The Rebellion Burns Bright

December 15th, 1788
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the United States of America

"Benedict! Over here!"

Benedict Arnold Junior, a "sophomore" at the Tybee Marine Academy, looked towards the source of the voice and found Richard sitting with Henry and another man that he had never seen before. The three of them were sitting around a table just outside a "restaurant," a new type of establishment that sold food and beverages from a set "menu." Apparently, it was another idea created by his "uncle" and was popular in the capital. His "uncle" had built the restaurant, named "Koam," while he was at the Academy so he was both excited and mystified by what the restaurant had to offer.

"Come on Andy, let's go join them," Benedict said to his senior at the Academy.

Andrew Jackson was a year older than Benedict Arnold Jr. and was a respected member of the Tybee Marine Academy. He came from a fairly impoverished family back in North Carolina but entered Tybee Academy with a recommendation from Benedict's adoptive father. Andrew was brash and blunt, but he was also a leader who looked after his fellow Marines. Despite his rather harsh attitude at times, he acted very maturely and was well-respected by his peers. The two of them became quick friends after meeting each other through a meeting set by the president and often studied together back at the Academy. When they first met each other, Benedict was surprised to learn that Andrew, who was only a year older than him, fought with his adoptive father on the front lines during the War of Independence. Apparently, Andrew joined the former Marine general's army group in South Carolina eleven years ago and fought with the Marines until the end of the war, making him one of the youngest Marines to ever fight in combat (though Jackson admitted that he only fired his gun five times during the entire war). As such, the Marine from North Carolina told Benedict the stories about then-General Kim and the battles he fought in during the war. While he heard plenty of stories about the war from his uncle, Benedict was eager to hear the stories from another point of view.

The two made their way to the table Benedict's brothers were sitting at and took their seats in front of them. Richard and Henry gave their eldest brother a firm handshake and looked at the menu while they talked, "So how's Tybee?"

"It's great. I'm doing really well. I might be able to graduate early at the rate I'm going," Benedict replied, "How's Westpoint?"

Richard shrugged, "Pretty good. Oh yeah, let me introduce you to my classmate at Westpoint. This is Napoleon, Napoleon Bonapart."

"Please, call me Nathaniel," Napoleon said with a smile as he shook Benedict's and Arnold's hands, "You're the eldest son of the president, correct?"

"Well, he's more of an uncle to us, but yes. I'm Benedict Arnold Jr. Nice to meet you. And this is my senior from Tybee, Andrew Jackson. He's from North Carolina."

Pleasantries were further exchanged and the five of them took some time to look at the menus in front of them. The food choices on the menu were interesting. There were a variety of Korean foods offered (such as some marinated meat dish called "bulgogi" and "fish pancakes") along with some original dishes such as "pizza" and "Philly fries." The ingredients used for each dish were listed in small texts below the dish names and the price for the dishes was also listed as well. After some consideration, Benedict decided on the fried rice with bulgogi. Each individual ordered a unique dish to try and decided to share a pizza together.

"So, do we go up to the owner and order or?" Benedict asked confusedly.

"Nah, watch," Henry said as he waved to a man dressed in neat, black clothing, "Waiter! We'll like to make an order please."

After the waiter walked over to the table, Henry repeated the dishes that the individuals wanted to order to the waiter and the man jotted down the order on a small notepad. He nodded his head and thanked him before walking off. A minute later, they were all served water and utensils for their dishes.

"This is nice. And I assume that they'll be delivering the food directly to us too?"

"Yeah, the food takes some time to come out, but it's worth the wait," Henry answered, "Now, we haven't seen each other in a while, so I want to hear all of your guy's stories in detail. I'm still deciding between Westpoint and Tybee."

"Westpoint is better." "Tybee is superior" The two other Arnolds answered simultaneously.

"Our current president was a Marine, and one of the best too. Tybee is also very nice, it's always pretty warm and has a nice view of the ocean. The training is tough, but it's rewarding and the people are really friendly there. We're practically like a huge family," The eldest declared.

Richard rolled his eyes, "Your bias for uncle is showing. The Marines are great, but the Army is better. General Washington was one of the best officers during the war too, and he was in the Army. Besides, Westpoint is also nice and it's only a day's trip from New York City. The closest city to Tybee is Savannah, which is small enough to be called a town. Besides, the Army cleans up the mess created by the Marines."

The two brothers bickered while Nathaniel looked at Jackson, "Personally, I was deciding between the Army, the Navy, and the Marines, but I decided on the Army. They have some fascinating artillery weapons, such as the Hwachas, and I wanted to study them up close."

"You're an artilleryman then?" Jackson asked, which was met with a nod, "Well good for you. Personally, I joined the Marines because I was a Marine when I was nine."

"Nine?"

"I joined President Kim's army group down in South Carolina during the War of Independence as a drummer. Decided to continue my career in the military after I grew up."

"Is he as great as everyone says?"

"He's certainly great, just not a God-like some people portray him as," Jackson chuckled.

Nathaniel sighed, "I would like to meet him one day, but unfortunately, he's a very busy man. I heard the Hwachas were first created in Korea and that the rifled cannons that we use were partially developed by him. He sounds like a fascinating man."

"Well, perhaps we can ask one of the Arnold brothers for a meeting with him. Though, I'm not entirely sure if that's possible given his circumstances these days. His wife has given birth to their third child and he has to deal with those damn Europeans," Jackson grumbled.

Nathaniel raised his eyebrows, "I'm from Europe."

"Ah well, mostly directed towards the Brits," Jackson shrugged, "Too bad they came out in better shape than France or Spain. I heard that after the chaotic peace deal, Britain acquired Cuba in exchange for a few of their Leeward Islands. Seems like all the nations involved were on the verge of exhaustion."

"Not too surprising, since they fought for years and devastated their colonies. But the president is probably busy helping the next president get adjusted to the workload of the presidency. After all, the future president has been staying in the Presidential Mansion since his election..."

The conversations came to an end when the food arrived. Benedict looked at his dish and grinned, "That smells and looks delicious."

"Wait until you try some of the other new restaurants that have been opening up nearby. There's a Creole restaurant a few blocks from here and they have some of the meanest stew you'll ever try," Henry mentioned.

All of them dug into their food, blissfully unaware that the five of them would become some of the most well-known figures in American history...