to ponder on it more as Lucy quickly turned around throwing Lynn over her shoulder and slamming her on the floor again with complete ease!

THUD!

Letting out a painful cry, Lynn felt the whole back of her body and back of her head hit the floor with loud thud! Soon as Lynn made contact with the floor, Lucy released her grip on Lynn's wrist. She then backed up a little to give Lynn some space, she then just stood there looking down at Lynn who seemed out of it. Understandable since Lynn had hit the floor with enough force to knock out an ordinary person. Fortunately, Lynn wasn't an ordinary person. It took a few moments for Lynn to make sense of what happened as she was laying flat on her back staring up at the ceiling.

"Are… you done?"

Lynn could hear the hoarseness in Lucy's voice sounded as she coughed after saying that. Not bothering to reply, Lynn grunted as she started to get up rather strangely. Positioning her hands down on the floor, she lightly kicked herself up and got into a hand stand of all things. Lynn stayed like that for a few seconds before hopping back on her feet. Once up, Lynn seemed a bit wobbly but soon kept her balance firmly in place as she smiled.

"Oh, we've just gotten started Lucy." Lynn chuckled as she remembered those moves Lucy just did. "Those moves you just did, that was jujutsu of some kind. At first I thought it was judo or aikido, or even both. But I realized something while my ass was on the floor. That wasn't just any kind of jujutsu bullshit. It was Shibukawa-ryu Jujutsu, which means you were taught by Goki Shibukawa."

A smile crept itself onto Lynn's face as she saw how Lucy stiffened in shock.

"Hehe… wasn't expecting a meathead like myself to know that huh? I should have known you would learn something tricky like that while over in Japan. That kind of martial arts seems more like your speed. I'm guessing that bullshit you did was the mysterious technique called "Aiki". Oh, I've only heard the stories but I got to say I'm impressed. You really threw me around like a ragdoll, you used my own strength and size against me. It's crazy how martial arts can be able to let you do stuff like that. Still, this fight is still in my court. Bring out all your bag of tricks Luce, it's not going to change the outcome of this match."

The shock Lucy felt worn off, her expression returned into indifference. Though it was shocking to find out Lynn knew so much about her teacher and the techniques, especially Aiki. It didn't matter, the fight wasn't over yet. Coughing a little with a slight wheeze, Lucy got into the stance of Shibukawa-ryu Jujutsu. With opened hands and ready to attack or defend herself, Lucy sent a glare at Lynn.

"Damn, and you guys say I'm stubborn." Lynn sighed with a slight shake of her head. "Looks like you aren't giving up, I respect that and I'm proud of you. If you're bringing out your martial arts, I guess it's time I show you what I've learned while on my own journey."

Lynn briefly closed her eyes to take a deep breath. She stayed like that for few moments. In those few moments, Lynn ignored everything around her. Not worried if Lucy would attack her, all that mattered was preparing herself for what happens next. Up until now Lynn has only relied on her martial art skills she known since she was a child and her inhuman strength. It was now time to put to use the skills and techniques she's learned while on the road. With help from those three guys.

Her mentors, who oddly enough accepted her even though she was such a difficult hothead. They shouldn't have accepted her and took her under their teachings but they did. In doing so, Lynn became stronger for it. Her thoughts started to drift towards on the day she met her first mentor. She remembered it very vividly.

Flashback, 10 Years Ago

It was cold and dark night, in some wet and trashy alleyway in New York of all places. A fight had just taken place, though it really wasn't a fight but more like a slaughter. A lone young woman was currently curb stopping some poor slob in the back, the poor slob was knocked out on the dirty ground. He wasn't the only one knocked out, because littered along the alleyway were more knocked out guys. All of them were bruised and bloody, many had broken bones, missing teeth, and one had an extreme case of ruptured testicles. All of them looked like tough hoodlums or gangbangers. Well, not so tough now.

"Bunch of stupid assholes! That'll teach you for trying to get touchy!"

The young woman was none other than Lynn Loud. Jr. Now 20 years old and fresh out of high school. It's been a few months since she graduated and left home in search of her brother. Why was she in New York? Since Lincoln was sent here for treatment and was last seen here before running away. It seemed like the best place to start. With some financial help from Lori, Lynn made her way here and was looking for Lincoln's trail. Unfortunately, nothing solid had come up. Lynn has spent most of her time asking around in the trashy parts of New York asking around if anyone had seen a kid with white-hair. She knew Lincoln would be smart to avoid people and places where they would ask why a teenager was all by themselves. No doubt because the authorities were still looking for him.

The past few weeks since she's been here, Lynn hasn't gotten a solid lead yet and it was really getting to her. It also didn't help with assholes like these ones wanting to get into her pants rather than answer questions. Lynn was leaving a nearby bar when these guys tried to jump her. They didn't put much of a fight, regardless. Lynn didn't go easy on them. They were planning to rape her after all, so she beat the shit out of them with everything she got.

That's why most of these guys will be eating out of a straw once they got up. Along with plans of not having kids anytime soon.

"Assholes…" Lynn spat out in distain as she stopped her stomping and began to leave. Leaving the unconscious and broken thugs. "Another dead end, I swear everyone in this damn city are either stupid or like pissing me off."

With a downcast frown, Lynn kept on walking while deep in thought. After graduating and going through with her mission. Lynn thought she'd be more happy or excited, that she find a lead to Lincoln right away. How could she have been so naïve? Doing this wasn't going to be easy at all. It was only going to get more harder; it was thinking like that why Lynn started drinking. Nothing major but it took the edge off.

'Maybe I'll hit up a bar and get a drink before heading back to the hotel, today has been a complete bust.'

"Pretty impressive work."

Snapping out of her thoughts, Lynn looked forward ahead to see where that voice came from. Up ahead at the alleyways entrance, a man was just standing there staring at her with his hands in his pockets in a pretty laid back posture.

"You didn't even break a sweat as they surrounded you, even when you were clearly outnumbered. You kept your cool and handled them like they were nothing but afterthoughts. Of course, you might have gone a little bit overboard but I can't really blame you. Pretty sure they were going to do a whole lot worst to you. At first I thought I would have to intervene but you surprised me and that doesn't happen often."

The man was above average height and middle age or at least close to it, he was bald with a muscular bulky build and had two noticeable scars on his face one on his right cheek and the other on his left near his head and ear. Strangely he was wearing sunglasses while it was night, he was also wearing a simple light green business suit.

"I can tell you were properly trained in martial arts; you also got some major power behind those attacks. Power reserved for those with some serious muscles but you don't seem to be that buff. Those guys never stood a chance against you… tell you what, if you're looking for a proper challenge how about you fight me?"

Now it was safe to say Lynn was speechless, this was the last thing she expected to happen. Who the hell was this guy? Why was he here? Why did he want to fight her of all things and why was he making her so uneasy? Lynn had no clue who this guy was but she knew there was something off about him. His attitude and the air around him made her very tense. It was almost like everything in her body was screaming at her to run away. It didn't help that the mysterious guy noticed how stiff Lynn had gotten.

"Oh, come on kid. Don't tell me you're scared of little old me?" The man asked smirking. "If you want to leave then you'll have to beat me. Tell you what, if you can hit me just once. I'll get out of your way and won't bother you ever again. How about that?"

Lynn didn't know what to say.

What was up with this guy? Just who hell was he and is he crazy? Ordinarily Lynn would have told this guy to fuck off and leave. It was pretty apparent that wasn't going to work here. From how this guy carried himself and how he was built, this guy was a fighter and he wasn't just going to let her go. So, it looks like Lynn had no choice but to fight this guy.

"I don't know who you are and honestly I couldn't give a shit. I am not having a good day, if you want to get your ass kicked old man then by all means. Let me be the one to give it to you because I am so sick of the bullshit I had to deal with today."

"Oh, hehe! You got quite the mouth on you. You remind me of a student of mine back home." The man chuckled as he pulled his hands out and got into a karate stance that Lynn didn't recognized. "Alright girly, show me what you got."

For some reason Lynn was very hesitant. She knew this guy was up to something, by the looks of it he knew karate of some sorts. Lynn knew basic karate and knew that there were different forms and styles. Whatever this guy knows, it was perhaps something beyond what she knew. Nevertheless, she wasn't going to back down. If this guy wanted a fight then he was going to get one!

Breaking in a sprint, Lynn reached the mysterious man and went for a few quick jabs that he easily dodged by swaying his head left and right. Not giving up, Lynn kept up her attack by going for more jabs and punches. Which the man kept on dodging them easily like they were kiddy punches. Her attacks weren't hitting but Lynn could see she was pushing the man back a little. All she needed was to land a solid hit on this guy.

"Come on kid! I thought you were going to kick my ass? My wife can throw a better punch than that, in fact my granny could do one better than what you're doing and she's dead!"

With a scowl and letting out a slight growl, Lynn decided to change it up. She quickly combined her jabs and punches with fast kicks. Going for a front kick to the man's chest, Lynn expect it to connect but the man dodged it with ease just like the others. Lynn didn't waste any time as she went for a sweeping leg kick aiming for the man's legs hoping to throw him off balance. Imagine her shock upon seeing the man jump over her kick with that damn smirk of his. The man landed rather gracefully as he looked at Lynn while shaking his finger at her. Like she was a child trying to nap a cookie from the cookie jar.

"Tsk, tsk! Quite the temper you have there little girl, better rein that in before someone does it for you."

If Lynn wasn't pissed, she was definitely pissed now. Seeing this guy look down at her like she was nothing but a joke was too far for Lynn. Call it stubbornness or pride, Lynn had enough of this guy's bullshit.

"Fuck off old man!"

Resuming her attack, which were a combination of punches and kicks. Lynn knew she had to try something different. Suddenly, Lynn had an idea. This was a street brawl, which meant she didn't have to play fair. Putting her plan in action, Lynn quickly turned and direct her kick backwards, keeping the kicking leg close to her standing leg and using her heel to try and strike them. Sadly, the man pulled his head back to dodged the kick again.

"Geez, show me something different kid. Don't tell me this all you can—"

SHATTER!

The man didn't get to finish as an empty beer bottle was thrown directly at him hitting him right in the face. The beer bottle broke as shards of glass were sent flying everywhere. Lynn smirked as she nailed her target perfectly. The back kick wasn't meant to hit, Lynn knew he would dodge it. It was really meant to make the man pull his head back to obstruct his view while Lynn quickly picked something on the ground to throw and blind him. She had no idea what she was going to pick up, luckily it was something hard. Now that he was hit and temporarily, it was time to end this.

'Time to say goodnight old man.'

Quickly utilizing her opening, Lynn immediately rushed towards the man while pulling her arm and fist back. She was going to hit this guy with everything she had in one straight punch to the face. No one has ever got up from one of her punches before when getting hit straight in the face. Now imagine what would happen if she put all her strength in one punch? With a wide smirk, Lynn got ready to throw her strongest punch.

However, Lynn never got to throw her punch as she felt a powerful force strike her lower jaw area! It was then everything started to get really fuzzy, everything coming from up to her legs and throughout her entire body got really numb. Like a million ants were crawling up her body. Lynn soon saw that the ground was fading away, then everything started to go dark. Never in her life had Lynn experienced such a feeling before. Though it was pretty obvious what was going on, she's read about and watched it happened to others on television or in one of her fights.

Getting knocked out.

'Shit… I… never… saw… him…'

Everything went black after that, Lynn's eyes closed as her unconscious body fell backwards hitting the ground with a thud.

THUD!

It was quite a sight to see, the toughest out of all the Loud sisters sprawled out on the ground completely knocked. Many considered her the toughest person in her whole town. She's never lost a single fight, even when vastly outnumbered. It didn't matter who they were. Bullies, jocks, thugs, or punks. Not even her fellow teammates or instructors in her past sports or martial arts classes could stop her. Although she's lost bets and games, some of which had cost her greatly. Fighting and hurting people was what she was good at.

Too bad for her, she met someone on a whole different level.

"Ha! Real clever girly, if I had been some amateur you would have gotten me."

The man had hit Lynn with a powerful straight punch that struck her right on the chin. It was so quick that Lynn never saw it coming until it was too late. She never even got to throw her punch. With his glasses broken, the man's piercing eyes landed on the unconscious form of Lynn.

"I'll admit I had some doubts but there's no mistaking it." The man laughed with a grin while dropping his stance. "You're related to old Al, you got that same fire he had when we first met. Haha!"

The laughter slowly faded as the man picked up Lynn and threw her over his shoulder, he then proceeded to walk out of the alleyway. Lynn was still unconscious, completely unaware what was in store for her.

A Few Hours Later

The first thing Lynn felt when waking up was pain, nothing major like having a bone broken or something. It was some mild pain at best. Upon opening her eyes, Lynn grabbed and clenched her jaw. She then remembered what happened and quickly stood up to see where she was. Looking around she saw that she wasn't in the alleyway anymore, it looked like she was in a small park where there were some trees and grass. From the looks of it, it was still pretty late.

"Well, looks who's up."

Recognizing that voice immediately, Lynn turned around and got into a fighting stance. She scowled upon seeing the very person who knocked her out and brought her here. The man was sitting on a bench by the pavement walkway, he was smiling while Lynn sent a nasty glare at him.

"What the hell old man! Why did you take me here!" Lynn growled harshly. "If you did anything funny I'll kill you!"

Most would have turned tail and run when seeing the rage in Lynn. Not this man though, he wasn't like most people. He simply laughed at the raging tomboy as her scowl deepened.

"Oh, give me a break. If I had anything nefarious planned you would already know. All I did was simply bring you here so you could wake up, it seemed like the gentlemanly thing to do after all. Now, how about we be civil and talk this out. Unless you want to go another round? Because it went so well for you last time."

Whatever rage Lynn was feeling was replaced with hesitation and dread. She knew perfectly well what happened last time, she was still feeling it. That punch knocked her out like it was nothing. Whoever this man was, Lynn knew he was experienced and on whole other level than anyone she's met. Seeing how he moved and knocked her out with such ease and tremendous speed. Lynn hated to admit it but she stood no chance in hell against this guy.

Against her better judgement and sucking up her pride, Lynn sighed and took a seat on the grass. She could have walked over and take seat right beside the man on the bench but Lynn was still wary of him.

"Looks like you're smarter than you look. Now, you wanna tell me what you're doing out here all by your lonesome?"

"Why the hell should I tell you?" Lynn snapped while glaring at the man. "You might have kicked my ass but that doesn't mean I need to tell you anything."

Part of Lynn knew getting aggressive against this guy was stupid, plain and simple. The guy could really hurt her if he wanted. So, going off on the guy wasn't smart. However, Lynn wasn't going to back down to anyone even if the odds were against her.

The man simply chuckled at how Lynn was glaring at him. He didn't seem offended or annoyed, in fact he looked amused.

"Looks like you still got some fire in you kid, I respect that. Reminds me of myself. Tell you what, how about you ask me questions and I'll answer them. In return you do the same thing, almost like trading secrets. How about that?"

The proposition gained Lynn's interest but should she go through with it? Weighting her options along with the pros and cons. Lynn made her choice.

"Okay, that sounds fair or whatever." Lynn said easing up her glare a little. "I'll go first then, what's your name?"

"That's easy, my name is Doppo Orochi. I'm a 10th dan grandmaster of Karate Shinshinkai, a style of Karate I founded and mastered. You probably never heard of it, understandable since we operate mostly in Japan. We're rather popular there and are only getting more popular as of late. Not long until we have more than a million members nationwide in Japan."

Shinshinkai Karate? Although Lynn was knowledgeable about sports and martial arts, this was something she's never heard of before. It must be really something if this guy was a 10th dan and founder of it. If they also had almost a million members than it must really be something. He must truly be a master Karateka. Karateka being a practitioner of Karate. At first Lynn just wanted to ask Doppo for his name and why he was here but now she had more questions.

"Now, I think it's my turn now. I'll ask again, what the heck are you doing out here all alone? Shouldn't you be home studying or something? You look to be around that high school or college age."

"Not that it's any of your business, but I recently graduated out of high school." Lynn frowned slightly. "That's all I'm going to say so let's leave it at that. My turn again, how the hell are you so strong?"

As soon Lynn asked that, Doppo's demeanor changed into a rather serious one. Which instantly put Lynn on edge. She was quickly relieved to see Doppo smile as he crossed his arms while looking lost in thought. Eventually Doppo looked over at Lynn.

"Honestly, I don't know what to tell you kid. All my life I've just wanted to be strong, stronger than anyone. My dream is to be considered the strongest in the world. When I was a boy, I decided to train under Karate everyday from then on. Since then I've founded my own dojo and style of Karate, fought tons of tough opponents who would crush you in a second. Hell, I even fought and killed a Siberian Tiger in my youth. Though killing that tiger was wrong, something I'm not proud of. I'll admit I was rather rash in my youth. I'll also admit I lost a few times, I gained quite a few scars from those I lost to. Namely these two on my face as you can see. I got these beauties after celebrating a little too hard when my dojo opened. You think I'm strong, the person who gave me these scars is considered the strongest in the world. He kicked my ass like it was nothing, that loss along with one other has been on my mind for a very long time. So much that I'm just waiting for a rematch."

What Lynn just heard was insane, she never expected to hear that. It was a lot to process. She thought this guy was strong but if what was saying is true then just who the hell were these guys he was talking about? There were guys out there stronger than Doppo? Lynn couldn't imagine such a thing, she saw the level Doppo was at. The strength and skill he possessed was unimaginable to her, Lynn knew quite a lot about sports and martial arts. They interested her ever since she could remember. She knew a lot of legendary athletes and fighters, whether it was combat sports or actual martial arts. After hearing what Doppo said they almost seemed insignificant now.

She seemed insignificant.

Doubt began to fill Lynn's mind, how could she ever hope to find her brother if she was so weak? All her life she thought she could do anything. That she was the best out of everyone. She used to think that before what happened to her brother, what she did to him. Getting her ass kicked by Doppo was just another wake up call. Could she hope to find her brother? That's all Lynn could think of at that moment.

"From the look on your face, I say you're thinking of some serious stuff."

Breaking away from her lingering doubts, Lynn looked over at Doppo.

"I know that look very well, after getting my ass kicked I had that miserable look. Let an old man give you some advice kid, don't overthink this kind of stuff. While I'm stronger than you, that can all change in time if you want. Losing is part of life after all. Like I told you, I lost my fair share of battles but look at me now. Are you going to stay stuck in the past or are you going to strive towards the future? Because it would such a shame to see such talent go to waste."

Listening to Doppo's words, Lynn was shocked and thought about it. Giving up never really suited her. She hated it as much as losing, unfortunately that's what caused her to end up here. Regardless it didn't matter. Lincoln was still out there; she was never going to find him and try to make up her mistakes by being sorry with herself. She promised to find him no matter what. Finally as whatever doubt she had was replaced with newfound resolve.

"Hehe, there's that fire I saw earlier!" Doppo chuckled. "You know kid, you remind me of myself when I was your age. You look lost and pissed off, I got no idea what you're looking for but I can tell when a person is striving for strength. Tell me, what are you striving for?"

For a moment, the fire Lynn had diminished and was replaced with hesitation. It was Doppo's turn but should she tell him what she was striving for? She only just met him but oddly enough it felt like she could trust him. After debating with herself for a few moments, Lynn finally came to a decision.

"Don't know why I'm telling you this since you're a stranger, what I'm striving for isn't something like being the strongest or greatest." Lynn admitted with a rueful expression. "Long ago I wanted that, to be the best out of everyone. It didn't matter it at what, whether it came to sports or something meaningless and stupid. I always wanted to be the best, it didn't matter how I did it or who got in my way. Long as I can remember that's how it's been for me. It was that kind of attitude that cost me everything."

Closing her eyes for a moment, Lynn started to recollect how she ended here. How her unsporting attitude and superstitions cost her everything. Her reputation, her friends, her chance to live a normal life with her family. With her brother, with Lincoln. However, she threw that all away with one mistake.

"I made a terrible mistake that cost me my brother. It took some time for me to realize what I've done, I wanted to make things right but it was too late. He ran away from us, from me. Can't say I really blame him, after all I put him through hell. It's been a few years since that happen and my family has paid for it everyday. Their lives have been shitty ever since I made my brother leave. They're miserable, I'm miserable. Eventually I decided to stop being sorry for myself and do something about it. I decided I was going to everything in my power to find my brother and bring him home. Doesn't matter who gets in my way, they can be strong just like you but it won't matter. I'll find him and make it up to him, even if it kills me!"

That fire Lynn had was reignited, Doppo could only stare in surprise at the young tomboy. Soon he started to smile.

"Say kid, how about I help you on this mission of yours?"

Lynn was shocked as she looked at Doppo with eyes wide open.

"W-what do you mean help me?"

Doppo kept his smile as he slowly got up and walked over to Lynn, who was still sitting on the grass.

"Decades worth of combat and martial arts training are under my belt. I've fought countless opponents who could have killed me, yet here I am still standing. You've got great potential kid; I dare say more than my own son. Let me train you in the art of Shinshinkai Karate, you'll have to put your mission on hold for a while but I guarantee you when we're done. No one will dare stop you from reaching your goal. So kid, what do you say?"

No one stopping her from reaching her goal, to reach her brother? For a long time it seemed like that something out of her reach. So far Lynn's search had yet to yield any results. With what Doppo had just showed her in terms of skill and strength, it felt almost impossible. That is until Doppo asked to help her. It should have been an easy choice but it wasn't.

More than anything Lynn wanted to find Lincoln but could she put that search on hold just to get stronger? True, it would help her greatly should she run into someone like Doppo. However, was it worth it to have Lincoln slip away farther from her reach? That was the last thing she wanted, how could she put her goal on hold? After everything that's happened, all the suffering and sacrifices. It would all be meaningless if she didn't find Lincoln. For a brief moment, Lynn thought about all the pain and suffering she's caused.

What she put her family through, how her mistake affected them and their lives. It was all her fault which meant it was up to her to make things right. She needed to find Lincoln, even if means she has to put her search on hold for a while.

Lynn made her decision.

Reaching her hand up to Doppo was something didn't Lynn expected to do, she hated asking for help from anyone. However, things change. She needed to change not only for her sake but for her family's too. Whether they liked it or not, Lynn was going to find Lincoln. It didn't matter who gets in her way. She would crush them to reach her goal, to reach her little brother.

Doppo smirked down at Lynn, he accepted her hand and helped her up.

"A little bit of a heads up, I'm a real hard ass of a teacher. If you're going to be my student, then you better be prepared for some hellish training. I won't go easy on you because you're a girl and a brat. You sure you're up for this because I won't tolerate quitters or whiners?"

Instead of a single hint of hesitation Doppo expected to see on Lynn's face. He saw her smirk along with a look of fiery determination.

"When do we start old man?"

With those words uttered, Lynn's journey took an unexpected but welcoming turn that will help her greatly in the future. Eventually Doppo wouldn't be her only mentor, nor would this be the last style of fighting she would learn. Her journey into the world of martial arts was just beginning.

End of Flashback

Once Lynn opened her eyes, they were filled with the same fire and determination that she had when meeting Doppo Orochi. Lynn slowly got into the signature Shinshinkai Karate stance with fists closed. Lucy quickly noticed this and looked a little confused but then her eyes widened in realization. She recognized that stance. At first Lucy thought it was a simple Karate stance, unfortunately that wasn't the case. During her grueling years of training under her mentors, Lucy didn't just trained her body or skills but she also trained her mind. She spent countless hours of studying multiple martial arts, fighting styles, and techniques in case she should ever face such things in the future. She was also quite informed in the underground fighting scene, specifically in Japan. That's how she recognized that stance of Lynn's.

'I wasn't expecting this, how on earth does Lynn know Shinshinkai Karate? There's no way she learned it from here in the states, they only teach it exclusively in Japan. It doesn't make any sense. From what Lori and the others have told me, Lynn has never visited Japan since she only focused her search for Lincoln here. That is unless they were lying or had no idea about it? Nevertheless, it doesn't matter now. All that matters now is this fight.'

The look of realization quickly left Lucy's expression as it was replaced with a serious one. It was quite a sight to see. Two estranged sisters, both trained in deadly martial arts with fists closed and open. The hard and fast striking style of Shinshinkai Karate versus the well-timed and quick grappling and throwing style of Shibukawa-ryu Jujutsu. Fists versus open hands, strength versus softness. What was stranger is that both of their stances were positioned very similar, how their hands were out and how their feet were placed. Another strange thing was how the air felt around them. There was an eerie yet rumbling aura surrounding both girls, like the calm before the storm.

Although both sisters remained silent, the look in their eyes told another story. Their eyes weren't filled with malice or fear but were filled with pride and respect. While the both of them didn't agree with each other on multiple things, mainly concerning their brother. That did not mean they weren't oblivious to each other's accomplishments and strengths. Lynn was proud of how strong and confident Lucy had become, a far cry of what she once was. She also came to respect Lucy's skills and strength which were simply amazing.

For Lucy, it could be said she was also at awe with her older sister and why shouldn't she be?

Lucy could see the power and skill Lynn possessed, which was beyond words for her. The shocking reveal of Lynn's genetic condition only furthered put her in awe. While training under her mentors, Lucy came to recognized and respect pure strength and skill. Something of which Lynn clearly had an abundance of with. Not only that but Lucy came to begrudgingly respect how Lynn remained steadfast to her own beliefs. No matter how misguided they are.

There was no doubt that both Lynn and Lucy respected and acknowledged each other's strength. It was a shame that it took getting into a fight for them to realize this now. Nevertheless, both weren't backing down from this fight. They felt obligated to finish this. Regardless of how it ended.

Some time had passed before either one of them decided to make a move. It was Lucy who unexpected only shuffled an inch towards Lynn. An inch! What was crazier is that Lynn did the same thing. Both remained in their respective stances as they both kept slowly shuffling towards each other. Eventually both stopped as their feet touched and front of their shoes were pressed together. They were so close that any attack would not miss their target, ultimately it would come down to who's attack was quicker. Both locked eyes with each other as they both quickly attacked!

Lynn went for a quick and strong chop aiming for Lucy's neck, while Lucy went for an upper cutting palm strike aimed at Lynn's chin! Both attacks looked like they would hit but before they could, something unexpected happened.

"ENOUGH!"

The conference room doors were slammed wide opened as a loud and familiar voice yelled out! In that moment both sisters halted their attacks by just a few inches from their targets. Neither Lynn or Lucy bothered to look who had interrupted their fight for they already knew who it was.

"Butt out of this Lori, none of this is your freaking business!" Lynn called out while she kept her hardened gaze on Lucy. "This is between me and Lucy!"

"She's right." Lucy stated in a calm and calculating matter, even though her tone was still rather hoarse. "This doesn't concern you, any of you for that matter."

The reason Lucy said that was because she and Lynn could hear multiple sets of footsteps entering the room along with Lori.

"I don't give a damn, both of you are going to stop this right now!" Lori screeched. "I didn't bring us all together so you can continue this bullshit! We're already dealing with enough as it is. Now stop before it involves all of us!"

Both Lynn and Lucy turned to glare at Lori, only to be met with a much fiercer glare. Even though Lori was not a fighter or martial artist, she had a strong and overwhelming aura that gave Lynn and Lucy some pause. Not only that but both saw how each of their sisters were looking at them.

Leni had a look of shock and concern that Luan, Lola, and Lana had as well. While both Luna and Lisa looked on in a mixture of disappointment and worry. This was one of the reasons why Lynn and Lucy picked such a secluded room. Sadly, not secluded enough it seems. Lynn and Lucy's attention returned back on each other. With a disgruntled sigh and frown, it was Lynn who was the first drop her attack and stance completely. Lucy then did the same.

"Screw this, I'm going to get a drink." Lynn announced as she started to head towards the door. However, she stopped to briefly turn around and stare at Lucy with a frown. "Good thing they butted in. For both our sakes."

Lucy said nothing as she narrowed her eyes at Lynn before coughing roughly in her hand with a pained expression. Lynn kept frowning as she turned around resuming her walk towards the door. Understandably some of the Loud sisters gave her a wide berth, those being only Luan and Lola. The others simply watched Lynn walk past them with contrasting expressions. The only thing that was constant was the look in their eyes, which was that of concern or disappointment.

When Lynn left the room, Lucy fell down to one knee and started to cough uncontrollably. Everyone quickly looked over to their fallen sister, who was clearly injured. Lisa, Leni, and Lola quickly came to her aid.

"Where are you hurt?" Lisa quickly asked as she and Leni slowly helped Lucy up. Lucy stopped coughing and gestured to her towards her chest. After hearing this, Lisa let out a sigh and shook her head slightly. "You most likely have broken ribs, hopefully nothing is ruptured or that you have internal bleeding. We won't know for sure until we get you some proper medical care. Fortunately for you I am also a trained and licensed physician, I also have proper medical equipment sent up in my suite. I knew sooner or later one of you nincompoops would injure yourselves or each other."

Not wanting to argue with her younger sister's logic or dispute her claim, Lucy stayed silent and nodded.

"Leni and Lola, if you would please help me get our sister upstairs. I would greatly appreciate the assistance."

"Yeah, I'd totally be happy to help out."

"Same here, just don't get any blood on my clothes please."

Lisa and Leni then began to help Lucy out of the room with Lola following close behind. Each of their sisters gave Lucy a look of worry and hoped she was okay as Lisa and the others left the room. Before leaving however, Lisa narrowed her eyes at Lori with a frown. Lori remained quite calm and only sighed as Lisa and the others left the room. The only ones left in the room were Lori, Luna, Luan, and Lana. Speaking of Lana, the large and beefy tomboy growled under her breath. She then started to leave but was stopped by Lori.

"Hold it, don't even think about it. Last thing we need is you and Lynn tearing down the hotel. Go with the others and check on Lynn."

"You gotta being shitting me if you think we're letting this slide!"

Lori didn't take too kindly of Lana's tone and shot her a rather intense glare.

"We aren't but we don't need any more unnecessary drama. Not here and especially not now, not when we're so close to reaching Lincoln. Now, you will act calm and rationally about this. Do you understand?"

Lana scowled while looking down at Lori defiantly. That is until Lori walked right up to the large tomboy to give her a very unnerving look. Quickly Lana's expression eased up, she huffed and nodded.

"Fine, but you better knock some sense into Lynn. I'm done watching this family slowly tear itself apart."

After saying that, Lana left the room in a sour mood. Now it was just Lori, Luna, and Luan.

"Um, shouldn't we tell Lynn and Lucy about Lincoln?" Luan meekly asked looking at both Lori and Luna. "Because not-it on telling Lynn."

Soon as Luan finished saying that, Lori groaned while slowly face palming herself. Luna looked at both her sisters and smiled reassuringly.

"I'll handle Lynn, you guys check in and fill in Lucy on what's happening."

"Are you positive you can handle Lynn?" Lori asked with a bit of concern. "She can be very difficult, especially when she's drinking."

Without a hint of doubt on her smile, Luna left the room while giving a thumbs up. Luan sighed a little and soon followed after Luna.

"Where are you going?"

"To make sure Luna can handle Lynn, I think it's time to catch up and talk anyways." Luan murmured with a hesitant look. "If things go sideways, I could use a drink too. Catch you later Lori."

Didn't take long for Luan to leave the room, leaving Lori completely alone in the wrecked room. Lori wasn't worried about the damages since she could easily pay for them. The only thing that weighed heavy on her mind was what just happened between Lynn and Luan. Despite all her careful planning, Lori did not anticipate this would happen. She should have known better. Given how stubborn and aggressive Lynn could get, and what crazy training she and some of their sisters went through.

Fighting would have been inevitable.

Tempers are flaring, there's no doubt the closer they get to Lincoln the more intense it will be. With Lily leaving only making things more complicated. Still, that was nothing she didn't foresee. It was only a matter time Lisa's guilty conscious would get the better of her. Nevertheless, none of it mattered. Soon her plan will come to fruition, it will not be easy but it will be worth it.

All the pain and lost she and their family had suffered, not just them but those close to them. Eventually it would all be worth it.

'It has to be…'

With that final thought, Lori had a sorrowful expression as she unknowingly reached down to her belly and gently touched it. Lynn and the others weren't the only ones with scars, Lori had some that ran deeper than anyone could possibly imagine. Her thoughts went to a happier time, when she wasn't alone. When she had someone that stood beside her, when someone truly loved her.

She often thought about him more than Lincoln, Lori truly missed those simpler days.

Meanwhile Downstairs

To be completely honest, Lynn was not feeling all that great. She was hurt, no doubt about that. It had been a long time since Lynn had truly felt this way. While she had gotten in many fights, there were only a notable few that left her like this. In pain and in need of a stiff drink. It was crazy but that fight with Lucy reminded Lynn of her old training days, where she got her ass kicked quite often. Oddly enough, this wasn't such a bad feeling. Sure, it sucked to be hurt but it was a really good fight. A real shame it ended the way it did. Probably for the best though, things were getting really serious in that fight.

Best to leave it a draw, even though they both wanted to end it right there. Lynn knew that Lucy was holding some serious stuff back just like her. They weren't fighting with everything they got because if they were. There's no way either one of them would have walked away from that fight.

'Lucy really has grown up, I'm proud of her.'

The only thing Lynn wished was that she had the nerve to say that to Lucy. Sadly, it didn't feel right, especially now. With a deep frown and sour mood, Lynn took a shot of her whisky as she used napkins to wipe away any remaining blood on her. The bar wasn't that full and those who were there gave her a wide berth. For good reason since she wasn't in the mood. The bartender gave her a mildly concern look as she took a seat at the bar and ordered her drink. Soon as she gave him a hard glare, he quickly did his job and left her alone with her drink.

"Wow, you sure look like a bloody mess little sis."

Turning her head, Lynn was surprised to see Luna walking towards her with a cheeky smirk. Lynn tried her best to hold her snort of annoyance but failed as she rolled her eyes and went back to drinking. Luna didn't seem offended as she took a seat at the counter right next to Lynn. Which didn't make Lynn happy one bit. Unfortunately, things only seemed to get worse for Lynn because Luna wasn't the only one to join her. For Luan had showed up out of nowhere taking the other empty seat next Lynn.

"Hope you two don't mind me dropping in?"

Luna smiled and nodded at Luan, who gladly returned the gesture. Meanwhile Lynn had groaned before taking a long drink from her whisky.

"Hey bartender, I'll take a margarita for myself and a club soda with a splash of cranberry juice for my sister here." Luan called out to the bartender, earning her an odd look from Luna. "Trust me, it's good. Maggie has it whenever we go out on dates at our local bar. It's also got no alcohol, so win-win."

Deciding to take her sister's word for it, Luna shrugged and waited for her drink. The bartender soon stopped by and gave them their respective drinks. Luan quickly drank her margarita and let out a satisfied sigh. Luna looked down at her drink with a little hesitation before taking a sip. Surprisingly, it tasted quite nice. Resulting in Luna happily enjoying her non-alcoholic drink. The bartender left the trio of sisters and went back to doing his other duties.

To say it was awkward would be an understatement, the trio of Loud sisters were silent as they drank. Neither of them knew what to say. It had been years since they had a proper talk with each other. While Luna and Luan had no problem talking, the problem was Lynn. As more time past the more of Lynn's patience wavered until she had enough.

"Okay, what the hell do you two want?"

At first both Luna and Luan looked at each before looking at Lynn.

"Just checking in on you." Luna answered rather softy laced with concern. "You and Lucy really beat the shit out of each other."

Before taking another drink, Lynn snorted softy.

"How is she?"

"Oh well, you know Lucy. She'll be okay." Luna stated with a smile. "She's a lot tougher than we think. Besides, she has Lisa looking over her."

Without saying another word, Lynn took another drink but her expression softened after hearing that. She was really glad Lucy will be okay. It may have been strange since they just had a rough fight just a little while ago but Lynn still cared for Lucy. Even though she didn't show it.

"What about you?" Luan asked looking over at Lynn with worry. "Are you alright?"

Letting out a slight chuckle, Lynn used a napkin to blow her nose. A small amount of blood coming out when she did it.

"I'll admit I took an asskicking from little miss doom and gloom but I'll live." Lynn smiled sadly while taking a long look at her drink, clearly deep in thought. "You guys not gonna ask why we did it? Call us stupid or put the blame on me?"

Neither Luna or Luan said nothing until Luna finally spoke.

"Nope, you both knew what you were doing. With how things were going between you two I'm kind of surprised you guys didn't beat the crap of out of each other sooner. I hope this helped work out some of the shit between you two. You and Lucy aren't little kids anymore… besides I think I'm the last person to tell you guys what's right or wrong."

As Luna finished saying that, she looked very bothered by something. She took a look around the bar and frowned.

"It's been about 7 years since I've been in a bar, funny thing is that it doesn't feel that long ago." Luna admitted recalling how she ended up here. "It wasn't easy giving it up, not just drinking but a whole lot of stuff. For the longest time I asked myself, why? Why the hell did I do so much stupid shit?"

Luna looked down at her drink and saw her reflection on the surface of her cranberry juice. It wasn't a perfect reflection yet Luna saw herself with a mournful frown.

"To be honest, I think I just wanted to feel good. With what was happening not only to me but our whole family I just felt empty. That's the closest thing I can describe what I felt. In those early days I was just so focused on my music and constantly thinking about Lincoln and what happened. It started to gnaw at me so much that I finally lost it. The fame and bandmates got into my head but it was ultimately me who let it happen. First it was the drinking, then the drugs, and then it was the sex. All of it was a real blur but I knew what I was doing and I didn't seem to care. Not deep down at least but I didn't stop. Eventually it took its toll and I just lost myself in the craziness of it all. I lost a lot during that whole bullshit, I lost my career, whatever little friends I did have, and I lost whatever self-respect I had left. What hurt most though was almost losing my family, you guys."

Just as Luna as done saying that, she took a drink from her fruity drink. It wasn't easy remembering everything she did while her life came crashing down. She was in a real mess yet she didn't really care. Just like the rest of her family, it hurt when it dawned on her what she did to Lincoln. The aftermath of that whole mess only pushed her further down that dark path. Losing her friends, Chuck, and Sam hurt but it was losing her baby brother that hurt more than anything. It left a big hole in her life that she tried to fill it with whatever made her felt good. While it may have helped for a little while, none of it helped her in the end.

"I was slowly destroying myself, I didn't really care. I lost so much already I stopped giving a damn. Constantly I thought to myself, what more could I lose? Apparently a lot more than I thought. You guys already know I ended in a bad way, it almost got me raped… just because I wanted a quick fix. I can't describe how scared I was during that whole thing, nothing is more scary than having your clothes being ripped off while a group of men try and force themselves on you. What's scarier is that no matter how much you try to fight back only to find it doesn't help and they hurt you more. That feeling of terror is something I don't wish on anyone. Just as it was about to get worse, when I lost all hope. Someone saved me, I don't know who or why but they showed up in my time of need. They saved me from something terrible, after I woke up, I knew I was in desperate need of help. I'm grateful it was my mentor Mokichi Robinson who helped me, but I'm more grateful that it was my family who helped when I thought I pushed them away."

The expression on Luna's face soften as she looked over at her sisters. After hearing everything Luna told them, both Lynn and Luan were pretty shaken by what they heard. Luan looked at Luna with clear worry and warmth. While Lynn lowered her head and gripped her drink so tight that it threatened to break. Thankfully Luna placed a much-needed hand on Lynn's shoulder.

"It's in the past now Lynn, it took a long time for me to get over that but I learned from it and it made me stronger. Although corny as it sounds, I found strength through God and my training. Most importantly I found strength in my family, it's because of that I hope that someday we will all be together again. I pray that will happen sooner now that we know Lincoln is close."

No words came from Lynn as she thought about Luna's words. It was a lot to take in, she heard about what happened to Luna. At the time Lynn was still training and searching for Lincoln but when she heard what happened. Never in Lynn's life had she felt such rage. She wanted nothing to do more than travel to England and check on Luna but also personally find and castrate the ones who tried to rape Luna. Her mentor at the time stopped her so she could finish her training. Of course Lynn didn't listen to reason and tried to go anyways. A swift asskicking from her mentor at the time and a severe talking from Lori on the phone stopped her.

Still though, it pained Lynn not to be there for her sister in her time of need. The anguish she felt only propelled in new heights in her training. However, Lynn felt like that Luna's fall from grace and attempted rape was her fault. If she hadn't pushed for everyone to ignore and fear Lincoln, none of this would have happened.

"I know that face Lynn, you're thinking this all your fault again."

Caught by surprise, Lynn looked to see that it was Luan who had said it.

"It's been so long but you still act like a kid sometimes. What happened isn't just on you. We all pushed away and ignored Lincoln, you might have been more vocal than all of us but we're all to blame. Do you think you're the only who doesn't blame themselves for what happened? For a long time, I hated myself for what happened. I hated myself so much that I almost stopped talking, when was the last time either of you could remember I told a joke or pun? Slap some dark make-up and clothes on me and you'd get a gloomier version of Lucy. When Lincoln was gone from our lives… all the joy in my life went with him. I lost a lot during that time like the rest of you, one of them being my smile."

Upon finishing, Luan pulled out her phone and looked at her home screen wallpaper. Which was a picture of her and a beautiful dark-haired woman giving her a kiss on the cheek while Luan was smiling. Seeing this caused Luan to smile as she soon showed the picture to Luna and Lynn.

"It took a while but I found my reason to smile again, I know it sounds cheesy but when I met Maggie. I got some of that joy back along with my smile. I still regret every day for what we did to Lincoln, just like the rest of you I hope we can finally be together again. Because when this is all over, I want Lincoln to meet the love of my life… the person I hope to spend my whole life with in both sickness and health."

Both Luna and Lynn weren't expecting to hear that, they certainly weren't expecting for what happened next. Luan pulled out a little black box and opened it showing them what's inside. Which was black diamond heart engagement ring! The look of pure shock on both Luna and Lynn's faces were priceless as Luan giggled with a smile.

"What can I say, marriage sure has a nice ring to it."

Was it a terrible pun, maybe? However, both Luna and Lynn surprised Luan by laughing. Luna got up from her seat and got in-between both Luan and Lynn and pulled them both into a big hug. What was more surprising was that Lynn didn't pull away or groan at the sudden display of affection. It was like her attitude did a complete 180 and why shouldn't it? She just found out her sister plans on purposing to her girlfriend, while Lynn might have considered herself the baddest bitch on the planet. Deep down she still had a soft side.

Was it an odd sight given how they all got here, perhaps? Luna and Luan knew they needed to tell Lynn about Lincoln but why not just enjoy the moment for now. So, both Luna and Luan decided to hold off telling Lynn the news until later. Better to enjoy the movement while they can. After all, it happened quite some time since they could just act like sisters.

Upstairs, Lisa's Suite

"So, I guess Lincoln has really changed."

Lucy was staring down at Leni's phone as it played the video showing Lincoln's fight. Just like everyone else, Lucy was very shocked. She didn't expect this to be how she would see her brother again. Even though the video quality wasn't all that great but it was clear enough for Lucy and the others to know that their brother was in it. What probably shocked them even more was the fact it was Lincoln and he was in a fight, a very serious one too it seems. From what Lucy saw in the video, she could tell that Lincoln was trained given how he fought. She could also tell he was strong, very strong.

"It's strange… after so long I never thought this is how we'd first see him." Lucy stated still keeping her attention on the video as the fight played out. "He's grown, I expect he's taller than all of us but is just a bit shorter than Lana though to be fair there aren't a lot of people taller than Lana. He looks good, all things considered."

At the moment, Lucy was sitting on Lisa's large bed as the young genius was checking out her injuries. Leni and Lola were sitting on some chairs close by watching Lucy with worried looks while Lana was standing by looking out the nearest large window overlooking the city with a troubled expression. When they arrived to Lisa's suite, they were shocked to see there was already medical equipment scattered around the large suite. A lot of it looked expensive and difficult to move, how Lisa managed to get into room was a mystery? First thing they did once here was getting Lucy checked out in Lisa's portable CT scanner which was rather large even though it was portable. After that they brought Lucy to Lisa's bed where Lisa began to read what the scanner had detected and to see if Lucy's injuries were serious.

"From the CT data I've gathered and my own medical expertise, you have 3 fractured ribs and a bruised lung on your left side. Thankfully you don't have anything bleeding internally. While fractured ribs and a pulmonary contusion are serious, I have everything here to help with treatment. First things first, start breathing deeply and coughing to help clear the air passages from mucus and blood. Although it will be unpleasant, I assure you it will help make sure you don't have any serious complications. Do that while I go get the medicine to help with the pain."

Knowing it was best to trust Lisa, Lucy did as she was told and forced herself to cough. It hurt of course but she trusted Lisa, while Lucy was doing that. Lisa left her side to go and gather medicine necessary to help. As Lucy was doing this she handed Leni's phone back to her, Leni looked at her phone which was showing the end of Lincoln's fight.